Lakers' 100-81 loss to San Antonio latest example of team's up-and-down play
There had been many interesting turn of events, what with the Lakers' strong start Sunday against San Antonio, a second-quarter lapse, some chippy play and then some more offensive and defensive inconsistency.
But the Lakers managed to cut the Spurs' lead to two points with 8:39 remaining, and appeared well on their way to capitalizing off the momentum. Perhaps illustrative of the Lakers' season at large, the execution came to a screeching halt. San Antonio walked away with a 100-81 victory over the Lakers, preventing the team from officially clinching the top spot in the Western Conference.
With five games remaining, the Lakers' (55-22) position in the West is far from in danger, with the team holding a five-game edge over Dallas (50-27), Denver (50-27), Utah (50-27) and Phoenix (50-27) for the top spot. But the Lakers have put put more stock this past month in playing their best basketball rather than just compiling wins.
Aside from the Lakers losing three out of their past four games, they have continued a season-long trend in failing to capitalize after big wins. Case in point, the Lakers' followed their impressive win Friday against Utah with a clunker Sunday against the Spurs. Just last week, the Lakers won at San Antonio and responded with a 1-3 mark on the rest of their five-game trip. Meanwhile, the Spurs (47-29) answered their previous loss to the Lakers with four victories in the last five games, including marquee wins against Cleveland, Boston and Orlando, an effort good enough to secure a 13th consecutive postseason berth. And to think, it was San Antonio who wanted to avoid the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs.
"I’m always concerned," Lakers guard Kobe Bryant after scoring 22 points on only eight of 24 shooting and committing four turnovers. "Now more than ever. We should be. This is an important stretch."
Yet, the issue the Lakers currently have right now isn't the lack of urgency theme, a poor habit the Lakers finally got out of their system entering last week's game against Atlanta. But what's perhaps more troubling is that the Lakers are indeed trying right now, but the inconsistency on offense and defense still remains. That was on full display during the Spurs' 29-12 run to close out the game.
Lakers guard Shannon Brown and Lakers forward Pau Gasol had left Manu Ginobili two separate times, allowing him to make two uncontested three-pointers, which was part of a team-high 32-point performance on 10 of 22 shooting. Antonio McDyess scored a layup because of shoddy defensive rotations and made a jumper because Lamar Odom and Brown didn't properly switch on a pick-and-roll. Tim Duncan made his way past Gasol for a layup and shot over him with a 14-foot jumper, part of a 24-point effort on 10 of 14 shooting that Coach Phil Jackson said illustrated how Duncan "backed him down." That was unlike last week's game where Gasol held Duncan to six points on a two of 11 clip. And then there was San Antonio scoring its final eight points off of free throws because of drives to the basket and an Odom technical.
"No," Gasol said when asked if the team should feel concerned. "This kind of game, you always have to take a positive out of it. Some nights it’s going to happen this way. A good quality team comes in and plays better than you and gets away with a win. I think we should just be aware of what the possibilities are when we don’t play as well and when we have a couple mistakes we shouldn’t have made."
Well, there were plenty of mistakes, that's for sure. Gasol led the team with 32 points on 13 of 20 shooting, but 10 of those came in the first quarter when the Lakers correctly utilized their inside game. Instead, the Lakers spent much of the game settling for outside shots. Aside from Gasol's clip, the team finished 20 of 61 (32.7%) from the field. They also shot five of 21 from three-point range, something Jackson correctly noted, "They took too many."
That included Bryant's eight of 24 clip, which he said had nothing to do with his fractured right index finger. "I just missed some opportunities," said Bryant, who also had gone five of 23 from the field against Utah. "I can make those. I’m going to get those looks in the playoff series and I’ll take my chance."
That included Ron Artest's three of 10 shooting, including a 2 of 9 clip from three-point range. Artest has shot below .500 in six of the last seven games yet continues to settle for outside shots partly because defenses are giving him the space knowing his ineffectiveness from the outside. Yet, Artest remained unapologetic about his shooting. "That’s not the main issue with shots going down," he said. "There were probably other things also. We’ll adjust and we’ll play better."
OK, fair enough. There were other issues as well. Odom's nine points was a far cry from his 26 points against Utah, a necessity given Andrew Bynum missed his eighth consecutive game because of a strained left Achilles' tendon. Though Odom had 13 rebounds, the Spurs outrebounded the Lakers 41-34, an effort Jackson lumped together with the team's shoddy chemistry. "It's how you run your offense," he said.
