Lakers continue to roll despite injuries
The Lakers just can’t get right…injury wise. But in terms of wins and losses it is not affecting them at all.
Heading into their match up with the Suns the Lakers are 6-1 with Pau Gasol in the lineup. Andrew Bynum is on schedule to make his return, making the dream of a “twin towers” only weeks away.
But now Kobe Bryant has an injury problem, which could hurt their chances of making a run at the title. His pinkie injury on his shooting hand is a lot worse than first thought, and he was told that he needs to have surgery.
Bryant has already made up his mind that he will play through the pain and have the surgery after the season. If Bryant has the surgery now he will be out for the next six weeks. Bryant believes that he can play through the pain without it getting any worse.
That was evident in their first game back at Staples Center in three weeks. The Lakers led the Hawks by 41 points in the first half, and they were able to rest their starters late in the game. Four of their starters did not play in the fourth period.
Bryant scored 23 points, as did Gasol. The game was so lopsided that there was a Kobe Karl sighting, which the fans had a good time with. Each time Karl touched the ball the fans chanted “Kobe, Kobe, Kobe.” When he attempted a free throw the crowd chanted “MVP, MVP, MVP.” 
As of right now the Lakers are bunched up with a number of other teams atop the Western Conference. Teams are still loading up for the playoff run. The Mavericks finally got the Jason Kidd deal done, and there are rumors that the Lakers may be trying to get Caron Butler back from the Wizards before this week’s trade deadline.

UCLA avengers their loss to USC
Normally the No. 6 team in the nation is not ina bad need of a win, but UCLA’s men’s basketball team could not have afforded a loss this past Sunday.
They lost to unranked Washington last week, and they had already lost to USC earlier this season. Another loss would have put them on a losing streak and given USC a sweep, which is not tolerated at UCLA.
The Bruins did not disappoint. But USC’s OJ Mayo certainly did. The superstar freshman, who averages 20 points per game, was held to only four points and he turned the ball over 10 times in their 56-46 loss. USC turned the ball over 22 times, compared to UCLA’s nine.
The win puts UCLA a half of a game ahead of No. 9 Stanford for the lead in the PAC-10. 
The Oregon schools will be traveling to Los Angeles this week, which means UCLA should have two easy wins. USC cannot afford to lose either game. A few more wins could put them into the NCAA tournament.

Bonds still looking for a team
Home run kind Barry Bonds is in shape, says he’s as strong as he has ever been, and he’s waiting for a team to sign him. Only problem is that there does not seem to be a team interested in him.
Looks like Bonds may be getting black balled. He hit 28 home runs and knocked in 66 RBI last season. With those numbers he would be a perfect fit to be a designated hitter in the American League. But there is no talk of any team being interested in him.
Bonds pending court case should not be an issue because it is scheduled for after the baseball season.
Bonds should feel pretty good about one thing. He’s not the key figure in the steroid scandal at this point. Pitcher Roger Clemens has taken that role as he has been exposed as a liar, and he has been the focal point of the steroid scandal since the Mitchell report was released.