LAKERS -at- WARRIORS - 12/22 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings
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DancingBarry
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 12:32 am    Post subject: LAKERS -at- WARRIORS - 12/22 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

Four In A Row (or The Return of Nash)... The day after the End the World, the Lakers finally put their version of a Four Horsemen of Apocalypse on the floor: Kobe, Dwight, Pau…and finally, Steve Nash. While they have a ways to go to live up to the Four that took the Lakers to back-to-back championships, you’ve got to start somewhere. Their best road victory of the season -- a 118-115 overtime W against the 18-win Warriors -- is a good start.

It took a 14-point fourth-quarter comeback and an overtime dagger by Nash to pull out this win. They overcame foul trouble to Dwight, Kobe and a quiet whistle on their offensive end. The Lakers had big makes from not just Kobe, but also Nash and World Peace in the final minutes.

The Warriors and Lakers swapped leads over and over, two teams throwing punches and no one going down. That is until Nash ended up with the last big hoop of the game. He had orchestrated the offense all overtime until finally sinking an elbow fade of his own after working off a screen with 16 seconds left.

“If I got to a point where I couldn’t find my teammates, I knew that I could get my shot off,” Nash said of the clutch make.

They’d love to have a preseason reset for D’Antoni and Nash to see what they really are. They’ve been a team without much identity, trying to run a Steve Nash offense without Steve Nash. Time to find that identity.


Kobe -- -- Frustrating game for Kobe, even if he had the jaws clinched and fists raised after several huge makes. Asked if it was fun to play in, he said “Yeah, other than not shooting any freethrows. Yeah it was fun.” He scored 23 points in the fourth and in OT. “After a while I just had to stop going to the hole. I took 41 shots, most of them probably should have been freethrows, but at the end of the game I just had to stop going to the hole and taking some easy ones,” Kobe said. He said they just emphasized playing harder. They weren‘t getting whistles, they just had to get after it. “It doesn’t matter,” D’Antoni said of the 41 attempts, “If you take them in the right spots and everybody will get their touches and chances and the ball moves and it did today.” With Nash back, Kobe goes into more of an off-ball mode. We saw some crazy open shots for him in crunch time on a few possessions just because of that. Some of that was off the Nash two-man game, but some was also with Nash setting screens for Kobe while the ball was in Pau’s hands. That kind of off-ball mix should help not only Kobe, but keep his teammates involved as well when the D can’t load up and we aren’t all standing around. Nash orchestrating should also allow Kobe to get a little more rest on court and on the bench. More rest, should help the D. An OT comeback battle, he’s going to play a lot of minutes…so not the case tonight. Loved having Kobe working the punches and Nash being the guy that throws the dagger for the kill. That makes this team so much tougher. The Stats: He scored 34 points on 16-41 shooting (2-8 from three, 0-1 from the line) to go with 10 boards (3 offensive), 5 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers and 5 fouls in 44 minutes. He had a +/- of 0. The Action: He missed a 22-footer off a handoff. He cleaned up a missed layup by Morris on the break. He scooped up a loose ball, attacked and missed a layup. He airballed a wild fallaway from the wing. He attacked and missed a reverse. He posted up, spun and lobbed to Pau under the rim for the layup. He missed a wing three. He posted up Thompson and scored a layup. He missed a tech FT. He posted up, spun and hit the baseline jumper. He missed a runner in the lane. He attacked, took contact in air and missed the short one with no call at the end of the quarter. He missed a layup trying to power up in the post. He was stripped next time down. He sank an elbow turnaround off the Pau handoff. He drained a wing three on a swing pass. He missed an iso jumper. He missed a wing three. He missed a money jumper in the paint, just not hitting ones he normally does. He didn’t hold for the last shot of the half and missed a drive. He had 11 points on a poor 5-17 shooting. Second Half: He sank a turnaround from the post to start the half. Way short on a turnaround at the FT line. He picked up his third foul pushing off for a board. He probed in the lane and hit the pull-up jumper. He spotted an open Morris under the hoop and hit him for a layup. He crossed over his man, but missed the 21-footer, short. He slithered his way from the elbow, through defenders and reversed. He missed a reverse lob attempt. He missed a pull-up elbow jumper. He picked up his fourth foul, shoving Thompson on an inbounds. He forced up a brick on the break in traffic (and wanted a foul). He hammered down an angry lob dunk in transition a few seconds later. He missed a wing three. He passed up a short jumper to attack and, of course, no whistle on the shot after contact. He backdoored his man on an inbounds and scored a layup. He fumbled a ball out of bounds at the end of the quarter. Back in and he cut off the inbounds, took the bounce pass from Dwight and hammered it down. He picked up his fifth foul on Jack with a reach from behind (can’t do that when you’re in foul trouble). He missed an open three on a Nash kickout. He swished a wing three off a Nash probe (more of an iso for Kobe) and we tied it up with 4 minutes left. He missed a wing three. He iso’d and swished a wing jumper to take a 1-point lead. He missed a wing jumper on iso to try to win the game. Overtime: He swished a face-up wing jumper. He missed an open jumper after freezing his man with a cross-over. He sank a wide-open, foot-on-the-three-line jumper created off the Nash two-man game. He missed a three next time down. He took the post entry, fell but kept dribble alive, got up, spun to the baseline and hit the jumper. He hesitated on a wide open three, allowing his man to recover, then settled for a long jumper and missed.

