Lakers in Free Fall

Kobe Bryant missed the free throw.

Joe Smith did the unfathomable, fouling Bryant 24 feet from the basket inside of 10 seconds remaining, the Laker deficit three, Staples Center at full bellow, and then Bryant missed the free throw, the last of three, and the Lakers lost again.

The Minnesota Timberwolves, fresh from nowhere, defeated them, 110-107, on an otherwise sleepy Sunday night at 11th and Figueroa streets, leaving the three-time defending champions with two injured power forwards, a recovering center and a 6-12 record, which leaves them tied with the Clippers for last place in the Pacific Division.

At the end of the Lakers’ latest bout of ineffectiveness, it was Bryant at the line, Bryant who might have saved them from themselves, Bryant whose shot hit the inside right of the rim, the inside left and then popped free as the crowd groaned. But it could have been anyone, because defeat again came from a hundred tiny places, becoming official with a last three-point heave from Bryant at the buzzer.

“Well, it just is another loss,” Coach Phil Jackson said. “They seem to be piling up now with some regularity and we can’t seem to stop that momentum at this particular time and right ourselves and feel like, OK, we have a feel now for what we’re trying to do.”

On the floor, after the free throw, Bryant sighed and put his hands on his hips. After a moment, he gripped the sides of his shorts and scowled. He had scored 22 points, 10 in the fourth quarter. Shaquille O’Neal, in his sixth game off the injured list, had 31 points, 13 in the fourth quarter, and 13 rebounds.

And then it wasn’t enough, because Bryant’s free throw to tie it with 7.2 seconds remaining missed, because the Lakers were lax on defense for too long, and because at the end of the fourth quarter, there were moments when Kevin Garnett -- and not O’Neal or Bryant -- was the best player on the floor.

“I guess it just wasn’t meant to be,” Bryant said of his free throw. “It’s like Tiger putting and the thing just hits the lip and rolls off.”

The Lakers shot OK (46.3 %) from everywhere but the three-point arc (three for 15) and rebounded with some verve. But they allowed at least 106 points for the third consecutive game (Memphis needed overtime for its 106), and six Timberwolves scored in double figures, and if they aren’t bored on defense, it still looks like it.

The Timberwolves made 50.6% of their field-goal attempts and so won for the first time in 17 games against the Lakers in Los Angeles, and another chip of invulnerability is gone, just in case they care.

“We’re kind of beating ourselves, shooting ourselves in the foot,” O’Neal said. “Yes, I think we can correct it, but ... we have to do some soul searching and everyone has to do their part.”

Garnett had 23 points and 15 rebounds. Anthony Peeler scored 17 points in 30 minutes off the bench. And Troy Hudson scored 16 points. The Timberwolves scored 60 points in the second half, 34 in a fourth quarter in which they shot 20 free throws.

Bryant had one final opportunity at the buzzer, racing to the three-point arc on the right wing and flinging a shot toward the backboard, but it was not close, and as he carried himself from the floor, he stared up at the scoreboard again, pulled his shirt tail from his shorts and grimaced.

They lack continuity. They lack end-to-end effort. They are only 3-3 since O’Neal healed, and they’ve got an entire month to make up.

“We’re tag-teaming,” Bryant said of O’Neal’s return followed by the departure of Samaki Walker, then Robert Horry’s departure and the return, Sunday, of Devean George. “It’s just a matter of time. We need to be patient and get everybody healthy.”

The Lakers had a five-point lead in the first quarter, a 10-point lead in the second, an 11-point lead in the third, and the Timberwolves recovered each time. Three minutes into the fourth quarter, their lead was 87-82 and the Lakers were kicking the ball out of bounds and Bryant was on the bench and Horry was in a suit and standing on the fringe of the huddle where Jackson tried to solve it all.

They blew big leads when O’Neal was on the bench, and couldn’t recover when he was on the floor. And then Bryant missed, and they all had to start again, wondering when they’d be themselves again.

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Last Call

*--* The Lakers have fallen into last place in Pacific Division: PACIFIC W L Sacramento 14 5 Seattle 10 8 Phoenix 8 7 Portland 7 8 Golden State 6 11 CLIPPERS 6 12 LAKERS 6 12

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*--* STREAK ENDS The Lakers had won 16 straight home games against Minnesota before Sunday, last losing in December 1993. Lakers vs. the Timberwolves: Home 23-3 Away 17-9 Overall 40-12

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