- A great game from Kobe. I was worried about his groin after his airball to start the game, but he sucked it up like he usually does. It's a good thing he made most of his shots, otherwise we would be hearing silly criticisms again about what a ballhog Kobe is, how the offense should run through Bynum, and how Kobe just wants to outscore his teammates.

- How is Fish in the "good" category? The team went on a run as soon as he went to the bench. The offense and defense suddenly sped up and starting clicking as soon as Fish went to the pine.

- Luke lovers were trying to say that Luke's absence was going to hurt the team because it will effect the "rotations", and blah blah blah. As it turns out, it will effect the rotations in a positive way, giving more minutes to those who are more deserving (i.e. Shannon Brown, Farmar, Powell, and maybe even Gaffney and Ammo).

I never felt like this game was in jeopardy, but I was certainly watching for some tendencies that I see developing this (relatively early) season:

1. The guards still have an inexplicable propensity for launching ill-advised jumpers early in the shot clock. On one sequence, Shannon Brown dribbled down the court (with Bynum clearly sealing his man in the paint) and pulled up for a long three. He made the shot, but that's not the point. The point is that it's not the RIGHT shot, whether it goes in or not. Sometimes you get in a shooting rhythm, and it's good to make defenses pay for not meeting you early, but that shot -- with our center in position for the easy bucket and/or foul -- isn't what the triangle is predicated upon.

2. Kobe did most of his work near the basket early, as the K brothers noted. I like that. He blew some easy ones, but those shots are usually layups for 24. I love Kobe in the post. And when they sent aggressive double- and triple-teams at him, he found open shooters (and had a couple of turnovers, too). On that note, I'm still amazed at the lack of calls Kobe gets while operating in the paint. Weird. Do the refs feel like they have to handicap for Kobe's dominating skill?

3. Drew still needs to work on sliding laterally to avoid fouling guards when they drive into the paint. Meet them at the top, big fella. You're about a million feet taller than every guard in the league.

4. Lamar coast-to-coast is one of my favorite things to watch. The man needs to assert himself more on the offensive end, especially in the post. When he's aggressive, he's virtually unstoppable. Unless he's using his right hand. And, yes, Lamar still averages about 1.4 charges/game. I'm used to it now.

Baby Outlaw slept like a, um, baby last night after the win. Sure, he wasn't watching the whole game, but he knows when the Lakers have a good night. Purple and gold, through his veins it doth run.

Go Lake Show!

THE 79-3 BANDWAGON…
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
After a shaky start, that was a great game by Kobe Bryant. I have absolutely no problem with Kobe taking 29 shots when he makes 17 of them. It was also good to see, as aptly pointed out by CornerJ, Kobe mix it more with some mid-range as well as post up jumpers. I still find it amazing, however, that he only shot 5 free-throws on a night when he took almost 30 shots, many in heavy traffic. Why can’t the NBA refs give Kobe the same level of love they give LeBron and Wade? The REAL MVP.
-
I also thought Andrew Bynum played another solid consistent game, this time scoring 17 points on 7-13 shooting plus 12 boards and 1 dime and block against only 1 turnover. Not only is Drew one of only two players in the entire NBA to average better than 20/10, but he also ranks #4 overall in the entire NBA in terms of efficiency – and tops on the Lakers team with a 26.56 efficiency rating based on 20.3 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.8 blocks per game. Those are All-Star stats.
-
The other player whom I thought had a great game was Jordan Farmar, who once again showed why he is a better option to back up Derek Fisher than Shannon Brown. Jordan attacked the basket with verve last night, making some excellent driving layups as well as a couple of great assists. His ball handling and passing were significantly better than Shannon’s as was his shot selection and shooting percentages. The pattern that is emerging is not good news for Sasha as Jordan is locking up most of the point guard back up minutes while Shannon is locking up most of the shooting guard backup minutes. Sasha is obviously the odd man out.
-
While I am not yet ready to go over the top on Jordan like Todd does, I do agree that I think Jordan would fit well with the starting unit. I think he would play better and with more confidence as a starter. While I do not think he has proven he should be the starter, I think he has clearly shown that he is the better option at point than Shannon, who just does not handle the ball of make the right passes to play the position. I also thought that Jordan looked very good on defense last night, showing much better pursuit and perseverance. If he keeps playing like this, he may get a chance down the road to show what he could do with a starting role.
-
Here’s hoping the Pau will be ready to go at least for a few minutes on Thursday against the Bulls. Of course, the big question will be how shots get distributed with both Drew and Pau finally on the floor together for the first time this year. Will Kobe still take 30 shots? Will Andrew finally get at least 15 shots? So far this season, the Lakers have averaged 86 shots per game with Kobe getting 24, Drew 11, Ron 10, Lamar 9, Fish 7, Josh 6, Shannon 5, Jordan 5, and others combined 9 shots per game. In my mind, the ideal shot distribution would be Kobe 20 shots, Drew 15, and Pau 15 shot per game with the remaining 36 shots going to others.
-
When you talk about Big 3’s, the Lakers All-Star Trio stand head and shoulders above any other Big 3 in that Kobe, Drew, and Pau will all be All-Stars and will all in my opinion average over 20 points per game. And unlike most other Big 3’s, all three of the Lakers stars will show up every night. So bring on the Bulls and let’s start the longest winning streak in the storied history of the Los Angeles Lakers. With Pau back on the floor, this team could conceivably set a new record for wins by finishing the season 79-3. Anything is possible.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Tom

