LAKERS -at- CELTICS - 6/10 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

[DancingBarry]

Revenge of the Leprechauns... The thing about Leprechauns is that you have to take the fight to them. If you don't, they will surely take it to you.

You stand behind the Horsemen as they charge the temple of the Leprechaun. It is apparent from the start of this battle, however, that the size advantage the Horsemen have held against their smaller foes has been neutralized.

The biggest of Horsemen, the one called Destruction, falls. Neither Famine nor Pestilence cause this swarming green stench much concern. You are quickly driven in retreat into the darkness of the jungle.

You trip, stumble and fall...and they have you.

You are dragged back to the temple where they tie up your arms and legs and throw you into a bamboo prison. For the moment, you are caged. Taking in your surroundings, you see a message from DancingBarry scratched onto the bars of your bamboo prison:

"The Horsemen were here. Their size and strength, however, was cut from beneath them. While their littlest of warriors might have seized the last battle, it was their biggest of warriors who seized up today. Victory won't be given. It must be taken.

I will continue to track them..."

It wasn't just the 96-89 defeat that the Lakers will have to bounce back from, it's the loss of one of their key weapons.

The Lakers lost Bynum's effectiveness and his impact minutes to an injury that took place in game three, and they promptly lost control of the interior in game four.

Lamar Odom failed to rise to the occasion as Glen Davis and others took advantage. "I felt like a beast. I just felt like I couldn't be denied," Davis said after 18 points on 7-10 shooting.

The health of Bynum was the x-factor in this series. If he cannot go, the Lakers turn to the struggling Odom to fill his shoes. You don't want the balance of the series riding on that. Drew has got to somehow fight through it and produce.

"I thought Lamar was going to kind of sit this one out," Phil said before adding that Lamar got more productive late in the game. By then, the momentum had clearly shifted in the Celtics' favor.

The Lakers gave up a 36-point fourth quarter. Little things started to go against them: missed tech FTs, bad pass turnovers, an And-1 charge that should have been a Laker stop. When the room for error is tight, you just can't do that to dig yourself out of a hole while trying to overcome all that.

The Lakers lost the offensive glass from start to finish. The final tally was a 16-8 advantage and 20 second-chance points for the Celtics. It wasn't done in spurts, but in a consistent manner. The Lakers interior was simply out-worked.

This is the third time they have been tied 2-2 in a series this postseason. The difference this time is that the 2-3-2 format gives the Celtics home court on game 5. The Lakers have avoided facing elimination games by winning game five. It will take every ounce they can get from everyone in the purple and gold to avoid that.

Who will rise to the occasion?


