LAKERS -at- PISTONS - 11/21 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

 
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 7:40 pm    Post subject: LAKERS -at- PISTONS - 11/21 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

Fight... If you are looking to enjoy the Lakers product these days, entertainment can be hard to come by. Known for their defense the past couple years, the Laker roster is developing a reputation as an easy bucket. Often, there is little to no fight in the team on D.

But blood was spilled on the court tonight...and the fight in this team came after that in the fourth quarter.

Things got more than chippy in the second half, when LeBron got ejected after a box out on the free throw line as he tried to shed Isaiah Stewart, catching him in the eye and mouth with his arm. Stewart tried to go after LeBron multiple times, even trying to pull a Doug Christie run through the hallways to find another pathway to get to LeBron.

LeBron got ejected. The Pistons were up 15 after the dust settled from that and on their way to surpassing their average points per game of 98 by the end of the third quarter.

If this was heading toward a rock bottom point of the season, the Lakers bounced back behind their remaining stars. Westbrook came out the fourth quarter with some intention. He got downhill, attacking the rim hard. We integrated Melo into the offense by setting screens and finding him for key shots. Russ would tie up the game, scoring from a cut off AD’s post, then on the other end, jumping a passing lane for a steal and finding AD for a dunk with a couple minutes left to take the lead.

In the final minute, the defense of AD closed the door. On one play, he blocked his man twice. On the final possession he came up with the key steal to end the Pistons chances. The Lakers came back from 17 points to take the 121-116 road win

“All Laker nation, we needed this one tonight, and we got it,” Westbrook said. He needed it, too, and said as much.

Had the Lakers folded, had they shown no fight, this felt like one of those games the pitchforks would be out. The team found their sense of urgency on defense in that fourth quarter, holding the Pistons to 17 points on 3-18 shooting. Can they make that part of their DNA going forward or will it be more of the same?

“It’s one of those things that can change the momentum of your season,” Vogel said of the response by the team.


LeBron -- -- His second career ejection. After he tried to shed himself from the tangle with Stewart who elbowed him in the ribs, he immediately looked to see if Stewart was okay. So it seemed he certainly didn’t intend to do the damage he did. During the subsequent scrum, Stewart’s face bled from his eye and mouth. The P.A. announcers immediately got into crowd control to prevent another Malice in Palace from possibly taking place. Not a pretty stretch. After the review by the refs, they ejected LeBron and the game carried on. Not a lot of action for LeBron as a result. I’m interested in his opportunities at the rim these days. We need those to pick up. We saw him score an And-1 layup off a step-up screen. Those step-up screens are something we had rolling prior to his injury. It’s hard to say where he’s at physically. He settled for a reverse layup attempt that he wasn’t close on during another first-half drive. That looked like one you’d expect him to hammer. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 4-7 shooting (1-3 from three, 1-1 from the line) to go with 1 board, 5 assists, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in 21 minutes. He was a -15.

Davis -- -- “Nobody on our team, one through 15 was having it,” AD said of the scuffle afterward, mentioning he’d never seen anyone lose their mind like Stewart did. The team took some lumps after that incident, but turned it around in the fourth. AD would score 21 points in the second half on 9 attempts. Early on, he was running the floor and that led to some breakaway dunks as he got ahead of the defense. His second shift was a little less successful as he was giving up offensive boards and scored on easily in a couple of occasions. He also got denied a dunk twice in the same possession. But he bounced back strong. That fourth quarter defense was Defensive Player of the Year type of stuff. The final minute especially with the blocks and steals to close the door on the Pistons. Some good chemistry with him and Russ in that fourth, too. AD finding Russ cutting of him. Russ finding AD on the drive and dish. They still had plenty of issues earlier in the game, but when the intensity leveled up it was those two taking it to the next level. The Stats: He scored 30 points on 11-19 shooting (0-1 from three, 8-10 from the line) to go with 10 boards, 6 assists, 4 steals, 5 blocks, 2 turnovers and 4 fouls in 40 minutes. He was a +5.

