7 or 8? What's your pleasure?
Tonight, Golden State plays Dallas in a game that could affect the Lakers' playoff seeding. Should the Warriors come out on top this evening (completing a improbable-but-true sweeping of the Mavs), a Wednesday win against Portland combined with a Laker loss to Sacramento means the Bay Area playoff drought will not only end, but the Lakers will go from a 7 seed and a series against Phoenix to an 8 seed showdown with Dallas. The Lakers obviously control their own destiny (win tomorrow and it's a moot point), but if you could control destinies, how would you prefer the dust settle? A rumble with Phoenix or Dallas?
Let me preface this question by stating, to be blunt, I don't think the Lakers can hang with either team. I'll root my head off for it to happen, but I'm just being honest. Yes, last year's team was a consensus underdog and ended up pushing Phoenix to 7 games. But that team also rolled into the postseason. Lamar Odom, Kwame Brown and Luke Walton caught a near simultaneous fire, creating with Kobe the groove necessary to make this team better than the sum of its parts. The Lakers crossed the 2007 finish line running on fumes. Injuries killed their chances of creating any flow or cohesion, especially on the defensive end. Kwame, Walton, LO and Mo Evans are playing at considerably less than 100%. Smush Parker lost his starting gig 80 games into an 82 game season (Try to remember the last time that happened.). Vlad Radmanovic, their big free agent signing, is a non-factor. And frankly, Kobe looks pretty tired. He's had to do a lot of heavy lifting with players in and out of the lineup and the playoffs at stake. I think it's catching up with him.
None of this bodes particularly well heading into the weekend, which is why I think of this question as a big time "relatively speaking" thing. Kind of like, "Which would I rather eat? A tin can or a glass bottle?" Neither will sit well, but you gotta pick a poison. I don't know if it's because cartoons have convinced me that goats eat tin cans and go on to live long and healthy lives, or because I remain permanently scarred by an episode of "Oz" where Adebisi and Ryan O'Reilly killed an Italian gang leader by putting a daily dose of ground glass in his food, eventually inducing internal bleeding. But in any event, I think of tin cans as "better eating." In my mind, Dallas represents that can.
The way I view the Lakers, their collective weaknesses hurt them considerably more than their collective strengths help. Therefore, my #1 criteria would be to pick an opponent that exposes fewer weaknesses, and if possible, the mack daddy of them all (as opposed to weighing matchups in the Lakers' favor and going from there). So what is the Lakers' #1 problem? Defense. And specifically, transition defense. It's a non-existent and often crippling weakness, so I think it behooves the Lakers greatly not to play a running team. Dallas runs considerably less than Phoenix. I still think Dallas can pick apart the Lakers in a half court set (or something between that and a sprint), but again, this is about what I think gives the Lakers a better, if still slim, shot. That relative lack of running will also make things easier on the injured guys, especially Kwame, who'll only have two games under his belt before the postseason starts. Obviously, the matchups aren't great (Dirk Nowitzki's always a nightmare, and the Lakers don't really have anyone for Josh Howard, other than maybe Kobe), but the Phoenix personnel don't exactly scream "easy covers." Plus, in a close game, I consider Steve Nash much scarier than Dirk. I can remember quite a few occasions where the Big German missed a big shot down the stretch, even free throws (which says a lot, considering he's a 90% guy). I recall few, if any, times the Big Canadien crapped out in the clutch. Honestly, I just think Nash is mentally tougher than Dirk (for that matter, I also think the Suns are a scrappier bunch than the Mavs). And despite Kobe arguably having no equal in a "clutchness mano y' mano," I'd still rather square him off against the lesser competitor.
In the meantime, the Lakers may actually match up to better against Phoenix, at least player to player. LO has given Shawn Marion fits at times and Kwame can actually put a body on Amare Stoudemire. Unfortunately, with Kwame just coming back, I don't know how effectively he'll be able to do it over the course of a series. And it still comes back to the frenetic pace and game plan that hurts the Lakers. In my mind, Phoenix's constantly pushed tempo more than offsets any individual matchups potentially working in L.A.'s favor. The Denver Nuggets are basically the "Phoenix-lite" of running teams (and play even worse D), and the Lakers couldn't hang with them. I don't see it playing out better against the actual Suns. Phoenix becames, as a team, the least favorable matchup, and one that I think causes more problems than any individual matchup issues with Dallas.
