SPURS -at- LAKERS - 1/25 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

[DancingBarry]

The Trees... Within minutes of her call, you're at the scene. You hop out of the car, and a misty rain greets you. This time, you're finally going to see the Four Horsemen in action. You future lies beyond those trees in front of you. Today is your day.

You follow a trail through the woods, glad to get under the trees and out of the rain. Somewhere in the dim light you hear a methodical thud...thud...thud... You follow the sound until you reach the source -- a silver, tin woodsman chopping at a tree that refuses to fall. He sees you approach and stops.

"How's it going?" you say, not shocked by the strange things you see these days. "You happen to see any, well, horsemen riding around here?"

"Perhaps," he replies. Perhaps? What's that mean? In the trees above you an owl makes a high-pitch barking sound. "Give me something, would you?" the Tin Man asks politely.

"Sure," you shrug, "What do you need?"

"I need," he says, pausing for a moment, "your heart. Give...me...your...heart." He grips the handle of his axe tighter. You raise an eyebrow and start to back away. He begins to march toward you. The lack of expression on his face is unnerving.

You turn and run, stumbling blindly through the woods. The Tin Man gives chase, holding his axe above his head. "Give me your heart! Give me your heart!" he screams madly.

You hit a clearing, rain coming down on you without the shelter of the trees. You splash through pools of muddy water, then slip and fall face first into the mud. The Tin Man follows and begins to slow. You scramble to your feet. The Tin Man's movements become labored. Metal scrapes against metal until he finally freezes in mid stride.

"Oil can..." he says, raising one rusting arm and pointing at you. "Oil...can..." You back away, turn and realize that he's pointing to an oil can behind you. Walking over to it, you notice some paper rolled up in the spout. You pull it out. DancingBarry:

The Four Horsemen were here. Their opponent's offensive attack stalled badly. The Horsemen seized the opportunity and took a crushing victory. They let the Death Riders finish the kill.

I will continue to track them...

P.S. Umm, don't give him the oil can. Not that you would, but, just sayin'...

The Spurs put up a good fight in the first half, but faded badly as the chase wore on. The balanced Laker offensive attack was too much for the Spurs to stop. And while the Spurs did miss a variety of good looks from long range, the Lakers defended the paint better. The result, a 99-85 Laker victory with plenty of garbage time.

Lamar Odom played some sensational D on smaller players, as well as on his defensive rotations and in transition. Andrew Bynum hung back in the paint all game to prevent drives and worked his touches in the post decently. Pau Gasol had his way whenever he got the ball. And, Jordan Farmar returned to the floor to spark the team off the bench.

As mentioned last time we played, the Spurs have a lot to worry about. The Lakers didn't expose or milk certain match-ups in this game. Kobe's injury has him playing at about 75 percent. The Lakers balanced inside-out attack will be difficult to crack for this current group of Spur players. Defensively, we can go iso on Duncan with some success; we can throw bigger, athletic players like Ariza on Parker; and allow Kobe to take care of Manu.

Pau said the team started tight, but pulled out after working the ball inside. "They decided to double team our post players and we got open shots. We opened the game up and it was a lot easier after that," he said.


