Bulls can't stop Lakers

It seems like it's never too early to think about the holidays.

Kobe Bryant knows the feeling. Two days before Thanksgiving came news that the Lakers star plans to wear a special “Grinch” version of his Nike sneakers on Christmas Day against Miami.

The shoes are green and scaly, while the character in the Dr. Seuss book was furry. So the plan has some issues.

The Bulls, meanwhile, set out late Tuesday night to steal a win from the Lakers in Who's Who-ville, otherwise known as the Staples Center.

They faced a tough challenge, with the Lakers off to a 12-2 start and leading the NBA in points per game. The Lakers improved to 13-2 with a 98-91 victory.

This was the fourth of seven stops for the Bulls on their annual circus road trip. After getting three days off in Los Angeles, this game started a stretch of four games in five nights.

Bulls power forward Taj Gibson missed Monday's practice because of a pinched nerve in his right foot. As usual, though, Gibson was ready for the game and showed no signs of being injured.

Gibson still hasn't missed a game in his two NBA seasons, and he produced a solid 8 points and 7 rebounds in the first half Tuesday.

Thanks to Gibson and Joakim Noah (9 rebounds), the Bulls built a 26-16 advantage on the boards before intermission. But Maywood native Shannon Brown sparked the Lakers with 18 first-half points to give his team a 51-49 edge at halftime.

Brown was a free agent last summer, but the Bulls showed little interest and he re-signed with the Lakers after a long wait.

Derrick Rose had an impressive first half, with 16 points and 7 assists, while Luol Deng added 13 points for the Bulls. Bryant had 12 at halftime.

During a recent appearance on WMVP's “Waddle and Silvy Show,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson was asked where he'd place Rose among the current group of dominant NBA point guards.

“I don't think there's any doubt as point guards go, he's considered in the top five,” Jackson said. “This is a tough category, because so many teams rely on point guards to have aggression and the initiative for their team.”

Regarding the Bulls in general, Jackson is curious to see what happens when a certain all-star power forward recovers from a broken right hand.

“We'll see what happens when (Carlos) Boozer comes back to give them that 260-pound power forward in there,” Jackson said. “But they have the speed … and I think they can surprise a lot of people. They're ready now to start moving into position as a dominant team in the East.”

Bryant scored his team's first 7 points, giving the Lakers an early 7-2 lead, and Keith Bogans picked up 2 quick fouls, bringing Ronnie Brewer off the bench at the 9:17 mark of the first quarter.

A Brown 3-pointer with 0.4 seconds left tied the score at 26-26 at the end of one quarter. The Lakers led by as many as 8 points in the second quarter before Rose finished the first half with 2 late baskets.