That all being said, I firmly believe the need to win against Sacto supercedes any opponent preference. It's always best to go into the postseason with momentum and the Lakers will take any scraps they can get. As always, I'm rooting for a win. And like I said, this entire analysis is to a large degree much ado about nothing, since I don't picture either series a purple and gold victory. But if you're asking which one strikes me as the ever-so slightly bigger upset candidate, I'll shrug and say Dallas.
But you may not agree. And will probably tell me why.
AK
AK, BK, and all the regular bloggers
I was just watching the NBA Coast To Coast on ESPN and they were talking about a player from the Indiana pacers stated Jermaine Oneal wants to be a Laker and plans to have a sit down with management to determine his future in Indiana. My question is what would we have to give up 2 get Jermaine Oneal?
Posted by: Paul Lee | April 17, 2007 at 06:59 PM
Paul Lee,
It would depend on how Indiana wants to proceed from here (which will be interesting, considering they'd be best served blowing things up and starting over, except they have a bunch of expensive players in long term contracts). But spitballing, I'd say it'll likely require Bynum as bait, then either LO or Kwame for the biggest salary to match Jermaine's and maybe someone like Cook to balance the numbers. There might also be other players mixed in from both sides, depending on if Indy says they'll give up O'Neal if L.A. takes on another of their big contracts. It could also require a third team.
AK
Posted by: Andrew Kamenetzky | April 17, 2007 at 07:07 PM
Ak
I would prefer the suns and not because of match ups. I do not believe we can beat the Suns, Dallas and the Spurs back to back to back. And Nelson seems to know how to beat his old team. A Golden State upset would eliminate one elite team that we would have to deal with. If we got past the Suns then GS would play the Spurs and we would get either Houston or Utah, and we can match up with either, then a show down with the Spurs? We can match up with them as well. So go Dallas! Beat the warriors tonight then lose in 6 in the playoffs!!
Posted by: michael h | April 17, 2007 at 07:09 PM
Bynum and LO seems like a lot
LO, Vlad and Cooke I do pretty easily...Kwame and LO I struggle with slightly.
Its a real shame we havent been able to get the measure of the players or the team this season.
Posted by: Kiwi | April 17, 2007 at 07:19 PM
Paul Lee,
I've got an idea. Why don't we relay this news to KG to JO wants to be a Laker. There will be a competition between KG and JO, they know we can only get one. What do you think of that? It's possible nothing will happen because Cupcake can only offer MLE and BAE.
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | April 17, 2007 at 07:21 PM
Kiwi,
I can't picture Indy ever going for it without Bynum. Especially not just LO, Vlad and Cook. Think about it from the Pacer perspective. Jermaine O'Neal is better than LO and Cook and Vlad (who's coming off a career worst season) are extremely similar role players. And all three bring no cap relief. That's a pretty lopsided deal, with little incentive for Indiana.
AK
Posted by: Andrew Kamenetzky | April 17, 2007 at 07:23 PM
"Oh Me Oh My!"
Is this guy broadcasting the Clippers game for real?
Sounds like Judy Garland after a sex change operation.
Posted by: J. Walter Weatherman | April 17, 2007 at 07:29 PM
AK:
I live in NorCal and the Warriors definitely want to play the Mavs rather than the Suns, to the extent that Nelly will probably lay down against Portland tomorrow night if they beat the Mavs tonight. Unbelievably, the Warriors are 3-0 against the Mavs this season. Part of it is due to their running style and part to Nelly knowing his old team and assistant coach too well. No way does Nelly want to meet the Suns in the first round or be in the same bracket. They play the same styles and are a much tougher matchup for the Warriors.
The playoff brackets in the West portend a playoffs for the ages. The top bracket has the Warriors against the Mavs, with the Warriors so far owning the Mavs 3-0 in the regular season, and the Jazz against the Rockets. It is not impossible that the Warriors could take out the Mavs in the first round and lost to the Rockets who will likely put down the Jazz. Unfortunately, I don’t think they will be able to beat the Rockets, who I think will be the surprise winner in the upper bracket.
