Pivot Points: LA Lakers Finish Road Trip in Familiar Position, First Place

The Los Angeles Lakers' first extended trip away from the Staples Center revealed various things about the team and reinforced several things that were already known.

For one, the Lakers are not having too much trouble beating the league's doormats, as they finished their road trip with four wins and one loss, with the one loss coming to the only team that could be considered playoff worthy, the Utah Jazz.

Kobe Bryant's fractured finger, although painful, has not seemed to be to much of a hindrance, as Bryant has been performing at a MVP level, with the exception of the loss in Utah.

Pau Gasol continues his dominant play in the post with multiple 20-rebound games and as a strong second option to Bryant on offense, just the right tonic for the post woes that hurt the Lakers before his return.

Oh yeah, the Lakeshow retained their top spot in the league after an unexplainable loss by the Boston Celtics to the Philadelphia 76er's on Boston's home floor.

The sailing was far from smooth for the Lakers, who were challenged by the Chicago Bulls and extended into overtime by the Milwaukee Bucks before escaping due to the heroics of Bryant.

Los Angeles also fell back into the familiar habit of only playing defense in spurts, and having absolutely no clue on how to defend the perimeter at the point of attack.

Derrick Rose of Chicago and Devin Harris of New Jersey took turns abusing their Laker counterparts off the dribble and at the rim, and the bleeding didn't subside until Bryant was installed as primary defenders of both.

For all the things that the Lakers do well, their perimeter problems serve as a constant reminder that there are still areas that they can improve in down the road, and that needs to be a paramount concern.

All of the teams that figure to challenge the Lakers' repeat bid have guards that are capable of penetrating the Lakers' porous perimeter defense, and causing problems once they get in the lane.

Shannon Brown has proven to be a valuable asset in reserve duty, and it may be time for coach Phil Jackson to consider making a switch to Brown in the starting rotation.

Brown has the size to guard bigger point guards and the athleticism to keep up with them as well. His only knock may be his tendency to sometimes play out of control, but that is something that can be corrected with time.

If Brown were to move into the starting position at point guard that would allow Derek Fisher to come off the bench, which would provide another scoring option and valuable leadership in a reserve role.

Even if Jackson decides to stay the course, the option of playing Bryant against opposing points has to be enticing, and Bryant has proven that he has the acumen for the task.

As a precursor to what the future holds for Los Angeles, the first road-trip has to be certified as a success, although the road ahead looks daunting and will provide much stiffer competition.

It would have been easy for the Lakers to drop a few of those games in anticipation of their Christmas Day match-up with LeBron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers, and the fact that they didn't is a testament to their will and resolve.

Although there are still concerns for the Lakers that will have to be dealt with, if you are a fan you have to be pleased with their performance in their last five games.

A stretch which they ended by winning 17 of their last 18 games and remaining in the top spot in the Pacific division, the Western Conference, and the entire NBA.