Mental breakdown or mental toughness?

If anything else, the Lakers are consistent. For what seems like the tenth straight game, the Lakers once again played to the final buzzer. Only this time, a phantom foul and travel ended their four game winning streak. My initial reaction was that it was a terrible loss. To be down eleven in the fourth quarter, come all the way back and then have two uncharacteristic mental break downs to lose a game you were leading; inexcusable.

Speaking of things that never happen, when did Derek Fisher start lacking mental toughness? Obviously, replays showed that Fisher never came close to touching Mason on the game winning play, but to put yourself in a position, on the road, to allow a referee to make that call, is very un-Fisher like. Foul or no foul, he forced the Ref’s hand. If the game is at Staples and Fisher is taking that shot, he gets the call too. Fisher didn’t even react after the call. He knew what he did. In a related story, Brent Barry is now at piece with the world.

It was a tough loss, but you couldn’t tell from anyone’s reaction after the game. Phil praised his team’s toughness to come all the way back on the road, against the Spurs, on the tail end of a back to back. Kobe shrugged it off as another crazy match up against Duncan and crew. Pop couldn’t stop glowingly waxing poetic about the Lakers, Phil’s mastery over his team and the continuing conundrum of how to stop Kobe Bryant. If you didn’t see the score, you would have thought the Lakers blew out the Spurs. And that’s what I take away from this game. The Lakers are playing with the same swagger that the Celtics had last season. Even in a loss, the Lakers knew they let that game slip away. They understand that if they execute their game plan, no one can stop them. Win or lose, they’re in every single game. As a fan, what more could you ask for?