(Photo from NBCSports) Before Shannon Brown was re signed to a two year deal, there were talks about how the Lakers and Brown were close to a deal but that it was dependent on whether or not Sasha Vujacic could be traded so they could use that $5.4 million and give it to Brown. Well, fast forward to a couple days ago and the Lakers went ahead and signed Brown anyway to the tune of $2.2 million this year and a player option for next year at $2.4 million (Brown has the choice to become an unrestricted free agent next summer and re enter the market).
Now the Lakers are supposedly trying to trade Sasha and his horrible horrible contract because they are well over the luxury tax threshold and Jerry Buss, while he loves winning championships, would like to do so at a "reasonable" price.
Well too bad. You are stuck with Sasha Vujacic. Here's why
Like I said, the Lakers are well over the Luxury tax limit. They're on tap for around $94 million and they just signed their two 2nd round draft picks which will probably be around another $1 million. Now they need to shed money and the likely candidates are Sasha Vujacic and Luke Walton. These two players have already become the Adam Morrison and Sun Yue of the 2010-2011 season and the season hasn't even started.
But contract-ually speaking, Sasha is more moveable than Luke. Sasha is in the last year of his contract (due $5.4 million) while Luke has three more seasons at $5.2 mil, $5.6 mil, and $6.1 mil respectively. Add to that Luke's bad back problems he had last season, he's just not a sought after player as of right now. I mean, who would want a player who costs a lot who's going to be injured.
So Sasha Vujacic is on the trading block.
(Photo from Hoopedia) Let me bring you back to the summer of 2008. The Denver Nuggets had two high priced players in Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony, along with a high priced Kenyon Martin and a $10 million dollar Marcus Camby. Nuggets didn't want to pay all of that and they needed to do a salary dump. So the Clippers came along and sent a 2nd round draft pick for the former defensive player of the year, always up there in the league leaders in defensive rebounds and blocked shots. A rip off trade, no? Well of course it is, but it was a salary dump. The Clippers had money to spend, and the Nuggets were spending too much.
Had the Clippers traded another $10 million dollar player for Marcus Camby, well there wouldn't be a point to that, would there? The Nuggets would still be spending a lot of money, and the Clippers would still have money to spend and another lost roster spot. OK back to Sasha. THIS MARCUS CAMBY DEAL IS WHAT THE LAKERS ARE TRYING TO DO RIGHT NOW. They want a future 2nd round draft pick (because 2nd round picks are not guaranteed contracts. They do not want a player of equal contract value because they are trying to get RID OF CONTRACTS. So for a team to take on Sasha, they would need to send a 2nd round draft pick, and a 2nd round draft pick ONLY.
OK, so why are the Lakers stuck with Sasha? Because Sasha, unlike Marcus Camby, isn't a defensive player of the year, doesn't put up great defensive rebound numbers or blocked shots... quite simply put, no one wants him. There isn't a team out there saying to themselves, "Man, we are so close to being a championship contender, all we need is... SASHA VUJACIC!" and no team is saying, "Man, we need to rebuild this roster, first things first, GET ME SASHA VUJACIC!"
But he's an expiring contract! Everyone wants an expiring contract! True. Expiring contracts are a great way to rebuild a team for the future and/or clear cap space for a big free agent during that year's summer. But here's the thing with expiring contracts: a team wants to get rid of a guy making the same amount of money during this year, but who also happens to be making more money in later years.
So let's take a random player from a random team making around the same $5.5 million Sasha's making, but is NOT in the last year of his contract: Mike Bibby from the Atlanta Hawks. Mike Bibby is scheduled to make $5.5 million this year and $6.2 million next year. If the Hawks wanted to clear cap space because they don't want to pay the $6.2 million to Bibby next year, they would do this trade. They'd get Sasha and the Lakers would get Bibby. The Hawks would pay Sasha's $5.5 million this year, and then he'd be a free agent. The Lakers would pay Bibby the $5.5 million this year, AND the $6.2 million next year that the Hawks didn't want to pay.
But don't you see... that's exactly what the Lakers don't want. They don't want to take on more contracts regardless of who it is because they are already over the luxury tax threshold.
In plain English: they want someone to take Sasha Vujacic for free, but no one wants Sasha Vujacic.
Therefore, the Lakers are stuck with Sasha Vujacic.
Ever since I saw Steve Blake play for the Clippers live, I've been so high on him. I argued that he ran a better offense than Baron Davis. Twice. I wanted the Clippers to trade Baron Davis for a good post player and hand over the reigns to Steve Blake. He's a great personality. Works hard even for the lottery bound Clippers, even as a back up PG. Yes it was a contract year, but Steve Blake has always been known as a good character guy and good professional. Gut reactions to the signing:
He's a pass first guy and that will work well in the Laker offense:
Fact. He is a pass first, almost to a fault. He barely looks at the basket and is always looking around to find open men. But he's so much more than that. He's a GOOD passer. If it wasn't for Kobe and Shannon Brown's hectic ability to grab errant lobs, a lot of those high low passes from Pau at the free throw line and Luke Walton from the 3 point line would have sailed out of bounds. Steve Blake throws a GREAT lob pass, in transition and in half court sets. Granted Shannon will probably leave for more money, Andrew Bynum is a good target to pass to on the lob.
Steve Blake is a great pick and roll passer. And with his ability to knock down a jump shot, if teams cheat and go under the screen set most likely from Pau Gasol or Andrew Bynum, he'll make you pay for it. Granted most all pick and roll situations come from Kobe Bryant, this will probably rarely happen. But if Blake plays with the 2nd string players, depending on who else they sign, it adds more to the Laker offense arsenal.
To sum it up, he makes the right pass, but in addition, that right pass is a GOOD pass in the receiver's comfort zone, making him able to finish the play correctly.
He's a good shooter.
Fact. Albeit he's more of a spot up shooter. He can create his own shot but mainly off of screens but he's a good catch and shoot shooter, from 3 point line and midrange.
He's a good defender.
Depends who you ask. He's a pesky defender but if an oversized point guard posts him up, he'll need help. He's got a small frame at 6'3 172 lbs (compared to Fisher 6'1 210 lbs). But he does have the ability to keep his man in front of him.
However, he is a smart defender. He knows how to rotate on defense and isn't afraid (on the Clippers at least) to tell people quickly where they need to be on defense while the ball is in play. If he plays with Lamar, I have a feeling the other 3 guys on the floor at the time will always know where they're supposed to be as Lamar takes a lot of pride in team defense as well.
He's got a high basketball IQ.
Fact. Refer to what I said about his passing.
But also, he knows basketball situations. He knows how to use his fouls, knows how to foul to stop a fast break. Knows where his teammates are going to be and knows how to play basketball the right way.
The way I see it, he's a poor man's Chauncey Billups playing for Larry Brown on the Pistons. Except he's playing for the rich Lakers and still took a pay cut due to their payroll to the Laker core.
Final argument. Look, Fisher did great this playoffs. He was the MVP of game 3 in the Finals. But you cannot, YOU ABSOLUTELY CANNOT, ignore the 82 game season. Fisher was a liability on defense and shot poorly compared to his last couple of years (38% FG, 34% 3pt). The argument for Fisher is that he's clutch. Ok, yeah, he's clutch. But do you need a clutch player who hits big shots for 82 games of the season when you have so many other weapons and are probably going to/should be winning games with a comfortable lead with the players the Lakers have? No.
