LAKERS -at- SPURS - 3/6 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

[DancingBarry]

Who Are These Guys?... They're the same team, of course, just trying to get their act together in midst of all the challenges that a Laker three-peat season possesses.

Heading into the game, the Spurs had won 22 consecutive games at home. They have home court advantage all but wrapped up for this post season. Bottom line, if someone wants to get past them, they're most likely going to have to do it in San Antonio.

The cocky Lakers, of course, believe they can be that someone. Out of the gates today, they pounced on the Spurs, taking a commanding lead after a 34-13 first quarter. Ron was flexing and kissing his guns. Kobe was yapping at the crowd. The Lakers rolled.

The final score, 99-83, wasn't even near how badly the Spurs got worked over. Tim Duncan got 2 points, Manu Ginobili scratched for 6 points and Richard Jefferson had just 1 point. That's crazy, but also credit the Laker D, anchored by one very large 7-footer.

"We talked to Andrew at the break about defense and about what impact he can have on the game and he really showed it tonight," Phil said.

Bynum once again imposed his defense on the opponent and dominated on the glass. They players are working the funneling system and Bynum is holding the line. Phil said they have dedicated more time in practice defensively.
"It's taken a while," he said. "It took us about a month to just adjust to what we're doing differently."

It took a 31-point, garbage-time fourth quarter from the Spurs just to crack 83 points. Yet another opponent locked down.


Kobe -- -- "We're the champs so everything has to go through us no matter how well anybody's playing, but they've been the best team so far this year," Kobe said afterward. While the Lakers were in the middle of sending a message to the Spurs, Kobe had a very nice mix to his game. He worked the post a little, hit from the perimeter, set up others and also got in on the offensive glass for some putbacks. He did a better job with his size advantage offensively. Kobe picked up another tech in this game. He shoved Manu (kind of returning the contact after a foul), picking up his 14th tech of the season. He's got just two more before suspension. He has burned almost all those T's on the refs. That needs to be the last one. The Stats: He scored 26 points on 12-25 shooting (1-3 from three, 1-1 from the line) to go with 7 boards (3 offensive), 5 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 31 minutes. He was a +28. The Action: He attacked and kicked to Fish for a three. He missed a wing jumper. He missed back-to-back attempts way short. He swished a wing jumper off a rub screen. He attacked left, Manu flopped, and Kobe hit the baseline jumper. He missed a long jumper, we got it back and Kobe crashed the glass to clean up a missed Artest three. He took the post entry and swished the baseline turnaround. He missed a wing three. He had 8 points on 4-9 shooting and 3 assists. He sank an open sideline jumper out of the timeout. He missed a turnaround, short. He posted up and banked easily before the double came. He was fouled while pulling down a Pau miss. He iso'd on Manu and hit a sideline three (then turned and made sure a fan noticed). He drilled a step-back, 17-footer that he had to jerk to get up there (he wanted the foul). He hit Lamar with a return pass on the break for a layup. He missed a runner to his right. He missed a long pull-up three at the buzzer. He had 17 points on 8-16 shooting, 6 boards and 4 assists. Second Half: He missed a fade, looked like Manu tried to step under him and Kobe fell. He got it back off the Bynum board and swished a baseline jumper. Poor lob pass, too low and easily picked off. He airballed a wing jumper. He airballed a baseline turnaround from behind the hoop (wanted the foul). He swiped a kickout, pushed it out and was undercut on a dunk, which still went in for an And-1 (he was ticked), he made the FT. He sank a turnaround from the wing on his next attempt. He missed a pull-up out of a timeout. He had 7 points on 3-7 shooting in the third and could probably ice down in the fourth from the bench. Phil brought him back in, up big still midway through the fourth. He sank a wing jumper.

