Laker Blues…
As a quasi-Laker fan I'm happy to celebrate the dominance that LA has enjoyed over the past couple of seasons. I enjoy watching Kobe Bryant reaching even higher than we thought the top of his game reached. I enjoy watching Phil Jackson play the NBA the same way a cat plays with a mouse before she eats it. Always seemingly in control and never panicked.
Whether you follow the Lakers the way I do, you're a die-hard fan or anything in between, you have to be more than a little concerned with the current Laker funk. I know it's only two games but this current Laker stew that's being cooked stinks of failure and complacency. The only player excelling since Gasol's hamstring injury is Lamar Odom. This is great for Lamar but seemingly horrendous for the Lakers as no one else seems willing to step up from the bench crew.
Jordan Farmar had a nice scoring night against an average Dallas squad but apart from that there's no spark from the bench at all. Sasha Vujacic, Derek Fisher and Josh Powell are just horrible to watch. (With the exception of Fisher's defense... I can handle that!)
They make me cringe when they shoot the ball these days and they make it look like they've been sitting out of Basketball for a year.
Sasha and Derek putting their heads together is like watching two hippos try to walk a tight rope. It's going to end badly...
There's no underestimating the value of Pau Gasol in this equation. Now I'm not saying he's the "hardest" guy in the League but I certainly think the inside-outside game that he is a catalyst of, certainly holds the Lakers in better stead.
As for Kobe, well it's easy to consider the finger injury, the knee injury, the elbow injury etc. The only trouble is, Kobe still continues to shoot tough fall-away jump shots during the 4th quarter of close games. Surely his brain isn't injured too?
It's the Milwaukee Bucks that visit the Lakers tonight in LA and after only emerging victorious by one point in overtime last meeting, the Lakers are vulnerable at best. It kicks off an interesting week for the Lake Show with a visit to San Antonio, Dallas and then back home to attempt to avenge their latest loss to the Clippers.
Milwaukee present a definitive challenge to LA. The Bucks have a good presence inside and the Bogut vs Bynum match-up will be great to watch. I'm most excited to see if Phil will give Shannon Brown significant minutes guarding Brandon Jennings. I think Brown's mixture of speed and strength will provide the perfect counter. Either way it will be entertaining! I'm predicting a triple double for Lamar Odom also... I see 14p, 16r and 10a for the lanky number 7.
Jennings could destroy the Lakers... or provide the perfect opportunity for Shannon Brown to arrive.
Buckle up no matter who you are, as when the Lakers experience the Blues, it seems everyone has a lot more to talk about.
Opening Night Outstanding Games
With opening night upon us, it's time to take a quick walk down memory lane to see what players got a fast start to the season over the last decade.
While the vast majority of the great performances on Opening Night are strangely by Los Angeles Lakers, a few other players seem to get their act into gear, historically speaking. Who will stand up and get their team off on the right foot in 09/10? Safe to say it won't be Blake "Jimmy" Griffin. *awkward*
| Best individual Opening Night efforts
00/01 Jerry Stackhouse DET Shaquille O'Neal LAL 01/02 02/03 04/05 06/07 07/08 09/10 ??? |
With four games on the slate for day one, (BOS@CLE, WAS@DAL, HOU@POR and LAC@LAL) with plenty of bona fide stars to step up, who will it be? BOS@CLE LeBron will want to get their disappointing 08/09 as far behind him as possible so he's a good candidate, although facing what may be the best defense in the league isn't a great way to do it. WAS@DAL Gilbert might have a huge game until half time. Then quickly off to hospital for knee surgery. *cold blooded* HOU@POR Houston are craptacular. But very strong defensively, so this game might be a wash in terms of big performances. LAC@LAL Given their amazing history of strong individual performances on Opening Night, this is our pick for a standout game. Although given that they are getting their Championship Rings, they may get poleaxed by 40 like the Miami Heat starting their 06/07 campaign. With Pau Gasol most likely sidelined, we select Lamar Odom the most likely to excel on Opening Night 2009/10. Memo to the Lakers: No pre-game predictions of a repeat. It just ends badly. |
49-40
That was the score when Orlando's soul was broken and the curtains were drawn on their 2009 season. The LA Lakers were in the middle of an 18-0 run that snapped the neck of the rabbit and set the top hat on fire in Orlando last night. The only smoke and mirrors present were from Orlando's smoldering three point percentage and their pending offseason of tough questions.