However, during the playoffs, you will need clutch performers and Fisher is exactly that, which is why the Lakers should still keep him. He needs to be relegated to the bench so that he can save his legs for the playoffs. He needs to do what is best for the team as Lamar did in 2008 and was benched for yes, Vladamir Radmanovic. Later that season, Lamar was still benched in favor of yes, Luke Walton. Luke Walton later told Jackson he should be starting Trevor Ariza. Lamar did what his team asked him to do and it ended up in a championship. Fisher needs to do what Ron Artest did for the Lakers this season, took a pay cut to chase a ring and took a lesser role as not the number 1 option on offense but still performed. He did what his team asked him to do and it ended up in a championship.
As a Laker fan, and a Steve Blake fan, I'm so happy right now. I just feel that if they do sign Fisher and he starts, somewhere in the middle of the season, there will be talks of who should be starting at point guard. Why can't we just sidestep all of that and start Steve Blake at the end and have Fisher be the hero during the playoffs?
Regardless of what happens, here's to you, Steve Blake. I hope you get a championship ring and thank you taking less money.
What a difference a game makes. Last I posted was after game 2 of the Finals where I chastised the refereeing. I thought there were way too many missed calls, make up calls, bad calls and flops that both teams were guilty of. Here are my quick notes:
Game 1 - Kobe turned into F YOU mode and went off and controlled the game. The Celtics didn't look ready and everyone wrote them off after they lost. Everyone threw the fact that after a game 1 win, Phil Jackson has never lost (such a logical flaw btw, just because something happens over and over again does not GUARANTEE that it will happen the next time). The whole Laker team played well but Game 1 MVP goes to Kobe.
Game 2 - "If we play how we're supposed to play, we'll win." - Doc Rivers. And what do you know, they played their game and won. Thanks in part to a Finals record eight 3 pointers by Ray Allen. He goes off screen after screen and has Fish chasing and chasing him and Andre Bynum and Pau Gasol NEVER step out to help on those screens. And then they look at each other like, ugghh why didn't you step out on him!? Ray Allen was the offense that night and the game 2 MVP goes to him, Ray Allen.
Game 3 - I know why Derek Fisher cried after the game in his post game interview: Derek Fisher is known for hitting big shots. He hit the .4 shot against San Antonio, he hit those 3 pointers against Orlando last year in the Finals. He has a knack for hitting clutch shots in clutch situations. However, he's never, NEVER, been asked to carry a team, let alone in the Finals. The Lakers hadn't done anything and were about to go down 1-2 in the series. Fisher then drives the lane and scores a layup with Rasheed contesting, he hits running jumpers, and then I saw something I though I'd never see: Kobe Bryant setting a screen for Derek Fisher. And he did that screen where if he rolled to the basket, he would have had an easy bucket, but he didn't roll. It's like when you're in a pick up basketball game and everyone's tired but you still want to win so you set on ball screens for the hot shooter/best player at the moment and stand and watch to see if he scores. And Fisher scored. Topped off with a dagger and 1 with KG, Big Baby and Ray Ray fouling him as he made the layup and Pau screaming in his face as he helped him up. Game 3 MVP goes to Fisher, something he'd never deserved more than that day. Emotions got the best of him and he let it out with a couple tears.
Game 4 - Fast forward to the end of the third quarter with the Lakers up by 2 - 62 to 60. Glen Davis and Nate Robinson come in to rest the starters and with pure hustle, hard work and determination, they took over the game. To the point where Rondo told Doc Rivers to keep them in. Capped off with an and 1 put back by Glen Davis to where he screamed his heart out and Nate Robinson jumped on his back in joy. It's like when you're playing a pick up game and you're obviously over matched in talent, except your team wins by simply putting forth more effort and you just get emotional and just have to scream after a foul. Only it's not a pick up game, and it's a must win with thousands of fans screaming with you. Game 4 MVP goes to Glen Davis, emotions got the best of him and he let it out with a yell that I could hear from Los Angeles. Game 5 - Both teams view this as a must win. Celtics don't want to go down 3-2 and have to win two games in Los Angeles. Lakers don't want to go down 3-2 which would allow the Celtics to win just one of two in Los Angeles, something they've proven they can do (game 2). Fast forward to the third quarter where Kobe goes into Beast Mode. He has to take over this game to give the Lakers a chance because quite simply, no one else showed up. Paul Pierce is torching Ron Artest, the defensive stopper and forcing LA to play 4 on 5 on offense. A liability on BOTH sides of the ball. Bryant scores 23 straight points in the 3rd quarter, constantly yells and pleads his team: "LET'S GET A STOP!!" Unfortunately for him, those stops never came and Paul Pierce hit shot after shot to match Kobe's onslaught.
Fast forward to the fourth quarter when Derek Fisher and KG have a jump ball. Fisher wins the tip inexplicably and Kobe gets the ball, passes it up to Ron Artest who Paul Pierce smartly fouls and doesn't give him a chance to make the shot. Ron Artest misses both free throws, Kobe tries to grab the rebound and Pierce rips it away. You could read Kobe's lips in the replay, he yells, "MAN FUCK!!!" I'm not trying to be Kobe Homer (and when I rip him a new one in game 7 review, you'll believe that) but Kobe gave his all and his teammates didn't show up and he still tried to make the right play by passing the ball up to a streaking Ron Artest. He gave so much of himself in the third that there quite simply wasn't enough in him for the fourth quarter. Pierce was too much for Ron and the Lakers to handle. Game 5 MVP goes to Paul Pierce, emotions didn't get the best of him and he just let his game speak for himself.
Game 6 - Big news of the night, Kendrick Perkins goes down and hurts his knee early and will not return. Add that to the fact that the Lakers have their backs against the wall and are playing for their basketball lives and the Los Angeles takes game 6 with ease. Bench players play well at home and suck on the road holds true here as Sasha scores 9, Farmar and Shannon score 4 each. For Boston, Rasheed scores 0, Tony Allen scores 2, Glen Davis scores 0, Nate Robinson scores 6 on 2 for 8 shooting. Marquis Daniels adds 5 but that was when the game was already decided late in the fourth. Lamar and Pau took advantage of no Kendrick Perkins and get 10 and 13 rebounds respectively. Pau gets a near triple double as they make him the focal point of the offense as they should always do when a team has no post defense (even with Perkins) and ends with a stat line of 17/13/9 with a steal and 3 blocks. Game 6 MVP goes to Pau Gasol, emotions didn't get the best of him because you can't get too cocky when you just tied the series and 3-3 and going to a game 7.
Game 7 - Dog fight. Perkins out and Sheed starts. No ticky tack fouls called. Oh, and Kobe will never me Michael Jordan. He had a chance to get his name closer to that level, but instead he brought himself down. Forced way too many shots, didn't pass out of double teams, tried to make game 7 his, and almost shot the team out of a championship. If it wasn't for Ron Artest's defense, which lead to offense, offensive rebounds and put backs, and his run in the second quarter to bring keep the Lakers competitive, Kobe would be hounded this entire summer for being the biggest choke artist in the history of sports.
I honestly can't say enough about Ron Artest. He hit his shots, he hustled and he worked hard which is pretty much all you can ask for from a Basketball player. Capped off with his huge 3 pointer in the 4th to put the Lakers ahead by 6 after Rasheed's 3 pointer, which cut the lead to 3. That was so huge, even if Ray Allen hit a 3 pointer to answer because it bought the Lakers about a minute of game time near the end. Add that to the and 1 he got in the fourth and this game was Ron's. Game 7 MVP goes to Ron Artest, emotions got the best of him and he let it out with the most unfiltered post game interviews in the recent history of the NBA. My fav part was when he called out his brother, Daniel Artest saying "This is my brother, Daniel Artest, he got in a fight with Trevor Ariza on twitter!" Whatever you want to say, Ron, you just earned your ring. [Sidenote: LA brought Lakers for his defense, seems like they brought him for his charisma and personality, he provided both along with game 7 offense.]
