Lakers seeking return to glory

PE.com: EL SEGUNDO - The journey begins tonight.

Where it takes the Lakers will be decided during the next 82 regular-season games.

Will the journey be completed with the Lakers reaching the playoffs? Or will the journey take the Lakers back into the lottery for a second straight season?

The Lakers start on their path to that unknown destination tonight in Denver.

“I really have zero expectations,” Lakers All-Star guard Kobe Bryant said. “I don’t know what to expect going into this season, outside of us just playing hard on a nightly basis and playing the game the right way. Then, we go from there.”

Phil Jackson is back to lead the Lakers.

Jackson is hoping to direct the Lakers back to the glory days like he did when he helped the Lakers win three straight NBA championships.

After a year off, Jackson takes over a Lakers team that went 34-48 last season and missed the playoffs for the first time in 11 years. The Lakers finished last in the Pacific Division.

His teams have never missed the postseason during his 14 years as an NBA coach, nine with the Chicago Bulls, five with the Lakers.

He has won nine NBA championships as a coach, tied with legendary Boston Celtics coach Red Auerbach for the most in league history.

“So, if we ride his (Jackson’s) coattail, the percentages look good for us to be a successful team this year,” Lamar Odom said. “I think most teams base their success on making the playoffs. Once you make the playoffs, you give yourself a chance to win a championship. That’s all you can ask for.”

The Lakers are one of the youngest teams in the NBA, with an average age of 25.1.

They have just three players left from the championship years — Bryant, Devean George and Slava Medvedenko — and they have seven new players.

Lamar Odom will be directing the Lakers offense as a small forward this year after playing power forward last season.

The Lakers play five of their first seven games on the road, a place they didn’t fare too well last season, going 12-29.

“We don’t know what we’re going to be like a month from now,” Jackson said. “(We don’t know) whether we’re going to be at .500, whether it’ll be under, whether it’ll be over and significantly how much we have to improve to play with the rest of the competition.”

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