Westbrook -- -- “That dunk sparked us,” AD said of a throwdown that Russ had in the fourth. Westbrook had a quiet 10 points in the first half, hitting a couple of midrange jumpers early and scoring a layup on iso drive later and picking up some FTs. In the second half, he picked up the intensity to start that fourth quarter. He got downhill for a layup off a screen the screener sequence with Melo. Then he found Melo trailing for a three to cut the lead to 5. Next possession, he swished a pull-up at the FT line to cut it to 3. He would get that Melo screen again, but not execute it well (should have hit Melo on the pop). But after that play he would attack and throw down on his man. That got the team and Russ fired up. Then, he’d hit a three next time down to cut it to 1. A stretch where he scored 9 points for the Lakers and also had Melo in the mix that brought the Lakers back into this game when they were about sunk. Later he’d score a layup cutting off AD to tie it up. Then he’d steal the ball and find AD for a dunk to take the lead. With 47 seconds left, he’d attack, draw the D and hit AD for a layup with 47 seconds left to go up 5. Great job turning this game around for the team with 15 points, 6 boards and 5 assists in that fourth. The Stats: He scored 26 points on 10-21 shooting (1-6 from three, 5-8 from the line) to go with 9 boards, 10 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls in 35 minutes. He was a +8.

Bradley -- -- He had 8 minutes in the first, didn’t really stand out, but led the team with DJ with a +3. Vogel mirrored their minutes in that half. In the second half, he sat AB early for Ellington. Then brought him back later in the quarter as our rotations were now in flux with the LeBron ejection. We needed stops in that fourth, so Vogel went to his best guard defenders and Bradley got the run. He wouldn’t score, but made a key swing pass to Melo for a big three. He was solid defensively on rotations and switches. That AD block on the drive, Bradley forced his man to gather a little earlier than he’d like with a reach just prior to that. The team finally dug a line in the sand and commit to that end of the floor. He end up with the team high +18 without scoring a point. Again, you need guys who can do “big little things” for your team without needing the ball. The Stats: He didn’t score on 0-3 shooting from three to go with 3 boards, 1 assist and 3 fouls in 26 minutes. He was a +18.

Jordan -- -- Back in the starting lineup, clearly it doesn’t mean we’re better off playing big. Look at that fourth quarter when AD was the man in the middle making that team D work. DJ is more the minutes eater to save some energy and physicality. We will probably go back to small for some future games again. DJ played solid, although his best defense might have been defending Bron in that scrum. “I was just trying to make sure nothing else happened,” he said. The team kept their composure. Good job on the offensive glass. He had a couple of putbacks. If we go big, that’s the effort we need. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 3-4 shooting to go with 9 boards (4 offensive), 1 assist, 1 block, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 13 minutes. He was a +0.

Anthony -- -- AD said that Melo told the team to start the fourth that this is where we find out who we are as a team. It certainly felt like that was going to be the case. Had there been no response by the team, things would have been ugly after this one. Credit Melo for that leadership there, but also a great game and a hell of a fourth quarter on both ends. “Probably our best defensive quarter this season,” AD said. Mello was in the mix of all that. Let’s get to the details of this one. The three ball on the road was dropping for Melo tonight. He hit a three off an AD double team when his man left him early, making that a simple pass for AD. You want to bring weakside baseline doubles on AD, not the strongside doubles off shooters. He sank a step-back And-1 corner three on his man for a 4-point play. Good first half offensively. In the fourth, he’d come up big with the three again, including hitting a key one to cut the lead to 5. Melo would go 5-8 from three on the night. Defensively, again some little things in the first half where we got nickel and dimed by giving up extra possessions. Nothing he did on that end was disruptive early. In the second half, that changed. He had a nice play in the passing lane to deflect a ball of his man for a stop. We had so little of that kind of thing from the team in the first half as the Pistons managed just 2 turnovers. He’d later have good strip/challenge on his man on iso to force a miss. He’d strip Cunningham on the break to get a stop in transition. He was in the mix and battling all fourth quarter. The Stats: He scored 18 points on 5-8 shooting from three (3-3 from the line) to go with 2 boards, 2 blocks, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 30 minutes. He was a +13.

Horton-Tucker -- -- They wanted him on the ball more, so they slid him to the second unit. The first sub off the bench, he replaced Russ midway through the first quarter. (This is where I’m hoping we have no Rondo in the mix. If Russ is off the floor, keep THT and LeBron on. Of course, that wasn’t going to be the case after LBJ was tossed.) Early on, he’d score a layup cutting baseline on an ATO. He had a nice live read of the Pistons overplaying the point of attack, he cut middle took the pass and kicked out to Ellington for a corner three. Late in the game, he had a tough reverse along the baseline. He’d miss a three on an inverse pick and pop with AD. With 1:19 left, he’d attack off the three line and score a layup around a defender. On our final play, we put the ball in THT’s hand to iso, he tried to get to the rim and was blocked going left trying to finish with his right. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 4-13 shooting (0-2 from three) to go with 6 boards, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers and 4 fouls in 33 minutes. He was a +13.