I do have one beef with Ron's answers in his post game interviews. He goes off about how Kobe passed him the ball and how Kobe never passes him the ball! Kobe doesn't pass as much as he should but when he does, he almost always passes to Ron! He's the only one during the playoffs that teams left open and Kobe always did that jump pass to Ron for either a swished 3 pointer or a 3 pointer that was no where close to the rim. He followed suit in game 7 crunch time and Ron delivered.
By the way, Game 1 MVP went to Kobe and Game 2 MVP went to Ray Allen.
SOOO, if you're keeping count, that's one game MVP to the following: Kobe, Ray, Fisher, Glen Davis, Paul Pierce, Pau, Ron Artest.
So why did Kobe get the Finals MVP? First because the Lakers won. Second, He consistently got the stats and while Fisher in game 2 was the MVP, he didn't do anything too much of note in the other Laker wins, and in game 6, he also put up good numbers but Pau outdid him for that game, and the same case for game 7. Although it could be argued that Pau should have won the Finals MVP and he would have had the Lakers consistently made him the focal point of the offense, which they probably should have. But life goes on...
And one more thing. Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson discussed how if in game 6, the Celtics won, Kobe would have won the Finals MVP. This is so ludicrous. If the Celtics won, the Finals MVP would have gone to Rajon Rondo hands down. Rondo was the glue that held everything together for the Celtics. Without him, they don't win, simple as that. Always in control of the game, always hustling, always putting up great numbers. The only reason Jerry West is the only player to win the Finals MVP and be on a losing team is because that was the first year they started awarding a Finals MVP (1969) and they didn't realize how stupid it was until the next season.
I'll be posting a season in review post in the near future but this was my Finals Post.
(Photo from Zimbio) We haven't even seen the Lakers vs. Celtics yet. What is up with that?
In Game 1, Lamar Odom and Ray Allen got called for some BS fouls. The Celtics were more hurt than this, losing their best shooter who can spread the floor. The Lakers didn't really lose Lamar but they definitely lost some free throws. Ray Allen played 27 minutes but that's really about 20 minutes of REAL time. That extra 7 minutes was played when the game was pretty much decided with the Lakers up by about 13-15 points. Allen could not get into a rhythm (12 points on 3-8 shooting, no 3 pointers), like he was able to do so in game 2 (32 points on 11-20 shooting, 8-11 3 pointers).
But just because Ray Allen wasn't saddled with foul problems in game 2 didn't make it any better. Sure the Celtics shot a lot of 3 pointers (not driving to the lane to get fouls and free throw attempts), but anytime they did, they weren't getting the bump fouls the Lakers were getting. Forget the free throw disparity, just watch the 4th quarter.
But hey, the Celtics still won, thanks to those Ray Allen 3 pointers... but also thanks to two phantom fouls (ala Ray Allen in game 1) on Kobe Bryant. The first was when Kobe drives the lane, being guarded by Ray Allen. Kobe does a spin move to avoid contact, but Ray Allen does an outstanding flop job to get the ref to call an offensive foul on Kobe. The second was when Rajon Rondo cleanly steals the ball from Kobe near the right sideline around the free throw line extended. Kobe jumps back to avoid contact, but Rondo still falls out of bounds, and Kobe gets called for the foul.
Kobe is forced to sit during stretches where he'd usually play. Final stat line: 34 minutes, 5 fouls, 21 points.
Hey, I'll flat out say it, I'm a Laker fan and want the Lakers to win. But I also want to see some effing good basketball, not Sasha Vujacic guarding Ray Allen instead of foul plagued Kobe (game 2) or Tony Allen go 1-4 in place of a foul plagued Ray Allen (game 1). This series is annoying. This series is bad. This series is quite literally, less epic than the Lost Finale. Greatest rivalry of all time? They haven't even played a game against each other, yet.
Other things of note:
Lakers wasted a 39 minute game by Andrew Bynum (21 points and 7 blocks), I doubt we'll see that again.
Ray Allen goes through screen after screen and no one steps out on him and little Derek Fisher has to be hit by KG and Perkins before getting a hand up when the ball is already well on it's way to the bottom of the basket. That's all defensive communication (or a lack thereof). Pau points out to Bynum at least twice a game so far to step out on him as he runs the baseline to go through that last screen by Perkins. Young player syndrome. And by the way, this happened in the first round. Kevin Durant going through screen after screen and having Ron Artest get to him too late, while Lamar and Bynum stand by watching instead of stepping out on him. So annoying.
Nate Robinson is doing a great job filling in for Rondo off the bench. Knows his role. Hindsight: good trade for the Celtics.
I don't know who takes worse shots: Ron Artest or Shannon Brown. Just keep an eye out for that tomorrow. Watch Shannon dribble dribble dribble and pull up for a fade away long two pointers. Regardless of it going in or not, it's still a bad shot.
Boston Sucks chants need to stop. It's not that creative. Not that Beat LA is any better.
We've made it my friends. The last four to seven games of the NBA season. The Lakers hope to repeat as Champions, the Celtics try to win their 2nd in 3 years. It's a rematch, a grudge match, whatever you want to call it, it's going to be good.
Here's what we won't be seeing:
LeBron vs Kobe to ultimately decide NOT who is the better player (LeBron is), but who can make the shots in crunch time in the NBA's most important stage. What everyone predicted last summer, what almost everyone wanted to see. The two best players in the NBA as close to their primes to make the clash that more epic. Maybe some other time.
Finals rematch of 2009 between the Lakers and Magic. Still don't know why they let Hedo go. Still don't know why they used that money to overpay Gortat, but whatever.
The Mavericks star power of Kidd, Nowitzki, Terry, Shawn Marion and Caron Butler (woulda been a bit more special 4 years ago maybe) in the finals. Cuban will beat anyone's advertised price this summer to get a championship!
The Denver Nuggets in the finals. They were so sure they could beat the Lakers, and who knows if they could have? The Utah Jazz took them out in the first round. I think they really missed George Karl on the sideline. Hopefully he fully recovers from his cancer.
Everyone else pretty much wasn't thought to make it to the Finals, so what we have is what we have. Another Boston Los Angeles series. I'm excited.
Just like any series, it all comes down to the matchups.
Lakers defense:
Kobe will guard Rondo as he has for the past three years, unlike the past three years however, he won't be able to sag off of him giving him an open jumpshot. Rondo has learned that if they give you space, attack that open space in front of you and get fouled or continue on to the layup. Should have been considered for Most Improved Player.
Artest will guard Paul Pierce.
Should be fun. I'd expect what we saw him do on Durant. Be in his face at all times, smother him, swipe at the ball, at times lose sight of team defense.
Pau Gasol will guard Kevin Garnett. Is it me or is KG taking a lot more jumpshots this year than the last couple years instead of attacking the basket?
Andrew Bynum will guard Kendrick Perkins. Although, since he's only going to play 20 minutes a game, and Lamar plays starter minutes, I'm predicting most of the defense assignment for KG will go to Lamar, and Pau will guard Perkins.
This leaves Derek Fisher to guard Ray Allen. Derek did a decent job on Nash, but still got burned plenty of times. He fought through Amare screens to try and disrupt the pick and roll. He'll have to fight through a lot of off ball screens where Ray Allen likes to move without the ball and curl to the basket for open jumpshots. Will Fisher be able to keep up with him?
Key (only) bench players besides Lamar: Jordan Farmar, Shannon Brown, and what I'm predicting, DJ Mbenga. Boston has a bench Sheed and Glen Davis to go along with Kendrick Perkins. None of the Lakers' opponents so far have had this many bigs (Oklahoma with only Ibaka and Collison, Utah with Boozer and Millsap, Phoenix with Amare and Robin Lopez). Maybe Josh Powell will be called upon for more than 1-2 minutes as well.
