Lakers finally leave Palace without malice

By Billy Witz
FOXSports.com
WITZ ARCHIVE

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – When Will Bynum's one-handed dunk, the one that was supposed to unleash an evening's worth of frustration, slammed off the rim and out of bounds, Kobe Bryant could not contain himself.

He burst out laughing, and leaned over to punch the shoulder of Ron Artest, who was seated next to him on the bench.

The Pistons have indeed become a laughingstock, and Wednesday night was another measure as the Lakers administered a 103-90 beating that wasn't nearly as cosmetic as the final score.

The game was essentially over by the time Richard Hamilton was whistled for two quick technical fouls less than five minutes into the game. The Lakers built a lead as large as 26 points and by the time five minutes remained, Bryant already had ice packs strapped to his knees.

But there was a degree of poignancy about this night that was not lost on the Lakers.

This building holds memories for many them, few of them pleasant. The Palace is the place where the last Lakers dynasty disintegrated — Phil Jackson retiring, Shaquille O'Neal being traded and Bryant entering his dark period after the Pistons shocked the Lakers in the 2004 NBA Finals. Derek Fisher would leave as a free agent.
 
"04?" Jackson asked as if the year did not spark a memory. "I have amnesia about that. I can't remember anything about that. Oh, I remember those kids standing on the parking garage outside the hotel. That's right. I remember that."

For Artest, it is the site of the moment that will likely define his career — the infamous brawl later that year, when he played for Indiana.

For Lamar Odom, it is the place where his air ball at the buzzer sealed a defeat in 2008 — the Lakers' fifth straight here. The next day, the team traded for Pau Gasol.

But it was more than the building that stirred memories. Some of the same antagonists were here for Detroit — Ben Wallace, Tayshaun Prince and Hamilton. Even if they are diminished players, they still represent the core of a team that used to fight and battle, and test the mettle of the Lakers.

They did none of that Tuesday.

Hamilton was gone too quickly and Prince, whose long arms and quick feet have created difficulties for Bryant since the 2004 Finals, was instead matched up for most of the night with Artest. As for Wallace, he was looking up at Gasol for most of his 20 minutes on the floor.

"We ain't looking so good," Wallace said. "We ain't looking so good."

It was not unusual in those days for the Pistons to bicker with their coach — be it Larry Brown, Flip Saunders or Michael Curry. But their headstrong ways at least carried over to the court. Now, the snipping with Coach John Kuester has been as consistent as the losing for the Pistons, who dropped their first five games and, at 4-8, sit last in the Central Division.

Rodney Stuckey was benched for a game after he blew off Kuester and in Monday's loss to Golden State, Kuester had to be restrained from going after Prince after the two had words.

"It looks like some of the guys aren't playing so hard," Jackson said.

The atmosphere at the Palace was muted as well. There were large swaths of empty seats in the upper deck. When Bryant stepped to the line to shoot free throws, there were once unthinkable chants of "MVP."

"It's different," Bryant said. "Obviously, the team's not as competitive as it was in '04 or '05. This place was really electric."

"It's weird," Artest said. "I don't know what's happened."

Bryant scored 33 points, many of them against the smaller Stuckey instead of Prince, who managed to block a layup by Bryant on one of the few occasions he guarded him. The Lakers' lead was so comfortable that Bryant spent the entire fourth quarter on the bench.

"Kobe was full of business tonight," Jackson said. "This is a building that they've had a lot great success over the last 15 years. I think Kobe comes in and looks at this building, and the guys that are still here that are from that team and he probably feels motivated by it."

Perhaps that explains why Bryant seemed to relish the final period. He lip-synched "Don't Stop Believing" when it was played during a timeout, and played around with Artest in the waning minutes, putting him in a headlock and pretending to hit him in the head.

Artest would not say what the joke was about, and Bryant said it wasn't something anyone was going to write about.

Still, it provided the Lakers seated beside them on the bench a good hearty laugh — and in this building, it felt good to get the last one.

November 17, 2010