JAZZ -at- LAKERS - 10/17 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

[DancingBarry]

Signs of Life... "Where's our trophy at? I want my trophy," Al Jefferson joked after the Jazz taking of the annual Laker Shootout 99-94 at Staples.

Enjoy it while you can, Al. It's a long way from the bitter playoff atmosphere -- often over-the-line personal attacks in Utah against Derek Fisher this past season -- that drove the Lakers to dish out a series beatdown.

As Phil juggles lineups and minutes in his preseason rotations, the Lakers are slowly tuning up their game. Sometimes it may be difficult to see that amid a loss, but the signs were there tonight.

Not counting the rehabbing Andrew Bynum, the Lakers impact players (Kobe, Pau, Ron and Lamar) all played actual impact ball in their sometimes limited minutes.

Kobe had a Kobe-like quarter in the third when he dropped 19 points. He has been showing a pulse, but this was more like the real Kobe than fans have seen all preseason. Pau also looked a bit more like himself, scoring a game-high 28 points on 8-15 shooting. The Lakers one-two punch appears to be warming up for the regular season. Toss in some strong minutes from Ron and Lamar and there is plenty to like.

The Laker bench couldn't hold the line tonight, losing a lead and momentum. The surgeries to both Bynum and Kobe are having a ripple effect on the bench, which is usually supported by a couple of impact ballers during their rotations. Despite the troubled stints, these are good minutes for them -- time that will help learn the system and for Phil to learn about them.


Kobe -- -- Like most of his other preseason games, Kobe could not get on track with his jumper early on. He was short on everything to start. That certainly could be a sign of leg strength issues and the back-to-back situation. After resting all second quarter, however, Kobe came back in the second half and looked like the No. 24 we know. He went into Mamba mode and dropped 19 points on an efficient 7-8 shooting, including some long-range bombs. Kobe did a good job catching defenders peeking at the screen and taking off on the drive when they snuck a look the other way. His once short jumpers were now ripping the net. Phil limited his minutes, not playing him in the second and fourth quarters of the back-to-back. Don't want to overwork him during this stretch. The Stats: He scored 19 points on 7-12 shooting (2-4 from three, 3-3 from the line) to go with 4 boards (3 offensive), 1 assist, 3 turnovers and 1 foul in 20:10. He was a +2. The Action: He missed a 15-footer, too short. He missed an open 17-footer, short again. He hit Ron for a three. He missed a step-back jumper, short. He missed a wing three next time down on a kickout. He didn't play in the second quarter and was scoreless on 0-4 shooting in the half. Second Half: He lost Raja who tried to anticipate a screen coming and Kobe dunked on the drive. He posted up and sank the baseline turnaround. He swished a wing three on his next attempt. He was called for a walk to erase a three. He came down court next time, pointed to someone to throw off the defender, then drained the three. On the next possession, he flashed from the weakside and swished an elbow jumper. He missed a deep three on the next possession. He got bumped, but still hit the one-footed jumper. He made a tech FT. Miles nearly came out of his shoes on a Kobe spin and Kobe swished the baseline jumper. He nearly made an And-1 bank from the left side, he made both FTs. He had 19 points on 7-8 shooting in the third.

