Posted: Sun Jan 07, 2024 10:43 pm Post subject: CLIPPERS -at- LAKERS - 1-7-24 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings
Dialed Back In, Finally?... “I thought we paid attention to the game plan and to the details, which we’ve been lacking lately,” Bron said after the 106-103 win over the streaking Clippers.
The Lakers fell back by 9 as the Clippers had an early run. The Lakers countered with one of their own. Back and forth first half, despite the Lakers having 10 turnovers in the half.
The Lakers locked into their assignments defensively. They crowded the three line defensively, even getting a couple fouls on threes. They switched with AD and kept tight on shooters. They trailed 53-49 at the half.
Strong third quarter as Bron got them going with a series of scores, including a massive And-1 dunk down the middle of the lane. Christian Wood would close the quarter with another dunk, hammering a putback down as the Lakers took an 81-77 lead into the fourth.
The Lakers extended to a 10-point lead early in the fourth as Russell and Wood gave the team some spark off the bench. The Clippers didn’t goi away, sinking some threes and pulling back even with the Lakers.
After a great defensive stand, which forced the Clipper into a long missed heave, the Lakers got a big three. Tied up with 1:17 left, they swung the ball from Bron to Russell to a wide open Prince, and he buried the three. The Lakers would get a stop on the other end. LeBron then ran clock, attacked off the high screen with a couple seconds left on the shotclock and swished the short one with 42 seconds left in the game.
Up 5, the Lakers were in control. One missed freethrow nearly cost them late as the Clippers had a chance to tie it with a running three at the buzzer that went in and out.
Good focus by the team tonight.
LeBron -- -- You just have to step back and look with a little awe at what he’s doing out there. Strong two-way effort, Bron was huge from start to finish. Kawhi assignment defensively, which would be tough as Kawhi has been a killer lately. Bron’s got the size to stay with him in that midrange and the patience to not bite on head fakes. Kawhi would get most of his scoring in transition or off others (but still finish with just 15 on 17 attempts). Offensively, a couple of nice plays on the left block for Bron early, spinning baseline for scores. He looked young on an offensive board near the end of the first half for a putback layup, he went up high for that one, but he’d look younger later. He led the Lakers with 13 points on 6-10 shooting in the half. He’d get Zu’s third foul to start the second half, hitting a baseline fade after taking contact. Then, Bron found more of that youth in his legs. He got downhill in transition and hammered an And-1 dunk over Paul, taking off in the middle of the lane (a step inside the freethrow circle line, wow). How old is he? Sheesh. He’d hit another fade on Zu off the two-man shortly later. Power and finesse. It’s pretty amazing. He was the offense early in that third. Bron came up huge with a bucket downhill off the two-man action. He’d swish the short one over Zu as he faded away from him off the dribble. I like seeing him not settle for threes in those situations. The Stats: He scored 25 points on 11-19 shooting (1-3 from three, 2-3 from the line) to go with 8 boards, 7 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers and 2 fouls in 38 minutes. He was a +5.
Davis -- -- He and Bron had some issues connecting early on. They did team up on a nice two-man action down the middle of the lane for a score. Vando also found AD in the interior. The jumper was looking good from the start in this one. In the fourth, that came to play. He had 8 points on 4-7 shooting in the first half. Zubac had a big scoring first half as the Clipper guards were able to draw help D at times. AD would switch onto Harden a lot. He’d get a layup on the break when he and Prince forced Harden into a turnover. He was very successful defensively on those switches. But the Clippers would make up for it on the offensive glass with Zu on our smaller guys off those switches. In the fourth, AD hit a jumphook, a jumper from the FT line, then a big score in the post after we went scoreless for a while. He’d drain a big pick and pop with 2:47. AD would also deflect the ball on a big possession with 1:35 left that forced Paul to heave and brick a long three with the score tied. The Stats: He scored 22 points on 10-15 shooting (0-1 from three, 2-4 from the line) to go with 10 boards, 1 assist, 3 steals, 1 block, 3 turnovers and 1 foul in 39 minutes. He was a -4.
