SUNS -at- LAKERS - 5/27 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

[DancingBarry]

From Zero to Hero... The Horsemen returned from the Valley of the Sun where they suffered back-to-back defeats at the hands of confusion -- confusion in their attack, confusion in their defense.

They are of one mind tonight: Defend the city at all costs.

You patrol the tops of the concrete walls, and the Horsemen are just feet below you. They are amped up, ready to meet the challenge.

A blood run Sun rises in the distance. Instead of charging into it, the Horsemen have revised strategies and roam the perimeter, walling off the attacks as they come.

They have success. However, anytime they seem ready to go for the kill, they are put on their heels, out-numbered and suddenly out-gunned. As the battle rages, TruWarier seems to be in the center of the storm. He swings wildly and sometimes unwisely with his massive sledgehammer.

The Horsemen lose ground and truly have their backs against the wall just below you.

With the light of the blood red Sun growing brighter and closer by the minute, the Horsemen are truly backed up against the wall below you.

Out of nowhere, TruWarier's hurls his hammer into the heart of the light. The blow shakes the ground around you like an earthquake. It is decisive and devastating. As eleven bells ring out through the city, he is embraced by Death and his Death Riders. The Horsemen have won.

It takes time, but eventually you track down the hurled sledgehammer. You want to return it to TruWarier. DancingBarry has already been here. On the handle, it is written:

"The Horsemen were here. TruWarier rocked the city with a single blow.

I will continue to track them..."

Sometimes you can chase redemption and not find it. Sometimes, redemption finds you.

Ron Artest had missed a jumper in the final minute. The team got the miss back and he quickly hoisted up a three with 51 seconds, seeking to redeem himself. Staples groaned. The ball clanked. Artest was now 1-8.

Kobe and Phil were steamed. A timeout came and Artest had to sit between both of them while Phil chewed his ear off.

A couple possessions later, he would save the Lakers from deja-vu against the Suns. Jason Richardson had just banked in a three on a third Sun attempt off of offensive rebounds. The game was tied with 3.5 left (shades of Tim Thomas).

After a timeout, the inbounds came to Kobe on the sideline. Ron said he thought Kobe was fouled on his jumper. He tracked the ball as he charged in from the wing, out-muscled JRich for the airball and banked the game-winner at the buzzer. From zero to hero in a second.

His teammates immediately dogpiled him. The biggest make of Ron's storied career.

"Was that an earthquake?" Ron asked while stopping in the middle of his press conference. It might have just been the aftershock of the rest of So Cal after jumping up and down after his buzzer beater.

Early on, the Lakers found themselves with Kobe on the bench in foul trouble after just a couple of minutes of play. They fell back, dug their way out of a hole and led by as many as 16 points the first half.

Any time a big lead seemed to be built, the calls would start going against the owner of said lead. That's precisely the kind of officiating you want as a road team. You want to keep the game close and try to steal it at the end. The Suns nearly did. The Lakers had leads of 16 in the first and 18 points in the second half that the Suns were able to reel in.

Despite getting 6 more trips to the line in this game, the Suns made the same 20 FTs as the Lakers. They've got to be kicking themselves for the 69 percent shooting. Despite losing the freethrow battle, the Lakers played aggressively and won the second-chance points 18-5.

Defensively, Phil made two key adjustments. He had the Lakers switching more on the screen rolls instead of scrambling to show and recover. He also brought in Sasha off the bench to battle Goran Dragic, while sliding Farmar on Barbosa. Those two Suns combined for just 5 points on 1-7 shooting. Such is life on the road for role players.

The Lakers continue to hold their homecourt, winning their 11th straight playoff game. They've also been very good on elimination games. They'll get their chance to close out the Suns in Phoenix. It will take another full-team effort.


