LAKERS -vs- WARRIORS - 10/22 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

[DancingBarry]

Toward Victory, Come June... No Bynum. No Odom. No Ratliff...No problem?

That's some serious length the Lakers were missing for tonight's game. By the end of the night, Ron Artest was the starting center to close the game in regulation and overtime. His power forward? Matt Barnes.

Somehow they got it done.

It wasn't easy. The Lakers played lethargic ball for most of the night. The second unit energy dug the Lakers out of a double-digit deficit to take the lead after 5 minutes into the fourth. Shaw then handed the baton off to the starters who promptly sucked the life out of the building once again.

Apparently, it was just a tease. They didn't give in, rallying with a 9-0 run in a minute and half. Shannon Brown tied the game up with under 30 seconds left on a corner three.

After Kobe missed a game winner at the buzzer, they headed to overtime. Shaw would rest Pau and Kobe and run the small ball unit after a couple of minutes. They managed to hold the Warriors to just 4 points in OT and take the win behind a couple of Artest hoops and another Shannon Brown three.

Although Phil wasn't at this game, either. He had expressed his concern to Brian Shaw about the team's weak defense. Losing Lamar for the night didn't help any. The Lakers missed his defensive mobility with the starters and looked softer than the night before. Once they picked it up, however, they had the Warriors on their heels.

Hopefully, they can pick it up again like that just in time for the regular season. It's going to be a long road to a three-peat and on some very tired legs.

Earlier this preseason, Kobe was asked about the difference between this group and the Shaq-Kobe three-peat team.

"This time around we have a younger crew," he said. "The first three-peat everybody was older and we just kind of eased our way into it, you know what I mean? You have a lot more younger energy...and that's a big difference."

It certainly made the difference tonight and may be one of the most important factors toward victory, come June.


Kobe -- -- He seemed to be a bit sluggish defensively. Often, sagging off to give up open jumpers or not making good rotations on help D. Twice in the second half, the Lakers lost ground when he left too much room for his man to sink a wide open three. On both of those, Kobe would miss a three on the other end. He would take nine threes in the game. These are usually the signs of fatigue -- stealing rest on D and settling for long jumpers. But it just as easily might be signs of the preseason, too. After giving up a hard-fought lead in the fourth, Kobe helped the team scratch back into the game with a late run. He manufactured FTs, scored a layup and hit Brown for a three. He almost won it at the buzzer with a three that was just a little to the left. Since it was preseason, Shaw sat Kobe for most of the OT. Only time you will ever see that. The Stats: He scored 22 points on 6-19 shooting (2-9 from three, 8-9 from the line) to go with 2 boards, 7 assists, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 34 minutes. He was a -7. The Action: He pumped Ellis into the air and drew FTs, he made both. He missed a face-up jumper. He missed a step-back jumper over Vlad (attack that). He was blocked on a drive. He dribbled into traffic and threw it away for a dunk. He drained a wing three. Bad miss from the perimeter expecting a foul that never came (he had a few choice words for the official). Quick first step to his left and he drew FTs at the rim, he made both. He cut weak to strong, took the pass and scored the one-hander quickly over a big. He missed a wing three. He worked the high post, then found Shannon open for three. He pulled the chair on Lee in the post and let him fall to the ground. He swished a pull-up from the top of the key. He swished a jumper standing on the three line. He got tapped on an elbow jumper. He had 13 points on 4-9 shooting. Second Half: Left open from three and he missed. He missed a chuck from the corner with the shotclock low. He swished a pull-up wing three in early offense. He kicked out to Fish for a three. No challenge and he gave up a three. He got tapped trying to get it back on the other end (big switch there when they had the lead in reach). He missed a long three with the shotclock low. He left Vlad open and gave up a three. He missed a wide open corner three (another big sequence on both ends). He drew FTs on the perimeter and made both. He suckered Vlad with a swing through at the three line for FTs, he made two of the three. He missed a long three, we got it back, he attacked and scored a layup. He kicked out to Brown for a three. He hit rim on a three at the buzzer to win after pushing out a rebound. Overtime: Tough runner off the screen about 16 feet out.

