With the Los Angeles Lakers falling further out of playoff contention, the team's pursuit of free agent Carmelo Anthony has reportedly hit the brakes. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Monday morning that the team and Anthony "are pausing talks" about a potential contract unless the Lakers "make a turn back toward pursuit" of a spot in the Western Conference playoffs. As of Monday morning, the LeBron James-led Lakers are in 10th place in the West, 4.5 games behind the San Antonio Spurs for the No. 8 spot in the standings.