Howard -- -- Dwight was strapped with fouls right out of the gates, and the Lakers D struggled as a result. We‘ve got to have Dwight out there to anchor, especially with Nash back. The foul trouble didn’t allow us to play the Warriors with the aggressiveness on D we need to have success. He only had one of his fouls on help D situations, the others were a couple of cheap ones on the offensive end of the floor and a couple against his man attacking on the move. (So in case you were wondering if it was on Nash getting burned or something, it was not). Dwight somehow avoided a sixth foul for the final 17 minutes when we played him straight through for the comeback. “We hustled, we got loose balls,” Dwight said of the comeback. “I just tried to keep my head, stay focused.” Both he and Kobe did a great job playing with 5 fouls. We needed both out there to win. Dwight fouled out with 8 seconds left. Offensively, we saw a lot more work with Howard in the two-man game, even in clutch situations. The Pau/Dwight connection for lobs was also there (sweet set play off a Nash screen). Can’t wait to see a game where Nash/Dwight can get some rhythm together and explore that two-man game. The Stats: He scored 11 points on 4-8 shooting (3-4 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 3 turnovers and 6 fouls in 29 minutes. He was a +8. The Action: He winged a jumper to block Curry on the first possession. He missed a challenged layup on a dish by Nash. He attacked out of the post, spun at the front of the rim and missed a challenged layup before fouling to try to get it back. Looked like Nash set him up for an easy one, but he was “stripped” and lost it (looked fouled and was irked). He was called for a foul trying to rim run and post up, he had to sit after 5 minutes (picked up a tech). He slammed off the bounce pass from Duhon off the high screen. He goaltended a layup out of bounds. Not close on a spinning jumphook that didn’t hit iron. He rejected Lee out of bounds on iso. He had the chair pulled on him, turnover, score the other way. He was hacked on a high-low pass from Pau, he made one FT. He picked up a blocking foul (pretty cheap) on iso and had to sit with 7:37 left. He had 3 points on 1-4 shooting, 2 blocks, 3 turnovers and 3 fouls in 9 minutes. Second Half: His first help D foul of the game and he had to sit after 3 minutes. Back in, and he is called for a push on his man with 12 seconds into his stint, fifth foul, uggh. He iso’d and scored an easy one in the post with his left. He airballed a short one getting body-checked on the jumphook. He forced Curry into a travel with his presence. Sweet bounce pass to Kobe cutting backdoor off an inbounds and Kobe dunked. He was hacked on a slip screen with 2:27 left down 4, he made both clutch ones. Overtime: He dunked down an airball by Metta. He fumbled away a lob off the Nash backscreen and Pau pass, uggh (that was there). Great hustle back in transition to force a missed a layup with a challenge. He fouled out with 8.8 seconds left (great job playing the last 17 minutes without picking up that sixth).

Nash -- -- The key for a PG‘s success in D‘Antoni‘s system is that they are a threat. If the defense doesn’t respect the threat, they can pack it, help, recover and deny a lot of what we want to do. If you’ve got a PG that can hit the open jumper, finish in the lane or find open teammates for easy scores, everything changes. When you get burned by the threat, you start switching for mismatches, you start scrambling, the D as a whole gets screwed up and guys get left wide open. We just didn‘t have that in Duhon, Morris or Blake (when he gets back). Kobe isn‘t a PG. He‘s a scorer. Putting the ball more in his hands, won‘t accomplish what Nash can. Tonight, you saw Nash orchestrating beautifully. You saw the offense playing with a lot more purpose. In crunch time, the Warriors didn’t know what we were going to do. When he wasn’t working the dribble to find teammates, he was setting some key picks that opened up easy scores for teammates. Defensively, he‘s got to be on the floor with Howard as much as we can do it. Unfortunately, Howard got into quick foul trouble and we got hurt quite a bit. We put him on Thompson and he did better than he should have. Jack was chewing up multiple defenders and Curry we didn’t want to see killing Nash. Nash actually had a number of stops in the first half, getting moving screen calls or mucking things up for his man. Pretty amazing how well he looked tonight with how long he was off. “I had no setbacks and felt like I‘m not jeopardizing the injury, so it‘s time to get out there and help the team,” Nash said of his decision to go tonight. No win for the Lakers if he didn’t. Not only did he orchestrate and hit a big three and the dagger in OT, Kobe was having an off night shooting and Dwight was in foul trouble. No way we get the W. One more item. This is why Mike Brown ultimately lost his job. Had he relied on Nash to carry the offensive load while they inserted some basic Princeton elements and focused on D (Brown‘s strength), he might still be here. They‘d get preseason wins, early season wins and when Nash went down, they would have gone into more Princeton and Brown would have had a built-in excuse that they can‘t wait until Nash gets back. Instead, they complicate it rather than simplify it and minimize Nash’s skills in the process when they should have leaned on him. “We‘re just a different team,” D‘Antoni said of Nash‘s addition. Yep…and when he’s used properly. The Stats: He scored 12 points on 5-8 shooting (2-2 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 9 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers and 1 foul in 41 minutes. He was a -3. The Action: He drew an illegal screen call to get a stop. He drained a pull-up three in transition. He forced Thompson into fumbling a ball in the backcourt to get another stop. He drew another moving screen call, taking a knee into the thigh, but getting another stop. He worked the screen-roll and hit the runner. Sweet lob to Pau when he drew two defenders off the high screen (he launched the pass with the left the moment they came and put it right at the front of the rim). He deflected a pass in transition to get a stop. Trouble defensively against Jack. He hit Hill on the screen-roll for a score. He swished a wing jumper. He hit Hill in transition for the short jumper. He had 7 points on 3-3 shooting and 4 assists in 17 minutes. Second Half: He was picked from behind on a probe. Looked like an airball or a lob with no Laker going to the rim. He hit Pau on the two-man game for the easy jumper. He missed a tough wing jumper. He lobbed to Kobe on the break for a dunk. Sweet backscreen on Kobe’s man as Kobe made the inbounds pass, the ball went to Howard who hit the freed up Kobe for the dunk. Some great screens out of a timeout by Nash on a set play sequence, one led to a Howard lob dunk from Pau. He was hit twice on a play and lost the ball, no call (rare to see him that ticked, but he was on that one). He drained a three straight away off a Kobe dish (wide open in crunch time, bet he loves that). His pass was picked off, but we got it back on the other end. Overtime: He orchestrated the offense all OT, then called his own number and swished the step-back elbow fade to go up by 3 on our final possession.

