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Lakers Out Of The Gate

Authored by Scott Essman - November 3, 2005 - 3:34 pm

Current Featured Columns

The First Three Weeks of 2008-09

Now that we’ve had a little time to watch free agency unfold, along with the usual accompaniment of trades, let’s look at some of the key moves and how they impact the teams involved.

Matthew Gordon. July 22, 2008.

Grading The Deal: W's Sign Maggette And Turiaf

The Boom Dizzle era is over, and the Warriors quickly recovered by signing two nice pieces to complement their young core.

Christopher Reina. July 10, 2008.

	Reliving Eight Years Of Jermaine Regardless of how happy he is to be out of Indiana, there will always be a part of Indiana in Jermaine O'Neal's 6’11” frame. Andrew Perna. July 13, 2008.
	Iguodala Remains Key To Sixers' Success When Brand scribbled is name on an $82 million dollar deal Wednesday, that all ended. Iguodala's short reign as "Batman" in Philadelphia was mercifully over. John McMullen. July 10, 2008.
	$10 Million For Five Players? The Orlando Magic will be limited by the NBA's Luxury Tax in terms of filling the remaining spots on their roster. It is also possible it could cost them Keyon Dooling or Maurice Evans. Howard Mass. July 1, 2008.
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After just one game, the prognosis isn't bad. Sure it took overtime and a few miracle shots to keep the LA
Lakers afloat. But they beat a better team.

Thwarting a balanced Denver Nugget attack, in which six Nuggets scored at least 10 points - led by Marcus Camby with 19 - the Lakers got their offense from two primary sources. Kobe Bryant, a man seemingly on a personal mission to revive his team, scored 33 points on 13-28 shooting, including a backbreaking jumper with less than one second left in overtime to give the Lakers the victory.

Then there was plucky 24-year-old guard Smush Parker, a New York City playground legend with scant previous NBA experience. He worked his way into the rotation in training camp and ostensibly fits into the Lakers'
triangle offense. On this night, the system worked for him, as Bryant would serve as a decoy, setting up Parker for open shots - he scored 20 points and made three 3-pointers.

Although he wasn't key in the offense, Lamar Odom grabbed nine rebounds. No other Laker contributed as much as Bryant and Parker, though Devean George scored
14 points as a small forward.

On a night which celebrated coach Phil Jackson's return, the Lakers stole one for themselves in Denver, beginning a season with many questions in on a definitive note.