Gasol -- -- Pau pulled out the three-pointer in this game, going 1-2 from behind the arc. It certainly seemed deliberate as he set up on that right sideline for both attempts. "I've been in that position, I just hadn't gotten the ball or hadn't gotten the look to shoot it. Obviously, today I was feeling pretty good about my shooting," Pau said. His jumper was going well. As we had mentioned previously, that ability to space the floor at the PF really helps the Bynum/Pau unit. Most of his damage in this game was from the perimeter. That just makes the game so much easier when others can kick to him as the D collapses. Defensively, Drew went up against Duncan and Pau took on the misc. Spur PFs. None of the Spur bigmen were a threat in this game. The Stats: He scored 21 points on 7-12 shooting (1-2 from three, 6-6 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 5 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 2 turnovers and 3 fouls in 36 minutes. He was a +13. The Action: He blew past his man, took a hack as he was about to dunk, but still somehow shoved the ball in the hoop, he made the FT. He missed a layup in the post and wanted the foul. He sank an elbow jumper. He swatted Duncan in the post to ignite a breakaway dunk. He swished a wing jumper with the shotclock low. He had 7 points on 3-4 shooting and 2 assists. He swished a sideline three with the shotclock winding down, looked like money from that range. He swished an elbow jumper when Blake found him. He posted up, attacked across the lane and took contact on his jumper but still put it in for an And-1 (he usually doesn't get that call), he made the FT. He was stripped on a spin move. He missed a baseline jumper. He kicked out to Fish for a three. Second Half: He was swatted on a high-low layup attempt. He missed a face-up jumper over Bonner (back him down). He missed another three on a Kobe drive and kick. He was fouled on the defensive glass, he made both FTs. He had 17 points after three quarters. He got a piece of Splitter's jumphook. He swished an 18-footer from the left wing. He was fouled in the paint and made one FT.

Bynum -- -- "We wanted to get payback for what happened in L.A.," Bynum said. He started the game where he left off in the last one -- grabbing boards on both ends and patrolling the paint. He set the tone and established who would be the aggressor, something Phil always believes gets the calls to go in your favor. Drew's defensive timing and greed in going after the boards killed the Spurs, just as he killed the Cats. "Andrew Bynum dominated the game right from the start," JVG said during the broadcast. Asked if he was worried about not getting the ball offensively, Drew said they have plenty of scorers, but that "this team won't win if we don't have defensive toughness from the inside." He did say, however, that the bigs have to stay active or opponents will get off easy. That's the real truth, especially when we aren't feeding the post. Drew's activity offensively was taking boards away from Duncan and giving the team second chance opportunities. He caused all kinds of problems for the Spurs on the glass as a result of that. Phil respected the Spurs enough to bring Bynum back in during the fourth despite the huge lead. Wish he would have gone with someone else in that situation. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-2 shooting to go with 17 boards (6 offensive), 3 blocks and 5 fouls in 27 minutes. He was a +16. The Action: He battled an offensive board away from Duncan and slammed back in the finish off a pivot. He rejected Manu's drive on the on the next possession. He got a missed FT by Ron and it led to a Laker score on the next possession. He erased Parker's drive with a rejection. He had 8 boards and 2 swats. Second Half: He slammed off the curl and dish from Fisher. He grabbed a Kobe miss and kicked it back to him for a score. He took a board from behind Duncan. Looked like he got a piece of Parker's teardrop. He swatted another drive by a guard and controlled it. He had 7 boards in the third.

Artest -- -- He had a little extra activity with the crowd in this game. He swatted a three attempt, then flexed and kissed his guns to the fans on one sequence. On another, he plowed into a couple of fans, sending coffee everywhere. The Lakers can win anywhere and they certainly felt confident doing it in San Antonio today. Great D again by Ron. Manu struggled to get on track. Ron also mixed in a couple of threes, pulling the trigger with confidence. He shot a few in that third when the Spurs started to sag off him and muck up the offense. Phil was quick to go to his bench options against the Spurs (especially since Pop sat Manu at that point). The Stats: He scored 8 points on 3-8 shooting (2-6 from three, 0-2 from the line) to go with 1 board, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 block and 1 foul in 21 minutes. He was a +23. The Action: Bad idea to attack a crowd, but he got bailed out with a foul and FTs, he bricked both. He boxed out his man on the offensive glass and drew a foul. He stripped Jefferson cutting to the hoop. He curled down the lane and scored a layup with his left. He drained a wing three coming off a screen. He missed a wing three. He deflected a pass to get a stop on his man's drive. He swatted a three out of bounds on a great recovery. He missed a long wing jumper on the break (not a good idea, Phil whistled to try to stop it). He had 5 points on 1-3 shooting. Second Half: He sank a step-back three off a kickout. He airballed a three (looked like he was trying to kick his leg out to draw contact). He missed a kickout three next time down.

