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Or plans for the holiday and a very patient, understanding better half.

-Shannon Brown's one-and-out performance in the Dunk Contest was described by the Orange County Register's Janis Carr and Silver Screen and Roll's DexterFishmore as a disappointment. Then again, the entire contest was labeled a disappointment (and as ESPNLosAngeles.com's Dave McMenamin notes, Brown has bigger plans for a career than just throwing down 24/7) so along those lines, way to tow the company line. Ball Don't Lie has a breakdown of the anticlimactic-ness.

-Author/Lakers expert Roland Lazenby talks about the R-rated escapades inside the Showtime era locker room.

-Basketball Prospectus takes a look at defense stoppers. (Thanks to reader "Exhelodrvr" for the tip.)

-As the trade deadline looms, the Dallas Mavericks were the first big mover and/or shaker, obtaining the services of Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood. Will the Cavs follow suit and bring in Amar'e Stoudemire?

The Lakers may be on a break, but the Kamenetzky brothers never stop working. We're like beavers, except in a studio. Unless, of course, the beavers in question also host a podcast, in which case there's absolutely zero difference.

Here's the newest bit of ear candy to usher in your weekend:

PODCAST
Andy and Brian talk about how the Lakers should play (style, lineups, etc.) after the All-Star break and Shannon Brown's crazy career path. Plus, Andy talks even more Lakers with ESPNLosAngeles.com's Dave McMenamin. Podcast

-(3:40) The Lakers head into the break having won three straight without the services of Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum. This creates a nutty time for certain Lakers fans, who often struggle to enjoy victories without Kobe at the center of success. As evidenced by some reactions to a pair of previous posts, many a 24 enthusiast takes the man very seriously.

-(9:09): With that in mind, we talk about how the Lakers will need to play in order to duplicate their dominant play of late. Will Andrew Bynum be replaced by Lamar Odom in the starting lineup? For that matter, will Derek Fisher get bumped by Jordan Farmar? Will Kobe blend back in seamlessly? Will the Lakers pass the Cavs finish the season with the best record in the league? These and other questions are pondered.

-(22:22): We discuss the details from my recent article about Shannon Brown's turbulent career upon arriving in Los Angeles. The guy has really persevered through some tough times and uncertainty before his emergence as a dunk-ariffic sensation. You'll also hear snippets of audio from my interviews with Shannon.

-(33:38): I talked with Dave McMenamin, who also covers the Lakers for ESPNLosAngeles.com. In addition to Dave's recent articles about Pau Gasol's leadership and the Lake Show's All-Star weekend plans, topics include whether Gasol's failures in Memphis can be reexamined, D.J. Mbenga's underrated reputation as a shot happy big man and any trade deadline moves in the pipeline.

If you want to just hear the interview, click here.

-The Los Angeles Times' Barry Stavro marks the passing of Fred Schaus, the Lakers' first coach of the Los Angeles era.

-Lakers Blog's Mark Medina breaks down some numbers with 54 games in the books.

-ESPNLosAngeles.com's Dave McMenamin has a rundown for every Laker's plans during the All-Star break. Some interesting tidbits, including D.J. Mbenga: Belgium TV correspondent. And I love the description of Ron Ron's evolving itinerary:

Ron Artest said on Wednesday he had a trip planned to go to Dallas, but was considering canceling it to take care of some errands for his kids. When he was asked later in the conversation how he would feel about missing a basketball game with close to 100,000 people in the stands, he said he had no idea there were going to be that many fans there and said the trip was back on.

-Speaking of ASW, ProBasketballTalk.com's Kurt Helin reports Kobe Bryant's spot in the starting lineup for the West will be taken by local hero Dirk Nowitzki. We also have Lakers and Clippers ASW trivia, courtesy of ESPNLosAngeles.com's Arash Markazi.

-And finally, I don't care how many Lakers fans hate Steve Nash for the 2006 and 2007 ayoff plseries or his ownership of two MVP awards before Kobe nabbed even won... this is just plain funny. I mean, really funny. (Tip of the cap to Ball Don't Lie.)

For all the talk about Shannon Brown's hops, springiness making him a YouTube fixture, asking others about him inevitably leads to mention of his hands.