Kendrick Perkins will guard Andrew Bynum. As I said before, Bynum only plays 20 minutes a game with that torn meniscus, giving Lamar Odom the starter minutes. I'm predicting when Bynum goes out and Pau is the center, they put Perkins on Pau and KG on Lamar. Until that happens though,
KG will guard Pau.
Ray Allen will guard Kobe. Pierce will also have his opportunities against Kobe, but for the most part in recent history Allen takes on the challenge of guarding Kobe.
Paul Pierce will guard Artest. What I'm predicting is that the Celtics will do what the Thunder, Jazz and Suns did and leave Artest wide open at the 3 point line to double Kobe or Pau. Unlike those three teams, it is second nature to rotate defensively when either player passes out of that double team. So if Artest gets hot like he did in game 6 of the Phoenix series, Boston will adjust.
Rondo will guard Derek Fisher. Derek Fisher's been hitting shots and playing a lot better than he has in the regular season. But so is Rondo. And he's first team all defense. I'm expecting to see Fisher relegate ball handling duties to Lamar and Kobe for most of the possessions.
What's missing from the last time these teams won the championship, what's new?
Boston (compared to 2008 against Los Angeles): Take away Eddie House's 3 point shooting and James Posey's 3 point shooting and defense, Leon Powe's spark off the bench. PJ Brown's interior defense. Add Rasheed Wallace's 3 point shooting and interior presence, Nate Robinson's quickness, Rondo's growth into a franchise player. (Photo from nba.com)
Los Angeles (compared to last year against Orlando): Take away Trevor Ariza's defense and 3 point shooting, Bynum's health. Add Ron Artest's defense.
My prediction: I've been so off with my predictions this playoffs. I thought Miami was going to beat Boston, then I said Cleveland would knock em out, then I said the Magic would finally do them in (by a hair, mind you). The only thing I've gotten right is my predictions with the Lakers. So. With a gun to my head, I say the Lakers in 6 by winning games 1 and 2, losing game 3 and 4, winning games 5 and 6.
What Boston needs to do to win is continue to play how they've been playing. They play great defense and get great bench production from Tony Allen and Glen Davis, and most recently Rasheed Wallace. Rondo needs to continue to play hyper basketball, simply outworking opponents coupled with talent and amazing court vision, he'll run away with the Finals MVP should the Celtics win.
What Los Angeles needs to do to win is focus on their defensive rotations and Ron Artest needs to hit his open 3 pointers. Kobe and Pau will be double teamed. I guaransheed it. Ron Artest will be left wide open at the 3 point line, it's up to him to make the shot or at least drive it in. Kobe needs to continue to play his game. He's spreading the ball, constantly looking for Pau, and when it's needed (such as in game 6), taking over offensively. Kobe will win the Finals MVP should the Lakers win, but if Pau plays great, he could take it as well.
Whoever wins, this is going to be a great series and you all need to watch all the games, tivo them, and watch them again and again all summer until next season comes. LeBron's tagline is "We are all witnesses." Yes we are all witnesses but right now, we are witnessing one of the greatest rivalries in all of sports. We are witnessing one of the greatest ever, Kobe Bryant put on amazing performances with incredible shot after incredible shot. We are witnessing Rajon Rondo on the cusp of being one of the top players in the league. The Finals is where legends are made and Rondo is close, if not already there. June 3rd: 9PM eastern, 6PM pacific on ABC. I CAN'T WAIT.
(Photo from Yahoo) This is why Jackson needs more than one coach of the year award. Phil Jackson knows what he is doing. Let's take it back to the last minute of the game:
Play By Play
Nash scores with 1:21 bring the Suns to within 3. Lakers lead 101-98.
Derek Fisher passes to Ron Artest with 8 seconds left on the shot clock where he misses a top of the key jumper (wide open) with 1:02 left.
Pau Gasol offensive rebound, passes to Artest at the left wing 3 pointer, shoots a 3 with 22 seconds on the shot clock with 57 seconds left, Channing Frye rebounds.
Steve Nash crosses half court, calls time out.
Out of the time out, Frye misses a 3 pointer, Odom rebounds, 40 seconds left.
Kobe Pau Pick and roll but Pau misses the dunk, Jason Richardson rebounds, 21 seconds left.
Steve Nash comes up and takes a pull up 3 pointer (he'd been hitting shots off the dribble all night) Odom challenges but doesn't box Nash out, Nash gets his own rebound, passes to Jason Richardson, misses a 3 pointer from left wing, Channing Frye rebounds, passes to Richardson again at the top of the key for 3, banks it home. Tie Game 101-101, 3.5 seconds left. Time out LA
Inbound to Kobe, airballs a highly contested double teamed 3 pointer but Ron gets the rebound and lays it in as he falls away, game winner. Lakers up 3-2.
What Phil Jackson did (and does) so great:
After that 3 pointer off of Pau's offensive rebound with 22 seconds left on the shot clock, and Frye rebounds and calls a time out, a dejected Ron Artest goes to the bench. Phil Jackson instead of getting up from his high chair to talk with the assistant coaches as he always does every timeout, he waits for Ron to get there. Ron sits next to him, doesn't make eye contact with Jackson, but Jackson talks to him. I didn't hear what was said, but it didn't look like Jackson was chastising him. He didn't get in his face, he didn't yell, he let him not look him in the eye. He keeps Ron Artest in the game.
On the floor at the time was Fisher, Kobe, Ron, Lamar, and Pau (starters minus Bynun plus Odom). Phil could have easily replaced Artest and no one would question it. You take a bad shot with that much time on the clock that could cost your team the game, that could cost your team the series... you're a detriment while on the floor. Instead, Phil trusted Ron. Kept him on the floor. He Could have inserted Luke Walton who has a high basketball IQ (just no athletic ability to showcase it). Could have inserted Jordan Farmar who makes his 3 pointers and free throws and also has a high basketball IQ. Could have inserted Bynum who could get offensive board and knows automatically to throw it to Kobe or Lamar or anyone except dribbling. Ron knew it was a bad shot. But his coach believed in him. His teammates got behind him and didn't freeze him out. They huddled as the timeout was ending, slapped him on the ass and got back out there.
Kobe gets the ball with 3.5 seconds left. Airball, Jason Richardson is bodied out of the way by Artest who catches the ball and puts in the game winning layup and runs into Kobe's arms who embraces him back. Lakers win 3-2.
Why'd he keep him in? Jackson's Post game interview: "He just has a knack for being around crucial plays." Jackson also mentioned Artest's steal on Nash that helped spurt their lead runaway during the game that ballooned to 17 (only for the Lakers to give it up later). No X's and O's, just game situation management. He also said that after the congratulating, their was a discussion with Ron Artest. He didn't put him on blast. Didn't even offer any details. He didn't need to. We know what he said: something along the lines of, be aware of the clock, understand the situation etc. End of story, congrats on winning the game for us.
Phil knows these players better than any sports writer, fan, twitterer, etc. That's why he's worth $12 million a year. That's why he has 10 championship rings, could be getting his 11th. That's why he doesn't bench Derek Fisher in place of Farmar or Shannon Brown (Fisher: 11 ppg at 46% in the playoffs compared to 7.5 ppg at 40% during the season).
Coach of the Year Award
Instead the Coach of the year award goes to guys who end up getting fired 2 years later when they don't win a championship. Seriously: Hubie Brown-Memphis, Avery Johnson-Dallas, Sam Mitchell-Toronto, Byron Scott-New Orleans, Mike Brown-Cleveland. We'll see where Scottie Brooks-Oklahoma is in two years. Only in that span of COY's, Larry Brown's Pistons, Gregg Popovich's Spurs, and Phil Jackson's Lakers were winning the championships. But hey, what do I know? A lot less than Phil Jackson for sure.
