MAGIC -at- LAKERS - 1/12 - Thoughts and :-)) ratings

[DancingBarry]

Clutch Kobe and the Smush Parkers of the League... Banged up but surviving, the Lakers got a perfect 16-point fourth quarter from Kobe and a career-high from Smush.

Brian Hill made a point in the last Magic game about not letting the "Smush Parker's of the league" kill them. Smush had dropped 20 on the Magic on 8-12 shooting (most of it in one quarter). Tonight, he went for 26 points, 5 assists and 3 steals, spreading out the damage throughout the game. Did the comment by the coach come back to bite the Magic? "I heard it and that's what gave me the motivation to have a big one," Smush said afterward.

It's nice getting 54 points from your starting guards when Kobe doesn't have to pour in 44 of those. It makes us a lot tougher. While the Lakers were able to get the great guard play, the Magic went at the Lakers interior, limiting Bynum's minutes with fouls and making Ronny scrap for every inch.

Key possessions late in the game: the Lakers fouled Howard under the hoop preventing a sure dunk. Howard went to the line, looked shakey as he was thinking about the big freethrows and he promptly clanked both. Kobe made a clutch defensive play, grabbing the loose freethrow and finding Smush before touching down out of bounds. Later Smush would make a key steal on an interior pass off a missed Magic freethrow (he could have iced the game, but missed both FTs).

The ref crew in this one was sad. Just a number of missed calls or whistles that shouldn't have been...seemed like they were evenly distributed, though, because the Lakers benefited from some bad calls, too.


Kobe -- -- Kobe said he didn't have his sixth gear before this game, which is the way he described his game when he first came back from the knee injury. He had a very passive first quarter, he didn't attack or look for his shots. Phil said he was pacing himself. Come fourth quarter, Kobe took over. He scored 16 points on 5-5 shooting from the floor and 6-6 shooting from the line -- a superb clutch performance, especially considering he was battling the groin injury. He finished the game with a team-high 28 points on 9-15 shooting (10-11 freethrows), a team-high 8 boards and a team-high 7 assists. Great job. Early on, he missed a long running sky hook in the lane. He missed a long wing jumper. He attacked for a two-for-one opportunity, pulled up at the wing, pumpfaked then hit an And-1 jumper, he made the FT for his first points at the end of the first quarter. He drained a long wing jumper. He missed his next attempt, got back his own rebound, then bounced to Smush for a reverse layup. He had 5 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists at the half. He set up Cook for the open jumper off the two-man game. He hit Smush for a wing three. He took a long outlet, didn't attack, faced up and missed bank. He double-dribbled for an unforced turnover. He hit a long wing jumper. He missed his next attempt, wanted the foul and hesitated enough to say something, which gave Hill a step and a breakaway score. He drew FTs and made both. He got into the lane and sank a short pull-up jumper. He drew FTs getting shoved while going for a loose ball, he made one FT. After a rest, came the fourth quarter. He posted up, drew a crowd and somehow hit a fade in the lane. He drained a jumper from the sideline on his next attempt. He sank a turnaround on the baseline. He drew FTs under the hoop and made both. Kobe got a break from the officials when he was blocked on a stepthrough move and he got to the line, he made both FTs. He faced up and drilled a long jumper over Hill. On the next possession, he swung through, attacked, pulled up and swished another jumper. Clutch defensive board when Howard missed, Kobe came in from the perimeter, grabbed the ball after some deflections as it was going out of bounds and then somehow found Smush. He drew a perimeter foul with 20 seconds left on the other end, he swished both to give the Lakers a 4-point lead. He couldn't pull down another board that it looked like he swooped in to control, luckily Smush stole an interior feed. Great job tonight. "I just wanted to make sure we got back to ball movement and spacing the floor, so I kind of took the lead in making sure we executed properly," Kobe said in the Daily News. "Then in the fourth quarter, I was able to space things out and get some pretty good looks."

Walton -- -- Steady game from Luke. Seems like one of those average performances that used to be an excellent game for him. Luke had some nice sequences running the offense from the top of the key and dictating the action. He scored 12 points on 6-12 shooting, grabbed 5 boards and dished 4 assists without a turnover. He powered in a layup getting out on the break. He missed a three badly. He took a rebound off a Cook miss and dunked it back in. He busted out on the break, took a long bounce pass from Smush and dunked. He returned the favor to Smush with a pass off the high pinch post for a layup down the lane. He picked up his second foul midway through the first and had to sit. He switched on Arroyo defensively, kept him from gaining any ground on an attack and it resulted in a turnover. Howard jumped early on a FT miss and Luke swiped it away from him, pivoted and scored. He hit one of his fades on the baseline. He drew a push off foul on a lob to Howard in the last minute of the first half, Howard's third. He missed a turnaround in the lane and couldn't get off a jumper at the end of the half. He had 10 points on 5-9 shooting in the first half. He missed a throwdown attempt when it was contested. He posted up Bogans and had a shot goal tended.