Gasol -- -- Like Kobe, Pau was a bit too soft defensively tonight. Shaw eventually sat him for Ron at the C spot and it seemed like a good thing for the Laker victory aspirations. The second units were balling, the starters just lacked the intensity. On the second night of a back-to-back in the preseason, it's to be expected. Part of the soft D was also missing Lamar's speed and length behind Pau. He said he was excited to getting the season started, but also looking forward to getting a couple more practices in. "Just continue to tighten up defensively," he said of the remaining fine tuning. The Stats: He scored 12 points on 3-9 shooting (6-6 from the line) to go with 8 boards, 5 assists, 1 block, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls in 34 minutes. He was a -15. The Action: He worked the post and drew FTs as he swung into the paint, he made both. He fumbled a pass away on a cut, layup the other way. Quick first step, but he bricked in the middle of the collapsed D. He missed an open wing jumper. He dunked off the two-man with Blake. He thought he got shoved off the floor, but ended up with a turnover instead when no call came. Second Half: He slammed back down an And-1 off a missed drive by Ron, he made the FT. He attacked to his right, spun to his left and was hammered as he scored the And-1 with his left, he made the FT. He was blindsided in the post and stripped. Quick spin move off the post entry and he earned FTs, he made both. He missed a flat-jumper in the lane. He missed a turnaround in the post. He missed a wing jumper. Overtime: He came out for the jumpball, couldn't get it and sat shortly later.

Artest -- -- How about Ron moving from the starting PF to the C spot to close the game? He came up big in the paint on the defensive end and had a couple of key hoops in overtime. The Warrior bigs certainly struggled to deal with Ron on both ends. His fast hands accounted for a number of steals and strips (5 for the game) that disrupted the Warrior post game. While Monta Ellis put in a ridiculous 53 minutes and David Lee, 47, Ron shouldered 43 minutes himself. Maybe it was who he was with on the floor in overtime, but I realized I trusted him a lot more to come up big. Could be some of that clutch play in the playoffs, could just be no Kobe and Pau out there so who do you lean on then? The Stats: He scored 11 points on 4-10 shooting (0-1 from three, 3-4 from the line) to go with with 7 boards, 3 assists, 5 steals, 2 blocks, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in 43 minutes. He was a +3. The Action: Nice challenge on Lee's post up to force a brick. Bad gamble with the shotclock low and he gave up a layup when he came up empty on the steal. He posted up and drew FTs on Lee, he made one. He swiped a pass in the paint and pushed it up. He swiped another ball, pushed out the break and nearly threw it away. He missed a wing three. Second Half: He missed a layup. He missed a layup on a drive, but Pau cleaned it up. He sank a wing three (looked like his foot on the line), pulling up off the dribble. He stole a Vlad pass, pushed up the break and hit Barnes for the layup. He stripped the ball off Lee's leg to force a turnover. He stole the ball in teh backcourt. He posted up and hit the turnaround from 12 feet out. He airballed a turnaround three at the buzzer. He got hammered in the paint after Blake spotted him down low, he made both FTs. He stripped Lee on a reach from behind (so nice) and outlet to Ebanks on the break. He couldn't one-time a pass to Pau cleanly and it went out of bounds. He blocked Vlad while playing the C spot. Overtime: He missed a wing jumper off one dribble. He missed a fade from the post. He powered past his man from the corner and scored a layup. He iso'd on Lee and drained a step-back jumper from 12 feet out on the left side with 11 seconds left.

Fisher -- -- Nice to see the jumper falling on the second night of the back-to-back. It's early in the season, but those are the kinds of signs you look for to see if Father Time is catching up with you. The Lakers need to tighten up their help D sequences. Too often the guards were able to slice through the D and get right to the rim. With all that length sidelined, the guards will be more exposed. Mistakes become magnified. The team needs to be on top of their game with crisp rotations and help. They struggled with that a bit tonight. The Stats: He scored 13 points on 5-7 shooting (2-3 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 1 board, 1 steal, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls in 29 minutes. He was a -8. The Action: Bad pass, but he somehow deflected the outlet out of bounds to save a sure uncontested hoop. He hesitated, attacked and got clobbered for FTs, he made one. Nice challenge on Vlad to force a miss. He missed an early offense three. Too hot of a pass for Pau to handle in tight quarters, turnover. He sank a baseline jumper behind a screen. He stripped Ellis's drive on one end, then swished a wing three on a two-for-one on the other end. Second Half: He threw a pass away trying to thread it to Pau. He swished a short wing jumper off the two-man game with Pau. He sank a foot-on-the-three-line jumper. He got tapped on a drive across the lane. He drained a corner three after a series of passes inside and out among several Lakers. Overtime: He drew a charge on help D.

