Lakers - Cause for concern?

Now did anyone expect this of all things? The 2-time defending champs are on a 4-game losing streak. Out of championship form for over a week, its unusual to see these guys reeling like they are now. Now losing isn’t always a bad thing. A loss can sometimes bring you down from a pedestal and make you focus on issues that if neglected could surface during more critical times like the playoffs. But, can this Laker team have any weakness? After 3 straight trips to the Finals and winning 2 of them? 4-game losing streak? Really?

Losses against Utah, Memphis, Indiana and Houston – none of them, except Utah to an extent, can be considered elite. Most of these games came down to the last few possessions. This area is where the difference lies. Last season, Bryant bailed his team out on several occasions (7) during late in the game. While the team could have possibly ignored the fact that the game was allowed to be decided on the last possession and have celebrated Bryant’s heroics, there haven’t been any this season (yet).

“Losing streak” and “Lakers” haven’t appeared in the same sentence in a long time. And now that it’s happening, the Lakers can take the time to sit back and reassess. Despite Pau Gasol playing the best ball of his career, despite Odom playing at an All-star level, despite Shannon Brown’s insane productivity in limited minutes, why does Kobe Bryant continue to shoot so much? That’s one main reason I guess why there isn’t much flow in the Laker offense. They still lead the league in points per game, but if Bryant continues to hog the ball so much, (after not doing so for 2+ season), now wouldn’t be a good time to start doing that again. He had his time dominating the league in scoring. But, he knows that his best role with this team is as the floor general, a facilitator.

After all the offseason activity over the last 2 years, (letting Ariza and Farmar go and bringing in Barnes and Blake), the Lakers added much more experience and poise. That said, I’ll still give the benefit of doubt to the Lakers. Like a Mustang revving up its engine and going over a few bumps in 1st gear, this team is just waiting to unleash its full fury. And with Bynum’s return, expect the Lakers to fire on all cylinders.

But for now, there are some holes that need to be plugged. And that begins with Kobe.