Momentum Can Change in Less Than a Second

The Lakers have come out on the right side of the best NBA playoff finish ever. They have everyone from Charles Barkley to Regis and Kelly talking about Derek Fisher’s shot. They have a 3-2 lead in their series with the San Antonio Spurs. They have more than 19,000 fans ready to set a new decibel record in Staples Center.

The thing they don’t have is momentum.

How can anyone lay lasting claim to something so fickle it switches sides twice in less than a second? In Game 5, the Lakers couldn’t carry the style of play that built them a 16-point lead in the third quarter with them to the fourth. The offense stagnated, the Spurs’ confidence grew and next thing you knew, the Lakers were in a shot-for-shot battle.

And what shots they were.

First a 20-footer off a screen by Kobe Bryant with 11.5 seconds remaining. Didn’t matter that he was wobbly, that he had missed five of his previous six shots. Was there any doubt he was going to make this, the biggest shot of the Laker season to that point?

Then came Duncan’s improbable, going-the-wrong-way-off-the-wrong-foot jump shot from straightaway.

Finally, Fisher’s four-tenths finale.

Instead of another heartbreaking Game 5 defeat, like last year’s, the Lakers had a victory.

But did they put the Spurs away?

Back at the Laker practice facility Friday, Coach Phil Jackson, wearing shorts and sandals, reflected on Fisher’s shot ... and the one that got away.

“The biggest thing is the loss of momentum in the last quarter,” Jackson said. “We had what it took to win that quarter, but still kept San Antonio vested in this series. They still believe that they can win.”

Spur Coach Gregg Popovich said he wouldn’t even show Fisher’s shot to his team, editing the game films like the alternate ending on a DVD. He can concentrate on Tony Parker’s nine fourth-quarter points and Duncan’s coming through with an MVP-type night.

All they need is one victory over what looks to be a tired Laker team to put themselves in position to advance with a home victory.

See how one simple game can swing things?

Remember where we were a week ago? The Lakers had dropped the first two games of the series and had no answer for Parker.

Well, if you think Fisher was right on target Thursday night, you should have heard him when he was asked if the Lakers could gain momentum in the middle of the playoffs.

“I think it’s possible,” he said. “It’s not easy to do, but I definitely think it’s possible. A lot of times, winning that one game allows you to build on things from there. For us, I think that’s what it’s about.

“It’s really a matter of concentrating on [Game 3] and winning that one game. Then the tone of the series takes a different turn. Then you focus on some of the things we’re doing well. That’s when you start to build energy and build momentum. When you aren’t so focused on, ‘We’re doing this wrong’ or ‘We need to correct these things’ or ‘We have to focus on this guy or that guy.’

“Win a game and, all of a sudden, the other team has to start focusing on you. Then you can start to maybe build some rhythm, build some momentum.”

The Lakers started their climb back with defense in Game 3.

Now they have a three-game winning streak against a team that until a week ago was the hottest thing going in the NBA.

It can be taken away quickly. If they’d had one-tenth of a second less to work with, Fisher wouldn’t have been able to get his shot off.

But here’s where the Lakers have the edge over the Spurs -- and every other team in the league. It’s their ability to deal with adversity. They almost require adversity. It’s their high-octane fuel.

Earlier in the week, Shaquille O’Neal sounded a little rueful when he said, “I think we play much better when our backs are against the wall. It shouldn’t be like that.”

It must stem from the necessity of overcoming their own internal drama just to make it to the court.

O’Neal and Bryant can slash each other with verbal swords the way they did at the start of the season, then throw bouquets -- and alley-oop passes -- to each other.

Whenever things go wrong, they seem to be able to realize that they have something that works.

It’s their inconsistency that makes me wonder if this series is over just yet. But it’s their desire and belief that they will ultimately prevail -- reinforced so strongly Thursday -- that makes me believe that somehow, eventually, momentum will be back on their side. Even if they have to go back to San Antonio to find it.

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J.A. Adande can be reached at j.a.adande@latimes.com. To read previous columns by Adande, go to latimes.com/adande.