What They Really Need Is a Good, Swift Kick in the Shorts

From mercurynews.com today:
Lakers like Jackson’s spin; coach says pressure might be on Suns:

“In the moments after the Los Angeles Lakers lost again Thursday night to ensure a Game 7 showcase would be set up Saturday night, a backstage pass indicated they were nowhere near ready to assume the spotlight again.

“In the quiet locker room, Kwame Brown described the scene this way: ‘A lot of guys are moping around.’ Luke Walton’s words of bewilderment were more befitting a confessional: ‘We just got mentally weak after that 3-1 lead. We stopped throwing it down, pounding it inside and talking on defense. We stopped working as hard.’

“Part of the profound dismay was that even Kobe Bryant had gotten rattled. That last shot in regulation fell so weakly short because Bryant ‘forgot’ Shawn Marion was guarding him.…”