LAKERS -at- CELTICS - 1/31 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

[DancingBarry]

Dead Leprechauns... The boat cuts through thick algae, green like pea soup. As the river finally leaves the jungle behind, you expect fresh air and clear water. This lake, however, smells like a stagnant cesspool. The water is green like sickness. Smoke appears to be rising from the top of the lake as if the water is actually burning.

The captain angles over to one of the rising columns of smoke. To your horror, you realize it's not smoke at all. Rather, it's millions of mating lake flies, swirling in towering clouds and columns that soar into the sky. They mate, drop eggs in the lake and then die, repeating the cycle again and again. What is this hell hole?

The captain navigates through the egg-laying frenzy until you reach the far shore. There, the body of a small bearded man wearing a green jacket and green hat lies sprawled on the rocks. You pick up a stick and poke it. Dead Leprechaun.

On his pale neck are two purple and gold marks -- the tell tale bite of the Mamba.

You use the stick to lift the handle of the dead Leprechaun's pot of gold. It is empty. The contents have been replaced with a note written in purple ink on gold paper. DancingBarry:

The Horsemen were here. They hate Leprechauns.

I will continue to track them...

A comeback win in Boston? Doesn't get much better than that.

The storylines in this game are many. From Bynum stepping up, Pau shrinking, Ron playing like the defender the Lakers envisioned, and Kobe struggling only to later hit the game winner, there are a number of places to start.

With the ankle sprain in the last game, Kobe never looked comfortable executing his game tonight. This seemed to throw off the Lakers offense as the lack of ball movement and disorganized plan of attack gave the Celtics an easy time of it. For those in Beantown, the Laker offensive execution was wicked awful.

"Time for you to figure it out," Marc Jackson said of Kobe as they approached the final few possessions. The Lakers, who have stumbled down the stretch in their two losses on this trip, closed strong. Ron hit a driving layup, then drew a clear-out foul on Pierce on the other end. Kobe sank a fading freethrow jumper with 7 seconds -- the game winner after the Laker stop on the other end. The Lakers trailed by as many as 11 points in the fourth before taking the lead on their final shot.

This game was much closer than it should have been. The Lakers opened strong taking the first quarter 30-19 behind 12 points from Bynum (as well as some great D). Bynum even posterized a trash-talking KG at one point.

In the second quarter, Bynum sat way too long, then didn't get a single post touch all quarter. The Celtics took the quarter 33-17 behind Rajon Rondo, who got penetration for scores and set up teammates.

In the fourth quarter, Phil did something different. Pau wasn't rising to the occasion, Bynum was. So Phil sat Pau and let Drew close out the game with Lamar and the starters. Once Bynum came in with 5:50 left, the Celtics would only make one field goal the rest of the game.

"I thought he performed exceptionally well," Kobe said of Drew. "He was aggressive, wasn't passive at all, didn't back down from contact. I felt like this was a stepping stone for him."

The Celtics scored just 16 points in that fourth quarter, making only four field goals. "We have to prove we play tough basketball even if we're on the road," Bynum said.

The Lakers have won four straight and can go 6-2 on this road trip if they close it out properly tomorrow.


