Surging Lakers take Kwanzaa break

On the day after their rousing victory over the Phoenix Suns on Christmas Day, the Los Angeles Lakers took Wednesday off to celebrate Kwanzaa.

After playing eight games in 13days, the Lakers have only threegames in a 10-day span. It offers them a chance to rest and recover after moving within onegame of the Pacific Division-leading Suns thanks to ninewins in their past 11 games.

Kwame Brown could be back on the floor Friday against the Utah Jazz, having recovered from sprains of his left knee and ankle that forced him to sit out 19games.

Luke Walton also could return to the lineup after missing the past two games after aggravating a nagging sprain of his right ankle.

That could mean bad news for upcoming opponents since the Los Angeles Lakers have been winning consistently without being at full strength. The Los Angeles Lakers face the Jazz on Friday, and then play the Boston Celtics on Sunday to close out the 2007 calendar year.

Although they continue to seek a steadier game, the Los Angeles Lakers expressed a certain degree of contentment after defeating Phoenix.

"I think our defensive pressure is really what keeps us consistent," Kobe Bryant said. "Defensively, we are able to do some pretty good things. Rebounding the ball, we're pretty solid there. Offensively, it's just (a matter of) keeping our rhythm going and knocking down shots when they present themselves.

"I think defensively is where we've really kind of turned the corner."

It seemed odd to suggest such a thing after giving up 115 points to the Suns, but Kobe Bryant had a point: the Lakers denied Phoenix the sort of extended runs that prove devastating to opponents.

"We just played better defense (than the Suns)," center Andrew Bynum said. "They played great defense, too, but I think they only scored 40 points in the second half, which is pretty low for them."

The Lakers actually outscored the Suns 60-53 in the second half Tuesday.

"We are quick," forward Lamar Odom said. "We feel we can match up with any team in the NBA. We can go with a big lineup or a small one. Our 12 guys can hit shots. Basketball is fun right now when we play like this."

However, Odom cautioned against expecting a changing of the guard atop the Pacific Division. Despite the Lakers' 2-0 series lead over Phoenix this season, Odom remains wary of the Suns.

"They have the upper hand," he said after scoring 15 points and grabbing 14 rebounds Tuesday. "They've beaten us twice in the playoffs. That's a team that's going to get better and better as the season goes on. They are looking forward to playing for a championship, so we have to be prepared when we see them again."

Center of attention

It's no coincidence that Andrew Bynum has either tied or broken his career high for scoring three times in the past nine games. The Los Angeles Lakers have exploited their low-post dominance by feeding the ball to Andrew Bynum more often than in the past.

Andrew Bynum is averaging 12.5 points this season.

"Phil Jackson is making a point to look at the post," Andrew Bynum said, referring to the Lakers' coach. "As long as they look, I'm going to get some (points)."

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