Smush -- -- After stumbling out of the gates to start the season, Smush has played with some decent consistency on the offensive end. Tonight, he bled the Magic again. He was stroking it from beyond the arc. In 32 minutes, he scored 26 points on 9-16 shooting, 5-8 from three, and 3-6 from the line. He had 5 assists, 4 boards and a team-high 3 steals. Right from the start, he drained a three on his first attempt. He was indecisive in transition D and gave up an And-1. He missed threes from the wing and corner. He threaded the needle to Luke with a bounce pass on the break for a dunk. He cut inside off the high pinch post, Luke fed him in the lane and Smush finger rolled. He was fouled on a dunk attempt on the break and made one FT. He scored a reverse layup off an interior bounce pass from Kobe. He drained a three off a hand off from Luke. He took a long turnaround and missed (he tried to post up, but he's way more effective in the post when he's closer to the hoop...that turnaround from 12-16 feet out usually results in a brick). He attacked on the baseline and hit a floater. He led the Lakers with 13 points on 5-10 shooting in the first half. He picked up where he left off and drained a wing three on his first attempt of the second half. He came down court on the very next possession, (I'm saying to myself "hit that, Smush", Smush is saying to himself, "hit that, Smush,") and he swished a quick heatcheck three. He lost the handle on the dribble and fouled trying to get it back. He sank a three on a swing pass from Cook. He pulled up in transition and missed a heatcheck three. He drew a couple of FTs and made both. Good third quarter, tying his career high. After a long rest, he got back in the game and quickly attacked off the dribble, he missed a layup and wanted the foul (Phil did, too, mentioning that one after the game). Smush then broke his career high, attacking down the middle of the lane and scooping in a layup. With under three minutes, Smush used his reach to snag a pass on the perimeter to get a stop. He gave it back on the next possession, ballwatching and not boxing out Nelson who got into the lane for an offensive board (Smush looked ticked at himself...and the Magic scored after a timeout). Great D under the hoop to steal a pass in the last few seconds after we couldn't secure a board, he was then fouled...unfortunately, he missed both FTs to keep the lead at just three. On the last defensive stand, he reached, poked a ball loose, Nelson got it back and just beat the clock on a long three and clanked. Phil praised Smush for that big steal and said Smush need to bend his legs more on those freethrows. "He has yet to find his rhythm on the freethrow line this season," Phil said. Great game by Smush, glad those FT misses didn't become a factor.

Bynum -- -- Bynum led the Lakers with a +9 on the night. Unfortunately, he couldn't stay on the floor as much as the Lakers would have liked because of foul trouble. When he was in there, he did a good job anchoring the D and controlling the defensive glass. He needs to strengthen his post base and body up Howard better like Kwame does, but that strength will come in time. (Hopefully, Drew can stay out of foul trouble if he somehow has to go up against Shaq in the next one.) Bynum got relatively few touches on the offensive end, which is disappointing since you'd like to see more head to head action with Howard. He played just 18 minutes with the 5 fouls, but put up decent numbers in that time. He scored 8 points on 3-4 shooting, grabbed 5 boards and blocked 4 shots. Early on, he blocked Nelson on a drive. He challenged Hill's drive (might have gotten a piece) and then controlled the board. He sealed Howard, took the entry and banked after taking contact, he missed the FT. Howard hit a couple of jumphook over Bynum, despite decent D. He had a pass to Kobe deflected. He sat after 8 minutes, getting three touches, passing on two, scoring on the other. Back in to start the second quarter, they purposely went to backdoor lob on Howard because he had been playing on Bynum's hip, Andrew spun and scored an alley-oop layup. It looked like Drew might have blocked a Howard shot using his length well, either that or he forced him into a brick which Bynum controlled. Bynum reached on Howard, didn't strip the ball and gave up an And-1 dunk (Phil mentioned the reaching in the post game as something Bynum should have avoided). On the other end, he worked the two-man game and drew FTs, making both. He blocked Bogans, challenging him on a pull-up jumper and controlling. He picked up his third foul against Battie and had to sit early in the second. He had 6 points, 3 rebounds and 3 blocks at the half. Good D on Howard, either blocking it again or forcing an airball. He kicked out to Cook on a rare touch and Cook missed. He drew his fourth foul when Howard attacked in the post and Bynum had to sit in the third. To start the fourth, he tried posting up Darko, but shot right into him (instead of using the off hand) and he was blocked. On the other end, he got caught out of position as Darko sealed and scored a layup. Farmar then set Drew up (good hands catching the quick interior feed) and Bynum dunked. He got the crowd pumped on the defensive end rejecting Dooling badly, sending him to the floor as he tried to throwdown on Drew. Very cheap call on Bynum for setting a pick on the perimeter, looked like Bynum was standing still. Step back for a second members of the instant gratification club and listen to the opposition: "I think he's improved dramatically," Brian Hill said. "He's a big body, he's long, he gets good post position down inside. He doesn't hurry anything down in there, which is typical of most rookies when they come into the league. It's obvious the coaching staff has done a good job with him. He's a presence in there." Howard also had some nice words: "I really like his game. Seeing him in the McDonald's game to now, he's a totally different player." Hopefully, by the time they see him next season, Bynum will continue his steady development. Howard and Bynum plan to workout together this summer.