Howard -- -- Stronger first half and that earned him some extra run. I was pondering Dwight hitting a three in a non-garbage-time lineup and shortly later, bang, he found himself in the corner against the clock and knocked down the kickout three. Looked money. Again, to close the half with the shotclock low we swung it to him and he rattled down a wing three to beat the shotclock. Dwight going 2-2 from three in this one. What is that? He had 13 points on 5-6 shooting in the first half, all in that second quarter. He didn’t score in the second half. The Stats: He scored 13 points on 5-6 shooting (2-2 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 5 boards and 1 foul in 13 minutes. He was a -8.

Monk -- -- Right after entering the game, he chucked up a contested three and missed. He got burned on a drive for a score. Then threw an inbounds away in the back court to give up another score. Vogel called a timeout as we fell back by 4. That just seemed to be the 2021 Lakers in a nutshell. Best play of the night was in the second half attacking off the three line and hitting AD for a dunk. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 2-3 shooting (0-1 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 2 assists, 2 turnovers and no fouls in 12 minutes. He was a +0.

Ellington -- -- He didn’t space the floor very effectively, making just one three in five attempts. If he’s not knocking those down, what else is he doing for you? The Stats: He scored 4 points on 1-5 shooting from three (1-1 from the line) to go with 1 board and no fouls in 12 minutes. He was a -6.

Rondo -- -- He wasn’t in the mix in the first half. The LeBron ejection changed that up and Vogel brought him in while Russ sat in that third quarter. Thankfully, a short stint. He blew some point-blank finishes. Maybe you could make a case that he helped the team keep their composure right after that skirmish. The Stats: He didn’t score on 0-3 shooting to go with 2 boards, 1 assist and no fouls in 5 minutes. He was a -3.

Vogel -- -- Key Moment: This game could have gone very badly for him with a lot of folks. Glad the team rallied. Vogel called a timeout as we struggled to advance the ball to half court in our final offensive possession. Out of that, we ran clock for a THT iso. (I guess, at least, he didn’t settle for a three on iso like our usual play call in those situations.) But he did attack, get blocked and the Pistons recovered with 6 seconds left. So we came up short again offensively in that key moment. On the other end, after a timeout the defense got a stop on an AD steal. He was eventually fouled after running clock. AD made his FT and that iced it.

Key Substitution: Let’s go with the AD, Melo, THT, Bradley, Russ lineup in that fourth quarter. Their D played with that sense of urgency we can’t seem to find for any length of time. The weak link in that lineup might be Melo, but he held his own.

Key Stats: The Lakers winning the fourth 37-17. The Pistons were held to 3-18 shooting.

Coach’s challenge: With 33 seconds left, the refs called a foul on AD, Lakers up 5. It looked like he intimidated the offensive player into a 4-step travel, but the refs whistled AD for a foul, holding the jersey. Good review by Vogel regardless of outcome. Successful challenge to save a couple of FTs and AD’s foul, but Pistons ball (despite that travel). The Lakers are 2-7 in challenges this season.
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 8:19 pm    Post subject:

A win is a win but boy that was ugly for the most part.

Thanks DB.
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 8:30 pm    Post subject: Re: LAKERS -at- PISTONS - 11/21 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

DancingBarry wrote:
Fight... If you are looking to enjoy the Lakers product these days, entertainment can be hard to come by. Known for their defense the past couple years, the Laker roster is developing a reputation as an easy bucket. Often, there is little to no fight in the team on D.

But blood was spilled on the court tonight...and the fight in this team came after that in the fourth quarter.

Things got more than chippy in the second half, when LeBron got ejected after a box out on the free throw line as he tried to shed Isaiah Stewart, catching him in the eye and mouth with his arm. Stewart tried to go after LeBron multiple times, even trying to pull a Doug Christie run through the hallways to find another pathway to get to LeBron.

LeBron got ejected. The Pistons were up 15 after the dust settled from that and on their way to surpassing their average points per game of 98 by the end of the third quarter.

If this was heading toward a rock bottom point of the season, the Lakers bounced back behind their remaining stars. Westbrook came out the fourth quarter with some intention. He got downhill, attacking the rim hard. We integrated Melo into the offense by setting screens and finding him for key shots. Russ would tie up the game, scoring from a cut off AD’s post, then on the other end, jumping a passing lane for a steal and finding AD for a dunk with a couple minutes left to take the lead.