Reaves -- -- Man, he got tapped on a freethrow with 4.2 seconds left. That rattled in and out. He made the second one, thankfully. He got a pretty good challenge on Powell’s running three on the other end. He was hot in the fourth. That barely missed. Make both your FTs next time, AR. Quiet night for Reaves. The Clippers trapped him off the screens early to force him to pass over double teams. We never see that. Interesting. Reaves hit a baseline floater and followed that up with an And-1 in the midrange shortly later. We could put him on Mann defensively. Occasionally, he’d take on Harden. In the fourth, the Clippers were trying to focus on him a little. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 2-5 shooting (0-3 from three, 4-5 from the line) to go with 2 assists, 2 turnovers and no fouls in 32 minutes. He was a -4.
Prince -- :thumbsups: -- Some big plays down the stretch. He drained a couple of threes in the first half and attacked off the three line for a layup on another. Defensively, he got the George assignment. He had a couple of steals in the first half to go with his 8 points. He’d foul a three shooter late in this game, but would make up for it. He buried a huge three with over a minute left. Then, he sank a couple of clutch FTs, as well. Good job. The Stats: He scored 13 points on 4-8 shooting (3-6 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 1 board, 2 assists, 1 steal and 3 fouls in 30 minutes. He was a -2.
Reddish -- -- Harden assignment defensively. He picked up on the perimeter early in the first half but couldn’t finish the break. He sank a corner three off some good Laker ball movement for his first score after four misses. He’d then swish a three trailing the break, wide open, and that would force a timeout as the Lakers took a small lead in the third. His hands are awful on offense. It feels like he fumbles balls away at least twice a game. The coaches didn’t trust him because of that specifically and pulled him late as he had 5 turnovers in 20 minutes. That’s a problem. The Stats: He scored 7 points on 2-6 shooting (2-3 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 1 assist, 2 steals, 5 turnovers and 1 foul in 20 minutes. He was a -8.
Russell -- -- Back in the mix, it took him a half to get going. He had a layup, but missed five straight threes. Finally, he’d get a wide open one in the wing after Bron found him and he’d swish. Then next time down, he’d push the ball out to the same spot and hit the pull up three in transition and force a timeout. He’d sink a midrange early in the fourth. Then, he’d sink a transition three on the break when Vando kicked out to him. Good to have him back. The bench did really well tonight. He needs to be more efficient, but we’ll give him a pass as he’s been out for a few. The Stats: He scored 13 points on 5-14 shooting (3-9 from three) to go with 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 3 turnovers and 2 fouls in 31 minutes. He was a +5.
Vanderbilt -- -- A couple of interior passes early on to find teammates. He’d also hit Russell for a three late in the game. He got the Harden assignment off the bench early on. Later in the half, the Lakers ran some Reaves/Russell combo’s to get more offense out there. He’d get a couple perimeter fouls on the Clippers for stops as the Clips tried to shed him. For his only bucket, he had putback on a Bron airball to start the fourth. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 1-3 shooting (0-1 from three) to go with 4 boards, 4 assists, 1 steal and 1 turnover in 21 minutes. He was a +6.
Wood -- -- Just 16 minutes tonight, but they were big ones. We put him on Westbrook quite a bit early on, allowing him to plug the paint and help elsewhere. He had a great block on Westbrook on iso staying with him by backing up until they got to the rim. He’d bury a wing three and he also had a layup after a few head fakes under the hoop. His second stint, Bron found him open on the wing, he faked, attacked the close out and dunked. Then followed that up with a block on Zu under the hoop. Shortly later, he’d hammer a putback throwdown with a scream to close the third. Good job on the defensive glass. The Stats: He scored 9 points on 4-6 shooting (1-2 from three) to go with 10 boards, 2 blocks, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 16 minutes. He was a +7.
Christie -- -- He subbed in for some short stints and match up with Powell. He’d sink a corner three on some inside-out action. In the third, the Clips were switching along the perimeter and Christie rolled to the hoop. Russell found him and Max threw down with both hands. Really nice how he’s been finishing. Just 13 minutes and he led the team with a +10. They were selective in his use, but I really think he should eat into Cam’s minutes. We are not asking Cam to do much offensively and those fumbles are adding up. A couple blocks by Max, too, in his limited time. The Stats: He scored 7 points on 3-6 shooting (1-1 from three) to go with 3 boards (2 offensive), 2 blocks and no fouls in 13 minutes. He was a +10.
