Lakers prove they do have two sides

Well, it was the least they could do.

Having dragged this town kicking and screaming into an unwanted game of chicken Sunday, the Lakers at least had the decency to make it fun.

Pau Gasol played with Ker-Pau cartoon strength. Kobe Bryant played with M-V-P defensive fervor.

Sasha Vujacic actually made a jumper. Derek Fisher actually had a steal. Andrew Bynum actually showed a pulse.

They sprinted. They scratched. They swarmed.

They learned?

They have no idea.

"We're bipolar," concluded Bryant after the Lakers' completely expected 89-70 victory over the completely surprising Houston Rockets in the deciding game of the Western Conference semifinals.

There's the rub. That's the point. After what happened in the last two weeks against the Rockets, how much can we trust them?

How much can they trust themselves?

This much is clear -- the Denver Nuggets are stepping into an unusual situation when they take the Staples Center court Tuesday for the start of the Western Conference finals.

For once, the nutty Nuggets will be the more emotionally balanced team.

For once, the combustible Nuggets will be the grown-ups.

After a Sunday afternoon filled with sweaty relief, it remains difficult to know what to think about the Lakers.

Are they the team who lost three games in this series to a Rockets team they should have swept?

Are they the team that was scolded by Bryant on Sunday even after the emotional Game 7 victory?

"Our effort could have been much better," Bryant said of the series. "We definitely could have played a lot harder."

Or are they the team that dominated the Rockets in the other four games with championship swagger?

Are they the team that afterward dressed in bright summer clothes with huge smiles and no worries?

"These are the playoffs, everyone is going to lose games," Lamar Odom said. "It's how you bounce back that shows your heart and character. Today, we showed that."

On Sunday, nobody showed more than the fans, the Staples Center faithful filling the room with an unabashed, if unrequited, love.

Jack Nicholson danced around and made choking signs at the officials. Thousands of others waved corny giant foam fingers at the Rockets. In the end, the entire place stood and serenaded the losers with the "Na-na-na-na, goodbye" song.