Tonight is the night that the post-season begins for the Los Angeles Lakers. They have the opportunity to place themselves right back in the top spot of the Western Conference with a victory over the Hornets (techincally they would still be 1/2 game back, but with 2 more games to go after that, the ball is definately in their court, no pun intended).

The problem is, the game is just as big for New Orleans, and they aren't going to just give the game away. Lets not forget what Chris Paul did to the Lakers the last time the Hornets were in town. He carved the Lakers up for 21 assists and made Peja Stojacovic look like Larry Bird (Peja dropped 36 points on 10 of 13 from deep).

The Lakers perimeter defense has been nothing short of below average over the last month of the season. They have been torched by the likes of Beno Udrih and Steve Blake in recent weeks. Now, here comes Kobe's direct competition for league MVP. How will the Lakers respond to that challenge tonight? We'll have to wait and see...