Low Fives All Around

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">The prospect of a five-game losing streak, the franchise's first in a decade, was staring them in the face. The only alternative to keep their playoff hopes alive on a night in which Denver and Minnesota both won was to follow suit.

Instead, the Lakers chose to head down another avenue Sunday night at Staples Center, falling 102-100 to the shorthanded Seattle SuperSonics, and where they go from here is uncertain.

The talk afterward was of the Lakers playing hard until they were mathematically eliminated, and the question had to be asked: When was that ever mentioned on March 20 in these parts?

"I still feel we're in it," interim coach Frank Hamblen said. "I hope that they feel they're in it. But you've lost five in a row, sooner or later you got to stand up and be counted or you aren't in it."

As unbelievable as it sounds, the possibility exists that the Lakers played their last meaningful home game of the season Sunday.

They dropped 3 1/2 games behind Denver for the Western Conference's eighth and final playoff spot with 16 games to play and one of the NBA's toughest remaining schedules, starting with road games at Utah and Denver this week.

The Lakers (32-34) also now have to leapfrog Minnesota to get there. The Timberwolves beat Houston 94-86 and moved a game ahead of the 10th-place Lakers in the standings.

In addition, the Lakers do not know when forward Lamar Odom will return from a strained left shoulder. Odom missed Sunday's game and has been ruled out Tuesday against the Jazz, amid fears that he will have to go on the injured list.

"If it's mathematically possible, it's possible," Kobe Bryant said. "You never know, we can get hot."

The locker room emptied so quickly afterward, the only conclusion was that the black clouds circling over the Lakers season had finally opened up. Point guard Chucky Atkins was asked what Hamblen's message was and offered a stunning answer.

"I was so tired, I don't even know what he said," Atkins said.

The end result, however, was the first five-game losing streak for Bryant since his freshman year at Lower Merion (Pa.) High School. He was asked whether all his teammates had enough belief that they could make the playoffs.

"If they don't, I'll drag them," Bryant said. "They got to look at me. I come ready to play every night. I come to practice every day working hard. Everybody has to do the same."</div> Source The part in bold really pisses me off!

 

Atkins has given up. I think the whole team has thrown in the towel, I think they just want the season to be over with, they aren't playing with heart, they are slow out there, their D is non-existant, and every player not named Kobe Bryant is inconsistent.

 

Yeah tell me about it. What really irritated me where the comments Butler, Odom, and Grant made before the Heat game. They all said their hearts are still in Miami and look forward to returning back one day. Talk about a slap in the face. How can you expect your teammates to support you with those comments? Why not try to duplicate the success while you're in Los Angeles instead of being bitter about the trade? The least they can do is act professionally about the situation, shut their mouth, check their attitudes, and play their hearts out because they love the game. If you paid me over $10M a year to play pro basketball in Los Angeles, I'd be the first and last player at the gym, I'd dive for loose balls, play defense, and demand my team to win. Since I have no chance to live out that pipedream, Kobe is the closest person on the team with those same aspirations. Unfortunately players are not listening!