Cook -- -- Cook seemed to have his shot back a bit tonight, but he had some foul issues that plagued his game. He scored 9 points on 4-8 shooting, grabbed 5 boards and had 3 assists (some good dishes in this one within the flow of the offense). He worked off a weakside split and drained a jumper. He hit his next jumper from the same spot near the left sideline. He missed his third attempt, but Luke cleaned it up. He grabbed a missed FT from Bynum and reset the offense. He picked up his second foul midway through the first and had to sit. He hit a stepback jumper from the elbow over Darko. He knocked down a jumper from the top of the key to start the second half. He picked up two quick fouls trying to help on Hill. Battie was taking it to Cook on a couple of post possessions, Cook missed a couple of jumper on the other end. He sat and Phil didn't play him in the third quarter.

Turiaf -- -- Man, Turiaf had his work cut out for him tonight. When Bynum gets into foul trouble right now, it's a thin line between us and big trouble. Especially, when Howard has been dropping 30-25 games on people. Turiaf is the kind of guy who want in the trench holding that line. He battled. He was overmatched at times and paid the price, but other times he scrapped and held his ground. When the dust settled, he had 4 points on 1-4 shooting (2-4 FTs), 3 boards, 1 assist, 5 fouls and 5 big blocks. It wasn't pretty at times, but it was vital as the Magic looked to attack our interior with determination. The action: Turiaf missed a jumper, short. He blocked Nelson's penetration. He missed an elbow jumper, short. He hit a jumphook in the middle of the lane. He drew a foul, missed both. He blocked Darko under the hoop. He forced Howard into an airball jumphook. He played tight and got Howard to miss a jumphook. He missed an elbow jumper. He got posterized by Howard on And-1 dunk, when Howard turned and threwdown like Shaq over him. He got a tech complaining on the next Laker foul. He gave up an offensive board off a missed FT to Darko and the Magic scored. He swatted Darko at the rim. He drew a foul when Luke set him up under the hoop, Ronny made both FTs. Howard went right through Ronny and scored as Ronny fell to the ground, Staples was upset there was no charge call.On the other end, Ronny yanked an offensive board from behind Howard to keep it alive and Kobe drew FTs, making both late in the game.

Radmanovic -- -- Vlad's perimeter shooting problems continue. Not only that, we've got to use him against much bigger players whether we like it or not. So, not pretty minutes for Vlad. He managed 4 points on 1-6 shooting, 4 boards and 1 assist in 19 minutes. He took Darko off the dribble and drew a perimeter foul, he made both FTs. A couple of good sequences to start the second quarter: He threw a backdoor lob pass to Bynum for a score. He posted up next time down and hit a jumphook with his left (seems like he's always taking that with his left). He missed a couple jumpers. He got belted in the face with the off arm of Arroyo trying to keep Vlad away, Vlad then got over aggressive on the perimeter and Arroyo drew a whistle for FTs. Vlad missed a three at the end of the third. Darko posted him up and scored easily with his left out of a late timeout.

Evans -- -- Tonight, instead of Kobe going to the bench early, it was Luke sending Evans into the game in the first quarter. Blue collar game from Evans tonight, getting it done. He scored 9 points on 2-5 shooting, grabbed 3 boards (2 offensive), and he didn't commit a foul in 21 minutes. He drew contact on the perimeter and made one FT. He missed a corner jumper. He nearly had an And-1 dunk, but the ball popped out, he made both FTs. He missed an elbow jumper. Good hustle to work the offensive glass around Bogans and draw a foul, he made both FTs (he really makes smaller players pay sometimes on that offensive glass). Farmar found him under the hoop for a dunk. He posted up Bogans and hit a short jumper over him.