Kobe -- -- There was some talk in the last Spurs game that the Spurs beat us while playing our game. Kobe disagreed and said that this was how they want to play. "It was our pace. We controlled the tempo," Kobe said. Until the fourth-quarter turnover spree (when we were in cruise control), the Lakers dictated how the game was going to be run. Good defensive job by Kobe against Manu. Again, Kobe has been one of the better defenders against the lefty slasher. That negates a lot of the Spur effectiveness. Of course, Manu looks much better than in the playoffs, but even at full strength, Kobe has defended him well. Offensively, Kobe wasn't quite his usual well-rounded self. With that taped up ring finger, he seemed to most effective on his shot when he could get set up (catch and shoots or pull-up jumpers in rhythm). No need for him to go into assist mode when we could press our advantages elsewhere. Love seeing him stay on the bench all fourth quarter against the Spurs. The Stats: He scored 22 points on 8-17 shooting (2-3 from three, 4-4 from the line) to go with 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 32 minutes. The Action: He hit Luke under the hoop for a layup. He pulled up and drained a wing jumper. He drew two quick fouls on Mason, second one was on an elbow jumper, he made both FTs. He hit a step-back baseline jumper. He swished an early offense wing jumper. He missed a wing three. He missed a top-of-the-key jumper badly. He missed a step-back fade with the shotclock low. He was called for a touch foul on Manu on the perimeter. Poor shot selection, hoising up a 22-footer without running the offense and a man on him. He swiped a poor cross-court pass. He ballwatched and gave up a three to Manu. He attacked and was blocked in a crowd. He drew FTs on the perimeter, he made both. He rattled in an open wing three. He missed an early offense leaner tyring to draw FTs. He iso'd and missed at the rim. He lost the ball trying to split a double team, he got it back and drained a wing jumper on our last possession of the half. He blocked Manu's three on the other end. He scored 15 points on 5-12 shooting and had 2 assists in 22 minutes. Second Half: He swished a wide open three. Nice close on Bonner to get a shotclock violation. He missed a short jumper off the screen-roll. He was called for an offensive foul trying to post up Parker. He was fronted in the post, took the entry and banked over Duncan. He missed a 17-footer after crossing over Manu. He hit Pau with an interior bounce pass for an And-1 dunk. He swished a wing jumper on iso over Manu.

Gasol -- -- An extremely efficient and deadly game from Pau. We could have pressed our advantage with him a lot more than we did, if needed. The Spurs can't handle our frontline. Pau helped bust the game open with some ninja passing with that second half second unit. The Spurs weren't able to take advantage of their three shooting from Bonner in this game. The more we attack Bonner with Pau, the better. The Stats: He scored 16 points on 4-6 shooting (8-9 from the line) to go with 5 boards, 4 assists, 1 block, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in 37 minutes. The Action: He iso'd on Thomas, attacked and drew FTs, first attempt for Pau 6 minutes in, he made both FTs. He missed a face-up baseline jumper. He drew FTs on the defensive glass, he made one. He spun away from his man, whowas leaning heavily on his right shoulder and he scored a layup. He attacked Duncan and drew a foul on a help defender, he made both FTs. He hit a wide open baseline jumper off the Farmar drive and kick. He had 9 points on 2-3 shooting, 5-6 from the line, and 3 boards. Second Half: He drew a double against Bonner and kicked to Fish for the open three. He missed a turnaround. He threw an And-1 dunk down over Duncan, he made the FT. He gave up an And-1 to Duncan on the other end. He worked the post on our first possession of the fourth and hit a jumper right over his man. Beauty give-and-go with Farmar at the high post and Farmar scored a layup. He drew a double in the high post and no-looked over his shoulder to a wide open Lamar under the hoop for the layup. He drew FTs on a layup attempt in early offense, he made both. He blocked a corner jumper on a close out.

Bynum -- -- Strong two-way game from Bynum to get a double-double in limited minutes. That is what you want. Most of his work offensively came on iso sequences. There was very minimal setting up for him (in fact, you didn't see any lob attempts or drive and dishes for dunks off the two-man sequences). He did a good job running the floor and fighting for low position in early offense. In the past, this has always resulted in good opportunities for him. It caused the Spurs some issues today. Defensively, he can go iso on Duncan with decent success (last game, he gave Duncan a hard time in the fourth quarter, too). Trying to score on Bynum one-on-one in the post isn't an easy thing to do. Duncan had a few scores, of course, Bynum also got a few good stops, too. It's the two-man sequences, the offensive boarding or getting him out of position where the damage often takes place on the defensive end. It seemed very much by design in this game for Bynum to sag back in the paint. There were a lot of open midrange jumpers because he didn't close out. They'll have to improve that, but the paint was protected. The Stats: He scored 15 points on 4-10 shooting (7-8 from the line) to go with 11 boards (4 offensive), 1 assist, 1 steal, 4 blocks, 2 turnovers and 2 fouls in 24 minutes. The Action: He missed a short jumphook on the first attempt of the game. He missed a short one after getting good position on Duncan early. He drew a couple early fouls on Bonner in the paint. Quick attack on the entry pass and he hit the short jumphook over Duncan. Excellent timing to pop up and reject a Parker drive. He faced up on Duncan, spun to get lower position and hit the short jumper right over him (did that same move last game against Duncan). Excellent challenge on Manu to force a miss. He gave up baseline to Duncan, easy layup. He was called for a moving screen and had to sit with 2 fouls late in the first. He blocked a Duncan wing jumper. Early low position by running the floor and he scored the easy jumphook. He had 6 points on 3-6 shooting, 6 boards and 2 blocks in 12 minutes. Second Half: He drew a double against Duncan and kicked to Kobe for the open three. Sagged off the screen defensively, then didn't box out Duncan to give up a board. He drew FTs running the floor and getting a mismatch, he made both. Again, sagging off the screen, open Parker jumper. He clanked a 15-footer. He didn't close on Manu on a screen, open jumper. He crashed the offensive glass to take a board from Duncan and slammed it in. Good challenge on Parker's drive and he forced a miss. Bynum finally does leave his man to challenge on the perimeter and no one rotates for him. He swatted Duncan in the post (good angle, good use of length) and then drew a foul on Duncan (4th), he made one FT. He missed a forced turnaround against a double team. He missed an up-and-under taking contact, he grabbed it back and powered up for FTs, he made both.

