1st Half
Gasol opens with a lay-up! How's that for a low post point?
But, Caron Butler goes on an 8-0 run to give the Clippers an 8-2 lead.
Gasol scores, again, but Butler hit's another 3-pointer as Butler leads Gasol 11-4. Finally, Blake Griffin scores for the Clippers to make the score 13-4.
Gasol makes 1 of 2 free throws to make the score 13-5, Clippers.
That is how the game opened up.
______
With 5:43 left in the 1st quarter, the Lakers call a time-out as they're down 19-9.
Bynum had taken 4 shots up to that point and only converted 1.
Gasol is 2 for 2. Barns is 1 for 2. Fisher is 0 for 1. and Bryant hasn't taken a shot.
Out of the time-out, Gasol scores a basket with an assist from Bryant.
Andrew Goudelock replaced Fisher with 4:12 remaining in the quarter.
Kobe takes his first shot of the game with 4:09 left in the quarter. He made the shot.
Goudelock, showing he's not shy, takes a shot in the lane and makes it.
Kobe's 2nd shot of the game is a 3--pointer and he makes it.
Showing there's no punk in his game Goudelock takes a 3-pointer and makes it to tie the score at 23 with 2:29 left in the quarter.
The quarter ends with the Clippers leading 28-25.
The name of the game in the NBA is aggression. Kobe Bryant is aggressive. Chris Paul is aggressive. That's why they're as good as they are. The Lakers role players, up to this point in the season, have not been aggressive. I wish someone would tell these guys that nothing is going to happen unless you make it happen. Like Andrew Goudelock did with his first 2 shots. He was aggressive. Let's see if it continues.
With 8.4 seconds remaining in the half, Fisher hits a 3-pointer for his first points of the game.
2nd Half:
The Lakers finally beat the Clippers 96-91.
With Andrew Goudelock coming on like he has something to prove, I guess, that woke Fisher up because the Fish scored 8 points in the 2nd half to finish with 11 points for the game.
Andrew Goudelock had 14 points.
See Goudelock shot the ball, I'm thinking, made Fisher be more aggressive. Fisher is old and Goudelock is young. I hope Goudelock continues to shot the ball and put pressure on Fisher to perform or, as the saying goes: get him out of there!
The big 3 for the Lakers finish with:
Bryant 24 points.
Gasol 23 points.
Bynum 19 points.
Beyond the big 3 for the Lakers, it's a crap shoot! This night Fisher and Goudelock came through with 25 points between them. Someone has to step up every night!
mike t.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
Pacers vs. Lakers in Los Angeles
1st Half:
Kobe Bryant had 11 of the Lakers' 27 points in the 1st quarter.
Gasol had 6 points and Bynum had 4. Matt Barns chipped in 4 points, too. Gasol, also, had 5 rebounds.
The Lakers lead the Pacers 27-14 after the 1st quarter.
__________
Metta World Peace opens the second quarter for the Lakers by making a lay-up. This is important because Peace's production for the month of January is in question. As the quarter goes on Peace is aggressive as he takes two more shots in a short time period. He makes one of the shots. In 6:47 minutes of time he takes 3 shots and makes 2 of them.
Peace gets a tip in off a missed free throw by Ebanks.
Peace hits a 3-pointer at 6:43.
Through a quarter and a half the Lakers' bench had 15 points; 9 of those points went to Peace, a positive sign.
The Pacers outscore the Lakers in the 2nd quarter 35-25. The Lakers lead at the half 52-49. Where did that 13 point 1st quarter lead go to?
2nd Half:
Bryant and Bynum open the Lakers scoring by putting in 6 points a piece in the first 6 minutes of the 3rd quarter. That would be 12 of the Lakers 14 points for the quarter. Yet, the Pacers are outscoring the Lakers 15-14 at that point and only trail the Lakers 66-65.
Coming out of a time-out Bryant and Bynum continue to do the Lakers' scoring as both go to the line. Bryant is 2 for 2 and Bynum is 1 for 2. That gives the Lakers a 69-65 lead with 5:30 left in the quarter.
Troy Murphy sees his first action of the game with 2:55 left in the 3rd quarter.
The Lakers scoring for the 3rd quarter:
Bryant 14
Bynum 7
Barns 4
Morris 1
(Where is Gasol's name?)
That's 26 points for the Lakers in the 3rd quarter. The Pacers scored 28 and trail the Lakers at the end of the quarter 78-77.
4th Quarter
The Lakers got outscored in the 4th quarter 21-18, and only one question has to be asked: what happened to Gasol?
At the end of the 1st quarter, Gasol had 6 points and 5 rebounds. His stat line for the night was: 8 points and 8 rebounds. But, he did have 10 assists. I'm scratching my head about that stat line.
But, more puzzling than that line is the McRoberts' stat line:
Minutes: 19:40.
Shooting: 0-2.
Rebounding: 3.
In McRoberts' last 5 games, in which he played at least 15 minutes; he has taken a total of 9 shots in those games. That is an average of 1.8 shots per game in the minimum of 15 minutes of play. Now, combine those stats with the Metta World Peace scoring stats since January 1st. One player (McRoberts) won't shoot the ball, and another player (Peace) can't score a basket (until tonight). Those two players have the biggest roles off the bench, but if one won't shoot and the other can't score...gee, coach Brown is making the Lakers look as if they have no answers.
I mean, take Troy Murphy in tonight's game alone, in the 9:05 of playing time he got; he took 4 shots. The media is talking about the Lakers' offense being sluggish? Well, what is McRoberts doing in the rotation? I'm starting to wonder if coach Brown knows what he's doing. McRoberts' stat line over the past 5 games is absurd! And coach Brown is responsible for playing him over Murphy.
The Lakers need an offensive lift wherever they can get it, and to go with McRoberts over Murphy, at this point, defies logic! The question that has to be asked is this: what does McRoberts bring to the game that Murphy doesn't? Is the difference so big that coach Brown has to stay with McRoberts?
Over the years Murphy is a proven double/double guy, while McRoberts best year was 7 points and 5 rebounds this past season with the Pacers. Is there something we don't know about Murphy that is preventing him from getting the bulk of the bench minutes when Bynum and Gasol are resting?
The season is starting to form with opinions now, and coach Brown needs to answer for his on-court decisions.
McRoberts: I hustle! I hustle! I hustle so much that I don't have to shoot the ball. That's how much I hustle!
Coach Brown: We need his energy out on the court.
Lakers' Record: 10-8.
Conclusion: McRoberts' energy isn't translating into anything positive in the win/loss column.
The Fan's Teeth are Showing: The honeymoon is over!