Kobe -- -- He came to play. He was amped up and ready to go for the kill. That fire was quickly chilled, however. Got to love that homecourt whistle. He started the game on the bench with two loose ball fouls in two and a half minutes. That was a shot to the gut that had the team staggered. Phil would bring him back later in the first to play with the foul troubles. He cut down on his attacks, was cautious on D and avoided picking up the third foul of the half. When asked about the two quick fouls afterward, he just stared at the questioner. He didn't say a thing until prompted again, then said "unfortunate" to use the reporter's words. He may have been more steamed about the very inconsistent whistle. There were times when he seemed obviously fouled and the refs didn't call it. Eventually, it cost Kobe a tech. In the fourth, he settled a bit too much for jumpers. It could be he was tired. It could be he felt he wasn't going to be able to manufacture any FTs. DFish joked about Kobe going for 40/20/10 in this game. He played that way. He even had 4 blocks. No assist for Kobe on the airball and he finished an assist shy of the triple-double. This was Kobe's 190th playoff game, tying him with Magic for most by a Laker. The Stats: He scored 30 points on 12-27 shooting (4-10 from three, 2-3 from the line) to go with 11 boards (3 offensive), 9 assists, 4 blocks, 2 turnovers and 3 fouls in 43 minutes. He was +4. The Action: He lost the ball on the first possession. He was called for a loose ball foul when Hill flailed after losing it and fell to the floor (Kobe was beating him to the ball and he ran into Kobe). He sank a pull-up wing jumper for the Lakers first score. He missed a drive, looking for a foul, then picked up his second foul crashing the glass on the miss and had to sit only 3 minutes into the game. Back in, he ball-watched and it led to a dunk. He blocked Amare's drive (risky with the foul situation, but he was careful on it). He had 2 points on 1-2 shooting and 2 assists. He pushed out the break and drew FTs, he wanted the goaltend, he made both. He missed an open three. He somehow banked in a hanging jumper from about 10 feet out. Great effort to pull down a Sasha miss while avoiding a foul, he then found Lamar for FTs. He missed a tech FT. He drained a three off a screen. He drained another wing three over the zone. He sank a step-back three in early offense, third straight three to force a timeout. He forced a pass into a crowd, points the other way. He missed a three in transition. He missed a reverse. He missed a pull-up jumper from the wing. He had 15 points on 5-10 shooting (3-5 from three) and 4 assists. Second Half: He missed a wing jumper. Sank an elbow jumper over Nash and the zone. He missed a three. He dunked off the pass from Ron on the break. He moved in off the three line and hit the short one-hander from the left side. He rejected Amare off the glass to ignite a break. He missed a baseline jumper. He sank a short wing jumper. All kinds of contact on a drive, no call. He drained a wing three over the zone. Bad chuck from three, challenged over the zone. He then picked up a tech. He got tapped on an elbow jumper. He swished a fading wing jumper. He bricked a pumping wing jumper. He scooped up a loose ball and hit Pau with a long outlet for a layup. He got tapped on a three over the zone. He swished a pull-up wing jumper. He settled and missed a long wing jumper. He hit Pau cutting out of a timeout for FTs. He found LO under the hoop for a layup. He fired from 3 quickly on the inbounds, Ron saw Kobe fouled, tracked the airball and put it a the buzzer.

