Chick Hearn statue to grace Staples Center before Game 2 in Lakers' playoff series

A statue of Lakers hall of fame announcer Chick Hearn will be unveiled before Game 2 of the first-round NBA playoff series between Los Angeles and the Oklahoma City Thunder, according to Staples Center spokesman Michael Roth.

The statue will depict Hearn seated at a broadcast table wearing headphones and sitting in front of a microphone. There will also be an empty seat to allow fans to be photographed serving as Hearn's analyst. Hearn was the voice of the Lakers for 42 years, right up until he died in 2002.

Hearn's statue will be on the Staples Center Walk of Fame.

There are already statues of Laker Magic Johnson, Los Angeles Kings star Wayne Gretzky and boxer Oscar De La Hoya. There will be a dedication ceremony before Game 2, likely on Tuesday because the Kings are scheduled to be at Staples Monday and Wednesday.

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2010 NBA Playoffs schedule

Vujacic suffers severe sprained ankle

LOS ANGELES -- Lakers reserve guard Sasha Vujacic left Wednesday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers with 2:51 remaining in the second quarter after being fouled and suffering a severe left ankle sprain, according to the team.

He was unable to shoot the ensuing free throws as a result of the foul and had to be carried off the court by several teammates. He did not return to the game.

Team officials said there was no timetable for Vujacic's return and he will undergo a MRI exam Thursday. X-rays were negative meaning that there was no fracture

Vujacic, averaging 2.7 points and 1.2 rebounds this season, had eight points when exiting the game a day after registering season highs of 13 points and six rebounds in the Lakers 106-100 win over the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday.

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Clippers end season with 107-91 win over Lakers

LOS ANGELES — Steve Blake scored 23 points as part of his first career triple-double, Chris Kaman added 22 points and the Clippers beat the playoff-bound Lakers 107-91 Wednesday night to win the season series for the first time in 18 years.

Blake finished with 10 rebounds and 11 assists for the Clippers, who ended with a 29-53 record to miss the postseason for the 15th time in 17 years.

The Clippers won the season series 3-1, including a 102-91 victory on Jan. 6 that snapped a nine-game skid against their Staples Center co-tenants. They last claimed a season series in 1992-93, when they won three of five matchups.

Lamar Odom scored 21 points, Pau Gasol had 18 points and 17 rebounds, and Shannon Brown added 18 starting in place of Kobe Bryant.

Bryant sat out for the fourth time in five games to rest several injuries, including a swollen right knee and a broken finger on his right shooting hand. Andrew Bynum missed his 13th straight game with a strained left Achilles'.

Sasha Vujacic didn't return after spraining his right ankle in the second quarter. A Lakers spokesman said it was a severe sprain, although X-rays were negative. He'll have an MRI on Thursday.
Baron Davis sat out for the Clippers with a sprained right wrist. He was joined by Eric Gordon (viral infection).

The defending champion Lakers have lost six of 10 heading into the playoffs. They will face No. 8 seed Oklahoma City beginning Sunday at Staples.

Travis Outlaw added 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers, who had seven players in double figures. They opened the season against the Lakers, losing 99-92.
The Clippers dominated the fourth quarter, hitting four 3-pointers — three by Blake — to pull away in what was a tight game until early in the third.

The Lakers trailed by three to start the third quarter, but were outscored 15-5 as the Clippers built the first of two 13-point leads. From there, the teams each scored 11 points to close the period, with the Clippers ahead 78-65.

Neither team led by more than five points in the first half. The Clippers led by that much over the final minutes of the second quarter until Josh Powell's basket cut the Lakers' deficit to 52-49 at the break.

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Lakers vs. Clippers Preview

With the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference clinched and their first playoff opponent decided, the Los Angeles Lakers would probably prefer to just skip their regular-season finale Wednesday night against the lowly Los Angeles Clippers. Because at this point, another injury is the last thing the defending champs need.

After securing home-court advantage throughout the West playoffs Friday in Minnesota, it would appear that the Lakers (57-24) will have a significant advantage against No. 8 seed Oklahoma City on Sunday when the team's are expected to open first-round play at Staples Center.

However, the Lakers have lost six of 10, and even one of the worst teams in the West is questioning the defending champs' ability to repeat.

"I truly think any team making the playoffs in the West can win it,'' Clippers interim coach Kim Hughes said following Monday's 117-94 loss to Dallas. "I think the Lakers have lost their karma a little bit, and they've lost their chemistry."

The Lakers like their position atop the West, but with Jordan Farmar straining his left hamstring in Tuesday's 106-100 win over Sacramento, there's a potentially huge hole to fill off the bench.

"We feel pretty good about what we've done, though," Pau Gasol said after scoring 28 points against the Kings. "We don't like the injuries and all, but hopefully (Farmar's leg) won't be too bad.''

Kobe Bryant has missed three of the last four games to recover from a slew of injuries, including a swollen right knee and a fracture on his right index finger, and he will not play Wednesday in order to rest for the Thunder.

Andrew Bynum will also miss the regular-season finale after being sidelined the last 12 games with a strained left Achilles'. Lakers coach Phil Jackson, though, believes the 22-year-old center could start practicing Friday or Saturday and be ready for the postseason opener.

While the Lakers try to escape without injury in their final regular-season game, the Clippers cap off another disappointing campaign that will have them miss the postseason for the 15th time in 17 seasons.

The team's hopes for a successful 2009-10 were dampened a day before the season started when it learned that No. 1 overall pick Blake Griffin had suffered a broken left knee cap in the final preseason game.

