So once again point guard Shannon Brown was the first guard off the bench and is playing significantly more minutes than Jordan Farmar. The logical assumption would be that Brown has just passed Farmar on the depth chart. But that’s way to cut-and-dry.

Brown had 15 DNPs since coming over from Charlotte in the Vlad Radmanovic trade, so he needs to log some court time in order to earn Phil Jackson’s trust in the playoffs. Phil already knows what he’s going to get from Farmar.

So far, the audition has gone well. But from listening to Phil the last couple of days, it sounded like Brown was being cast as a “defensive stopper” who could be called upon depending on the match-up.

What kind of match-up?

Brown is a big, athletic, quick, physical guard … just like two of the Lakers potential first-round opponents Chris Paul/New Orleans and Deron Williams/Utah.

Oh, by the way. The Lakers lead the Jazz 56-55 at the half. Kobe Bryant has been in foul trouble, though I don’t think he was going to play a ton of minutes anyway.

The Lakers clinched the No. 1 spot in the Western Conference, but their first-round playoff opponent remains to be determined. It could be the Utah Jazz, tonight’s regular-season finale opponent. If the Lakers defeat the Jazz tonight, the Jazz will finish eighth and the teams will play each other in the first round.

However, if the Jazz win, then they could move up to sixth if the New Orleans Hornets and Dallas Mavericks both lose in their finales. Utah also could be seventh if either the Hornets or Mavericks lose.

The Lakers could face the Hornets in the opening round if the Hornets lose and the Mavericks and Jazz win.

The Lakers could face the Mavericks if the Mavericks lose and the Jazz win.

Andrew Bynum has scored in double figures in each of his three games since returning from a 32-game layoff because of a right knee injury. He had 18 points Sunday, leading the Lakers to a victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. He has a few goals for Tuesday’s regular-season finale against the Utah Jazz. He hopes to get his timing back, above all.

“I’m feeling a little bit better,” he said. “My timing is getting better. A couple of times I got the ball in the middle of the lane (Sunday). Jordan (Farmar) gave me a pass. I think Shannon (Brown) also. I kind of bobbled it and fumbled it. I’m just working all those little kinks out. I’m getting back into the floor, betting back into the rhythm. I’m not hesitating, but I’m not in flow. I’m in between.”

Asked what he’d like to do against Uah, he said simply, “Get a double-double. My rebounding has been kind of lacking.”

Interesting that backup Shannon Brown was the first guard off the bench for the third consecutive game. He replaced Derek Fisher, who is getting more rest as the Lakers count the days until the regular season ends and the playoffs begin. Brown is bulkier and faster than Jordan Farmar and perhaps more able to stay in front of a big point guard like Deron Williams of the Utah Jazz, who are possible first-round playoff opponents.

“We’re really watching how he’s moving, reacting, initiating the offense,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said when asked about Brown after tonight’s 92-75 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. “Jordan’s much more comfortable doing the things we do out there on the floor (in the triangle offense). We obviously want him to play at a high level.

“But with bigger guards, muscular guards, there’s a real need or potential for Shannon to help us out there in the playoffs as he progresses. He’s still got to make some steps forward, but tonight was another example of things going well for him and the people he plays with, and that’s what you look for as a coach.”

Brown had three points, three rebounds and two assists in almost 17 minutes tonight against the Grizzlies. Fisher played almost 18 minutes, scoring four points on 2-for-9 shooting. Farmar played a little more than 13 minutes, scoring two points.

The Lakers handled the Memphis Grizzlies with relative ease in the first half, prompting the question: Why was it so close? Well, the Lakers shot only 43.8 percent. The Grizzlies shot 33.3 percent. Lakers coach Phil Jackson also spread the minutes around, keeping to his recent method of operation. No sense in wearing out his players just to beat up on the Grizzlies. Kobe Bryant scored 10 points to lead the Lakers in the first half. O.J. Mayo, a former USC standout, scored 11 to lead the Grizzlies.

The NBA will look into a pre-game video shown Friday night by the Portland Trail Blazers which included footage of Lakers forward Trevor Ariza’s March 9 flagrant foul on Portland’s Rudy Fernandez, a league spokesman confirmed Saturday.

By league rules teams are not permitted to display replays involving flagrant fouls, altercations or hard physical contact from previous games.

Lakers coach Phil Jackson did not attend the team’s game in Portland Friday night due to swelling in his right leg, but raised the issue Saturday afternoon at the team’s El Segundo training facility.

“That’s something that NBA clubs are not supposed to do,” Jackson said. “Showing that video before the game, that incites crowds. Portland took a big risk doing that there, that’s a fineable thing for the league.