In the final minute, the defense of AD closed the door. On one play, he blocked his man twice. On the final possession he came up with the key steal to end the Pistons chances. The Lakers came back from 17 points to take the 121-116 road win

“All Laker nation, we needed this one tonight, and we got it,” Westbrook said. He needed it, too, and said as much.

Had the Lakers folded, had they shown no fight, this felt like one of those games the pitchforks would be out. The team found their sense of urgency on defense in that fourth quarter, holding the Pistons to 17 points on 3-18 shooting. Can they make that part of their DNA going forward or will it be more of the same?

“It’s one of those things that can change the momentum of your season,” Vogel said of the response by the team.


LeBron -- -- His second career ejection. After he tried to shed himself from the tangle with Stewart who elbowed him in the ribs, he immediately looked to see if Stewart was okay. So it seemed he certainly didn’t intend to do the damage he did. During the subsequent scrum, Stewart’s face bled from his eye and mouth. The P.A. announcers immediately got into crowd control to prevent another Malice in Palace from possibly taking place. Not a pretty stretch. After the review by the refs, they ejected LeBron and the game carried on. Not a lot of action for LeBron as a result. I’m interested in his opportunities at the rim these days. We need those to pick up. We saw him score an And-1 layup off a step-up screen. Those step-up screens are something we had rolling prior to his injury. It’s hard to say where he’s at physically. He settled for a reverse layup attempt that he wasn’t close on during another first-half drive. That looked like one you’d expect him to hammer. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 4-7 shooting (1-3 from three, 1-1 from the line) to go with 1 board, 5 assists, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in 21 minutes. He was a -15.

Davis -- -- “Nobody on our team, one through 15 was having it,” AD said of the scuffle afterward, mentioning he’d never seen anyone lose their mind like Stewart did. The team took some lumps after that incident, but turned it around in the fourth. AD would score 21 points in the second half on 9 attempts. Early on, he was running the floor and that led to some breakaway dunks as he got ahead of the defense. His second shift was a little less successful as he was giving up offensive boards and scored on easily in a couple of occasions. He also got denied a dunk twice in the same possession. But he bounced back strong. That fourth quarter defense was Defensive Player of the Year type of stuff. The final minute especially with the blocks and steals to close the door on the Pistons. Some good chemistry with him and Russ in that fourth, too. AD finding Russ cutting of him. Russ finding AD on the drive and dish. They still had plenty of issues earlier in the game, but when the intensity leveled up it was those two taking it to the next level. The Stats: He scored 30 points on 11-19 shooting (0-1 from three, 8-10 from the line) to go with 10 boards, 6 assists, 4 steals, 5 blocks, 2 turnovers and 4 fouls in 40 minutes. He was a +5.

Westbrook -- -- “That dunk sparked us,” AD said of a throwdown that Russ had in the fourth. Westbrook had a quiet 10 points in the first half, hitting a couple of midrange jumpers early and scoring a layup on iso drive later and picking up some FTs. In the second half, he picked up the intensity to start that fourth quarter. He got downhill for a layup off a screen the screener sequence with Melo. Then he found Melo trailing for a three to cut the lead to 5. Next possession, he swished a pull-up at the FT line to cut it to 3. He would get that Melo screen again, but not execute it well (should have hit Melo on the pop). But after that play he would attack and throw down on his man. That got the team and Russ fired up. Then, he’d hit a three next time down to cut it to 1. A stretch where he scored 9 points for the Lakers and also had Melo in the mix that brought the Lakers back into this game when they were about sunk. Later he’d score a layup cutting off AD to tie it up. Then he’d steal the ball and find AD for a dunk to take the lead. With 47 seconds left, he’d attack, draw the D and hit AD for a layup with 47 seconds left to go up 5. Great job turning this game around for the team with 15 points, 6 boards and 5 assists in that fourth. The Stats: He scored 26 points on 10-21 shooting (1-6 from three, 5-8 from the line) to go with 9 boards, 10 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls in 35 minutes. He was a +8.

