The Lakers are completely decimated at guard for Game #3 and beyond against the Spurs.  PG Steve Nash (hamstring), Steve Blake (hamstring) and Jodie Meeks (partial ligament tear in his ankle) are all likely out indefinitely.  Nash has started both games against the Spurs so far in this series and he is averaging 30.5 minutes, 12.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.  Blake has played well against the Spurs too, starting both games in which he has averaged 37.5 minutes, 14.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.5 blocked shots per game.  Meeks has played in 1 game off the bench against the Spurs in this series and he had 4 points, 2 rebounds and 1 steal.  These injuries mean the Darius Morris, Andrew Goudelock and Chris Duhon will play the bulk of the guard minutes for the Lakers from here on out against the Spurs, unless Blake, Nash or Meeks miraculously get cured in the near future.  Morris has played in both games against the Spurs off the bench in this series and he is averaging 15.5 minutes and 5.0 points per game.  Goudelock didn’t play in any games during the regular season for the Lakers.  He has played in 1 game off the bench in this series and he worked 6 minutes in which he had 2 points, 1 assist and 1 steal.  Duhon has yet to play in this series for the Lakers.  The Lakers are officially in deep, deep trouble against the Spurs now.

34-year old shooting guard Kobe Bryant tore his left Achilles tendon last night against the Warriors and it will end his season and could put his career in jeopardy.  Bryant scored 34 points, grabbed 5 rebounds and he dished out 4 assists in 45 minutes last night in the Lakers’ 118-116 win over the visiting Golden State Warriors.  Bryant finishes up the 2012-13 season having played in 78 games (all starts) in which he averaged 38.6 minutes, 27.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game.  Bryant has played in 1,239 games (1,091 starts) in his first 17 years with the Lakers and he is averaging 36.6 minutes, 25.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.5 steals per game.  The Lakers are going to need 25-year old shooting guard Jodie Meeks to step up in place of Kobe Bryant.  Meeks has played in 76 games (8 starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 20.9 minutes, 7.9 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  The Lakers have a one game lead on the Utah Jazz for the #8 seed in the Western Conference Playoffs with two games to play.  The Jazz own the tiebreaker, so the Lakers need to win their last two games just to be safe and that won’t be easy (especially without the Black Mamba).  The Lakers play their remaining two games at home, facing the Spurs this Sunday and the Rockets this Wednesday.  The Jazz have two road games left, one on Monday against the Timberwolves and then the season finale against the Grizzlies.

25-year old power forward Earl Clark is starting to fade for the Lakers after playing so well for them in January and February.  Clark has played in 20 games (12 starts) since March 1st and he is averaging 22.1 minutes, 6.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.  Clark has now played in 56 games (35 starts) overall this year and he is averaging 23.3 minutes, 7.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.  Clark is playing the best basketball of his career for the Lakers in 2012-13, but they need him to step up and help them make the playoffs.

The Lakers have just gotten back 32-year old power forward Pau Gasol in a nick of time.  Gasol has played in 2 games (both starts) since his return to action and he is averaging 21.5 minutes, 5.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.  Gasol has now played in 38 games (31 starts) overall this year for the Lakers and he averaged 32.8 minutes, 12.9 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.3 blocked shots per game.  With Kobe Bryant and Metta World Peace down to injury, the Lakers need to play big man ball and pound it inside to Gasol and Dwight Howard.

34-year old shooting guard Kobe Bryant is looking like he’s slowing down a little bit so far in February.  Bryant has played in 7 games (all starts) for the Lakers so far this month and he is averaging 36.1 minutes, 19.3 points, 6.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game.  He is only shooting 42.1% from the floor and 6.3% from three point range so far this month….which is not too good.  Bryant has now played in 53 games (all starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 38.4 minutes, 27.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.4 steals per game.  The rest of the Lakers need to start stepping up, because Kobe is getting older and he can’t carry the whole load.

