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Lakers encouraged despite loss

PHOENIX - The last time they walked onto the court at US Airways Center, the Los Angeles Lakers were handed a 31-point loss in Game 7 of their first-round playoff series against the Phoenix Suns in a decidedly unceremonious end to a feel-good season.

That also might have been the last time the Los Angeles Lakers were close to whole, before the sprained ankles and sprained knees, the separated shoulders and torn labrums made a medical dictionary also a must for this season.

Maybe that was why the Los Angeles Lakers felt as if they exceeded expectations in Sunday's 99-94 loss to the Suns. With the cloud of Lamar Odom's potential season-ending injury hanging over them, the Los Angeles Lakers nevertheless pushed Phoenix to the final horn.

"A lot of people watching the game, considering all the guys that we have out, probably expected us to get blown out," Kobe Bryant said.

"But I believe that we can win these games. We have a lot of guys out, but we're still going to be competitive and we're going to be all right."

All the Los Angeles Lakers can do now is hope for the best as Odom (torn labrum) and Luke Walton

(sprained ankle) see specialists today in Los Angeles. Walton could return on this four-game trip; Odom is waiting to learn if and when he will need surgery.
"We just have to unite and play well together," Kobe Bryant said. "That's the key. Hopefully, we'll get Luke back and that'll help out a lot because of his triangle recognition."

In the first glimpse of life without Odom, Kobe Bryant finished with 31 points but was hounded into 11-of-28 shooting. He played nearly 45 minutes, including the entire second half, and also led the Los Angeles Lakers with six assists.

Brian Cook started in place of Odom and hit 8 of 15 shots in totaling 22 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. Yet the game was not without incident for the Los Angeles Lakers as Smush Parker had an outburst on the bench in the fourth quarter.

Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson watched as Smush Parker, who struggled in the playoffs against the Suns, picked up three fouls in the first half and responded with a less-than-aggressive performance in the second half.

Smush Parker gave up easy layups to Steve Nash, who hit 7 of 10 shots and scored 18 of his 23 points in the second half. He also passed on a 3-pointer at the start of the fourth quarter that resulted in a 24-second violation.

Jackson decided to make a change with 5:40 left after Nash staked the Suns to a 10-point lead, their largest of the game. He sent Shammond Williams in for Smush Parker during a timeout, a decision with which Smush Parker voiced disagreement.

Jackson said he was looking to see what "punch" Williams could bring and said he sensed Smush Parker growing "despondent" with every Nash layup.

After he was removed, Smush Parker planted himself at the end of the bench and didn't join the huddle during timeouts. Jackson said he talked with Smush Parker, who finished with three points on 1-of-5 shooting, after the game.

Williams, though, sank a 3-pointer with 3:19 remaining after Kobe Bryant drove the lane and found him open. The Los Angeles Lakers had closed to 93-90 but failed to complete the comeback; Williams and Kobe Bryant each missed free throws in the last 1:37.

The Los Angeles Lakers were left to lament Cook's missed 3-pointer with 1:04 to play, a shot that could have made it a one-point game. Cook made four of six 3-pointers after Jackson joked before the game about not knowing whom to start in place of Odom.

"I'm just trying to fill in and help the team when I can," Cook said. "Phil's going to use me how he's going to use me. I trust in him to use me the way he wants to use me. Right now, we just need to be together as a team and fight for the rest of this road trip."

Odom, meanwhile, will visit shoulder specialist Lewis Yocum today and faces the possibility of season-ending surgery. If that is the case, the Los Angeles Lakers' hopes of making something out of this season would be greatly diminished.

See more at www.sgvtribune.com