Then there is the lower bracket with the Suns versus the Lakers and the Spurs versus the red hot Nuggets. Just as the Lakers think they can upset the Suns, the Nuggets are really confident that they can take out the Spurs. Could you say Lakers and Nuggets in the second round game, which would mean the Lakers would head to conference finals to play the Rockets after beating the Nuggets in a high octane seven-game series? It could possibly happen, After all, we know now pigs can fly. lol.
The finale, of course, would be the Lakers taking the Rockets in a seven-game series for the ages and then sweeping the Heat in four games to win the NBA championship. Anyway, that’s my latest hope-filled prediction for the Lakers to avoid the Mavs and Spurs, put their foot up Shaq’s big ass, and win it all for Kobe. Hey, guess I am no longer GHE. lol. Thank God! Hope Andrew didn’t tear up his $20 betting slip on the Lakers.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | April 17, 2007 at 07:34 PM
Have you also noticed these Laker players are inconsistent when it comes to dealing with their HAIR? MO, LO, Mckie prefers no hair & shinny eggheads; Kobe, Luke & drew like the 5mm. in ht., Kwame, Ronny and Vlad are lazy to visit a barber. The story of their games this year is reflected from the management of their hair which is .500 either too much and none at all.
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | April 17, 2007 at 07:35 PM
Every game this season (and last season) the Lakers have demonstrated an ability to slow the Phoenix game down if they read the lines just like Phil has scripted them. Once Phoenix is slowed anything can happen. With Dallas there isn't much that can happen besides 4 individuals on the Dallas team outplaying 4 individuals on the Lakers team to an extent cumulatively greater than Kobe can compensate for. AK has committed a grave folly in choosing the Mavs to be the Lakers first-round opponent.
Posted by: Guity | April 17, 2007 at 07:35 PM
JO, LO, and Kobe would be a dream team. But the cost to support that dream would be one large pot o' gold. I just can't see Dr. Buss paying that kind of lux tax. I wish he would, but I'm not so sure.
Posted by: Fatty | April 17, 2007 at 07:41 PM
AK:
Here are the Likely NBA Playoff Brackets:
UPPER BRACKET:
Mavs vs. Warriors
Jazz vs. Rockets
LOWER BRACKET:
Spurs vs. Nuggets
Lakers vs. Suns
The Lakers want to be the 7th seed and the Warriors want to be the 8th seed. The best shot the Lakers have to pull off an upset would be against the Suns and the same could be said about the Warriors with respect to the Mavs. A double upset would throw the west wide open by taking down the #1 and #2 seeds.
Throw in the realistic chance that the red hot Nuggets could also pull an upset and take out the #3 Spurs and it becomes easier to see how the Lakers could end up winning the West without having to go through the Mavs or the Spurs. How about that for GHF? Am I back or what?
What is really fascinating about the brackets is that is not impossible to see the Rockets advancing to the NBA Finals without having to face the Mavs, Suns, or Spurs. For sure, this is going to be one kick ass Western Conference Playoffs. I really don’t think the Lakers could ask for a better seeding than this. If we can beat the Suns, we may find the road to the Finals wide open. Now if we can just bring our A-game…
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | April 17, 2007 at 07:47 PM
AK
I totally agree LO,Vlad Cooke isnt enough...Im all for making a move and Im all for trading Bynum...but LO/Kwame or LO/Bynum would be with a heavy heart....
1) Ive always felt JO is slightly overated.For me hes one of those guys that as good as I hear he is whenever I watch him he always seems to play badly...in my mind I know he must have good games...lots of them but I nevr seem to see them.I wonder how much better off we would really be trading LO and Kwame...yet trading LO and Bynum seems so steep Id have to think about it.
2) Although Im more or less alone here... Im not convinced a Bynum trade with a collection of laker contracts (minus LO and Kwame) for a cheaper player might not improve us more if we found the right deal.
On the whole though...its tough not to take JO and gets harder the more the idea sinks in.
Posted by: Kiwi | April 17, 2007 at 07:52 PM
Fatty...glowing with pride I accept my fatty award...I would like to thank the lakers as without them there would be nothing to write about,Ak and BK for the blog as without them there would be nothing to write on,all fellow bloggers as without them there would be none to write to,without my teachers I couldnt write at all so I suppose I better thank them.