Gasol -- -- Some nice FT shooting by Pau after a poor start this season, and his offensive game also seemed to round into form. Combine that with 4 blocks and 2 steals on the other end and you have two-way impact ball again. Without Bynum, the falloff in the Laker game is all too evident when Pau leaves the floor. The Lakers are starting to concentrate on some post-up alternatives, but Pau's +12 was out-weighed by the Ratliff/Barnes/Blake trio's -17 to -19 while on the floor. That unit misses its usual two impact bigmen on the floor. The Stats: He scored 28 points on 8-15 shooting (12-14 from the line) to go with 9 boards (5 offensive), 4 assists, 4 blocks, 2 steals, 1 turnover and no fouls in 36:31. He was a +12. The Action: He missed a face-up jumper. He tipped in a missed layup by Ron. He hit Ron cutting for a layup. He came up short on a challenged turnaround. He drew FTs on the behind-the-back feed from Lamar in the lane, he made both. He missed a layup on a great interior feed from LO. He missed a pumping turnaround jumper. He missed on a drive and subsequent battle for the putback. Blake lobbed to him for an cherry-picking score off Blake's steal at midcourt. He missed a lefty jumphook. He was fouled on a baseline jumper, he made both FTs. He had 8 points and 6 boards. Second Half: He fumbled a Lamar interior feed, but guided it to the hoop where he then tipped it in on the follow up. He sank a baseline turnaround after losing his man. Nice anticipation to snag a pass in the paint off the screen action from the Jazz under the hoop. He scored an And-1 layup trailing the break, he made the FT. He had 7 points in the third. He made both FTs after getting hit on a post entry. He drew more FTs battling on the offensive glass, he made both. He got a piece of a Miles drive. He dunked off the two-man game with Johnson. Easy jumphook over Milsap in the paint. He spun around Fes and was hit for FTs, he made just one with 1:20 left, down 3 points. He was hit on a double team, he made both FTs. He ball-faked, attacked and was body checked mid flight, but Pau still muscled in the tough And-1 heave on his way down, he missed the FT.

Lamar -- -- Like Pau's +/-, Lamar's +7 also shows the Laker issues right now when our impact bigmen aren't on the floor. Phil is going to a variety of SFs to fill in at the PF spot. Lamar played an aggressive game. He was engaged and active. He owned the defensive glass. He was looking for teammates throughout the game. Deceptive stat of the night is probably Lamar's 1 assist. A number of his passes led to points, they just came off of FTs. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 3-7 shooting (1-4 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 15 boards (3 offensive), 1 assist, 3 steals, 2 turnovers and 5 fouls in 40:41. He was a +7. The Action: He swiped a pass under the hoop to ignite a break. He set up Pau for FTs with a behind-the-back pass. He sealed his man on a weakside cut to the post to set up the corner entry and he scored the layup. He snagged an interior feed to ignite a break. He missed a wing three. He was pulled down by Milsap in the post to draw FTs, he made one. He drained a two-for-one three from the wing. Second Half: He squared up nicely, but missed the wing jumper. He hustled for an offensive board, reset the offense and it later came back to him on a drive and dish for one-handed throwdown. He missed an early offense three. Next possession, he had his pass swiped for a layup the other way. He crashed the glass and set up Ratliff for FTs. He missed a wing three. He blocked a drive on the other end. His pass in the paint to Pau was easily picked off. He hit Shannon in the lane for FTs. He pushed up the break and set up Johnson for FTs.

Artest -- -- Ron did all his damage in the first half. His three shooting is looking smoother. The Lakers featured him in the post quite a bit and usually good things happened out of it. It's easier for him to work there when you don't have the Pau/Bynum duo creating congestion that he runs into. Ron's going deeper into the nuances of the offense, which seemed to manifest themselves in some of his cuts tonight. He made some good reads and changes of pace. Very nice to see him playing this comfortably right now. Two-way impact ball wins championships. Ron struggled with that last season (prior to a couple of superb efforts in the final two games). The Stats: He scored 17 points on 6-13 shooting (2-4 from three, 3-5 from the line) to go with 2 offensive boards, 2 assists, 3 turnovers and 2 fouls in 29:39. He was a +11. The Action: He missed a corner three. He missed a layup in traffic. He stripped AK on the sideline. He sank an open sideline three in transition. Sweet change of direction off the two-man sequence with Pau out of the Tri and Ron lost his defender and scored the layup off of the pass. He worked on Hayward in the post, collapsing the D on one possession to feed a teamate and drawing FTs next time (he made one). He sank short baseline fallaway with the shotclock low. His man sagged off him, so Ron drained the corner three. His kickout was picked off for a dunk. He attacked from the midpost, powered through the defender with one hand to somehow throw in the And-1, he made the FT. Power spin in the post and he drew more FTs, he made one. Shannon got Ron's missed FT back and it led to a layup for Ron. He had 17 points on 6-9 shooting. Second Half: He missed a wing three, got it back shortly later and missed the fading wing jumper. He hit Pau on the break for an And-1. He missed a long jumper. He missed a long three at the end of the quarter.