Fisher -- -- Did you really think he'd miss this game? Like Phil said, he's built like an ox. Fish showed no signs of the injury, unless being more effective from three was one of them. We've got our hands full with Parker, but the ability to funnel him to a couple of 7-footers can erase some difficulties. Drew did a good job challenging and chasing Parker out of the paint with frequency. Parker had 14 points but did it on 14 shots and with just 3 assists. Got to take those numbers whenever you can get them. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 3-7 shooting (2-3 from three) to go with 3 boards, 3 assists, 1 turnover and 3 fouls in 27 minutes. He was a +21. The Action: He missed a wing jumper on the Lakers first possession. He swished a corner three off great Laker ball movement. His bounce pass to Pau was picked off for a layup the other way. He called his own number and swished a long wing jumper. He missed a three, short. He sank a sideline three on a kickout from Pau. He scored 8 points on 3-5 shooting. Second Half: He curled off the double screen, attacked the lane and hit Drew for the slam. He missed a floater on the break. He missed an open sideline three. He drew a push-off foul on the perimeter.

Lamar -- -- He has to win the match up with Bonner. You can't let that go with out making Bonner play D. Lamar was aggressive from the moment he entered the game and wound up with the second most shot attempts. He mixed in a some forays into the paint and his perimeter game with success. Defensively, you saw a lot of switches and rotations. The Lakers really tried to stay tight on the perimeter shooters. Bonner never had too many opportunities to set up and launch. "We're becoming more consistent defensively and it's showing," Lamar said. He mentioned they understood their rotations better, but we're also "willing" themselves to wins on that end of the floor. The Stats: He scored 15 points on 7-13 shooting (1-3 from three, 0-1 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover and no fouls in 29 minutes. He was a +10. The Action: He swished a three over Bonner right after entering the game. He missed a step-back baseline jumper with the quarter winding down. He attacked strong to his left and powered in the layup. He missed a long pull-up jumper with the shotclock low. He posted up Manu, drew the double and kicked to Barnes for a three. He missed a jumper. He attacked strong in early offense and hit an And-1 runner, he missed the FT. He missed an 18-footer. He pushed out the break and fed Artest, who clanked a three (probably not the best decision there). Next possession, he pushed out the break, hit Kobe and quickly got it back for a layup (better break). He had 9 points on 4-8 shooting and 5 assists. He was a +20. Second Half: He hit a short baseline jumphook to start the fourth. He missed a wing three. He missed another wing three. He sank a wing jumper. He hit an easy jumphook in the paint.

Blake -- -- He took the wrath of Phil for a bonehead early offense three attempt when we should have been running clock. (It didn't help, either, that he'd been shooting blanks all game, too.) Phil called a timeout and brought back in some starters when they should have been icing down and resting. "We wanted to send a message to our second unit," Kobe said. "Even though the game is still out of reach, you got to do your job." Blake's normally done a good job in the floor general decisions, but Phil let him know the moment he stepped out of line. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-5 shooting (0-3 from three) to go with 2 assists and 2 fouls in 21 minutes. He was a -5. The Action: He missed a sideline three. He missed an open wing three. He probed and hit Pau for the elbow jumper. Second Half: He missed a corner jumper. Some backcourt pressure and the Spurs went over and back on an inbounds pass for a turnover. He missed a long wing jumper. He missed a quick-fire three after we had the shotclock reset and Phil got after him for not running clock and benched him.