As coincidence would have it I have had a few tonight which explains my harsh and somewhat pointless assassination of LAguy or whoever he was on the the other thread.
I close with a small poem to express my gratitude
There are tears in the beer glass
As I clutch my fatty made of brass...
...hang on a second...
um...GO LAKERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: Kiwi | April 17, 2007 at 07:57 PM
Yeah, i like tom's scenario. and i also think PHX is the team we have a better chance of beating. It seems plausible, but it would be ridiculous if we made it through the west without playing dallas or san antonio. but i have my finals tix. i am ready.
Posted by: Gabe | April 17, 2007 at 08:06 PM
Fire Kupchak ASAP
PS: Roll out the red carpet, and hand the keys back over to Jerry West
Posted by: tomwillis | April 17, 2007 at 08:07 PM
G.H.F. Laker Tom,
Your scenario makes sense to me.
This team has forgotten how to win, that's what concerns me. But the last 3 minutes of the Seattle game we did something I haven't seen in awhile. With the pressure on, the Lakers turned up the Defensive pressure and took control of the game.
Is that what we will see against the Suns? If it is, we will challenge them like last year. If not, I share AK's realistic pessimism.
Ya gotta believe.
G.H.F. Fatty
Posted by: Fatty | April 17, 2007 at 08:12 PM
I've always said as long as we're playing up to our capabilities...if not rolling, it doesn't matter who we play. That said, I don't think you can say that of us, or of our situation right now. So in all honesty, I'll say The Suns. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying we can take them, I'm also not saying we have no chance (I don't know what I'm saying lol)...but I think just "logically" you're always gonna have a chance against a team that doesn't play defense (or plays less defense). Which is not to say we do...we DON'T. But the question was opponents.
I think with Dallas, even though you can argue that Kobe owns them...they are a team that will get on you in defense, and are like AK said, less likely to run thereby giving you less chance to get back (unlike the Suns theoretically)...so in a sense their offense is helping their defense. The same cannot be said about the Suns. At least theoretically. Regardless of who you play, even with a firepower like the Suns...running always gives the opposition a chance (more of a chance) to get back. Now while that may mean getting hot, and playing some defense yourself, it doesn't erase the fact that there is still that aspect of their game...the game just goes too fast, there's always time to get back, to get going, to take control. And I think we have shown that more than anything else, we come to play against them...that doesn't necessarily lead to wins, but we come to play.
That said, Phoenix does have an underrated defense. They do get on you, especially dangerous with our propensity for mental collapse and lapse in execution...but I think their defense is nowhere near the Mavs. Hence the edge going to the Suns.
It's all about the defense lol.
Posted by: Faith | April 17, 2007 at 08:14 PM
I like JO, but I, too, think he overated. Do you remember the game when Kwame Brown scored 17 points on him? The guy is too light.
You know, when we played the Nuggets in Staples center on April 3 the FSN announcers had the Nuggets announcer on the broadcast. FSN announcers asked him how he saw the Nuggets now that they had Anthony and Iverson playing together. The announcer said that everyone in Denver knew what the Nuggets problem is. Penetration. He said that they were giving up too many easy lay-ups. Now that was interesting because their center is Marcus Camby who is one of the league leaders in rebounds and is the league leader in blocked shots. And now there are rumors that Camby is expendable. That sounds strange.
Anyway...I'm under the impression that grabbing rebounds and blocking shots doesn't neccessarly mean good defense. I mean if we look at Kwame Brown we see that his rebounding numbers aren't too high. And we see he doesn't really block shots. But with his big body, speed, and strength he seems to be able to clog the lane. Now it's obvious that clogging the lane doesn't mean a lot of rebounds or blocked shots.
I think JO falls into the catergory of Camby. He grabs rebounds, blocks shots but can't clog the lane.
mike
Posted by: Michael Teniente | April 17, 2007 at 08:27 PM
AK,
I would rather us face PHX, just for the fact that it is a re-match of last
years series and i really really really really want us to upset them...
lol
Dude, I still have nightmares of Tim Thomas hitting that 3 pointer
to tie up game 6... if we only could have secured that rebound !!!!
I want us to take out PHX...
