Anyone who has paid the slightest attention to the 2008-09 Lakers knows they generally are no better than they have to be. There is a lack of mental toughness in this crew, Kobe Bryant aside, and if they believe that an assignment ahead of them can be accomplished despite some coasting … well, they’re going to coast.

Which brings us to Game 4 today of the Lakers’ series with the Houston Rockets.

Yao Ming is out. For the rest of the season. Broken bone in his foot. So the Rockets should be easy pickings, right?

Well, the Lakers almost certainly will believe that, and that could mean unnecessary trouble. And here’s why.

Removing Yao actually simplifies the Rockets’ approach to the game.

They have been torn by this back-and-forth about what they are about. Are they an up-tempo team, with an emphasis on quickness and speed? Or are they running a half-court, throw-it-to-the-big-guy offense centered around their 7-foot-6 center?

Well, now that is resolved. These are the Runnin’ Rockets. They are small, without even the geriatric Dikembe Mutombo to stick in there at center. They will give serious minutes to only one guy taller than 6-5. Which could, in fact, make them dangerous.

The Lakers Who Aren’t Kobe, may not be bright enough to figure this out. They will look at Yao’s absence and figure, “this is cake.” When it certainly is not an automatic concept.

Reflect back on a stretch during Game 2 of this series.

With Yao in foul trouble, Houston began the second quarter with these five guys on the floor: Kyle Lowry, Aaron Brooks, Von Wafer, Chuck Hayes and Carl Landry. That is, two 6-footer, a couple of 6-5 guys and the 6-9 Landry.

And that quintet ran the Lakers ragged, outscoring them 12-4 in a four-minute span. Yes, the Lakers had Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic, Shannon Brown, Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum out there … but the Lakers couldn’t keep up.

Just sayin’. The Rockets will run and gun today. They have nothing to lose, and everyone knows it. And that sort of desperation without the pressure can make a team dangerous, particularly if a home crowd is keen and eager to get behind their plucky little underdogs.

This is not a guaranteed victory. Not at all. The Rockets’ lineup means the Lakers’ height advantage is almost canceled out becuse Bynum can’t keep up in a game of this pace, and it means more minutes for the Lakers’ backup guards, Sasha, Farmar, Brown … none of whom have covered themselves with glory.

The Lakers need to pay attention. If they are a serious, championship-caliber team, they will come out and crush the Rockets’ hopes immediately, getting up by 10-15 in the first quarter and keeping their feet on the Rockets’ throats.

But we have about six months of evidence that this Lakers team can’t or won’t do that.

This could be a close game. Absolutely. And the Lakers do not want a long series, not with Denver about to finish a sweep in the other half of the West semis. The Lakers want this to be done in five. Not six or, ugh, seven.