Los Angeles Lakers

The team has the highest payroll in the NBA, with $91.3 million in player salaries and $21.4 million in luxury taxes.

The Lakers don't have the NBA's best record this season, but they lead the league in something else -- highest payroll.

His change of heart about sixth-man role should energize a mostly ineffective reserve unit.

Lamar Odom wasn't entirely thrilled when he found out he was no longer a starter last year in training camp, saying Lakers Coach Phil Jackson was "out of his . . . mind" for making him come off the bench.

Text messages from press row ...

As amusing as it was seeing Pau Gasol on "CSI: Miami," it was better seeing him back on the court Thursday night. . . .

(Self Promotional Notes: Don't forget to download this week's 710 ESPN.com Lakers PodKast, and to follow us on the Twitter at latimesKbros. Finally, AK and I are the, ahem, "personalities" representing 710 ESPN at this poker tourney at Hollywood Park Casino. Apparently, there's a bounty on our heads. Not for capturing us Boba Fett style for delivery to Jabba the Hutt, but rather knocking us out of the event. Come down/up/over and play if you can. That is all... for now. Moving on...) Sorry for what will be a brief report from Friday afternoon's practice in El Segundo, but it's...

Or A.B.A.U., for the acronymically* inclined... No surprise, after turning his right ankle in the third quarter of Thursday's 108-93 win over the Bulls, Andrew Bynum didn't practice Friday afternoon in El Segundo, instead receiving treatment ranging from medicine to ice to something he called a "laser level," which I always thought was used to hang picture frames properly. (Note: If my Google skills are worth their salt, I'm pretty sure he meant a low-level laser, which is used to help reduce swelling.) "It was sorer than last night, he said. "I left last (the arena) last night without doing...

The two part presentation remains intact. And in honor Pau Gasol's return, the sections will be titled in Spanish. We're bridging the gap like that. Part Uno -We discuss what the return of Pau Gasol means to the Lakers. Through eleven games, the Lakers have been mostly solid, occasionally fantastic, occasionally bad, but rarely resembling the one that took home an O'Brien last June. As we noticed last night, Pau's presence goes a long way towards restoring that dominance. Between his scoring abilities, passing skills, underrated D and general smarts, an awful lot has been brought to the table. -Lamar...

As anniversaries go, this isn't one to be celebrated. Because it's hard for anyone, let alone Ron Artest, to forget what happened at the Palace of Auburn Hills five years ago Thursday.

It didn't take long for Pau Gasol to begin answering key questions during his long- delayed, much-anticipated season debut Thursday night.

Football stadium near Detroit a 99% loss for city as GM job shift would add to downtown Detroit woes.

OCVarsity.com provides full coverage of all 28 CIF-SS playoff games involving Orange County teams tonight.

The wrestling program at Cal State Fullerton is playing host to the 44th Annual National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic Sunday at 2 p.m., with the goal of saving its own program.This is the first time the event, which will serve as a...

View photos from the Lakers-Bulls Game on Thursday night.

In his regular season debut, Pau Gasol led all scorers with 24 points in the Lakers 108-93 win over the Bulls at home. Kobe Bryant's 21 points made him second on the Lakers' all-time scorers list.

To the collective pleasure around L.A.'s practice facility - from Kobe Bryant to Phil Jackson to Gasol himself - it appears that Pau will return to the starting lineup when the Chicago Bulls come to town on Thursday.

I think fluid was the word of the night. For the first time this season the offense started to look fluid again (and the defense looked improved as well, in part just because of the size and length). Here are a few other thoughts. • I asked Kobe about being out on the perimeter more and [...]

The return of Pau Gasol, to me, was like going to see a really hyped-up movie, and then the movie actually being really good.  I sat down with my soda, popcorn, and watermelon Sour Patch Kids, totally prepared to be disappointed.  Little did I know that Pau would capture my attention early with a superb [...]

Records: Lakers 8-3 Bulls 6-4 Offensive points per 100 possessions: Lakers 105.4 (16th in league), Bulls 98.0 (27th in league) Defensive points per 100 possessions: Lakers 102.3 (10th in league) Bulls 99.5 (4th in league) Projected Starting Lineups: Lakers: Derek Fisher, Kobe Bryant, Ron Artest, Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum Bulls: Derrick Rose, John Salmons, [...]

Veteran play-by-play man Ralph Lawler and analyst Mike Smith (above, left and right) were suspended for tonight's Clippers telecast on Fox Sports Prime Ticket for comments made during Wednesday's telecast, according to sources with knowledge of the decision but not authorized to speak publicly.

Fox issued this statement at 5:03 p.m. today: "We regret the remarks made by Clippers announcers Michael Smith and Ralph Lawler during Wednesday's telecast. While we believe that Michael and Ralph

...

---

Wow that's really offensive.

They lucky they are still employed.

---

^
I wonder if that would be true had they offended a different racial group?

---