So if you're a Laker fan and you're upset that the Lakers are on the wrong side of a 12-2 run and Phil Jackson doesn't call a timeout, remember that you're yelling at one of the greatest coaches of all time.
Do you really need to stretch to play a minute and 23 seconds?
(Photo from Yahoo) I forked over a pretty penny to get some section 300 seats for Game 1 of the Phoenix Suns-LA Lakers series. Besides the usual hype everyone heard regarding the 2006 and 2007 series where Phoenix took out the Lakers and how this is "payback" even though the Lakers have since won a championship (gotta get hype somehow), there was a little more than "regular news" that Sasha Vujacic would return from an ankle sprain to play in his first playoff game of the year.
Now, I've chastised Sasha before on this blog. I've been chastising him since his rookie year, stopped for a season in 07-08, then went back to it after he signed a big contract and fell off. My question, AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO SEES THIS!?
When Sasha checked in for the first time with 6:30 left in the 2nd quarter, he received a huge ovation. Not as big as the Shannon almost dunk ovation, or the skip pass from Lamar to a Kobe dunk ovation, but it's safe to say the entire crowd was clapping and/or screaming praise. I looked over to my friend and genuinely asked, "Why are people cheering?" The Lakers scored on a Lamar layup from Farmar. At the 5:58 mark, Lamar fouled, stopping play, and Sasha was replaced by Ron Artest (about 30 seconds of playing time).
I guess Phil saw a matchup he didn't like, I believe he was guarding Grant Hill at the time. But he gave him another chance: with 46 seconds left in the 2nd quarter, Sasha replaces DJ Mbenga to finish the half. Amare makes a shot with 24 seconds left, just barely giving them a 2 for 1 opportunity. Kobe breaks Grant Hill's ankle (OK, he slipped), misses the shot, and Josh Powell gets the offensive rebound and dunks it:
Now at the end of that play, you see the Suns are off to a fast break with 4 seconds left. What you DON'T see is Grant Hill raise up for a 3 pointer with .6 seconds left and Sasha fouls him!!!!! He does his routine "grab-my-hair-in-despair-and-close-my-eyes" move as Hill makes 2 of 3 free throws.
I'm guessing Phil Jackson wasn't too happy about that: With 3.6 seconds left in the 14 point lead 3rd quarter, Sasha enters for Fisher (presumably to take a foul, because the Lakers had a foul to give, which Farmar eventually took). And that's the last we've seen of Vujacic! When the Lakers were up 21 points with about 3 minutes left in the game, the garbage time went to DJ Mbenga, Walton, Powell, Farmar, and Shannon. Farmar and Shannon who get quality minutes for Fisher and Kobe! Sasha, I believe you are in the dog house.
Yesterday's game 2 featured absolutely no Sasha even though radio announcers Mychal Thompson and Spero Dedes (Local Laker broadcasters) were mentioning before the game that Sasha was available, which could prove useful! HONESTLY, am I the only one not buying into the Sasha bandwagon!?
I predict less than 5 minutes for Sasha in game 3 at Phoenix on Sunday. Let's see what happens.
(Photo from Yahoo) The second round of the playoffs is over as THE CAVALIERS (as a team) were beaten by the Boston Celtics in 6 games. LeBron James didn't lose the series, the Cavaliers did. Boston was the better team. You know what's crazy though? Somewhere in Boston, some hardcore Celtic fan who was probably screaming "NEW YORK KNICKS!" as LeBron was shooting free throws has possibly the last headband LeBron will ever wear as a Cavalier when he flinged it into the crowd as he was leaving the Boston Garden. EBAY!?!?! How much would that go for? I say thousands.
By the way, doesn't this series kind of prove that the NBA isn't fixed? Playoff Performance of the Ages: Rondo in game 4. 29 points, 18 rebounds, 13 assists. Game changing plays. Twice he was on a fast break for a layup with LeBron trailing him to do one of his patented volleyball spike blocks against the backboard. Rondo goes up for the layup, LeBron follows, Rondo passes behind his back to a trailing Tony Allen for a dunk.
I'm pretty sure this happened twice but this was the only clip I could find. Either way, it was amazing. He was also hitting his open jump shots for the most part.
But hey, at least LeBron clapped hands with the Celtics. All I know is LeBron is going to enter the world of Kobe. Not the championship world, but the summer of constant questions, media and drama that Kobe faced when he was taken out of the playoffs by the Suns in 2007. Not a happy time for Laker fans, will not be a happy time for Cleveland fans... unless he re-signs. But here's the thing. LeBron, if he re-signs with the Cavs, will the Cavs be that much better? Look at this: LeBron was $15 million this year. He's going to command 28-30$ million dollars with his new contract he will sign. Shaq's $20 million comes off the books this summer. Everyone else except some third stringers barely making any money at all is on contract for next year. Therefore, if he signs with the Cavs, they'll use Shaq's money to get LeBron that gigantic 30$ million dollar contract.... AND THE TEAM WILL REMAIN THE SAME (except for possibilities of a trade) (no picks in the draft this summer).
So the Cavs will be what we saw this year minus Shaq. They'll have Antawn Jamison for two more years (who should be getting a lot more grief than LeBron right now- DIDN'T SHOW UP), Mo Williams two, maybe 3 more years (player option 3rd year), Anderson Varejao until 2014, Daniel Gibson for 3 more years, Delonte West for another year... you get the picture.
But hey, I'm not going to speculate where he goes. Your guess is as good as mine. But I do know that the places with the most cap space to sign him to that 30ish$ million dollar contract are: New York Knicks, New Jersey Nets, Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, Los Angeles Clippers, Washington Wizards, Sacaramento Kings, and the Chicago Bulls. Any other team he wants to go to would have to be done through a sign-and-trade so teams wouldn't kill their profits with luxury taxes. So I'm not going to speculate, your guess is as good as mine, and as good as ESPN's... think about that.
In other series that have been over for awhile -
(Photo from Yahoo) Lakers vs Utah - Well I expected a little more out of Kirilenko's return in game 3, but he played 17 minutes, and then 12 minutes in game 4.
Carlos Boozer put up some decent numbers but he also had some critical turnovers right underneath the basket in crunch time of both games 3 and 4. Either way, he'll get a nice pay day from a team desperate for a change. My guess is the Golden State Warriors.
Ego alert - I was correct in my prediction for the series:
The Lakers will now take on Utah who will be a much easier opponent than the Thunder for the simple question of, who's going to guard Kobe? Rookie, Wesley Matthews? Ronnie Price? Andrei Kirilenko says he hopes to be back by game 3, and he can play defense on Kobe but we'll see what kind of defensive stopper shows up after that calf injury.
And Kobe did have a much better shooting performance than in the first series. Wesley Matthews had some nice plays on Kobe, but ultimately couldn't stop him. In the 6 games against the Thunder, Kobe shot respectively: 31%, 43%, 34%, 50%, 44%, 48%. In four games against the Suns, he shot respectively: 63%, 45%, 54%, 48% all while topping 30 points every game.
Oh and they had no post offensive or defensive game. Pau Gasol dominated as he should have. What's funny is that he won't face a decent post defender for the third straight series against the Suns-- I'm looking for him to put up great numbers again. The Jazz will get Okur back next season, and hopefully they start Millsap in place of Boozer. Oh, they could also win the NBA draft lottery as they have the Knicks' pick, no matter where that pick falls. That would be interesting. By the way, the lottery is on May 18th. Good luck to your team.
