LOS ANGELES – What Lakers coach Phil Jackson billed before the game as a good test for his team that has alternately risen up and rolled over against the NBA’s better teams wound up bouncing away at the very end.
The Lakers let Orlando go on a 9-0 run to take a 100-93 lead – with Lamar Odom missing back-to-back jumpers along the way. Odom (19 points, 17 rebounds) had a much-improved game from what he has been doing lately and even had a late-game play called for him and not Kobe Bryant (28 points) – to Bryant’s disagreement – by Jackson.
Odom scored on that play and then the next one. But with 22.9 seconds left, Bryant passed to Odom, who missed an open three-pointer. Bryant’s shoulders slumped upon seeing the ball bang off the rim.
Andrew Bynum (10 points, six rebounds) didn’t have much of a night against Orlando center Dwight Howard (17 points, eight rebounds).
SHOULDER LOADED
Vladimir Radmanovic set up Odom on a fast break, and after Odom was fouled by Jameer Nelson, Odom came away flexing his twice-surgically repaired left shoulder. But Odom made the two free throws with 7:10 left in the third quarter.
NO. 34
When the Lakers traded Shaquille O’Neal, who wore No. 34, and got Odom, who wanted Brian Cook’s No. 7, Cook gave it up … and asked for No. 34. Um, not gonna happen. Cook took No. 43, but he has finally his old college No. 34 with Orlando now.
TURIAF HURT
Ronny Turiaf suffered a slight concussion late in the third quarter after being hit by Howard.
NEXT
Lakers at Minnesota, 5 p.m. Tuesday, KCAL/9, KLAC/570