Kobe -- -- Kobe said he wanted to redeem himself for missing the shot in regulation last year in the win over Boston. He certainly did, sinking the clutch jumper, fading from the freethrow line over Allen with 7 seconds left. Kobe on hitting with the game on the line: "I just got to make one shot. That's how I look at it. I just got to make one." With the ankle sprain in the last game, Kobe couldn't move quite as spry and fluid as he has of late. Ray Allen was covering him with the starter match-up (Ron keeping the Celtics SF from switching). Here, you would normally see Kobe eat up that Allen match up (not just scoring, but causing the D to collapse and double with ease). Instead, he struggled to do much of anything for most of the game. The offense would be slow developing with the ball in his hands. Often, the Lakers would ignore the post. Honestly, the Celtics got a big break with his bad wheel. Defensively, he covered Rondo. His mobility forced some more help than we usually need, but he still did the best job of it. The Lakers want Rondo to shoot over the top of the D. When we forced him to do that, the Celtics bogged down. When we sent too much help or couldn't stay in front of him, they clicked. The Stats: He scored 19 points on 8-20 shooting (1-3 from three, 2-4 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 6 assists, 4 turnovers and 1 foul in 45 minutes. He was a 6. The Action: He backed down Allen and hit the short turnaround. He hit a pull-up wing jumper. He faced up and stuck a wing three. He attacked and hit Bynum for the layup. He missed a three at the first-quarter buzzer. He missed an over-the-backboard baseline jumper trying to beat the shotclock. He missed a wide open 14-footer. He drew FTs on a jumper, he missed both (meanwhile Rondo got to the line on the other end on a drive). He was called for an offensive foul slapping off a handcheck (if you call that, you need to call the handcheck first). He missed a three. He faced up and hit a running jumphook. He missed a floater (had Bynum open). He airballed a short baseline fallaway at the end of the quarter. He scored 9 points on 4-11 shooting to go with 4 assists and 3 turnovers. Second Half: He swished a turnaround over Allen. He hit Drew on the screen-roll for a dunk. His pass was deflected, score the other way. He swished a pull-up jumper off a ball reverse to him (better ball movement). He missed a long pull-up jumper. He airballed a jumper out of a timeout (wanted the foul). He attacked from the top and hit a runner. Poor decision to chuck a turnaround instead of reset the offense (he had plenty of time). He stalled the offense again, holding the ball. He missed a long wing jumper out of a timeout, not a bad look, but he can't attack it seems. Next time down, Kobe did attack and drew FTs, he made both FTs. He hit the clutch fallaway jumper from the FT line with 7 seconds left.

Gasol -- -- Phil sat him down the stretch. That's something we rarely ever see. Early in the game, it looked like Pau was going to man up and play strong. He got in Rasheed's face and drew a double tech. He had a nice drive and dunk. Then, he faded badly. I think some of this was the confusion in the Laker offense. There was a lot of second-guessing and a lack of purpose. It made for some very awkward execution. Other times, however, Pau just wasn't playing as physical as he should. Bynum was anchoring the D, holding the line and providing the physical presence that the Lakers wish they had against the Celtics in the Finals a couple years back when Pau was our only C. Double-doubles from both Pau and Drew tonight, but Pau didn't quite rise to the occasion. The Stats: He scored 11 points on 4-9 shooting (3-5 from the line) to go with 11 boards, 2 assists, 4 turnovers and 4 fouls in 41 minutes. He was a -1. The Action: He missed a baseline jumper. Good job getting down court with Fish on a break for an And-1 layup, he missed the FT. He spun into the lane and hit the lefty jumphook. Wallace gave him a shove and Pau shoved him back and got in his face, double techs. Good seal on Sheed trying to steal an entry pass and he dunked easily. He lost a dribble on a post up. He faced up Sheed, stepped around him and drew FTs, he made one. He faked a handoff, attacked down the middle of the lane on the dribble and dunked. His outlet was picked off. He missed a runner across the lane. He missed a two-footer. Second Half: He attacked off the Kobe kickout for FTs, he made both. He missed a jumphook, looked like he was hit on his hand. He was blocked on a drive. He got backed down by Perkins and gave up an And-1. Horrible pass to LO, stolen easily. Salvatore with a totally bogus call on a deflected pass by Pau, right in front of him and he said Pau threw it out of bounds. Pau sat until some situational subs in the final seconds.