I think that 27-year old center Dwight Howard might be smart to shut it down and get his shoulder fixed.  He just isn’t playing with much fire and everyone in L.A. has been calling him out lately, making him the scapegoat for the team’s slow start.  Howard has played in 45 games (all starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 34.7 minutes, 16.2 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.0 steal and 2.4 blocked shots per game.  Howard has 25 double-doubles so far this year, despite having a ‘rough year’.  In his first two games in February, Howard is averaging 33.0 minutes, 10.5 points, 10.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.5 blocked shots per game.  The Lakers are going to need more from Howard, or they aren’t going to make a second half run to try to make the playoffs.

The Lakers have lost 32-year old Pau Gasol for at least six weeks due to a partial tear of his plantar fascia, and maybe three months (which would end his season).  Gasol has played in 36 games (29 starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 33.4 minutes, 13.4 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 blocked shots per game.  25-year old Earl Clark will continue to start at power forward for the Lakers and he is likely to see a bump in P.T.  Clark has played in 26 games (13 starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 21.1 minutes, 7.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game.  He is also shooting well as he is 14 of 29 (48.3%) from three point range so far this year.  Clark has turned into quite a find for the Lakers as he was thought to be nothing more than a throw in when they got him as part of the return in the Dwight Howard deal last summer.  36-year old Antawn Jamison is also likely to see a bump in P.T.  Jamison has played in 43 games (6 starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 20.5 minutes, 8.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.

33-year old small forward Metta World Peace is off to a very slow start in February for the Lakers.  He has played in 2 games (both starts) for the Lakers so far this month and he is averaging 31.7 minutes, 7.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game.  He is only shooting 26.3% from the floor, 20% from the three point line and 50% from the free throw line so far this year and that’s not good at all.  But, World Peace has played pretty well overall this year for the Lakers.  He has played in 48 games (42 starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 34.4 minutes, 13.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game.  He is shooting 40.6% from the floor, 34.9% from three point range and 75% from the free throw line so far this year overall.  World Peace has been an asset for the Lakers so far in 2012-13.

With Dwight Howard, Pau Gasol and Jordan Hill out of action……the Lakers need 36-year old forward Antawn Jamison, 24-year old PF/C Earl Clark and 23-year old rookie center Robert Sacre to step up.  Jamison is the best player of his bunch, by a wide margin.  He has played in 27 games (5 starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 18.9 minutes, 6.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.  Clark has played in 10 games (0 starts) so far this year for the Lakers and he is averaging 3.7 minutes, 0.9 points and 0.7 rebounds per game.  Sacre has played in 13 games (0 starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 4.2 minutes, 0.5 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game.  The Lakers are in deep trouble if these guys don’t step up and support Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Metta World Peace.

The Lakers dealt for 38-year old Steve Nash over the summer with the idea of him running the show offensively.  That didn’t last long as he was injured in the second game of the season and he has yet to return to action.  Nash has played in 2 games (both starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 25.0 minutes, 4.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game.  He is almost ready to return to action for the Lakers, and they need him badly.  32-year old Steve Blake also was injured early this year and he has yet to return to action.  Blake has played in 7 games (5 starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 26.0 minutes, 5.1 points, 2.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.3 steals per game.  21-year old Darius Morris got his shot to show what he could do early this year and the results have been awful so far.  Morris has played in 23 games (10 starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 19.7 minutes, 5.3 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.  He is only shooting 37.6% from the floor, 45% from three point range and 60% from the free throw line so far this year.  30-year old Chris Duhon is the man of the hour at point guard for the Lakers now.  He has played in 22 games (9 starts) for the Lakers so far this year and he is averaging 24.1 minutes, 4.6 points, 2.0 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game.  His shooting has been a little strange so far this year as he is hitting 44.4% from the floor, 41.7% from three point range, but only 44.4% from the free throw line so far this year.  The Lakers desperately need Steve Nash to return to health.