Laid Back Lakers
This is all pretty random, but for the most part that’s what all my blogs are about anyway, right?
I just thought I’d throw in some observations on the reigning NBA champion L.A. Lakers, who lost to the Jazz at ESA, Saturday.
First, I still think the Lakers are headed for another title. Kobe Bryant was nauseous and had a broken finger, and the game was on the road, yet still the Lakers kept in striking distance.
My second thought is that the Lakers aren’t all that worried – as I indicated in my Sunday column.
They see a team like the Jazz and pretty much know when it gets down to playoff time, they match up wonderfully. I doubt the Lakers are worried in the least if they have to meet Utah in the post-season. Maybe part of my opinion was due to Phil Jackson’s laid-back attitude after Saturday’s loss. He was pleasant, unhurried and insightful.
Jackson can be condescending, but Saturday wasn’t one of those days. I noticed a camera person and reporter from a college station in the locker room and was surprised to see Jackson sitting on a training table just chatting up the students, as pleasant as can be. The camera wasn’t even rolling. They were just chatting.
Interesting.
You wouldn’t expect a coach with all the titles Jackson has to give the time of day to the student TV station.
Lastly, was my observations on Ron Artest. He reminds me of Dennis Rodman. Besides both being notorious bad boys, both are fairly soft spoken with the media. But as the L.A. writers say, Artest – and Rodman — can produce great copy.
Those types of players may annoy fans and even disrupt teams, but they’re a gift for a reporter looking for a colorful story. Which brings up another comparison: Neither Rodman nor Artest is great copy every night. But when they do say something wild, it can be really wild.