Luke -- -- Again, Luke is a better defensive match up in this game for us than Vlad. Not a great game from Luke, but serviceable minutes. Luke wasn't really made to shoot and beat the Spurs from the perimeter, that plays to our favor. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 1-3 shooting (2-2 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 3 assists, 1 block, 2 turnovers and 2 fouls in 17 minutes. The Action: He scored a layup cutting baseline and taking the Kobe pass. He threw a pass away in transition, points the other way. He posted up Manu and was wrapped up for FTs, he made both. Second Half: He was stripped on our first possession of the half. He stripped Duncan on one end to save a hoop, then fed Bynum on the other for FTs on a mismatch. He missed an 18-footer. He tried to force a pass into Kobe in a crowd, turnover.

Fisher -- -- With the return of Farmar, DFish can now get a little rest. This looked to be one of those games from Fish where we were going to struggle at the PG spot. He couldn't hit from outside, took some challenged shots and started slow. When Farmar came in the PG spot turned the tables on the Spurs. "It was really nice. Our team is so deep and so versatile, it's really going to bode well for us as the season goes on," Derek said of getting that bench relief. Fish said it took a couple games to get over that last Spurs game, but that they've moved on. The Stats: He scored 3 points on 1-5 shooting (1-3 from three) to go with 2 boards, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 turnovers and 2 fouls in 25 minutes. He was a +12. The Action: He missed an elbow jumper in early offense. He missed a long jumper trying to create with the shotclock low. He missed a wing three. Next time down, he pulled up and bricked another wing three. Parker blew past him in transition for a layup. Second Half: He swished a three on the Pau kickout. He attacked and kicked to Ariza for three.

Lamar -- -- If you look at the stat sheet and see just the 6 points and jump to some conclusions, you're going to miss out on the game Lamar played. "He did some really good things defensively...he was a very important factor," Phil said of LO. If there were stats for forcing players into bad shots or tough attempts, Lamar probably would have led the team in that category. Some great D and hustle. He got stops against Parker on switches. He hustled back in transition to challenges breakaways and get misses. He rotated quickly. And, he cleaned the defensive glass. Great job. Offensively, he didn't press his advantages much and got a little too loose in garbage time. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 3-9 shooting (0-2 from three) to go with 10 boards, 2 assists, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in 27 minutes. The Action: Great jumpout onto Kobe's man to challenge a jumper and force a miss. He swished an elbow jumper over his man. Great challenge on Mason's drive on iso D and he forced a brick. He missed a 2-footer. Great iso D on Parker and he drew a travel on him. He missed a three badly on the other end. Superb D again on Parker on a switch, he challenged a long step-back jumper, then leaked out for the outlet and scored over Parker. Second Half: He knocked a ball off Parker for a turnover. He missed a corner three, not a good offensive sequence. He missed on a drive to his left at the end of the third. Excellent challenge in transition to force a miss layup. He scored at the other end when Pau no-looked to him for a layup. He took the ball on a cut, backed his man down and shoveled it to Ariza for a dunk. He missed a 15-footer. He again challenged a breakaway layup and got a miss. He threw back-to-back passes away. He missed a tip in on a high-low lob.