__________
The Pacers are a good small-market team. They are 11-4, while the Lakers are 10-8.
The Lakers have the big-market "big 3" roster, while the Pacers have the small-market balanced roster. The Lakers' need to hunt for players from small-market teams that have balanced rosters, and are willing to part with a player or two. I mean, you hear a lot about the Lakers going for Howard to make a big splash in the NBA currents. But, why not go for a couple of players to balance out the roster instead of the big headlines. I'm mean, how many Paul George's are out there to be taken?
One more time: why go for the big splash when the Lakers would be doing very well to take Boris Diaw off of the Bobcats' hands. Or take a gamble on Stephen Jackson, and amnesty him before the start of the next season if it doesn't work out. Or how about Carl Landry out of New Orleans? Again, I MEAN, instead of the big slash...make a play for a player like Devin Harris out in Utah. Do the Lakers need some help scoring without giving up any of their "big 3"? Any of the players I just mentioned would work out fine. The Lakers don't need to swing for the fences, but just try to balance out the roster with a good role player.
mike t.
p.s. Good game from Metta World Peace, tonight!
Kobe Bryant had 11 of the Lakers' 27 points in the 1st quarter.
Gasol had 6 points and Bynum had 4. Matt Barns chipped in 4 points, too. Gasol, also, had 5 rebounds.
The Lakers lead the Pacers 27-14 after the 1st quarter.
__________
Metta World Peace opens the second quarter for the Lakers by making a lay-up. This is important because Peace's production for the month of January is in question. As the quarter goes on Peace is aggressive as he takes two more shots in a short time period. He makes one of the shots. In 6:47 minutes of time he takes 3 shots and makes 2 of them.
Peace gets a tip in off a missed free throw by Ebanks.
Peace hits a 3-pointer at 6:43.
Through a quarter and a half the Lakers' bench had 15 points; 9 of those points went to Peace, a positive sign.
The Pacers outscore the Lakers in the 2nd quarter 35-25. The Lakers lead at the half 52-49. Where did that 13 point 1st quarter lead go to?
2nd Half:
Bryant and Bynum open the Lakers scoring by putting in 6 points a piece in the first 6 minutes of the 3rd quarter. That would be 12 of the Lakers 14 points for the quarter. Yet, the Pacers are outscoring the Lakers 15-14 at that point and only trail the Lakers 66-65.
Coming out of a time-out Bryant and Bynum continue to do the Lakers' scoring as both go to the line. Bryant is 2 for 2 and Bynum is 1 for 2. That gives the Lakers a 69-65 lead with 5:30 left in the quarter.
Troy Murphy sees his first action of the game with 2:55 left in the 3rd quarter.
The Lakers scoring for the 3rd quarter:
Bryant 14
Bynum 7
Barns 4
Morris 1
(Where is Gasol's name?)
That's 26 points for the Lakers in the 3rd quarter. The Pacers scored 28 and trail the Lakers at the end of the quarter 78-77.
4th Quarter
The Lakers got outscored in the 4th quarter 21-18, and only one question has to be asked: what happened to Gasol?
At the end of the 1st quarter, Gasol had 6 points and 5 rebounds. His stat line for the night was: 8 points and 8 rebounds. But, he did have 10 assists. I'm scratching my head about that stat line.
But, more puzzling than that line is the McRoberts' stat line:
Minutes: 19:40.
Shooting: 0-2.
Rebounding: 3.
In McRoberts' last 5 games, in which he played at least 15 minutes; he has taken a total of 9 shots in those games. That is an average of 1.8 shots per game in the minimum of 15 minutes of play. Now, combine those stats with the Metta World Peace scoring stats since January 1st. One player (McRoberts) won't shoot the ball, and another player (Peace) can't score a basket (until tonight). Those two players have the biggest roles off the bench, but if one won't shoot and the other can't score...gee, coach Brown is making the Lakers look as if they have no answers.
I mean, take Troy Murphy in tonight's game alone, in the 9:05 of playing time he got; he took 4 shots. The media is talking about the Lakers' offense being sluggish? Well, what is McRoberts doing in the rotation? I'm starting to wonder if coach Brown knows what he's doing. McRoberts' stat line over the past 5 games is absurd! And coach Brown is responsible for playing him over Murphy.
The Lakers need an offensive lift wherever they can get it, and to go with McRoberts over Murphy, at this point, defies logic! The question that has to be asked is this: what does McRoberts bring to the game that Murphy doesn't? Is the difference so big that coach Brown has to stay with McRoberts?
Over the years Murphy is a proven double/double guy, while McRoberts best year was 7 points and 5 rebounds this past season with the Pacers. Is there something we don't know about Murphy that is preventing him from getting the bulk of the bench minutes when Bynum and Gasol are resting?
The season is starting to form with opinions now, and coach Brown needs to answer for his on-court decisions.
McRoberts: I hustle! I hustle! I hustle so much that I don't have to shoot the ball. That's how much I hustle!
Coach Brown: We need his energy out on the court.
Lakers' Record: 10-8.
Conclusion: McRoberts' energy isn't translating into anything positive in the win/loss column.
The Fan's Teeth are Showing: The honeymoon is over!
__________
The Pacers are a good small-market team. They are 11-4, while the Lakers are 10-8.
The Lakers have the big-market "big 3" roster, while the Pacers have the small-market balanced roster. The Lakers' need to hunt for players from small-market teams that have balanced rosters, and are willing to part with a player or two. I mean, you hear a lot about the Lakers going for Howard to make a big splash in the NBA currents. But, why not go for a couple of players to balance out the roster instead of the big headlines. I'm mean, how many Paul George's are out there to be taken?
One more time: why go for the big splash when the Lakers would be doing very well to take Boris Diaw off of the Bobcats' hands. Or take a gamble on Stephen Jackson, and amnesty him before the start of the next season if it doesn't work out. Or how about Carl Landry out of New Orleans? Again, I MEAN, instead of the big slash...make a play for a player like Devin Harris out in Utah. Do the Lakers need some help scoring without giving up any of their "big 3"? Any of the players I just mentioned would work out fine. The Lakers don't need to swing for the fences, but just try to balance out the roster with a good role player.
mike t.
p.s. Good game from Metta World Peace, tonight!
Friday, January 20, 2012
In Theory: Bynum vs. Howard
1st Half
Ouch!
If the Lakers' 3-point shooting could be viewed as a microcosm of their overall shooting...I guess that would explain a lot of what's going on with the Lakers offense. The Lakers' 3-point shooting for the 1st half was 1-8. The Magic's 3-point shooting for the 1st half: 6-15. The Magic's percentage isn't all that great, but compared to the Lakers percentage...it's heaven on the court.