Bynum -- -- The play of the game might go to Kobe with that game-winning J, but Bynum had the one that will probably be played by Laker fans again and again. KG had just hit a jumper on Bynum and was talking trash as he returned on D. Bynum shut him up by cramming a dunk in his grill on a drive. Then stared at him to make sure he was shut up. Give Kobe the play of the game, but Bynum took the play of the road trip. With more minutes and more intent to deliver Drew the ball, this game would have been a lot easier for the Lakers. Bynum was manning up on both ends of the floor from the start. Two-way impact ball. Laker fans say they want good D or say they want offensive production when Bynum doesn't give one of those. But as I've said before, what they really want is two-way impact ball. That's what Drew delivered tonight. When he sat, the Lakers withered. They no longer challenged shots or had an inside game. He was a +9 in 33 minutes. Surely, Phil could have snuck in an extra 5 minutes. Surely, our perimeter players could have involved him more at times. Bynum didn't have a single post touch and sat way too long in that disastrous second quarter. In the fourth, he came in with half a quarter left for Pau and closed out. He even had a nice turnaround in the post during crunch time. Excellent game. The Stats: He scored 19 points on 7-13 shooting (5-7 from the line) to go with 11 boards (5 offensive), 1 assist, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 33 minutes. The Action: He drew a foul before an inbounds on Perkins and made both FTs. He missed a layup and tip-attempt next time down. He missed another layup. He grabbed a Sasha miss and hit the short jumper. He swatted Perkins' iso jumphook. He took the corner entry against Wallace and hit the jumphook. He powered in a layup off the Kobe drive and dish. KG hit a jumper on Bynum, talked trash down court until Bynum got the ball and dunked in his face then stared at him. He drew FTs on a cut on Baby, he made both. He had 12 points in the first on 4-7 shooting. He called for a lob, didn't get the pass, so he cleaned up the Kobe miss with an And-1 layup, he missed the FT. He had 14 points on 5-8 shooting (4-5 from the line), 6 boards, 2 steals and 1 block in 16 minutes. Second Half: He missed a short lefty jumphook on the first possession. Screen-roll on the second possession, FTs for Bynum, he made one. He grabbed a missed three and missed a jumphook. He dunked off the screen-roll from Kobe. He had the chair pulled on him, turnover. Nice challenge on Pierce to force a brick drive. He grabbed an offensive board, missed, but Shannon stuffed it back in. He hit an iso turnaround in the post.

Artest -- -- Clutch on both ends in the final minute. First off, however, has our man D ever looked better against Paul Pierce? Pierce scored 15 points on 4-11 shooting. The shots he made were only when he was wide open off of various rotations. When the Celtics tried to create with the ball in his hands, their bread and butter, Artest held the line. It was never more apparent when Pierce tried to clear space on Ron in the final minute on a drive, shoving him with an off arm and Ron stumbled into the stands. Offensive foul. Just prior to that, Ron had attacked off the three line and somehow flipped in a layup on a drive. You know you were scared when he started rumbling from the corner, weren't you? (Bynum might clean that up if Ron does miss, he had great position.) Just a very good effort all night by Ron. His strength against Pierce manifests itself in a couple of ways. First, Ron can muscle his way around screens well. Second, against smaller defenders Pierce likes to bump and create space. He can't do that against Ron. Be nice if the Lakers were to play this team again in Boston this season. With his health coming around, Ron (and the Laker D) seems to be, too. The Stats: He scored 11 points on 4-12 shooting (1-6 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with The Action: He went at Pierce on the tipoff, then on the first possession, drawing a foul. KG ran into him, flopped to the floor then laughed it up as he drew a foul, bogus. He drained a three straight away. He stole a pass in transition. He missed a wing jumper. He picked up his second foul after 4 minutes and had to sit (Pierce already sitting). He airballed a layup trying to draw contact. He airballed a three. Second Half: He picked up his third foul on a Pierce swing through a minute and a half into the third. He missed a three. He attacked past Pierce from the wing and scored an easy layup. He iso'd on KG and hit the pull-up jumper. He missed a three next time down. He stole a pass, pushed up and couldn't connect with Pau for a turnover. Quick attack past Pierce out of a timeout and he drew FTs, he made both (should have been an And-1 with a goaltend). He missed a long three trying to beat the shotclock. He missed a three on a kickout. He forced a drive and shot, getting blocked (someone should have cut for him, but he could have kicked it to Pau). He missed a wing three. He attacked KG off the three line and made a layup with 45 seconds left. He then got a push-off foul with 28 seconds left on Pierce as he was shoved and stumbled out of bounds.

