Pivot Points: Kobe and the LA Lakers Are Bringing Showtime Back

That's 10 wins in a row, with this last one coming in a thoroughly complete, and dominant fashion against the Utah Jazz.

There was an unbelievable fourth quarter stretch where the Lakers didn't just impose their will, they took away Utah's will to compete in what may be the best fourth quarter of defensive basketball played in the NBA this season.

The game was fairly even with Los Angeles holding a 74-73 lead when the Lakers decided to conduct a defensive clinic, totally confounding the helpless Jazz and throwing their entire rhythm out of sync.

During a little more than a six-minute period, the Lakers forced nine turnovers, induced two shot-clock violations, and scored 20 points in a row all while holding the Jazz without a single, solitary point.

It should be noted that Laker reserve, Jordan Farmar was at the heart of the spurt and did his part by playing magnificent defense on Utah guard Deron Williams, and by turning that effort into points on the other end as well.

What had been a close game became an emphatic route and the Lakers administered the beat-down in a glitzy and spectacular way that had me thinking of the Magic Johnson-led Showtime-era Lakers of the '80s.

I don't believe this team is anywhere near as good as that team that included three players: Johnson, James Worthy, and center Kareem-Abdul-Jabbar, who are considered by history to be among the best at their positions.

Those teams won five championships and would have probably won six if not for injuries that occurred in the playoffs. These Lakers have but one taste of a championship in their time together as a team.

But, they do have similar qualities. For one, both team's rosters were filled with players capable of making plays, at every position, and although Magic's teams were better on the break, they both play the game with a rhythmic precision.

The Showtime Lakers had the aforementioned three superstars plus Byron Scott, and Michael Cooper who were both capable of big plays and spectacular moments.

This incarnation of the Lakers features the same type of playmakers at every position on the court. Kobe Bryant, Ron Artest, Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, and several other Lakers are capable of the same types of dazzling plays.

The sequence where the Lakers stole a Utah pass, advanced the ball to Odom, who passed through his legs to Artest, who, in turn, tipped the ball to a cutting Farmar, is being played over and over on SportsCenter .

That play was an example of the most significant part of that Showtime Lakers team of the '80s. Their willingness to blend their various talents and personalities into a cohesive and dominant unit.

They all believed in the concept of team basketball, and they thrived from it. This Lakers team displays the same trait, and just maybe, is capable of being a better defensive team than the Showtime team.

I wasn't kidding about the Lakers' six-minute period where they destroyed Utah on the defensive end. It was really perhaps the best defensive basketball I have ever witnessed.

The Lakers have shown the potential for greatness on the defensive end, and have already demonstrated that same attribute on the offensive side.

Their swagger and flair suggests the confidence of a defending NBA champion, more than ready to defend the laurels of their throne. There really wasn't much to nitpick in this Laker demolition job.

The Lakers took a valiant effort from the Jazz, then increased their play and turned a tight game into a massacre, while holding Utah to six points in the fourth quarter. Impressive.

While this Laker team has yet to achieve the accomplishments of the team's of the '80s, it's safe to say that this version of the "Lakeshow" may indeed be a distant relative, I'll call them Showtime 2.0.