The Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Lakers are set to lock horns Tuesday night, and Kobe Bryant let loose some fighting words when asked about Thunder forward Serge Ibaka's shot to Blake Griffin's nether region Sunday night. "I probably would have smacked [Ibaka] in the mouth. I would have dealt with the pain after."
Ibaka received a Flagrant 1 foul for his shot on Griffin during the Thunder's 108-104 win on Sunday. The league is reviewing the incident and he could possibly be suspended for the Lakers' game. Lakers center Dwight Howard took a more comical approach to answering a similar question saying, "I mean, you got to wear a cup."
Tuesday's game will be a major test for the Lakers, who have won seven of their last 10 games and 13 of their last 18. They have clawed back to .500 and sit two games behind the Utah Jazz for the eighth and final spot in the Western Conference playoffs. Oklahoma City dispatched the Lakers in five games in the playoffs last season, but Los Angeles bested the Thunder in their most recent meeting.
Lakers coach Mike D'Antoni said it didn't matter much whether Ibaka missed the game because of Oklahoma City's depth. "They're deep. It won't change what we do, more or less. Obviously it would help us because he's a good player. But we won't change anything up." Howard believes that slowing down the pace of the game will be the number one factor in who wins. "I think if we slow the ball down and we play the way we want to play, we should win the game. They want to get out and run. That's not to our favor. We're not a run-and-gun team, so I think the best way to play those guys is to slow the ball down and make them play in a half-court offense."
Oklahoma City is three games behind the San Antonio Spurs for the top seed in the West.
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