Ariza -- -- As you may recall, Trevor Ariza had a good defensive stint against Parker in the fourth quarter of the last game. Phil put him on Parker during Ariza's stints when the two matched up. No waiting in this game. I wasn't sure if we would go back to it, but glad Phil did. Offensively, the Cobra killed the Spurs. He drained a couple key threes as we were getting a little distance from the Spurs. He hit his freethrows. And, we saw that Farmar/Ariza chemistry on the break for a lob. Great job from Ariza in his minutes. The Stats: He scored 17 points on 5-8 shooting (2-5 from three, 5-5 from the line) to go with 2 boards, 4 turnovers and no fouls in 26 minutes. The Action: With the clock low, he sliced through the D from the wing and scored the And-1 over Bowen, he made the FT. He got tapped on a wing three. He missed an open sideline three. He threw down an alley-oop from Farmar on the break (the return of L.A. Law!). He traveled trying to create (got to put the ball down before you go). Second Half: Telegraphed perimeter pass, layup the other way. He sank the open sideline three on the kickout from Fish. He swished another three from the other side on the kickout from Lamar. Superbly timed cut when LO was working with the ball in the paint, Lamar found him and Ariza threw down over a defender. He was tripped on an attack, he made both FTs. He missed a three, Sasha swiped it back and fed Ariza for FTs, he made both.

Vujacic -- -- Sasha missed the last game against this team. Defensively, I don't think he will have the same success against a more healthy Manu as he did in the playoffs. Sasha typically does a good job staying on the shooters, which is what Manu was resigned to in the playoffs. I think Sasha is more suited for a guy like Mason or Finley. He just needs to make sure he understands a few defensive rules to keep them from open threes. Offensively, not a lot of opportunities for Sasha. He didn't force the issue. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 1-2 shooting to go with 1 board, 2 steals, 1 turnover and 1 foul. The Action: He went under a screen and gave up a three to Mason. Second Half: He missed a wing jumper. He threw a pass away in the lane. He spun on his man and swished the baseline jumper. He swiped a pass and no-looked to Ariza for FTs.

Farmar -- -- Beating his estimated recovery time, Jordan Farmar returned from his injury to start the second quarter. He didn't look a bit rusty. "No pain, no swelling, I'm just glad to be back," Farmar said. He provided an instant spark, another player who can create off the dribble and push the break when the opportunity is there. I was hoping Farmar would work on his freethrow shooting while out. Unfortunately, that didn't show up in this game. "I probably made 5 million freethrows in this past month and I come out here and shoot 50 percent from the line," Farmar said, irked at his misses there. Defensively, of course, will be the biggest concern. He wasn't challenged on that end and clearly outplayed the Spurs bench guards. The Stats: He scored 14 points on 5-7 shooting (2-3 from three, 2-4 from the line) to go with 2 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers and 2 fouls in 17 minutes. He was a +8. The Action: He missed a wing three on his first attempt. Nice push out in transition, he attacked his man and drew FTs (we missed those), he made one FT (didn't miss those FT bricks). He attacked and kicked to Pau for the open jumper. He pushed out the break and lobbed to Ariza for the dunk. He sank an 18-footer over his man. He swished a wing three in transition on the next trip down (this forces a second Spur timeout off a Farmar play). He worked the two-man game and swished the elbow jumper. He was a +7 in that stint. He had 8 points on 3-4 shooting in 6 minutes. Second Half: He pulled up and was challenged, so he kicked it to Pau and quickly cut, Pau threaded it back and Farmar scored the layup. He tried to iso on his man and lost the ball in the lane. He missed a layup, just rolling off the rim on a good attack. He sank a wing three. He drew FTs on the perimeter, he made one (again). He was called for a clear-out foul bringing the ball up.

Radmanovic -- -- Vlad got some spot minutes and garbage time. Nothing much to report. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-1 shooting, grabbed 1 board, dished 1 assist, had 1 steal, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 10 minutes. The Action: He missed a sideline three way short. Second Half: He was stripped with no call as he was getting ready to throw down on the baseline.

Powell -- -- Different fourth-quarter minutes for Josh this time versus the Spurs. No road intensity. No need to milk some bread-and-butter pick and pops. Just garbage time. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-1 shooting to go with 2 boards, 1 turnover and no fouls in 5 minutes. The Action: Did not play in the first half. Second Half: He missed an 18-footer.