Ron Artest's twitter account got into it with Phil Jackson. Phil Jackson, picking his fights wisely brushed it off and didn't start any drama. Ron Artest shot 4-7 from 3 point range the next night. Moving on...
Game 3 Funny Moment, Derek Fisher steals the ball and is on his way to a fast break layup, only CJ Miles swats it out of bounds to make the crowd go crazy. That's not the funny part, listen to Marv Albert:
"OH MILES, WITH THE TAYSHAUN BLOCK!"
Of course he's referring to Tayshaun Prince's block on...
Reggie Miller! Marv Albert's commentating partner! Oh way to remind Reggie Miller of a game saving block in the second round of the 2004 playoffs! Quick history: the Pistons were up by 2 points and with 15 seconds left, Reggie could have tied it, but Tayshaun blocked it away, taking a 2-0 lead to Detroit. Ahhh, Marv.
Regarding Fisher being a traitor to the Utah Jazz - Uhh Jazz fans, do you really think Fisher coming off the bench is going to make you a championship team? At the time, the Jazz were better than the Lakers. This is the summer when the Jazz made the Western Conference Finals, and the Lakers were beat in 5 games to the Suns. Bynum sucked. Kwame Brown was the 3rd option behind Lamar Odom, Fisher was but a light upgrade from Smush Parker. He didn't do it to be on a better team. Fisher cut $8 million dollars to sign with the Lakers. He didn't do it for money. If Fisher was on the Jazz. Jazz fans would complain about Fisher the way LA fans complain about Fisher. The Jazz fans just needed someone to boo.
(Photo from Yahoo) Phoenix Suns vs San Antonio Spurs - I expected MUCH more from the Spurs. I even expected them to beat the Suns! Instead the complete opposite happened and they were swept. Game 4 featured a one eyed Nash still dismantling the Spurs defense... I'm pretty sure the better team won.
Here's something to take note of, the scores for each of the four games: All Suns wins- 111-102, 110-102, 110-96, 107-101. The Suns were consistent. They say they've worked on their defense, but the Spurs averaged 101 points this entire season.
Some questions the Spurs have, what to do with Tony Parker and George Hill? What to do with Richard Jefferson? Both Parker and Jefferson have one more season on contract at $15 and $13.5 million respectively. Those are expiring contracts they could trade away to a team looking for cap space for... 2011? Oh yeah, it was this summer that was the big off season sweepstakes. George Hill was starting quality in the first round against the Mavs. But so is Tony Parker, if he didn't get injured.
One issue they don't have to worry about anymore is Manu Ginobili- he was extended through the 2013 season. But the Spurs know how to draft so I'm sure they'll get some talent next month with the 20th and 49th pick (Tony Parker 28th pick, George Hill 26th pick, Manu 2nd round 28th pick, DeJuan Blair 2nd round 7th pick).
How will the Suns-Lakers series go? I predict a Lakers victory in 6 games. I see the Suns as a better version of the Thunder but with still no post presence. Amare and Nash do pick and rolls for days but I think Gasol, Kobe, Ron and Lamar can move and rotate well enough to at least slow it down a little bit. And again, who will guard Kobe? Jason Richardson and Grant Hill? They'll be better than Wesley Matthews but not better than Durant. I predict another efficient scoring games by both Kobe and Pau Gasol. Let's see if Ron Artest worked on his 3 point shooting during his week off.
(Photo from Yahoo) Orlando Magic vs Atlanta Hawks Atlanta was coming off a 7 game series with the Bucks and the Magic had swept the Bobcats a week earlier. Bibby couldn't hang with Jameer Nelson. The Hawks fans booed their team. Atlanta was swept out of the playoffs.
So what's next for the Hawks? Big FA name alert: Joe Johnson. Straight up Free Agent. Not a player option or anything. He decides where he wants to go and for how much. The Hawks have the money to sign him to a max deal and the core group of guys that can get him to the playoffs again, but is it a championship contending team? I think this is a bunch of freakishly athletic guys like Josh Smith, Marvin Williams, and Al Horford who can put up good numbers and play good defense. But in the playoffs, Horford was a bit undersized to handle Dwight Howard. Mike Bibby made 7 field goals for the entire series. The team has no bench besides Jamal Crawford and his behind the back cross over. And they fired their coach!
Atlanta has gone a long way from their terrible years in the early part of 2000s. They have some decisions to make this off season. Unfortunately, their core group of guys aren't as talented as championship contending teams' cores.
Which brings me to the Orlando Magic. 8-0 in the playoffs so far getting a lot of rest. Yes they played playoff teams, but they swept who they were supposed to sweep. Their test is here. The Boston Celtics, who they beat last year (Celtics were without KG). We'll see if Jameer Nelson can keep up with Rondo. I know for sure Rondo can keep up with Jameer. This Orlando team is weird though. They shoot a lot of 3 pointers. Vince Carter, Jameer Nelson, Rashard Lewis, Matt Barnes, Mikael Pietrus, JJ Redick can all hit from deep and they can all get hot. But I predict that the Celtics will be able to defend. I also think Perkins, Rasheed and Glen Davis can body up Dwight Howard a little better than Al Horford and Zaza Pachulia.
I honestly don't know who'll win this series but if I had to, I'd go with Orlando, by a hair. They get hot from 3 point line and just put take teams out. Dwight Howard protects the paint and limits any 2nd chance points with his rebounding. Vince Carter seems to be playing high quality basketball right now. But like I said, Boston could just as easily return to the Finals with Rondo playing out of his mind, Ray and Pierce hitting from outside and KG hitting those crazy fade aways. It will be a good series. That's all my thoughts on the second round and predictions for the third round, thanks for reading.
I was watching the two ABC games this weekend as well as did most of you and here are some quick thoughts:
Saturday - Cavaliers vs. Bulls
Straight up, the Bulls are not big or athletic enough to hang with the Cavaliers. Joakim Noah simply could not handle Shaq and bounced off him in the post, got spun moved on, had to hold Shaq down to prevent a dunk, and couldn't stop fouling after that. Luol Deng was also bounced around trying to guard LeBron. This game was literally like watching a college basketball team run all over a YMCA team. Just watch the highlights and you'll see what I mean - notice the bulldozing of LeBron.
Sunday - Lakers vs. Thunder
I have a couple things to say about this game, first being, one of the commentators said that Russell Westbrook's favorite player growing up was Magic Johnson. Fun Facts: Westbrook was born in 1988. Magic Johnson retired in 1991, played the olympics in 1992, COACHED the Lakers as a replacement coach in the 1993-94 season (not a successful season), and staged a failed comeback as power forward in the 95-96 season. So unless Westbrook has some crazy childhood memories from when he was 4 years old and younger, I do believe this is impossible.
Actual game notes - Ron Artest guarded Kevin Durant. Durant had a horrible game shooting 7-24 and 1-8 from 3 point land. But what I was looking at was how Artest was constantly plowing through screens by Nick Collison. If he goes under those screens, Durant gets open shots, if he doesn't plow through, Collison keeps setting them and gets hit by a big Artest trying to lock down Durant. Near the end of the game, there were far less screens by Collison on Artest. I love it.
I love when Mark Jackson exclaims, "You know the rule! Hand down, man down!"
Can't really call the refs biased in this series so far. Lakers had 27 fouls to Thunder's 21 including 5 on Kobe, 6 on Lamar, and 5 on Artest. And Nick Collison kept doing his thing by taking two charges. Durant got to the line 11 times... a legitimate 11 times.
And finally (and Jeff Van Gundy shared this sentiment sometime in the 4th), Durant takes some bad shots. He reminds me of Kobe Bryant circa 2004-2005 season, trying to go 1 on 3 forcing shot after shot after shot while Jeff Green, Thabo and Harden stand around the 3 point line, wide open after their man left to double team Durant, with their hands ready for a pass... only the pass never comes. And Durant goes 7-24. We'll see how he responds on Tuesday.
