Lakers' Odom gives back to community

Lamar Odom, known among his teammates as a caring and giving person, reached out to the local community Monday after Lakers practice, visiting the City of Hope in Duarte.

Odom, along with his wife, reality TV star Khloe Kardashian, visited a children's cancer unit in Duarte and passed out toys and passed along the holiday spirit.

Odom did the event through his charity, Cathy's Kids Foundation, which he has dedicated to underprivileged youth and to cancer research.

Odom started the foundation in 2004 in memory of his mother, Cathy Mercer, who died from cancer when he was 12.

-- Broderick Turner

Photo: Lamar Odom and wife Khloe Kardashian arrive for a benefit in Los Angeles last month. Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Lakers prepare for high-scoring Knicks

The Lakers have won their last three games, by 13, 15 and 16 points.

The 16-point victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday night looked easy.

But the Lakers aren't looking at every opponent that way.

Sure, their next opponent, the New York Knicks, are one of the worst teams in the NBA.

But the Lakers had a practice Monday in which they went hard.

"It's about peaks and valleys," Kobe Bryant said. "A couple of games we might struggle, then we pick it back up."

The Knicks are averaging 101.4 points per game, ninth best in the NBA.

But the Knicks are giving up 107.9 points, the second most in the NBA.

-- Broderick Turner

Erin Andrews' accused stalker pleads not guilty

The man accused of making nude videos of ESPN reporter Erin Andrews pleaded not guilty to interstate stalking in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles today.

Michael Barrett, an Illinois insurance executive, is free on bail after posting a $100,000 bond last week. U.S. Magistrate Judge Carolyn Turchin said Barrett posed a threat to the public and that his actions were calculated, cunning and secretive.

The 48-year-old is accused of secretly taping Andrews through a peephole after following her to three hotels. He allegedly tried to sell the videos to TMZ.

Barrett's attorney said his client regrets the circumstances leading to the charges. Barrett has no criminal record.

If convicted, Barrett could face up to five years in prison.

-- Austin Knoblauch

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Photo: Michael Barrett arrives at his arraignment in Los Angeles on Friday. Credit: Reed Saxon / Associated Press

Lakers' Andrew Bynum misses another practice

For the second consecutive day, Lakers center Andrew Bynum was unable to practice because of an injured ankle.

Bynum, who rolled his right ankle during Thursday night's game against the Chicago Bulls, said after Friday's practice that he would play Sunday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Staples Center.

But Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said after practice Saturday that they weren't "sure" if Bynum would play.

Bynum will be a game-time decision.

-- Broderick Turner

Photo: Lakers center Andrew Bynum gets inside Chicago's defense for a layup on Thursday night. Credit: Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times

Lakers' Pau Gasol says he'll play Thursday against Bulls

Pau Gasol, who missed the first 11 regular-season games with a strained right hamstring, said after practice today that he will play Thursday night.

Gasol had a good practice and said he felt comfortable enough to play against the Chicago Bulls at Staples Center.

Gasol has missed a little over five weeks with the injury, which he sustained during training camp.

When asked if he was a go for Thursday night's game, Gasol responded:

"I really hope so. I really do. I think that I'll be able to go tomorrow. It felt great today."

Gasol said  he is concerned about his conditioning and wasn't sure how many minutes he would play.

"I'd be happy if he played 25," Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said about the minutes he expects to play Gasol.

-- Broderick Turner

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Photo: Pau Gasol. : Credit: Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images

Lakers making improvement on injuries

The Lakers got good news Monday on two injury fronts.

Pau Gasol, out with a strained right hamstring, practiced today and said that if all goes well the next couple of days, "hopefully I can play on Thursday."

Kobe Bryant, who has a strained right groin that limited him during Sunday night's game, practiced today. Bryant said he will play Tuesday night against the Detroit Pistons at Staples Center.

"It was tight and stuff like that, but it wasn't enough to keep me out of there," Bryant said after practice.

Gasol, who has been out for almost five weeks with the injury, did some full-court action at practice, saying afterward that it was "a very positive day."