Gasol -- -- Pau and the Laker bigs were switching on D instead of going to their scrambling defensive rotations. This often left Pau on guards, including Nash down the stretch. "If you are going to put Pau or Bynum or Lamar on Steve, we're going to ask him to be aggressive," Gentry said. Nash was able to go for 29 points on 60 percent shooting. "I thought the switching was sometimes over done," Phil said. Phil made a key switch in the final minute, putting Ron on Amare to switch on Nash when the screen-roll came. The Lakers stopped the bleeding momentarily with a stop. You don't want to close a tight game with that kind of defensive scheme. Glad they made that switch. Offensively, a better game from Pau. Although, he somehow missed a dunk over a couple defenders. That was a huge miss. The team did a better job getting him the ball in the middle of the zone on the move. In the second quarter, he rarely saw the ball, but they had him involved other than that and the results were there. Pau probably could have had several more trips to the line, but he led the Lakers in that precious commodity. The Stats: He scored 21 points on 7-14 shooting (7-8 from the line) to go with 9 boards (4 offensive), 5 assists, 1 block, 2 turnovers and 4 fouls in 40 minutes. He was a -6. The Action: He was blocked twice on one sequence. He was called for three seconds. He was fouled on a putback attempt and made both FTs. Phantom foul after he got stripped to give the Suns a possession again. He spun baseline and hammered down a dunk (pushed in the back with no call). He was fouled on a putback attempt, he made one FT. He missed a tough, hanging bank. He scored a layup off the Kobe feed at the end of the first. He had 7 points on 2-5 shooting. He was called for a loose ball foul trying to get a rebound. He was hacked on a drive and dish from Fish and finally got the call, he made both FTs. Not a lot of touches in the second quarter. He had 9 points on 2-5 shooting and 4 boards. Second Half: He swatted Lopez in the paint. He was blocked under the hoop. He dunked off the feed from Lamar. He sank a baseline jumper. He couldn't hold a Lamar pass. He grabbed a missed jumper and put it in. He hit Dudley's arm for an And-1 three. He dunked off the pass from Farmar. He missed a spinning layup. He swatted Frye twice, bogus foul call on the second one. No D on Dragic and he gave up a three to keep the Suns within 6 (if you don't close out, no one can help you). He scored a layup on the leak out when Kobe spotted him. He missed a wing jumper. He couldn't finish an And-1 layup cutting from the weakside off the Kobe pass, he made both FTs. He missed a slam to take a 5-point lead.

Bynum -- -- The Lakers got a donut out of Bynum offensively from the floor, but some improved presence on the other end of the floor. "He played a really good game as far as the minutes he could play," Phil said. He swatted 4 shots and grabbed 5 offensive boards, but ended up in foul trouble in 19 minutes. The switching D allowed for less scrambling from the Lakers off the pick and roll that the Suns were going after against Drew. Offensively, you just wish Bynum had some explosion and could play over the top of the D more. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 0-5 shooting (2-2 from the line) to go with 7 boards (5 offensive), 4 blocks and 5 fouls in 19 minutes. He was a +4. The Action: He posted up Amare and drew a foul off ball. He missed a jumphook and tip attempt. He was called for an And-1 trying to contest Amare. He missed a jumphook in the lane. He blocked Hill's jumper (Hill hit a shot on him on a switch on the previous play). He stuffed Lopez on iso D. He didn't score on 0-3 shooting and had 3 blocks. Second Half: He swatted JRich. He grabbed an offensive board on the other end and drew FTs, he made both. Sloppy baseline D against Nash and he fouled him. He picked up another foul helping on Amare and had to sit after just 3 minutes. He missed a point-blank tip-in attempt.

Artest -- -- Sweet mother of God. Ron Artest, thank you. He saved a near disaster of a game from himself and the team. He made up for a brain cramp on a missed open three with 22 on the shotclock and 51 seconds remaining. Kobe airballed from the baseline. Ron out-muscled JRich while crashing the boards, grabbed it, turned and banked as the shotclock went off. "He got fouled. I knew it was going to be an airball so I just ran after it," Ron said. Phil wasn't even sure why he had left him in for that final play. "He just has a knack of being around crucial plays," Phil said. Ron never gave up on the play. He didn't stop and watch Kobe and it paid off. His teammates just mobbed him. "He's sacrificed a lot to help us get to where were trying to go. That's why we're so happy for him," DFish said. Phil said their were a lot of "hugs and discussions" after the game. When asked about the three Ron shot, he said, "You bring it out and you set back up." Perhaps, a lesson was learned. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-9 shooting (0-3 from three) to go with 5 boards, 2 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 2 turnovers and 4 fouls in 31 minutes. He was a -4. The Action: He attacked, was hit hard with no call and blocked. He missed an open wing three on the break. He lost the ball trying to force it into traffic. Pretty weak foul trying to stand still and take a charge, Hill made an And-1 layup by initiating contact. He swiped a pass. He got tapped on a three. He stole a ball, then lost it in transition, arrgh. Horrible loose ball foul with 0.7 seconds left after we took a bad shot (not how you want to end the half). He didn't score on 0-3 shooting, had 2 steals and 2 turnovers. Second Half: He was hacked in the lane with no call. He missed an early offense wing three. He dumped the ball off to Kobe on the break for a dunk. He blocked Amare's jumper. He stole the ball from Nash and took it for a layup next time down. He missed a midrange jumper, we got it back and he chucked up a quick three with 51 seconds left and 22 on the shotclock up by 3 (Phil was all over him in the timeout). Phil put Ron on Amare out of the timeout and that allowed the Lakers to get a stop when he switched on Nash.