Barnes -- -- Welcome back. He entered the game with 22 seconds left in the first quarter. Great sight to see. This pushes Luke back in the depth chart and ushers in the return of the Killer B's. They played a good first half (Barnes sinking his only three attempt) and that helped the Lakers to extend a lead. Later in the game, that second unit struggled and Barnes missed a few shots. "I was messing with the guys saying I was point shaving on a couple of those layups," Barnes joked. The game was over at that point. You could see the Spurs starting to sag of Ron in this game. Phil opted to go with Shannon when that happened, but Barnes will be critical when teams try to muck things up that way. Good to have Matt back in the purple and gold again. The Stats: He scored 5 points on 2-6 shooting (1-2 from three) to go with 6 boards (3 offensive) and 3 fouls in 14 minutes. He was a -8. The Action: He swished a wing three on the Lamar post kickout. Second Half: He flashed to the post and missed a one-handed bank. He lost the handle on a layup on the break. He missed a three at the third quarter buzzer. He flashed to the post, went up and under to score a layup. He couldn't finish over a big on the drive.

Brown -- -- Shannon came off the bench and quickly got into the mix with a couple of scores, including high-flying throwdown on the break. That helped the Lakers keep the pressure on the Spurs, not allowing them to come up for air. As mentioned in the Barnes' write-up, the Spurs started to sag off Ron in the second half and the offense bogged down. Phil countered with Shannon to space the floor. That ended that. The Stats: He scored 12 points on 6-10 shooting (0-1 from three) to go with 4 boards, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover and no fouls in 27 minutes. He was a -7. The Action: He swished a wing jumper off the pinch post. He exploded on the break for a soaring dunk off the Pau block. He missed a wing jumper. He swished a long wing jumper with the shotclock about to expire. He got caught on a screen on the other end and gave up a three. Second Half: His man backed off him, so Shannon hit the wing jumper. He missed a tough jumper in the paint. He missed a wing three on a kickout. He missed a baseline jumper. Not tight enough on Novak on the other end to give up a three. He swished a 20-footer. He fumbled a dribble out of bounds. He deflected away a bad pass to get a stop. He swished a wing jumper off the pinch post.

Walton -- -- Up big, he came in with 3 minutes left. If we can stay healthy that will likely be his role. He missed his only shot. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-1 shooting to go with 1 board, 1 assist and no fouls in 3 minutes. He was a -4. The Action: He did not play in the first half. Second Half: He missed a 21-footer.

Smith -- -- He was the last on in with a couple minutes left. He missed a long jumper. Not enough time to do much. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-1 shooting to go with 1 foul in 2 minutes. He was a -3. The Action: He did not play in the first half. Second Half: He missed an open 20-footer.

Caracter -- -- DC should have been in the mix sooner. While Phil wanted to send a message to his second unit, he wasn't sending it to his bigmen. The trio of Pau/Bynum/Lamar played great. Up as big as the team was, he could have saved Pau or Bynum a little wear and, of course, the potential for injury. The Stats: He didn't shoot and had 1 foul in 3 minutes. He was a -4. The Action: He did not play in the first half. Second Half: Nothing to report.

Phil -- -- Bynum said after the game that Phil has been running some new drills, giving the offense an odd-man advantage so that the D has to scramble and talk to each other... Phil sat Pau for Lamar with 5 minutes left up by 6. Pop brought in Bonner and Phil matched with LO... Lakers killing the Spurs on the offensive glass (5 already)... They extended to a 28-13 lead to force a timeout... Phil went with a Pau, Lamar, Kobe, Brown, Blake lineup... They extended to a 21-point first quarter lead.... The Lakers led 34-13 after the first. The Lakers had a 17-8 advantage on the glass... Phil started a Pau, Lamar, Barnes, Brown, Blake unit. Killer B's back in action... They pulled ahead by 24 and forced a timeout... The Lakers gave up several offensive boards before finally giving up an And-1 score with just over 5 minutes left. This unit might be gassed... OUt of that timeout, Phil went with wholesale changes, bringing back in the starters... Up 26, Phil sat Bynum for Pau with 2 minutes left... Situational sub of Shannon for Artest on the final possession... They won the second quarter 31-24... The Lakers led 65-37 at the half. They shot 56 percent (28-50, 7-13 from three, 2-5 from the line). The Spurs shot 35 percent (16-46, 2-11 from three, 3-5 from the line)... Pop went to Bonner after just 3 minutes... The Spurs started to sag off Artest and the offense bogged down a little. So Phil made an early sub of Shannon for Ron to help with the spacing. (Manu was sitting anyway)... The Lakers won the third 16-15... They led 81-52 heading into the fourth... Phil started Pau, Lamar and the Killer B's. Looked a bit like garbage time... Phil sat Pau for Bynum up by 25 with 7 minutes left... He brought back in Fish and Kobe to punish Blake for a bone-headed shot and others for lack of intensity.. Phil brought back in Pau for Drew with 3 minutes left up huge still. That's a sub we didn't need to make... Finally he brought in Caracter for Lamar and sat Kobe for Blake... He finally sat Pau for Smith... The Lakers had just 8 turnovers (the Spurs turned them into 17 points)... The Lakers shot 47 percent (47-90). The Spurs shot 36 percent (31-86)...