The Lakers' bench did little of that, with the unit combining for only four points on 2 of 15 shooting. The Lakers had only expected a marginal statistical impact with Luke Walton playing for the first time since Feb. 10 because of a pinched nerve in his lower back. But they had hoped his passing abilities and mastery of the triangle offense would ensure better ball movement and offensive chemistry. Instead, his seven minutes and 56 seconds on the floor was described by Jackson as "he still looks like he's a step behind," before noting "he made some passes that led to assists and that's something we need."
In fact, the Lakers have sorely needed that for a while.
"We’re working our offense and everyone knows what needs to be done," Walton said. "But for some reason, we didn’t do it consistently. We did do it. We played Utah, one of the hottest teams in the league two nights ago and beat them up all day long except for a letdown in the late third and early fourth. When we execute our offense and play better defense, that’s what we can count on."
The Lakers couldn't count on the team maintaining its composure either, most notably in the final minute of the second quarter. Artest and Ginobili drew offsetting technicals after the two tangled with each other before an inbounds pass. After Artest was called for a foul on Ginobili, Bryant was whistled for his own technical for arguing the call. That stretch entailed the Spurs closing out the second quarter with a 7-3 run en route to a 48-40 half-time lead. And unsurprisingly, Jackson and Artest shared different takes on what happened.
"On both the replays we looked at, Ginobili hooks him and does the up and under move with the hook. Obviously the referees didn’t want the contact at that time," Jackson said. "I just told Ron at halftime you got to back off when it’s time to back off. You can’t keep being persistent about it. They sent you a warning signal and that signal was back off. We ended up giving them some monentum at the end of the half and probably got the referees on the back end of our game."
When Artest was asked about the situation, he said his memory went blank. "I don’t really even remember," he said. "It was just basketball. I can’t remember what happened."
The Lakers remember most of everything else that transpired against the San Antonio, and it was far from pretty. When asked about what stood out the most, players ticked off a number of things.
"They controlled the tempo of the game," Bryant said.
"We could've contained the pick-and-roll better," Gasol said.
"The difference today is we didn't score the ball, Artest said.
That leave the Lakers with a wide litany of issues to consistently matter before the playoffs begin. And with only five regular season games, there's not a lot of time.
"It doesn’t bode well for the playoffs," Jackson said. "You want to get some momentum. We can't seem to put that together from one point to the next. Maybe if we have one single opponent for seven games, we’ll be able to do that."
--Mark Medina
Follow the L.A. Times Lakers blog on Twitter. E-mail the Lakers blog at mgmedin@gmail.com
Photo: Lakers guard Kobe Bryant makes a pass after driving around San Antonio power forward Tim Duncan in the first half Sunday. Credit: Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times.
Yawn. Bring on the playoffs. I'm as bored as the Lakers are.
Yes, the game will change in the post season.
Yes, there will be losses.
Yes, there will be a championship parade in LA this year.
Go Lake Show!
Posted by: The Outlaw | April 04, 2010 at 07:40 PM
wednesday d' e-nver plays the OKC in OKC. they fly all night 4 Th's game with the Lakers. it will be great to beat them just before PO start. and after that we still have Portland who can be the first round opponent.
that will do it for Momentuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuum
Posted by: ouchhhhhhhhh | April 04, 2010 at 07:52 PM
I will be shocked if the lakers win champoinship this year. Somewhere along the ways, things have changed, may be its the injury bug (FINGERS) or may be something else. THis doesnt look like a championship team at all. Lakers look dangerously close from being out. You can have all the faith in this world that something will change soon and they will become the team that they once was, but if you believe in the present which we all should, they look far from a championship team. If Bynum comes back and plays the way he was, and if Lamar helps the bench to produce some bench points, then i believe they will be all right. But at this point those are BIG IF's.
If they dont win championship this year, then they will need a major house cleaning for next year. Bynum needs to be traded away. We cant have a big paid center who gets injured year after year just before the playoff. I know we won championship without him, but sooner or later we will need his service. Gasol cant handle the center role year after year. We will need some shooters on the bench, Defintely have to get rid of sasha, farmer, morrison, powel and get some quality shooters!
At the end i hope that i am wrong, I hope that Andrew comes back and plays as hard as he was playing before the injury. I hope that Lamar becomes more consistent and average double double thourghout the playoffs. I hope that somehow someway sasha finds a way to shoot some 3's. I hope that Kobe's finger get healthier so that he can shoot better. I hope that Shannons thumb gets better so that he can shoot comfortably. I hope that Gasol doesnt get too tired come play off time. Oh man, too many hopes!! and that tells the story of this years Lakers!
