Time for the Lakers to Take Some Tests
Enough with the taco games, it's time for the Lakers to be challenged.
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LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 04: Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers celebrates after making a basket and being fouled in the process against the Miami Heat in the fourth quarter at Staples Center on December 4, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. The Lakers defeated the Heat 108-107. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)
How good have the Lakers been playing? How dominant have they been? So much so that when a reporter asked the ultra-driven perfectionist Kobe Bryant the other day what the team needed to improve, he said basically nothing right now.
They have looked fantasitc, but largely against inferior competition — by and large the Lakers have earned their 16-3 record on their home floor and against a series of weaker opponents. That is about to change — the Lakers are about to really get tested.
That starts tonight when thee Utah Jazz come to Staples center. Then after a pretty soft game against former Lakers coach Kurt Rambis and his Timberwolves Friday night the Lakers head out on a five-game road trip (starting in Utah Saturday). They return home for a Christmas Day game against LeBron James, Shaq and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
We’re about to see what the Lakers are really made of.
The soft schedule start turned out to have great timing for the Lakers. First Pau Gasol was out for 11 games with a hamstring injury. Plus the Lakers needed time to blend Ron Artest into the offensive flow, something that has really started to happen in recent games.
While all this has happened, the Lakers have been racking up taco nights for the fans, at one point winning six games in a row where they scored 100 points and kept their opponents under 100. The double-digit wins became routine. Almost boring.
The Lakers have had a few challenges. There was the Miami Heat last Friday — the Heat are an up and down team (they beat Orlando and Denver already this season) and the Lakers got their best shot. It took a dramatic Kobe buzzer beater to win, but the Lakers responded. The Lakers have also destroyed Phoenix twice (although in both cases the Suns were in the second game of a back-to-back). The Lakers have risen to meet virtually every challenge, especially since the return of Gasol.
But now the challenges get tougher. And that’s a good thing. For these Lakers what matters is sharpening themselves throughout the season so they peak during the playoffs. You can’t sharpen a knife on a soft sponge, you need something hard. The Lakers need hard tests to really sharpen their game. They need some adversity to overcome. They need to play in front of hostile crowds.
It’s about time for that to start — it will be more fun to watch than another taco game.
Kurt Helin doesn't like tests and runs the NBA/Lakers blog Forum Blue & Gold (which you can also follow in twitter).