The Magic led at the half 48-31.
For all the "critics" who claim Kobe Bryant shoots too much, well, without Bryant's 15 points on 6-10 shooting, who knows how far back the Lakers would have been to the Magic in the 1st half.
2nd Half
Bryant scores 15 points in the 2nd half. That's a double/double, which equals 30 points. lol! That is what is called being consistent. Also, being consistent is that Bynum and Gasol, again, had double/doubles. Simply put: the Lakers' big 3 is producing in a big way. The problem is that, it seems, the other players are not being consistent. Fisher showed himself to be professional tonight. He took 14 shots and produced 12 points. I'll take that over a game when he only shots 5 or 6 times.
The bench? Metta World Peace is struggling! He had 0 points tonight after scoring 7 points the night before. That's like a roller coaster going up and down, up and down. But for Peace, it's no roller coaster. It's a straight line. Metta World Peace has scored a total of 36 point in the month of January. That's in 11 games. My goodness! That's an average of 3.2 points for the month. And mind you, this is supposed to be the leader of the bench. That pretty much sums up the Lakers after the big 3.
To give you an idea of where this might be leading to; take a look at the N.Y. Knicks and their big 3. Their big 3 usually has the bulk of their points, but their record is 6-9. There is a serious lack of balance in their approach to how the game is played. It appears the Lakers are starting to follow the "lack-of-balance" New York Knicks in how they play the game.
_________
GAME OBSERVATIONS
The Lakers' bench is made up of some delusional minded people. To be precise, I'm talking about Jason Kapono and Josh McRoberts. I'll say this plain and simple.
First; Kapono: you don't play 19:08 minutes off the bench and only take 3 shots! You weren't brought here because of your defense. You were brought here to shoot the damn ball!
Second; McRoberts: you don't play 17:58 minutes off the bench and don't take any shots! How idiotic is that?
Both of these players are ridiculous!
_________
And Howard won!
mike t.
Ouch!
If the Lakers' 3-point shooting could be viewed as a microcosm of their overall shooting...I guess that would explain a lot of what's going on with the Lakers offense. The Lakers' 3-point shooting for the 1st half was 1-8. The Magic's 3-point shooting for the 1st half: 6-15. The Magic's percentage isn't all that great, but compared to the Lakers percentage...it's heaven on the court.
The Magic led at the half 48-31.
For all the "critics" who claim Kobe Bryant shoots too much, well, without Bryant's 15 points on 6-10 shooting, who knows how far back the Lakers would have been to the Magic in the 1st half.
2nd Half
Bryant scores 15 points in the 2nd half. That's a double/double, which equals 30 points. lol! That is what is called being consistent. Also, being consistent is that Bynum and Gasol, again, had double/doubles. Simply put: the Lakers' big 3 is producing in a big way. The problem is that, it seems, the other players are not being consistent. Fisher showed himself to be professional tonight. He took 14 shots and produced 12 points. I'll take that over a game when he only shots 5 or 6 times.
The bench? Metta World Peace is struggling! He had 0 points tonight after scoring 7 points the night before. That's like a roller coaster going up and down, up and down. But for Peace, it's no roller coaster. It's a straight line. Metta World Peace has scored a total of 36 point in the month of January. That's in 11 games. My goodness! That's an average of 3.2 points for the month. And mind you, this is supposed to be the leader of the bench. That pretty much sums up the Lakers after the big 3.
To give you an idea of where this might be leading to; take a look at the N.Y. Knicks and their big 3. Their big 3 usually has the bulk of their points, but their record is 6-9. There is a serious lack of balance in their approach to how the game is played. It appears the Lakers are starting to follow the "lack-of-balance" New York Knicks in how they play the game.
_________
GAME OBSERVATIONS
The Lakers' bench is made up of some delusional minded people. To be precise, I'm talking about Jason Kapono and Josh McRoberts. I'll say this plain and simple.
First; Kapono: you don't play 19:08 minutes off the bench and only take 3 shots! You weren't brought here because of your defense. You were brought here to shoot the damn ball!
Second; McRoberts: you don't play 17:58 minutes off the bench and don't take any shots! How idiotic is that?
Both of these players are ridiculous!
_________
And Howard won!
mike t.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Lakers vs. The Mighty Heat
1st Quarter:
THE NUMBERS OF THE GAME!
Gasol has 11 points at the end of the 1st quarter, but the Lakers trail the Heat after the quarter 25-20.
2nd Quarter:
The Lakers' starting line-up shooting for the 1st half:
1-8 Kobe
0-2 Fisher
3-7 Bynum
5-10 Gasol
1-4 Barns
The Lakers starting 5 combine for 30 first half points, while the Heat hit 8 out of 13 3-pointers in the 1st half. 8 out 11 3-pointers? That's 24 points. The Lakers hit 2 of 10 3-pointers, that's 6 points. The Heat's bench scored 14 points. The Lakers' bench scored 7 points. The Heat lead the Lakers by 15 at the half 52-37.
3rd Quarter:
The Lakers hit 4 points in the first 1:31 of the quarter, while holding the Heat to 0. Small start to cut a 15 point lead but it's a start.
At the end of the 3rd quarter the Lakers' big 3 had 42 of the team's 56 points. Ouch! The Heat's big "2" had 37 of the team's 77 points. You do the math! OK, I'll do it for you. The Lakers are down 21 points at the end of 3 quarters of play. 77-56.
4th Quarter:
The Lakers' starting line-up shooting for the 2nd half, and game totals:
8-21 Kobe. That's 7-13 in the 2nd half.
1-5 Fisher. That's 1-3 in the 2nd half.
6-13 Bynum. That's 3-6 in the 2nd half.
11-19 Gasol. That 6-9 in the 2nd half.
1-6 Barns. That's 0-2 in the 2nd half.
The Lakers' big 3 finished with 65 of the teams 87 points. Troy Murphy scored 6 points and Peace scored 3 for the Lakers in the 4th quarter. 9 points! That's 9 of 31 4th quarter Lakers points; the rest went to the big 3.
The Lakers bench is hurting right now, and their 1 and 3 spots are not consistent enough to make the Lakers a dangerous team. I don't see how the Lakers get around the non-production of the 1 and 3 spots. Especially Fisher.
I don't care what anyone says, when the 1 and 3 spots have only 11 shots between them, something is wrong. You can't produce consistently while only shooting that many shots between 2 starters. And it's not because Kobe is shooting too much. I've seen enough to know that these guys are not looking for the shots. They seem to be looking for one of the big 3 to pass the ball to, before they consider that they might need to step up and deliver for the team.