Posted by: malam69 | April 04, 2010 at 07:58 PM
The excuses, er, explanations for the poor play above don't exactly inspire confidence. Only Professor X admitted things don't look good going into the playoffs.
Oh well, what's there is there. It's too late to think any player addition, even the return of Bynum, will suddenly turn things around. Like MM says, it's all about consistency. If the Lakers manage to focus, they can beat anyone. If they play as scattered as they are right now, they'll still get past the first round but anything after that is questionable.
Posted by: Scott | April 04, 2010 at 08:03 PM
Ouchhh I miss your coments on Gasol.
Already have a girlfriend?.
Now is good time to shut it?
what is the problem the team now?
please help me understand this defeat, oh great teacher of basketball!!
Posted by: hiltontown | April 04, 2010 at 08:30 PM
I think there is a chance Malam69 Lakers will win it all during the playoffs if these scenarios will happen:
1. If Phil Jackson turns into an Egyptian Pharoah and used the whip rather than his Zen philosophy. He literally deprived his players from food and sex cravings without the required quotas of points and defense. Nowadays, anywhere you go in LA freeways, you would see the CHIPs issuing tickets as speed traps to poor motorists. They are motivated as hell to raise the sagging revenues of California through traffic tickets. There is a quota on points and defensive stops. This analogy should apply to the Lakers to make them hungry.
2. Summon all surgeons and anethesiologists in this state and have a conference on Kobe's index finger. Why do we need the latter, well if we are losing hope on healing that index finger, make it "numb" by applying anesthesia in every game. That finger should have no feeling, not affecting his heart nor dictate pain to the brain.
3. Show Drew Bynum a bull fight and how the raging bull gets out of the cage ready to attack the matador's red cloth, in the case of Bynum put that ball in the ring. He is the beast that LakerTom alluded and he will carry the burden into his shoulder. Playoff's time Bynum the bull will be with us. Pau is the matador.
4. Fisher turns into a real bulldog during the PO, he got tired of reading the criticism of D'Fish, watchout for the Butler mascot in the Lakers lineup.
5. Artest on the other hand is our Rottweiller. Remember his objective why he joined the Lakers. The ring and the fame of being associated with Hollywood, I don't think he will go down as a loser.
6. The intangibles in Farmar, Sasha and UPS as well as Powell called "This Is It". They have to love being a Laker or else leave LA. It is all or nothing when you push a person to the wall depriving him food, the pleasure of stomach and sex, the pleasure of inner urge - they would perform miracles.
Sorry guys for my wild ideas, that's all I can think of. You have said everything that is so fundamental and very advanced from November to March so I've to think outside the box something different that may work. LOL!
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | April 04, 2010 at 08:52 PM
YES! I love it! They are out again. I enjoy coming here when the Lakers lose to see what posters like DFish have to say. LOL!
OMFG! hilarious! Every year he's posting.
Lemme guess. Ever since he's been posting how pathetic the Lakers are in the "regular season", the Lakers have won how many? 3 championships?
Keep it coming losers!!!
Posted by: mti312 | April 04, 2010 at 09:00 PM
Reading DFish and his minion's posts is like watching fat people fall!!! It's entertaining.
Posted by: mti312 | April 04, 2010 at 09:02 PM
KOBE shot 5 for 23 Friday and 8 for 24 today. It's really outstanding performance.Good luck "The player of the decade"! 90 mil is a wasted.
Posted by: ic | April 04, 2010 at 09:03 PM
I can't recall the crowd chanting MVP when Kobe's at the free throw line today, maybe they realize he's not. Another bad shooting game in line of many, just PATHETIC very disappointed in his play again. This team and I hate to say it, no doubt is going to Flameout in the playoffs, maybe the first round. They just can't put it together this year, but I have to continue to believe that something going to change. Die hard Lakers fans we DIE HARD.
Posted by: 2Phatt | April 04, 2010 at 09:12 PM
The SUNS get the spurs next week, and will do everything they can to make sure the spurs stay low in the playoff bracket. You know, so that we can get the first-round matchup that everyone wants to see, SA vs LA.
Posted by: BUTLER | April 04, 2010 at 09:26 PM
This was a frustrating game to watch, yet I'm still not ready to panic. The Lakers are still the defending NBA champs until someone else can lay claim to the crown. The Lakers are still the most talented team, even if they are playing in fits and starts. Stay strong, Lakers fans. Like Coldwater Canyon, the road to the playoffs has more than its share of potholes. But the team is still a luxury car that's the best Dr. Buss' money can buy. Sit back and enjoy the ride.
