EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — In Lamar Odom’s head, there really isn’t anything different.
He still rebounds. He still defends. He still scores when he wants to.
But the numbers say something slightly different. They say that when Pau Gasol arrived in Los Angeles in February, Odom’s effectiveness with the Lakers increased. He rebounded just a little bit better. He got more manageable matchups on defense. His scoring bumped up.
“I see he’s motivated,” Gasol said Tuesday after the Lakers’ practice. “He goes into games with a great attitude and intensity. He’s very active with the ball and without the ball.”
Odom, however, is the least talked-about important piece to the Lakers’ puzzle. There’s Kobe Bryant, the star who takes most of the shots, makes most of the critical plays and gets most of the praise. Then there’s Gasol, who assumed the second-largest productivity role on the team from the post position.
Then there’s Odom. He was third among the Lakers in scoring at 14.2 points per game and was first in rebounds at 10.6. But he brushes off any before-and-after comparisons.
“I kept trying to make plays, facilitate and do what I normally do,” Odom said. “When you have a guy of (Gasol’s) capability, an all-star caliber player, the whole team got better.”
Through Feb. 1, the day the Lakers traded for Gasol, Odom was averaging 13.5 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists, while shooting 46 percent from the field. After Gasol’s arrival, Odom averaged 15.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists and shot 59 percent from the field.
Odom was particularly a thorn in the Nuggets’ side Sunday during the Lakers’ 128-114 victory in Game 1 of the playoff series, contributing 17 points, 14 rebounds and six assists.
This despite seeing a reduction in shots.
“Yeah,” Odom said. “I’m probably even shooting less, because (Gasol’s) such a dominant force on the inside. But because he’s such a great passer, I get layups and more free throws than I probably ever got in my career.”
Odom acknowledged that with the Nuggets’ defensive adjustments for Game 2 tonight, he might be forced to shoot more. But Lakers coach Phil Jackson said the 6-foot-10 forward is content with his supporting role.
“I don’t think Lamar wants any more shots,” Jackson said. “I think Lamar is perfectly comfortable taking eight, 10, maybe 12 shots in a ballgame. I don’t think he feels he needs to shoot the ball. When he does take (shots) he stays within the context of what he likes to do.”
Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com
