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Lots of talk about the debacle in Game 1 (has "The World Naked Gardening Day Pruning" caught on, yet? I didn't think so.), and looking ahead to tonight's Game 2.

And while there is still a lot of hoops left to play against OKC, more than a few fans are looking forward to the offseason. We take a look at what might be coming, as well.

Here's the link to the transcript.

Two siblings for the price of one! Jeanie and Jim Buss appeared respectively on 710 ESPN's Max and Marcellus and Mason and Ireland today, hitting on a wide variety of topics. Because Laker fans can't get enough of their Buss kids, we're passing along the audio to the LO'L faithful. The shows can be heard by clicking on the links below and there are some talking points from each show listed below.

JEANIE BUSS (CLICK HERE TO HERE THE INTERVIEW)

- People have wondered why Jeanie hasn't attended as many games at Staples Center this season. It's because she's taking the opportunity to watch then with her main squeeze Phil Jackson, who's also recovering from knee replacement surgery. "He's doing really well," raves Jeanie. "I honestly think he's two inches taller, because his knee was so painful, it was kind of bow-legged, and now he looks great and he's feeling good.

- Is PJ feeling good enough to coach, and specifically for the Knicks as rumored? Jeanie says it's not worth discussing the Knicks because they have a coach (Mike Woodson), and nobody from New York or any other team has made an offer to begin with. Either way, if PJ comes out of retirement, it'll be because he wants to, rather than money.

- Jeanie is fine with the new CBA's goal of leveling the playing field between bigger and smaller market yeams. However, it's impossible to "revenue share" what the Lakers have in prestige and fans, so in that sense, they'll always have an ace in the hole.

- Phil still follows the NBA pretty regularly and in particular keeps tabs on all of his former players. (Even Vlad Rad!!!) He also hasn't made a prediction as to who will win it all, but thinks OKC-Dal is the most interesting first round matchup.

JIM BUSS (CLICK HERE TO HEAR THE INTERVIEW):

- Dr. Jerry Buss is feeling healthier by the day. In fact, he's about 80-90 percent back, by his son's estimation.

- Like many Lakers fans, he couldn't believe Mike Brown had the huevos to keep Jordan Hill on the floor down the stretch of the double OT win over OKC last Sunday. "I was saying, ‘Get Bynum in there! Get Bynum in there!," recalls Jim. "But we kept playing well and of course Jordan Hill had just a tremendous game, so, as usual I’m wrong and he was right and we won the game."

- Also like many Lakers fans, he places some of the blame on the Metta World Peace-James Harden altercation on the Thunder sixth man. But he also thought the seven-game suspension itself was a fair punishment.

"I know Metta and I know how hard he’s trying," says Jim. "If it was two other players and there was no history, which of course you have to take into consideration, but if there was no history I thought it looked like Harden came into him a little bit, maybe instigated something. Of course the blow as tremendous and awful and doesn’t belong in this game, so I think seven is just absolutely the perfect number … Any less I think it discounts it, any more I think it’s excessive."

Blazers owner Paul Allen is a rich man, and according to ESPN's Marc Stein and Chris Broussard, has his eyes and giant wallet aimed towards Mitch Kupchak to fill Portland's currently unoccupied general manager gig:

"Kupchak is one of the Blazers' top targets, sources told ESPN.com, in their quest to land an executive with experience running a franchise's basketball operations.

It remains to be seen, however, whether the Lakers would be willing to grant Portland permission to speak to Kupchak, who has spent more than 25 years in L.A.'s front office. Kupchak took over for Jerry West as the club's lead decision-maker in the basketball department in the summer of 2000 before gradually ceding that status to Jim Buss, who serves as the Lakers' executive vice president of player personnel.

Blazers president Larry Miller could not be immediately reached for comment and Kupchak did not immediately respond to messages left by ESPN.com.

