VicMan Software Users Community

NBA - Los Angeles Lakers step into possession of last playoff spot - ESPN Lakers Win Third StraightDwight Howard tallied 16 points and 21 rebounds to lead the Lakers past the Bulls 90-81.Tags: Bulls, Lakers, Dwight Howard, Kobe BryantLakers Win Third StraightNEXT VIDEO
Lakers Win Third StraightLakers Win Third StraightDwight Howard tallied 16 points and 21 rebounds to lead the Lakers past the Bulls 90-81.Tags: Bulls, Lakers, Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant
Lakers Win In Howard's Return To OrlandoLakers Win In Howard's Return To OrlandoHighlight of the night: Dwight Howard ties FT mark, nets 39 points in return to Orlando.Tags: NBA, Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando Magic, Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant
Dwight Howard's Dance MovesDwight Howard's Dance MovesDwight Howard caught dancing before the game against the Magic.
The Forum: Dwight Howard's Comfort In L.A.The Forum: Dwight Howard's Comfort In L.A.Mark Willard and Arash Markazi discuss Dwight Howard getting comfortable as a Laker.
LOS ANGELES -- However overdue it might seem, however fleeting or lasting it might turn out to be,jordan retro 5, it finally can be said that the Los Angeles Lakers are a playoff team,jordan retro 10. The proclamation comes by virtue of their 90-81 victory over the Chicago Bulls that was low in aesthetic value and high in significance, because it gave them a 33-31 record, good for the No. 8 spot in the Western Conference playoffs.
Kobe Bryant's reaction, A low-toned, sarcastic "Yippee."
The truth is, he and the Lakers are pleased with the way they've been playing lately.
They have won eight of their 10 games after the All-Star break, even if it has required overtime against the Toronto Raptors and a 25-point comeback against the New Orleans Hornets and this grinder against the banged-up, downtrodden Bulls.
More Lakers coverage
Lakers Index
Check out the latest happenings in Hollywood with the all-new Lakers Index. Lakers Index
M,s sobre los Lakers
Para m,s noticias, notas y an,lisis de los Lakers, ,chale un ojo al blog de los Lakers. Blog
"Playoff team" might be more of a technicality than a true description. They aren't dominating or intimidating anyone. They don't deserve to be called elite. You know what description fits, Team, period. More than at any other point in the season.
Six players scored in double figures Sunday; none had more than Bryant's 19 points. Dwight Howard is focusing on rebounds (he had 21), blocked shots (four) and setting picks (at least four of his screens led to made jumpers by Bryant and Jodie Meeks). Steve Nash is adapting to being a scorer rather than a playmaker; his 38 points the past two games are his most in back-to-back games this season. The role players such as Meeks, Antawn Jamison and Earl Clark are making just enough shots when their defenders leave to double-team the stars.
"Right now we've really figured out how to bond together as a group," Bryant said. "True chemistry is built through adversity. It's tough because it could cut either way. It seems to have brought us together."
"I think they're getting a feel for each other and how to finish games out," Lakers coach Mike D'Antoni said. "And Dwight is just feeling better. You can see it all over the place. His back is better, he's in rhythm. He's a monster defensively."
The next question for the Lakers is if they've built a model that's sustainable. We've seen their defense get exploited by more proficient scoring teams than the Bulls, who are 28th in the league in points per game. We have not seen the Lakers beat any potential first-round playoff opponents on the road, which is where they would start any postseason series.
They're about to start the toughest stretch left on their schedule: In Orlando (where the locals will unleash a year's worth of anger at Howard), a back-to-back in Atlanta, then at Indiana,Nike Air Jordan Ray Allen.
FOLLOW THE NBA ON ESPN
Stay up to date with the latest NBA news, stories and analysis. Follow the NBA on ESPN on Twitter, Facebook and Google+:
Twitter , Facebook , Google+ ,
With so much buildup to the game in Orlando -- Howard has been fielding questions for the past week -- his teammates' attitudes ranged from a defiant Bryant to an indifferent Metta World Peace.
"Boos don't block dunks," Bryant said.
As for World Peace,
"I don't really care, because I'm going to Disney World," he said. "We're getting in early. I don't care. I'm going to go on these rides. I'm going let the fans do what they do, that's their problem. I'm going to have the Mickey Mouse ears, all that. Watch me. You don't believe me, just watch,air jordan 4 retro."
Usually you hear players say they're going to Disney World after they win a championship. World Peace said it the day the Lakers finally could be considered a playoff team. Coming from the man who predicted a record-breaking number of victories by the Lakers last season, it's a sign of how far the expectations have dropped.
Recommend0
Tweet0
Comments0
EmailPrintSubscribeJ.A. Adande | emailNBA
Follow
Archive
ESPN.com senior writer since 2007Around The Horn panelistFormerly at Los Angeles Times
More jordan retro 5 articles :

Freep writers predict NCAA tournament: No Final Four for MSU, Michigan | Detroit Free Press | freep.com Joe Rexrode
MIDWEST
Louisville
The Cardinals have put it all together and start the tournament as the No. 1 overall seed. Saint Louis could be a real problem in the Sweet 16, but look for Louisville to survive that, then MSU for a trip to Atlanta. The Spartans will get past Duke in a terrific semifinal, but the matchup with Louisville is nearly as bad as it was a year ago.
WEST
Gonzaga
Perhaps Gonzaga didn't do enough for that No. 1 seed, perhaps it did. Regardless, this team has the talent to back it up, especially up front. This looks like a great draw for No. 2 seed Ohio State, but Gonzaga will win that game in the paint. Elias Harris and Kelly Olynyk will be too much for the Buckeyes.