Brown -- -- Shannon was throwing haymakers from three late in the game. He helped the Lakers tie things up with 29 seconds left, then hit a big three in OT. Shannon went 9-17 from three in the preseason. He averaged 12.2 points on 49 percent shooting in the preseason. He got the start in this game with Lamar sitting out. The Lakers simply slid Kobe and Ron up a spot. Great start to the year for Shannon. Hopefully, it carries through now that the games begin to count. And, hopefully, the D can follow. The Stats: He scored 18 points on 6-9 shooting (4-6 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 2 steals, 1 turnover and 3 fouls in 27 minutes. He had a +/- of 0. The Action: He missed a floater after attacking off the three line. He sank a wing jumper working off the handoff. He drew a foul on the perimeter, he made both. He drained a corner three in early offense. Quick first step and he blew past his man on the baseline for a reverse. He rattled in a wing three on a kickout. Flat-footed D and he gave up a layup. Second Half: He was picked off the dribble after running into Ellis. He tied up the game with a corner three on a kickout from Kobe with 29 seconds left. Overtime: He missed a three with the shotclock low. He drained a wing three on a kickout from Barnes. He missed a three next time down. Williams attacked and scored easily over him on iso on the other end.

Blake -- -- It's funny. He was shooting blanks, yet I actually wanted the ball in his hands. Why? He's a floor general. Something we lacked badly last year on the second unit. He organized the offense, set up teammates and made the right decisions. This is something neither Brown/Farmar had any clue about last year. There was one point in this game where Blake went up to Sasha on the perimeter and signaled for the two-man sequence -- Blake didn't have the ball, he was telling Sasha to run it for himself. Our bench played selfishly too much last year, but there's a change of mentality out there and it starts with Blake. It will make a subtle, but big difference for this team, just like tonight. Blake didn't score but had 6 assists and led the team with a +11. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-5 shooting (0-4 from three) to go with 2 boards, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 3 fouls in 24 minutes. The Action: He missed a three. He kicked out to Sasha for a three. He missed an elbow jumper. He got tapped on a wing three. He stopped a Warrior breakaway on one end, then led the break to the other end and fed Ebanks for a layup. He worked one way off the screen, went back the other and bounced to Pau for the dunk. Second Half: He missed a corner three. He gave up an And-1 layup on an end-to-end drive. He hit Caracter for an elbow jumper. He found Sasha off the screens for a jumper. Great entry to Artest after he attacked of a screen, it drew FTs for Ron. He missed a corner three.

Barnes -- -- When the Lakers throttle up the pressure D in the second half, it seems like Barnes is always in the mix. This team has the ability to unleash the dogs defensively and turn things around with the bench. Tonight, was a perfect example. Barnes and the second unit throttled up the activity and intensity and took the game over. Winning those first 5 minutes of the fourth are critical. The Lakers struggled with that last season. This season could be a different story. And when they are behind and have to put the pressure on, Barnes athleticism, length and motor are all critical for that kind of thing. So is hoop IQ and anticipation, and he has a bit of both. "Defense and rebounding wins championships," Barnes said earlier this preseason. He knows his role. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 1-5 shooting (0-2 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 5 boards (3 offensive), 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 2 turnovers and 3 fouls in 27 minutes. He was a +8. The Action: He got tapped on a corner three. He traveled trying to attack off the three line. He grabbed an offensive board and tried to flip it in but missed. He missed a baseline jumper. Second Half: He filled the lane for Artest on the break, took the pass and scored the layup. He threw a pass away off an offensive board. He missed a three. He attacked baseline and drew FTs at the rim. Back in after being subbed out for Ron and he drew a travel violation and midcourt trying to take charge on D. Overtime: He swiped a lob. He kicked out to Brown for a three. He secured the final board and chucked it down court for the win.

Walton -- -- There goes the hamstring again. Luke hurt it again in his second game back and had to sit for the rest of the game. I'm sure it's extremely frustrating for him, but this has also been a recurring issue with him in previous preseasons. On the bright side, this will allow the coaches to use their rookies more. In the long run, that is more important than Luke getting some run this time of year. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-2 shooting from the line to go with 1 steal and 1 foul in 5 minutes. He was a -2. The Action: He got Vlad to bite on a swing-through move and drew FTs, he made none.

