Lakers may have to try harder just to be No. 2 in West

As the San Antonio Spurs celebrated at midcourt, mobbing 36-year-old Antonio McDyess like they had just won the championship, a bizarre, fully unpredictable item rocketed to the top of the Lakers’ agenda.

Secure second place in the Western Conference.

It’s a stunning admission of a regular season gone asunder, with the Lakers having no realistic shot of catching the Spurs between now and April 13.

Thursday’s loss pushed the Lakers (34-16) to 71/2 games behind the Spurs, meaning the next two months have been reduced to fending off Dallas and Oklahoma City, and maybe staying ahead of the non-Boston teams in the East.

What fun. What excitement. What in the name of Ron Artest’s jump shot is going on around here?

Even if the Spurs won at only a 60% clip the rest of the way, the Lakers would have to play almost .900 ball to finish ahead of them.

Would now be a bad time to mention that the Lakers are 1-6 against teams with better records? And that they just left to start a seven-game trip that includes Boston and Orlando? That they’re on a 4-5 skid? That they’ve already lost more home games (eight) than they did all last season (seven) and the season before that (five)?

They’ve been so bad at home, losing three of their last four, that Kobe Bryant looked forward to playing anywhere but Staples Center.

“We had a horrible home stand here so going out on the road might do us a little bit of good,” he said gruffly.

Funny thing, though, nobody seems to want to write off the Lakers, be it TV analysts or the Spurs themselves.

San Antonio couldn’t drop off enough compliments before leaving Staples Center with an 89-88 victory Thursday.

From Tony Parker: “The Lakers are still the best team and they’re the team we want to beat. The record doesn’t mean anything.”

From Richard Jefferson: “They’re the best team in the NBA, regardless of what everybody says. There won’t be a new champion until they lose in the playoffs, regardless of any drama that people try and stir up around here.”

Then there was a pro-Lakers analysis from TNT’s Charles Barkley, who last month said Bryant had definitely lost a step but this month still believed in the Lakers.

“I like the Lakers in the long run,” Barkley said. “You see the advantage they have inside with [Lamar] Odom, Pau Gasol and [Andrew] Bynum. I think over a seven-game series they will wear the Spurs down. The Spurs are having a terrific season, but I don’t think they can beat the Lakers in a seven-game series.”

Meanwhile, the Lakers did not practice Friday and begin a potentially tricky trip Saturday in New Orleans.

They usually fare well there against the Hornets, but then they play in Memphis (a problem) and Boston (an even bigger problem). Then it’s off to New York in front of a rejuvenated fan base, Orlando in its new arena and the curiously difficult Charlotte Bobcats, who inexplicably always give the Lakers trouble. The trip ends with the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers before the All-Star break.

“I’m curious,” Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said. “We’re playing well on the road as a basketball team and we know it, but we just have to keep playing that way.”

The Lakers’ road record (15-8) is almost as solid as at home (19-8).

Ron-Ron ran

Artest was energetic and also erratic against San Antonio, scoring 13 points but also committing some head-scratching turnovers.

Of all people, though, Artest got a standing ovation in the second quarter after back-to-back successes, trailing Derek Fisher on a fastbreak for a layup and tying up Tim Duncan down low at the other end for a jump ball.

He made six of seven shots from inside the arc but missed all four of his three-point attempts.

“The game was basically even,” Artest said. “They got a tip-in. We’ll get a crack at them again.”

Kevin Love is an All-Star

Minnesota forward Kevin Love was designated the “commissioner’s selection,” and will take the place of injured Yao Ming as the West’s final All-Star.

Love was chosen by Commissioner David Stern ahead of a group of forwards including LaMarcus Aldridge of Portland, Rudy Gay and Zach Randolph of Memphis, and Odom.

Gasol was selected by the coaches as an All-Star reserve, though Jackson chuckled when asked if he’d rather see Gasol get some rest instead of taking part in All-Star weekend.

“Pau’s great in a forum like that,” Jackson said. “He won’t play that hard anyway.”

mike.bresnahan@latimes.com

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