Posted by: Rick Friedman | April 04, 2010 at 09:33 PM
This one is for Laker Management: The Lakers have NO BENCH!! This will be a great summer to get some PG's and players that can SCORE. If Bynum does not make it for the playoffs PLEASE consider him trade bait and get some PG's and players that can SCORE. Give Fish a great retirement party and send other bench players on their way out. THE lAKER SEASON IS OVER.Out the first round no matter who they play. It was good while it lasted.
Posted by: BEDO | April 04, 2010 at 09:37 PM
I'll be shocked if the lakers see the 2nd round this year.
Posted by: hungryneck | April 04, 2010 at 09:48 PM
Just a remainder:
These lakers went 4-1 and almost 5-0 w/out Kobe.
But now Kobe is the only one who shows up for games and wants to win while the others are just "coasting"?
Remember how sweet was the offense when Kobe was out?, now he's just jacking up 20 shots a game while his teammates stand around watching.
Even the defense looked so much better with all the players following the coach's instructions with discipline.
I am a Laker fan and this is painful, basketball is a team sport, no player should shoot 20 times a game unless his hitting at least at a 55+% range.
Kobe bailed out the lakers 6 times this season, but how many times have the Lakers bailed out Kobe with his erratic shooting and selfish play? at least 3 times more than that.
When are people going to start demanding Kobe to play the right way and for his team's best interest, just like they demand Gasol to be tougher?
Aren't the Lakers like 18-1 or something like that when Bryant shoots less than 20 times???
Hello?!, am I missing something
Posted by: David | April 04, 2010 at 09:50 PM
I was working all day and i didn't get to watch the game, i just got home and haven't read anything about it or watched any clips from it. I'm gonna go out on limb and assume it was all Luke's fault.
Um, he did play, right?
Posted by: phred | April 04, 2010 at 09:51 PM
what? 8 minutes, no fgas, no turnovers, two assists, a -2 +/- compared to Kobe' -17? eh, I'll blame him anyway. And D Fish was 3/4 and had no to's either. All his fault.
Posted by: phred | April 04, 2010 at 09:55 PM
YES! I love it! They are out again. I enjoy coming here when the Lakers lose to see what posters like DFish have to say. LOL!
OMFG! hilarious! Every year he's posting.
Lemme guess. Ever since he's been posting how pathetic the Lakers are in the "regular season", the Lakers have won how many? 3 championships?
Keep it coming losers!!!
Posted by: mti312
Thanks mti, the stuff you guys write is also very entertaining. This is the first year that I have posted so not sure who you are referring to in the past.
Posted by: DFish | April 04, 2010 at 09:59 PM
Two quick points:
1. Bennette Salvatore is the most corrupt official in the NBA. He hates Kobe and the Lakers with an intense passion. I've said this on this blog many times, whenever you get a Salvatore ref'd game, you can count on at least one technical on Kobe, a moment of mass confusion on the court, and an inevitable Laker loss. Why this jerk hates Kobe so much is beyond me.
2. I stand by my criticisms of Phil Jackson regarding our PG crisis (and yes, it is a crisis). Phil has destroyed Sasha's game, and we definitely need Sasha's pesky defense and 3 point threat. Instead, Phil buries a talented guard on the bench, and then Phil complains about how poorly the bench plays. Phil has also not trusted Farmar in that starting spot, despite that Derbrick Fisher has shot in the 30% range for 2 years. And then he fails to reign in the wild-eyed Shannon Brown, who could have benefited from a regiment of discipline.
I don't at all believe we will get out of the Western Conf Finals, and if we play Portland first round, I don't think we'll get past them. When this whole thing hits the fan, I hope the media will not be afraid to criticizing the great Phil Jackson and his complete and utter destruction of the Laker back court, save for Kobe.
Posted by: troy | April 04, 2010 at 10:01 PM
Yes, the Spurs could easily meet us in the first round of the playoffs. With a healthy Tony Parker, no less.
Is thirty-one-year-old Kobe looking like a $30 million-a-year man? Quite a gamble, Dr. B. Maybe you can earn back some of those Benjamins at the poker table.
Posted by: Allnet | April 04, 2010 at 10:02 PM
LOL @ BEDO
Just dont kill yourself, it's not worth it.
Posted by: mti312 | April 04, 2010 at 10:09 PM
PLAYING OUT THE STRING
It really feels like that to me. This team looks like a bunch of guys waiting to play for something more important than a meaningless game in April. I know it's not a good sign, but if last year proved anything, this group of Lakers, sans Ariza, is built for playoff runs. I mean Lamar is just not capable of getting it up for a consistent stretch unless he's in playoff mode now. He was the opposite of Friday night Lamar today. I hate to say it, but it always comes back to Lamar. He's the X factor. Bynum coming back is also crucial, because without a productive AB, we ain't winning it.
