Los Angeles Lakers

Pau Gasol made the most of his season debut, scoring 24 points and grabbing 13 rebounds as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Chicago Bulls 108-93. Kobe Bryant added 21 points to pass Laker legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the club's career scoring list. Ron Artest added 15 points for the reigning NBA champs, who finally had their full starting lineup intact as they posted their ninth win in a dozen games to begin the season. Gasol missed the first 11 games of the year with a strained right hamstring. He shot nine-of-15 from the field as the Lakers won their second straight game. Bryant ... Read Full Story

The Houston Rockets were one of those teams last NBA season that quietly flew under the radar. Having finished the regular season with a 53-29 overall record, the Rockets just missed the number two seed in the playoffs by a mere game. The Rockets went 53-29, which in the Western Conference is very good. The Rockets racked up wins by their defensive efforts holding teams under 95 points per game. The Rockets were 17th in scoring - which is why they couldn't beat the Lakers, not enough fire power. The Houston Rockets have a lot of unanswered questions they will have to address. Is ... Read Full Story

The atmosphere at Staples Center on Thursday, Nov. 19, was different. There was a sense of completeness. Pau Gasol is back and the rest of the league better beware because the Los Angeles Lakers now have all their stars aligned and they are scary good with Gasol in the lineup. The All-Star forward-center, who missed all of training camp, the preseason and the first 11 games because of a strained hamstring, scored 24 points on 9-of-15 shooting and grabbed 13 rebounds in his season debut and powered the Lakers to a 108-93 blowout victory over the Chicago Bulls. Gasol didn’t miss a beat, starting ... Read Full Story

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Los Angeles Lakers forward Pau Gasol is set to make his long awaited return to the court Thursday when the defending NBA champions host the Chicago Bulls. Having missed the team's first 11 games because of a hamstring ailment, the seven-foot Spaniard trained Wednesday and declared himself fit for his first regular season game on the Lakers website (http://www.nba.com/lakers/) said. "I felt great today and don't see any reason I shouldn't be able to play (Thursday)," Gasol said. "I think the muscle is healed." After making it through a week of workouts pain-free, Gasol is likely to be slotted straight ... Read Full Story

Kobe Bryant scored 40 points for the 100th time in his career, and the Los Angeles Lakers avoided a rare three-game losing streak with a 106-93 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night. Andrew Bynum had 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Lakers, who took a 28-point lead before surviving Detroit's impressive fourth-quarter rally to avoid their first three-game skid in nearly two years, following back-to-back losses to Denver and Houston. Bryant didn't appear to be slowed by his strained groin while scoring 27 points in the middle two quarters before reaching 40 on a 3-pointer with 19 seconds left. With four ... Read Full Story