Kobe -- -- Kobe was draining the threes tonight. When the offense stalled or the Celtics were making a run, it seemed like he was the one who usually stepped up to stop the bleeding...usually with a three. Late in the game, he was attacking and getting into the paint. They need to see more of that. While everyone had their own miscues down the stretch, Kobe had turnovers throughout. A missed tech FT and a picked off pass (to Lamar standing still at the three line) were among the fourth quarter miscues. The turnovers cost the Lakers. Not just because of futile offensive sets, but the breakaway points that the Celtics turned them into. Kobe needs to get into Lamar and Pau's heads right now. They have got to play bigger. He needs to follow that up with setting up some good two-man sequences where LO/Pau get the ball on the move to make an extra pass to each other for easy scores. They need to get the adrenaline going instead of standing around. If he can't help will his impact players into playing more impact ball, then maybe he'll have to double his efforts on the glass as well as cleaning up the execution. Unfortunately, we already have a lot on his shoulders. "Physically he had to work too hard," Phil said. "The matchups dictated those terms. We'll have to make changes." The Lakers need to find a way to steal the next one. The Stats: He scored 33 points on 10-22 shooting (6-11 from three, 7-8 from the line) to go wtih 6 boards, 2 assists, 2 steals, 7 turnovers and 5 fouls in 43 minutes. He was a -8. The Action: He drained a turnaround from the post to start the game (he was hit without a call). He banked over Allen trying to get contact in the post. He missed an 18-footer. He was stripped from behind. He was short on a baseline jumper. He had 4 points on 2-4 shooting and 2 assists in the quarter. He swished a three stepping out behind an Artest screen. He drained another three next time down off the Pau screen (he wanted the foul). He sank his third straight jumper, this time from the right wing. His transition pass was picked off when he got caught in the air. He missed an elbow jumper, but drew a charge on Pierce in transition to get it back. He was picked by Rondo from behind for a layup the other way, bad possession. He had 12 points on 5-8 shooting but 4 turnovers. Second Half: He missed an elbow jumper too short. He hit Pau on a high-low for FTs. He missed a floater on the attack. Sloppy pass, easily picked off. He attacked, took contact and no call on a missed layup. Bad help D, not getting into position in front of Perkins and giving up a layup. He nailed a three getting loose off of screens. He missed a long three with the shotclock low. He drained a step-back corner three with the shotclock low. He drilled a wing three next time down. He missed a pull-up three. He tried to dribble through multiple defenders and the ball was stolen. He had 9 points on 3-8 shooting in the third (now 5-7 from three). He attacked and was hacked by Sheed, who went crazy, it led to a T (which Kobe missed), he then made both FTs. He missed a heave to just beat the shotclock. He missed a lefty runner. He took contact on the perimeter for FTs, he made both. He swished a short wing jumper to cut it to 6. He drew a charge on Pierce, but it was turned into an And-1 for Pierce, bad call with 1:17 left. He was fouled on a three with 1:08 left, he made all three. His kickout was stolen with 30 seconds left. He rattled in a tough, fading three. He missed a running three.

Gasol -- -- In 2008, Pau was heavily criticized for the Lakers not holding their own in the paint against the Celtic bigmen. The problems looked very apparent when he had to take Perkins to start the second half while Drew was out. Not that Perkins did anything special against him, but it just reminded you of 2008 when the Lakers lost control of their interior. They've got their hands full if Drew can't overcome the injury. Pau needs to look in the mirror and then impose his will in the next game. Get on the offensive glass and control the paint on D. Play with hustle and heart to go along with his skill. He did a good job getting to the line and the Lakers got him the ball more to go to work. That was the one positive that needs to carry through. But that was outweighed by our interior getting dominated. In the last game where it seemed like everyone contributed something positive in the stretch run, this was quite the opposite. Pau couldn't control the glass in crunch time, when we did get a key stop, he then threw the ball away with a minute and half left. That was his back-breaker. The Stats: He scored 21 points on 6-13 shooting (0-1 from three, 9-10 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 3 assists, 2 blocks, 4 turnovers and 4 fouls in 43 minutes. He was a -8. The Action: He sank a 10-footer flashing to the ball. He sank an elbow jumper in early offense. He missed a long wing jumper. He scored a layup with his left when Fish found him on a mismatch. He missed a 15-footer. He was hit from behind to lose a board with no call. He missed a reverse. He drew two fouls on Sheed on one possession and Sheed was jumping around angry, he made both FTs. He had 8 points on 3-6 shooting in the first. He let Sheed steal a post entry from behind him. He was hit by Sheed in the post for FTs, he made one. He found Lamar for an And-1 layup on the break. He attacked from the elbow and drew FTs, he made both. He gave up an And-1 to KG with a weak slap after he beat him. He drew FTs getting hit on an up-and-under move, he made both. He blocked Allen on a close out. He had 13 points on 3-6 shooting (7-8 from the line) and 3 boards at the half. Second Half: He drew FTs on a high-low from Kobe, he made both. He swished a wing jumper from 17 feet out. He missed a long jumphook. He missed a reverse. He was called for 3 seconds. He had 4 points on 1-3 shooting in the third. He worked Sheed in the post and banked over him. Davis powered in a layup over him (got to send those packing). He just missed a banked three, having to launch on an inbounds pass with the clock about to go off. He was blocked on a putback attempt. He hit a twisting runner in the lane. He missed a lefty jumphook. He threw an outlet away with 1:30 left, killer turnover that the Celtics turned into an And-1.

