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In today’s edition of the NBA At 2: Andrew Bynum powering the Lakers…Kendrick Perkins fits in Oklahoma City…Trevor Ariza believes Hornets will fight…Greg Oden still a long ways away from return…NBA Chats.

Bill Ingram is traveling and will be back Thursday.

Bynum Behind Lakers Resurgence: The Los Angeles Lakers struggled going into the NBA All-Star break. Stories were rampant about their imminent implosion and their status as the team to beat had all but disappeared. Then the break came. The team relaxed, regrouped, and came out of the break on fire. They have won 10 of 11 games since, running their record to 48-20, which leaves them just percentage points behind the Dallas Mavericks for second place in the Western Conference.

So what happened? Derek Fisher tells J.A. Adande of ESPN center Andrew Bynum happened.

"Since the All-Star break, people are trying to ask why we’ve been so much better, and I’ll start with him," Fisher said.

In those 11 games Bynum has posted double-digit rebounds nine times (seven times 15 or more) and double-digit scoring seven times. Seven times he blocked two or more shots. His averages? 11.9 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 2.63 blocked shots on 62% shooting from the field.

"I have a role," Bynum said. "And it’s easily identifiable. I can see it. That’s what the coaches want from me, and that’s what I’m going to try and do.

"It’s really because I’ve realized that it’s a way to get into the game without dominating the ball on offense. We have scorers on this team. It’s just a way to keep your energy level high."

Bynum is recognizing the role the Lakers have available to him and filling it exactly how Coach Phil Jackson wants him to fill it. The Lakers have become that much more dangerous, much to the dismay of their Western Conference rivals.

Perkins Shows Why OKC Acquired Him: Kendrick Perkins made his debut with the Oklahoma City Thunder last night, starting at center and scoring six points to go with nine rebounds and two assists in 20 minutes. The most important part? The 116-89 throttling they handed the Washington Wizards. Sure, it was just the Wizards, but Perkins’ new teammates sounded pretty impressed.

“It’s just one game,” forward Nick Collison told Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman. “But I think he’s really going to help us. He looked really good tonight.”

“We didn’t have to leave our men on the wings to go help him in the post on the defensive end,” said Durant. “We could stay home on 3-point shooters. That’s one thing we had a problem with, (opponent) 3-point shooting. He made it easier for us by just holding his man up and forcing them into Serge (Ibaka) for the blocks. He’s a strong force for us down there on the defensive end.”

This is the exact reason the Thunder chose to acquire Perkins, and then sign him to a contract extension before he even played a single game for them. For a while it’s been clear what Oklahoma City lacked was a beast in the middle to play physical defense, rebound, and to lead the defense. That last point may be the most important of all, and one Perkins excels at doing.

By swapping out Nenad Krstic and Jeff Green for Perkins, Nazr Mohammed, and a larger role for Serge Ibaka the Thunder have a big man rotation up to par with their outstanding outside-in game starring Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and Daequan Cook.

When a team leading their division and in the top half of the conference makes an adjustment midseason – and so far, a smooth adjustment at that – to solve their biggest holes, it absolutely makes the playoffs more interesting.

Did the Thunder solve their needs? Do they still have holes? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

Hornets Still Focused: After last night’s loss to the Denver Nuggets the New Orleans Hornets sit a 39-30 on the season, sixth place in the Western Conference, two games behind Denver and only a half-game in front of the Portland Trail Blazers. With just 13 games left in the season and despite going just 5-5 in their last 10 games, the team remains focused.

“We gotta be scrappy and do everything we can because we need as many wins as we can,” said forward Trevor Ariza.

{AUTHOR_BOX}They may have to be scrappy, but do they have what it takes to actually be scrappy? Are they tough enough?

“I think so,” said Ariza. “We’ve got a lot of players that are willing to sacrifice – and they have [sacrificed] their own individual goals to achieve the team goal. That’s to make the playoffs and get as far as we can.

“We are all fighters, we are all competitors. We love to compete and we love to play basketball. We knew what we had before we started.”

Chris Paul, since returning from a concussion, has played better of late. After missing two games with the injury, Paul has averaged 30.0 points, 12.5 assists, 6.0 steals, and shot 59% from the field.

“I’ve seen a lot more fire. He’s a lot more focused and he’s hungry, ready to make this push just like the rest of us.”

They have 13 games left in the season: eight at home, five on the road, and seven against teams currently in the playoffs. Of the other six, they play Phoenix three times, Utah twice, and Houston. It’s not an easy run by any stretch, but Ariza vowed his team is ready.

“Always, that’s why we’re here.”

The Greg Oden Update: News about Portland Trail Blazers center Greg Oden, who underwent microfracture surgery on his left knee in November, has been scarce. That’s to be expected, since it’s a procedure involving a long recovery time. Still, from time to time, people do ask about the progress.

Ask and ye shall receive.

Oden did a video update on Portland’s website the other day and indicated he is nowhere near a return to the court. At four months after surgery, that’s to be expected.

"I’m nowhere near there," Oden said. "I mean I just started doing two-leg squats like two weeks ago. I’ve got like a month and a half of just doing that. Putting weight on one leg, that’s all I can really do right now."

All that is going on right now is rehab.

“I can do cardio here, on the bike, on the elliptical, stuff that’s not a lot of weight bearing. And then I lift. That’s basically what my day consists of: rehab, cardio, lift, and pool at the end of the day."

Ideally Oden would be ready for training camp in the fall. However, that may not happen, even if there is no lockout and training camps begin at the normal time the end of September. Oden is also a (likely restricted) free agent after a new CBA is agreed upon (July or later). The Blazers have indicated in the past they will make the $7.8 million Qualifying Offer by the end of June.

NBA Chats: Eric Pincus, based in Los Angeles, takes your questions today at 4pm Eastern. Stephen Litel, based in Minnesota, takes your questions at 8pm Eastern Time.  All the upcoming chats can be seen here and all the chat wraps are here.