Meanwhile, the Heat broke in Eddy Curry tonight and the guy scored 6 points in 6 minutes of playing time. The guy is huge and if he commits himself to the defensive end of the game...then, the Heat, in my opinion, would be favorite to win it all. I've said it once and I'll say it, again; without a defensive center, no team in the NBA will win a championship. Curry is an interesting "project."
Still, the best record in the league, right now, belongs to Chicago and Oklahoma City in terms of losses. Both teams have 3 losses. The Lakers, with tonight's defeat, have 6 losses. In other words: there isn't a dominated team in the league right now. The season is wide-open for anyone to win the championship this year. Heck, right now, Dallas and Boston wouldn't even get into the playoffs. They both sit at the 9 spots in their Conference standings.
In other words: no need to panic if you're a Lakers fan. If you're a Bobcat fan, you should panic. Let's see how this thing shakes out.
mike t.
THE NUMBERS OF THE GAME!
Gasol has 11 points at the end of the 1st quarter, but the Lakers trail the Heat after the quarter 25-20.
2nd Quarter:
The Lakers' starting line-up shooting for the 1st half:
1-8 Kobe
0-2 Fisher
3-7 Bynum
5-10 Gasol
1-4 Barns
The Lakers starting 5 combine for 30 first half points, while the Heat hit 8 out of 13 3-pointers in the 1st half. 8 out 11 3-pointers? That's 24 points. The Lakers hit 2 of 10 3-pointers, that's 6 points. The Heat's bench scored 14 points. The Lakers' bench scored 7 points. The Heat lead the Lakers by 15 at the half 52-37.
3rd Quarter:
The Lakers hit 4 points in the first 1:31 of the quarter, while holding the Heat to 0. Small start to cut a 15 point lead but it's a start.
At the end of the 3rd quarter the Lakers' big 3 had 42 of the team's 56 points. Ouch! The Heat's big "2" had 37 of the team's 77 points. You do the math! OK, I'll do it for you. The Lakers are down 21 points at the end of 3 quarters of play. 77-56.
4th Quarter:
The Lakers' starting line-up shooting for the 2nd half, and game totals:
8-21 Kobe. That's 7-13 in the 2nd half.
1-5 Fisher. That's 1-3 in the 2nd half.
6-13 Bynum. That's 3-6 in the 2nd half.
11-19 Gasol. That 6-9 in the 2nd half.
1-6 Barns. That's 0-2 in the 2nd half.
The Lakers' big 3 finished with 65 of the teams 87 points. Troy Murphy scored 6 points and Peace scored 3 for the Lakers in the 4th quarter. 9 points! That's 9 of 31 4th quarter Lakers points; the rest went to the big 3.
The Lakers bench is hurting right now, and their 1 and 3 spots are not consistent enough to make the Lakers a dangerous team. I don't see how the Lakers get around the non-production of the 1 and 3 spots. Especially Fisher.
I don't care what anyone says, when the 1 and 3 spots have only 11 shots between them, something is wrong. You can't produce consistently while only shooting that many shots between 2 starters. And it's not because Kobe is shooting too much. I've seen enough to know that these guys are not looking for the shots. They seem to be looking for one of the big 3 to pass the ball to, before they consider that they might need to step up and deliver for the team.
Meanwhile, the Heat broke in Eddy Curry tonight and the guy scored 6 points in 6 minutes of playing time. The guy is huge and if he commits himself to the defensive end of the game...then, the Heat, in my opinion, would be favorite to win it all. I've said it once and I'll say it, again; without a defensive center, no team in the NBA will win a championship. Curry is an interesting "project."
Still, the best record in the league, right now, belongs to Chicago and Oklahoma City in terms of losses. Both teams have 3 losses. The Lakers, with tonight's defeat, have 6 losses. In other words: there isn't a dominated team in the league right now. The season is wide-open for anyone to win the championship this year. Heck, right now, Dallas and Boston wouldn't even get into the playoffs. They both sit at the 9 spots in their Conference standings.
In other words: no need to panic if you're a Lakers fan. If you're a Bobcat fan, you should panic. Let's see how this thing shakes out.
mike t.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Lob City vs. Kobelistic
Starting the 3rd quarter, the Clippers led the Lakers by 12 points. But, with 31.8 left in the quarter, Kobe Bryant bombs and hits a 3-pointer with a man all in his face to bring the Staples crowd to it feet. That shot can be called nothing less than Kobe-listic; which much like a missile seeking out its target to destroy, it comes from any place on the court to do what it has to do. The Lakers cut the 12 point Clipper lead to 4 to end the quarter. Kobe, at the end of the quarter, had 32 points.
The Clippers, no longer to be taken lightly, opened the 4th quarter by outscoring the Lakers 8-6 in the first 3 minutes of play as Chris Paul made his league superstar status felt by the Lakers. He bombed and made like a 40 foot 3-pointer to hold a Lakers' run in check. That shot put the Clippers ahead 82-74. The Lakers tried to energize themselves as Gasol alley-ooped off a pass from the rookie Morris to cut the Clippers lead to 6, 82-76. But, Paul answered that with another jumper to get the Clippers back up by 8, 84-76. At that point of the game Paul had 28 points. But, over the next 6 1/2 minutes the Lakers would only be able to score 6 points, and the Clipper were able to pull away as time slipped away from the Lakers.
Kobe hit a fall away jumper with 3:19 left in the game to bring his point total to 38 for the night, but the Lakers trailed by 11 at that point.
Griffin hit a jumper over Bynum with 2:54 as the Clippers answered anything the Lakers tried to do, as they extended their lead to 13 points.
Kobe answered Griffin's jumper with a 17-foot running jumper to push his point total to 40 points for the night. But the game is out of reach for the Lakers as they trail the Clippers by 11.
With 1:54 left in the game, the Clippers sealed the win with a Randy Foye jumper to push their lead back to 11, 99-88.
The teams trade meaningless baskets to bring the game to an end with the Clippers winning 102-94.
Kobe finished with 42 points. That's 40 points or more for the 4th straight game for a man playing in his 16th season. Win or lose, that is amazing!
__________
POST GAME COMMENTS
Kobe couldn't will the Lakers over the Clippers starting line-up. There is something definetly wrong with this loss, because the Clippers' bench only had 10 points. And those points came from one player: Randy Foye.
The Lakers' bench scored 13 points spread among 4 players.
The obvious thing that stands out for the Lakers, in this loss, is that Kobe is doing all the work for the team. His teammates are just standing around. And when they do have the ball, they are eagerly looking for Bryant to pass him the ball. There's something wrong with that picture. Its as if they don't have the nerve to do something on their own.