Mihm -- -- Some late garbage-time minutes for Chris. Always good to see, especially against the Spurs. The Stats: He didn't score, grabbed 2 boards, blocked 1 shot and had 2 fouls in 3 minutes. The Action: He did not play in the first half. Second Half: He swatted a jumper in the lane.


Phil -- -- The Lakers led early in the first. They looked to feed Bynum a little and generally work the offense. Pau didn't get involved until late. The second unit gave up the lead at the end of the first quarter. The Lakers trailed 23-22 after one... Farmar came in to start the second quarter and gave the Lakers a lift (DFish was shooting blanks early and often). We had a 3-point lead when he sat... The Lakers gave up that lead before bouncing back with a Bynum, Lamar, Vlad, Kobe, Fisher lineup... The Lakers led 51-45 at halftime. The Lakers shot 46 percent, despite going 2-10 from three. The Spurs shot 41 percent. The Lakers had just 4 turnovers, the Spurs 6... The Lakers didn't bring Powell in during the first half. He had a key second-half stint against the Spurs in the last game... The Lakers started the second half with a couple open threes off inside-out possessions from Bynum/Pau to Kobe/Fish. The 57-45 lead forced a Spur timeout... The Lakers pulled out to a 15-point lead before the Spurs cut it back on a couple of hoops and Phil called a timeout and brought in Lamar and Ariza... The Lakers outscored the Spurs 28-21 and led 79-66 heading into the fourth quarter... "Three point shooting was good. Guys moved the ball well off the post," Phil said. Defensively, he said they were okay and he gave Bynum some props... The second unit took control to start the fourth. They put it in cruise control. From there it was some turnover-prone garbage time... The Lakers shot 46.4 percent, the Spurs 37.5 percent. The Spurs shot just 5-23 from three, the Lakers 7-17...

Game Flow -- LINK -- The Lakers dominated the second half, particularly the start of the quarters.

[dukdukgoos]

First. That was a great win. Loved the defense from LO, dude is ballin' right now.

[City_Dawg]

Thanks DB, as always.
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*sighs*

!...

[hoopschick29]

DB, you're terrific.

It was nice to have all hands on deck today. I knew there was talk about Jordan possibly being ready today, but I was still shocked as hell to see him. I feel like we really weathered a storm and it will serve us well as we head out on the 'Grammy' tour.
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So glad we gave you your flowers while you were here, Kobe.

[Mr. EiGhTy-OnE]

welcome back jordan farmar

great win, wish we had won by 20+ though
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"When (Kobe) gets you on life support, he won't give you mouth to mouth. HE PULLS THE PLUG." -stu

[Klone_dd]

Quality game all around. Whatever your take was about Bynum's last two games, this one is the one that is impressive because of the caliber of the opposition. A 2x2 with 4 blocks. Sweet.

Pau and Kobe were both deadly efficient. Particularly Pau with the 2nd unit. He could've done a lot more with his one-on-one matchup and I think SA knew that too. Double him at your own risk.

LO and the bench mob really sealed the deal. LO was swarming on D, causing havoc by swallowing up any kind of mis-matches SA usually gets when Parker or Manu run p&r. JoFar brought the energy he's been bottling for the last 17 games. Beautiful give and go he ran with Pau. Every shot Ariza hit seemed like a momentum shift to the Lakers.

[Texas_Pete]

Thanks DB!

I'm wondering if Drew's limited minutes today was PJ's mind games or was it to see what other lineups he could tinker with. I like it that he had the trust in Drew's game to leave him manned up with TD. Drew could have easily gone 20/10/6 today if PJ let him play more than 35 minutes. Very good anchorage today. Confidence from these last few games has carried over to a statement game against a very game Spurs team. I'll say that that the prodigal son has returned.

[DancingBarry]

[Laker7]

IMO Bynum and Kobe were the key to our win. Kept Duncan and Manu under control playing one on one defense. While Timmy and Manu scored, they were not able to dominate and take over the game as they have against other teams. They were human if you were.

On the other hand, we got lucky that the rest of the Spurs could not hit the broad side of the barn when left open. Got to reduce those open looks the other players were getting.

L7
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Darvin Ham is an idiot!

[hoopschick29]

[JUST-MING]

[wolfpaclaker]

Very fun game to watch.