“That’s something that they try to prevent in the spirit of good sportsmanship, but Portland has been like that. They created that situation. And I think Trevor was affected by it unfortunately.”

–Ramona Shelburne

Lakers coach Phil Jackson didn’t make the trip to Portland for Friday’s loss to the Trail Blazers due to swelling in his right leg, but he saw enough on television to suggest Saturday afternoon that it was inappropriate for Portland to have shown video footage of the Trevor Ariza-Rudy Fernandez incident before the start of the game.

“That’s something that NBA clubs are not supposed to do,” Jackson said. “Showing that video before the game, that incites crowds. Portland took a big risk doing that there, that’s a fineable thing for the league.

“That’s something that they try to prevent in the spirit of good sportsmanship, but Portland has been like that. They created that situation. And I think Trevor was affected by it unfortunately.”

Before the game, the Trail Blazers showed a video montage of highlights from their last game (a 111-94 loss on March 9) against the Lakers. At the end of the video, the team showed footage of Ariza’s controversial foul on Fernandez. Ariza was assessed a flagrant foul, Fernandez went to the hospital, and Lamar Odom was suspended for a game because he left the bench area during the subsequent scuffle.

PORTLAND, Ore. — The Lakers slipped 1 1/2 games behind the Cleveland Cavaliers tonight in the race for the league’s best record. The Lakers (63-17) lost to the Portland Trail Blazers (64-15) and the Cavaliers defeated the Philadelphia 76ers. So, the question is how do the Lakers play it the rest of the way? They’ve clinched the best record in the Western Conference, so beating up on Memphis on Sunday and Utah on Tuesday is probably a waste of time and effort. Rest is probably the best way to go. Phil Jackson has suggested that he would rest key players such as Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol in the final week. We’ll see what he has to say when he returns to the team after missing tonight’s game to tend to his sore right leg.

PORTLAND, Ore. — The Lakers built a 10-point lead late in the half, then gave a demonstration why it’s been so hard for them to win in the Rose Garden the last few seasons. They gave almost all of it away and the Trail Blazers closed to within four points. The Lakers shot 43.5 percent and the Blazers shot 39.5 percent. Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 15 points, and Lamar Odom added 12 in a reserve role. Andrew Bynum had nine points and five rebounds in his second game back after a 32-game layup because of a right knee injury. Brandon Roy led Portland with 16 points.

PORTLAND, Ore. — Kurt Rambis is filling in for Phil Jackson as the Lakers’ coach for tonight’s game against the Trail Blazers. He also filled in for Jackson during the pregame session with reporters and held his own in the banter department. He also had a few revealing comments about the Lakers’ lack of success in Portland over the years and said the team held a meeting this morning to address the torrent of verbal abuse Trevor Ariza is likely to take tonight. Ariza’s hard foul on Portland’s Rudy Fernandez in the last game here last month sent Fernandez to the hospital with a bruised hip and chest pains.

Here’s some of what Rambis had to say …

About the Lakers’ seven-game losing streak in Portland:

“It’s a quandary we’ve all been trying to figure out. Some of it has to do with travel, some of it has to do with our opponent over there. Matchups and they play some really good ball in this arena. It has more to do with the fact that they’re a really good team and they play really well in this arena. Let’s hope they play a lot better than the last time we were in Portland. That wasn’t a very good showing after the first few minutes of the ballgame. They should come out with a maximum effort. We’re still fighting for home court throughout the playoffs. We’re still battling with Cleveland. We still want to get ourselves prepared for the playoffs. And we’re still trying to assimilate Andrew Bynum into what we’re trying to do. So, there are a lot of things we’re trying to do right now.

About helping Ariza deal with the hecklers:

“We’ve already talked about it in a team meeting today. It’s something he’s going to have to block out and ignore. It’s unfortunate that he was vilified for what he did, but he made a great play on the ball. What happens when players go up off one foot and extend themselves, they get hit. It’s the nature of the sport. He got hand and ball. It was unfortunate what happened to Rudy. Nobody wants to see any play get hurt. Nobody wants anybody sustain an injury like that. It was unfortunate. But I know what was in Trevor’s heart. He, in no way, intended for that to happen.”

About increasing the role of backup guard Shannon Brown:

“Yes, we’ve been tinkering with the idea of moving him up in the rotation as a spot defender. He’s one of those rare players who can guard two or three different positions. His toughness, his aggressiveness, his strength are all assets for him. We’ve been waiting a little bit longer for him to pick up as much of the offense as possible, and that’s one of the things in this offense that’s not easy to do from the guard position. It’s the toughest position to learn the offense from, but he’s picked it up really well. He’s eager to play. You saw how hard he plays. That’s an asset for him and it’s an asset for us.”