Fisher -- -- DFish knows a lot about last-second heroics. Tonight, he didn't have the buzzer beater. Instead, his clutch plays seemed to come when the Lakers needed them most. The Lakers were staggered in the first quarter with Kobe sitting after just a couple of minutes. They were in the penalty and starting to fall behind. Fish scored 11 of his points in the quarter, stringing together several scores in a row and he helped the Lakers dig out of the hole. In the fourth, he came off the bench and immediately chipped in a with a couple of clutch jumpers. He took a lot of heat in the regular season, but he has had some post-season gems. "I've never looked at criticism as a personal thing. I've been on great teams...I just try to keep doing what I do," DFish said afterward about the heat he takes. Defensively, the Lakers switched early and often, turning the Suns into an iso ball team. Late in the game, Nash made several jumpers against this D. The end result was the Lakers holding the Suns to their lowest output of the series. The Stats: He scored 22 points on 7-12 shooting (2-5 from three, 6-6 from the line) to go with 1 board, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 4 fouls in 33 minutes. He was a -2. The Action: Nash swung through on him and drew three FTs to start the game. He missed a three. He attacked off the three line with speed and drew FTs, he made both. He sank a 19-footer left open. He sank an open corner three. He attacked from the corner with aggression and drew FTs, he made both. A fourth-straight score, he pushed out the break and scored a layup and the Lakers had a 20-19 lead after trailing early. He had 11 points on 3-4 shooting in the first. He attacked off the three line and hit Lamar for a dunk. He looked like he drew a charge on the break and was shocked by the blocking call. He set up Pau for FTs on a drive and dish. He was fouled in the backcourt, he made both FTs. He had 13 points on 3-4 shooting (6-6 from the line). Second Half: He missed a corner three. He attacked off the three line and scored a layup. He swiped a pass and ignited the break. He attacked off the three line and hit an elbow jumper. He switched on Amare and knocked the ball off him. He missed a three. He missed a drive. Big corner three after entering the game in the fourth. He sank a baseline jumper.

Lamar -- -- Excellent game from Lamar on both ends. He was finding the soft spots of the zone and teammates were looking for him. He hit a few jumphooks and layups getting into the right positions off the ball. That was vital. Hopefully, the Lakers start getting more comfortable with the zone. There were a few plays where the calls went against Lamar, but he never let it get him sidetracked. On the defensive end, he communicated well with teammates. They were switching and helping much better and controlled the defensive glass (until that last play...he was closing out on JRich and L.A. was having Tim Thomas flashbacks). The Stats: He scored 17 points on 7-11 shooting (0-1 from three, 3-4 from the line) to go with 13 boards (5 offensive), 4 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in 36 minutes. He was a +9. The Action: He missed a short jumphook in the lane. He slammed back in a missed layup by Luke. He missed an And-1 layup he should have had, he made both FTs. He dunked off the drive and dish from Fish. Low position and he hit the jumphook over Amare. He sank a jumphook out of the timeout, getting into the paint. He cleaned up a missed three by Artest. He had 12 points on 5-7 shooting and 6 boards. Second Half: He spotted Pau open under the hoop for a dunk. He drew FTs trying to throw down over Amare on a dive cut, he made one. He was body checked on a layup attempt and missed with no call (meanwhile, Dudley picks up And-1 with his off arm while clearing out on the other end). Looked like his putback was goaltended with no call. He attacked baseline and scored a layup. He scored a layup off the Kobe feed.

