Recap: Jazz vs. Lakers (71-96) – Third's a Charmer

With the previous 2 games resembling a team that has no place in the playoffs, the Lakers (1-2) took refuge at home and defeated the Utah Jazz (0-1) for their first win of the new season. They came out with better focus defensively and made sure their offense ran from the post. No one took advantage of that more than Pau Gasol, who was at his most aggressive self opting to score before he even surveys the floor for open teammates. On defense, he was going after layups and provided a presence usually reserved for Andrew Bynum resulting in 5 block shots. Gasol took second highest-scorer with 22 points (10 from the free-throw line) and 9 rebounds.As for his partner in crime, Kobe Bryant settled down quite a bit in terms of shot selections and simply taking what the defense gives him. That also included allowing Gasol and the rest of the team get involved on offense early. In fact, Bryant only took a 3-pointer in the opening quarter before making 8 of 17 field goals for the game-high 26...