LOS ANGELES — After the Los Angeles Lakers' NBA trade deadline makeover Thursday and a 97-92 win over Minnesota on Friday night, Matt Barnes didn't waste time in getting right to the point.
"It's different," the Lakers forward said of the trades that sent three of his teammates to different teams. "Luke (Walton's) and Jason (Kapono's) locker were right next to mine, and Fish (Derek Fisher) and I being really close; it's tough. And losing Lamar (Odom) earlier in the season showed what kind of business this really is."
The Lakers, however, responded to another challenge in a season full of them.
The victory over the Timberwolves gives Los Angeles a five-game winning streak. The Lakers are a league-best 19-2 at home and are third in the Western Conference at 28-16 overall.
It certainly wasn't easy — at least from an emotional standpoint.
It was the first time Fisher had been out of the Lakers' starting lineup in more than five years, and former reserve point guard Steve Blake got the start. Ramon Sessions, acquired from Cleveland for Walton, Kapono, the Lakers' first-round pick this year and cash, came off the bench and filled up the stat sheet in his first game with the Lakers.
Wearing Odom's old jersey No. 7, Sessions scored seven points, handed off five assists and grabbed four rebounds in 19 minutes. He was extremely quick — something long missing from the point-guard position — and was able to drive the ball and pass off nearly at will. Coach Mike Brown said he will decide after Saturday's practice if Sessions becomes the starter for Sunday's game against Utah. Blake was scoreless in more than 28 minutes, but he did have six assists and zero turnovers.
Sessions said he was thrilled to be traded — especially to the Lakers, where he feels he'll have a legitimate chance to start for a team chasing a championship. And he's excited to play in the same backcourt as Kobe Bryant.
"I wasn't nervous at all," the 25-year-old said, "just anxious to get out on the court here at Staples Center. This is one of the mega-capitals of the world when it comes to basketball, and it just feels good.
"(Playing with Kobe) is a dream come true. You know, Kobe, Pau (Gasol) and (Andrew) Bynum are great players, and they make things so much easier for me. I'm leaning on their voices of experience, and I'm going to take advantage of it."
Bryant was very impressed with his new running mate.
"Man, he's fast," Kobe said after scoring a game-high 28 points. "He gets in the lane, and as you saw he can make things happen. He's a guy teams are going have to (deal with), because once he gets into the lane he can dish or he can score with the best of them."
But for Bryant, Friday also was the first day of the rest of his career without close friend Fisher as a teammate. The president of the NBA Players Association hasn't yet reported to Houston, where he was traded for forward Jordan Hill, thus keeping Hill inactive until Sunday night.
"It's really strange for me not to have (Derek) out there," Bryant said. "We came into the league together and we went through a lot, so it's been really, really strange. On the personal side, it's been a tough year, first with Lamar going then with D-Fish going. I'll tell you, it's a little awkward.
"I was shocked just like everybody else. I felt (bad) for Derek, and I talked to him many times yesterday — Luke, too. (Fisher) and I have always been close, and we'll continue to be close.
"But it's tough . . . very tough."
From a basketball standpoint, though, the trade of Fisher and the acquisition of Sessions make the Lakers a more formidable opponent in the Western Conference. They now have the quickness on both ends of the floor to contend with Russell Westbrook and Tony Parker, who blaze up and down the hardwood. And if Hill proves he's indeed worthy of being the ninth overall draft pick out of Arizona in 2009, the Lakers will gain strength and quickness on the front line.
Nonetheless, it won't be easy to forget about No. 2, who hit so many big baskets for the Lakers.
"To lose someone like Fish — who was a cornerstone for our franchise — it's really tough," Bryant said. "But we've still got to play the games and hopefully win a championship."