Bradley -- -- He had 8 minutes in the first, didn’t really stand out, but led the team with DJ with a +3. Vogel mirrored their minutes in that half. In the second half, he sat AB early for Ellington. Then brought him back later in the quarter as our rotations were now in flux with the LeBron ejection. We needed stops in that fourth, so Vogel went to his best guard defenders and Bradley got the run. He wouldn’t score, but made a key swing pass to Melo for a big three. He was solid defensively on rotations and switches. That AD block on the drive, Bradley forced his man to gather a little earlier than he’d like with a reach just prior to that. The team finally dug a line in the sand and commit to that end of the floor. He end up with the team high +18 without scoring a point. Again, you need guys who can do “big little things” for your team without needing the ball. The Stats: He didn’t score on 0-3 shooting from three to go with 3 boards, 1 assist and 3 fouls in 26 minutes. He was a +18.

Jordan -- -- Back in the starting lineup, clearly it doesn’t mean we’re better off playing big. Look at that fourth quarter when AD was the man in the middle making that team D work. DJ is more the minutes eater to save some energy and physicality. We will probably go back to small for some future games again. DJ played solid, although his best defense might have been defending Bron in that scrum. “I was just trying to make sure nothing else happened,” he said. The team kept their composure. Good job on the offensive glass. He had a couple of putbacks. If we go big, that’s the effort we need. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 3-4 shooting to go with 9 boards (4 offensive), 1 assist, 1 block, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 13 minutes. He was a +0.

Anthony -- -- AD said that Melo told the team to start the fourth that this is where we find out who we are as a team. It certainly felt like that was going to be the case. Had there been no response by the team, things would have been ugly after this one. Credit Melo for that leadership there, but also a great game and a hell of a fourth quarter on both ends. “Probably our best defensive quarter this season,” AD said. Mello was in the mix of all that. Let’s get to the details of this one. The three ball on the road was dropping for Melo tonight. He hit a three off an AD double team when his man left him early, making that a simple pass for AD. You want to bring weakside baseline doubles on AD, not the strongside doubles off shooters. He sank a step-back And-1 corner three on his man for a 4-point play. Good first half offensively. In the fourth, he’d come up big with the three again, including hitting a key one to cut the lead to 5. Melo would go 5-8 from three on the night. Defensively, again some little things in the first half where we got nickel and dimed by giving up extra possessions. Nothing he did on that end was disruptive early. In the second half, that changed. He had a nice play in the passing lane to deflect a ball of his man for a stop. We had so little of that kind of thing from the team in the first half as the Pistons managed just 2 turnovers. He’d later have good strip/challenge on his man on iso to force a miss. He’d strip Cunningham on the break to get a stop in transition. He was in the mix and battling all fourth quarter. The Stats: He scored 18 points on 5-8 shooting from three (3-3 from the line) to go with 2 boards, 2 blocks, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 30 minutes. He was a +13.

Horton-Tucker -- -- They wanted him on the ball more, so they slid him to the second unit. The first sub off the bench, he replaced Russ midway through the first quarter. (This is where I’m hoping we have no Rondo in the mix. If Russ is off the floor, keep THT and LeBron on. Of course, that wasn’t going to be the case after LBJ was tossed.) Early on, he’d score a layup cutting baseline on an ATO. He had a nice live read of the Pistons overplaying the point of attack, he cut middle took the pass and kicked out to Ellington for a corner three. Late in the game, he had a tough reverse along the baseline. He’d miss a three on an inverse pick and pop with AD. With 1:19 left, he’d attack off the three line and score a layup around a defender. On our final play, we put the ball in THT’s hand to iso, he tried to get to the rim and was blocked going left trying to finish with his right. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 4-13 shooting (0-2 from three) to go with 6 boards, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers and 4 fouls in 33 minutes. He was a +13.

Howard -- -- Stronger first half and that earned him some extra run. I was pondering Dwight hitting a three in a non-garbage-time lineup and shortly later, bang, he found himself in the corner against the clock and knocked down the kickout three. Looked money. Again, to close the half with the shotclock low we swung it to him and he rattled down a wing three to beat the shotclock. Dwight going 2-2 from three in this one. What is that? He had 13 points on 5-6 shooting in the first half, all in that second quarter. He didn’t score in the second half. The Stats: He scored 13 points on 5-6 shooting (2-2 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 5 boards and 1 foul in 13 minutes. He was a -8.

Monk -- -- Right after entering the game, he chucked up a contested three and missed. He got burned on a drive for a score. Then threw an inbounds away in the back court to give up another score. Vogel called a timeout as we fell back by 4. That just seemed to be the 2021 Lakers in a nutshell. Best play of the night was in the second half attacking off the three line and hitting AD for a dunk. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 2-3 shooting (0-1 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 2 assists, 2 turnovers and no fouls in 12 minutes. He was a +0.