Brown -- -- A nothing game from Shannon. Seems he's about due for a good one again. His hoop IQ and skills aren't made for the zone. We really have to get him cutting along that baseline off the ball and using more ball fakes instead of swing passing and chucking. The key for him is to keep moving the ball and moving himself. Don't stall the offense. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 1-4 shooting (0-1 from three) to go with 1 board and 1 foul in 6 minutes. He was a -2. The Action: His three was blocked. He hit a jumphook with low position on an inbounds. He missed a wing jumper. He airballed forcing a poorly executed jumper at the end of the half. Second Half: Nothing to report.

Farmar -- -- He was put on Barbosa instead of Dragic to start the second quarter. He played ball-denial defense as much as possible. His speed helped negate Barbosa's driving to the hoop. Got to love a 2-point, 0-2 performance from Barbosa. Farmar did a lot of little things in this game even though he didn't score. He was trying to move the ball despite the temptation to keep it. He found teammates for scores and scrapped on the defensive end. You'll live with that kind of game as the positives were there on both sides of the floor. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-2 shooting (0-1 from three) to go with 2 boards, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 13 minutes. He was a +9. The Action: He attacked in transition of the LO outlet, he charged to erase a hoop. He drew a moving screen call. He didn't feed the post, then missed badly from three. Second Half: He jump-passed to Pau for a dunk. He couldn't finish a layup on a drive.

Luke -- -- Phil brought him in for short stints at the ends of the first and third quarters, most likely to keep the ball moving versus the stagnant Shannon/Farmar units. Luke didn't do much, but stole a few minutes from that stagnant lineup and the team was a +5 while he was on the floor. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-3 shooting. The Action: He missed a layup on a return feed off the inbounds. Smart flop on an Amare drive, he beat him to the spot, but made sure to go down and draw the whistle (Amare's second foul at the end of the first...and some cash money from Phil). Second Half: He missed a three. He missed a reverse.

Vujacic -- -- Sasha had been the Korver Stopper, one of the few players he could actually lock down. Another game like this and you might call him the Dragic Stopper. He came in to cover Dragic to start the second quarter. Good stint as Dragic went 0-2 and the Lakers pulled out to a lead by neutralizing the Suns bench players. He drew a double tech on Dragic in the fourth, staying all over him and getting into his face after a play. This is Sasha at his best. Few players get under the skin of opponents like Sasha. Dragic's only score came when Pau was guarding him. On the other end, Sasha sank a couple of jumpers, including a three in the fourth. When it was over, Sasha led all players with a +10. This adjustment paid off for Phil. He got good D on one end and shooter to use against the zone on the other. Hopefully, Sasha can manage to do it again on the road. The Stats: He scored 5 points on 2-4 shooting (1-3 from three). The Action: He missed a three over the zone. He moved in off the three line and hit the wing jumper next time down. He missed an open corner three on a kickout. Second Half: He swished a three on the break.

