Lakers

The most ballyhooed name change of the year became official Friday morning when a Los Angeles County Superior Court commissioner approved the former Ron Artest's request to become Metta World Peace. Amid labor discord that threatens to delay, if not wipe out, the NBA season, there is World Peace. Photos: Famous name-changers He is 6 feet 7, wears No. 15 for the Lakers and once participated in the infamous "Palace brawl. " Anyone now making his acquaintance will be meeting Metta World Peace.

The Lakers cleaned out their lockers after another early playoff ricochet, but I'm still working. My editor wanted five moves that would help the Lakers, wouldn't be ridiculed by opposing general managers and would be allowed under the NBA's complicated transaction guidelines. Keep in mind that the Lakers have extremely limited purchasing power for free agents and are an old team with a bloated payroll. Put it this way: Nobody is calling General Manager Mitch Kupchak at 3 a.m., begging him to part with Metta World Peace for two first-rounders.

Lamar Odom's voice on the phone frequently was barely above a whisper. The pain clearly registered in words that flowed in stops and starts as he delivered a soliloquy about death and the effect it has had on his psyche. The Lakers forward spoke deliberately and expressed how emotional it has been for him to deal with two recent deaths. Odom attended a funeral in New York on July 13 for his 24-year-old cousin, who Odom said was murdered. The next day, Odom was a passenger in an SUV in Queens when it collided with a motorcycle.

LeBron James of the Miami Heat was the leading vote-getter for the All-NBA team, and the Lakers' Kobe Bryant earned his 10th first-team selection, tied for second on the all-time list. Bryant, a first-team pick for the seventh straight season, joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , Elgin Baylor , Bob Cousy , Michael Jordan , Bob Pettit and Jerry West with 10 selections to the first team. Karl Malone is the leader with 11. James, who won his third most-valuable-player award, received 118 of a possible 120 first-team votes Thursday from a panel of writers and broadcasters.

"Selling L.A. " reality show viewers may wonder if any of the featured homes actually sell. Although perhaps not in time for the closing credits, some houses under consideration for the show do find a buyer outside the roving eye of the camera. One home that agent Rebekah Schwartz was promoting to HGTV for its 15 minutes of fame was the Marina del Rey pad that former Laker Lamar Odom rented a few years back. Listed at $1.995 million in January, it closed early this month at $1.825 million.

Lamar Odom is done playing for the Dallas Mavericks. Will any other NBA team take a chance on the enigmatic 6-foot-10 forward who is less than a year removed from winning the league's sixth man of the year award? Or perhaps the better question is, should someone give him another shot? Odom was known for his inconsistency during his seven seasons with the Lakers. But, by definition, that means there were good and bad times on the court for Odom in L.A. And particularly in the last few years, there seemed to be more good than bad, with Odom appearing to pull it all together last season by being named the league's best player off the bench.

Nearly every time Andrew Bynum muscled his way inside, two barricades stopped his imposing presence. One roadblock came in the form of Thunder center Kendrick Perkins, whose physical approach to defense suddenly prevented Bynum from bullying his way to the basket. The other barrier simply reflected Bynum missing routine hooks, post-up shots or "bunnies," as he likes to call them. The Lakers' 99-96 victory Friday over the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinal playoff series featured Bynum shooting only two of 13 from the field, leading him to say, "My touch today was a little off around the rim. " Yet, Lakers Coach Mike Brown gushed afterward that Bynum "was an absolute monster.

Staples Center is home to four professional sports franchises, the Lakers, Clippers, Kings and Sparks. Each team has a different set-up on the arena floor. It is up to the crew overseen by the Staples Center operations department to reconfigure the floor for each game. Several times a year they must make the changeover twice or more over one weekend in between games. Last Saturday afternoon, while fans were still heading for the exits after the Clippers' 103-100 loss to the San Antonio Spurs, 65 workers began transforming the arena for the Kings' game against the Calgary Flames that night.

OKLAHOMA CITY — It was Mount Rushmore crumbling, piece by piece. It was the Grand Canyon shrinking, inch by inch. It was the greatest closer in basketball history closing a playoff game — and perhaps a season — down upon his own fingers with such force that an entire city still wails in shock and pain. Leading the Oklahoma City Thunder by seven points with two minutes remaining in Game 2 of their second-round series Wednesday, the Lakers put the ball in the hands of the great and trusted Kobe Bryant.