Sources close to the situation told ESPN.com that Kupchak's latest contract with the Lakers is a lucrative multiyear deal. But Jim Buss -- son of longtime Lakers owner Jerry Buss -- is widely perceived to have the deciding vote on basketball matters with the Lakers and is regarded as the driving force not only behind the drafting of Andrew Bynum in 2005 but also L.A.'s decision to hire Mike Brown as Phil Jackson's replacement over Rick Adelman. And that has spawned a growing belief among several of Kupchak's peers that the architect of the Pau Gasol trade in 2008 that ultimately led to two championships would have some interest in listening to outside proposals."

Two points: First, Portland showing interest in Kupchak makes sense (why wouldn't they be?) but doesn't automatically mean Kupchak showing interest in Portland. Second, In a zillion years, I can't imagine the Lakers giving Kupchak permission to interview with a conference rival, so in that regard it feels like a moot point. Still, the report isn't insignificant, because as long as Kupchak's name appears in the rumor mill it lends credence to the idea the Lakers' front office isn't a totally happy place, one where basketball personnel not named Jim Buss don't have the authority to run a department.

Whether that's fair depends on who you ask, but either way is definitely the type of narrative Buss wants to dispel.

Nothing like a lopsided loss to get the Laker Nation a-chatterin'. Plenty of questions tossed our way, including those about Kobe Bryant's time table for a return, how well the Lakers match up in a potential series against San Antonio and the odds of Ramon Sessions returning next season.

Here's a link to the transcript.

Also, as a reminder, if you haven't had a chance to read Dave McMenamin's two part Q and A with Jim Buss, do so. (Part 1 here, Part 2 here.) It's well worth your time.

It was team photo day at the Los Angeles Lakers' practice facility this week. Sitting smack dab in the middle of the front row of smiling participants was Jim Buss, wearing a black baseball-style Lakers cap with a line of players wearing yellow jerseys to either side of him.

Buss, the Lakers’ executive vice president of player personnel, was occupying the spot his father, Lakers owner Jerry Buss, usually takes when it’s time for the team to annually say, “Cheese.” It was a fitting scene, illustrating just how much the younger Buss has been thrust into the forefront of the Lakers’ franchise decisions as his father has watched him assume greater control over the family business.

Jerry Buss is still “the boss,” as Jim Buss says, and his absence from the team photo wasn’t an orchestrated move to pass the baton to his son or anything -- he was simply feeling under the weather the day of the photo shoot, according to a Lakers staffer -- but there will come a time when the Lakers are truly Jim Buss’ team.

Following the photo session, the normally reticent Jim Buss sat down with ESPNLosAngeles.com for a wide-ranging interview. As Buss sipped on a black coffee with three Sweet 'N Lows and scratched his beard that he decided to keep after growing out his facial hair for the first time in his life during the NBA’s 161-day lockout, the conversation spanned his increased role with the Lakers, the team’s championship aspirations, how the new collective bargaining agreement and revenue sharing arrangement will affect business, his relationship with Phil Jackson, and much more. (See Part 2 here.)

Q: What are your thoughts on this season?

“Well, I think it’s coming along just as we anticipated with the changing of the guard of coaches [and] new players. I felt that the second half of the season would be better than the first half. As far as up and down, every season has its ups and downs. To me, this is a normal up and down, so it’s OK. But I like how we’re hitting our stride going into the playoffs, so I’m happy.”

Q: Start with Andrew Bynum. He could be the best player on this team in the second half of the season, all due respect to Kobe.

“I’m not a guy that judges players in different positions against different players. It doesn’t make sense to me to compare a center to a guard. It doesn’t make sense at all. So, to say Andrew Bynum was the best player in the second half, I wouldn’t be comparing him to anybody. You got Pau Gasol, Metta World Peace, Ramon Sessions, Kobe [Bryant]. ... I think they all are the best player on the team in their position.”

Q: You would agree, though, that his performance on the court in terms of production has been the best it’s ever been.

“Yes, of course. If you wanted me to compare him to himself, he’s having his best year.”

Q: Has his attitude or any of his actions on and off the court taken away from some of that production?

“I don’t think so. I like what Phil Jackson said the other day [to the Los Angeles Times]. I thought that was the best way to look at it. The kid is coming into his own and there’s going to be some growing pains and just let him grow. So, I’m good with it.”

