Without Kobe Bryant, the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Orlando Magic 101-84 in a game neither team benefited from winning.
With both teams near the bottom of the league, the victory left the Lakers level with the Magic in the standings and only half a game behind Detroit in the wins column. Still holding onto the fourth worst record in the NBA, the Lakers benefit from finishing in the bottom five. If the Lakers do not earn a top-five draft pick at season's end, the Phoenix Suns will take over the Lakers' pick as part of the Steve Nash trade.
Speaking of Nash, he was recently impersonating Spiderman in Argentina.
Back to Friday night at Staples Center, the Lakers responded positively to Bryant sitting out due to rest. Previously, the Lakers were 1-3 without their star player, but the team had played well in a tough loss to the Portland Trail Blazers only four days earlier. The official announcement that no. 24 would miss his fifth game of the season came less than two hours before tip-off. Guard Nick Young claimed not to know that Bryant was out when he arrived at the arena.
Once the ball went up, the Lakers got off to a fast start and quickly led by double digits before ending the quarter with a nine-point lead. Offensive balance became easy to identify early in the game, as seven different players had at least one bucket after 12 minutes.
In the second quarter, the Lakers continued to spread the scoring around, and nine of the 10 Lakers who got onto the court had at least one point. Wayne Ellington, who started in place of Bryant at shooting guard, finished the half 0-5 from the field.
After the intermission, Ellington would hit his first two shots, and the Lakers' attacking balance would continue into the second half. Tarik Black, who recently joined the Lakers, would be the last available Laker to hit the court. Almost immediately, Black also got on the board.
However, the lack of continuity kept the home team from gaining a comfortable cushion, and the Magic drew to within six points after three quarters.
In the final period, Black found his groove. In his first 11 minutes the rookie score 13 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Along with Carlos Boozer, Black led the Lakers' bench on a run that would put the game away. With four minutes to play, the Lakers suddenly led by 17 points.
The remainder of the game served as a showcase of Black's talents. He blocked shots, pulled down rebounds, made free throws and did about everything else to make the crowd "ooh" and "aah." Black would finish with 14 points and 9 rebounds in 17 minutes.
Notes: Jeremy Lin finished with 18 points, which was a game-high. Six different Lakers scored in double figures. The Lakers out-rebounded the Magic 60-36. Everyone won tacos.