Vujacic -- -- I'm starting to like Mr. Sharapova better than Mr. Vujacic. He's been balling...on both ends. He had some good D on Ellis in the fourth quarter again tonight that allowed the Lakers to come back in this one. Ellis had been scoring with ease and at will throughout the game. Sasha was able to sag off him just a hair and use his length to disrupt the jumpers. That extra step back helped him to stay in front of Ellis. As a result, the Warriors started to flounder. I had thought that the addition of Blake would help Shannon quite a bit, but I see him doing some things for Sasha out there that can only build his confidence. Blake was calling Sasha's number and also hitting him with pinpoint passes as he came off screens. I'm also liking Sasha's effort on the offensive glass. He's been getting after it down there a little more than usual in his preseason games this year. The Stats: He scored 11 points on 4-10 shooting (1-3 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 4 boards (2 offensive), 2 steals, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in 22 minutes. He was a +7. The Action: His cross-court pass was picked off. He missed a wing jumper. He sank a wing three on a kickout. He missed a fading baseline jumper. He probed, pulled it out and hit the 18-footer. He yanked an offensive board away from a crowd and reset the offense. Second Half: He missed a baseline jumper. He drained a wing jumper coming off the screens. He missed a three out of a timeout. He was undercut on a jumper on an inbounds play and drew FTs, he made both. He stripped Ellis, but faded on the break when they had numbers and missed a kickout three. He grabbed an offensive board and reversed with his left in traffic. Overtime: He missed a three.

Caracter -- -- All right, time to get to the rookies. With Ratliff taking the night off, Caracter got the backup C duties. Good to see him get more minutes and mix it up out there. This was his best game so far and he did a lot with the opportunity. Like in the summer league, he showed his ability to bang in the paint for points as well as step out on the perimeter and hit the jumper. I was actually disappointed when Shaw subbed Caracter and Ebanks out in the fourth. The two Laker second-rounders were getting after it. That unit was doing it on both ends and Caracter was able to hold down the C spot with a very small power forward across him. Probably can't do that against too many teams, but the Warriors are one of them. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 4-5 shooting to go with 2 boards and 2 fouls in 13 minutes. He was a +8. The Action: He posted up, stepped across the body of the defender and hit the short one in the paint. He missed an up-and-under (should have used his off hand). Second Half: He sank an elbow jumper off the two-man sequence with Blake. Nice help D to double the post, then get back to his man. He backed Lee down, rocked him off balance, then hit off the glass over him. He grabbed the Ebanks miss, took a power dribble and threw down a reverse jam.

Ebanks -- -- We have to get him some minutes this season. I love seeing him on the floor with Barnes in small lineups. They are active, long and can present a lot of pressure defensively and on the offensive glass. Any minutes we can scratch out for the rooks will pay off down the line. The Lakers had an opportunity to extend their three-peat run with the young Kobe and an aging team had they been able to snag some better young talent in the draft at the time. This team, as Kobe mentioned, is younger. Bynum, Brown, Caracter and Ebanks can all help improve the team from within as their game matures. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 2-6 shooting (2-2 from the line) to go with 4 boards (2 offensive) and no fouls in 8 minutes. He was a +10. The Action: He faced up and missed the 18-footer. Out on the break quickly and he was rewarded with a layup. Second Half: He was blocked on an early offense drive. He drew FTs out in transition, he made both. Body checked with no call, he missed a forced one (he had Caracter open). He slammed back down a missed jumper with a scream after crashing the offensive glass. He stepped in front of a man on help D and drew the charge. He couldn't finish layup on an Artest feed, but Caracter cleaned it up.