Kobe constantly passed out of double teams to Derek Fisher and Ron Artest for open three pointers. Problem is Ron hit only 1 of 8 from 3 point land. One more thing, Kobe did my favorite play in all of basketball: Kobe passes to Pau only it skips through his hands into the Durant's possession for a turnover, races downcourt (along with 4 other Lakers) to swat Durant's shot away and Pau grabs the rebound (1:30 mark of highlights video).
Hey remember when the Lakers were about to play the Boston Celtics in the 2008 Celtics? Of course you do. Laker haters always bring it up, and Laker fans always say that Andrew Bynum and Ariza were hurt. Well... whatever. Would you believe that Sasha had a vital role in getting the Lakers to the Finals that year? He did. Take a look -
He averaged 9 pts on 45% shooting (44% from 3 hitting 1.6 3s a game) all in 18 minutes a game in the 07-08 season. During the playoffs, he did about the same averaging 8 points in 21 minutes on about 40% shooting (He even earned himself an above average nickname: The Machine). Highlighted by his 20 point game in LA's first win against Boston in game 3 where he was the only Laker not named Kobe to score in double figures. Lowlighted by his horrid, atrocious defense against Ray Allen in game 4 (Lakers down 3, after giving up a crazy lead... ugh, just watch).
Side note - do not place the blame on Pau Gasol at all. Anyone who plays high school, college, semi pro, pro, YMCA, and/or playground basketball can tell that Sasha gave up on the play, let Ray go to his right, tried to take a wimpy swipe at the ball and got the best seat in the house for the game clinching layup. Even Paul Pierce looks like "Whoa! Yeah, Alright! That was easy!" at the :34 second mark.
Despite this terrible defensive stance, Vujacic cashed in on his numbers (a great indication of skill, right?) and signed a 3 year/$15 million deal that summer.
Still haven't worked on those defensive slides, eh?!
"All season I haven't been getting much playing time," Vujacic said. "It's OK. Coach has his rotation. At least now I know what my role is. He said the reason we had the talk, he told me what my role is and now I understand what my role is. I was trying to find out all season long. But now I know."
What is that role?
"Well, I'm out of the rotation," Vujacic said. "If they are winning, I'm not playing. If they are losing and the team is down by 20 points, then I get few minutes."
Translation: Oooohhh!!! Now I get it! If I (1) keep playing hyperactive defense where it looks like I'm working hard to try and make up for my Finals embarrassment act in 08 (but instead I pick up cheap fouls and put my hands over my mouth so it looks like it's a missed call by the ref - 4.7 fouls per 36 minutes this season, wow!), (2) keep taking terrible shots that don't come within the offense when I'm trying to shoot my way back into playing time (41% FG, 33% 3PT, you have to watch the games though to see his bad decision shots), and (3) keep talking back to coaches who are trying to help me and the Lakers beat teams like the Thunder (when the incident occurred) and not atoning for it (hasn't played the last 3 games!), then I'll never get into the rotation and only play when we're down 20 points!
Sasha has turned into a disgruntled employee, except it's not like you and me where his boss can just fire him. He's getting $5 million this year and a little more than $5 million next year! Sasha needs to ask himself if he should swallow his pride and apologize to get his... 8 minutes a game back? That's up to him.
But maybe, Sasha's career has peaked. Started off hitting some rookie and sophomore walls, had his breakout season during a contract year, cashed in, leveled off and is on the tail end of his career? Maybe... All I know is that his defense has always been suspect. Too hyperactive, too swipe-y, too easily beaten by average and above average players (but if he's guarding Steve Novak, forget about it!). I find it ironic and amusing that his biggest flaw was on full display during game 4 of the finals in crunch time, and he still cashed in.
Slowly but surely, Sasha is turning into Smush Parker circa Summer of 2007 when the Lakers said to Smush, you are not in our future plans. I predict the same thing will happen in the summer of 2011, if the Lakers don't try to unload his expiring contract before the trade deadline during the 2010-11 season. As for this year, it's pretty evident the Laker bench is non existent and Sasha's not helping himself, or the team. He needs to hit up Smush on Twitter or something before it's too late!
(Photo from LA Times) The Lakers have 3 point guards: Derek Fisher, Jordan Farmar, and Shannon Brown. Derek fisher is a free agent this summer. Jordan Farmar will be a restricted free agent, and Shannon Brown can opt out of his contract and look for work elsewhere, or sign a bigger contract. The rest of the team is pretty much set in stone barring any trade, injury, or Kobe not singing an extension (and playing in Italy!? No). But the Lakers have some questions about their PG future.
Question 1 Do they bring Fisher back at a fraction of his current $5 million a year for a couple more years? Pros: He's a Laker veteran who knows what to do in Phil Jackson's triangle offense. He can hit clutch 3 pointers. Cons: He's a liability on defense and his offense isn't that great this season either. If I'm the Lakers: I don't think so. At least not as a starter. Fisher's been exposed his whole career on the defensive end but this season in particular, he's been getting beat very easily by other PGs. Plus, his offensive number have taken a hit as well.
Question 2: If he doesn't opt out of his contract (which he probably will, can't really bank on $2 million for one year and that's it... for an NBA player), Do the Lakers give the reigns to Shannon Brown? Pros: He's a high flying dunk act but has been working on his jump shot and can hit a 3 pointer if given enough space. He's a good defender and is big (6'4" 210 lbs) and won't get posted up easily. Cons: He still seems like a raw talent guy even though he's been in the league since 2006 (drafted 1 pick before Farmar, in fact). If I'm the Lakers: Not the reigns. I'd keep him on the bench if I can't find a better starting PG. He's a scorer, not a distributor and in the triangle offense, he makes some bad decisions by taking off balance shots without first passing to Pau or Bynum in the post. First thing that comes to mind in comparisons is JR Smith-ish in that he's gonna shoot the ball.
Question 3: Do they give the reigns to the team to 2006 draft pick Jordan Farmar? Pros: he's a push the ball up the court kinda guard, can create his own shot, and makes nice passes. He's been with the team for 4 years and knows the offense. He can keep up with the league's better PGs (compared to Fisher). Cons: He's only started 2 games his entire career, both at the end of his rookie season. He's pretty small (6'2" 180 lbs). If I'm the Lakers: This might be the best scenario. Jordan's got a good combination of speed and basketball IQ and looks to pass first as opposed to Shannon Brown who's more of a scorer/slasher. He's got a good shot including the 3 pointer.
Things to keep in mind:
The Lakers pay roll drops from $91 million to around $77 million next year, which is still over the salary cap.
The Lakers don't need an amazing PG who can drive and kick. This is a triangle offense team that needs their PGs to run a motion after the ball goes into the post. This is why Kobe and Lamar sometimes initiate the offense and the Lakers usually get the same result on their possession.
Fisher would still be a viable option if his defense wasn't getting worse each season. What they need is a PG who can keep up with Chris Paul, Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook, and Rajon Rondo.
When the Lakers DO do a drive and kick kind of play, they have Kobe and Lamar (and Farmar) who can do that. Also, they run a mean pick n roll with Kobe and Pau as seen in last year's finals against the magic. You know, when they won the championship?
Somewhat related: The Lakers have to make a not so dire decision on DJ Mbenga and Josh Powell (both getting less than $1 million this year).
If those two don't return, they'll need to sign some bench players as Adam Morrison is for sure not coming back. Los Angeles may have to replace DJ, Powell, Morrison, the 3 PGs discussed above. But anyway...