Ray
Posted by: Ray B. | April 17, 2007 at 08:30 PM
JO averaged 20 and 10 this year despite injuries. That is better than anyone else in the Laker frontcourt. If Lamar and Kwame make the deal I am for it. It doesn't sound like the management is going to part with Drew so I think we can forget him being part of any trade package. Bynum with more playoff experience and another offseason of growth and workouts with Kareem, add JO in the mix, and Luke finishing off the frontcourt. Kobe and maybe Gerald Wallace in the backcourt (probably pipe dreams). If not Farmar and Kobe. I like that starting 5.
Posted by: PhxLkrFan | April 17, 2007 at 08:31 PM
AK,
I think so much depends on Mihm's availability next year. Do you have a good feel as to whether or not he is going to be fully recovered? If so, that gives the team much more flexibility. (Assuming they re-sign him, of course.)
Posted by: exhelodrvr | April 17, 2007 at 08:31 PM
Lakers Looking Good for 7th seed...
Warriors are killing Dallas 48-26 with 2 minutes left in the first half. The Warriors are going to go into their first round matchup with the Mavs owning a 4-0 season record against them. How sweet. Nelly will throw in the towel tomorrow night to make sure the Warriors get the 8th seed and not the 7th. Bring on the Suns.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | April 17, 2007 at 08:36 PM
Does Kobe want another O Neill?
The most sensible thing I've heard on the subject was the AK/BK notion that it's either Kobe or Bynum but not both. Trade Kobe while he's worth everything and the bag of chips or deal Andrew for someone on Kobe's schedule. I've voted for the latter since I saw Andrew in the summer league last year and I'd vote KG over JO but few GMs will deal within their own conference. It would be great to have LO at the 3 with Kobe and KG but without a low number 1 pick and salaries to match, that's a pipe dream.
Posted by: Vman | April 17, 2007 at 08:37 PM
If I was Kwame's shooting coach I would make him practice the way that Nash shoots his freethrows. He's at the line and shadow shoots the ball twice before actually shooting it. But he does it with focus. Kwame just needs to prepare his shooting arms for the free throws by shadow shooting twice (with rythm, which takes some Energy)then actually shooting the freethrow. Don't rush your freethrows Kwame.
Posted by: johnny | April 17, 2007 at 08:39 PM
IT LOOKS LIKE THE MAVS ARE ROLLING OVER TO GOLDEN STATE,MAYBE THEY WANT TO PLAY THE LAKERS?.........IN THERE MINDS THE LAKERS ARE EASY FODDER.
Posted by: FAKERS | April 17, 2007 at 08:47 PM
I guess the Lakers have to win tomorrow to play the Suns. That's the way it goes.
Posted by: coco | April 17, 2007 at 08:57 PM
You mean if we succeed in doing what we haven't been able to do with a healthy roster let alone an end of the year banged up one, the road to the finals is wide open? That's great, Laker Tom.
The more we blog the deeper into the playoffs this team goes. By the time the they actually jump it up, we'll be talkin' back to back championships with stats to prove it. Go Lakers
Posted by: Vman | April 17, 2007 at 09:01 PM
Ex,
According to Mihm, ever since the most recent surgery (that basically put him out for the season), his rehab has progressed nicely. Obviously, there's much work to be done before anyone knows how well he's recovered, but he seems optimistic.
As for the Lakers resigning him, I get the sense there is interest. Obviously, a lot depends on how the ankle heals up, but the Lakers will have little to no cap room to make moves. Thus, the ability to use Bird rights to sign a 7 footer with offensive skills at what'll likely end up below market value (because he hasn't played in so long) is probably intruiging.
AK
Posted by: Andrew Kamenetzky | April 17, 2007 at 09:01 PM
Dallars don't run that much, so it's a better matchup considering our lack of transition defense. Alos Kwamw can't make layups against the Suns this season.
Posted by: gdchild | April 17, 2007 at 09:04 PM
Vman,
why do AK/BK get all the credit for suggesting
trade Bynum or trade Kobe!!!
Hey I deserve props too for bringing this up, since AK was responding to my post!!!....
I guess I am just Kobe sitting under the the MJ cloud of AK/BK!
Posted by: Korey | April 17, 2007 at 09:13 PM
Problem with getting O'Neil is that Kupchack will be dealing with Larry Bird. Will a true blue (er..green) Celtic do this deal if he thinks it will help out the hated Lakers?
