The Lakers outlasted the Suns last night in Phoenix. Kobe Bryant led the way for the Lakers with 25 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists. Pau Gasol really stuffed the stat sheet last night with 21 points, 8 rebounds, 9 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocked shots. Lamar Odom was tough also in this game as he finished up with 18 points, 17 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 steal. Ron Artest pitched in with 14 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals tonight. Derek Fisher (11 points) and Matt Barnes (11 points) also helped out the Lakers’ cause in this game. The Lakers are now 2-0 on the year.

It was a special night for the Lakers as they got their Championship Rings for last year and the banner was hung at the Staples Center. It seemed like the Lakers weren’t ready for the start of the game though as the Rockets led them 62-51 at the half. But the Lakers came on strong outscoring the Rockets 61-48 in the second half to prevail in a hard fought contest. Things were made hard in this game for the Lakers as the Rockets outrebounded them 53-44 in this game leaving the Lakers with little room for error. Pau Gasol (29 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocked shots) and Kobe Bryant (27 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists on 8 of 20 shooting from the floor) led the way for the Lakers in this game. Lamar Odom pitched in with a double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds) last night as he drew the start at power forward. But, it was Shannon Brown and Steve Blake who were hitting the bit shots in the 4th quarter for the Lakers. Brown hit 4 of 5 shots from three point range last night as he finished up with 16 points, 1 rebound, 1 assists and 4 steals in only 21 minutes on the floor. Steve Blake hit the eventual game winning three point shot for the Lakers in this game. He finished up with 10 points and 3 assists on 3 of 4 shooting from three point range in only 22 minutes on the floor. The Lakers are 1-0 on the season.

The Lakers were 57-25 last season and I see no reason to think that they can’t win at least that many games in 2010-11. The additions of Steve Blake, Matt Barnes and Theo Ratliff might not have made headlines in newspapers but those guys will make the Lakers deeper. I would make a bet on the over as far as wins go. The Lakers are the second choice in the betting (Miami Heat are the favorite) for the NBA Championship as the Lakers are 8-3. That is worth making a wager on.

65-year old head coach Phil Jackson decided to return for one more year after mulling retirement. Jackson led the Lakers to a 57-25 (69.5%) regular season record and the Lakers went 16-7 (69.6%) during the playoffs on their way to the second NBA Championship in a row. In 10 years with the Lakers, Jackson is 553-267 (67.4%) during the regular season and he is 114-57 (66.7%) during the post season. Banners hang from the ceiling from 1999-00, 2000-01, 2001-02, 2008-09 and 2009-10 which are years in which Phil Jackson led the Lakers to NBA Championships. Jackson has a career record during the regular season of 1,098-460 (70.5%) and he is 225-98 (69.7%) in his career in the post season. Jackson was elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007 and he has an amazing 11 NBA Championships as a head coach.

Don’t believe any of the hogwash going around that the Lakers aren’t depending on 22-year old Andrew Bynum to have a big year in 2010-11. Sure, his knee is bothering him at the start of the year but the Lakers can always get Gasol to play some center to limit Bynum’s minutes to keep him healthy. Bynum played in 65 games (all starts) for the Lakers last season and he averaged 30.4 minutes, 15.0 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.4 blocked shots per game. He has now played in 278 games (193 starts) in his five years with the Lakers and he has averaged 23.6 minutes, 10.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.5 blocked shots per game. If Bynum can stay healthy the Lakers will dominate even more than usual in 2010-11.

37-year old Theo Ratliff will give the Lakers some defense and rebounding off the bench this year. Ratliff played in 49 games (29 starts) for the Bobcats & Spurs last season and he averaged 16.5 minutes, 3.6 points, 3.2 rebounds, 0.5 assists and 1.2 blocked shots per game. He has now played in 800 games (533 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 25.5 minutes, 7.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 2.5 blocked shots per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE LAKERS CENTERS IN 2010-11: B+

30-year old Pau Gasol will start at power forward but he will also slide over to center when needed. Gasol played in 65 games (all starts) for the Lakers last season and he averaged 37.0 minutes, 18.3 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game. He has now played in 649 games (643 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 35.8 minutes, 18.8 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game. Gasol is a double-double machine and he was a more deserving MVP of the NBA Finals then Kobe Bryant was last season.

