Lakers Avoid a Late Sting

For a long 3 minutes 40 seconds, the Lakers found out what life is like without Kobe Bryant.

It was frenetic, even a little ragged, but in the end, it was survivable.

A 33-point lead had been slashed to 14 when Bryant fouled out, and there was further slippage to a seven-point edge, but the Lakers held on to defeat New Orleans, 106-98, Tuesday before 17,202 at New Orleans Arena.

On a night when Caron Butler scored 23 points with a tender ankle and Chucky Atkins outplayed All-Star point guard Baron Davis, it came down to a blocked shot by Lamar Odom and a steal by Butler to seal the victory.

When it was over, Coach Rudy Tomjanovich, with his yellow tie loosened, leaned against a wall outside the Laker locker room and sighed, showing the effects of a large lead that had gone lost.

“It’s like a boulder coming down the side of the hill,” Tomjanovich said. “They got their confidence going and gave people something to cheer about. I didn’t have to say anything when I came in the locker room. Some veterans were talking about we’ve got to do a better job.... Our starters could have gotten rested today and we let them back in the game. I couldn’t have said it better.”

Bryant, watching from the bench, said he never fretted after Davis drew a charge to end his night.

“I had confidence in my guys,” Bryant said. “I’m not the type that gets too nervous.”

Others did.

After Bryant’s exit, the Lakers were promptly called for failing to get the ball past the half-court stripe within eight seconds. And the defense, already on the way to surrendering a 42-point fourth quarter, picked a poor time to slip even further.

“We were just scrambling around,” Tomjanovich said.

But with the lead trimmed to 98-91, Odom blocked a shot by Lee Nailon, and after the Hornets retrieved the ball, Butler stepped in front of a Darrell Armstrong pass and went the other way for a dunk with 1:02 to play.

“Those two big defensive plays saved us,” Tomjanovich said.

As did Butler and Atkins, two of nine new players on a team still searching for an identity. A victory like the one Tuesday, even though it came against the winless Hornets, will only help.

Butler was supposed to be hurt, Atkins was supposed to be struggling, and the Lakers were supposed to be worried about their trip. Instead, the Lakers took the first game of their four-city, five-night odyssey.

Butler played with a foam support in his left shoe to stabilize a sprained ankle and made 10 of 14 shots for a second consecutive game.

Atkins had been averaging 5.8 points and 2.8 assists, but he got the better of Davis, scoring 18 points on five-for-eight shooting and adding six assists. Davis had 23 points on five-for-20 shooting and had five assists.

“I’m coming along,” said Atkins, who played his most effective game as a Laker. “I’m getting more and more involved in the offense and feeling more comfortable.”

Odom also seemed to be getting more involved. He scored on a running jumper to give the Lakers their first basket after Bryant fouled out. Then he timed Nailon’s shot perfectly.

“I’ve got to wait for Kobe Bryant to foul out to make a play,” Odom said jokingly. “I’ll have to do it earlier next time.”

Bryant, who scored 31 points and made all 14 of his free-throw attempts, was also in a playful mood afterward, saying he hadn’t fouled out since “probably high school, senior year, against Norristown.”

In reality, he fouled out for the 13th time in his NBA career.

The Lakers could be granted a laugh or two.

In their first road game, they set three team records for offensive futility in a forgettable loss last Wednesday against Utah.

On Tuesday, their second road game, an insurmountable lead suddenly became surmountable. Nonetheless, the Lakers pulled it out.

Said Butler: “We’ll take a ‘W’ tonight.”