SOUTH
Florida
It's true, the Gators are not playing their best basketball right now. But this is still a stocked, dangerous, experienced team. Look for Kansas to squeak past Michigan in the Sweet 16 -- after an entertaining U-M win over VCU to get there -- but then fall to Billy Donovan's team in the final.
EAST
Indiana
It's true, the Hoosiers showed once again in Chicago that they hate playing against slowdown teams -- Wisconsin got them twice this season, Butler did it once -- and the second loss to the Badgers cost IU a regional spot in Indianapolis. But this is still a pretty complete team and a good draw. Unless Butler somehow makes the regional final.
National champion
Louisville
Is that too obvious, picking the No. 1 overall seed, The Cardinals sure didn't back up that title in 2009, but this team has the speed, the depth, the defense and just enough shooting to get it done. Perhaps most important, it has a lot of players who can draw from last season's Final Four experience.
, Print it out: NCAA tournament bracket
Jeff Seidel
Midwest
Louisville
MSU is poised for a great tournament run, beating Duke and cruising into the Elite Eight. But Louisville will advance to the Final Four, surviving a brutal bracket.
West
Ohio State
The crafty Aaron Craft will lead Ohio State past Gonzaga and into the Final Four.
South
Kansas
Florida has the talent to win this regional, but Ben McLemore will lead Kansas into the Final Four, becoming the face of this tournament. He has a phenomenal story, overcoming a childhood that included poverty, hunger and academic problems.
East
Miami
Indiana will get to the Elite Eight but Miami's historic,Air Jordan SC, amazing season will continue to the Final Four.
National Champion
Louisville
Louisville wins the championship beating Miami, as LeBron James screams, "Hey, Miami doesn't lose!" But the Cardinals will win because of their swarming, suffocating, pressure defense.
Mark Snyder
Midwest
Louisville
The Cardinals enter the tournament with momentum, fueled by that dominant second half of the Big East final when they kept flipping Syracuse. Though they have a challenging path once they get to Indianapolis, the first weekend looks easy enough. Assuming Duke gets through the bottom -- a big if because MSU matches up well against the Blue Devils -- Louisville has too much pressure for Duke's backcourt.
West
Ohio State
A month ago the Buckeyes were sputtering, had beaten only two high-level teams. In the four weeks since, they've been on a tear, led by their surging backcourt of Aaron Craft and Shannon Scott,air jordans 13. The biggest threat might not be No. 1 seed Gonzaga, which hasn't seen defense like that, but instead No. 3 New Mexico. OSU has an edge though with Deshaun Thomas a matchup problem for most opponents.
South
Kansas
Though the Jayhawks are prone to a brain fart per month (Baylor on March 9, the TCU/Oklahoma/Oklahoma State implosion in early February), they are a very efficient team defensively with shot blocker Jeff Withey. With their road looking at VCU or Michigan in the Sweet 16, they could play a fast-paced game,Air Jordan Running Shoes Sale, matching athletes. They would only need to handle Georgetown to in the regional final before a team tried to slow it down.
East
Indiana
Because they still start in Dayton, the Hoosiers aren't that affected by not being No. 1 overall. UNLV could put some pressure in the Sweet 16 but the Butler rematch in the Elite Eight -- Miami can't last three games without falling to a substantially less talented team -- would be ideal revenge match for the Hoosiers.
National champion
Indiana
The idea that the Hoosiers are vulnerable is overblown. Though they've sputtered recently, that seems to be a lack of urgency and Wisconsin knows them better than anyone else they'll see. This team has worn the mantle all year, even after they've lost. They have an elite big man, an elite wing and a deadeye three-point shooter. Few teams can run with them and their bench can give more than people expect.
Drew Sharp
Midwest
Louisville
This is the toughest region, with the Cardinals, Duke, Michigan State and an underappreciated Saint Louis with the four highest seeds. But the Cardinals have one of the best backcourts in the country with senior Peyton Siva at the point and junior Russ Smith averaging 18 points a game.
West
Ohio State
This is the weakest region, a perfect landing spot for the Big Ten team playing the best basketball over the last three weeks. The biggest game in this regional should be a Sweet 16 matchup between the Buckeyes and No. 3 New Mexico. If the Aaron Craft of the Big Ten tournament is the one we see in the NCAA tournament, the Buckeyes could reach the final.
South
Florida
Something just doesn't feel right about No. 1 Kansas. The Jayhawks might be the first No. 1 to fall considering they might draw North Carolina in the round of 32. What scheduling sadist thought of that one, No. 5 VCU will definitely be a hot pick just two years removed from an unimaginable Final Four,air jordan big ups. But the Gators will eventually emerge from the rubble.
East
Syracuse
There's speculation that Jim Boeheim might retire following this season. Does that possibility become the galvanizing force for a team that had a rough final six weeks, going 8-8, Michael Carter-Williams finally plays with more consistency and James Southerland becomes one of those game-changing factors. There's always that one team that gets hot that you didn't expect. It'll be the fourth-seeded Orange.
National champion
Louisville
Oh, the irony. With all the talk about the Big Ten being the best conference during the regular season -- and it was -- it's a rematch of the current Big East's last conference championship game: Syracuse vs. Louisville. Strong, veteran guard production makes the biggest difference the deeper you get into the tournament. The Cardinals have the edge there.
Make your NCAA picks in our Bracket Challenge, for a chance to win $1 million and compete against top Detroit sports writers. And if you need a blank bracket for your office pool, print one out here. Plus, you can enter to win tickets to the tournament games at the Palace here!