Some of the shots Kobe made tonight were truly amazing because he had a man in his face, but his shot was falling, anyway, as he finished 14 for 28 from the field. Guards and small forwards, if they shoot anything near 50%, that is excellent.
__________
Like a lot of other teams in the league, right now, the Lakers are injured. They could have used Blake's outside shooting tonight. And Murphy only played 48 seconds in the game tonight. But, still, the Lakers need to come together as a team, because it's already been proven that Kobe can't win it all by himself. With all the coverage that teams are throwing at Bryant, his teammates need to step up and deliver when they get the opportunity. If not...Kobe is going to continue with his shooting to keep the Lakers in the game. And who can blame him? If his teammates don't come through when they get the ball, what is Bryant supposed to do?
I mean, again, tonight, both Bynum and Gasol delivered double/doubles, but the team still came up short. The 1 and the 3 spots for the Lakers need to step up! Well, Barns, the 3 spot, has been doing well over the past couple of games, but, without Blake...the Lakers' 1 spot needs an answer.
I hear the Warriors just cut Ishmael Smith. He's not a bad player to fill in for Blake while he's down. The Lakers need to do something at the 1 spot.
__________
Round one goes to "Lob City."
mike t.
The Clippers, no longer to be taken lightly, opened the 4th quarter by outscoring the Lakers 8-6 in the first 3 minutes of play as Chris Paul made his league superstar status felt by the Lakers. He bombed and made like a 40 foot 3-pointer to hold a Lakers' run in check. That shot put the Clippers ahead 82-74. The Lakers tried to energize themselves as Gasol alley-ooped off a pass from the rookie Morris to cut the Clippers lead to 6, 82-76. But, Paul answered that with another jumper to get the Clippers back up by 8, 84-76. At that point of the game Paul had 28 points. But, over the next 6 1/2 minutes the Lakers would only be able to score 6 points, and the Clipper were able to pull away as time slipped away from the Lakers.
Kobe hit a fall away jumper with 3:19 left in the game to bring his point total to 38 for the night, but the Lakers trailed by 11 at that point.
Griffin hit a jumper over Bynum with 2:54 as the Clippers answered anything the Lakers tried to do, as they extended their lead to 13 points.
Kobe answered Griffin's jumper with a 17-foot running jumper to push his point total to 40 points for the night. But the game is out of reach for the Lakers as they trail the Clippers by 11.
With 1:54 left in the game, the Clippers sealed the win with a Randy Foye jumper to push their lead back to 11, 99-88.
The teams trade meaningless baskets to bring the game to an end with the Clippers winning 102-94.
Kobe finished with 42 points. That's 40 points or more for the 4th straight game for a man playing in his 16th season. Win or lose, that is amazing!
__________
POST GAME COMMENTS
Kobe couldn't will the Lakers over the Clippers starting line-up. There is something definetly wrong with this loss, because the Clippers' bench only had 10 points. And those points came from one player: Randy Foye.
The Lakers' bench scored 13 points spread among 4 players.
The obvious thing that stands out for the Lakers, in this loss, is that Kobe is doing all the work for the team. His teammates are just standing around. And when they do have the ball, they are eagerly looking for Bryant to pass him the ball. There's something wrong with that picture. Its as if they don't have the nerve to do something on their own.
Some of the shots Kobe made tonight were truly amazing because he had a man in his face, but his shot was falling, anyway, as he finished 14 for 28 from the field. Guards and small forwards, if they shoot anything near 50%, that is excellent.
__________
Like a lot of other teams in the league, right now, the Lakers are injured. They could have used Blake's outside shooting tonight. And Murphy only played 48 seconds in the game tonight. But, still, the Lakers need to come together as a team, because it's already been proven that Kobe can't win it all by himself. With all the coverage that teams are throwing at Bryant, his teammates need to step up and deliver when they get the opportunity. If not...Kobe is going to continue with his shooting to keep the Lakers in the game. And who can blame him? If his teammates don't come through when they get the ball, what is Bryant supposed to do?
I mean, again, tonight, both Bynum and Gasol delivered double/doubles, but the team still came up short. The 1 and the 3 spots for the Lakers need to step up! Well, Barns, the 3 spot, has been doing well over the past couple of games, but, without Blake...the Lakers' 1 spot needs an answer.
I hear the Warriors just cut Ishmael Smith. He's not a bad player to fill in for Blake while he's down. The Lakers need to do something at the 1 spot.
__________
Round one goes to "Lob City."
mike t.
Jordan-esque or Kobe-listic?
It's Kobe-listic, man! It's authentic and original. And it's based on the idea that at some point in time, we're going to have to stop comparing would-be great basketball players to Michael Jordan. That might seem a pretty easy thing to do, because who can compare to the great Jordan, anyway?
So far, since Michael has left the game as a player, no one has come close to him as an on-court performer, other than Kobe Bryant. And what Kobe Bryant is doing this season, he might be obliterating the legend that is Michael Jordan, and introducing us to something greater than the term: Jordan-esque.
The use of the term Jordan-esque; it's used when one is trying to describe a modern day player that has an aspect of his game that resembles an aspect of the great Michael Jordan's game. Needless to say, the term isn't used that often. But, again, the only player that comes close to being Jordan-esque is Kobe Bryant.
But, Kobe Bryant, right now, is treading in a place that Jordan never went to. Jordan, in his career decline, in Washington, averaged 22.9 and 20.0 points to close out his playing days. That playing career totaled 15 years. Kobe Bryant, in his 16th season, is averaging 30 points, and is dropping in 40 points per night as if he was still in his prime. Since Jordan only played 15 seasons, Kobe's 16th season's accomplishments cannot be compared to Jordan, because Kobe is playing in a season Jordan never had, a 16th season. No, this is not Jordan-esque. This is something new all together.
This is Kobe-listic! Kobelistic operates in its own orbit. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone are two players who were still doing well in their 16th season, but what they did doesn't seem to compare to what Kobe Bryant is doing right now. I mean, in their 16th season, they weren't averaging 30 points per contest, and they weren't dropping 40 point games on opponents for three consecutive games. As it is said on the streets: 'nuff said on that subject.
In the future, when new dynamic players come into the league, and are compared to the all-time greats, the question will have to be this: is this player or that player, Jordanesque or Kobelistic?
It doesn't matter because both are great players, but Kobe is in a category all by himself, just as Jordan is. No more comparing Kobe to Michael.
Kobe Bryant has his own basketball identity. And for Kobe to be able to do that, in a era not too far removed from the Jordan era, well, that is a remarkable achievement in and of itself.
To bring my point of view to a close, and for the sake of comparison, let me say this: to use the term Jordan-esque, well, it's to conjure up images of basketball dominance by graceful means. To use the term Kobe-listic, well, it's to conjure up images of basketball dominance by forceful means.
