LOS ANGELES -- Someone needs to tell the Lakers that the Season of Giving ended just about a month ago.
After a road trip which saw them gift wrap games for Miami and Orlando by basically not showing up for either loss, they played Santa again Sunday. The Lakers blew numerous leads -- including a 13-point cushion at the end of the first quarter -- and missed 11 free throws to help Indiana win a 98-96 decision. The Pacers -- saddled with a hellacious early-season road schedule -- are now 11-4 overall and 6-4 away from home. The Lakers lost only their second home game and dropped to 10-8. But they're in the midst of a three-game losing streak, plagued by a lack of effort and consistent inconsistency. They've gone 11 straight games without reaching 100 points.
Each Pacers starter scored in double figures, led by center Roy Hibbert who scored 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds despite breaking his nose in the first half. David West also added 15, while George Hill led the bench with 11. Kobe Bryant looked like a lock for another 40 point performance, entering the final quarter with 31 points. However, he missed five of his last six shots, including an off-balance 3-pointer which would have tied the score with two seconds remaining. Los Angeles was a miserable 2-9 behind the arc, while Indiana was blistering hot, going 10 of 18 on threes. Overall the Pacers put out an excellent defensive effort, holding the Lakers to 41.9 percent from the field and grabbing 50 rebounds to the Lakers' 43.
Pacers coach Frank Vogel was full of praise for his team then took a not-so-veiled shot at the Lakers. And like most of Indiana's shots Sunday night, this was right on target.
"This was another big win for us," said Vogel, in his second year as the Pacers' head man. "It was also a valiant effort effort from Roy Hibbert. After (the broken nose) he came back and carried us in the second half, after David West carried us in the first half. This is what our team is all about.
"It's not about a super-team and a superstar, it's about a balanced attack. We share the ball and we win the rebounding wars most nights. Tonight, our guys gutted out a big win for us."
Lakers head coach Mike Brown probably would agree, as he had to watch his team play an unbalanced offensive game in which Kobe took 30 shots (making 14) while the other 10 players took a combined 56 field goal attempts, hitting just 22.
"Give Indiana credit," Brown said, "they outworked us. Outworked us as a team.
"It's too bad, because we came out and played great defense in the first quarter. Then, in the last three quarters, we didn't play with any sense of urgency. When we went up by 12 (and) 13 in the first quarter, I guess we just somewhat figured Indiana would fold, and we just went through the motions. (Giving up) a 35-point second quarter and a 28-point third quarter just isn't who we are. It was disappointing to see us play with no sense of urgency, like we were willing to just trade baskets with them.
"We haven't been like this in a while, and that's what makes this game, more than some of the others, tough to swallow. We need to work on getting back our focus."
And there is probably a question which needs an answer in a hurry: Who are these Lakers? Are they the excellent defensive team which got off to a 10-5 start this season, in spite of a lackluster offense? Or are they the group of guys who have yet to figure out consistent team play, losing three straight and watching their record inch ever-closer to the .500 mark?
Metta World Peace (formerly Ron Artest) says the Lakers will be fine.
"I believe we will," said the Lakers forward who scored 11 points in 22 minutes after contributing a total of just 13 points in his previous six games off the bench. "We've got a lot of talent here and we just need to work on some things, improve in some areas.
"The coach is trying to figure out the kind of team he has, to find (the right) strategy to get us into the right rhythm. Tonight (Indiana) moved the ball really well and had (six) guys in double-figures, (two) more than we did. We have to start moving the ball better and we'll be OK."
While Vogel's postgame comments were undoubtedly directed at Bryant and the Lakers, World Peace's certainly weren't. The players know they need Bryant to score a lot and often until a few of them step up and join the offensive game plan and take some of the pressure off No. 24. Bryant has been saying all along that he wants his teammates to keep shooting the ball, because he believes they're better than they've been showing offensively so far this season. Brown agrees, saying that even in the loss "We did some nice things. I saw signs of improvement offensively."
And he's even willing to write it off as just a bad night.
"Really, just the last three quarters we lost our (focus on defense)," he said. "But I don't think I'd label it a problem just yet. We didn't have it (tonight), and we need to get it back. But I wouldn't call it a problem, no."
That could change late Wednesday night if they lose another game to the ever-improving Los Angeles Clippers.