After spending a season fighting age, battling immaturity, struggling with old habits and jabbing with a new coach, the Lakers have ended up where we pretty much thought they would. Out of breath and on the ropes. Their veteran star is exhausted and annoyed. Their kid center is angry and distant. Their power forward is uncertain and embattled. And their season is officially on the brink after they blew a 13-point lead in a 103-100 loss to Oklahoma City on Saturday in the fourth and perhaps deciding game of their first-round playoff series.

There was a moment in the postseason when I asked Lakers Coach Mike Brown if he had any idea how his team would respond to that evening's challenge, and his answer stunned me. "I really don't have any idea," he said. He admitted he could not predict its energy or focus but added that he didn't think any NBA coach was capable of such powers. Well, Phil Jackson always seemed to know, and Pat Riley made a cottage industry out of knowing, and though it is unfair to compare Brown with two of the best coaches in NBA history, it is completely fair to wonder if he fits into the Lakers' championship culture.

Pau Gasol stepped into bright sunshine Wednesday afternoon, leaving the Lakers' training facility for perhaps the final time. Reality wasn't so bright for the often ebullient Gasol. He spoke about his future in a lengthy exit interview with Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak but couldn't get any firm answers. “I wish I could have clarification but they can’t give it to me right now,” he said.

The crux of Darius Morris' exit interview with Mike Brown and Mitch Kupchak centered around the NBA Summer League. That's because the Lakers want to see a few things. They want to see how much growth he experiences this off-season. They want to see if Morris in an elevated role will give them a better idea as to whether they should consider him in the team's future.

This is the first in a series of posts grading the Lakers on their efforts in the 2012 NBA playoffs Player: Metta World Peace How he performed in the postseason: Averaged 11.7 points per game on 36.7% shooting in 39.3 minutes through six contests.  The Good: When he wasn't arranging fan gatherings to watch the Lakers' playoff games during his seven-game suspension, World Peace did something that he failed to do during the off-season: He stayed in shape.

*Full audio of Andrew Bynum's exit interview Nearly an hour and a half passed, and Andrew Bynum still sat in his exit interview. It's hard to imagine what Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak and Coach Mike Brown had to talk about with Bynum regarding the 2011-12 season. He ended the season with a career-high in points (18.7), shooting percentage (55.8%) and rebounds (11.8). Bynum made his first All-Star appearance. He bumped Pau Gasol in the offensive pecking order.

In one instance, Metta World Peace defended Mike Brown's coaching job after the Lakers lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games in the Western Conference semifinals. In another, he quickly poked fun at Brown."It was a drastic change. It was big getting used to, but at the same time we should still be up 3-2," World Peace said. "Mike wasn't out there guarding Kevin [Durant]. That was me. Kevin scored on me. Mike didn't throw turnovers at the end of the game.

The Lakers made a trade Saturday, but it wasn't for Chris Paul or Dwight Howard. Two days after getting rebuffed by the NBA in an apparent deal for Paul, the Lakers sent forward Lamar Odom to Dallas for the Mavericks' first-round pick in the 2012 amateur draft. "It's a done deal," said a person familiar with the situation who was not authorized to speak publicly. PHOTOS: Lamar Odom through the years The Mavericks might also send the Lakers another unspecified draft pick.

Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol were in the Lakers' training facility on the same day, possibly for the last time. They arrived several hours apart for their exit interviews Wednesday and then stepped into the sunshine afterward, though nothing looked overly bright about the Lakers' future. "There will be some change," said Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak, the sting still fresh from another ouster in the Western Conference semifinals. "When you lose before you think you should have lost, you have to open up all opportunities.

*Full audio of Josh McRoberts' interview Josh McRoberts, who is known as the guy with the highest vertical on the Lakers, had his exit interview on Wednesday. In his first season with the team, he averaged 2.8 points and 3.4 rebounds in 14.4 minutes a game. Below are the highlights from what he had to say about his experience as a Laker. On whether he would like to remain with the team : "I have another year left on my contract... I'd love to be back. I think that's the plan.

Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol were in the Lakers' training facility on the same day, possibly for the last time. They arrived several hours apart for their exit interviews Wednesday and then stepped into the sunshine afterward, though nothing looked overly bright about the Lakers' future. "There will be some change," said Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak, the sting still fresh from another ouster in the Western Conference semifinals. "When you lose before you think you should have lost, you have to open up all opportunities.