Farmar -- -- Not a lot of PT to work with, but Farmar tied Evans with points of the bench, scoring 9 on 3-5 shooting. He also had a couple of assists in his 14 minutes. He missed a pull-up wing jumper. He deflected a pass on our last defensive stand of the first quarter to force a turnover. He pulled up in rhythm and swished a wing three in semi-transition. He swished a three from the corner off a drive and dish by Sasha. He hit Mo under the hoop with a pass from the wing for a dunk. With the shotclock low, he attacked the paint, drew the D and hit Bynum for a dunk. He attacked in semi-transition, got into the lane and floated an And-1 over Arroyo, he made the FT. Arroyo drew a flop on Farmar on an attack.

Vujacic -- -- Not great minutes from Sasha on either end tonight. He didn't score on two attempts but did pull down 3 boards and dish a couple of assists. He fouled on a perimeter jumper and gave up two FTs. He got beat on a couple more possessions for scores. He missed a three. He attacked the baseline and kicked out to Farmar for a three. He got swatted on a drive.

Phil -- -- The Lakers gave up 61 percent shooting to the Magic in the first half, while knocking down 47 percent of their shots. They kept the turnovers and second chances low and that made a difference. The Magic didn't have an offensive board in the first half, while the Lakers had 7... The Magic outscored the Lakers 18-6 on points in the paint in the third, posting up Howard and Battie with purpose... The Lakers got into the bonus with 6:55 left in the fourth, which led to some key FTs... The game seemed to come down to Kobe vs. the Orlando bigmen. Kobe was too clutch... The Lakers certainly missed Kwame's big body holding down Howard in this game. I don't envy the deck shuffling and surviving Phil has to do to try to keep this team afloat...

[mbloves L.A.]

Nice game.
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Where's Cokie the Clown when you need him?

[A Mad Chinaman]

DB - Great work. btw: What rating would you place on this game (1: Worse - 10: Best)?

This game provided tangible evidence if the Lakers' PG is causing the opposing team to constantly be aware of on offense and defense. With Smush attacking, it allowed Luke to excel at what he does best and Kobe to be defended with minimal double/triple teams.

Cook - Cook - Cook - he was cooked, nuff said

Evans has shown the ability to cover Kobe (when he was injuried) and Luke (when he is in foul trouble) that highlights his versatility and avlue - along with his great athletic ability.

Overall, a good bounce-back game

Hey, maybe the Lakers got inspired by Todd Fujikawa - 2nd youngest player to make the cut at a PGA tournament. Sorry, had to give the brotha his props?!?!

[NestT]

With Kwame playing Howard gets 12 & 8.

Without Kwame playing Howard gets 25 & 10.

Not a joke, just things that make you go " HMMMMMMMM."
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Let the PAB hold out 2 years and walk without his Bird rights if he chooses.

OJ Mayo
Derrick Rose
Nicolas Batum
Michael Beasley
Chase Budinger
Darrell Arthur

[TooCool]

Thanks DB. Nice game... I wish we could have won by more though. They're the Orlando Magic for crying out loud. But a win is a win.
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[angel]

Thanks DB!

It was a lot easier with Kwame last time. Of course, Kwame and LO would make it a cruise.
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"Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that." ~~Martin Luther King Jr.~~

[Sage_10]

Thanks DB!
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"You Must Be Willing To Give Up That Which Can Be Lost In Order To Gain That Which Cannot Be Lost." - FORTUNE COOKIE

[LakersSpirit]

It was pretty much the same story, throughout most of the game... Andrew continues to get schooled, by veteran bigmen, with equal, or better athletic skills, and strength. I have confidence, that Andrew will continue to improve... As I have noticed, Andrew continues to have trouble timing his moves, or varying his moves. It's so obvious, how he's going to take it to the basket, that the defense knows exactly what they have to do, to block the ball, and even take it away. In fact, most Lakers were having trouble taking it to the hole.. It's like when you telegraph a punch, in boxing.

One thing that bothers me, about the triangle... Sometimes we look too mechanical, if we don't have some of our best players out there. When the offense stagnates, it looks terrible. We waste too much time, setting up. The ball should keep moving around, finding the open man.

