Lakers 118, Kings 108

The Kings made what could've been a blowout a little interesting at the end, cutting what had been a 19-point Lakers lead down to five points late in the fourth quarter and forcing Lakers coach Phil Jackson to put starters Kobe Bryant, Derek Fisher and Pau Gasol back into the game. But the Lakers righted the ship and came away with the victory in the end.

A win is a win. And the Lakers aren't perfect of course. But it certainly would've been nice not to have to put the starters back into the game late in the fourth quarter, as I'm sure Phil Jackson will tell us in just a few minutes when he does his postgame press conference.