Game Countdown: On the Road Again – Lakers @ Thunder

Normally home cooking does a body good, but don’t tell that to the Lakers who have shown some vulnerabilities in their season-opening three-game homestand.  The Lakers need to get back their killer instinct and re-establish themselves as the team to beat in the NBA.  Maybe a road trip is just the thing to do the trick.

Who doesn’t love a good road trip?  I call shotgun!

Playing at home is usually all about comfort, but it looks to me like the Lakers went and got themselves a little too comfortable.  Between the ring ceremony and the adulation of the fans who are still reveling in last season’s title run, you can’t really blame the Lakers for getting caught up in the euphoria and letting their focus wane.  It’s time Kobe and company (and the fans) stop basking in last season’s glory and look to the future.

Well, a nice little road trip replete with hostile crowds is exactly the mental kick to the head the Lakers need.  The Lakers need that reminder that everyone is gunning for them and that generally speaking, most opposing fans pretty much hate them.  No player is ever going to be able to compete at his peak level on a nightly basis when he is immersed in an environment that only strokes their egos.  This is one of those rare occasions where this team doesn’t need home cooking, they need a hefty helping of some road team hate.

Los Angeles Lakers (2-1) @ Oklahoma City Thunder (2-1)

Game Info: 5:00 PM PT TV-KCAL  Radio-710 AM, 1330 AM

THREE Questions:

• Is Ron Artest up to the task of containing Kevin Durant?  Whatever his offensive problems might be, Artest was brought in to be a defensive stopper and hold down star players like Durant.
• Kobe has come down with the dreaded “flu-like” symptoms.  Will he be able to play tonight and if not who will carry the offensive load?  Methinks this might be a good opportunity to get Artest’s offensive game jumpstarted.  Who am I kidding, of course Kobe is going to play through his illness.
• When did Sasha Vujacic go from shooting and missing all the time to not shooting at all anymore?  Sasha has attempted just three shots this season in 25 minutes of action.  Note, this isn’t a complaint, merely an observation.

TWO Predictions:

• Derek Fisher barely plays twenty minutes as he gets an early hook once the coaching staff realizes that he has no chance of guarding Russell Westbrook.
• The Lakers finally catch fire and drop the Thunder by 15+ points, leading from wire to wire.

ONE Wish:

• I wish for a great night from the bench.  If Kobe is going to be either out or limited by illness and potentially several weeks before Pau Gasol returns, the bench mob needs to start stepping up.  The Thunder don’t have much depth, so this is an ideal game for the second unit to get on a roll.

ZERO Tolerance for… another three-rebound game from Andrew Bynum.  The Thunder doesn’t have anyone who can match up with Bynum on the glass and anything less than 10 rebounds is unacceptable.  If he wants to be treated like a big-time center, he has to start acting like one every night.

Leave your own questions, answers, predictions or wishes as a comment or just hang out with us during the game.

Tags: Andrew Bynum, bench mob, Derek Fisher, Game Countdown, Kevin Durant, Kobe Bryant, Oklahoma City, Ron Artest, Russell Westbrook, Sasha Vujacic, Thunder