Fisher -- -- DFish didn't stuff the stat sheet in any way, but during a third-quarter run where the Lakers pulled out to their biggest lead of the night, he was one of the key factors. He helped get multiple defensive stops, set up teammates and scratched a couple points himself in the stretch. The Lakers will win a lot of games this year when they flex their muscle in the third quarter like this. Phil is giving him just one stint in each half and then filling in his normal minutes with the bench. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 1-4 shooting to go with 1 assist, 2 steals and 2 fouls in 17:46. He was a +6. The Action: He missed a double-clutching 12-footer coming off the double screen. He missed a sideline jumper off the split play. He missed a short bank on the break. Second Half: He attacked off the three line, drew the D and set up Lamar for the dunk. He stripped the post on help D. He drew a moving screen call on teh next possession to get a stop. He attacked off the three line again, this time he swished the floater. Nice challenge on Watson's jumper to force a brick.

Blake -- -- He looked like he wanted to bang his head against a wall. Blake could do little right in this game. His shot was MIA, including from his sweet spots on the floor. He was visibly irked at himself after back-to-back wide open corner misses. He even had a couple of second-half turnovers. Too bad Deron Williams wasn't playing. It would have been nice to see how Blake matched up defensively, at least. Phil, of course, avoided putting the smaller Farmar on Deron if he could help it. He's planning to do the same with Blake. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-7 shooting (0-4 from three) to go with 2 boards, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 turnovers and 2 fouls in 19:25. He was a -19. The Action: Good post entry feed off the corner sequence to set up Lamar for a layup. He missed a wide open 13-footer on the wing. He then swiped it back at midcourt and lobbed to Pau for the score. He missed a wing three with the clock low. He missed a long wing jumper. He created a layup for Ratliff in transition. He missed an open wing three. Second Half: He missed a wide open corner three (that's his shot). He missed his next one wide open again from that same spot and was visibly disgusted. He had a ball stripped off him, turnover. He was called for a travel, indecision on the three line.

Barnes -- -- He was part of the unfortunate bench trio that led the team with the poor +/-. Blake certainly seemed to do his share in the -19 he had, Barnes just didn't provide much on either end. These kinds of games you won't even notice when surrounded by the Lakers other impact ballers. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 1-4 shooting (0-1 from three) to go with 2 offensive boards, 2 turnovers and 1 block in 14 minutes. He was a -19. The Action: He attacked off the elbow in the pinch post and scored a driving layup. He fumbled away a dribble drive. Second Half: Nice hustle on the offensive glass, he was blocked on the putback. He missed a pull-up from 12 feet out (biggest weakness in his game). He stripped Hayward on a drive. He couldn't finish trying to drive around a fallen player. He spun in the lane after taking a pass and was stripped. He missed a three from the top of the arc.

