Superstition can only last so long (a month and a half to be exact) when my fans are clamoring for another blog entry. Urging text messages, sarcastic facebook posts, scathing tweets, in-person requests...I've been inundated by all of them. So ladies and gentlemen...I guess it's time.
The Lakers are finally winning and it literally makes everything in my life better. Waking up is easier, coffee tastes better, jokes are funnier and, most importantly, Dwight's smile and D'Antoni's accent are no longer piercing my sole. Even shaving hasn't been that bad!
Truth be told, I've weened myself off of my psychotic regiment and have actually missed a few games recently...much to the delight of my very tolerant wife. Instead of DVRing what I can't watch or resorting to some drastically crazy measures (i.e. sitting in a parked car before my own basketball game listening to the game on XM radio while simultaneously watching live on my iPhone), I've finally accepted the fact that I have no control over the results of these games. Consequently, I found myself wearing a weird mask engrossed in "Sleep No More" rather than watching Kobe's virtuoso heroics against Toronto last Friday and watching Pat Sajak and Vanna White at a live filming of Wheel of Fortune during the majority of last night's win at Indiana.
Don't get me wrong....I'm still a complete freak. The Lakers didn't leave my mind for more than 15 seconds during both of those performances. And I did watch the final 5 minutes of the Indiana win on my phone while walking through a crowded midtown immediately after a Big East tournament game let out of MSG and the surrounding bars. My wife even volunteered to dip into a Midtown Old Navy at 10pm so I could finish watching the game on my phone before having to get on the underground subway to go home. Thank goodness the Lakers wrapped it up before she wanted to start trying things on....
So enough of about me and my evolution to and from normalcy. Why are the Lakers winning?
The easy ESPN answer is that Dwight (much to my delight but almost unforgivably long overdue) is finally playing like the man-child he was advertised to be. He looks happier, more engaged, bouncier, more confident and most importantly...healthy and comfortable (in a good way...not in a soft way). His interviews are even better now. Even me...who has emasculated Dwight numerous times in this blog...is starting to come around on the guy. Starting to at least. Couple that with Kobe Bryant officially being the biggest freak/non-human on the planet and you have your answer as to why the Lakers are back in the playoff mix. (On the Kobe front: I can't say enough about this guy. Aging and pain don't apply to him. My last entry "Kobe Bryant - A Robot in Disguise" highlights most of it, but he just keeps writing new chapters. What happened in the home wins vs. Atlanta and Toronto were just insane....not to mention the ridiculous comeback in New Orleans. Combine that with his super-human healing powers and now his "Assistant Coach of the Year" antics and this guy is officially my favorite human being of all time. However, I don't have the energy to write that book right now. I hope he never retires. There isn't a person reading this that doesn't sort of wish Kobe played for their franchise. Enough said.)
In addition to Dwight's emergence and Kobe being a complete alien, another major reason for the Laker success is that D'Antoni has finally figured out an effective rotation that only includes players worthy of NBA playing time. The bench mob of Meeks, Jamison and Blake has been a godsend. In other words, I no longer have to endure Darius Morris and Chris Duhon. Thank the Lord! In a season that has been and continues to be riddled by injuries to key players, the days of Darius Morris in the starting lineup and Chris Duhon launching 28-ft 3-pointers (while still thinking he's cool by the way) seem to finally be over. It's bewildering to me that these two jokes got major minutes--for a bulk of the season--while NBA-proven players like Jodie Meeks and Antawn Jamison were piling up "DNP-Coach's Decison" at certain points.
As for Blake...Let's just say, I've never been a bigger Steve Blake fan in my life In my pre-blogging days, this guy got destroyed on my twitter in a way that can never be duplicated. During last year's playoffs, I literally didn't know what to do with my hatred towards him it got so serious. Now, in addition to relegating the Morris/Duhon tag-team to the bench, Blake has been incredible. Whether he's playing the point, playing off the ball, guarding bigger, guarding the ball...he's been such a key cog in this run. Unlike before when his presence would immediately trigger a psychological meltdown, I actually like when he's in the game now. It is not a coincidence that the Lakers are 16-7 since Blake returned from injury. The turnaround literally started the exact night Blake came back...I can't believe I just dedicated that much positive internet space to Steve Blake. You Terps and Killian grads may have been right all along.
So, here we are at 35-32 with 15 games to go. The Lakers are clinging to the 8th seed; however, they are still tied with Utah (who owns the tie-breaker) in the loss column. There is a legitimate chance the Lakers can still move past 7th place Houston (1.5 up) and 6th place free-falling Golden State (2 up). Dwight is rounding into form. Kobe is banged up but as cool as ever. Pau should be coming back soon. The rotation is established. No longer do I have to worry about Darius Morris and Chris Duhon ruining my life. And, perhaps most importantly, the team chemistry is quickly developing. As the eternal Laker pessimist, I'm still freaked out by Utah. But if I was a fan of another team, I'd be scared out of my mind of this Laker team and would want NO PART of them come May. It should fun...and super stressful.