In short: the grace that is Michael Jordan is Jordan-esque, and the power that is Kobe Bryant is Kobe-listic. Each unique, in their own dominate way.
mike t.
So far, since Michael has left the game as a player, no one has come close to him as an on-court performer, other than Kobe Bryant. And what Kobe Bryant is doing this season, he might be obliterating the legend that is Michael Jordan, and introducing us to something greater than the term: Jordan-esque.
The use of the term Jordan-esque; it's used when one is trying to describe a modern day player that has an aspect of his game that resembles an aspect of the great Michael Jordan's game. Needless to say, the term isn't used that often. But, again, the only player that comes close to being Jordan-esque is Kobe Bryant.
But, Kobe Bryant, right now, is treading in a place that Jordan never went to. Jordan, in his career decline, in Washington, averaged 22.9 and 20.0 points to close out his playing days. That playing career totaled 15 years. Kobe Bryant, in his 16th season, is averaging 30 points, and is dropping in 40 points per night as if he was still in his prime. Since Jordan only played 15 seasons, Kobe's 16th season's accomplishments cannot be compared to Jordan, because Kobe is playing in a season Jordan never had, a 16th season. No, this is not Jordan-esque. This is something new all together.
This is Kobe-listic! Kobelistic operates in its own orbit. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone are two players who were still doing well in their 16th season, but what they did doesn't seem to compare to what Kobe Bryant is doing right now. I mean, in their 16th season, they weren't averaging 30 points per contest, and they weren't dropping 40 point games on opponents for three consecutive games. As it is said on the streets: 'nuff said on that subject.
In the future, when new dynamic players come into the league, and are compared to the all-time greats, the question will have to be this: is this player or that player, Jordanesque or Kobelistic?
It doesn't matter because both are great players, but Kobe is in a category all by himself, just as Jordan is. No more comparing Kobe to Michael.
Kobe Bryant has his own basketball identity. And for Kobe to be able to do that, in a era not too far removed from the Jordan era, well, that is a remarkable achievement in and of itself.
To bring my point of view to a close, and for the sake of comparison, let me say this: to use the term Jordan-esque, well, it's to conjure up images of basketball dominance by graceful means. To use the term Kobe-listic, well, it's to conjure up images of basketball dominance by forceful means.
In short: the grace that is Michael Jordan is Jordan-esque, and the power that is Kobe Bryant is Kobe-listic. Each unique, in their own dominate way.
mike t.
Friday, January 13, 2012
Cavs vs. Lakers in Los Angeles
This, by Bryant, is Jordanesque, without doubt! Can you imagine that? In his 16th season, Kobe Bryant is doing a prime Jordanesque beat down to the rest of the league. Watch out! This is startling!
1st Quarter
Finally, the Kobe Bryant scoring pattern has somewhat been broken in the first quarter as Andrew Bynum had scored 10 points as the quarter was ending. "Was ending" is the key word, because Kobe hit a 17 foot fade away jumper with 13 seconds to bring his point total to 11 points for the quarter as it came to an end with the Lakers leading 32-28.
The quarter also saw the return of Josh McRobert into the rotation.
For Cleveland, rookie point guard K. Irving led his team with 7 points and was backed-up by Omri Casspi with 6 points.
2nd Quarter
2 minutes into the 2nd quarter, Pau Gasol hit an 11 foot jumper to bring his scoring total to 8 points as the Lakers' big 3 combined for 29 of the Lakers 34 points. This scoring pattern held until Ebanks hit a free throw with 8:59 left in the 2nd quarter.
With 7:44 left in the quarter Gasol slammed dunked the ball to bring his scoring total to 10 points as the big 3 now had 31 of the Lakers' 37 points. With 6:53 left in the quarter, Kobe hit a jumper. That's 33 of the Lakers 39 points for the big 3.
Meanwhile, the Cavs have scored 33 points in total themselves with 5:54 left in the half. Lakers 39 - Cavs 33.
Kobe adds 5 more points to his and the team's total, along with a Matt Barns lay-up who was fouled and turned the play into a 3-point play for the Lakers.
The Cavs score 5 points to bring their total to 38 points. Lakers 47 - Cavs 38.
Kobe hits another 3-pointer, along with 2 free throws by Barns to bring the Lakers' total to 52.
The Cavs add another point to their total. Lakers 52 - Cavs 39.
Finally, the Cavs score before the Lakers in the next series of plays. Irving makes a 10 foot banker, but Bynum answers that bucket with a little 7 foot hook shot to bring his total to 12 points and the Lakers' total to 54. Lakers 54 - Cavs 41.
Bam! With 1:17 left in the half, Kobe hits another 3-pointer. With 56.3 left, Gasol hits a little 6 foot hook shot in the lane to bring his total to 12 points and the Lakers' total to 59 points. Lakers 59 - Cavs 41 at the half.
Lakers' big 3 = 48 points. (Kobe 24, Bynum 12, and Gasol 12)
Cavs' team total = 41 points.
3rd Quarter
The first 6:21 in the 3rd quarter had the Cavs outscoring the Lakers 15-10. The Lakers 10 points came from Barns (6) and Gasol (4). The Cavs, K. Irving continued to lead his team with points as his team tried to stay with the Lakers. With 5:54 left in the quarter, Irving hit a 3-pointer to bring his team within 10 of the Lakers. Make that 12 as Kobe Bryant hit a jumper to make the score 71-59 Lakers.
With 4:43 left in the quarter, the Cavs' Parker makes a lay-up to make the score 71-61 Lakers.
Jamison, remember him, makes a shot to cut the Lakers lead to 8 points with 3:37 left in the quarter.
Kobe hits 1 of 2 free throw to bring the Lakers' lead back to 9 points. But the machine doesn't stop as Kobe hits a little 3 foot banker, and 1, to increase his team's lead to 12 points, 75-63. The Cavs get a point off a free throw by Erden to cut the Lakers lead to 12. But, the big 3 continues to score as Gasol hits a little jumper in the lane to increase the Lakers lead to 77-64.
Erden hits 2 more free throws, but Kobe answers that with 2 basket within a minute to make the score 82-66 Lakers.
The Cavs end the quarter's scoring with 4 points to cut the Lakers lead to 12, 82-70.
The Lakers' big 3 = 65 points.
The Cavs' team total = 70 points.
After 3 quarters of play, Kobe Bryant has 35 points.
4th Quarter
The Cavs open up the scoring for the quarter by putting in 6 unanswered points to cut the Lakers lead to 6 points. The Lakers had 2 rookies and a 2nd year player, playing at the time. This prompted the Lakers to call a time-out with 8:49 left in the game.