Ham -- -- Key Moment: Big win for him. The Lakers hit some huge shots down the stretch, a three by Prince and running fade by Bron to go up 5 with 42 seconds left. The Clippers had taken their final timeout with 2:47 left after they had burned one earlier on an unsuccessful challenge. So the Lakers were in the driver’s seat up 5. They gave up a three, but Prince made both his FTs. They gave up a bucket with 4.2 seconds left to go up by 2. Reaves made just one and they were up three. Still, no timeouts for the Clippers. No messing with a take foul by the Lakers or a potential foul on yet another three pointer. They dodged the final bullet and held on. Make both those FTs, AR.
Key Substitution: Really liked the Wood, Bron, Vando, Christie, Russell lineup. Good job by Vando and Wood on the offensive glass. They’d get the Lakers an 8-point lead closing the third and getting it done early in the fourth. Good combination of hustle and shooting with that squad. When Bron was out, we’d typically run Wood/AD out there for size. We lost some momentum when Wood and Vando sat in that fourth.
Key Stats: The Lakers got outrebounded 13-8 on the offensive glass. They gave up 14 threes to their 11. They had 19 turnovers to the Clipper 16. So, they didn’t have possessions in their favor, but they just shot better. The Lakers made 51.2% of their shots. The Clippers made 39.6%. That gap in made threes wasn’t big enough for the Clippers.
Coach’s Challenge: Early in the fourth, he’d challenge a foul on Wood that looked like a block on Zu. They reviewed and basically called him for a touch foul with the off hand. Two FTs for Zu. The Clippers challenged a call that was rule out of bounds off Kawhi on a Prince reach. Challenge unsuccessful.
Joined: 03 Oct 2003 Posts: 8404 Location: Santa Monica
Posted: Mon Jan 08, 2024 12:39 am Post subject:
Every now and then this season, the Lakers have shown us they have what it takes to be a good team. They held a white-hot Clippers team that had been averaging over 120 points a game lately to under 40% shooting and showed plenty of grit in winning a low-scoring game.
Kudos to coach Ham for putting Christian Wood back into the rotation lately. Wood has played well, but at the same time, Ham should've closed the game with him on the court. _________________ Lakers 49ers Chargers Dodgers
Joined: 24 Feb 2003 Posts: 6405 Location: Past left field
Posted: Mon Jan 08, 2024 1:26 am Post subject:
slavavov wrote:
Every now and then this season, the Lakers have shown us they have what it takes to be a good team. They held a white-hot Clippers team that had been averaging over 120 points a game lately to under 40% shooting and showed plenty of grit in winning a low-scoring game.
Kudos to coach Ham for putting Christian Wood back into the rotation lately. Wood has played well, but at the same time, Ham should've closed the game with him on the court.
7:14 left in Q4 Wood goes out with the Lakers holding a 7 point lead. Clipper tie the game at 98 with 2:19 left. Wood should have came back in to close.
Liked that the Lakers ran the Clippers off the three point line rather than let them shoot away with no pressure. Needs to stay that way. Lakers do not have enough good three point shooters to go toe to toe with teams from the three point line. _________________ Darvin Ham is an idiot!
Compared to Wood, Hayes is unplayable.
Compared to Max, Cam is unplayable. _________________ Creatures crawl in search of blood, To terrorize y'alls neighborhood.
The Lakers locked into their assignments defensively. They crowded the three line defensively, even getting a couple fouls on threes. They switched with AD and kept tight on shooters.
_________________ “The main goal for the Lakers is to win a championship. All I care about, all we care about, is to raise another banner in the rafters.“
The Lakers locked into their assignments defensively. They crowded the three line defensively, even getting a couple fouls on threes. They switched with AD and kept tight on shooters.
Agree
Have to consistently take care of *Details” (their roles and expectations) message for the “4-9” players if they want consistent PT, especially in crunch time.
Will Max get more and more PT with Cam/Prince’s inconsistent 2-Way production?
DLo was effective in his minutes and hitting key shots while making effective passes. Continuing saga of balancing his offensive production with his defensive liabilities that dictates his PT whose only goal is a RING. DLo has another 6-8 weeks (when Vincent returns) to show that he deserves major/crunch-time PT
Ham is discovering how much PT CWood can be effective (and focused on details) to be trusted to win important games consistently. Glad that he is learning about the mental toughness needed, in combination with talent, to win (be effective) to play during crunch time.