Now this won't just be a Kobe love-fest, but the man played one of the best games of Basketball you're likely to see for a very long time. Bryant did everything last night on his way to leading his team in every sense of the word, to the promised land. It's undisputed now, he is one of the greats of all time.
The Lakers were served incredibly also by Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza. These three guys made big play after big play and it's safe to say they have guaranteed Dwight Howard a championship somewhere down the road. Dwight got nothing easy, similar to Gasol last year. The Celtics crowded, pushed and shoved Gasol into a corner in the 2008 Finals. This year it was Howard's turn. While showing flashes of brilliance, Howard rarely got in a groove offensively and was subsequently "handled" by the swarming defense of Los Angeles. These moments are where champions can be created. Jameer Nelson and Dwight Howard remained on the Magic bench to soak in the defeat, a bold move. One would assume that the lasting smell of Finals failure will provoke a strong Eastern Conference title defence next year.
Speaking of which, where do the Magic sit now? Is this just a lucky year? I respect them as a unit and would say the term "lucky" is an insult to them. I give them their due kudos for making it as far as they did, but what happens if there's no Turkoglu next season? He was an integral part of their success and will surely have the opportunity to make some serious money this offseason. It's also safe to say that Rafer Alston and Jameer Nelson cannot co-exist, so there's plenty of questions in Magic Town.
The Lakers have housekeeping of their own to take care of. With Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza both out of contract, it will make the Lakers a hot topic for a while yet. Even Kobe Bryant has an out clause for this year and next... but that's just crazy talk.
Phil Jackson said he would "smoke a cigar" and "toast Red Auerbach" after the game. A classy gesture and a deserved reward for the winningest coach in NBA history. Another mantle that leaves him immune to the constant criticism thrown his way of late.
Overall a great result for Kobe, Phil Jackson and all of the Lakers fans out there. It's a pity the Los Angeles fans' had to start torching cars and acting the fool but heck, it happens most years.
Lakers in 5. Good times.
60% of the time…
Well, well, well... after most of the dust has settled and most of the smoke has cleared we see the landscape about to take shape.
The Los Angeles Lakers and the Orlando Magic are both only one win away from the Big Dance. A great result for LA who for a moment there were looking like going down 4-2.
While nothing is yet guaranteed, (especially with LBJ still alive and kicking) I think it is highly likely the two leaders of both series will advance.
Note: If there's a prayer that eliminates Orlando from the series in 7 games... Trust I'll be reciting it before my next two nights sleep!
As amazing as Pau and Lamar Odom were in Game 5, it will only be even more amazing if they do it for two straight games, especially in Denver. Our conversation the other day about lack of killer instinct comes to mind.
As for the Cavaliers great escape last night. Well, if it weren't for LeBron... blah, blah, blah. It's safe to say that LeBron has his eyes set on being the G.O.A.T. Some of his postseason antics this year have been simply unprecedented. He has me believing, albeit slightly, that Cleveland can still make the NBA Finals. This may all be snuffed out on Saturday night however.
I did read the following stat, which gave me some confidence...
"About 60% of teams that have fallen into the 3-1 hole have lost in 5 games"
Not entirely sure of it's sources credibility but if true, there may be a glimmer of hope for Cleveland.
So with Nike's marketing crew reciting the same prayer as I am, I leave you with a Jerry Springer-esque final thought...
Lakers vs Cleveland...
If you hate Kobe, then you'll love to see him fall short again against the man who is taking his mantle before his eyes. If you love Kobe, then you'll love to see him win a title without Shaq. If you hate LeBron, then you'll love to see him keep waiting for and "witnessing" true greatness. And if you hate Lebron then... well, I'm not sure why you're watching Basketball.
Go Lakers! Go Cavs!
60% of the time, it works... every time.
Seven’s the key number here…
Just so the heading makes sense, yes, I agree both series' look like going seven. I'm probably the last to jump on this train but hey, I'm on, I have a ticket and I'll enjoy the show.
As for Kobe, ok, so the three's appear to have been bad judgement. If he makes them however, we are all in awe and the Black Mamba has again struck. You know he thinks every one is going in, so hard to comprehend what's going through Kobe's mind at times. If you remove the three's from the equation and he has a respectable 8 for 16 game, .500 from the field and a healthy 12 for 13 from the charity stripe. So apart from the three's, I see a relatively competent offensive performance from Kobe and employees 16 and 17 respectively.
