Oh, yeah, basketball.
Even with all the attention and fascination focused on the Lamar Odom-Khloe Kardashian wedding, the purpose of the Lakers' media day Tuesday was to talk about, you know, the Lakers. And the focus in that regard was on the challenge of repeating as NBA champions, something no team has done since the Lakers' run of titles from 2000 to 2002.
"The bull's eye gets bigger after you become the champion," said Derek Fisher, "and then (so does) everything that happens, good and bad, as the defending champion, so there's more kind of scrutiny with the ups and downs of the season ....
"Even in winning 65 regular-season games last year, there were so many ups and downs and good stories and bad stories. So there'll be much more of that this year. But we plan on being better than we were a year ago. And if we're willing to put in the work to do so, the winning part will take care of itself."
Said Kobe Bryant, "It took us a long time to get here, so it's not something we want to give up because of our own inability to move forward or not take the season seriously, or focus like we did the year before. If someone's going to take it from us, we want them to take it from us with us being 100 percent focused."
Fisher and Bryant, of course, have experience in repeating their teammates lack.
"What we tell them is it's not rocket science," said Bryant. "It's the same principles we did last year. It's the same philosophy that we had: You have to come win it. We have a chance here, we have the talent to win another one, and if we don't, it's because of our lack of focus, or something else. Or an injury here and there. That's something we want to try to avoid, and try to defend our title.
But you don't have to have been part of a back-to-back title team to understand how difficult the challenge is. As Pau Gasol noted, the six teams that haven't been able to repeat are ample illustration of the point.
"That's just how hard it is," said Gasol. "If we're going to be able to repeat, we've going to start working from day one and it's going to be a great challenge. And we'll see if we can do it.
"I'm really confident about what we have here, our team, our chances, but now we have to prove it. We have to show it all over again. Everybody's going to try to beat us, try to beat that champs, and that's going to be even more challenging. And that's motivating. To me, that's a good position to be in."
Portrait of the Artest: The only significant difference between the 2009 champions and this year's team is the signing of Ron Artest, who moves into the forward slot held last year by Trevor Ariza. Artest has acknowledged that, if the Lakers don't repeat, he'll likely be blamed, and he reiterated that on Tuesday.
You know, you've got to take responsibility," he said. "You can't put it all on Kobe. "You've got to take some responsibility of your own. Obviously, this is going to be a team effort."
He was asked if the Lakers had taken a risk in changing by signing him -- a question more specifically addressing altering a championship roster than any questions of chemistry or Artest's past.
"I think there's a risk making a commitment to anybody," he said, adding -- not exactly diplomatically, given the talk of Odom's wedding -- "You can ask anybody who got married, and got divorced. Some people are paying a hundred million dollars."
What does Artest bring that the Lakers didn't have before?
"We know what a different player than he is than Trevor," said Bryant, "some of the things that they do differently from each other, but in terms of how we're going to mesh that into what we do, we're not really sure yet. It's something we'll figure out as the season goes on.
"But he'll be a huge help."
Fresh: Bryant was asked how long it had been since he'd come in to training camp as rested as he is this year, given that he'd played for the national team the last two years.
"You have to back some time," he said. "Normally when I have rest like this in the offseason, it's because of an injury or something like that. I was perfectly healthy; all I did was get healthier. So it's been a long time."
Bryant said he stayed away from playing any basketball for "a good month and a half, two months" and likes the results.
"The legs feel rejuvenated," he said. "I feel like I'm in great shape. Nothing's nagging me outside of the hand and fingers, things like that, but that's fine."

Lamar Odom keeps saying he doesn't really want to talk about his back, that he doesn't want to make excuses for his play.
Even after a game that required no excuses -- a 19-point, 14-rebound effort as the Lakers won Game 5 of the Western Conference finals, 103-94 -- he still was reluctant to talk abut his back injury. But that doesn't mean we weren't asking.