This game is evidence of the “potential” that is waiting to be tapped on consistently from the “4 to 9” players. Whose play will demand that they should be playing at the end of games - consistently?
LBR Words: In response to a question regarding Harden’s play/influence on the Clips, he stated that it took five games to get this T-Lue-coached team to get its act together.
The Lakers locked into their assignments defensively. They crowded the three line defensively, even getting a couple fouls on threes. They switched with AD and kept tight on shooters.
Agree
Have to consistently take care of *Details” (their roles and expectations) message for the “4-9” players if they want consistent PT, especially in crunch time.
Will Max get more and more PT with Cam/Prince’s inconsistent 2-Way production?
DLo was effective in his minutes and hitting key shots while making effective passes. Continuing saga of balancing his offensive production with his defensive liabilities that dictates his PT whose only goal is a RING. DLo has another 6-8 weeks (when Vincent returns) to show that he deserves major/crunch-time PT
Ham is discovering how much PT CWood can be effective (and focused on details) to be trusted to win important games consistently. Glad that he is learning about the mental toughness needed, in combination with talent, to win (be effective) to play during crunch time.
This game is evidence of the “potential” that is waiting to be tapped on consistently from the “4 to 9” players. Whose play will demand that they should be playing at the end of games - consistently?
LBR Words: In response to a question regarding Harden’s play/influence on the Clips, he stated that it took five games to get this T-Lue-coached team to get its act together.
Clearly this untapped potential is on the coach to figure out. We’re already halfway thru the season. Can he do it? Hope so _________________ “The main goal for the Lakers is to win a championship. All I care about, all we care about, is to raise another banner in the rafters.“
Posted: Mon Jan 08, 2024 9:24 am Post subject: Re: CLIPPERS -at- LAKERS - 1-7-24 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings
DancingBarry wrote:
Dialed Back In, Finally?...
The Lakers locked into their assignments defensively. They crowded the three line defensively, even getting a couple fouls on threes. They switched with AD and kept tight on shooters.
After the terrible "let 'em shoot the three" defensive approach Ham has been using since the IST, seeing the Lakers completely focused on guarding the Clippers behind the arc was an extremely welcome sight.
Lebron sets the tone, and he was actually putting in the effort to tightly guard his man on the perimeter, just like he showed in the IST.
Our bigs switched from drop coverage when their team mate was picked off to harassing the ball handler into passing it or dribbling into the interiior.
Even DLo obviously got the message as he was doing a better job crowding the outside shooter (on their shooting hand at that) and not saggimy off his man on dribble penetration mearpy as much as he usially does.
All of that said, there were still some miscues, and thos approach sometimes gives up more shot opportunities by the opponent in the paint, but it was definitely worth it seeing how poorly a good scoring team like the Clippers shot last night.
Quote:
Vanderbilt -- --
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He’d get a couple perimeter fouls on the Clippers for stops as the Clips tried to shed him.
More specifically, Vandy was able to draw out offensive fouls by both PG13 and Kawhii due to his intense coverage on them when assigned. He does so much defensively when healthy and locked in, especially last noght on Paul George where he was often denying an incoming pass and once George got the rock Vandy would (usually) fight to run him off the 3P line.
There was one poor sequence in the second half where Jarred went under a screen while guarding him, and right away I knew PG would take the three attempt since it was the first time he had clear space when the two went at each other (the shot went in).
Vandy is by far our best defender for big, strong forwards with an outside touch like Paul George, and I hope Ham keeps it simple with key assignments like this once we start heading towards the playoffs.
Oh yeah, extra props for Wood's play last night. His effort and focus, especially defensively and on the boards, was stellar. I even think that the missed gimme he clanked right up under the basket early on made him focus even more for the rest of the game.
I'm still not a fan in general of his play making decisions and his attempts to dribble out of pressure, but he played very well against Team Inglewood, and I appreciate it.
Hard to criticise a win against a hot opponent, so let's just rejoice for a moment.
Thanks for the writeup, DB!
At this point, I'm happy beating The Sisters of Mercy. _________________ On Lakersground, a concern troll is someone who is a fan of another team, but pretends to be a Lakers fan with "concerns".
