View photos from the Lakers-Grizzlies Game on Monday evening.
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NBA Stock Report: Where the Top Eight Teams Stand
The ability to string together multiple wins is an important trait in the NBA, and as the regular season races to a close that quality becomes critical.
This week's edition of NBA Stock Report is highlighted by a couple of teams who have soldified their playoff positioning and created separation in the standings due to long winning streaks.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have won 10 games in a row and are slowly pulling away from the other top contenders in the Eastern Conference.
In the West the Utah Jazz currently own an eight game winning streak and are doing everything in their power to remain in position for a home court playoff series.
Streaking is always a good thing for NBA teams but the ability to do it in the second half of the season is pivotal when it comes to team confidence, morale, and leverage.
The only negative thing associated with long winning streaks is the possibility that a team may have reached their peak too early, and can't sustain momentum through the postseason.
Only time will tell if that dynamic affects either the Jazz or the Cavaliers, but as far as this week's list goes the top eight positions remain virtualy unchanged.
That may be a sign of the best teams distancing themselves from the pack, and the competition between those teams has become fierce.
Only percentage points separate numbers three through seven and in the case of a team like Boston the battle may have already been lost due to a failure to secure two key season series.
This list is created by the current NBA standings which are not up for debate, but because of the slim margin of error held by much of the list, the future tidings of each team remain in doubt.
Feel free to share your opinions about the direction of each team and let me know which team you envision making major moves, whether they be positive or negative. Enjoy.
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Game to pay attention to: Spurs vs. Lakers (Yahoo! Sports)
San Antonio at Los Angeles Lakers Part of me — a big part of me — wants to point you toward Golden...
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Lakers Gameday | 02/05/10 | Nuggets | Photo Gallery
View photos from the Lakers-Nuggets Game on Friday night.
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Burned Roses: Lakers Win for the First Time in Five Years at Rose Garden
It took five years and nine straight defeats, but the Los Angeles Lakers finally got a big, hairy Oregon-sized Northwest gorilla off their back.
And the best part was that Kobe Bryant was not needed.
The Lakers finally defeated the Portland Trail Blazers with a spirited 99-82 victory before 20,688 spectators at the Rose Garden. Coming off the heels of an unimpressive effort at Staples Center against the Denver Nuggets, Pau Gasol, Ron Artest, Lamar Odom, and Shannon Brown were not going to let the curse continue for another year.
The number nine seems to be a karma-laced numeral for Phil Jackson's club. The Clippers ended their nine-game losing streak to the Lakers (39-13) earlier this year, and with tonight's victory, they end a nine-game losing streak at Portland.
Artest led the Lakers with 21 points on 75 percent shooting (nine-for-12) from the field. Brown had a solid outing from the bench with 19 points. Gasol scored 13 points while Odom's ferocious defense earned him a double-double (10 points, 22 rebounds) for the night.
Derek Fisher and Jordan Farmar were similarly instrumental for LA. Fisher scored 14 points while Farmar dropped 12 on Nate McMillan's Blazers (30-23).
As a team, the Lakers were relentless on the boards, dominating with 47 rebounds to the Blazers' 30. The defense, long scrutinized for their inconsistency, put it all together by limiting the Trail Blazers' Martell Webster to two points on one-for-seven shooting.
Lamarcus Aldridge led Portland with 16 points, while Jerryd Bayless scored 13 and Andre Miller netted 14. The Blazers hurt their chances by shooting a dismal 28 percent from three-point land.
Laker center Andrew Bynum managed three points in just over nine and a half minutes of action before leaving the game due to injury.
With the win, the Lakers move four games ahead of the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Western Conference. However, they remain two games behind the Cleveland Cavaliers for the best record in the league.
Los Angeles will return to Staples Center to take on the San Antonio Spurs on Feb 8. Portland will host the Oklahoma City Thunder on Feb 9 at the Rose Garden.
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No Bryant, no problem for Lakers (AP)
Lamar Odom replaced an injured Kobe Bryant and matched his career high with 22 rebounds, as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Portland Trail Blazers 99-82 in the NBA on Saturday. Bryant sat out with a sore left ankle, ending the 12-time All-Star's run of 235 straight games. Odom also scored 10 points as the Lakers pulled away in the fourth quarter, leading by as many as 19 points, en route to...
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