Brown -- -- He led the bench in scoring. His aggressiveness makes you believe that Phil wants him to be that scoring punch from the bench. Phil really wants him to focus on the defensive end. "That's where his athletic ability has to shine," Phil said, "and give us that extra guy now that can really shut somebody down." He will probably need to dial it down offensively when the team has a more consistent post threat on the floor with those second units. Shannon is squaring up nicely on most of his jumpers. In past seasons he's usually been at his best when getting catch and shoot opportunities. Hopefully, he's improved some of his pull-up jumper skills this offseason. With Sasha out, he's losing ground on the Sasha v. Shannon battle. "Shannon's going to come in and replace Kobe (Bryant). He and Sasha (Vujacic) are fighting for that job. It's not how many minutes you play. It's the quality of the minutes you've given out there." The Stats: He scored 11 points on 3-10 shooting (1-3 from three, 4-4 from the line) to go with 5 boards, 1 assist, 1 block, 4 turnovers and 2 fouls in 28 minutes. He was a -7. The Action: He pulled up at the break and hit the FT jumper. He sank a wing jumper on the catch and shoot next time down. Poor kickout on a drive, easily picked off. He missed a tough jumper off the inbounds with the shotclock expiring. He sank a wing three off a swing pass. He missed an open wing three. He was called for a charge on a spin move. He crashed the glass on Ron's missed FT and it led to a layup for Ron. He missed a tough runner at the buzzer. Second Half: Not close on a reverse he should have finished. He drew FTs attacking on the next possession, he made both. He missed a tough fading jumper. He rejected Hayward in transition. He missed a drive in traffic. He missed a wing three. He was hit from behind when Lamar found him in the lane, he made both. He was stripped on a drive in the final seconds, down by 4.

Ratliff -- -- It's doubtful Phil is going to run Ratliff without Kobe on the floor for very long during the start of the regular season. Without having an offensive threat that can collapse the D, the preseason second unit lineups suffer. Pau will be sitting when Ratliff is in, so the team needs to get that consistent threat elsewhere. Despite being new to the system, it does seem like he's less of a hitch in the offense that Mbenga was at times. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 1-2 shooting (2-2 from the line) to go with 1 offensive board, 2 turnovers, 1 block and 3 fouls in 11:29. He was a -17. The Action: He drew a charge in the post. Quick off the floor, he rejected his man at the front of the rim. He finished a layup off Blake set up in transition. Second Half: He drew FTs when Lamar set him up, he made both. He was blocked on a drive to his left across the lane. He swatted a shot off the glass.

Ebanks -- -- On the heels of his best game of the preseason, Ebanks bonked against the Jazz. They have a way of doing that to rookies when you aren't fammiliar with their system, not to mention our defensive schemes. Ebanks was whistled for back-to-back fouls in the final minute of action and then given a tech under the new rules (so weak) for a demonstrative reaction, which was barely a reaction. That kind of whistle, at that moment, better be a preseason thing because in crunch time it simply ruins the game. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 0-2 shooting (2-2 from the line) to go wtih 2 boards, 1 turnover and 4 foulsin 11:31. He was a -9. The Action: He missed a tip-in attempt. He missed a long wing jumper. He attacked baseline, hung and drew FTs, he made both. He got lost on an up-fake and gave up an easy score. Second Half: He was whistled for a couple of late fouls on the perimeter to give up FTs.

Johnson -- -- Phil brought him in midway through the second quarter and fourth, most likely to save DFish's legs on the back-to-back, but Blake was also struggling. He plays very steady ball, The Stats: He scored 1 point on 0-1 shooting (0-1 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 1 board and 3 assists in 10:49. He was a +8 The Action: He tallied a couple of assists just moving the ball to the open men out of the offense. Second Half: He worked the two-man game with Pau and set him up for the dunk. He took the Lamar pass on the break and drew FTs at the rim, he made just one with 2 minutes left, now down by 2. He missed a wing three.

