Just another 2-3 weeks

That's how much longer Lamar Odom will be out of the lineup with his sprained knee. The Lakers miss him terribly. They got a split on this 6-game roadie, but really should've had Charlotte last night. Especially after Kobe went for 58. Brian Cook's been filling in really well in Odom's absence, but until Lamar comes back, it's a coin toss whether this team will win night-in, night-out. We're good enough to beat Orlando, but fall to the Bobcats? Harsh. At least they're playing hard every game -- more than can be said of the last two seasons.

While it might be blasphemous to say, the recent run of form since Lamar left the lineup with a sprained knee suggests that he is the most valuable player on the team with regards to chemistry and cohesion in transition. Kobe might well be an MVP-candidate and has had some amazing performances that single-handedly lifted us to victory, but Odom seems to get our interior players more involved. This shouldn't be interpreted as a "Kobe is a ballhog" jab. On the contrary, he has vastly improved his ability to get teammates involved in the flow of the game. He's bought into Phillip's system, he's beginning to achieve that next level of super-stardom and credit the organization itself for helping Kobe along with that transition by providing him a supporting cast that is talented, athletic, energetic, and not named Devean George or Slava Medvedenko. It's much easier to be the consumate teammate when you can trust your supporting cast to chip in a few points here and there.

Up next: a New Years Eve homecoming (and reprieve) against the Iverson-less Sixers.

Switching gears to another NBA team I've been lucky enough to get a load of over the past week: The Phoenix Suns. There's not a more entertaining team to watch in all of pro sports, right now. The clash against Dallas on Thursday was epic, playoff intensity, but the Mavs found a way to beat Phoenix without scoring in the 140s: halfcourt defense. Of course, this all relies on made baskets and limiting Phoenix's transition attack, but in the 4th quarter, Dallas was consistently able to set up on defense and force the Suns down to 3-2-1 seconds on the shot clock. It did the trick and it neutralized, to a degree, that unrelenting speed of Leandro Barbosa. I tell you what, with the ball, I've never seen a faster basketball player in my life. The guy can slice anybody up.