Bynum -- -- The series appears to be resting on Drew's injured knee. In three games, Drew had given the Lakers some strong minutes -- enough to control the interior. Without his big body, easy post points, offensive boards and anchoring D, the Lakers interior turned soft. Phil started Drew and ran him for 6 minutes. His mobility looked reduced and Phil sat him midway through the quarter. He'd give him a couple smaller stints, but would start Lamar in his place in the second half while Drew was in the locker room. He came out for a brief stint, then sat again.
"He tried for a couple minutes but it wasn't there," Phil said. Gary Vitti needs to work some magic before Sunday. "The Boston Celtics were playing against the 2008 Los Angeles Lakers," said Kenny Smith afterward. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 1-2 shooting to go with 3 boards, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 12 minutes. He was a +3. The Action: He was blocked on a dunk attempt and wanted the foul. He banked a turnaround over Perkins in the post. Second Half: In briefly before sitting again. Nothing to report.

Artest -- -- He made Pierce work and battled the screens. Pierce was scoreless in the second half until the final 3 minutes. Artest was switched onto Allen during some of that fourth and scrapped against him to keep him from doing anything major. Offensively, however, Ron's jumper was MIA again. He did, however, manage to lead the team with 4 offensive boards and get some points off that. Pau and LO had just 1 each. He was really the only one effective in those second-chance opportunities. If Bynum can't go, one wonders if Phil might move Artest to PF for a stint to see what happens. We can't have Big Baby dominating like that and Ron can box out or take the ball from him when he gets it. Unfortunately, that would mean someone has to pick up Pierce. LO just needs to show up. Or maybe Crazy Ron can get a double tech on Sheed or Perkins. The Stats: He scored 9 points on 4-10 shooting (0-1 from three, 1-1 from the line) to go with 7 boards (4 offensive), 3 assists, 1 block and 2 fouls. He was a +1. The Action: He missed trying to create around KG in the lane. Late in transition and Pierce scored a layup. He didn't draw iron on a wing three (nearly a layup the other way). He cleaned up a Kobe missed jumper working the offensive glass. He missed an open wing jumper off the dribble. Pierce had 10 points in the first quarter, Ron had 2 on 1-4 shooting. He posted up Pierce and banked easily. He kicked out to Farmar for an open three. He blocked KG's turnaround on iso D. He blew past Pierce on the baseline for a layup. Pierce had just 2 points in the second quarter. Ron had 6 points on 3-6 shooting at the half. Second Half: Not close on a jumper with the shotclock low. He missed a jumper with the shotlock about to go off. He grabbed an offensive board and missed a short, flat jumper. He attacked off an offensive board and scored an And-1 layup, he made the FT.

Fisher -- -- Fish struggled a bit with foul troubles, having to sit for Sasha midway in the first and third quarters. Fish led the team with a +6 while he was out there. You can't expect him to work magic every game, but he did seem to hold his own with Allen again. Ray scored 12 points on 11 shots. Both Fish and Kobe missed tech FTs in the fourth. Maybe it wouldn't have made a difference with how badly the Lakers were controlling their interior, but those misses and a couple of Lakers turnovers kept the team from reeling the Celtics in. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 3-6 shooting (0-2 from three, 0-1 from the line) to go with 1 board, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 4 fouls in 30 minutes. He was a +6. The Action: He lost the ball when it was stripped off him. He missed an open corner three. He scooped up a loose ball then hit Pau for a layup. He picked up his second foul in transition against Pierce with 4:27 left in the first quarter, he sat for Sasha. He missed a long jumper. He didn't score on 0-2 shooting. Allen was 1-6 for 2 points. Second Half: He swished a floater in the lane. He was expecting a whistle and somehow heaved in a 20-footer from the wing, off balance. He picked up his fourth foul with 5 minutes remaining in the third and had to sit again. He missed a tech FT. He attacked and scored a layup. He missed a sideline three.