[mhan00]

Great win.

[Mike C]

GREAT GAME! Thank for the write up!

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

^I'll second that!

[CGLR]

I just rewatched the game. They gave Kobe a phantom shot attempt. Should have been 12-24.

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

I DVR'd it too.

The Ron-Ron gun-kissing..

[Bynum4MVP]

Everybody played great today.

Of particular note was Bynum's dominating defense and Phil's excellent coaching.

Phil coached this game like it was a Playoff game. And I really liked how he put the Starters back in. Ensuring this game remained a "blowout" was a Zen move to damage the psyche of the younger Spurs players.

Allowing the Spurs to come back and make it a single digit win would have only emboldened the Spurs with the Lakers "hanging on" to win.

Phil's putting the Starters back in ensured that the Spurs will remember that they got blown out.
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Before Lamar trade: Lakers-57 wins (2011)
After Lamar Trade: Lakers 41 wins (2012)
Lol, people actually thought trading LO would be a GOOD thing

[Klone_dd]

Most defensive intensity I've seen to start a game. And with that came some offensive fluidity, scoring on 12 straight possessions.

As Timmy D would say after a stunning 1st Q, "it's over." He was rendered MIA as was RJ and Manu.

Bynum was a beast. I do, however, wish the team would've rewarded him more on the offensive side. Feed the big dog when he's guarding the yard like that. Kobe went for the kill early. Shanwow was huge as well.

2nd half was mucky, almost unwatchable. I don't think Phil sent the starters in just to rub it in, even though he did want to maintain the double digit lead. The 2nd unit was just horrible in the 2nd half.

[godspeed]

good game, good win, good sunday... love it

thanks db

[ssiknick833]

Where's Phillydoc?


Thanks DB
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[calistrtballr]

Mitch needs to pickup another guard. Blake is playing like s#$%!

[Magic'sSon]

DB, you kind sir...IS THE MAN!! I watched the game, but still love your breakdown on ish.

[RVCdesigns]

thanks DB, great win. Bynum has turned the corner this season.

[mhan00]

bynum doing now what artest has done for us numerous times, showing how a player can completely dominate a game on both ends of the court every minute he's out there without taking a shot. he was an absolute beast. STAY HEALTHY 'DREW!

[OregonLakerGuy]

Thanks DB

[ocho]

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

[Arbitrary]

Awesome game, but our bench can't be that complacent when closing out games.

[E=MC²]

Best win of the year. Joined by @Por and @Bos games right at the top.

[Tanlentueux]

[A Mad Chinaman]

As Stu Lantz has stated many times, once we've seen what you can do . . . .

Obviously a good/great game from the team.

The 2nd team needs to stay in the game plan, in preparation for the playoffs.

Early clock offense, lack of energy, etc. will not be tolerated during the playoffs from the 2nd team. This is important since when the 2nd team is playing well, it allows the regulars to get their needed rest to close games.

[limchrc]

thanks

[prisma8slg]

I love how Bynum's going after every rebound.

thanks DB
_________________
"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."

[lounger]

thanks DB!

I love #winning!

[MedRomLaker]

Thanks for the T&R DB, great game was very hyped by the play against SA.
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11/9/12 the day the brown was flushed down!!!!!!

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