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Can the Lakers compete tonight against the Spurs without Kobe Bryant? If the answer is no, (a) should Mike Brown consider resting Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum and (b) does this mean The Mamba should merit more consideration for MVP honors?

These and other questions were tackled in today's chat. Here's the link to the room.

Lotta talk about Andrew Bynum, Pau Gasol and even former D-Fender/current Net Gerald Green. See what you missed by clicking on this here link.

Jim Buss appeared Friday on 710 ESPN's Mason and Ireland Show for an exceedingly rare interview, done by his own admission to help fans learn more about who he is. Listening to him, I suddenly thought about how 13 years have passed since The Blair Witch Project first hit theaters. It was a movie that unexpectedly took movie audiences by storm, with an influence that can be felt to this day. The hand-held, shaky camera cinematography, which at the time literally caused motion sickness for some viewers, has become mainstream. Low-budget, no-star films have become a bankable horror film formula. It launched the "found footage" genre, which has become a horror movie staple and recently branched into comedy with Project X.

But mostly, what The Blair Witch Project illustrated was the power of what really scares people the most: The fear of the unknown.

With all due respect to Jason, Michael Myers and Freddy Krueger, they've got nothing on the power of an imagination fueled by paranoia, then allowed to run wild. The human mind is capable of playing horrible, cruel tricks. A frightened brain will generally have no problems conjuring up visions of demise. The longer it goes without tangible reassurance, the greater an apocalypse envisioned. As terrifying as seeing a crazed lunatic with a machete would have been for those kids lost in the woods, being left in the dark about how death would take place was even scarier for them. And by extension, movie-goers.

In many respects, Jim Buss has been the flesh-and-blood embodiment for Lakers fans of being lost in that endless woods. As his power within the organization has increased, so have the bad dreams of an eroding franchise. In part, this is the result of fans being spoiled by the success experienced with his father at the helm, and their desperate fears of it slipping away. But it's also the result of Jim Buss remaining a complete mystery. He rarely grants interviews. He rarely speaks publicly. Among the few memories fans have of hearing him speak at at came while sniping over radio with his sister Jeanie. The current executive vice president of player personnel, he's worked in the organization for quite some time, but nobody has ever been quite certain about what he really does or what successes (or even failures) have come from his influence. About the only thing people agreed upon was that his birthright played huge role in being handed the keys.

His presence has existed in the shadows, and nothing pleasant ever happens there.

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Late this afternoon, Kobe Bryant (shooting guard, Los Angeles Lakers, used to wear a mask) appeared on 710 ESPN's Mason and Ireland Show -- click here for the full interview -- and covered a lot of ground over about 12 minutes. He called the Lakers contenders, commented on his relationship with Mike Brown and the coaching staff, weighed in on the question of whether Ramon Sessions should start, and why the Lakers have struggled on the road.

The nugget likely to get the most attention came at the end, when he was asked about Jim Buss:

"We have a good relationship. People misunderstand that relationship. We’ve had good times. We’ve had dinner together, things like that. He’s a great guy. He wants to do the right thing, he wants to help us win a championship. The biggest thing is, the same with his father who he’s learned from, he’s not going to make rushed decisions. He’s going to be patient, he’s going to take his time, and the one thing I will say about the Lakers organization is that this is one of those franchises that always seems to land on it’s feet. Always seems to make the right choices, always seems to make the right decisions. Even the tough ones. He’s a great guy.”

Not that you'd expect Bryant to go Category 5 and blow up his boss on the radio, but his answer is still a lot nicer than many would guess, even if he's not being completely forthright. It doesn't make some of those things ticking Kobe off in recent months less real, but as a money quote could quell some of the whispers about major fractures in his relationship with the team. That's no small thing at a time where the Lakers are at a very uncertain place, caught between winning now and trying to prep for the future.

Among the other topics covered (arranged chronologically for your convenience)...