Lamar -- -- Once the Lakers put more on Lamar's shoulders, he quickly becomes the eye of the storm. He did not step up for Drew when they needed it. He did not look like the guy who played with a chip on his shoulder after the Celtics knocked the Lakers out in 2008. They need the Lamar that beats you with hustle, boards, putbacks, drives and defense. It's one thing for Davis to make great plays to score, it's another to let him out-work you. Lamar got out-worked. He didn't have the foul troubles, although he picked up a couple of fouls on one defensive stand against Davis in the first half. But he was able to avoid foul trouble for the most part. This allowed Phil to rest Bynum and his injury and keep a lead in the first half. In the second half, Lamar had to start for Drew. The team actually seemed to lose some of their sense of urgency with him in the lineup. They started to get into their offense way too slow again. But alll game long it was the Celtics beating the Lakers in the paint. You could see this loss coming because Lamar, Pau and others couldn't control the boards. A loss looked inevitable since there was no presence in the paint. Davis had 4 offensive boards and 18 points on 7-10 shooting. He is getting no resistence from our bigs, and that's a shame. Lamar had just 1 board in the second half. Time to man up. Lamar got a few scores down the stretch, maybe that's something he can build off of. We can only hope. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 5-10 shooting (0-1 from three, 0-1 from the line) to go with 7 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 5 fouls in 39 minutes. He was a -3. The Action: He missed a long three with the shotclock going off. He missed a good look at a 15-footer. He picked up two fouls on one possession against Baby. He was picked by Davis trying to cross him over. He scored a layup softly off the glass attacking left. He missed a wing jumper with the clock low. He scored an And-1 layup off the Pau pass on the break, he missed the FT. He got sealed by Perkins and gave up a putback score. Nice switch and close on Pierce to force a travel. He had 4 points on 2-5 shooting and 6 boards. Second Half: He missed a runner on iso, layup the other way. He was called for a loose ball foul next time down. He missed a 17-footer to start the fourth. Davis scored a layup on him on iso. Horrible D on Allen, giving up a reverse next time down. He scored a layup getting around Davis. He attacked and banked in layup looking for the foul. He attacked Wallace and scored a layup over him. He couldn't secure a defensive board after the Lakers made a good stand, uggh.

Brown -- -- The first five minutes of the fourth quarter is often where games are won or lost. The Shannon/Farmar combo was a -9 in 3:37 to start that quarter. The Celtic 9-0 run only ended the moment they sat. The Laker second unit couldn't hold the line and the team was on their heels all quarter. "We were playing some pretty tired players out there," Phil said, making a point about having to play starters longer than he wanted because of the bench. Shannon played a decent first half, scoring off a nice Tri sequence on one play and bailing out the offense on a jumper on another. He The Stats: He scored 5 points on 2-5 shooting (0-1 from three, 1-1 from the line) to go with 1 foul in 11 minutes. He was a -6. The Action: He missed a long heave at the end of the first quarter. He hit an And-1 layup working the weakside of the Tri with Farmar, he made the FT. He sank a tough baseline fade just beating the shotclock. He missed an open corner three. Second Half: He missed a drive in the paint.

Farmar -- -- Nate Robinson was going to find a game he could impact in this series. It was just a matter of time. The Lakers have had some problems with him in the past. They were able to keep him at bay in the first three games, but he got it going tonight. Robinson was a +11 with 12 points on 4-8 shooting in just 16 minutes. That was killer. He and Davis held court in the press conference afterward. Robinson got a very good look to hit a three on his first attempt. That got him rolling. If they can force him into a couple miscues or a miss early, we have seen him throttle it back and Rivers pull him when he can. Job done. After a confident first stint, the Celtics second unit thumped the Lakers to start the fourth. Nate took the ball from Farmar on one play, beat him to the floor for it and hyped up the crowd. Lakers need to out-hustle the Celtics bench not vice versa. The bench took it on the chin from Nate and Baby tonight. The Stats: He scored 3 points on 1-2 shooting (1-2 from three) to go with 2 boards, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 9 minutes. He was a +3. The Action: He stole a pass in the backcourt and set up Pau under the hoop for what looked like FTs, but they said Pau never got into his shot. Robinson hit an open three when Farmar got caught in screens and no one rotated. He hit Shannon in stride with a drop pass for an And-1 layup. He missed a three trying to get back at Nate who had just hit one on him. He knocked a pass loose on the other end, then he drained a wing three on a kickout by Ron. Second Half: He was stripped by Robinson, turnover. Hammered going for a loose ball with no call and the Lakers lost it.