Drew, Kobe, LO, Pau, Farmar, Ariza - they played well. I like that effort all around in the 2nd half.

One concern was the open shots our starters give to the Spurs. You better believe they are going to make those at home. We need to close out better on shooters in SA, otherwise if these two face each other in the WCF, I can see a very long 6-7 game series.

Good stuff on offense though, continuation of what we saw in SA. The Spurs lack the power/athleticism inside to stop our bigs. The Spurs also lack a defender like Bowen to contain Kobe or disrupt him from shooting high % looks. All in all, the Spurs are just as dangerous an offensive team, but they're nowhere near the same defensive team with the likes of Bonner, Finley, Mason playing such big roles for them. Also with Duncan at C, it makes them much weaker defensively IMO, especially when Bynum or Pau are active in gaining post position. If Duncan has to put his body on AB then he can't anchor. Who is there anchor then? Bonner? Take charges? They have some holes in their defense and lack of athleticism that won't change no matter what schemes Pop comes up with (though he will come up with some great ones).

[Omar Little]

Thanks DB. Nice write-up as usual. One typo: Fish played 25 minutes, not 3...

BTW, with our 6 game lead on SA, the HCA in the west is looking real good. If they go 32-7 (better than 80%) the rest of the way, we'd have to go 26-13 (66.7%) for them to tie us. I don't see either 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

[RhodyRay]

[waterman40]

Thanks for the write up. The one play I got to see on highlights was Bynum gathering in that Gasol Miss and then throwing it down. Damn, he plays like that and we have a healthy 14 players, we are not going to be losing a 7 game series to anybody this year.
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LAKERS 2019-2020: NBA World Champions!

[Mr. EiGhTy-OnE]

[vida24]

DB

[Prometheus8]

Great write-up, DB, as usual.

Three tremendous games in a row from Bynum. Is this the Drew we'll see for the rest of the year? If so its lights out for the rest of the league.

Sweet blow-out of the second-place team in the west.
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"Every time he got an offensive rebound, it was deflating," Hornets coach Monty Williams said ... "I thought Bynum decided the series. He was that good."

"...one of the most valuable players in the league…"– Phil Jackson about Ron Artest in 2005

[LakerLanny]

Very nice to see Farmar back to provide some minutes in the backcourt. Sasha is too inconsistent and Fish seemed to be struggling of late with the increased minutes, so Farmar's return was much needed.

Now the question becomes can Farmar ever show the same type of play on the road that he does at home. He is a great home court player and a very marginal road player.

If he ever wants to start for the Los Angeles Lakers, he needs to fix that problem. But clearly, he is a nice option to have over the season long slumping Vujacic and the worn down Derek Fisher.
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Love, Laker Lanny

[Dr. Laker]

Thanks, DB!
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On Lakersground, a concern troll is someone who is a fan of another team, but pretends to be a Lakers fan with "concerns".

[lakersfreak]

DB
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Forget carbon, reduce your government footprint

[DancingBarry]

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

Thanks DB!!!

I've always wondered what chain of events led to the Tin Man standing rusted in the forest with his axe in the air the way Dorothy and Scarecrow found him. I figured it was something like what you described, but it's always been one of life's little mysteries.

You've finally cleared that mystery up for me. Thank you so much.


Bynum -- There's nothing like going 42/15 on an undermanned team and following it up against another undermanned team to get the confidence boiling over. Once he did this, the question then became; has Drew finally returned? or was it an issue of the other team being undermanned? Well, Drew just outplayed Tim Duncan. There's your answer!

Gotta love Pau Gasol hitting mid-range jumpers, and passing like a 7-foot Magic.

Farmar hit the ground running. Also good.

Odom is playing huge this year. He seems to be having a bigger impact on the Lakers' success than any season I remember.

And to top it all off; now I know the answer to the Tin Man mystery! What a great day!!!!

[Texas_Pete]

Oh, and today marks the return of A.L.F. (Ariza, LO, Farmar). 13/24 for 37 points, 12 rebs, 4 asts. Tonight's blowout was very reminiscent of our start to begin the year -- when we were beating teams by damn near 20. This was a great win!

[farkas]

LO is the glue guy of this team. i hope we'd keep him after this season.
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It's time to walk the walk. - Kobe