Ellington -- -- He didn’t space the floor very effectively, making just one three in five attempts. If he’s not knocking those down, what else is he doing for you? The Stats: He scored 4 points on 1-5 shooting from three (1-1 from the line) to go with 1 board and no fouls in 12 minutes. He was a -6.

Rondo -- -- He wasn’t in the mix in the first half. The LeBron ejection changed that up and Vogel brought him in while Russ sat in that third quarter. Thankfully, a short stint. He blew some point-blank finishes. Maybe you could make a case that he helped the team keep their composure right after that skirmish. The Stats: He didn’t score on 0-3 shooting to go with 2 boards, 1 assist and no fouls in 5 minutes. He was a -3.

Vogel -- -- Key Moment: This game could have gone very badly for him with a lot of folks. Glad the team rallied. Vogel called a timeout as we struggled to advance the ball to half court in our final offensive possession. Out of that, we ran clock for a THT iso. (I guess, at least, he didn’t settle for a three on iso like our usual play call in those situations.) But he did attack, get blocked and the Pistons recovered with 6 seconds left. So we came up short again offensively in that key moment. On the other end, after a timeout the defense got a stop on an AD steal. He was eventually fouled after running clock. AD made his FT and that iced it.

Key Substitution: Let’s go with the AD, Melo, THT, Bradley, Russ lineup in that fourth quarter. Their D played with that sense of urgency we can’t seem to find for any length of time. The weak link in that lineup might be Melo, but he held his own.

Key Stats: The Lakers winning the fourth 37-17. The Pistons were held to 3-18 shooting.

Coach’s challenge: With 33 seconds left, the refs called a foul on AD, Lakers up 5. It looked like he intimidated the offensive player into a 4-step travel, but the refs whistled AD for a foul, holding the jersey. Good review by Vogel regardless of outcome. Successful challenge to save a couple of FTs and AD’s foul, but Pistons ball (despite that travel). The Lakers are 2-7 in challenges this season.
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 8:46 pm    Post subject:

Thanks DB, another excellent write up.

I did not get to watch the game on TV, but did listen to it on the ride home from San Diego so had a "mind's eye" view of it and have been watching the replay on just now.

Gritty win. But, 99 points surrendered in 3 quarters is unacceptable. Alot of bad, mixed with good in this one. Russ also continues to just be an enigma...the 6 three point attempts are maddening (ending 1-6). He hit a key one late, but its just frustrating to witness his stubborn behavior with a historically bad shot for him.

I'm relieved they won, but through now 9 wins this seasons we always get excited over some positive and they find a way to keep repeating poor play. So, I guess we will see if they will continue to be bipolar or actually got something out of that 4th quarter.
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 8:54 pm    Post subject:

BTW just saw on replay the sequence of the b2b blocks by AD, then Russ finding him on the opposite end for a score. Fantastic sequence...so much better seeing it than just hearing it!
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 9:04 pm    Post subject:

I was only able to watch the 1st half, but Lebron in particular was just out there doing cardio. Not sure what that was about.

Just watched the replay. lol I've never seen Lebron clock someone like that. More reckless than dirty, but I can't blame Stewart for the way he reacted. Curious if Lebron is suspended for more than a game. He handled it well, but you never know with these things.


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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 9:05 pm    Post subject:

Tht gets a bit nuts.
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 9:47 pm    Post subject:

Very satisfying win despite the ugly first 3 quarters and low level of competition. LeBron's shot on Stewart instantly reminded me of when Fisher clocked Scola in the playoffs. Both incidents seemed to wake up a sleepwalking Laker team. Hoping to see more of that fire going forward.
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It was reminiscent of one of those Most Interesting Man in the World advertisements: "I don't always shoot 6-for-28 from the field, but when I do, I become the youngest player in league history to score 28,000 career points."
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socalsp3
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 9:58 pm    Post subject:

LBJs 10+ pts streak survived
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Killer_Z
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 10:01 pm    Post subject:

Excellent write up as usual DB, thank you.
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mhan00
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 11:03 pm    Post subject:

Ellington is another victim of the Lakers’ shooting curse apparently, sheesh.

