Dude, strange things are afoot in Lakerland. Last night, en route to the Lakers beating the Nuggets 116-99, Kobe Bryant passed the ball. He made shit happen. And then, postgame, with a smile on his face, Kobe spoke in approving terms about his team, citing the fullness of their “passion bucket”. WHO IS THIS MAN?

It wasn’t just Kobe raising the bar. Taking advantage of the double team on Bryant, Derek Fisher hit 6 out of 7 from three point range and scored 16 of the Laker’s first 24 points. Lamar Odom awoke from his slumber to score 15, with 11 rebounds and 7 assists to boot. Even Kwame didn’t completely suck, and Laker nation didn’t boo him, so, um, yay for Kwame.

But will this positive attitude stand up when the Lakers go on the road this week to play the horrible, lecherous vampire crews in San Antonio and Dallas? Let’s check the Laker Injury Report: Trevor Ariza is out 8 weeks with a fractured bone in his right foot, meaning the Laker bench is thinner than ever. And guess how he broke it? On Derek Fisher’s foot (remember: Andrew Bynum’s injury was courtesy of Lamar Odom’s sixteen and a halfs). Damn dastardly vampire curses! The Lakers take on the Spurs in San Antonio on Wednesday at 6 pm on the four letter network.

Photo courtesy of Malingering via flickr