"It's a good thing he made most of his shots, otherwise we would be hearing silly criticisms again about what a ballhog Kobe is, how the offense should run through Bynum, and how Kobe just wants to outscore his teammates. "

Shades of Animal Farm LAKER TRUTH. You dare put Kobe above THE BEAST BYNUM?? Kobe is good but he is only human and not above criticism. No one on the Lakers is above criticism not Kobe, not Phil, not Pau except for Drew because he is the BEAST. I think he could have gotten 40 points because while Kobe was jacking up shots and missing, he was freezing the beast out offense Drew was more efficient at that time! How dare you and Kobe make Drew score only 17 points! This is Bynum's team Kobe will only be the option for 2 more games. Bynum is the 2nd option and will be the first soon just like he was last season! Shame on you LAKER TRUTH :). (This was another joke but I will stop now since the point has been made).

In any case,

Tim....Sasha is shooting 36% atm from the field. Last game in the 4th quarter he missed all but one of his bricks. I hardly would qualify that as "The Return of the Machine". And Sasha's PT truly opened up when Trevor broke his foot since Phil didn't have much faith in Vlad or Luke in crunch time forcing Kobe to play the 3 more and THAT opened up PT for Sasha. With Luke's injury that could happen again but I wouldn't bank on it considering how Shannon has been playing.