Vujacic -- -- He came in for Fisher when he picked up a couple fouls in the first quarter. Aside from Allen knocking down one of his better looks on him, Sasha didn't really make any waves on either end...which is probably a good thing. If Drew is not himself or playing, someone needs to get Perkins ticked and T'd up. Perhaps, Sasha can work his magic there somehow. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-1 shooting, 2 boards, 1 assist and no fouls in 7 minutes. He was a -6. The Action: Nothing to report. Second Half: He missed a three at the buzzer.

Phil -- -- The Lakers led 12-11 midway through the first quarter. Bynum looked a little slow out of the gates on D. Phil brought in LO for Drew at that first timeout... Fish picked up foul trouble with 4:27 left and Phil brought in Sasha for him... Bench guards came in down 14-16 with a minute left... The Lakers trailed 16-19 after the first quarter. The Lakers made 7-20 shots, the Celtics 8-22... Phil started a Bynum, Lamar, Artest, Shannon, Farmar unit... No post touches for Bynum in that brief stint... Phil brought in Fish, Kobe and Pau for Farmar, Artest and Drew... Kobe hit three straight jumpers to help get the Lakers into a run and lead by 8... The Lakers won the second quarter 29-23. Better job by the Lakers getting into their offense earlier in the first half... The Lakers led 45-42 at the half. The Lakers shot 48.6 percent (17-35, 3-8 from three, 8-10 from the line). The Celtics shot 40.9 percent (18-44, 2-7 from three, 4-8 from the line). The Celtics had a 21-20 advantage on the glass (7-3 on offensive boards)... Phil started Lamar for Bynum in the second half. Bynum was still in the locker room. Bynum returned to the bench a couple minutes into the half... The Lakers extended to a small, 5-point lead and Rivers called a timeout to bark at the refs... The Celtics made a run and the crowd started to get into it... Fisher picked up his fourth and Sasha came in with 5:17 in the third... A 6-0 run for the Celtics. Kobe hit a three to hold the line. Phil called a timeout with the score tied 56-56. Phil brought in Drew for LO. Phil sat him a couple minutes later... The Celtics had a 5-1 advantage on the offensive glass in the third... The Lakers led 62-60 heading into the fourth... Phil started a Pau, Lamar, Kobe, Shannon, Farmar lineup... The Celtics took control of the game with a 9-0 run early in the fourth. The Lakers getting out-hustled on the court and out-worked in the paint... The Lakers trailed 71-64 when Fish and Ron came back in... Rivers brought back in his starters with Sheed with a 6-point lead... Too many miscues for the Lakers to rally... The Lakers lost the offensive glass 16-8. They were outscored 15-2 on the break... "We outshot them," Jackson said. "The difference in the game is they had more chances then we did."...

Game Flow -- LINK -- A 9-0 run for the Celtics to start the fourth was too much for the Lakers to overcome.

[Fleur-de-Lis]

Take Odom out back and put him out of his misery. This one is all on him.

I hope for his sake he steps up next game.

Thanks DB.
_________________
Winning recipe: Effort, Intensity, Focus, Composure, Patience, Execution, Attention to detail, Discipline & Persistence

[City_Dawg]

Thanks DB.

Tough loss and a missed opportunity to get a commanding lead. The Nate/ Baby run gave the C's all the momentum, we still had a good chance to take it at the end, but the hole was too deep. I think fatigue was a factor in the late TO's

Hopefully Drew can push through on Sunday. Lamar needs to show up. He owes himself and his team some good play.
_________________
*sighs*

!...

[mefor3]

a wide open Lamar passes to a well defended Artest behind the 3 point line with 4 on the shotclock...I can't believe this guy, it's clear that the finals are well above his mental capability.