So, until we start playing for real in two weeks, let's hope Kobe figures out the right combination of tape to put on his finger, Artest figures out how to hit a wide open 3, Lamar starts ramping up for playoff mode Lamar, Fish gets rest, Gasol fine tunes his free throw shooting, Bynum gets back in the lineup, Shannon stops shooting quick shots, Farmar figures out how to stay with his man on D and Walton can stay on the court. If most of that happens, we should be fine.
Posted by: Mikefloss | April 04, 2010 at 10:13 PM
Hi Edwin G:
Today, Farmar and UPS played a combined 34 minutes and produced pathetic 4 points (2 for 10). Their percentage is not acceptable since most of the shots they took were pretty much open shots! Most NBA guards would easily shot over .500 mark in the same situation (Step Curry would knocked down 65% of his shots). If you noticed their (Farmar & UPS) body language today, they were afraid of shooting! They have no confidence in their shooting ability whatsoever. In that case, sit them down and let them ride on the bench. Sasha didn't fare that much better and went 0-3 in 6 minutes! But I agree with you that he would give us a better effort on defense against Ginobili who ran around Artest and Walton like a mad man with conviction!
What I'm most disappointed today is again on PG. He failed to call time-out when the Spurs made a charge in the second quarter and went from 8 points deficit to 6 points lead. A 16-2 run by the Spurs on that stretch took the sail out of our team which they never regained. PJ just sat stone-faced on the bench, not making any time-out not yelling out instructions and get on players' face like he should. For that part alone, it disturbed me big time. It's not the first time he did that but come on, on a National televised game, do something to show that he's worth $12m a year.
Even though all of us want this team to win the championship this year, we must accept the reality that our team this year does not have a productive and/or smart bench. When the starters went down (Such as Andrew or Kobe), noone on the bench could step up to fill the scoring void. This team depends too much on Kobe & Pau!! This team is not a good defensive team. This team can't defend a pick N' Roll. This team is not a good team to play from behind. Sure, we got lucky in a few games when Kobe managed to bail us out with last minute heroic shots. But Kobe's finger injuries apparently are worst than we thought which lead to his increase in number of turnovers. Skipping the games after the season and allow his body to heal would do him good.
Go Lakers!!
Posted by: Wallace | April 04, 2010 at 10:33 PM
It is apparent the bench stench all season did not get to Mitch. Not a single reliable shooter or defender on the bench and that would include LO when & if Bynum shows up. Lakers are playing like the WBA champs. LO, JF & SB have no talent for consistent 3 pt shooting even when wide open! Are they afraid to drive to the basket? That is where they have the ability for a 45% scoring average and if they use their heads could get the other team in foul trouble....like all the other top point guards do. Mitch could have filled the 14 th team slot with a decent point guard. Look at the gaps Cavs, Spurs, Celtics & Mavs filled. Partly by not giving long term contracts to players that cannot focus and play with intensity for 15 minutes a game, every game!
The Cavs fought the Celtics on their home floor down to the wire after a 20 point deficit and almost beat them. Ferocious intensity by both teams on every possession and a focus developed by playing hard for 48 minutes every game. Terrific time management & high IQ play by both teams down to the last second! Tremendous team defense, ball movement, off-the ball cuts to create crisp passing lanes and ferocious rebounding. None of which the Lakers exhibited against the Spurs! Wake up Lakers you have not earned the right to be cocky.
Posted by: ross | April 04, 2010 at 10:36 PM
On a side note, women laker fans at staples have got to be the best dressed in the entire NBA arena system. The guys look the same everywhere. We dress like bums.
Posted by: p ang | April 04, 2010 at 10:54 PM
We all know this team is not going to win the ring this year. Just as long as it's not the cavs or celtics. Go Magic!!!
At least by losing it will guarantee Mitch and Dr Buss trade the crud on this team.
Also, trade AB - he is a liability already. Yes we need him this playoff run but he is injury prone and useless if he can't ever make it through one season.
Posted by: ryan | April 04, 2010 at 11:14 PM
The LAKERS don't have the HEART of championship.They are all cheating the FAN.
Posted by: ic | April 04, 2010 at 11:29 PM
I'm actually looking forward to the Lakers getting bounced before the WCF. Sorry - even though I'm a laker fan it's just too disheartening to keep hoping for this team to break out of their funk and play at the caliber that they are capable of.