In the 4th period, I started to imitate one of Kobe's GAME FACES, and I was yelling at the t.v. "...come on Kobe[and I forget what else]"
Well, you see the results... :roll:
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"Teamwork is a nebulous thing. It is as ephemeral as love, disappearing at the latest insult.".... Phil Jackson

[prisma8slg]

Thanks DB

to the Smush Parkers of the league
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"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."

[TheBigRuski]

Smush is one funny dude. He cracks himself up and then has trouble making free throws because it looks like he is laughing too hard.

A little maturing oughta cure that!
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[b:7c818fb74e]Lebron who?[/b:7c818fb74e]

[Klone_dd]

Clutch game by Kobe. His ability to summon up nerves of steel is simply amazing. Jumper after jumper right in Hill's mug.

Smushie is starting to come around offensively. He's got some confidence now. 3 steals were great, too.

Playing shorthanded and with the bigs in foul trouble = high FG% for the opposition. The Lakers countered with taking care of the ball better, taking advantage of FTs and Kobe Kobe Kobe.

[DancingBarry]

[Sister Golden Hair]

Nice recap, DB. Props to Smuch, Ronny and Kobe. I was impressed by Ronny's scrapiness and :never say die" attitude. As for Smush: if he could become the kind of player that is inner-motivated, as opposed to being externally motivated (e.g., by an opposing coches disparaging remarks), he could be a hell of a player. It's that psychological dimnsion that seperates the great players (MJ, Magic, Bird), from the also rans.

Speaking of great players, Kobe was phenomenal last night. The fourth quarter in particualr encapsulates what Kobe brings to this teram to the opposition;s detriment: intimidation. If the game is close, Kobe will find some way to beat you because he will not lose and, in the clkutch, will not miss. The corollary to that is if the game is close, you (the opposinbg team) had better make all your shots, or else yiou will get the L. That creates a lot of pressure on opposing teams. Guys tighten up on free throws. Guys miss makeable jumpers. I think they are intimidated. And last night was one of those nights when Kobe showed precisley what separates him from everyone else.

It wasn't the pretiest game, but it was a victory, which is what counts.

One last thing: in listening to the radio announcers I was struck by how much even they hype up the Miami game, e.g., "now the lakers have to get ready for the big one on Monday." I would have thought that the hype would have died down by now on a game that means very little in the big picture. The manufactured hyoe grates on my nerves. Miami is not a division or conference rival. Honestly, who cares? I get more excited (much more) for a game against Dallas or the Spurs or the Suns. I could care less about the Heat. It's just anoying. Okay, getting of soapbox now.

SGH

[wolfpaclaker]

^
Agreed SGH. I am sooo sick of the Heat/Lakers crap. It's gotten beyond old. I also think Jackson may have sent a message to the league with the way he handled the Christmas game. It seemed to me, Phil really wanted to lose that one once they went down a bit. Not that I think he came into the game looking to lose, but once he saw his team get in trouble he thought "Well ok, lets get blown out so maybe we don't have to come here next season because of the lackluster game"

DB - Don't you think Phil made a gigantic mistake when when in the closing minutes he allowed the Magic to have Milicic on Radmanovic in the post? Should have been Bynum and Turiaf at that point - Bynum did have that one foul to give. Vlad got scored on and was manhandled on the boards. Really think that one was a really risky move by Phil in a very close game.

[DancingBarry]

Wolf - Yeah, at the time I was wondering why we didn't do that. Bogans left and Darko came in. Phil countered with Vlad for Evans. I think if he did it too early, our offense probably has some issues because the floor would tighten up around Kobe with both Turiaf and Bynum on the floor. But Darko hit the jumphook over Vlad and then somehow missed that point-blank tip in. Maybe he just didn't respect Darko...

[Klone_dd]

[wolfpaclaker]

^
I don't mind Christmas games, Infact I love them. I just am sick of the SAME Christmas game every year.

Everyone's tired of it. Noone wants to go to Miami or them come here and the crap be re-hashed again.

The marquee matchup for the Lakers on the Christmas should have been ... the Suns. Great 7 game playoff series - before game 7 people were saying that it could be one the greatest 1st round battles of all time.

I would have loved to see the Lakers visit the Suns or have the Suns come here on Christmas.

[magic_bryant]

It should have been Kobe vs Bron or Lakers vs Suns on Christmas.
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Stephon Marbury on Kobe: "He's the only person on 'dis earth that can do 'dat. He guards people, like shuts 'em down. Then, to do 'dat on 'da offensive end. It's like 'Damn, I can't score on him AND he about to bust my ass."

[Klone_dd]

I don't really care who, but I'd prefer the game to be at Staples.

Christmas in Cleveland? Yuck.