With Griffin sidelined the entire year and Hughes taking over on an interim basis for Mike Dunleavy on Feb. 4, the Clippers (28-53) will finish with fewer than 30 wins for the third straight year. While they haven't advanced to the postseason since 2006, the Clippers remain optimistic of 2010-11 playoff run.

"Honesty, I think that with Blake Griffin and the five guys we already have under contract coming back the team is very close to being a playoff team," said forward Rasual Butler. "We just need to get a core group together and keep them together."

Clippers point guard Baron Davis is not expected to play Wednesday due to sprained right wrist.
If the Clippers can end their season with a second victory over the Lakers - they also defeated the defending champs 102-91 on Jan. 6 - it will give them a season split after being swept each of the last two seasons.

If Orlando loses to visiting Philadelphia on Wednesday and the Lakers defeat the Clippers, Los Angeles will have home-court advantage if it faces the Magic in a finals rematch.

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Final Lakers 106, Kings 100

After 48 minutes of plug-nickel basketball, the Lakers beat Sacramento, 106-100, Tuesday night in their final home regular season game at Staples Center.

Not that it mattered all that much. The Lakers had already clinched the top seed in the Western Conference and home court advantage throughout the playoffs Friday against Minnesota. After knocking off the Kings, only the Clippers’ game Wednesday stands between the Lakers and their first-round match-up against Oklahoma City this weekend.

But after dropping six of nine, the win was a slice of momentum to build upon before facing the Thunder, which is the next time Kobe Bryant, who is battling knee, finger and ankle injuries, and Andrew Bynum, who is out with a strained left Achilles, will play.

Shannon Brown started in place of Bryant and scored 24 points on 10-of-19 shooting from the floor, his highest point total since a 27-point output February 16 against Golden State. Brown has been suffering from a sprained right thumb that has hindered him since he injured it March 2 against Indiana.

Pau Gasol scored a game-high 28 points on 12-of-15 shooting, and Sasha Vujacic made two buzzer beaters, the first a 27-foot three-point jumper at the end of the first quarter and the second a fading baseline jumper to beat the third quarter buzzer, on his way to 13 points off the bench.

If there was a turning point in Tuesday’s worthless contest, it came with 8 minutes 4 seconds in the third quarter. After Kings star rookie point guard Tyreke Evans made a layup to make the score 67-66, Lakers, he argued with referee Derek Richardson after apparent frustration that a foul wasn’t called.

Richardson whistled Evans for back-to-back technical fouls, ending Evans’ rookie season, and the Lakers went on a 10-1 run after that call to go up 77-67 with 3:27 left in the third – at which point they cruised to win No. 57.

Jordan Farmar scored four points on one-of-three shooting from the floor, but left the game in the second quarter with a strained left hamstring. Farmar won’t play against the Clippers Wednesday, a team spokesman said.

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Lakers vs. Kings Game Preview

Their best player is nursing a bevy of injuries, their 22-year-old center has missed the last 11 games and the team has dropped six of nine.

Still, the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers aren't concerned their recent stumble will impact them come playoff time.

With Kobe Bryant out for the last two regular-season games and Andrew Bynum also likely sidelined, the Lakers close out the home portion of their schedule Tuesday against the Sacramento Kings trying to avoid their first three-game losing streak at Staples Center in two years.

After sitting in Minnesota on Friday when the Lakers (56-24) clinched the top seed in the Western Conference, Bryant returned from a two-game absence and scored 20 points in Sunday's 91-88 home loss to Portland. Bryant, who has been battling a swollen right knee, a fracture on his right index finger and a sprained ankle, missed 15 of 23 shots and two free throws with six seconds left that would have put Los Angeles up by one.

"I haven't been shooting free throws very well anyway,'' he said. Bryant will have plenty of time to practice his foul shots after the team announced Monday that the 12-time All-Star will sit out the remainder of the regular season ahead of its first-round playoff series with Oklahoma City, which clinched the No. 8 seed.

"There should be two to three days between our (final) game and the start of the playoffs, so I think he'll find a rhythm," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said of Bryant being ready for the postseason.
Bynum is not expected to return until the start of the playoffs due to a strained left Achilles' tendon, but Jackson - the league's all-time winningest coach in playoff history - doesn't seem too concerned with the team's recent slide.

"I think this is an end of the season type of thing that's happened to other ball clubs and other ball clubs I've coached," he said. "I don't think we're quite as worried as (the media) make it out to be."
While Jackson looks to lead his team to a four-game season sweep of Sacramento, Kings coach Paul Westphal hopes for a solid effort in his club's final game.

After opening the season 14-16, Sacramento (25-56) lost 23 of 27 and will miss the playoffs for the fourth straight season following an eight-year postseason run. Despite the second-half struggles, the Kings picked up Westphal's option for the 2011-12 season Monday. Westphal signed to a two-year deal with an option after Sacramento went a franchise-worst 17-65 last season.

"It shows that the ownership and management and coaching staff and players have taken a step in the direction that everybody wants this franchise to go," Westphal said prior to Monday's 117-107 loss to Houston.
With the Kings clinching a fourth straight losing season March 7, the development of rookie Tyreke Evans has been one of the few bright spots for the team.

Evans scored 24 points Monday to become the fourth rookie in NBA history to average 20.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists. The first three were Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan and LeBron James.
"That's just an elite three right there. To have my name added is just a blessing," said Evans, who missed a 109-108 New Year's Day loss at the Lakers with a sprained right ankle.

Los Angeles, which overcame a 20-point deficit in that matchup to win on Bryant's buzzer-beating 3-pointer, has won four straight at home versus Sacramento. The Lakers have not dropped three straight at home since March 23-28, 2008.
Los Angeles needs a win to tie Denver for the West's best home record at 34-7.

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