Phil -- -- Adjustments made. A lot of switching defensively by the Lakers from the start and Sasha coming in to cover Dragic with Farmar on Barbosa... Phil had to sit Kobe with fouls and 9:25 left in the first. He brought in Shannon... The Lakers were in the penalty just 4 minutes into the game... The Lakers trailed 15-8 midway through the quarter... Phil brought Kobe back in with 5:18 remaining in the first... The Lakers were down 17-11 when Lamar entered the game for Drew... Phil brought in Luke for Artest down 19-13... DFish strung together four straight scores and the Lakers led 24-21 after the first... Phil started a Bynum, Lamar, Kobe, Sasha, Farmar unit... The Lakers led 35-25 when Nash and JRich returned. Phil brought back in Ron for Sasha... Kobe drained three straight threes to lead 41-25 and force a timeout... The Suns trimmed the lead to 45-34 and Phil called a timeout, not liking the offensive execution... Phil sat Kobe with 1:16 left in the half to avoid picking up his third foul. He gambled all half and Kobe came through for him... The Lakers were out-scored 17-8 to close the half. They survived the foul trouble to Kobe and found some defense... The Lakers led 53-45 at the half. The Lakers shot just 41.5 percent (17-41, 4-13 from three), but made 15-17 from the line. The Suns shot 42.5 percent (17-40, 2-11 from three) and made 9-14 from the line. The Lakers had 8 turnovers off which the Suns scored 10 points. The Suns had 9 turnovers that L.A. converted into 9 points... Phil had to sit Bynum with foul trouble early in the third for Lamar... The Lakers forced a timeout with a 6-0 run, leading 65-51... Phil brought in Luke for Artest with 3 minutes left in the third... He sat Luke for Shannon a minute later... A 13-2 run for the Suns during this stretch. Just when the Lakers were looking to pull out to a big lead, the whistles started to look very one-sided again... The Lakers lost the third 27-25... They led 78-72 heading into the fourth. The Lakers second unit would have to come up big again to hold the slim lead... Phil started a Pau, Lamar, Kobe, Sasha, Farmar lineup... Pau was called for his fourth up 11 on a weak call and Phil sat him for Bynum... Up by 7, timeout... Up 90-85, Nash came in and Phil returned with Artest and Fisher... The Lakers led by just 1 before Fisher hit a baseline jumper and the Suns called timeout with 2:28 left... Up by 3, Ron clanked a three with 22 on the shotclock, 51 in the game. Phil was all over him in the timeout.
"He was trying not to listen to me very hard," Phil said... Phil switched Ron on Amare out of a timeout, that resulted in Ron on Nash on the switch and the Lakers got a stop. Great call to get a key stop... The Suns got three attempts at a three and JRich banked one in to tie it with 3.5 seconds left... Phil called timeout. They got the ball into Kobe on the sideline. He airballed from three getting smothered. Ron tracked it, grabbed it and banked at the buzzer... "I don't know why I left him in the game. I actually questioned myself and he made the key play," Phil said of that final sequence and Artest's game winner... The Suns had a 15-6 advantage from the line in the second half. They also made 7-16 from three in the half... The Lakers had just 1 turnover in the second half...

Game Flow -- LINK -- The Lakers biggest leads were immediately followed by the Suns biggest runs.

[LuciusAllen]

Thanks DB. GREAT game.

[JTS1]

first?....NOT!

but there's another bell. that would be eleven!
_________________
'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

[Ray_Gonzoles]

RA - zero to hero - and buzzer beater for the win!

Now on to closing this out.

Thanks for the recaps DB!
_________________
"Just show up ready to work, ready to play, Have your big boy pants on, leave your diaper at home." Kobe Bryant
Anything less than a championship is a failure. Period.

[City_Dawg]

Thanks DB
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*sighs*

!...

[ocho]

It's no surprise that Ron's greatest moment as a Laker came right after his worst. He's the wild card.

Props to him for the play of the game. Still can't believe we stole that one in regulation.

Kobe is playing out of his mind these days. It's going to be a big adjustment when the day comes that he decides to hang up the sneakers.

[sec 110]

[Luca Brasi]

great analysis, DB.

i'm hoping that one of the great laker fans, pop machine, posts in this thread, because, although, ron was brutal in this game, he didn't give up and made a team winning play at the end. and this is a reason to celebrate.

reminds me of a quote by atticus finch from To Kill A Mocking Bird: It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyways and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do"

Go lakers.
_________________
"i was born down in the valley where the sun refused to shine, but i'm climbin' up to the highlands, goin' to make that mountain mine" ~ Lakers, 2011

[lounger]

We got some home cooking... and we were the ones being toasted with the calls...

but now, they have to end this @ Phoenix. Go Lakers!

thanks DB!

