Kings 97, Lakers 91

This is what Lakers coach Phil Jackson claimed he wanted -- a loss by his team so it will become more proficient at running the offense.

A loss to shake up his players, to slow their confidence, to get them in a better frame of mind. A loss to get them organized and to play harder and with a purpose in practice.

The loss came for the Lakers, 97-91 to the Sacramento Kings, but not before they clawed their way back from a 14-point, fourth-quarter deficit to get to within three points before 17,317 Friday night at Arco Arena.

The Lakers' nine-game winning streak was broken, leaving them to live with a 16-2 record to start the season.

"Phil has mentioned to us that we might have been enjoying ourselves a little bit too much lately in practice and in games," Rick Fox said. "Execution has kind of lagged by the wayside. When you're 16-1, it's hard to look for the negative. As a coach, he saw them and they showed up a little bit tonight . . . He told us a loss was going to happen."

Shaquille O'Neal (31 points, 16 rebounds, five assists) and Kobe Bryant (23 points) did their parts to try and keep the winning streak alive.

The rest of the Lakers came up short.

Derek Fisher had 13 points but was just 3 for 12 from the field. Fox was 2 for 8 and Lindsey Hunter 1 for 7. The Lakers shot 40 percent from the field and missed 15 of 19 shots from three-point range.

The Lakers couldn't shoot straight and paid the price.

"I think in the position that we're in, it's good to get this type of game," Fisher said. "If not, you start to feel like you're invincible and nobody can beat you. And this may carry on until January and February when we really start hitting the road. So, I think this is good to give us a good idea of where we are right now."

The Kings won because Peja Stojakovic (25 points), Mike Bibby (21 points, six assists) and Doug Christie (15 points, seven assists) all came up big.

Christie, who missed the Kings' last game with a lacerated right finger, made 6 of 8 free throws down the stretch to keep the Lakers from pulling off a victory.

Even with Chris Webber not playing for the 20th straight regular-season game because of a sprained left ankle, the Kings were too much for the Lakers.

"They are too good," Kings coach Rick Adelman said of the Lakers. "But our guys stayed with it in the fourth quarter."

The Lakers had one last rally, getting to within 94-91 on a runner by Bryant with 17.1 seconds left.

But Christie made two free throws and Stojakovic made one to send the Lakers to defeat.

The two-man show of O'Neal and Bryant had been getting plenty of assistance from their teammates during their run.

But the role players for the Lakers didn't show up Friday night.

"Out of 18 games, I'll take 16-2 anytime," O'Neal said. "We just have to battle back and start another streak. You can't win them all."