Los Angeles Lakers at Panic Level 7: Down But Never Out

After last night's loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, I may prove to be one of the more reluctant fans to believe that there is reason for a level 10 panic in Los Angeles. I admit that the Lakers are not showing their drive and talent on the court as they should be at this point in the season, and I will not blame their lack of energy on a long road trip and age. However, I do not feel like last night’s game showed that LA to be other than number one contenders in the West pursuit for the Championship against either the Boston Celtics or Miami Heat.

The first reason is this: who is going to take that chance away from them in the west? Sure, the San Antonio Spurs have been playing great this season and sure, this is the greatest start in their franchise’s history.  But in the end, who really feels like the Spurs can battle it out with the Lakers?

San Antonio has the talent and the depth to take it all the way, I will never argue that they do not. However, we have seen that talent alone will get you nowhere. Kobe Bryant is one of the most competitive players the game has ever seen. When put in that position I feel like he can turn it on and make things happen as he has before.

Cleveland is a team that is trying to reestablish themselves as relevant in the league. While are nowhere near the Lakers as far as talent is concerned, their passion and the drive for that specific game trumped LA. When playing against a team that just came off of a record setting losing streak, no matter how much better you know you are, you cannot let the momentum shift in their favor because that gives a boost of confidence that will translate into speed and scoring.

Los Angeles simply did not play with enough heart in a game that they probably felt meant nothing to them and that Cleveland knew meant almost everything to their organization.

There is a bit of a reason to be concerned though, being that this was Cleveland, and this is the third straight loss closing out their Grammy road trip, where they lost to Orlando and to Charlotte. The teams seems to be losing sight of the common goal and are beginning to play lazier and lazier as the seasons crashes on.

This will spark talks of a possible trade with the primary target being Andrew Bynum again. Why? Because never in the history of the NBA has a team been playing like they have lowered their standards and somebody on the roster was not singled out for the blame. Also, even after his complaints about playing time against the Charlotte Bobcats were made public, he received even less time in the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

While they may not aim to put Carmelo Anthony on their roster until they are absolutely sure Bynum cannot be an asset to the team after all these years, there do need to be some changes. Never count the Lakers out of the run. That would be a mistake.