The Lakers got their act together on the court, renewing their effort on defense and throttling a mediocre team instead of the other way around for a change with a 108-83 victory over the Pistons on Tuesday. Off the court, it was another story. Actually, many of them.
Yahoo reported early Tuesday afternoon that Ron Artest and Phil Jackson became engaged in a loud confrontation after a recent practice because Artest was upset over Jackson’s sometimes public criticism. Not long after, ESPN.com reported that Pau Gasol missed the shoot-around before Sunday’s loss to Memphis. Two other Lakers were late because, like Gasol, they said their iPhone alarms malfunctioned. Then there was Mark Cuban chirping in from Dallas, dismissing Jackson as Jeanie Buss’ boy-toy. Maybe Mark did it to make me giggle, said Jeanie, daughter of Lakers owner Jerry Buss. Because I am Madonna now and Phil’s my boyfriend.And right in the middle of it all is Kobe Bryant. As if losing four of six, and getting blown out at home by the likes of milquetoasts Milwaukee and Memphis was not enough to send Lakers fans into fits of panic, now they learned that Artest was about to go off the reservation, that Gasol didn’t just need an alarm clock for game time, and that revelations about a foot fetish are just around the corner.
Yahoo reported early Tuesday afternoon that Ron Artest and Phil Jackson became engaged in a loud confrontation after a recent practice because Artest was upset over Jackson’s sometimes public criticism. Not long after, ESPN.com reported that Pau Gasol missed the shoot-around before Sunday’s loss to Memphis. Two other Lakers were late because, like Gasol, they said their iPhone alarms malfunctioned. Then there was Mark Cuban chirping in from Dallas, dismissing Jackson as Jeanie Buss’ boy-toy. Maybe Mark did it to make me giggle, said Jeanie, daughter of Lakers owner Jerry Buss. Because I am Madonna now and Phil’s my boyfriend.And right in the middle of it all is Kobe Bryant. As if losing four of six, and getting blown out at home by the likes of milquetoasts Milwaukee and Memphis was not enough to send Lakers fans into fits of panic, now they learned that Artest was about to go off the reservation, that Gasol didn’t just need an alarm clock for game time, and that revelations about a foot fetish are just around the corner.
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