Phil -- -- Phil is going to watch some of his vet's minutes with this schedule of games coming up... He brought in Shannon and Blake for Kobe and Fish with over 3 minutes left... With Kobe shooting blanks, the Lakers trailed 22-20 after the first quarter... To start the second quarter, no starters on the floor. Phil went with a Ratliff, EBanks, Barnes, Brown, Blake lineup. He's been going to Artest at PF, but in the last game showed this wrinkle. With a healthy team, you would see both Lamar and one of Pau/Bynum out there... That unit struggled and fell back by 8 points before a timeout came... Pau and Lamar came in shortly later. They trailed by 14 as the offense stuggled to find the bottom of the basket... Phil mixed things up by adding Johnson and Artest in for Blake and Ebanks... An offensive burst by Ron and the Lakers cut it to 5 at the half. Some very methodical post feeding to Ron while Lamar and Pau were on the floor... Noteworthy: Phil didn't play Caracter in the first half because of back spasms. Kobe didn't play in the second quarter... The Lakers trailed 49-44 at halftime. They had 9 assists with 9 turnovers on 37.5 percent shooting. Artest led all scorer's with 17... The coaches felt fortunate to be as close as they were as badly as they shot... The Mamba showed up to start the second half and the Lakers forced a timeout after quickly getting a 2-point lead... The Laker defense started to put the clamps on, turnovers came and the Jazz struggled to find any rhythm. The Lakers extended to an 11-point lead... Phil went to a Ratliff, Artest, Barnes, Kobe, Blake unit. Kobe had it rolling for the first time this offseason and got a little extra time that quarter... After a double digit lead, the Lakers led just 74-73 to start the fourth... The Lakers trailed by 8 when they got into the bonus midway through the quarter. The extra FTs helped, but they just traded tons of FTs down the stretch... The Lakers made 28-34 from the line in the game, the Jazz made 26-30... The Lakers had just 16 assists on 39 percent shooting. The Jazz shot 50.7 percent...

[DancingBarry]

Long weekend and I'm feeling rundown. Tried to whip through this fast.

[lounger]

much appreciated DB. have a good rest.

[Mel Rose]

Thanks, Db. Hope you had a good father & son weekend.
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Insert something smart here.

[circlefong]

Thanks DB ... as always.

[IPK]

[Texas_Pete]

Thanks DB.

It seems like PJ is featuring the front court more so than in the past. It looks like they are responding too. I hope they keep it up so that Kobe can ease into his #1 option status. Loving the way that Ron is responding to the opportunities that present themselves in the triangle. We knew that Pau/LO have great chemistry already. When Drew returns and Kobe rounds back into form look out.

I'm not sweating the bench right now. The Jazz are a physical team as is and a horrible matchup for them on the tail end of a back to back. I trust that as time passes and they learn each others strengths and weaknesses they will be just fine.

[RealOne]

Great job DB.

Off camera, Blake was just beside himself after having one of those nights. Kobe was trying to give him some support as #5 sat on the bench with his head in his hands.

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

[Rodman28]

Thanx.
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*On Thin Ice*

I guess I am kind of injury prone.- Andrew Bynum

These young guys are playing checkers. I'm out there playing chess.- Kobe Bryant

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

[LakersMD]

Thanks for all your work, DB.

Blake is pressing a bit right now. He'll be fine. I actually respect the fact that he's hard on himself, even in preseason.

Ron looks very comfortable out there in the offense,. He was shooting very well from 3 last year before he hurt his hand, so it's not that surprising that his jumper looks good. I'm more encourage by his improved reads and more decisive cuts out of the triangle.

Brown also looks like his stroke has improved now that his hand injury is healed. He still is a bit too trigger happy, but I'm pleased with his play.

Barnes still looks lost out there. Ratliff seems like he'll be able to block shots until he's 50.

[ClutchShot]

I really wanted to punch the smirk off that hardaway douche. When he made that lucky bankshot, all his shots started falling. Probably the luckiest game that scrub will ever have

Otherwise, I was not impressed with the defense that game. Jazz would just camp the paint and get layup after layup.

[RVCdesigns]

Thanks DB

[DancingBarry]

[prisma8slg]

Thanks DB. hope you're feeling better today.
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"I define success by championships, by winning..." Kobe Bryant

"I've seen it all. Sasha dunked on somebody," Kobe Bryant said. "I'm ready to retire now."

[Vadorojo]

Thanks, DB. Your thoughts and ratings are always appreciated!

I agree with you in that a loss isn't great, but the Lakers are showing signs of life where we'd like to them to be doing so. I'd certainly like to see Blake's shot come back, though.
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"I like looking at a guy's face when he realizes that even his best moves aren't going to work on me all night. They look depressed." - Ron Artest

[heatseeker08]

Thanks DB!

[Qsmiff]

Thanks for the continued dedicated work DB