Ideally, the Lakers would've gotten Kirk Hinrich in a another rip off type trade before the all star break (a deal was out there where the Lakers could have gotten him for Sasha and Morrison, wow.) So free agency moves aside, if the Lakers had to make a decision, there best move would be to start Farmar and have Shannon come off the bench.
(Photo from YahooSports) Well this sure is interesting. The defending champion Los Angeles Lakers have the second best record in the entire NBA. But after tonight's loss against the Mavericks, you have to second guess or at least take with a grain of salt, your pre season pick to repeat as champions or make the finals. Let's go through their significant losses and pick them apart a little bit:
The Losses
10/30/09 - loss to Dallas 94-80 Can you read into it? 2nd game with Ron Artest and no Pau Gasol, I'd give the Lakers a pass on this one but Marion did play good defense on Kobe that game.
11/13/09 - loss to Denver 105-79 Can you read into it? 2nd game of a back-to-back @ Denver, after handling the Suns at home. Still no Pau Gasol. But an 8 point 3rd quarter... unforgivable.
12/12/09 - loss to Utah 102-94 Can you read into it? 2nd game of a back-to-back @ Utah, after a 104-92 win over Minnesota at home. Full strength roster-wise. Just got out played. But they did beat them at home before the Minnesota game. Utah was better.
12/25/09 - loss to Cleveland 87-102 Can you read into it? Plenty of rest. Big stage. Cleveland was simply the better team.
12/28/09 - loss to Phoenix 103-118 Can you read into it? Ron Artest was out with a concussion. They were able to score but they weren't able to stop Phoenix from scoring.
1/12/10 - loss to San Antonio 85-105 Can you read into it? No Pau Gasol. No Kobe for the 4th quarter due to back spasms. That was pretty significant for this game.
1/21/10 loss to Cleveland 87-93 Can you read into it? Another game with plenty of rest. Full strength roster-wise. Tough call near the end of the game that could have been a 4-point swing when Artest was called for a foul that led to Varejao free throws when it could have gone the other way around. Still, Cleveland played great. LeBron played great. No Mo Williams.
2/5/10 loss to Denver 113-126 Can you read into it? Billups goes off with 9 3-pointers and 39 points. Lakers at full strength. Denver was the better team.
2/18/10 loss to Boston 87-86 Can you read into it? They kept it close and had a last second shot to win it, all with no Kobe. But they needed a last second shot from Kobe to win it in Boston a few weeks earlier.
2/24/10 loss to Dallas 96-101 Can you read into it? Full strength. Couldn't stop fouling a good free throw shooting team. Kept it close but took a bad 3 pointer with 25 seconds or so left. Dallas was without Caron Butler.
Records against these teams
Losing to: Cleveland: 0-2 Denver: 0-2 (2 games remaining) Tied with: Dallas: 2-2 Boston: 1-1 San Antonio: 1-1 (2 games remaining) Beating: Utah: 2-1 (1 game remaining) Phoenix: 2-1 (1 game remaining)
What do all of these teams have in common? All of them have PGs that torture the Lakers. Let's take a look:
The Point Guards
Who they're currently losing to: Denver's Chauncey Billups: 20/3/6 this season VS. 22.5/3/8 vs Lakers (39/4/8 and 6/2/8) Cleveland's Mo Williams: 16/3/5 this season VS. 28/6/7 vs Lakers (1 game- 12/25/09)
Who they're currently tied with: Boston's Rajon Rondo: 14/4/10 this season VS. 17.5/5/11.5 vs Lakers (14/5/11 in win, 21/5/12 in loss - both games could have gone either way) San Antonio's Tony Parker: 17/2/6 this season VS. 21/2/7 vs Lakers (22/2/6 in win, 20/2/8 in loss) Dallas' Jason Kidd: 10/5/9 this season VS. 4/5/9 vs Lakers (2/4/11 and 14/7/13 in wins, 0/4/5 and 11/7/11 in losses)
Who they're currently beating: Utah's Deron Williams: 18/4/10 this season VS. 16/5/10 vs Lakers (21/4/11 in the win against LA, 11/9/10 and 17/2/8 in the losses)
Phoenix's Steve Nash: 17/3/11 this season VS. 14/1/9 (16/3/13 in the win against LA, 12/0/10 and 13/0/5 in the losses)
My conclusion: PG defense is important and a weakness for the Lakers (no I'm not going to act like I discovered Plutonium, everyone should know that PG defense is important). Everyone's ears are probably bleeding about bloggers and sports writers writing about how the Lakes were trying to trade for Kirk Hinrich from the Bulls to get a PG on ball defender to slow down the league's top PGs. Everyone knows Derek Fisher is turning 35 going on 36 in August and can't keep up with the league's top PGs. In fact, Derek Fisher is on the lower end of starting PGs when it comes to defense.
So why does he start? Because the Lakers run a triangle offense that doesn't require a drive and kick type PG and the Lakers have 7 footers to help on defense for guards that beat the Laker guards to the basket. Only these guards are All Star guards who know to pass the ball to whoever those 7 footers leave for a dunk or an open shot (as pictured above!). But are the Lakers back up PGs that much of an upgrade? Farmar who's good at driving to the basket and can make some nice passes and can create his own shot, but his defense needs work. Shannon Brown takes some bad shots on offense but his defense is better than Fisher's and Farmar's, but not by much.
Then again, that's pretty much the only hole the Lakers have (well, that and their hit or miss bench play). It's hard to say that a team with Kobe and Gasol with Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom and past defensive player of the year and all star Ron Artest as your role players, will not make the finals. But Houston with Aaron Brooks and Denver with Chauncey Billups gave the Lakers trouble last year in the playoffs. Could Denver take the next step and dethrone them this year? We'll have to see how the next 2 games vs. Denver play out but you can almost guarantee that Billups is going to have an above average game when he plays the Lakers, as well as any other PG in the league.
(Photo from Lakers Nation) We all saw the game (and thank GOD the NFL season is almost over so we get more Jeff Van Gundy commentating ABC games on Sundays). We all saw Kobe take a perfectly defended shot and swish it in with 7.4 seconds left and we all saw Ray Allen's 3 pointer as time expired barely miss to win the game for Boston.
Sooooo this makes Boston too old to contend for a championship? This makes KG lose his fiery intensity? I hate playing the what if game, but you have to think what if Kobe had missed that shot or Ray Allen had hit the 3 pointer at the end?
The sportswriters would be writing about the other half of the game that all the bloggers noticed and wrote about. They'd be writing about how Kobe was taking terrible shots and how he airballed a shot defended by Rasheed Wallace at the exact same spot. How the Lakers didn't take the ball to the rim enough and how the Celtic defense shut them down after that 30 point first quarter to 17, 19 and (what would be) 22 point quarters. How KG was not old and was able to hold Pau Gasol to a 4-9 shooting night and had some nice fakes to get Andrew Bynum out of position, and finally, how the Celtics are still up there in favorites to win the championship.
The Truth?
This game was a toss up. Both teams didn't play to their potential. Ray Allen's shot was off, KG's defense really is not up to his par (including the play where Bynum dunked on him while KG was talking shit to him in his ear). Yes, the Celtics look to have lost a step and will be relying on Rajon Rondo to take them as far as he can go. The Lakers took way too many jumpshots and should have gone to Bynum and Gasol way more often than they did. Kobe took terrible shots. Both teams gave up double digit leads and in the end, it came down to two shots that could have gone either way.
Yes, it was Kobe's 4th or 5th game winner of the season, but that shot was perfectly defended. Ray Allen was open and has made tougher shots than the one he took with Lamar closing out a little late. It truly is a game of inches and if you didn't watch the game and read the sports section of your newspaper, you would not get the true essence of what both teams were about on Sunday.
(Photo from NBCSports)