BShaw -- -- Both Ratliff and Odom took the night off (Lamar taking a few too many bumps last night, swollen thumb, nose and tight back; Ratliff just old...swollen knee). So, the coaches moved Shannon into the starting lineup and Ron to PF... The Lakers got into the bonus early into the first quarter. On the other end, they were giving up too many easy hoops... Late in the quarter, Shaw went with a Caracter, Walton, Barnes, Vujacic, Blake unit... The Lakers trailed 32-20 after the first... He started the same unit to open the seconds quarter... They continued to play turnover-prone ball, which allowed some easy points the other way. In the halfcourt sets, they still gave up layups with soft D... The Lakers trailed 52-45 at the half. The Lakers shot 41.7 percent (15-36). The Warriors shot 60.6 percent (20-33)... The Lakers came out soft again to start the second half and Shaw called a quick timeout... The Lakers cut the lead down to 4, but that was as close as they could pull in the third quarter. Shaw closed the third with Pau, Artest, Barnes, Sasha and Blake. They trailed 79-69 after three... Shaw started a Caracter, Barnes, Ebanks, Sasha, Blake lineup to open the fourth... Good run by this unit and the cut the lead to 83-79 before a timeout came... They tied it up 5 minutes into the quarter 85-85... The second unit got the crowd going and recaptured the lead 87-85 when another timeout came... Shaw sat Caracter and Ebanks for Kobe and Pau. I'm sure most Laker fans actually felt disappointed at this with the way the two rookies were playing... Shaw then sat Sasha and Blake to bring back the rest of the starters. The Laker engine that was humming so well, suddenly sputtered. They quickly trailed by 9 points after a few minutes by giving up a 10-0 run... Shaw subbed out Pau for Barnes and the Lakers now had Artest at the center. Small ball tied the game up with 29 seconds left (a 9-0 run in 1:30)... Overtime: Shaw went with the starters (Pau to take the jumpball). He then sat him for Barnes... He brought in Sasha for Kobe and Blake for Fish... Behind a Shannon Brown three and a couple of Artest makes, they won the overtime 7-4... The Warriors shot 47 percent, the Lakers 41 percent. The Lakers had 14 steals and 23 assists...

[Tanlentueux]

Here is the good job. Thanks.

[japanesebeef1]

Thanks DB. Even when I miss the game . . . . I never miss the game.

[TooCool]

Thanks DB!

I will shamefully admit that this is the first Lakers Pre-Season game that I have bothered to watch. I wanted to check out our final roster as they tighten up their play to get ready for the regular season.

Few things I need to point out... apologies if they were mentioned a long time ago!

Ebanks - Is he Ariza's twin? I like it!

Caracter - He was AMAZING! I loved how he got those offensive rebounds and slammed it with authority.

Machine - Can anyone tell me if he confident in his shot again? I like what I saw tonight. He didn't look like he was waiting for the open looks anymore and was pretty aggressive.

Luke Walton - Seriously?

Our "bench" destroyed the Warriors bench in the 4th. Then Shaw subbed in all our starters and the Warriors went on a run.

Can't wait for the regular season to get started. Everything else I didn't comment on was the usual I expect from our Lakers.
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[BenO]

DB's game summaries: free of hamstring injuries, ankle injuries and plantar faci-something-or-other, hasn't taken his talents to south beach, doesn't take the pre-season off, has no need for a heightened chair, devoid of multiple twitter accounts (atleast to my knowledge), consistents too much, machine-like to the point where Maria S reads how her boy has done and thinks only of the post's author, and 60% of the time on the money every time.

Sir, you make following the lakers from an international distance possible. I once again salute you and thank you in advance for your wonderful work up to this point, and hopefully continued through this season and well beyond.

[DancingBarry]

[DancingBarry]

[circlefong]

Just the preseason, several injuries are already there ... just some worries in the rest of the seasons. That is why the rookies, even they are rookies, are too important to the long season before we knock the playoff door.

[IPK]

Blake sets up his teammates and makes the right decisions to much
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Our tribute to Phil, the man behind LG

[Texas_Pete]

Thanks DB.

I like our second unit. When it became time to lock down Golden State, they were able to do that. Their pressure defense was causing turnovers and wreaking havoc. Good to see.

Blake is fun to watch. He couldn't hit the side of a barn with his shot but he seemingly created good looks for his teammates which is what you want in a playmaker. I can't wait until he has more triangle experience under his belt.

Barnes is an energetic player that plays well without the ball and is a tenacious defender. I could easily see him replacing Fisher, and teaming up with Kobe and Artest to lock down the perimeter to end qtrs and games.

Brown is playing with a lot of confidence. That 3ball he hit to tie the game in regulation was money. For Kobe to have the confidence in him to make that shot was telling as well. Then in OT, he hit another big 3. I mean, even his misses were barely misses. Too bad he still doesn't have a good handle. With Blake on the roster he should be set up for success: catch and shoot or catch and throw it down. I see some marked improvement in his game.