I have wasted so much time on lakers blogs and reading articles and rooting for them - to only see half ass efforts the entire season. The glass half full fans always ragging out on the naysayers - but this team has not proven anything except that they are not champions.
I'd rather see them get bounced early than get wiped off in 4 games from the cavs. That would be just too humiliating....Shaq getting a ring with lbj, that team dancing around....it would make the game 6 finals loss to the celtics seem like a fun day at Disneyland.
I'll come back next year when hopefully Kobe is somewhat recovered (is he seriously going to play in the summer for the USA? Sure he's rich but does this guy have any brains at all?) and Mitch gets us a bench that can hold at least a 20 point lead for 2 mintues.
Posted by: JamesT | April 04, 2010 at 11:32 PM
Another thing is Kobe can't be forcing the issue when he's got a player like Gasol. Run the triangle without any hesitation. Even Fisher is playing better. Everyone was running the offense well but Kobe and Artest killed it and murdered it and spat at it and I now have to throw up because of it. Makes me sick, man you are injured. Your finger is not the same. Please adjust by playoffs. Remember we will all forget about that if you start running the offense by playoff time. All will be forgotten. Tired of seeing forced issue when you are injured (nobody wins 5 vs 1). You are fun to watch but only when you are healthy, bro just suck it up this year, relearn and don't handle the ball so much cuz its just not working this year, and watch the game you played against the Kings and the first quarter of fridays' game as well... C mon. And management learn how to inspire by talking about the problems then getting them out of the way and start from scratch. Time is running out. THE PLAYOFFS IS DIFFERENT BEAST AND IF YOU UTILIZE YOUR PLAYERS TO THEIR POTENTIALS FROM BENGA TO LUKE THEN THERE IS A CHAMPIONSHIP IN THE HORIZON. But I think that things will start to click within the next two games because of Luke. I have a man crush it appears huh? J/k I'm straight.
Posted by: poop | April 05, 2010 at 12:15 AM
The coaches, the coaching SUCKS. the lakers were climbing back into the game you send fisher for farmar; you let kobe try 2million shots brick half of it; you whip sasha for answering back to coaches who can't even whip or berate kobe when he makes mistake.. tons of mistakes. come on, the players have no problem if the coaches treat them equally and sees the game in its context.
insert farmar into the starting line up; or start sasha with kobe just to even the strength of the team. if we lose i more game, a regular season or playoffs i am pretty sure it's phil jackson's fault. he should shoulder the responsibility.
Posted by: isang | April 05, 2010 at 12:22 AM
Although it was a disapointing loss to the lakers we need to look in the bright side. The Spurs are still a tough NBA Champion contending team. Why not have them take out the Mav's, Suns, or Nuggets in the first round? Clearly the Lakers are seeded #1 in the west, so now they are going to enjoy playing chess with the rest of the conference.
If you have worked to earned the main spot and be top dog, part of that is enjoying who you can win or lose to and manipulate the playoff seedings.
Best scenerio is we play the Thunder the First round Suns the 2nd and the Spurs in the conference finals. by then all the road traveling would have them tired. These playoffs are not going to be easy. But at the end when they win, we could say it was well deserve and hard fought, not granted to like last year. I just hope we dont play the Cavs in the Finals cause anyone can see who is going to be the winner; whether they like it or not.
Posted by: Joe Corad | April 05, 2010 at 12:22 AM
PLEASE START LUKE PHIL JACKSON!!!
You are a great basketball mind and you probably already have plans to start Luke over Artest. Maybe you can talk to Artest about how he would feel to come off the bench and provide that spark. I'm telling you Kobe and the fans aren't having any fun watching a 1 dimensional player who fits the category of bench and situational guy (because of his one dimension this year).
Luke needs to start and Artest can be there when situations dictate( such as a small forward scoring at will). But if the Lakers can start off with smoother offense then Artest comes of the bench with Shannon that's going to seem like a 1-2 punch. I don't know but I feel that Artest would feel more comfortable this season to come off the bench. You started Luke last year as a simple reset button and it ended up in a championship! Artest may start to feel more comfortable. Depending on how thing go he may start (I wouldn't start him until next year).
Last year when Luke started my Lakers started to be fun to watch and they actually won it all (he didn't start the rest of the season but that reset had already done it's job).
WE FANS REMEMBER AND I KNOW YOU DO TO. We need that reset button again pronto oh great and mighty of all mightiness that is Phil Jackson!
