Home stretch havoc: In the wild West, 8 teams vie for 7 spots in playoffs News Sacramento kings

The Los Angeles Lakers have something in common with the Kings, Grizzlies and Clippers. Like the standings cellar-dwellars, Kobe Bryant and his crew are going to miss out on all the playoff positioning fun out West in the next couple of weeks. Though it's not a mathematical certainty quite yet, the Lakers have all but clinched the top seed for the Western Conference playoffs that kick off in the middle of April. Eight other teams, including the Utah Jazz , are scraping and scrapping for the remaining seven playoff seeds.

Everything from 2 through 8 is still up for grabs. With such interest, intrigue and indigestion going on, it's no wonder NBA Commissioner David Stern is loving life where down-to-the-wire-spot-swapping-scoreboard-watching happens. "We're having a most extraordinary, competitive season," Stern said this week, also referring to the battle for the final Eastern Conference spots. "I think it's a fans' delight." Of course, one fan's delight is another fan's dread, depending on what happens on any particular night when teams can bounce several spots up or down the standings. Must be nerve-wracking for the players, right? Actually, the Jazz are feeling more of an adrenaline rush than an apprehension flush. Though they'd obviously love to switch positions with the Lakers ? even if they had to give up all this excitement ? the Jazz are looking forward to continuing with the final playoff push. "I play so much games to be nervous right now. We're excited," said Jazz forward Andrei Kirilenko. "I think we're more excited because it's a good chance to play good teams right now and kind of get in that playoff intensity Basketball and to get used to it before the playoffs. So it's more exciting." Depending on how they do with one of the toughest remaining schedules in the league ahead of them ? yes, they're well aware of those six rough road games remaining ? the Jazz could end up second in the conference or they could find themselves left out of postseason participation. Those are the long-shot scenarios. Somewhere in the middle ? they hope in the top four of that middle area ? is much more likely. But as far as the Jazz are concerned, the playoffs have basically already begun, even if they have 11 regular-season games remaining, including tonight's rematch with the playoff-seeking Phoenix Suns. "I wish we were higher up and had a little bit more room to breathe," said Jazz point guard Deron Williams. "But we got ourselves into this situation and we've got to play our way out of it. "It's a good test," he added, "to see where we're at." Part of that will include exams in testing centers where they've previously failed ? on the road at all but one of the teams currently in a playoff spot, including at Portland, Denver, New Orleans, Dallas, San Antonio and Los Angeles. Utah, which only has a meager 14-21 road record, has two home games in a row before finishing with six of nine away from the Jazz-haven EnergySolutions Arena. "We're going to have to win on the road someway if we want to make the playoffs," Williams said. "So, hopefully we realize that and go out and execute that." Brevin Knight, the Jazz's backup point guard, kind of likes this season-ending scramble. It's gut-check time. It's exciting. It's enthralling sports drama. It's also, Knight added, "fun." "I think it just gives us that added incentive to go out and play every night," Knight said. "You know if you lose a couple in a row you're in danger, so it just puts you on edge. It brings out who you really are. It brings out your true competitive spirit, so I'm enjoying it." So, too, is his coach. "That is always one of the things you like to be involved in is playing those games and see if you can win them," Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said. "To me that's the biggest thing ? usually in order to have a chance to win, you've got to play together." The thing that Knight likes about the Jazz's schedule is that they don't necessarily have to watch the scoreboard to see how the other teams in the mix are doing ? in many cases, they'll be playing them. "We've just got to go out and win games. That's pretty much what we worry about it," he said. "It's kind of in our hands. If we win we move up. If we don't win we'll move down." And if that doesn't motivate them, who knows what will. "I think the motivation," Jazz general manager Kevin O'Connor added, "(is) that it is a pennant race, or it is a wild-card race or it is a Northwest Division race." But O'Connor believes trying to move up ? and not worrying about who might catch you from behind or what others are doing ? should be the main focus. That's why he doesn't ? or tries not to ? do much scoreboard watching. "If you start to play that game of what-ifs," he said, "you wind up disappointed at night that this team won or that team won." They can only worry about what they control: winning their own games, even the ones without the Jazz dancers and Bear. "Right now, it's all in our hands," Kirilenko said. "We should play hard and get used to that style of Basketball to compete every night and be on the highest level with our game." Kinda like the Lakers ? and not so much like the Kings, Grizzlies and Clippers. E-MAIL: jody@desnews.com