Tonight's game was the first time I saw the champs play and I see the makings of a 17x champion. Scary because Bynum hasn't even been in the mix, yet I could see this team coming out of the WC even without him. Yep, I'm a homer.

[Rick12322]

Thanks DB.

YES!! I WAS disappointed Shaw took out the rooks. Phil would have done the same thing though and I think the coaching staff was hoping to use the momentum swing to hopefully kickstart Pau and Kobe's game.

[LakerSanity]

I'm done making the Ariza comparisons with Ebanks. It's unfair to Ebanks... he's way ahead of Ariza if comparing the two as rookies.

There are a few things about Ebanks that I like more than Ariza -

1. Ebanks is more passionate - the dude is a competitor. You can tell he likes digging in, that he takes things personally, and he really, really wants to win. As large of a motor as Ariza had, he always seemed to be a bit flat emotionally, almost like his motivation was proving himself as a player even more than helping the team win. I just like Ebank's personality more and I think its the kind of mindset one needs to really thrive in the NBA (become more than just a role player - one reason why I think Ariza has plateaued),

2. Ebanks has a better stroke. I think Ebanks has better offensive potential simply because he has better shooting mechanics, he's less awkward.

3. Ebanks has a better basketball IQ. You can see not only in his passes, but where he is on the floor that he understands the game. He already has done some things in this offense (just making the simple plays) that Ariza barely picked up on.

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In any case, I'm really happy about this guy. It's too bad we're so stacked at SF because I'd like to see him get some run in the regular season. I really hope we don't send him to the d league, because I think there might be some opportunities to get him playing time. The fact Luke keeps getting injured will open up some time. Also, I expect this team to have a decent amount of blow outs, so that should probably help too.

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The only other thing I have to say is I'm concerned about Kobe. However, I know that he'll be fine... I'm just not sure we'll see the "real" Kobe until December or January.

As always, thanks DB.
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[lakerjoshua]

^ I'm glad I'm not the only one who feels this way about Ebanks. I think, even at this early stage he will have an impact this year. Provided Luke plays his normal bench warmer position.

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

Thanks DB!

I've got to agree with the many posters who said they were disappointed when Ebanks and Caracter sat down. This has been the case for Ebanks since the London game, but last night was the first game where Caracter's play instilled that kind of confidence.

I was really excited when I learned we signed Steve Blake. Others were really excited when we signed Matt Barnes. The last few games are starting to show all that excitement is justified for both players. I can't decide who I like more now, they both need to be part of the regular rotation, along with Brown.

Blake raises the level of play for everyone else on the floor, and he's already calling plays for vets who have been around this team for years, and succeeding. He goes o-fer shooting and still has the best point differential on the night? I think that's no accident.

Barnes - he's all OVER the floor all the time!! Can he keep this up all season without wearing out? If he does he's going to create those all-important extra possessions in the playoffs when everyone's fighting and scratching and hitting the floor and nobody's shots are falling on the first try.

I wonder if PJ still considers this preseason a bust?? Doesn't look like it to me.

[Klone_dd]

Liked what I saw from the 2 yutes. Both Ebanks and Caracter, if given the time, can really get after it. Sure they will make their rookie mistakes, buy you gotta love the energy they bring.

Kinda unfair to rate Kobe and Pau in pre-season. Both looked like they were experimenting at times, and after settling for so many jumpers, they looked like they were trying to hurry up and end the game.

Shanwow had an impressive pre-season. Much improved handle, better shot and shot selection. Even Mr. Sharipova had some swagger to him. Nice to know getting engaged can have some positive effects.

Enough of warmups! Let's get the 3-peat going!

[DancingBarry]

[DancingBarry]

[keale18]

Ebanks and Caracter looked impressive from what I saw and like everyone else im hoping they get some minutes this year.

Sasha is playing good right now I hope it continues.

Getting everyone healthy and in sync this year is key we have everything we need to be damn good

[Lakersneuron]

DB, I know this isn't a surprise for those of us who have been reading your writeups over the last few seasons, but man, you have really gotten good at this! Keep it up.

btw, I wasn't too pleased with Shaw's substitutions either.

[babyskyhook]

[RVCdesigns]

thanks db.

[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

[shansen008]