I must point out that I have a great and far ending cavern of wealth of probabilities of actions and consequences to detailed factors of players abilities which tend to make it seamless for me to incorporate these factors into a vivid picture of defeciencies couples with abilities into a series of pictures in my head that need to be listened to by management. I could talk forever about what Bynum should do to minimize injures, Sasha to shoot like he does at practice and on and on and on. Not all characterizations are of players are in my head especially Morrison. I don't know much about him, he's an enigma to me.
Posted by: johnny | April 05, 2010 at 12:40 AM
To all Fakerholics/ Trolls/ LEBRONIACS/ Septic fans/ aka THE LUNATICS,
YOU ALL CAN COME BACK WHEN THE PLAYOFF STARTS.
Let's see IF YOU CAN STILL TALK SMACK BY THEN.
P.S.
Please come back when the playoff starts, so that we can discuss the games. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE.
______________________________________
LAKERS ALL DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: JovBatz44 | April 05, 2010 at 04:19 AM
Bryant's 13 from 20 clip ? Wasn't he 8 from 24 MM ?
Posted by: PradyinLA | April 05, 2010 at 05:33 AM
per hilton town request
Gasy had a terrible game in san antonio. everyone tried to forget about it because he HAD 2 BLOCKS on the mighty Timmy. it happens once in 14 years in Timmy's career.
where was the same Gasy today in the lost? just LOST. Timmy played like in his youth. almost. maybe like 4-5 years ago. and Gasy? another Faux pas. actually he was laboring hard. he needed all his energy to pull down 7, i mean SEVEN, like seven after 6 and before 8. no, no, no. it was not 17. JUST seven. actually one less than 8 pulled down by Kobe. actually one less offensive.
ohhhhhhh. remember that sequence when we were almost tied or close to 4 points and SA had like 3-4 consecutive rebounds on the same possession? that was a eauty to watch.
Gasy was so dizzy that he did not know where the ball is and where the SA midgets r jumping around to pick up the ball. it was that Blair guy. a scrub. just like 6'-8 and he had like 2-3 on the same possession.
conclusion: were those 2 block in SA valid? of course they were. it happened. but the real question here is: is Gasy such a good defender or maybe Timmy had a low energy game, was totally off? indeed, JUST 6 points for Timmy will validate the later. Gasy was lucky.
and also, if Timmy had such a low energy game in SA, was Lakers win a fluke? maybe, maybe not. personally watching these 2 teams in the past 2-3 years, the Lakers always have a great comeback and win the game. today did not happened. in the first quarter it was Artest who pushed his issue without reason. Ginobli is not wilting. and artest games r not working on him (like with kobe last year in the houston series). in the 4th it was a series of l l l l l l words regarding the defense with the above mentioned possesion that really took the steam out of the TEAM.
REBOUNDS and BOXING OUT is a state of mind. Gasy has a state of mind only for finesse TOUCHES and distributing dead end passes. like i said: no dirty dishes. only deserts, fruits and cheese. bring the PORTO.
hiltoptown: will this do it for your morning coffee?
Posted by: ouchhhhhhhhh | April 05, 2010 at 05:48 AM
RANDOM THOUGHTS AS I CONTEMPLATE THE SO CALLED 2ND SEASON
1. I know Kobe's been hurt, but I don't buy that as an excuse. He's had good shooting games, so he's capable of shooting accurate despite the injury. Bottom line, Kobe's game has dropped considerably this year. His FG percentage is bad, his FT percentage is bad, he's turning the ball over at a very high pace, and his defense has been noticeably lazy. Kobe Bryant, for all his greatness, has declined as a talent this year, and don't even try to mention his name for any MVP award.
2. JamesT made an excellent point. I, too, would rather see the Lakers lose in the 1st round, rather than get trounced by Cleveland in the Finals. First, I don't want to see my Lakers embarrased by a more complete and more dominant Cavs team. I'd put money that the Cavs would either sweep the Lakers, or maybe drop one sympathy game. Second, an early lost would force our cheerleaders on this blog, and the Laker management, to realize what I've been saying all along...WE HAVE A CRISIS AT THE GUARD POSITION. Except for Kobe, we don't have ONE competent guard on the Lakers that can be relied upon to shoot and defend well. Farmar comes the closest, but he tends to overshoot and/or make foolish decisions at critical times. An early exit by the Lakers would force Mitch to make changes to this flawed roster.
3. I've never seen an NBA team with such pathetic outside shooting from the guard position as our Laker team has, and that includes Kobe. The guard position is the basic component in the NBA, and it happens now to be our official weakest link.
