Trash talking

The Lakers were still answering questions today about the showboating and trash talking done by some of their opponents recently, especially Orlando’s Matt Barnes. Clearly, it has had an impact on them. Lamar Odom complained about Barnes’ antics during the Lakers’ loss to the Magic on Sunday. He spoke about all the talk he heard from the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday. Asked about it today, Kobe Bryant said, “I think teams gain confidence when they see us struggling. It is what it is. It doesn’t matter. When the playoffs come around and you’re playing well, you take that confidence from your opponent as the series goes on. That’s the most important thing, when the playoffs come around, we’re rolling.”

Bynum’s analysis

Here’s what Andrew Bynum said during an interview after Tuesday’s victory over the Toronto Raptors: “Right now I think what it is is people are looking forward to the playoffs, but that really doesn’t work. You start needing to send the message right now that when people see us in the playoffs they are a little discouraged. Right now when everyone plays us they are confident and want to knock off the champions. We need to start changing that now.”

Bryant’s game winners

Here’s the list of Kobe Bryant’s six game-winning jumpers this season:

Toronto, March 9 at Staples Center.
Final score: 109-107.
The situation: The Lakers and Raptors were tied at 107.
The shot: a fadeaway jumper from along the right baseline.
The defenders: Antoine Wright and Andrea Bargnani.
The time: 1.9 seconds remaining.

Memphis, Feb. 23 at FedEx Forum.
Final score: 99-98.
The situation: The Lakers trailed the Grizzlies, 98-96.
The shot: a 3-pointer from the right wing.
The defender: Rudy Gay.
The time: 4.3 seconds remaining.

Boston, Jan. 31 at TD Garden.
Final score: 90-89.
The situation: The Lakers trailed the Celtics, 89-88.
The shot: a jumper from just above the free throw line.
The defender: Ray Allen.
The time: 7.3 seconds remaining.

Sacramento, Jan. 1 at Staples Center.
Final score: 109-108.
The situation: The Lakers trailed the Kings, 108-106.
The shot: a 3-pointer from the left wing.
The defender: wide open.
The time: at the final buzzer.

Milwaukee, Dec. 16 at Bradley Center.
Final score: 107-106 (OT).
The situation: The Lakers trailed the Bucks, 106-105.
The shot: a jumper just to the left of the free throw line.
The defender: Charlie Bell.
The time: at the final buzzer.

Miami, Dec. 4 at Staples Center.
Final score: 108-107.
The situation: The Lakers trailed the Heat, 107-105.
The shot: a 3-pointer off the glass from just left of straight away.
The defender: Dwyane Wade.
The time: at the final buzzer.

FYI: Bryant also has missed a potential 3-point game-winner Jan. 24 at Toronto and a jumper March 7 that would have sent the Lakers’ game at Orlando to overtime.

Lakers 109, Raptors 107

Kobe Bryant made a fadeaway jump shot from 17 feet away from along the right baseline with 1.9 seconds remaining to lift the Lakers and end their three-game losing streak. Bryant scored 32 points, including the final two that gave him his sixth game-winning jumper this season. Chris Bosh had tied the score at 107-all with a 3-pointer with 9.5 seconds left. After a timeout, the Lakers ran their familiar last-season play. Ron Artest inbounded the ball to Pau Gasol, who faked a pass one way before passing along the right wing to Bryant. Bryant drove to the baseline and launched his jumper over Antoine Wright and Andrea Bargnani.

Halftime: Raptors 58, Lakers 50

After a solid start tonight, it looked like nothing had changed for the Lakers. They looked flat for most of the second quarter and trailed by eight at halftime. Pau Gasol scored 13 points and Kobe Bryant added 12. Sasha Vujacic returned to the court after sitting out eight games because of a sprained right shoulder but did not score in two minutes. Andrea Bargnani led the Raptors with 15 points and former USC standout DeMar DeRozan had nine. The Raptors confused the Lakers with a zone defense. Look for more of it.

Inside the locker room

ORLANDO, Fla. — Here are some of the best postgame comments from the Lakers and Orlando Magic after the Magic’s victory today:

Kobe Bryant on the play of the Lakers: “We didn’t win the game, but I saw what I wanted to see. If we play with this type of effort, it will be hard for a team to beat us four times in a (playoff) series. Here, we competed and we have to take this mindset and this attitude and push it forward for the rest of the season.”

Lamar Odom on the bullseye on the Lakers’ backs: “When you actually win a championship, everybody is going to come at you like you are the champions of the world and try to beat you. This year we have made a lot of opposing teams happy, especially on their home court. They will be partying tonight in Orlando.”

Orlando’s Jameer Nelson beating the Lakers: “Our goal is to win a championship, so, no, this game doesn’t win us the trophy.”

Lakers coach Phil Jackson on the team’s play: “There are some things that as an experienced team should not happen to us. Those are things that we’ll try to remedy, but today we were just a little bit off.”

Magic 96, Lakers 94

ORLANDO, Fla. — The Lakers made strides today, but not enough of them to defeat the Orlando Magic or end their losing streak, which reached three games. It’s their first three-game skid since January 2008, mere days before they acquired Pau Gasol from the Memphis Grizzlies. Kobe Bryant admitted he “cussed out” his teammates during their chat Saturday, after losses Thursday to the Miami Heat and Friday to the Charlotte Bobcats. He said he was pleased by the way they responded to the challenge of the Magic. He missed a 20-foot jumper at the buzzer that would have sent the game to overtime. Bryant finished with 34 points on 12-for-30 shooting. Pau Gasol had 20 points and 11 rebounds. Vince Carter had 25 for Orlando. Next; Toronto at Staples Center on Tuesday.

Halftime: Magic 52, Lakers 48

ORLANDO, Fla. — If you’re a big fan of free throws, you loved the first quarter today, when the Orlando Magic shot 18 freebies and made 17. Vince Carter was 10 for 10 for the Magic. For everyone else, there were reasons to worry and reasons to feel everything might be all right for the Lakers. Kobe Bryant scored 13 points in the half despite coming down with an upset stomach. The Lakers held Orlando to 15-for-38 shooting (39.5 percent). The Lakers shot 16 for 47 (34 percent), however. They were getting good shots. they weren’t making them. Andrew Bynum and Dwight Howard got into foul trouble and were nonfactors. Carter led the Magic with 17 points in the half.

Lakers-Magic pregame

ORLANDO, Fla. — Check out Ron Artest’s new ‘do for today’s game against the Orlando Magic. He dyed it gold and purple. The word “defense” is dyed in Hebrew, Hindy and Japanese, although Lakers coach Phil Jackson thinks it might be Korean. Meanwhile, Kobe Bryant came down with an upset stomach and was a late arrival to the arena. He is expected to play. Asked for Bryant’s status, Jackson cracked, “All-Star, guy who has scored 25,000 points, possible Hall of Fame candidate when he retires, four championships.” When it was point out that Bryant wasn’t yet at the arena, Jackson said, “Oh, that.”

Magic and Larry

ORLANDO, Fla. — Just watched the HBO film on Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. It’s tremendous. Full marks to the people at HBO. It’s on at 8 p.m. in Southern California. Do yourself a favor and watch. If you’re old enough to have experienced their rivalry as it unfolded, it will bring back a flood of memories. If you aren’t old enough, it will open your eyes to the ways two men changed a sport for the better.