"You know," he said, "everybody's a little banged up at this point of the year, this point of the season, and it's something you've just got to deal with. ...
"I'm trying to get better each and every day with treatment. A lot of ice."
But is it getting better?
"It's not going to get better until I stop playing, with the banging and the pounding," he said. "But like I said, everybody's either hurt, or with the change of weather, sick. It's just something I've got to get through."
Toward that end, he said he's doing more stretching when he's at home, and working out as much as possible "to keep everything else strong.
"Fortunately, I don't have any tendonitis or anything like that this year," he said. "I've been able to stay away from that. Other than my back, I feel pretty good."
Odom may not want to admit he's hurting, but Kobe Bryant knows.
"He's been playing through a lot, ever since the injury in Houston," Bryant said. "His back's messed up. He played extremely well yesterday, and hopefully this will get him in good rhythm to keep it going."
And, even with the injury, Bryant said he wasn't surprised what Odom was able to do in Game 5.
"He has the potential to do that," Bryant said. "It's just a matter of him getting used to what he's playing with, and then playing through it."
Odom was thinking in similar terms.
"I wasn't playing well," he said. "And I had to ask myself, am I pushing through it enough? Or am I holding back because I'm in pain? And before the game, I just said, no matter what, I'm going to push through it, whether the ball goes in, I miss shots, I make shots. And I was able to do that, and things are starting to fall my way."
Phil Jackson saw a difference, too, and hopes it carries into Game 6.
"He's been fighting through some things physically that I think have made him sit back, rather than be as aggressive as he can be," Jackson said. "So we hope that he stays aggressive in this game."
The Pau factor: Before Game 5, Phil Jackson discussed how big men can earn more touches by rebounding or running the floor or other forms of hard work.
Pau Gasol did all those things in Game 5, but still only had eight shots (making five). That, to Jackson, was a drawback to the Lakers' play, even though it was generally praised for the degree of teamwork and balance.
"I think that we know we're not functioning at 100 percent of what we can function at," said Jackson, " but everyone had a big impact in the game.
"For Pau Gasol to have as limited amount of shots as he had, 14 points, and play as well as he played, exceptionally well, just doesn't stand up to the standard of what we are as a team. He should have more touches, and more of this, and more of that.
"But it's however you have to win these games that counts. And everybody has to play the role and just doing the right thing. ... Guys know they have to sacrifice their roles and sacrifice part of their game at times."

Shannon Brown had been a bit player, rather than a featured one, for most of the Western Conference finals.
That changed Wednesday night, and says as much about how the Lakers' 103-94 win over Denver was truly a team effort as it does about the reserve guard.
Brown's stats -- 14 minutes, six points -- may not sound game changing. But those minutes all came in the second half, and the points all came in the Lakers' decisive 21-3 run bridging the third and fourth quarters, so he clearly had an impact.
"I put him in the ballgame," recalled coach Phil Jackson, "and said, 'You gotta make things happen for us, because we were down five, six, whatever it was, at that point in the game. And both (Derek) Fisher and Drew (Andrew Bynum) had four fouls and had to come out of the ballgame.
"He sparked our team, gave us a real big lift."
Brown clearly took Jackson's words to heart.
"I just tried to come in and bring energy," he said, "contribute on both ends of the court -- especially on the defense end, and not let Chauncey (Billups) run wild and let them get into sets and get open looks. The offense is just going to be the offense if you run it how it's supposed to be run."
Brown's most authoritative contribution was a dunk off a Pau Gasol assist late in the third quarter, inspiring a huge roar from the crowd as the Lakers began wiping away a seven-point Denver lead and the
"It felt good," said Brown, "for them to get loud like that. It gave us a spark."
Kobe Bryant said Brown's contribution "changed a lot for us.
"He came in, gave us a huge spark, and that's what you need. You play the game in spurts. It's about who controls momentum. And that spark that he gave us there late in that third quarter and going into the fourth was huge."