"He's got big hands. Extremely big hands," marvels former Charlotte Bobcats teammate Raymond Felton, who played against Brown in the 2005 Final Four.

"He's blessed with great hands," praises Bobcats assistant coach Jeff Capel, who grew close with Brown during the guard's half-season with Charlotte.

"I wish I had those hands," says Nuggets guard J.R. Smith, former dunk contestant (and sick athlete in his own right) who's known Brown since their AAU days. "If you get a set of mitts like that, it's hard to stop."

"They're pretty big," admits Brown with a chuckle as he sits on a medicine ball after Lakers practice in El Segundo.

In a nutshell, dude's hands are ginormous.

Combined with elevation capable of making a trampoline jealous, they're a Godsend for dunking a basketball, a skill Brown will be showing off at the Slam Dunk Contest during the All-Star Weekend. But during Brown's time as a professional, those same hands weren't just used to smother a Spalding. They were gripping onto an NBA life, and just barely at times.

(Read full post)

The All-Star forward confirmed what Bobcats coach Larry Brown suspected before the game: He won't be able to suit up.

The issue is a left hamstring, which Wallace said he originally thought might have just been a cramp suffered during Monday night's game against the Portland Trail Blazers. "The more I kept playing, the tighter it kept getting," explained Wallace. "By the end of the game, I could barely walk."

Wallace doesn't expect to be out long. "I think it's just from muscle fatigue," reassured the forward. "Hopefully, I'll take the night off. We don't play again until Saturday. That'll give it some rest and I'll be back on the court on Saturday."

Because the hamstring already feels better now compared to Monday, Wallace isn't concerned the injury will linger. Thus, he doesn't expect his participation during All-Star weekend to be affected. For Lakers fans, this means the dunk contest showdown between him and former teammate Shannon Brown remains presumably on.

In the 2010 dunk contest, more specifically. Shannon Brown's allowed to throw down in a regular game whenever the urge hits him.

His fellow competitors will include defending champ Nate Robinson, the high-flying Gerald Wallace and the "dunk-in" winner between USC "alum" DeMar DeRozan or the Clippers' Eric Gordon (who I've seen dunk maybe ten times in my life, but like they say, it's always the quiet ones that surprise).

Great news for the Lakers reserve guard. As I mentioned yesterday, he's come a long way since the beginning of last season when an NBA roster spot wasn't a given. It's a credit to both being in --or being traded to-- the right place at the right time and maintaining a positive, hard working attitude. We'll be sure to get reaction from Shannon at tonight's game against the Magic, and judging by the following clip of SB discussing what it would mean to be selected, it'll be one happy camper interviewed.

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Before Friday night's demolishing of the Clippers, a bunch of us scribes asked Shannon Brown about this All-Star Game's dunk contest, which signs are starting to point towards his being included. Shannon said his agent told him not to believe anything until it's official, but he'd definitely like to be a part of the action. Brian suggested Shannon crash the event either way, but as the guard noted, he's "trying to save my money," so a fine isn't all that appealing.

Personally, if he gets the shaft, I think SB should just stream his own competition on the net, a guaranteed magnet for mouse clicks. Shannon proposed a showdown against his toddler son, who knows how to put the ball through the hoop with the help a boost "That's my dunk contest right there," smiled Shannon before acknowledging he'd probably get smoked due to the "adorable" factor. "They'd definitely pick him over me." In the meantime, the kid is showing signs of eventually following in Pops' YouTube-worthy footsteps.

"He's got some nice calf muscles," smiled Shannon.

All fun and jokes aside, though, this conversation with Shannon illustrates just how far he's recently come in a journeyman career of ups and downs. Take a look at last season's exit interview video clips, where he talks about starting last season out of the NBA and referring to himself as a trade "throw-in," which I've never heard any player do. It's kind of surreal for Brown to be in this position, and that fortune isn't being taken for granted. "I'm so grateful and thankful and appreciate to everybody for everything they've done for me. The opportunities I'm getting right now. I'm just trying not to let nobody down."

Pretty easy to be happy for a guy with Shannon's attitude.

Email us at ESPNLandOLakers@gmail.com, follow us on Twitter at ESPNLandOLakers.