• His thoughts on Brown and his staff. "We have coaches on staff who are very smart and understand the temp of the game. [Ettore] Messina in particular, who has a great deal of experience in coaching overseas and brings more of a European style of play, that’s more fun to watch and involves more movement and things of that nature. Our coaching staff as a whole is very unselfish, and they don’t mind other coaches sharing ideas and players sharing concepts."
• How he can go shoot a combined 13-of-47 against Utah and Houston, then go 11-for-18 vs. Dallas.
• On starting Sessions. "I don't really see it as a major issue or a big deal."
• Why they struggle on the road, and how Sessions can help them improve.
• Lamar Odom's struggles in Dallas. It's not just lingering disappointment from the trade, but his role as well. "“You have to feature him. He was a playmaker for us. He was a point forward for us. We ran our offense through him and allowed him to make decisions. It’s tough to do that in Dallas, because they already have their structure.”
• His belief that this is a team capable of winning a title.

Finally, he was asked -- jokingly, of course -- if he and Derek Fisher would go easy on each other when the Thunder come to town next Thursday. "“The most disrespectful thing we could do to each other is take it easy on each other. That’s not what we’re about.”

There will, he said, be elbows thrown and bruises inflicted.

Monday afternoon, Mike Bresnahan of the L.A. Times sat down with general manager Mitch Kupchak, talking about this week's trade deadline, Pau Gasol, and the team's relationship with Magic Johnson. What has garnered the most headlines, however, are his comments about Jim Buss:

"Jim gets way too much criticism and not enough credit with the success this team has had," Kupchak said. "He is following in the footsteps of the most successful owner maybe of all time, which is hard to do. But since he's gotten more and more involved, which has been about seven or eight years, we've had some pretty good moments."

These are things Kupchak has said before, and you'd expect him to say again, particularly because he's talking about his boss. Even if he was monumentally frustrated with the dynamics of the front office and feel he's not given the freedom to shape the roster as he'd like, to his credit Kupchak would never say so. It's just not how he operates.

L.A.'s G.M. also says it's unfair to pin every decision on Jim Buss:

"It is inaccurate because there are three of us that are involved in all the basketball decisions," Kupchak said. "Dr. Buss still makes, to my knowledge, all the final decisions in the organization. He's always deferred basketball decisions at some level to his basketball people, and Jimmy is a part of the basketball people."

While I do think fans aren't always completely fair, there are plenty of totally legitimate reasons to question Jim Buss and harbor concerns. The smoke coming out of El Segundo certainly has many ready to call the fire department, even if the flames aren't actually visible yet, and I think Buss does himself a horrible disservice by so rarely putting himself in front of media and fans.

Still, the biggest reason for chewing induced cuticle destruction comes at the end of the second quote: "... Jimmy is a part of the basketball people."

That Jim Buss isn't widely respected as a personnel guy/talent evaluator isn't the point. In professional sports, it's very rarely a good idea for the same guy to sign the checks and decide who should get one. Dr. Buss has never been a passive bystander with the Lakers, weighing in on different moves and always providing the final say. But never have I ever heard him referred to as one of "the basketball people."

Had he, I suspect Dr. Buss wouldn't have led the team to such great heights. The same principle holds true for Jimmy.

What's been circled for months with a giant Sharpie on a giant calendar is finally here, more or less. Thursday marks this season's NBA trade deadline. That's March 15 (beware!) to you and me.

It's a huge day for the Lakers, not just in how it shapes the fate of this season's team, but what it might say about the direction of the franchise this summer and beyond. Nothing in sports is completely cut-and-dried (including everything you'll read below) and because the Lakers can't make teams agree to trade with them on fair terms or force free agents to sign, matters of player personnel aren't totally in their control. But as I see it, the Lakers have three basic courses of action from which they can choose in the very and reasonably near futures.

Each position has merit, but no matter what side of the fence you fall, the Lakers have some very difficult choices to make now and down the road.

1. Go for broke this season.

PRO -- In the great high rise of roster construction, the Lakers' penthouse is filled. They have three All-Stars, giving them an elite player on the wing along with size and skill in the frontcourt most teams can't match on either side of the floor. They have some reasonably capable role players occupying the bottom floor apartments, as well. The problem is the vast empty real estate in between. An improvement at point guard and the addition of reliable bench scoring (to name two things) could have profound benefits, and can be addressed without moving superstars. Not only would the Lakers tick some empty skill-set boxes, but opposing defenses would be less able to load up on L.A.'s Big Three, comfortable knowing that (more often than not) nobody else can make them pay with any sort of consistency.