It was another example of why Brown's minutes climbed late in the season, as he learned how to fit in after joining the team in a midseason trade, and why Jackson wasn't hesitant to go to him even when he hadn't played in the first half.
"He's got a great attitude as a player," said Jackson. "He supports his teammates. He looks for his opportunities, tries to make the best out of them."
Jackson had both Brown and Jordan Farmar ready to go to start the fourth quarter, depending on what Denver did with its roster. If Anthony Carter had come in, Farmar would have entered the game. If Billups stayed in, so would Brown.
"They kind of waited us out," said Jackson, "and kept Billups out there on the floor. And we had Shannon out there and they were both connected. Both Jordan and Shannon stood in front of me and said go for it, and they did."
Inside job: In a series when the Lakers have relied heavily on the offense of Bryant, this was a different kind of night. He still led with 22 points, but Lamar Odom had 19 points, Pau Gasol had 14 and Trevor Ariza and Fisher each scored 12.
The Lakers may not have exactly followed Gasol's request to get the ball more -- he still was just 5 of 8 from the field -- but they did seem to get the broader implication of his message, which was that the Lakers had to exploit their front-line size. And so Andrew Bynum (nine points), Gasol and Odom combined for 32 shots and 32 points.
"Obviously," said Gasol, "when we started with the first unit, it's a little harder for me to get the ball in the post because Andrew is in there. And he got a lot of touches, I think, or a few touches in the first quarter." (Bynum was 2 for 4 from the field in the first quarter, 4 for 9 at the half.)
"So that was good," Gasol continued. "I mean, it doesn't have to really be me. I think Andrew can do a good job also of attacking the paint and being aggressive."
Jackson's explanation followed similar lines.
"Andrew's got that center position," he said, "and it's easy for him to get the ball in there, because we were using Pau to create cuts and get opportunities. We didn't go inside to (Gasol) I don't think once in the third quarter, and I kind of berated the team for that, in the fourth-quarter stoppage. And they went back inside at the end of the game. We got some things done."
Said Odom, "They do a good job of overloading, doubling down, getting back to their man. Today we wanted to get the ball to Pau or Kobe and score in position and make playoffs off of them -- cut to the rim and the basket and get easy looks, and we were able to do that tonight."
And so Gasol wasn't about to quibble about his specific number of touches.
"I'm just happy for the win, that's all," he said. "I think I worked really hard to help my team to win. That was my mission tonight.
"Whether I'm happier now with more touches or not, that doesn't matter. I'm going to continue to do what it takes to help my team win. ...
"I want to play in the NBA Finals and get that ring."
Postgame Nuggets: Meanwhile, on the Denver side of the ledger, Coach George Karl, who said he thought the Lakers "got the benefit of the whistle," added in response to a follow-up question, "I'm not going to get fined. I'm not going to get into the game of -- Phil is so much better at it than I am, so much more philosophical about the whistle and how it changed."
But, since he didn't stop there, he may, in fact, put himself in jeopardy for a fine.
"It was a very difficult whistle to play ... No question about that," he said. "Every player in my locker room is frustrated, from guards to big guys. Look at the stat sheet. Gasol goes after at least 20 jump shots, 20 shots to the rim and gets one foul. Our big guys have 16. I don't know. Nene has six fouls. Three or four of them don't exist.
"And it's frustrating where you take one of your best big guys off the court for that many minutes.
"But again, it just seems like, I think Stan Van Gundy says it right: In the postgame, we're lobbying for the league to help us with the refereeing. And this is too good of a series. It's too good of teams competing that we're sitting here just confused by the whistle."
A few other Denver postgame comments:
Carmelo Anthony, who scored 31 points, on his health and the Lakers' defensive play:
"First of all, my ankle is still a little sore. I'm fine. But it felt good tonight.
"The Lakers' ain't going to let me beat them. That's just the way it is. Every time I get it, I'm seeing two, three, four people at a time.
"So I take it as a sign of respect. If they was out there and backing off me and not even worrying about me, then I take it as disrespect."