Gasol said he hopes to practice again Wednesday, to see where his hamstring stands then.

Luke Walton didn't practice today because of a sore back and probably won't play Tuesday night.

After getting out-rebounded Sunday night by the undersized Houston Rockets, who start a 6-6 center in Chuck Hayes, Lakers Coach Phil Jackson wanted his players to work on rebounding.

The Rockets collected 60 rebounds, 13 offensive, including two by guard Kyle Lowry in the fourth quarter.

The Lakers, on the other hand, had just 38 rebounds.

There was a moment during the Lakers' scrimmage today when Josh Powell got an offensive rebound. Jackson let his players know about that.

"That's what beat us last night, guys," Jackson barked. "You guys have to get the ball. Get the ball!"

-- Broderick Turner

Bryant still way short of NBA's top scoring honor

Kobe Bryant became the youngest player in NBA history to score 24,000 points Friday night. He passed Allen Iverson for 16th on the league's all-time scoring list.

Bryant now has a total of 24,027 points during his 14-year career.

Still, he's 14,360 points behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the all-time record of 38,387.

Abdul-Jabbar accomplished his feat over a 20-year career. He retired at 42.

Bryant is 31 and might have to play until he's 40-something to surpass Abdul-Jabbar to be the NBA's scoring king.

"The question is, do I want to play until I'm 40?" Bryant said after practice Saturday. "That's the question."

-- Broderick Turner

Photo: Lakers guard Kobe Bryant drives around Memphis' Sam Young during Friday night's game. Credit: Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times

Lakers vs. Grizzlies: Kobe Bryant makes history again in a victory

There were two milestones for Kobe Bryant on Friday night during the Lakers' 114-98 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies at Staples Center.

By scoring 41 points, Bryant became the youngest player in NBA history to score at least 24,000 points. And he passed Allen Iverson for 16th on the NBA's all-time scoring list.

Bryant has 24,027 points in his 14-year career.

Friday night marked the third time this week Bryant has scored 41 points in a game. He did so against Atlanta on Sunday and Houston on Wednesday.

Bryant made 19 of 30 field-goal attempts against Memphis.

Iverson, who now plays for Memphis, had just eight points.

 

The Lakers looked more serious tonight in the third quarter, much more so than they looked in the first half.

The Lakers opened an 87-75 lead entering the fourth quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies.

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Bryant had 31 points through three quarters and Ron Artest had 19 points.

The Lakers' bench was productive, getting nine points from Josh Powell and five rebounds and six assists from Luke Walton through three quarters.

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Even with Bryant making history in the first half in which he became the youngest player in NBA history to score 24,000 points, the Lakers trailed the Grizzlies, 51-49, at the half.

Bryant scored 16 points in the first half, giving him 24,002 points during his 14-year career.

The Lakers shot just 37.7% in the first half, while Memphis made 48.9% of its shots.

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Early on, Bryant looked intent on scoring.

Bryant was on the attack from the beginning of the game, going at O.J. Mayo and his replacements, drawing foul fouls on them.

Bryant had 10 points in the first, helping the Lakers open a 25-22 lead over the Memphis Grizzlies Friday night at Staples Center.

DJ Mbenga, starting at center in place of Andrew Bynum (strained right elbow) gave the Lakers a defensive presence and a strong rebounder.

Mbenga collected nine rebounds in the first quarter. He also picked up two fouls and was forced to take a seat on the bench.

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The Lakers are without the services of their two big men tonight against the Memphis Grizzlies.

Bynum missed his first game of the season with a strained right elbow and Pau Gasol missed his sixth consecutive games with a strained right hamstring.

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Lakers television color commentator Stu Lantz suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee and will have surgery on Monday.

When asked how long he'll be out after the surgery, Lantz responded: "I'll be back Thursday. I'm old-school. I play hurt."

Lantz laughed. He won't miss any games.

He did Friday night's game and will do Sunday's game.

The Lakers don't play again until Thursday, when they face the Phoenix Suns at Staples Center.