Well, it took close to 40 games, but I will qualify this W as the Lakers first "signature" W for the year - they faced all of the opponent's top guys, and while I am not certain if the Clips are a "contender" (yet, and I consider them more of one then some of these younger clubs playing good early season ball), they have been one of the NBA's hottest teams.
Now the question is if this was just a one off, or if its a sign of things to come. Lakers have a big B2B match up tonight with the Suns, which will not be easy. _________________ "One thing I admire about Kuzma is his unwavering confidence. He truly has no idea that he’s not as good as he thinks." - Killer_Z
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-- He and Bron had some issues connecting early on. They did team up on a nice two-man action down the middle of the lane for a score. Vando also found AD in the interior. The jumper was looking good from the start in this one. In the fourth, that came to play. He had 8 points on 4-7 shooting in the first half. Zubac had a big scoring first half as the Clipper guards were able to draw help D at times. AD would switch onto Harden a lot. He’d get a layup on the break when he and Prince forced Harden into a turnover. He was very successful defensively on those switches. But the Clippers would make up for it on the offensive glass with Zu on our smaller guys off those switches. In the fourth, AD hit a jumphook, a jumper from the FT line, then a big score in the post after we went scoreless for a while. He’d drain a big pick and pop with 2:47. AD would also deflect the ball on a big possession with 1:35 left that forced Paul to heave and brick a long three with the score tied. 
-- Man, he got tapped on a freethrow with 4.2 seconds left. That rattled in and out. He made the second one, thankfully. He got a pretty good challenge on Powell’s running three on the other end. He was hot in the fourth. That barely missed. Make both your FTs next time, AR. Quiet night for Reaves. The Clippers trapped him off the screens early to force him to pass over double teams. We never see that. Interesting. Reaves hit a baseline floater and followed that up with an And-1 in the midrange shortly later. We could put him on Mann defensively. Occasionally, he’d take on Harden. In the fourth, the Clippers were trying to focus on him a little. 
-- Harden assignment defensively. He picked up on the perimeter early in the first half but couldn’t finish the break. He sank a corner three off some good Laker ball movement for his first score after four misses. He’d then swish a three trailing the break, wide open, and that would force a timeout as the Lakers took a small lead in the third. His hands are awful on offense. It feels like he fumbles balls away at least twice a game. The coaches didn’t trust him because of that specifically and pulled him late as he had 5 turnovers in 20 minutes. That’s a problem. 
-- Back in the mix, it took him a half to get going. He had a layup, but missed five straight threes. Finally, he’d get a wide open one in the wing after Bron found him and he’d swish. Then next time down, he’d push the ball out to the same spot and hit the pull up three in transition and force a timeout. He’d sink a midrange early in the fourth. Then, he’d sink a transition three on the break when Vando kicked out to him. Good to have him back. The bench did really well tonight. He needs to be more efficient, but we’ll give him a pass as he’s been out for a few. 
-- A couple of interior passes early on to find teammates. He’d also hit Russell for a three late in the game. He got the Harden assignment off the bench early on. Later in the half, the Lakers ran some Reaves/Russell combo’s to get more offense out there. He’d get a couple perimeter fouls on the Clippers for stops as the Clips tried to shed him. For his only bucket, he had putback on a Bron airball to start the fourth. 
-- Just 16 minutes tonight, but they were big ones. We put him on Westbrook quite a bit early on, allowing him to plug the paint and help elsewhere. He had a great block on Westbrook on iso staying with him by backing up until they got to the rim. He’d bury a wing three and he also had a layup after a few head fakes under the hoop. His second stint, Bron found him open on the wing, he faked, attacked the close out and dunked. Then followed that up with a block on Zu under the hoop. Shortly later, he’d hammer a putback throwdown with a scream to close the third. Good job on the defensive glass. 
-- Key Moment: Big win for him. The Lakers hit some huge shots down the stretch, a three by Prince and running fade by Bron to go up 5 with 42 seconds left. The Clippers had taken their final timeout with 2:47 left after they had burned one earlier on an unsuccessful challenge. So the Lakers were in the driver’s seat up 5. They gave up a three, but Prince made both his FTs. They gave up a bucket with 4.2 seconds left to go up by 2. Reaves made just one and they were up three. Still, no timeouts for the Clippers. No messing with a take foul by the Lakers or a potential foul on yet another three pointer. They dodged the final bullet and held on. Make both those FTs, AR.