Kenyon Martin, on the Lakers' 11-0 run to start the fourth quarter:
"That was the difference in the game, I think. We missed a few easy shots. I know I missed a few right around the rim. They came down and got a couple easy baskets, a couple open jumpers, but like I said, you have to tilt your head to them."
Chauncey Billups, on the Lakers' 27-18 edge in the fourth quarter:
"They got aggressive and they hit some shots. We just couldn't really get out of the hump. We got a lot of great opportunities, just couldn't get over the hump. Kind of disappointed. Like you said, even game all the way to the fourth and then they made plays when they had to."

Denver's Dahntay Jones picked up his second flagrant foul of the series, retroactively, when the NBA assessed a flagrant-1 for tripping Kobe Bryant in Game 4. (No foul was assessed at the time.)
This, among other incidents, had the Lakers answering questions about whether Denver had crossed a line between physical and dirty. Or not answering them, depending on the individual.
"I want to keep the topic on a positive note today," said coach Phil Jackson after Tuesday's practice. "I don't want to talk about that aspect of it. I want to talk about basketball."
Kobe Bryant had the same not-with-a-ten-foot-pool approach -- "It's just good playoff basketball," he said -- but not everyone was quite as circumspect.
"I wouldn't say the Nuggets," said Lamar Odom. "I wouldn't define a team on the actions of how one person is playing, or two people.
"But it's playoffs, so you've got to expect anything. ... But we'll take care of it on the court. There's no reason for us talk about it, or retaliate with words."
Pau Gasol went a little further.
"They get away with a few things," he said, "and at home they get away with more stuff. I think the league is pretty aware of it at this point in time, and they should be able to cut it off. So hopefully they will. ...
"Nobody got hurt, but they could've, and that's something that the referees should be able to protect us from, because we're not trying to hurt anybody. We're just trying to play hard and compete. But there's some plays out there that reflect some dirtiness."
Tired? Tonight's game will be the Lakers' 12th in 24 days. Mix in travel and practices, and you might say they have reason to feel a little fatigued.
You might. They won't.
"It's possible," said Jackson. "But we're really trying to take care of our players in the process between (games). Guys are doing anything from ice baths to massage. We're not asking players that play over 35 minutes, 30 minutes really, to do anything physical (at practice). So there's a recovery period, and they have to take care of themselves in that period, and we hope they're doing that off-site here.
"But we think they can respond to this. We're not going to use that as an excuse."
Gasol wasn't having any of it, either.
"It's all about mind strength right now," he said. "Forget about the fatigue and forget about the body. You've got to be strong enough mentally to be able to fight through everything and know what you're playing for. We're two wins away from being in the finals again. We have home-court advantage and we should take advantage of it."
Waiting for Bynum: Andrew Bynum's ongoing push for playing time -- which keeps running into Jackson's desire for his young center to play better defense -- may have taken a turn in the right direction at end of Game 4, Jackson said.
Indicating that he'd like Bynum to take some of the minutes that normally go to Lamar Odom, struggling with a back injury, Jackson said he liked what he saw in Denver on Monday.
"I thought he responded well in the fourth quarter, Drew did," said Jackson, "and helped get the game back under double-digit points. We lost it, but he stepped in there and tried to fill his job and do his job."
Jackson was asked if he had any sense why Bynum responded at that particular time.
"Well, I think he was upset about coming out of the game in the third quarter," Jackson said. "There were a couple of actions there when I didn't see him go to the ball defensively, and I thought, 'We can't wait around in this quarter after we got the lead down to three.'
"And so when he went back in, I liked his response. That's the way he has to play."

EL SEGUNDO -- Playing in Utah is always going to be a little different for Derek Fisher, but at least it's not quite so hurtful any more.
Which isn't to say he won't get booed when the Lakers play the Jazz in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series Thursday night.
