Just before he spoke, Lakers forward Pau Gasol turned his head.
He had just rambled a bit on why the Lakers don't need to make a roster change before letting out the Freudian slip that "we need something." So when I pressed him on that question, Gasol couldn't help but turn away for 14 seconds and gather his thoughts.
"We just need to play better," Gasol said. "We don't need a particular player. As a team and a player, your mind-set is to work with what you have. We have enough talent here to be able to play better and more consistent."
But the Lakers' performances this season entering Tuesday's game against the Atlanta Hawks at Staples Center show otherwise. They went 3-3 on a trip that featured an identity Andrew Bynum described as "discombobulated." Any sliver of progress, such as closing out wins at Denver and Boston, quickly negated with ugly performances at Utah and New York, respectively. The Lakers rank 21st in scoring (92.7 points), 15th in points per 100 possessions (103.1) and 14th in shooting (44.7%). The added practice time given to them did little to nothing