Utah 12th man/ guard/ Inglewood product/ former Clipper, Jason Hart tells ESPN.COM writer Laura Lane that he doesn't think that Kobe is hurt.
“Kobe’s been playing what, 12 years in the NBA? I’m sure he’s had a back strain before. He’s okay. We’re not banking on him being hurt. He’s playing, so he’s not hurt. Nobody practices in the playoffs. He could be (hurt). More...
Dave Dameshek and his crew have been cranking out songs for every member of the Lakers team. ESPN.COM writer Laura Lane e-mailed Sasha Vujacic his song and lets just say that Sasha and Dave won't be breaking bread anytime soon.
From her blog, ridethefastlane.com
"SASHA: Hey! How are you?
ME: Good, how are you?
SASHA: That was a nasty song.
ME: What was nasty? Ohhh, the song I sent you.
SASHA: Yeah, I don’t like it. They were trying to be funny.
ME: It’s all in good fun, right?
SASHA: Ah, somethings they said is not very nice, right?
ME: Well no, but I don’t agree with all of them. I think it’s funny.
SASHA: It’s funny at some point and then it’s not very funny.
SOME OTHER DUDE: What song? A song about him? Send it to me!
SASHA: I don’t like it. You’re going to see that it’s not very good … It’s good, it’s good. I mean if they think like that –
ME: It was a joke.
SOME OTHER DUDE: What’s the mean part of it?
ME: I don’t know, they said they like his hair and –
SASHA: And that I was stealing money and stuff like that.
ME: Uh, I don’t remember that part.
SASHA: Listen to it carefully.
SOME OTHER DUDE: Is it on You-Tube?
ME: No.
SOME OTHER DUDE: It should be.
SASHA: No. It should not be."
You be the judge.
Download sasha_vujacic_dameshek_song.mp3
More of Dameshek's Laker songs:
| Lakers Rhapsody | listen |
| Coby Karl | listen |
| Luke Walton | listen |
| Kobe Bryant | listen |
| Ronny Turiaf | listen |
| Chris Mihm | listen |
| Vladamir Radmonavic | listen |
| Ira Newble | listen |
| Derek Fisher | listen |
| Pau Gasol | listen |
| Sasha Vujacic | listen |
| Andrew Bynum | listen |
| Trevor Ariza | listen |
| Kobe's Finger | listen |
| I Wanna Be a Laker | listen |
Phil gave Kobe, Pau, Fisher and Odom Thursday off. The rest of the team went through drills and practiced.
Caught up Odom and Phil. LO talked about the team's confidence, how to win in Utah, you the fans and how excited he is to be one game away from the Western Conference Finals.
Phil told us the message for Game 6, how Kobe's back is doing and had a funny view on the Utah crowd.
Download lakers_practice_051508.mp3
Beto
Practice Pics.
From ESPN.COM
Just when it appeared the Los Angeles Lakers needed Kobe Bryant the most, he provided the least.The strategy, planned or otherwise, worked to perfection. Bryant scored 26 points despite not attempting a field goal in the fourth quarter, and the Lakers extended the stunning home success by NBA teams in the second round of the playoffs by beating the Utah Jazz 111-104 on Wednesday night to take a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference semifinals. More...
Locker Room Biz.
Just because they're one game away from advancing to the Western Conference Finals, by no means was this Laker team celebrating.
Kobe said his back was better than he thought it would be, why he took no shots in the fourth quarter and how to win in Salt Lake. Download kobe_post_051408.mp3
Pau described the physical play . Phil didn't think the team had it's normal poise and talks about Friday night's game. Download lakers_post_051408.mp3
That's the headline over at bleacherreport.com. An interesting post on some of the venom spewed by Jazz fans towards Derek Fisher and Kobe Bryant.
"Several
fans who attended the game have said that some Jazz fans were chanting
"cancer" over and over again when Fisher would touch the ball or shoot
free throws".More...
Note: I was in Utah for the weekend games and heard plenty of name calling, but did not hear about the cancer chant.
Beto
Thanks to deadspin for the original post.
That's right only 1 NBA road win and the fine folks over at FAN IQ ask why. Their answer? How about some psychiatry. A funny comparison to Pavlov's dog! 
"So what's the conclusion? It seems to be that players are
psychologically drilled to believe that playing on the road is tougher
than it is at home, especially during the playoffs. It's almost like
Pavlov's dogs. Turn on the light, make the dogs slobber. Put the
Celtics on the road, they can't win." More...
Thanks to DEADSPIN for the original post.
Farmar stopped by with Mason. Listen here.
On the eve of Game 5, the team including Trevor Ariza practiced, Kobe and his back didn't. Kobe who's being driven to practice was in a good mood and said that the back is getting better and will play. According to Kobe the most difficult part of dealing with the back problem is sleeping. Download kobe_051308.mp3
Phil is worried on how Kobe's shooting will be affected by the back, but knows that Kobe will play well. Phil went on to explain the lessons learned from their trip to Utah, the return of Trevor Ariza and the struggles of Vlad Radmanovich. Download phil_practice_051308.mp3
Derek Fisher has seen Kobe battle injuries and talked about how he thinks Kobe will play tomorrow. Fisher knows that this game will be more physical and explains that pressure builds in the last 3 games of a series and thinks that the teams veteran presence helps. Download derek_fisher_051308.mp3
Pau Gasol loves playing at home thanks to the noise the fans make. Download pau_gasol_051308.mp3
Hey, it's Sideline Reporter Sara filling in for Beto Duran today. He overslept and missed his flight in Utah.
Practice was short, sweet and tight-lipped--only a few minutes with a few of the players. I wasn't even there long enough to access the moos, although Pau Gasol says they're still in a good spot. He also addressed Kobe's injury and how important home court advantage is. Download pau_gasol_051208.mp3
Kobe Bryant discusses how he played with his back injury and how he's feeling today - he's sore and stiff, but he'll play on Wednesday - and also answers a question about him taking seven shots in OT. Download kobe_bryant_051208.mp3
Phil Jackson isn't too worried about Kobe's injury. He's worried about how to remedy the two losses. He also sticks by his postgame comments regarding being upset with the guys for dropping the ball off to Kobe and standing around and watching, particularly at the start of the third quarter. Download phil_jackson_051208.mp3
Derek Fisher talks about adjusting to Kobe's injury and how the team didn't execute and put Kobe in good positions to create opportunities for other guys in OT. Download derek_fisher_051208.mp3
Ronny Turiaf addresses his flagrant foul and also says he hasn't heard from the league, which is a good thing. Download ronny_turiaf_051208.mp3
Deron Williams
forced himself back into the NBA conversation just as much as the Jazz
clawed their way back into this series with the Lakers over the weekend.
Actually, the second part of that sentence depended on the first. For a young team seeking consistent efforts in these playoffs, Williams is turning into the Jazz's most reliable option. Carlos Boozer had his best game of the postseason Friday night, then regressed to a 5-for-15 shooting performance Sunday. Williams followed a solid effort in Game 3 with an even better Game 4, a 123-115 overtime win, the central recurring character in the two Jazz victories that evened these Western Conference semifinals at 2-2. More...