CON -- The Lakers aren't exactly rich with high-end assets outside Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum. L.A. has a generous traded-player exception and an extra (likely late) first-rounder, thanks to the Lamar Odom deal. Andrew Goudelock, Darius Morris and Devin Ebanks have some appeal, but aren't high-end prospects for whom teams move mountains. This creates a few complications. First, there's no guarantee the Lakers have enough good stuff to get a Ramon Sessions-type if another team wants that player more. Not without overpaying, at least. Second, chips cashed in smaller deals can't be used in a potential blockbuster, whether at the deadline or beyond. Third, for an aging team with a closing window, there's a price to pay for giving away access to cheap, young talent. Trading picks and prospects extends the deal with the devil L.A. has been making for a few seasons.

Fourth, there's a very real chance the Lakers could make the moves and still not win, leaving them facing a still-uncertain future with fewer assets available.

2. Hold tight for a superstar.

PRO -- Obviously, it could be a smokescreen, but Orlando continues to say it won't move Dwight Howard at the deadline, and there are plenty of compelling reasons for them to hold tight. As long as Howard is in play, so is Deron Williams.

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After he dropped 27 points on the Clippers last night, we were hit with a ton of tweets and questions in today's chat about when the Lakers would bring in Timberwolves forward Michael Beasley. According to ESPN The Magazine's Chris Broussard, apparently they already could have, but passed, rejecting an offer from Minnesota of Beasley for a first-round draft pick. The second pick of the 2008 draft makes just over $6.2 million this season, but could have been absorbed into the trade exception created by the Lakers in the Lamar Odom deal.

There are any number of totally valid reasons the Lakers wouldn't bite, despite an acute need for help at small forward and additional scoring punch. They could be frightened by Beasley's questionable maturity, or negative aspects of his game, and believe he's a bad fit. Maybe they prefer other targets, and need that pick to make a different deal. Perhaps, as some suspect, they're holding on to every asset they have until Dwight Howard and/or Deron Williams have signed new contracts, even if it means standing pat into the summer.

What will frighten fans, though, is the one cited by Broussard -- money:

"...With one of the league's highest payrolls at roughly $88 million -- well above the luxury tax threshold of $70 million -- the Lakers are due to pay $18 million in taxes this season. Since there is a dollar-for-dollar penalty for tax-paying teams, taking on Beasley's $6.2 million contract would add another $6.2 million to their tax bill and cost the Lakers an extra $12.4 million.

The Lakers' decision falls in line with their decision to trade Lamar Odom to the Dallas Mavericks for an $8.9 million trade exception in December. While Odom asked to be traded after finding out the Lakers put him in a foiled trade attempt to get Chris Paul, the Lakers' chief motivation for trading Odom was to chop their payroll and to save money.

Under the new revenue sharing plan in the recently adopted collective bargaining agreement, the Lakers will pay a bundle and because of that, owner Jerry Buss is no longer willing to spend so freely in going above the luxury tax, according to sources."

(UPDATE- 7:00 pm PT: 710 ESPN's John Ireland, who also serves as the team's radio voice, reports that a source inside the organization says the proposed deal was for both of L.A.'s first round picks, not just the one. Obviously that would change the equation substantially, making the trade far less appealing. However, he also indicates the financial concerns regarding this and other trades are real, and that the Lakers are hesitant to bring in salary without sending some out the door, which fits well with the concerns illustrated below.)

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The Lakers are about to kick off the second half, which means plenty of action in the room. Among the talking points were Kobe Bryant's concussion, trade scenarios and Andrew Bynum's knee.

Here is the link to the chat.

Ramona Shelburne joins in as we ask when the Lakers will next make an NBA Finals.

Never a dull moment in Laker Land. By definition, that makes for a lively Laker chat.

Among the talking points were Pau Gasol's future in L.A., how Michael Beasley (reportedly on the front office radar) would fit in L.A., and the likelihood of new faces after the trade deadline. Plus, a shout out to "Chaz!"

Click here for the transcript.