"Yeah," he said Wednesday, before the Lakers flew to Salt Lake City, "but probably not as much as the first time I went back. I think there will still be some boos there, and I think it's transitioned, though, from more of a personal boo to, you know, 'You're on the Lakers.'
"I think people have had time to deal with my not being on the team and my family transitioning away from Utah. I think that's behind everybody for the most part. Everybody knows the story, knows the deal, and now it's Jazz-Lakers."
For those who need a refresher course on the details, Fisher rejoined the Lakers last season after one year with the Jazz. That year concluded with an emotional rollercoaster when his infant daughter, Tatum, was diagnosed with a form of eye cancer, taking him away from the team during the playoffs. (In the most dramatic moment of his Utah tenure, he returned from his daughter's treatment in mid-game and helped lead the Jazz to an overtime win against Golden State.)
After that season, he was released from his contract with Utah to relocate to a city better able to address his daughter's treatment needs and signed with the Lakers -- a move that didn't go over particularly well with Jazz fans, who booed him mercilessly when he made his return to Salt Lake City with the Lakers. It was a reaction the classy veteran guard didn't expect.
"It was shocking, it caught me off guard, it was disappointing," he said. "But between the first time I went back last season to the second time, there was a huge difference, just in the way I saw it, the way I felt it. I think I had come to grips myself with the fact that there wasn't anything else that I was going to be able to say or do, and even better, I don't have to feel obligated to try to convince somebody of why we made the decision we made. I think once I got to a place where I was OK with it, it didn't really matter how other people responded.
"I think that game was good for me, personally, just to have that experience and understand that this world is not created in a way where you can please everybody, you can do things that are going to be what everybody likes for you to say or do.
"So I think it was good for me to have that experience. And I think it took probably a couple weeks after that experience to gain some understanding in terms of me understanding myself and what I was feeling. And then from there, it's been really smooth in terms of feeling comfortable with what has happened and why it happened, and that life really has moved on in a major way."
That's also true for 2-year-old Tatum -- she turns 3 in late June -- whose cancer remains in remission.
"Every eight weeks, we still have to go through the exams and the scans and the MRIs, and each time we go back, as things continue to stabilize, the doctor stretches it out a little bit," said Fisher. "It starts from every three to four weeks to four to six weeks, to six to eight weeks. Now we're at eight weeks, and as long as that pattern continues, we'll get to about 12 weeks, and then when she turns 4, if things continue to stay where they are, we'll be past that red zone in terms of the chance of the cancer returning or cancer forming in the other eye."
The estimate is that his daughter has about 50 percent vision in her left eye, although they won't really know until she's old enough to explain to doctors what she can see. "It's all just from testing, lights and different stuff like that," he said.
In other notes from Wednesday's practice:
Fatigue: Center Andrew Bynum, in his sixth game back since being sidelined by a knee injury, scored 10 points, all in a little more than seven minutes to open the game. Phil Jackson was asked what happened.
"He ran out of gas, really," said Jackson. "And they double-teamed him. They came back and double-teamed him, he missed some free throws, had some things that just didn't continue to go right for him. But he gave us a great start. ...
"It's going to happen with him. He's going to have some lapses in energy. We've got to talk a little bit about his pregame work, too, because I think he's working a little bit too hard to get ready for the game, and I think it takes something out of him during the game."
Needing more: Jackson also said he felt the Lakers weren't getting enough out of the size mismatch Pau Gasol has enjoyed against the smaller Utah lineup with Mehmet Okur sidelined by injury.
"We're not doing very well getting the ball into him," said Jackson. "He just didn't have enough touches in the second half.
"Some of that (is that) he was on the bench. I kept him on the bench for a while. I know this is going to be a grind the rest of this series, so I wanted to give him a little bit of a rest while we had a lead. But we didn't have an opportunity to use him the way we want to. ...
"We went to some other things, and Kobe got going a little bit in the second half, and he dominates the ball when he's going that well. Some of those things just didn't happen and work out for (Pau)."