Fisher -- -- Ray Allen scored just 7 points on 2-10 shooting (0-6 from three). DFish, along with some bench help, held him down. The final play, Fish had to cover House and Kobe was on Allen. Fish drew three moving screens on the Celtics during the game. Glad to see the refs calling that, and, of course, DFish is one of the best on the team in drawing that whistle. Offensively, he hit his shots and help spread the floor. Still wish he would help floor general better and get our bigmen more involved when we need to. The Laker captains and perimeter players have to improve on this. The Stats: He scored 9 points on 3-5 shooting (1-3 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers and2 fouls in 30 minutes. He was a +4. The Action: He drew a moving screen on Pierce, his second foul after three minutes. He got a couple of defenders flying at him and stepped into one to earn FTs, he made both. He drew a moving screen on Perkins. He swiped a cross-court pass, pushed it up and fed Pau for the And-1. He attacked baseline then threw the ball away (someone should have dropped to the level of the ball to help bail him out). He threw a pass away in transition, a three the other way. He swished a long three. Second Half: He attacked off the Bynum pinch post and scored a layup. He hit a DFish Special with his toe on the three line from the sideline. He drew a moving screen foul on KG. Horrible chuck from three, not sure whey he took that with a man on. Great hedge on Pierce on the screen-roll D with Ron, forced Pierce to take a wide angle and allowed Ron time to recover and then draw the offensive foul.

Lamar -- -- Huge close out by Lamar at the end of the game when he had to jump off his man and challenge Ray Allen's three. He probably could have challenged that even better but it looked like KG was trying to stiff arm him to slow him down. The offensive confusion by L.A. impacted Lamar's game. We didn't get the PF's cutting or passing like we need against the Celtics. A lot of that is initiated off an effective Kobe two-man game. Lamar closed the game for the Lakers at the PF. The Stats: He scored 7 points on 3-5 shooting (1-1 from three) to go with 4 boards, 2 assists, 3 blocks, 2 turnovers and no fouls in 22 minutes. He was a -6. The Action: He was called for offensive interference on a putback, weak call. He sank a wing three off the high pinch post. Second Half: He missed an iso jumper right off the bench. He scored a layup over Sheed. He dunked on a breakaway. He choked a layup when Kobe found him. He couldn't secure a defensive board against Perkins with 1:20 left (Perkins got away with a push on Bynum and tipped the ball off the back side of the backboard where it hit the cameras.

Brown -- -- His stint on Rondo in the first half turned sour quickly. Some of that was the team D getting caught in no-man's land. some of it was poor positioning by Shannon. In the second half, he took on the two Allens while Kobe stayed on Rondo. This was much more effective. He did seem to understand to go under picks whenever possible and make Rondo a shooter. Shannon was able to get into the paint offensively. That's where he scored or drew fouls. Otherwise, he wasn't quite as aggressive with the jumpers has he's been lately. Both of his jumpers were poor shot selection. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 2-4 shooting (0-1 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal and 2 fouls in 14 minutes. He was a -1. The Action: Rondo blew past him for an And-1. Bad angle on Rondo again while recovering and another And-1. Second Half: He attacked from the wing and hit the floater. Lucky pass on the break and Lamar was able to dunk, looked like a near turnover. He missed a three. He attacked down the lane and drew FTs, he made both. He missed an iso turnaround, uggh, but Bynum kept it alive and he dunked it back in.

Farmar -- -- Decent minutes from Farmar. He made everything he took. He got some good penetration into the heart of the D at times. He also did a reasonable job on D, jumping a lane for a dunk once and covering House off the bench. He challenged House well except for one play where he got caught ball watching. Phil opted to go with taller defenders on Rondo instead of giving Jordan or Fish any minutes on him. There were one or two sequences where Farmar was on him and the D held up. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 4-4 shooting to go with 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 14 minutes. He was a -5. The Action: He jumped a passing lane, pushed it out and dunked. He attacked from the top of the lane and hit a runner. Second Half: He curled off a screen and hit an elbow jumper. Nice challenge on House to force a brick. He scored a reverse layup off the pinch-post ball reverse.

