Winning Streak Does Little to Stir Reaction

Considering everything they’ve had to deal with this season -- ranging from injuries and legal matters to personality conflicts and contract issues -- you’d think that the Lakers would be excited about a three-game winning streak.

Think again. Knowing that the teams they’ve defeated were all under .500 and that they trail Sacramento by five games in the Pacific Division, the Lakers were anything but overjoyed after Saturday’s 90-minute workout at the team’s practice facility in El Segundo.

“This is just our chance to jump on teams that have been struggling a little bit,” Coach Phil Jackson said of the Lakers, who have won five of their last six games and are 9-4 since Jan. 24. “[This is our chance] to get ourselves going after the All-Star break. That’s important.... We need some momentum.”

In their last 13 games, the Lakers have played only three teams that currently have a record better than .500 and lost to each of them -- Minnesota, Indiana and Houston.

But over this stretch, the Lakers have done a decent job of winning games they should win.

In games against sub-.500 teams, the Lakers have only lost at Philadelphia, and play the Phoenix Suns -- the worst team in the Western Conference -- tonight.

A victory over the Suns would give the Lakers their first four-game winning streak since early December.

A streak like that might give the Lakers confidence for a stretch that will feature nine road games in 12, including six against playoff-bound teams.

“I always tag winning 10 games in a row as a true indication of having some cohesiveness and some understanding of what you’re doing,” forward Rick Fox said. “That’s always been a good indicator for us. In years that we’ve won championships, we had long winning streaks. Good teams in this league do that, win 10, 12, 14 games in a row. You can’t string 10 to 12 wins together without facing three or four good teams.

“And with that, you may see the team in the second of back-to-back games or at the end of a road trip.... That’s a true indicator.”

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The Lakers’ defense has shown improvement since the All-Star break, but they still are experiencing more breakdowns than they would like.

“We’re not good enough defensively right now to win a championship,” Fox said. “We have the talent to be, but we’re not right now.”

Since Kobe Bryant returned to the lineup, the Lakers have been more active in their halfcourt defensive rotations, even defending pick-and-rolls better. There are stretches, however, when they still play like they do not know each other.

“Our communication is getting a little better,” Fox said. “In the first half of the season, our communication had been highly focused toward referees and other things ... with a minimum placed on communicating with each other. But we’re starting to communicate on and off the floor, and that leads to better defense. We have to remember that it’s not just talking, you have to turn it into action.... If you speak on the pick-and-roll, you have to make sure that you provide help defense.”

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The Lakers may have lost swingman Kareem Rush for an undetermined amount of time after he suffered a foot injury late in Friday’s victory over Philadelphia at Staples Center. Rush did not practice Saturday and had an MRI exam and a CT scan performed on his foot.

Guard Gary Payton also did not practice because of a quadriceps injury, but he is expected to play against Phoenix.... Rookie forward Luke Walton suffered a pectoral injury in practice and his status for today’s game is uncertain. He’ll be examined before the game.

TODAY

at Phoenix, 4 p.m. PST

Channel 9, ESPN

Site -- America West Arena.

Radio -- KLAC (570), KWKW (1330).

Records -- Lakers 34-19, Suns 18-39.

Record vs. Suns -- 2-1.

Update --Since the All-Star break, Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant have combined to make 70 of 111 shots and average 58.3 points and 19.7 rebounds. “Physically, they both are in peak condition. They are playing at the level we expect of them over the course of the last few years,” Jackson said. Slava Medvedenko’s shooting percentage has dropped from .492 on Feb. 5 to .453.