LAKERS NOTEBOOK: TONIGHT, A GLIMPSE AT THE NEW GUARD; LAKERS' BRYANT, CLIPPERS' ODOM TO MEET HEAD ON.Byline: Howard Beck Staff Writer A matchup that existed only on talk radio and in the occasional newspaper column could become reality tonight. Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant (born July 23 1978) is an American All-Star shooting guard in the National Basketball Association (NBA) who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers. and Lamar Odom Lamar Joseph Odom (born November 6 1979, in South Jamaica, Queens, New York) is an American professional basketball player who currently plays power forward (also plays both forward spots and is a "point-forward") for the National Basketball Association's Los Angeles Lakers. , head to head. Some observers have already begun the debate which young phenom will be the better player, the Lakers' Bryant or the Clippers' Odom. But no one figured the two L.A. stars would get a chance to prove themselves against one another because they played different positions. That changed two days ago when Clippers coach Chris Ford Christopher Joseph Ford (born January 11, 1949 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA) is a former professional basketball player and head coach. A 6' 5" (1.96 m) guard from Villanova University, he played ten seasons (1972-1982) in the NBA as a member of the Detroit Pistons and Boston moved his multidimensional rookie from small forward to point guard. Now Odom and Bryant are likely to guard each other when the Lakers and Clippers meet tonight for the first time this season. ``That'll be a real interesting matchup,'' Lakers coach Phil Jackson
Philip Douglas "Phil" Jackson (born September 17, 1945 in Deer Lodge, Montana) is the current coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, an American professional basketball team. said. ``I think the Clippers have made a move that's progressive, it's obviously something where they have to fight (to end) a losing streak A Losing Streak is the third episode of series 2 of the BBC sit-com, Only Fools and Horses. It was first broadcast on 4 November 1982. Synopsis Del Boy, Rodney, and Grandad are making some sort of cheap perfume just to earn money after Del has been losing most of and they're trying to make some changes in a positive nature. This young man (Odom) looks like he distributes the ball and is unselfish.'' Jackson could play spoiler spoiler: see airplane. 1. spoiler - A remark which reveals important plot elements from books or movies, thus denying the reader (of the article) the proper suspense when reading the book or watching the movie. 2. , though. He said he ``might'' put Ron Harper
Ronald Harper (born January 20, 1964 in Dayton, Ohio) is a retired American professional basketball player whose career spanned from 1986 to 2001 with four teams in on Odom, instead of Bryant. ``I'm really looking forward to seeing him play,'' Jackson said of Odom. ``I don't watch college basketball, I'll admit it. I saw him play one time, it seems like two years ago, in the NCAAs, and I was impressed.'' No Air in L.A.: Michael Jordan enjoyed watching the Lakers beat the Detroit Pistons on Sunday from the confines of owner Jerry Buss' luxury suite. But Jordan said he has no intention of joining the Lakers for an impromptu workout, as he did with the Chicago Bulls last month. ``He's not in any shape, not in basketball condition is what he told me,'' Jackson said. More to the point, he's not in shape to keep up with Bryant, his presumed heir. ``I knew he wasn't going to come to practice,'' Bryant said. ``We were talking about it the other day, I asked him if he was going to come to practice. He said, `Hell no.' He said, `I've got to get in shape.' He doesn't want to chase me around.'' Ouch report: Glen Rice, who missed Sunday's game because of an upper respiratory infection Noun 1. upper respiratory infection - infection of the upper respiratory tract respiratory infection, respiratory tract infection - any infection of the respiratory tract and 102-degree fever, skipped Monday's practice as well. But Jackson said he hopes Rice will be available for tonight's game. If not, rookie Devean George might get his second NBA NBA abbr. 1. National Basketball Association 2. National Boxing Association NBA (US) n abbr (= National Basketball Association) → Basketball-Dachverband (= start. George played only 15 minutes after starting Sunday's game, as Rick Fox came off the bench to play 37 minutes and score a season-high 20 points. Jackson could start Fox, but seems to prefer keeping his rotation intact. LAKERS vs. CLIPPERS Tipoff: 7:30 p.m., at Staples Center TV/Radio: Ch. 9, Fox Sports Net; KLAC-AM (570) Lakers (17-5) update: They've won nine of their past 10 games and are tied with the Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers are a professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The franchise, based in Portland throughout its existence, entered the league in 1970 and has won the NBA Championship once, in 1977. for best record in the league. It gets tougher after tonight - the Lakers leave Wednesday for a four-game, five-day road trip with stops in Atlanta, Minnesota, Toronto and Boston. Clippers (5-16) update: This will be the first time the Lakers and Clippers share the floor at their new shared home. This one's considered a Lakers home game, so it will be their logo at center court, their public-address announcer, etc. The co-tenants meet three more times, including a back-to-back set the first week of January. CAPTION(S): photo, box PHOTO PHIL JACKSON The Lakers coach said he's eager to see Clippers rookie Lamar Odom play when the two teams meet at Staples Center. BOX: Lakers vs. Clippers (see text) |
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