30-year old Lamar Odom would be the starting power forward for at least 20 teams in the NBA, but with the Lakers he’s an outstanding sixth man. Odom played in 82 games (38 starts) for the Lakers last season and he averaged 31.5 minutes, 10.8 points, 9.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. He has now played in 747 games (643 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 35.9 minutes, 14.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.0 steal and 1.0 blocked shot per game. Odom is likely in line for a lot of P.T. for the Lakers this year with Andrew Bynum starting the year gimpy.

22-year old Derrick Caracter will sit and learn in his rookie year for the Lakers. He played in 27 games at UTEP last season and he averaged 14.1 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. Caracter played in 80 games in his college career and he averaged 10.2 points, 5.6 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE LAKERS POWER FORWARDS IN 2010-11: A+

30-year old Ron Artest will be the starting small forward for the Lakers once again in 2010-11 but he won’t likely have to play as many minutes. Artest played in 77 games (all starts) for the Lakers last season and he averaged 33.8 minutes, 11.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He has now played in 681 games (639 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 34.7 minutes, 15.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.0 steals per game. Artest still plays good defense and he really made some big shots for the Lakers last season. He also turned into a very unselfish player which was a very positive change for him.

30-year old Matt Barnes will likely give Ron Artest more of a break this year. Barnes played in 81 games (58 starts) for the Magic last season and he averaged 25.9 minutes, 8.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. He has now played in 444 games (162 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 21.3 minutes, 7.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. Barnes is a very solid player more than capable of starting if Artest gets injured.

30-year old Luke Walton is on the downside of a underwhelming NBA career. He played in 29 games (0 starts) for the Lakers last season and he averaged 9.4 minutes, 2.4 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Walton has now played in 430 games (138 starts) in his 7 years in the NBA (all with the Lakers) and he has averaged 18.6 minutes, 5.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. I don’t expect Walton to get much P.T. for the Lakers this year.

20-year old, 2nd round pick Devin Ebanks will likely be doing a lot of watching and learning as a rookie. Ebanks played in 34 games for West Virginia last season and he averaged 12.0 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He played in 69 games in his college career and he averaged 11.2 points, 7.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE LAKERS SMALL FORWARDS IN 2010-11: B

It all starts with 32-year old Kobe Bryant who is the best player on the best team in basketball. Bryant is showing no signs of slowing down as he played all of last season with a broken finger on his shooting hand. Bryant played in 73 games (all starts) for the Lakers last season and he averaged 38.8 minutes, 27.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Kobe has now played in 1,021 games (873 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 36.6 minutes, 25.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Injuries are the only thing that could stop Kobe Bryant from dominating once again in 2010-11.

24-year old Shannon Brown took less money from the Lakers than he could have got on the open market proving that he’s a team first player. Brown played in 82 games (7 starts) for the Lakers last season and he averaged 20.7 minutes, 8.1 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. He has now played in 174 games (16 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 15.1 minutes, 6.1 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. I look for Brown to improve on his numbers in 2010-11 for the Lakers.

26-year old Sasha Vujacic will be #3 in line for the Lakers at shooting guard. Vujacic played in 67 games (1 start) for the Lakers last season and he averaged 8.6 minutes, 2.8 points, 1.2 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game. He has now played in 409 games (12 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 14.5 minutes, 4.9 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. Vujacic is a good outside shooter (37.1% 3′s in career) but the Lakers tried to give him away over the summer but found no takers.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE LAKERS SHOOTING GUARDS IN 2010-11: A+