Luke -- -- The unit Luke was on in the second quarter had the tables completely turned on the team. With only one starter, Pau, they floundered. Luke was a step slow and made some poor decisions defensively. Rondo exploited that for a number of fouls. In the fourth, Phil would run Kobe instead of Luke at the back-up SF. The Stats: He had 1 assist and 3 fouls in 3 minutes. He was a -5. The Action: Bad help on Rondo twice, giving up two And-1s. Somehow he got matched up on Rondo on iso, another foul. Second Half: He did not play in the second half.

Vujacic -- -- When Ron picked up a couple early fouls, Phil opted to bring in Sasha as Pierce was already sitting. He could have gone with Shannon. Sasha handled his role fine, however, and the Lakers dominated the first quarter. That was his only stint. He took just one shot and missed. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-1 shooting in 6 minutes. He was a +11. The Action: He missed a fading baseline jumper. Nice challenge in transition to stop a layup. Second Half: He did not play in the second half.


Phil -- -- Both Pierce and Artest picked up two fouls early on and sat. Phil brought in Sasha... Not a lot of action for Pau to start the game, Bynum more of a focus... They pulled out to a 26-14 lead until Phil made his first rotations with 1:42... Bynum, LO, Kobe, Shannon, Farmar on the floor... The Lakers led 31-19 after the first. The Lakers made 11-18 (61 percent), the Celtics 9-17 (53 percent). The Lakers shot 6-7 from the line, the Celts 1-1... Phil started a Pau, Lamar, Luke, Shannon, Farmar unit... They struggled with dribble penetration and gave up momentum... Phil brought in Ron and Kobe, but the Celtics tied it up at the 5-minute mark. A 21-9 run... That was extended to a 27-9 run (12-0 run) and Phil called another timeout. Rondo beating them... No feeding of Bynum in the post. Not a single post-up in the second quarter after dominating the first. Offense had no purpose and too much Kobe dribbling... The Lakers lost the second quarter 33-17... The Lakers trailed 52-47 at the half. They shot 18-35 (51 percent) and 7-12 from the line. The Celtics made 22-39 (56 percent) and 5-6 from the line... BShaw didn't like the ball-stopping (Kobe) and the lack of getting touches for Drew... Down 71-64, Phil sat Bynum and Fish for Farmar and LO... The Lakers trailed 73-66 going into the fourth... Key stretch coming up as Phil's first second unit got chewed up in the second quarter. What lineup would he play?... Phil went with a Pau, Lamar, Kobe, Shannon, Farmar unit. Kobe instead of Luke. The Lakers trailed by 11 after three minutes, but they would cut it back to 3 points... Down by 4, Phil subbed out Pau for Bynum midway through the quarter and Farmar for Ron... Phil was ticked at a rebound that hit the backside of the board and a camera on with 1:20. Celts got the ball back and drew FTs to pull up by three... Phil brought in Pau for our final offensive/defensive stand. For LO on offense and for Drew on defense. Kobe hit the jumper on offense... The Lakers were up by 1 with 7.3 left. LO got a good close out on Ray and the Lakers get the stop... The Celtics scored 21 points off 16 Laker turnovers. The Lakers socred 23 points off 18 Celtic turnovers... THe Lakers shot 48 percent, the Celtics 47 percent. The Lakers shot 16-22 from the line... Phil wanted a wing streak on the road trip. This was the game they had to have. If they keep their focus in the next one, they will have done very well with a tough part of the schedule...

[jack13]

1st!!!!!!
Thanks DB Great win today in their house! Let's get the momentum going!
_________________
"These young guys are playing checkers. I'm out there playing chess." Kobe Bryant

[JTS1]

db's in the house!
_________________
'How many kids can say growing up that they'll turn pro and play for their favorite team in the world and spend your entire career there? IT'S BEEN A DREAM!'-Kobe Bryant 11.29.15

[City_Dawg]

Thanks DB

BYNUM SMASH!
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*sighs*

!...