Phil should've gone with Luke if Bynum is not available...very frustrating loss and very frustrating seing that idiot Davis showing off

[ABynum17]

*sign* I guess sometimes the best plan doesn't work, when the basketball gods are not with you. Pau defended like pretty much we expected(although he may have to be even tighter on Sunday. One can always give a little more defensively I think, especially on that Davis layup, which I think he got caught a little off-guard, thinking about Odom's incompetence).

As far as Odom, I don't know if Bynum's injury affected him or not. But he's gotta block it all out on Sunday. It's a new series now. And hey, it'd be that much sweeter, if we can(have to) win it in 7. No reasons to be afraid of game 7.

I think Kobe should come out the next game with the mentality that the title is on the line, or perhaps with us trailing by 5-10, on every attempt, because it looks like he finally showed some desperation, when the Gasol and Odom lineup finally started to unravel. Other than that, I really don't have any other way to get him to make more shots, other than what's already been said.

[Sister Golden Hair]

Don't rest your hopes on LO. IMO, he's done for the series. the best that can be hoped for is that he doesn't screw up too much. I have no faith in his game, I don't PJ doed anymore, and judging by the reactions and body language of his teammates, I think they've had it with him, as well.

if the Lakers win game 5 it will be because Kobe, Pau, Artest and Fish bring their "A" games. Lo is just an afterthought. If he doesn't hurt you, consider that a victory.

His performance tonight was Kwame-esque.

[srm90]

[Qsmiff]

Thanks again DB How bad is DJ playing in practice that PJ is not letting him even sniff the court, especially at times like tonight when LO was just getting run through

It seems that Sheed intimidates Pau, but also as I have harped on for 3 seasons Pau needs to get stronger because when the refs let the C's get away with all the pushing and shoveing as they did today, he gets frazzled and is taken out of his game

LO should send his game check back, he was pitiful tonight, and I'm an LO fan

I hope the "get rid of Bynum" group had an epiphany tonight

I rarely complain about the refs but, was that rugby that was being allowed to be played tonight.... wow lots of grabbing and pushing I guess the "let 'em play" folks were happy tonight

[AshesToAshes]

this game was one point for those in the camp of trading inconsistency away.

get rid of bynum, get rid of odom.. blah blah blah..

get rid of them both.

sure we love bynum now.. news flash he's still friggin hurt and not helping this team.

sure we love odom at times.. still love his inconsistent play?

we got owned by a second unit that is dependaple, motivated, works hard, runs the offense and at the same time NONE of them are particularily special. but their consistency in the fore mentioned areas beat us tonight.

i for one don't care how big bynum is or how naturally gifted odom is... if they can't, won't or just don't want to play consistently then send them away for something less talented but always available. at least then our real stars and coaching staff can come up with a dependable game plan that doesn't revolve around sugar levels.

it's time to let go of these guys just like that piece of crap restoration project in your garage that will never drive on that one summer's day you've been dreaming of. Time to put that cash into something you can beat on everyday instead.

venting done. let's take game5. bynum and lo - lakers 4 life.. lord help us..

[A Mad Chinaman]

The silver lining on this game is that Bynum is much more valuable than Bosh. Drew won't get "bodied up" while Bosh will.

Stating the Obvious
Feed LO a ton of candy to get his energy level above anemic. It is a shame that a player not as talented (hmm, hopefully this is an accurate statement) and shorter (though he is playing taller than LO) thoroughly outplayed LO. As Norm Nixon stated, one can completely controll effort and playing defense. It is clear that LO is not a championship-type player or All-Star.

Re: Farmar
If Jordan is unable to defend Robinson and take advantage of him on offense - might as well put Sasha in there.

Re: DJ
Maybe Phil can let LO pick up his 3 fouls in 3 minutes in the first half that would provide a reason to give DJ a chance against Baby - he can't do any worse or shoot as bad while playing hard.

Re: Pau
He needs help because the Celtics' bigs are now able to gang up on him since LO is doing NADDA. Pau can't keep Rasheed/KG or Baby/Perk or any other combination.