Rick,
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
>>> Those of you clamoring for UPS to get those minutes, please notice that Phil Jackson has been
>>> playing Shannon consistently as a 2. The coach recognizes what I've been saying for weeks.
>>> That's where UPS most benefits the Lakers.
-
Absolutely right on, Rick. Jordan was superb last night. 4-9 shooting vs. 4-12 for Shannon. 4 assists vs. 0 for Shannon. 1 turnover vs. 2 for Shannon. What can UPS do for us? Not much as a point guard. Shannon is our backup shooting guard. He just needs to stop shooting brick jumpers where he is floating sideways.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Psyched,
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
>>> However, I did want to say to Laker Tom - your boy is playing well. I give you credit for sticking
>>> with him - I have been a naysayer for a long time. But I will also give credit where due.
-
LOL, PLG. As most of the Bynum Believers will tell you, we KNOW what Drew can do because he has done it before so there is little risk in rooting for him to do it again. He is also just starting to take advantage of his great skills. Remember, he is still just 22 years old and already is the #4 most efficient player in the NBA right now and one of only two players in the entire league to average better than 20/10. Last night was his 6th straight double-double and 9th straight game in double figures. In fact, counting 6 pre-season games, Drew has now scored double figures in every single game he has played this year – 15 straight games. And he has posted double-doubles in 13 of those 15 games. That is consistency. That is All-Star performances.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
tomK,
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
>>> Either Kobe, Pau or Bynum should be on the floor at ALL times, never a lineup of Mbenga,
>>> Powell, Artest, Sasha and Farmar
-
I agree 100%, tom. The collective wisdom of the Toms speaks again. LOL!
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Tim
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
>>> It's time to open up the opportunity for Farmar, UPS, and even Sasha - they can perform,
>>> give them the chance dammit.
-
I am starting to come to the same conclusion but I know part of it is my desire to see Fish hang up his sneakers and become a Lakers assistant coach so that he can take over when Phil leaves in a few years. I seriously think the best move the Lakers might make is to have Fish retire and join the coaching staff after this year. Not only would we be able to take advantage of his expiring $5M contract (worth $10M in savings) but we would have solved the BIGGEST AND MOST SERIOUS ISSUE that the Lakers will confront in the next 5 years – how to replace the irreplaceable Phil Jackson. What better choice than the player that 30% of NBA general managers chose as the most likely to become a great NBA head coach? Guess that puts me on the Retire Fish and Bring Him Back as an Assistant Coach Bandwagon. LOL. And yes, Farmar would be the one to become the starter.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Tom

got to give Farmar his props. Maybe he heard some of the Iverson talk? What Farmar did in the first half is what Iverson COULD do if he set his mind to it but if Farmar is going to play like that, what do we need Iverson for?

- C'mon Jordan! We're BEGGING you to step up and play like that ALL THE TIME. That PG position is yours if you can do that consistently.

Laker Tom,

As you noted, Farmar is the better playmaker and ballhandler. The second unit, which does not have anyone who can create their own shot, needs these skills more so than the first unit. The first unit already has THREE excellent playmakers in Kobe, Gasol and Artest.

For the first unit, Kobe is the one that reads the defenses and calls the plays (it is not Phil, nor is it Fish). The ball needs to be in the hands of our best playmakers, Kobe and Pau, to insure that the defenses are read properly and the correct decisions are made. This unit is in much less need of a ball handling playmaker like Farmar. What this unit needs is someone who can play well off the ball, hit the open shot, finish on the fast break, and play solid defense - all attributes than Shannon Brown can provide. If anyone starts over Fish, Shannon Brown is the better fit.

LakerTom,

I agree with your ideal shot distribution breakdown. However, I disagree with you on Jordan vs Shannon. I think Shannon fits the triangle much better than Farmar does. Shannon can potentially be a Ron Harper (albeit more athletic than an older Harper) or Brian Shaw for the Lakers.

I can see the Lakers posting more of those smaller point guards if Brown is on the floor more often. That would make those smaller point guards work more on defence and therefore have less energy for offence. It's kind of like what Kobe did to Richard Jefferson against the Suns. Kobe posted the hell out of him and it tired Jefferson. Watch old Bulls games, they used to do it all the time to smaller guards. Part of the reason why they never needed a Jordan Farmar.

Farmar would be a better backup because he would change the pace of the game when he comes in. As the reserves leader, the Lakers would be a better run and gun team than the starting unit. He could come in and give the Lakers a spark and a different game.

- Hector

OK. We won THIS game. But, just observing our "benchmob" + Fisher. Please look at the team stats! It's "shocking" to say the least. For about $27.5 million dollars a year, we get about 25 points per game. I couldn't believe it. But look at it:

Lamar - 9.9 - 7.5mil
Fisher - 5.7 - 5.0mil
Walton- 3.7 - 4.8mil
Sasha - 2.2 - 5.0mil
Morrison - 2.3 5.2mil

I see this as a team that can't judge talent. The three loses so far this year is directly attributed to this. If Mamba doesn't score 40pts, we lose. Period. I know Pau will help a lot, but almost 30 million a year is being WASTED on this group of players. It's time for a trade, and it's time for Farmar to replace Fisher in the lineup. Every point guard we face has a career high against Fisher.....

DJ_LAKER_FAN