With 8:16 left in the quarter Sessions hit a jumper to cut the Lakers to 4 points, 82-78.
With 7:07 left in the quarter Gee makes 1 of 2 free throws to cut the Lakers lead to 3, 82-79.
With 6:32 left in the quarter, Barns finally opens up the scoring for the Lakers by driving to the basket for a dunk to push the Lakers lead to 5 points, 84-79.
With 5:55 left in the quarter the Lakers have only scored 2 points. At that point Kobe Bryant is 13 of 25 in shooting.
With 5:14 left in the quarter Kobe Bryant goes to the free throw line and hits 1 of 2 to give the Lakers a 85-79 lead.
With 4:02 left in the quarter, Kobe Bryant hits a 19 foot jumper to extend the Lakers lead to 87-79.
Coming out of a time-out Irving makes a lay-up for the Cavs to cut the Lakers lead to 6 points, 87-81.
With 2:55 left in the quarter, Kobe Bryant hits a 18 foot turn around jumper to reach 40 points for the 3rd straight game. At that point Kobe is 15 out of 30 shooting. The Lakers lead 89-81.
With 1:32 left in the game, Bynum alley-oops off a pass from Gasol to ice the game for the Lakers 91-82.
With less than a minute left in the game Bynum went to the line and hit 1 of 2 free throws to give the Lakers a 10 point lead.
The game ends with both teams trading off points to close out the scoring. The Lakers win 97-92.
POST GAME COMMENTS:
The Lakers' bench only scored 4 points for the game. That is not a good sign for a championship caliber type team.
Both Gasol and Bynum are playing real big for the Lakers as they both had double/doubles for the night; 15 and 11 for Bynum, and 19 and 10 for Gasol. The Lakers big 3 are producing in a way that no other big 3 in the league is able to match. Also, Matt Barns came up big tonight for the Lakers by chipping in 15 points along with 4 rebounds and 3 assists. Other than that, tonight was all about Kobe Bryant.
Kobe Bryant is totally into a Jordanesque mode right now for the Lakers. He takes a lot of shots, but, recently, he shooting at almost a 50% clip, which is amazing for any player playing in their 16th season. Especially true for a non-big. Wow!
The Lakers need more from Troy Murphy. The Lakers need to invest into Murphy by making him shoot more, because, come the playoffs, he's going to need to do some scoring instead of just boxing out and rebounding from the bench.
__________
AROUND THE LEAGUE
Scanning around the league we see that Miami is struggling to get wins as is Boston. Boston, with the original "big 3" is without an effective defensive center, and, so, age seems to be getting the best of them. Miami, following in Boston's "big 3" footsteps, is now 8-4. But, let's remember that they have gotten away with a couple of last second shots to win a couple of games. They should be 6-6. Both teams lack a center and in this league, you do not win championships without a defensive presence. And there is no way around that fact. It's basketball 101.
Dallas seems to be coming around with their 4th straight win to bring their record to 7-5. Who really knows how this team is going to do, because coming off their championship season, they lost a lot of players, and are incorporating a lot of new players into their system. It's up in the air with the Mavs as to what to expect from them. Only time will tell.
Chicago, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Orlando, and Indiana are teams with the best records. I say this: give each of these teams 10 more games to see where they're coming from.
Dwight Howard seems to have his mind on getting out of Orlando, but if he looks at his team's record; he can't complain about where they're at compared to the rest of the teams in the league. What he doesn't seem to understand is that the power-brokers of the past few seasons aren't as mighty as they've been. Age has caught up with some teams, and the new CBA has stopped some of the other teams. It's anyone's championship to win this season, including Orlando. Someone should point that out to Howard.
This is a season that is to be defined by championship level players taking their teams to heights that don't, to the naked eye, seem possible. Look at Los Angeles! No, not "Lob City," but the Lakers! Kobe Bryant is putting his MVP type stamp on this season so far. In my opinion, he is willing the Lakers to the top of this lock-out shortened season. The possibilities are endless for a player, or a set of players, to take his/their team all the way. The door is wide open to the championship. Let's see what player, or set of players, walks through that door to define what this season is all about.
It seems Kobe, out here in Los Angeles, senses the opportunity to do something special in his 16th season, and he's taking that challenge, and surpassing everyone expectations, so far. As the character, Maximus, in the movie Gladiator, would say: Are you not entertained?
Kobe Bryant is gladiator! Kobe Bryant is a basketball killer! He has serious support in Bynum and Gasol in the background. The thing I keep harping on, a defensive center, the Lakers have in Bynum, and a 7 foot scoring power forward in Gasol. ARE THERE ANY CHALLENGERS?
Kobe Bryant is not joking around!
mike t.
1st Quarter
Finally, the Kobe Bryant scoring pattern has somewhat been broken in the first quarter as Andrew Bynum had scored 10 points as the quarter was ending. "Was ending" is the key word, because Kobe hit a 17 foot fade away jumper with 13 seconds to bring his point total to 11 points for the quarter as it came to an end with the Lakers leading 32-28.
The quarter also saw the return of Josh McRobert into the rotation.
For Cleveland, rookie point guard K. Irving led his team with 7 points and was backed-up by Omri Casspi with 6 points.
2nd Quarter
2 minutes into the 2nd quarter, Pau Gasol hit an 11 foot jumper to bring his scoring total to 8 points as the Lakers' big 3 combined for 29 of the Lakers 34 points. This scoring pattern held until Ebanks hit a free throw with 8:59 left in the 2nd quarter.
With 7:44 left in the quarter Gasol slammed dunked the ball to bring his scoring total to 10 points as the big 3 now had 31 of the Lakers' 37 points. With 6:53 left in the quarter, Kobe hit a jumper. That's 33 of the Lakers 39 points for the big 3.
Meanwhile, the Cavs have scored 33 points in total themselves with 5:54 left in the half. Lakers 39 - Cavs 33.
Kobe adds 5 more points to his and the team's total, along with a Matt Barns lay-up who was fouled and turned the play into a 3-point play for the Lakers.
The Cavs score 5 points to bring their total to 38 points. Lakers 47 - Cavs 38.
Kobe hits another 3-pointer, along with 2 free throws by Barns to bring the Lakers' total to 52.
The Cavs add another point to their total. Lakers 52 - Cavs 39.
Finally, the Cavs score before the Lakers in the next series of plays. Irving makes a 10 foot banker, but Bynum answers that bucket with a little 7 foot hook shot to bring his total to 12 points and the Lakers' total to 54. Lakers 54 - Cavs 41.
