Lakers at Grizzlies
THE STORY: The Los Angeles Lakers are a tough team to figure out. After dropping back-to-back road games to Detroit and Washington, the Lakers went out and beat playoff-contending Minnesota on the road and survived a tough test against the Boston Celtics in their return home Sunday. Locked in a tight battle for home court advantage in the West, Los Angeles can put some distance between itself and the next closest competitor when it visits the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday. The Grizzlies have rocketed all the way up to fourth in the West by winning 10 of 12.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, KCAL (Lakers), SportSouth (Grizzlies)
ABOUT THE LAKERS (25-16): For all the problems Los Angeles has had adjusting to a new coach and dealing with constant trade rumors, it still sits atop the Pacific Division and in third in the Western Conference. The latest reports have the Lakers searching everywhere for a starting point guard before Thursday’s deadline. One player not on the block is Kobe Bryant, who put up 34 points in the win at Minnesota and hit the go-ahead basket against Boston on Sunday. Los Angeles is reportedly reluctant to include in any deal center Andrew Bynum, who has shot 54 percent or better from the floor in seven straight games.
ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES (24-16): Memphis has not lost at home in more than a month and owns a 15-5 record at FedEx Forum. The Grizzlies’ recent surge has them within one-half game of the Lakers in the West and they are poised to get stronger with Zach Randolph’s return. The veteran forward is practicing with the team and could take the floor this week after sitting out the last 36 games with a knee injury. Memphis is beginning to get consistent production on offense, averaging 98.3 points in the last 12 games. The Grizzlies lost at Los Angeles 90-82 on Jan. 8 as Marc Gasol struggled to two points on 0-of-9 shooting.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. The Lakers won their last trip to Memphis 93-84 on Feb. 7, 2011.
2. Bryant has averaged 24.8 points in 55 career games against the Grizzlies.
3. Memphis’ bench outscored the starters 49-45 in a win at Denver on Sunday.