Posted by: The Waterboy | April 17, 2007 at 09:15 PM
Also to repeat what I've said for the last week,
the Lakers cant trade LO and Bynum in the same deal.
It's one or the other and I'd rather see Bynum go since L.O. is the much more mature player and he is still a young player (28!!!).
KB+LO+JO/KG is a contending team no matter what the spare parts...
Posted by: Korey | April 17, 2007 at 09:17 PM
Haha, Korey.
It's okay, you'll get yours...a "Fatty" in the future lol.
Posted by: Faith | April 17, 2007 at 09:19 PM
Laker Tom,
If the warriors lose to Portland tomorrow and the Clippers win against the Hornets, then they will be tied 41-41, by virtue of the fact that the Clippers have better records against them in the west the warriors will not make playoffs. Please, Golden state will not throw the game away tomorrow because if they do and Clippers win, they are out.
Posted by: AA LOS | April 17, 2007 at 09:36 PM
I just had a strange thought looking at the way the seeds could be falling. I have said we are capable of pulling an upset over one elite team, just not 3 in a row. Now say we get our upset against the suns (we should have confidence against them), unlkely but not impossible. Golden State seems to own dallas this year and they pull an upset. And Denver has been hot and they have the athleticim that give the spurs fits and they pull it off. Could you imagine a 2nd round of say the rockets vs golden state and Denver vs the Lakers. I mean again, highly unlikely but each of the elites seem to be playing the lower seed with the best chance of beating them. Wow what would stern think if his 3 powerhouses all lost out in the 1st round? Cool to think about .
Posted by: michael h | April 17, 2007 at 09:37 PM
Korey,
My bad, I didn't know there'd be an exam haha. In that particular post I was struck by the image of AK/BK driving away from the El Segundo facility talkin' Bynum trade options instead of chicks. That's like blog overtime. I should have remembered it was your post 'cause I normally remember the guys I agree with.
Does this mean that Kobe would find it as hard to defer to KG as you do to the Kamenetsky brothers? haha
Posted by: Vman | April 17, 2007 at 09:39 PM
Well, Lakers better win SAC.
Warriors is going to beat the Mavs and have a good chance to beat the Blazers.
I much rather have Suns than Mavs on the first round.
Posted by: gugy | April 17, 2007 at 09:40 PM
What about rebounding? I'd rather see the Lakers trying to contain the Suns' transition game (which they've been able to do reasonably well) than to watch the Mavs grab 30 offensive rebounds on 38 missed shots.
Posted by: McGarnagle | April 17, 2007 at 09:45 PM
In my opinion, i will take KG over JO, Minnesota have to make a trade this summer or they will loose KG in 2008. I want a great player to play against Dallas, San Antonio, Phoenix and may be Houston in the future, KG is a player who has enough experience, with KG and KObe, we have players who can play against good teams in 7 games series, you can add good young players to Lakers teams, but do they have enough wise, experience in tough 7 games series?, that's the key.JO still can't take Indiana to Eastern conference finals before and now.
Posted by: bluesky | April 17, 2007 at 09:53 PM
Man the NBA is pretty whacked up. Look at that, Golden State blowing out the Mavericks for a 4th time (8 minutes left, but Dallas is down 31 points). Garbage time.The Clippers also beat the Suns by a slim but still significant 4 points.
I don't know about you guys...but I find it sad how far the Lakers have fallen when teams like Golden State are showing up the Dallas Mavericks and our cross town rivals beat the Suns whom we've lost to the last 6 out of 7 games.
Jerry West...come back to us.
Posted by: Andrew T | April 17, 2007 at 09:55 PM
Edwin, Lakertom, and Korey
Jerry Buss said if its a player out there that can have an impact on the team he was willing to pay big money regardless. If we can somehow keep LO and Kobe then we can bring in O'Neal and that would be an awesome trio with a growing Farmer and resigning Mihm. We would still have Vlad and we could probably get rid of Cook also because we dont need both of them in reality. Resign Luke and then with Jermaine we will finally have the post presence we been dying four
Posted by: Paul Lee | April 17, 2007 at 09:55 PM
Faith,
Way to pick up on the NBA's best kept secret. Despite the popular belief, Phoenix is not a terrible defensive team. Obviously, they're not a lockdown squad, but if you look at their FG% defense, it's not that bad, especially for a team that allows as many points. They also have 3 very good individual defenders (Marion, Bell and Thomas) in their rotation, plus Diaw is decent.