I know it was a serious situation, but I can’t help but crack up every time I see the shot of Lebron calmly talking to the refs, presumably explaining his perception of what happened, and then calmly pointing out that “Hey, that crazy dude Stewart has broken free and is trying to charge at me for like the third time now”. Just a guy who was totally assured that there was basically no way he was going to get hurt even by a dude who was clearly melting down.
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A Mad Chinaman
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 3:32 am    Post subject:

Westbrook Counter
If your man is doubling off of him, go straight to the basket or dunker position

Shooters Missing Their Sight
If our shooters are missing wide open shots and Melo is not a consistent threat (limiting his OT will help a great deal)

Rip (AD) Van Winkle
Floating on the perimeter, not impositng his view, not demanding the ball in the low/mid post area and not providing leadership are signs that it takes awhile to get into the game - with the rest of the team following his lead
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 4:38 am    Post subject:

Thanks, DB.

Finally some fire and some fight for this team.
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 5:56 am    Post subject:

DrDent wrote:

Russ also continues to just be an enigma...the 6 three point attempts are maddening (ending 1-6). He hit a key one late, but its just frustrating to witness his stubborn behavior with a historically bad shot for him.



I watched the game, his defender was consistently 6 feet away (usually shading towards AD) giving him free rein to launch a 3 - he passed it up countless times, the 6 he took is a minor fraction of the open shots he had and were mostly later in the shot-clock.
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 7:37 am    Post subject:

Yay a win.

Boo this team's bad defense and just bizarreness. There isn't going to be a fight where LeBron gets thrown out every night. Why can't these folks just play like that from jump and dominate?

Great write up as always DB
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 7:40 am    Post subject:

Best quarter of the season, baby steps
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 8:36 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB!
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 8:46 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB! Most of what I saw of this game was a replay of the fight and the comeback afterwards. But what I saw was a team that was playing with some fire in them - finally.

Melo of all people disrupting the other team on defense, actually showing some fight in him on that end of the floor not just offense, and showing some leadership on the sidelines no less. Embracing his role, and paying attention on schemes, working off WB well. This is the polar opposite of the Melo I hated all these years. He still isn't exactly nimble, but with this kind of effort on the court and on the sidelines he was one of the reasons we won this one.

Westbrook - I've hated him all season so far, but that 4th quarter - THAT's a player I can get behind. Do this every game if you want a title.

AD - he can still defend like nobody's business. He isn't old just yet, it's in his mind. He actually played like a DPOY player he can be, he seems to need some fire in his teammates to reach that level.

LBJ - he connected real hard. They were both scrapping, elbowing, punching, and my take is this was just another in a sequence of rough play from both of them. LeBron unintentionally connected with his face hard instead of the rib cage where Stewart was landing his elbows. I can see a flagrant for that, but this is nothing compared to pulling a Jokic out there. I have little doubt LeBron will get a suspension, and the NBA will prove they suck if it's more than a game with full consideration to Stewart's contribution to the rough play that led to this. Stewart turning violent and trying to come back at LeBron over and over and over on the other hand? Suspend his ass too NBA. THAT was intentional.
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 8:48 am    Post subject:

We've seen flashes of brilliance, both on offense and defense.

Can they do it for 48 minutes?
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 8:49 am    Post subject:

ThePageDude wrote:
DrDent wrote:

Russ also continues to just be an enigma...the 6 three point attempts are maddening (ending 1-6). He hit a key one late, but its just frustrating to witness his stubborn behavior with a historically bad shot for him.



I watched the game, his defender was consistently 6 feet away (usually shading towards AD) giving him free rein to launch a 3 - he passed it up countless times, the 6 he took is a minor fraction of the open shots he had and were mostly later in the shot-clock.


Well…so ive seen enough of russ this year to get a decent gauge on him.

While i did not cross reference the misses with video, his 3 attempts via play by play on espn…

Second quarter:
At 2:08 he tossed a 3 after det scored at 2:18 (14 seconds left on shot clock)

At 42.5 seconds he chucked a 3 after det scored at 1:00 (6.5 seconds left on shot clock)

3rd quarter
At 6:31 he chucks a 3 after det miss at 6:44 (13 seconds left on shot clock)

4th quarter

At 10:53 he chucks a 3 after a det missed shot at 11:18( had to have been milliseconds left on the 24 sec shot clock - as this suggests 25 secs)

At 6:56 (the lone 3 he hit) it was after a det miss at 7:03 (17 seconds left on shot clock)(confirmed via video)

At 6:15 he chucks a 3, which is after a defensive rebound at 6:33, followed by an AB missed shot, offensive board by the team and a foul by det. I cant tell time of shotclock here (but will just say for arguments sake barely any time).