4. I still think Phil Jackson has gotten off too easy from the media. Phil has destroyed Sasha V, and he hasn't nurtured his other young PGs. So now, what we're left with is an aging, inaccurate starting PG, a pure shooter who has no confidence nor playing time, and two wild shooting gunners who are trying to play for contracts next year. Thanks Phil.
5. Our playoffs X factor will be Lamar Odom. Period, end of story.
6. I don't know what to make of Pau. He can be brilliant at times, modest, and/or pathetic at others. My best guess is that Pau plays well when certain conditions exist. In other words, he can't adapt his game, or his mindset, to all NBA circumstances. So we fans are left hoping that everything has lined up perfectly so that we can get the all-star Pau, and not the tulip Pau.
7. So Derbrick Fisher is a bigtime asset come playoff time, huh? We'll soon see if that's true. If he falters, he needs to retire immediately after the Laker's exit from the playoffs.
8. Talk about putting all your eggs in one basket. Everyone keeps declaring that the Lakers will play better during the playoffs. But what if they don't? What, then, will be the excuse?
9. I'm tired of Luke and Andrew being injured all the time. Why be excited about their return when everything suggests they'll just get injured again very soon?
10. I still don't believe that Ariza is better than Artest. Ariza is a better clutch shooter, while Artest is a better defender. Right now, it's about an even-steven deal, which isn't good considering Artest was suppose to be an upgrade.
11. I wish to god I am wrong about everything I'm posting here, and our Lakers win another championship. In my heart, I truly hope to see our guys win. But in my head...
Posted by: troy | April 05, 2010 at 05:52 AM
OK! I calm down after restless afternoon yesterday. Still, no sense of urgency by our players after the game especially Kobe who just said he simply missed those shots. IMHO, It's much more than that. We couldn't contained Ginobili, we couldn't shoot open shots (All the guards and Artest). On the bright side, Luke "Warm" Walton's NBA leading 3 points percentage, at 50%, is still in tact (He didn't attempt any!!).
If I'm Phil, I would forget about the remaining games and minimize the minutes of our key players; Kobe, Pau and LO. Sit FIsh down and plays those scrubs we called "bench" for the rest of the regular season. This team needed to be humiliated further and hope they would reach down and find the "heart" factor they're looking for all season.
As I reiterated in the prior post, the coaching yesterday was beyond bad. No adjustments whatsoever, same rotation, same game plan (Dump to Pau or forced Kobe to shoot with two Spurs riding on his back). Sorry, it's not working!! We need a new game plan. We used to have a good offense (2nd or 3rd in the league, so so defense (8th or 9th) in the first half of the season. Now we're stink form both ends. Blaming all you wanted, but the bottom line is Cool Hand Mitch did absolutely nothing to improve our squad after the season begins. Why we need Ammo, Sasha, Mbenga on the bench when they can't produce for us? Why can't we get a good scorers off the bench? Why can't we have a real PGs that could relieve DFish? Instead, we have of Smush Farmar , Eye Wide Shut Shannon Brown and Hand of Stone Powell and Charles Manson's lookalike on the bench!!
Enough for today. Have a nice day everyone.
Go Lakers!
Posted by: Wallace | April 05, 2010 at 06:25 AM
I have an idea: no more days off from practice.
Posted by: Keith | April 05, 2010 at 07:54 AM
" Talk about putting all your eggs in one basket. Everyone keeps declaring that the Lakers will play better during the playoffs. But what if they don't? What, then, will be the excuse?
Posted by: Troy"
______________________________________
Troy,
While I do sincerely appreciate your comments re: Our Lakers, but;
I for one BELIEVES the Lakers will still be Champs at the end of the season. I don't have any stats to show you, I don't have anything to validate my point or to make my case, I JUST HAVE FAITH.
And FAITH is just all I need.
What if they won't win it all this year? Then, I will have NO EXCUSES. Until OUR LAKERS has another game to play, I STILL BELIEVE.
LAKERS ALL DAY!!!
Posted by: JovBatz44 | April 05, 2010 at 09:31 AM
Im tired of Lamar Odom holding the Lakers future everybody knows if he plays well the Lakers win,Lamar knows this better than anybody. Why they kept him is a mystery to me.He plays according to how he feels regardless of the situation he does not have any pride if he did he would try to help his team win every night ,we should have sent him to miami where Pat Riley would have made him play,Phil Jackson is too soft on him.Also when we had the bench mob Moe Evans was the best on the bench and we traded him.Now Sasha comes back shooting better and we bench him ,makes me wonder about Phil Jackson and his coaching.
Posted by: barbra | April 05, 2010 at 09:44 AM