AK
Posted by: Andrew Kamenetzky | April 17, 2007 at 09:57 PM
if the lakers play the suns, they have a much better chance of winning than against dallas, as if you slow the game to a crawl, all the suns become effective and dont get into a rythm, so loose balls dont go their way as much, and the threes dont drop as easily.
Posted by: greek dude | April 17, 2007 at 10:00 PM
AK,
Hey I didn't win a Fatty cause I bribed the judge(s) haha. But for real, yeah...they are. They're very athletic, and are able to force you into creating mistakes. At worst they can play zone on you, and we all know that that just serves to give them more of an advantage fast break wise.
But again, they aren't as good as Dallas, so for that reason alone I'll go with them lol.
Posted by: Faith | April 17, 2007 at 10:01 PM
AK,
In my opinion the Suns get away with murder. Why don't teams play big and slow down the tempo against them. Mo Evans, Kobe, LO, Luke, Kwame lineup would dominate them because there is no one on the court for nash to matchup with. And although nash is quicker than our guards they just have to do an acceptable job against him. Just make nash the scorer he wont ever drop 50 points and the Suns will win, just take away the shooters and Kwame and Turiaf can slow down Amare.
What does everyone think?
Posted by: Paul Lee | April 17, 2007 at 10:09 PM
The Clippers must win which will force Golden State to a must win situation which will give the Lakers the final say on which seed they want.
Seeing as Sacramento could now care less about this game and probally the Lakers also. The starters will be rested from both sides and the Subs will ultimately decide who we play and what our seed is.
Go Cookie, Sasha, Bynum, Smush, and Farmar! Our fate is in your hands!
Good night and sweet Laker Dreams.
Posted by: Fatty | April 17, 2007 at 10:14 PM
I want Dallas too. I also think we should rest our guys a little more than normal. Dallas didn't even try tonight, we're not going to gain any effective mo by trying to beat the Kings. If anything, we might lose and then really get a blow to our confidence. Or a guy might get hurt.
In my mind, I'd rest 'em, just like Avery did tonight. I'm sick of playing the Suns to be quite honest, and Dallas doesn't have the same mojo and "synch" they had earlier in the season. Injuries have been nagging at them and Kobe has traditionally killed them.
So, I'll take Dallas. Rest Kobe, LO and Kwame so they don't get hurt. Keep Farmar starting and have Smush key the 2nd unit with Ronny. Give Drew some quality minutes again as a starter to beat up on the Kings.
Then, we head into the playoffs rested and ready just like the Mavs, having won our last serious game. As AK says, do we really want to run with the Suns right now? I'm not convinced we do, at least not until Kwame works back into better game shape. This is a different story than last season when I was over at Lakersground WANTING the Suns because I knew we matched up well with them, we had the size advantage, and we had major mojo working for us to end the season.
Now they got Amare, let's save them for Round 2 or 3.
Posted by: Jimm | April 17, 2007 at 10:15 PM
I agree with AK and myself (Jimm). :)
Let's go for Dallas, start fresh.
Posted by: Critical Beatdown | April 17, 2007 at 10:19 PM
DID YOU HEAR THE NEWS????
Jerry West officially resigned as Memphis GM today!
Please PLease PLEASE Dr Buss can you pull back your son for a while and put a man in charge who KNOWS how to use Laker History to entice a money player like KG to come and be a part of it. Kupcake can be a consultant or scout or coffee gopher but BRING BACK MR CLUTCH!
Oh and as far as Jermaine O'Neal goes, he's a fine addition but not at the expense of LO or Bynum. Give them Kwame and Vlad or Sacha and draft choices. KG on the other hand would turn our franchise around and is worth giving up ANYBODY but Kobe for.
But I'd trust ANYTHING Jerry would do. Dr Buss, tell your son and his friend Mitchie to sit back and let a REAL GM run the team. BRING BACK MR CLUTCH!
Posted by: Jay Jay | April 17, 2007 at 10:21 PM