Re: Artest
The thought of having him box out Baby is a good idea that would force LO or Kobe to guard Pierce that begs the question of who would be guarding Rondo (LO?!?!?!)

[MedRomLaker]

I'm not to upset about this one, I erally didn't think we would win this game, so I was suprised we came so close to stealing it, if LO would have showed up maybe taken a charge or two on davis, or of pj would have told him and pau to switch we might have stole this one. oh well onto the next game.
_________________
11/9/12 the day the brown was flushed down!!!!!!

4/30/14 the day the ant left the building!!!!!!

[davidse]

[angrypuppy]

Nine hours later, and I'm still pissed at Lamar.
_________________
We are stardust
Billion year old carbon
We are golden
Caught in the devil's bargain
And we've got to get ourselves
Back to the garden

-Joni Mitchell

[prisma8slg]

_________________
"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."

[limchrc]

Thanks. Let's win game 5.

[Laker7]

If Drew cannot go, we need to put DJ on Big Baby. Need a bigger body than Lamar to slow him down.
_________________
Darvin Ham is an idiot!

[tw-lakbfan]

Phil's fault.

He knew he played tired players at the 4th, oh the whole 2nd half, yet he wouldn't even put MBenga or Josh on the floor to spare LO/Pau a few minutes?

[Siguy]

[Rick12322]

Thanks for doing the dirty work, DB. We had them doubting and we were ready to blow this game out..., but in the third quarter our guys looked tired. When Boston brought in their bench, they're young and fresh. Their energy was greater than ours. Of course, with how few minutes LO has played in this series, there is no excuse for him.

It was nice to see Kobe shooting well and looking pretty good, other than the turnovers.

Why is it that our offense always runs smoother in the first half? It's like they had a bunch of plays to burn, and when the second half comes they don't have anymore. This is trend I've noticed about this team.

Ron and Lamar need to get some early shooting practice in before the game starts.

Lamar needs a heart transplant, he's playing like he's scared.

Pau needs to fight for better post position.

Our team as a whole needs to box out. Admittedly, the luck seemed to be on Boston's side as i noticed some rebounds just landed in their laps.

For the love of snitchel, why not play DJ at Center so Pau can stay at PF?

Why don't we set some screens to get Sasha some shots?

I guess this game just left me with a lot of questions.

The officiating was wrong. You can't let teams cheat to get the victory and that's what it amounts to when you let a team like Boston "play." Did David Stern bend over to Boston's mayor?

This whole series has been a mockery of the NBA's whole officiating system.

Last of all, Bob Delaney is in the wings... do you want that poison in Boston, or LA?

[hoopschick29]

Few obversations:

Phil's gotta find some rest time for Kobe in the 3rd and 4th quarter. He is simply gassing out in the homestretch.

If we can't get Drew back on the floor, we're in trouble. Pau cannot hold his own against those guys.

Ron has got to find a way to make some shots. His defense has been great throughout the series, but he needs to help Kobe out on the offensive end.

Lamar....*sigh*

Hopefully, these 2 full days off will recharge our batteries a bit.
_________________
So glad we gave you your flowers while you were here, Kobe.

[RVCdesigns]

Thanks DB.

[LuciusAllen]

[Addicus]

Doc figured out what Gentry did. The Lakers top 6 will beat your top 6 no matter what you do, but if you can run a disciplined next 5 you can beat them.
_________________
Stop crying and start doing.

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/addicusbrown

[lakergal16]

The turnovers did kill us, but Kobe was also the only one to show up and keep us in the game.

By the way, I've been a long time lurker but a first time poster. Just wanted to say hi to my fellow Laker fans!

[Addicus]

I just watched Phil's presser this morning and he said he would play DJ if his head was in it, Josh is ready and the long minutes for our starters hurt us since we played 3 games in 5 days.

I also watched Doc who had no complaints about officiating for the first time since game 1. Phil had no complaints about officiating either, but did mention that the Celtics are allowed to body up defensively and how that helps them a lot vs some of our bench players who haven't developed the skills to handle that yet.

Doc also said they want to get out and run.
_________________
Stop crying and start doing.

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/addicusbrown