(Note: I'm intentionally not mentioning the Lakers' bench performance tonight. It speaks for itself and you don't always need to be hand fed ammunition!)
The facts are clear and history will show a simply horrible performance by the Lakers. The 20 point loss or thereabouts looks horrible but history doesn't generally remember individual game margins, just Championship series' results.
Now Ryan, to say professional NBA athletes don't try on the offensive boards because they don't get as many shots as another guy is ridiculous! I fail to see where you come from with that. This is not a social pickup game on a Sunday afternoon. These guys are paid millions of dollars to do a job. Any job in life has the same situations.
You've got Phil the Chairman of the Board, Kobe the CEO, Pau the Managing Director and Sasha Vujacic and DJ MBenga the odd-couple janitors. There's certain things that get done by certain people, that's life.
The real problem to me, and I must agree with Michael Wilbon here, is that apart from Kobe, the Lakers appear to have litle to no killer instinct. You could buzz cut Pau's hair "Jackass" style and he wouldn't want to fight you. I rate Aziza's toughness and even Fisher for an old veteran, but Fisher's biggest play this series has been a shoving match with KMart on a jumpall. Can someone tell me why Fisher was the only one T'd on that play?? Anyway... No matter how tough you are or pretend to be... there has to be backup of good play.
Example: JR Smith is an immature, disruptive turd of a player and one I wouldn't want on my team, much like Sasha Vujacic in a lot of ways. We've seen Sasha piss every Laker player, coach and fan off with some brainless plays during these Playoffs. Smith's technical at the end of the 3rd quarter in Game 3 could be seen as the same sort of crime except for one thing... he made the damn shot!!
I was listening to Bill Simmons' "BS Report" last night and heard him talking about a scenario involving a Ron Artest for Lamar Odom deal. I know we're in the middle of a great Playoffs but regardless of where the Lakers finish this run, I am salivating at the thought of Ron wearing a purple and gold #73 next season. Toughness issue? Fixed.
Ok... focus Paul.. get back to the point.
Denver is faced with undoubtably their biggest game in franchise history on Wednesday night. If the Nuggets can take that game... Whoa! It could be lights out for LA and a long off season of which only seven or eight of the current Lakers return to fight another day. Maybe a reality show could take shape..?
I'm picturing something very similar to Dave Chappelle's parody of Diddy's "Making the Band". Sasha would have to fetch Kobe a sugar cookie from Venice Beach or Kobe would shut down the studio. And just for the record, the five greatest big men of all-time would probably be; Bynum... Bynum... Bynum, Bynum, Bynum.
For the record I'm genuinely excited regarding the coming NBA Finals, as long as the Orlando Magic have no part of it.
Tomorrow is huge for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Glass half full? Draft half empty?
I quote the post game recap from ESPN: "You get used to greatness," Lamar Odom said. "He was amazing. He wanted the ball. Kobe is always going to help you or bail you out more than he hurts you."
Wow... doesn't exactly sound like a team member who hates Kobe's guts. Mind you, even if there was rumblings of dissent in the Laker locker room, I wouldn't think it would be allowed to show it's face just now. Only 7 wins to go.
On the draft, well I have to agree. Of all the teams to get the number 1 pick, it really didn't please me to see the Clippers win the Powerball. Since 1990 the Clippers have drafted a total of 20 first round players. Let's do a little analysis of what we may come to expect on Draft Day 2009.
Out of the 20 players selected in the first round, only 3 spring to mind as players that HAVE achieved any significant success; Antonio McDyess, Tyson Chandler and Chris Kaman. Only 3 have done what I would consider "serviceable things" in the League; Lamond Murray, Lamar Odom and only just... but Quentin Richardson.
The fact is, the Clippers have had a horrible track record for picking players in the first round for close to 20 years!!
Let that sink in... 20 years!
The only positive that I can draw from this is that the Clippers may somehow manage to screw this up. Could they trade the pick away? Maybe package the pick and send it to the Knicks for Jared Jeffries and Larry Hughes? Blake Griffin and LeBron could be fun and affordable in the Big Apple. Maybe they follow the European fashion statement of late and draft Rubio to spice up the Clippers like Ben Stiller in Anchorman?
But seriously, what will undoubtedly happen is Griffin will go number 1, the Clippers WILL slowly bring him on behind Randolph and if Bill Simmons still has those Clippers season tickets, at least one grown man in Los Angeles will cry 41 times in 41 nights.
Not quite as marketable...