[JTS1]

[Klone_dd]

The earthquake RonRon felt was all of LA finally releasing their negative energy from those 2 brainless clankers he shot. That, or the force of a collective sigh.

Good adjustments by Phil with all the switching. Unfortunately, Nashty shot 60% FGs and their bench came alive in the 2nd half. Wouldn't mind the Lakers using others vs Amare on the high P&R if only to confuse Nash every once in a while. Brilliant of Phil to use Ron like that in the one critical stop.

Gotta give major props to DFish and LO. DFish has quietly put up a string of quality games. He can't match his 2001 run, but he has been very solid. LO was controlling the boards and set up well vs the zone.

Sasha - welcome back! He played the head game with Dragic to good effect. DB perfectly described Shannon. He's not the smartest nor the most disciplined player vs a zone.

Kobe has been playing some major, major minutes, but you wouldn't have it any other way. Quite an impressive run of his own.

I imagine we'll get screwed even worse by the refs in Phx. Which will only make the win even better.

[Laker's Fan]

"hugs and discussions"

Phil has got to come back next year. Kobe, Pau, Ron, Lamar, Fisher. This team was built for him.
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Austin Reaves keeps his game tight, like Kobe Bryant on game night.

[Fleur-de-Lis]

Artest just ripped the heart out of the Suns and ate it
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Winning recipe: Effort, Intensity, Focus, Composure, Patience, Execution, Attention to detail, Discipline & Persistence

[Omar Little]

<<waits for the "there's nothing wrong with the refs" crowd to call DB a whining Homer>>

Good write up. It would be nice to see these two teams go head to head without the manipulation, but the win was certainly exciting. And if a griper like me sees that, its no wonder they keep doing it. The right team won, but it was a shame to see them have to essentially steal it from a team they outclassed, outworked, out executed, and should have beaten easily based on the play on the floor. Glad to see ron atone for the errors. One of the problems of artificially inducing a close game is sometimes the better team makes an untimely mistake, or the team getting the help makes a lucky, timely basket or two, and you get the "wrong" result. Ron's last play counteracted Both of those things happening...
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“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” ― Elie Wiesel

[MedRomLaker]

[revgen]

Bynum seems to perform much better with this new switching scheme Phil is using. I don't think it's easy for Bynum to scramble around while playing on one knee.
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[IPK]

[IPK]

[Tanlentueux]

[Rodman28]

Thanx!
_________________
*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

[Texas_Pete]

Thanks DB. Sasha's Back? It was nice to see a few of Sasha's Sick Jumpers of Death tonight. Right now, he deserves all of Shannon Brown's minutes (eat your heart out Laker Lanny! ) Seriously though, Sasha has the size and speed to really be a pest out there. Good to see him get into Dragic' head a little bit.

[coop-a-loop]

A W is a W. We made Nash a scorer today with all the switching, but he was able to make some incredible shots over the taller Pau. The Phoenix bench also played extremely well. Much better defense on Amare this team. There was help, and we limited his space to operate. Finally, we got some contribution, oustide of Odom, from the Laker bench. Vujacic was key in slowing down and frustrating Dragic.

But I am not going to write this Phoenix team off. I was hoping that when we were up 18, keeping the deficit that way would serve in demoralizing Phoenix heading into Game 6. But the Sun's near comeback (on the road) will give them a ton of confidence heading in to Game 6 and, if necessary, Game 7. Although the Suns lost, they have momentum and a lot of positive. Phoenix will bounce back and we are in for a wild one in the desert.

My only comforts are that we have two chances to close them out, one of them being at home where our record this season is great. Time to wrap this thing up in the desert.

[10_24]

wow.kobe with 4 blocks.tnx db
_________________
Matthew 7:7 "Ask, and it will be given you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened for you.

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

Thanks DB! That game was just too close. What does it take for the Lakers to make a run this series without bringing on a rain of whistles??

[prisma8slg]

Thanks DB.

thrilled Ron got a chance to redeem himself with the final shot.
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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."