[10_24]

thanks DB.Bynum's baaaaaccccckkkkkkkkkk!
_________________
Matthew 7:7 "Ask, and it will be given you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened for you.

[32]

Thanks DB! I love this line:

[h2omike]

Thanks DB!

[doven]

"Dead Leprechauns"

[GoldenThroat]

That's one of the first times I remember Bynum coming up big against a physical team. That might be the most significant development of the season so far. I really think he needs more post touches too.

And it's frustrating seeing Kobe operating at 75% again, after he'd been moving and shooting so well lately.

[Cha*n]

DB quote = Dead Leprechauns...



I love reading and posting the News after a Lakers win. But none are as entertaining and informative than DancingBarry's.

I hope these are archived someplace on LG? I'll look now...

Thanks DB

[night89]

When I saw Bynum right from the opening tip, I knew he was going to have a good game. He just seems a little taller than I remember. I compared him to KG, and he was definitely taller. It was hard to compare him with Pau, because of the different angles, but he was probably equal.
If I'm him, I definitely measure myself, and if there's a change, repeat EXACTLY what I was doing the last few days, including what I ate and how much sleep I had. Even if there's no change, repeat it anyway, since his explosiveness is noticeably improved.

Now Phil probably won't keep him out of the Memphis game, so it bears repeating, "Lamar, DON'T fight Bynum for the boards. You have nothing to prove."

Bynum is a most intriguing prospect, his potential is sky-high, but his injury risk, well, let's just say that if all necessary precautions are taken, then it's worth it.

Finally, just in case Bynum's bro missed it, has anyone asked Bynum if there's something wrong with his knee, after that awkward rebound in the 1st? He seems a bit weaker in the 2nd half. Hopefully, it's just my imagination, though I'd sure like to see some confirmation(and make sure that he's being totally honest about it, instead of him not wanting to "ruin the momentum"), before I go to sleep.

If he has to sit out 5 games, or even 10, it still doesn't matter. A game against Memphis is not worth a cartilage tear. As long as he delivers in the postseason and helps us win it all, then he's earned his keep.

[IPK]

And what do you know...I'm releasing a new jam entitled "Boston Is Dead". Coincidence? I think not.
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Our tribute to Phil, the man behind LG

[DancingBarry]

[32]

This was the most satisfying win this year. Best win since the last game of the finals against Olrando. I will savor this win for awhile!

[Mr. Zero]

_________________
Phil Luke

[George W Buss]

I really love your opening

[Texas_Pete]

I heard of dead Presidents, but dead Leprechauns?!?!

Thanks DB!

[George W Buss]

By the way, this game shows how blessed Lakers are to have Kobe.
If it were Kobe taking Ray Allen's last shot, the story will be different (remember the Kings game earlier in the season).

[OregonLakerGuy]

I don't always say it, but I do always read and appreciate the analysis DB.

[LakerLanny]

[RVCdesigns]

thanks db

[PLATNUM]

Pau played timid and indecisive. He was fumbling the ball and just playing with no aggression out there.

Kudos to Bynum and Artest. Although some of Ron's drives to the hoop for his patented flat-footed "lay-up" had me cringing.

Fish had some nice shots... but he also had some poor turnovers and shaky D.

Kobe needed to drive a bit more and have his guys cut to the hoop ( we miss Ariza for that) Weak Offensive execution and too many fadeaway jumpers for Kobe. GET THE BALL INTO THE POST!!!

Overall, a good win. A desperate Boston team needed this win more than LA did... but The Lakers were able to squeak it out.
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"Dread it, run from it... destiny arrives all the same."

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

Thanks DB!! Good win for the Lakers, and good write-up as usual!

[davidse]

[japanesebeef1]

"You pick up a stick and poke it. Dead Leprechaun." Poked with Mitch's magic wand!