3 of those are not late in the shotclock and arguably early in shot clock. 2 of those are shot clocking running out hauls. The 6.5 second one can go either way.
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 9:03 am    Post subject:

The way Melo is shooting, and the way guys like Ellington/Monk are. All 3 give you suspect/inconsistent D. Especially Monk/Melo. So how can you really play them unless they're a real asset on O. Of the 3, only Melo is.

Offense rating for Melo is 119 for the season. Shooting 47% from 3. Stud role player on offense. Sure he played some D in the 4th. But that's 5 min basically. What about the other 20?

So we need Melo for 25 min a game to have a good halfcourt offense and someone to make defenses pay for always collapsing in the paint. We need some moves to get other defensive players around Melo on those lineups in the middle of games.

This team plays about 6 min of energetic D at the start of games, and then you get one more spurt in the later part. That's really it. I am not sure how you can win consistently until you change the role players here. You're not changing Westbrook. Not this soon. What we need to do is simplify the game for him, and we need to get as many 2-way role players around the offense's "stars" (Westbrook/Melo + 3 high motor defenders).

Lebron too. His defensive motor is not very high so far. There's a lot to discuss but the sense I have of this team is they feel they're gonna be able to turn it on in the playoffs and they don't want to give that urgent effort now. That's fine since you're stars who carry the load (AD, WB). But what about the role guys? We can't have role guys who do what Monk/Ellington have been doing. Which is essentially in some games clank 3s and then not make an impact on D as well.

THT, I can live with. He isn't a great defender yet, but has a motor. Bradley isn't much of a threat on offense, but has a great motor on D. Reaves, great motor. We need more of those motor guys, especially with some size to defend 6'5-6'9 players.
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LakerSD
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 10:14 am    Post subject:

A win is a win, but one thing is for sure…no one is scared of this 2021-22 Lakers squad.

In fact there has been a pattern of opponents doubling down on the Lakers frustrations and getting chippy and picking fights.

Opponents are testing the energy of declining veterans and flawed defenders.
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DrDent
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 12:13 pm    Post subject:

wolfpaclaker wrote:
The way Melo is shooting, and the way guys like Ellington/Monk are. All 3 give you suspect/inconsistent D. Especially Monk/Melo. So how can you really play them unless they're a real asset on O. Of the 3, only Melo is.

Offense rating for Melo is 119 for the season. Shooting 47% from 3. Stud role player on offense. Sure he played some D in the 4th. But that's 5 min basically. What about the other 20?

So we need Melo for 25 min a game to have a good halfcourt offense and someone to make defenses pay for always collapsing in the paint. We need some moves to get other defensive players around Melo on those lineups in the middle of games.

This team plays about 6 min of energetic D at the start of games, and then you get one more spurt in the later part. That's really it. I am not sure how you can win consistently until you change the role players here. You're not changing Westbrook. Not this soon. What we need to do is simplify the game for him, and we need to get as many 2-way role players around the offense's "stars" (Westbrook/Melo + 3 high motor defenders).

Lebron too. His defensive motor is not very high so far. There's a lot to discuss but the sense I have of this team is they feel they're gonna be able to turn it on in the playoffs and they don't want to give that urgent effort now. That's fine since you're stars who carry the load (AD, WB). But what about the role guys? We can't have role guys who do what Monk/Ellington have been doing. Which is essentially in some games clank 3s and then not make an impact on D as well.

THT, I can live with. He isn't a great defender yet, but has a motor. Bradley isn't much of a threat on offense, but has a great motor on D. Reaves, great motor. We need more of those motor guys, especially with some size to defend 6'5-6'9 players.


Wolf - the way theyve played this year reminds me of a baseball team with solid starting pitching, that gets you 5 innings in, then the minute the bullpen comes in chaos ensues. Or if its football, its a team that comes out defensively early and is energetic, celebrating early tackles and sacks....by the 4th they are simply just getting run off the field, giving up long drives.

Not sure how much of that 4th quarter the team can bottle up and use as a reference, but hopefully more than what we've seen.
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LakerSD
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 1:04 pm    Post subject:

danzag wrote:
We've seen flashes of brilliance, both on offense and defense.

Can they do it for 48 minutes?


This has been the issue all season. Expecting brilliance for 48 minutes isn’t realistic, but the problem is they can’t even give average NBA game 48 minute sustainability.

It’s like moments of brilliance and then some of the worst play in the league on defense and inefficient offense and it usually comes right out of halftime.
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