Lantz will have three days to recover before he's due back at work.

-- Broderick Turner

Photo: Lakers forward Ron Artest goes up for a dunk in the second quarter Friday night. Credit: Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times

Chris Dufresne: USA Today coaches reverse call on secret ballot decision

It's been a tough year in the replay booth, but college football finally got one right when coaches in the USA Today poll today  overturned a decision made last off season to quit making their final ballots public in the final Bowl Championship Series standings.

There was "irrefutable proof'' this was the correct call and that the coaches had no choice but to do this or risk getting tossed out of the BCS starting in 2010.

The American Football Coaches Assn. last January commissioned Gallup to  find ways to improve the USA Today poll. Gallup suggested the AFCA could produce a more accurate index if the coaches made their votes anonymously.

Well, isn't this just what the coaches wanted to hear!

Most coaches never wanted their votes made public to begin with. They were forced into transparency after some suspect secret vote juggling in 2004 involving a BCS bowl berth battle between Texas and California. In one of the BCS's darkest chapters, Texas edged Cal by a slim points margin for the Rose Bowl berth, setting off arguments and cries of conspiracy. In the aftermath, the Associated Press pulled its poll out of the BCS formula.

After four years of having to their final votes exposed, and sometimes ridiculed, the coaches were all too happy to have Gallup recommend going under ground again.

But it was never going to fly with the BCS, which immediately sent signals that the AFCA had better reverse field or risk no longer being part of the BCS formula.

Today,  the AFCA wisely acted and acted wisely.

"The AFCA agreed to be a part of the BCS selection process when we were asked by the commissioners in 1998,” AFCA Executive Director Grant Teaff said in a released statement. “As with past decisions by the AFCA and the FBS head coaches, we are again acting in what the coaches believe to be the best interest of the game.”

That's just mumbo-jumbo for saying we got it wrong before, but now we got it right.

-- Chris Dufresne

Photo: Bowl Championship Series on Jan. 4, 2008. Credit: Charlie Riedel / Associated Press.

 

Addition, subtraction for NBA studio shows

ESPN announced Monday that analyst Bill Walton would not return to the cable network though he has one year left on his contract, and NBA TV announced that two-time NBA champion Brent Barry is becoming a studio analyst for the NBA GameTime show on Monday nights. Barry will join host Andre Aldridge and analyst Eric Snow. Among Barry's NBA stops was the Los Angeles Clippers (where he did not win an NBA championship).

NBA TV will take the court for its first week of Tuesday Fan Night with the Lakers @ Thunder match-up, as voted upon by fans on NBA.com. The game will air tomorrow at 5 p.m. with host Ernie Johnson and analysts Chris Webber and Kevin McHale on-hand for studio coverage beginning at 4:30 p.m. 

Walton missed portions of the last two season after undergoing surgeries to correct back problems. In a statement released by ESPN, Walton said: "As I return after a grueling multi-year, life-threatening, life-changing ordeal with back problems, it is time to dedicate the rest of my life to service." 

There are so many NBA voices on the air now -- too many it seems sometimes. Whom to listen to? For me, it's been Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith on TNT because they're funny, opinionated and informed. Not every game of an almost 10-month season (including playoffs) is important, and they get that. NBA TV seems to have corralled every ex-player with a good suit and an opinion, but standouts? Can't find any yet.

And ESPN just seems to have everybody who can spell NBA on its various shows. Standouts? Um, uh, not anymore. Because Walton was it

Was he a goofball sometimes? Absolutely. But Walton never tried to be cool and trendy. He substituted strong opinions and boundless enthusiasm. He truly loved what he was doing, and his love of the game showed. When I'd call him about something college-related (he was, after all, a rather talented center for UCLA), the conversation would always somehow amble to the (in his mind) superiority of the NBA brand of basketball. It wasn't just a sales pitch. It was Walton's passion. He will be missed.

Still too many voices. But not the right one to lose.

-- Diane Pucin

Photo: Bill Walton. Credit: Garrett Elwood, Getty Images.