Bam! With 1:17 left in the half, Kobe hits another 3-pointer. With 56.3 left, Gasol hits a little 6 foot hook shot in the lane to bring his total to 12 points and the Lakers' total to 59 points. Lakers 59 - Cavs 41 at the half.
Lakers' big 3 = 48 points. (Kobe 24, Bynum 12, and Gasol 12)
Cavs' team total = 41 points.
3rd Quarter
The first 6:21 in the 3rd quarter had the Cavs outscoring the Lakers 15-10. The Lakers 10 points came from Barns (6) and Gasol (4). The Cavs, K. Irving continued to lead his team with points as his team tried to stay with the Lakers. With 5:54 left in the quarter, Irving hit a 3-pointer to bring his team within 10 of the Lakers. Make that 12 as Kobe Bryant hit a jumper to make the score 71-59 Lakers.
With 4:43 left in the quarter, the Cavs' Parker makes a lay-up to make the score 71-61 Lakers.
Jamison, remember him, makes a shot to cut the Lakers lead to 8 points with 3:37 left in the quarter.
Kobe hits 1 of 2 free throw to bring the Lakers' lead back to 9 points. But the machine doesn't stop as Kobe hits a little 3 foot banker, and 1, to increase his team's lead to 12 points, 75-63. The Cavs get a point off a free throw by Erden to cut the Lakers lead to 12. But, the big 3 continues to score as Gasol hits a little jumper in the lane to increase the Lakers lead to 77-64.
Erden hits 2 more free throws, but Kobe answers that with 2 basket within a minute to make the score 82-66 Lakers.
The Cavs end the quarter's scoring with 4 points to cut the Lakers lead to 12, 82-70.
The Lakers' big 3 = 65 points.
The Cavs' team total = 70 points.
After 3 quarters of play, Kobe Bryant has 35 points.
4th Quarter
The Cavs open up the scoring for the quarter by putting in 6 unanswered points to cut the Lakers lead to 6 points. The Lakers had 2 rookies and a 2nd year player, playing at the time. This prompted the Lakers to call a time-out with 8:49 left in the game.
With 8:16 left in the quarter Sessions hit a jumper to cut the Lakers to 4 points, 82-78.
With 7:07 left in the quarter Gee makes 1 of 2 free throws to cut the Lakers lead to 3, 82-79.
With 6:32 left in the quarter, Barns finally opens up the scoring for the Lakers by driving to the basket for a dunk to push the Lakers lead to 5 points, 84-79.
With 5:55 left in the quarter the Lakers have only scored 2 points. At that point Kobe Bryant is 13 of 25 in shooting.
With 5:14 left in the quarter Kobe Bryant goes to the free throw line and hits 1 of 2 to give the Lakers a 85-79 lead.
With 4:02 left in the quarter, Kobe Bryant hits a 19 foot jumper to extend the Lakers lead to 87-79.
Coming out of a time-out Irving makes a lay-up for the Cavs to cut the Lakers lead to 6 points, 87-81.
With 2:55 left in the quarter, Kobe Bryant hits a 18 foot turn around jumper to reach 40 points for the 3rd straight game. At that point Kobe is 15 out of 30 shooting. The Lakers lead 89-81.
With 1:32 left in the game, Bynum alley-oops off a pass from Gasol to ice the game for the Lakers 91-82.
With less than a minute left in the game Bynum went to the line and hit 1 of 2 free throws to give the Lakers a 10 point lead.
The game ends with both teams trading off points to close out the scoring. The Lakers win 97-92.
POST GAME COMMENTS:
The Lakers' bench only scored 4 points for the game. That is not a good sign for a championship caliber type team.
Both Gasol and Bynum are playing real big for the Lakers as they both had double/doubles for the night; 15 and 11 for Bynum, and 19 and 10 for Gasol. The Lakers big 3 are producing in a way that no other big 3 in the league is able to match. Also, Matt Barns came up big tonight for the Lakers by chipping in 15 points along with 4 rebounds and 3 assists. Other than that, tonight was all about Kobe Bryant.
Kobe Bryant is totally into a Jordanesque mode right now for the Lakers. He takes a lot of shots, but, recently, he shooting at almost a 50% clip, which is amazing for any player playing in their 16th season. Especially true for a non-big. Wow!
The Lakers need more from Troy Murphy. The Lakers need to invest into Murphy by making him shoot more, because, come the playoffs, he's going to need to do some scoring instead of just boxing out and rebounding from the bench.
__________
AROUND THE LEAGUE
Scanning around the league we see that Miami is struggling to get wins as is Boston. Boston, with the original "big 3" is without an effective defensive center, and, so, age seems to be getting the best of them. Miami, following in Boston's "big 3" footsteps, is now 8-4. But, let's remember that they have gotten away with a couple of last second shots to win a couple of games. They should be 6-6. Both teams lack a center and in this league, you do not win championships without a defensive presence. And there is no way around that fact. It's basketball 101.
Dallas seems to be coming around with their 4th straight win to bring their record to 7-5. Who really knows how this team is going to do, because coming off their championship season, they lost a lot of players, and are incorporating a lot of new players into their system. It's up in the air with the Mavs as to what to expect from them. Only time will tell.
Chicago, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Orlando, and Indiana are teams with the best records. I say this: give each of these teams 10 more games to see where they're coming from.
Dwight Howard seems to have his mind on getting out of Orlando, but if he looks at his team's record; he can't complain about where they're at compared to the rest of the teams in the league. What he doesn't seem to understand is that the power-brokers of the past few seasons aren't as mighty as they've been. Age has caught up with some teams, and the new CBA has stopped some of the other teams. It's anyone's championship to win this season, including Orlando. Someone should point that out to Howard.
This is a season that is to be defined by championship level players taking their teams to heights that don't, to the naked eye, seem possible. Look at Los Angeles! No, not "Lob City," but the Lakers! Kobe Bryant is putting his MVP type stamp on this season so far. In my opinion, he is willing the Lakers to the top of this lock-out shortened season. The possibilities are endless for a player, or a set of players, to take his/their team all the way. The door is wide open to the championship. Let's see what player, or set of players, walks through that door to define what this season is all about.
It seems Kobe, out here in Los Angeles, senses the opportunity to do something special in his 16th season, and he's taking that challenge, and surpassing everyone expectations, so far. As the character, Maximus, in the movie Gladiator, would say: Are you not entertained?
Kobe Bryant is gladiator! Kobe Bryant is a basketball killer! He has serious support in Bynum and Gasol in the background. The thing I keep harping on, a defensive center, the Lakers have in Bynum, and a 7 foot scoring power forward in Gasol. ARE THERE ANY CHALLENGERS?
Kobe Bryant is not joking around!
mike t.
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