Gasol -- -- I‘m not sure if the dinner with D‘Antoni had something to do with, but we saw Pau back in that role of high post passing to guys coming off screens. It took a while for Mike Brown to learn this last year. It’s taken a few games for Mike D’Antoni to work that into the team’s half court execution. Out of a timeout down 7, we had Nash give up the ball to Pau at the high post then set screens for threats in the paint. With Pau as the trigger man, this lead to layup and dunk opportunities. Those were key to the comeback. These are the Princeton-like read and react type of situations where Pau is at his best in the high post. It gives the Lakers a curveball to throw at teams and keeps Pau involved and effective with Dwight on the floor. More of that, please. It‘s going to be interesting to watch this team explore all their options now. The Stats: He scored 9 points on 4-11 shooting (0-1 from three, 1-1 from the line) to go with 10 boards (3 offensive), 6 assists, 2 steals, 5 turnovers and 4 fouls in 38 minutes. He was a -2. The Action: He airballed a turnaround in the low post, probably fouled to miss that bad from that close. He missed an elbow jumper. He dunked in a lob pass from Nash off the two-man game. He over-passed on a kickout instead of attacking, turnover. Kobe set him up for a layup off a turnaround pass from the post (should have been an And-1 as Pau got pushed from behind). He missed a short one on the baseline set up by Nash. He was called for a charge in transition. He was blocked on a drive. He had 4 points on 2-5 shooting, 5 boards, 3 assists and 4 turnovers. Second Half: He missed an early offense wing three. He scored an And-1 over his head in the lane, he made the FT. He swished a FT jumper on the two-man game with Nash. He ball-faked and missed a wing jumper (one-and-out possession with no one near the rim). Out of a timeout, he hit Meeks under the hoop off a set play for a layup. Next time down, same set, but we went deeper in it with Nash setting a backscreen for Howard, who threw down the dunk off Pau’s lob. Overtime: He nearly threw a pass away instead of shooting, but Metta saved him. He couldn’t put down a point-blank one-handed putback attempt, getting hit in the face with no call.

Morris -- -- His stronger play recently gave D’Antoni the confidence to throw Morris into the starting lineup and see what happens. Obviously, this move is sponsored by World Peace‘s move to the bench. Interesting move to get some strong D on PG for a few minutes and then sit him for the rest of the half. D’Antoni is stealing minutes in small moves to cover for the MWP bench change up. Hopefully, he finds something. Morris had some miscues and was a little wild, but he also helped the Lakers get some transition scores. Late in the game when we made some subs for D, he was the guy that D’Antoni went to. Perhaps, he carved out a small role for himself on D. Having flexible defenders to help hide Nash is a key for us. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 3-7 shooting (0-2 from three) to go with 1 steal, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 9 minutes. He was a -1. The Action: He swiped a pass and took it the distance for a layup and the Lakers first score. He missed an open wing three on the next set. He missed a layup on the break, but Kobe cleaned it up. Second Half: He scored a layup over a man in transition with his left. He was stripped on a drive (had a man in the air at the three line, should have drawn that foul). He airballed a transition three, uggh. Wild drive off the three line and he bricked, going to the floor (that got him benched…or at least reminded Mike it was time for a substitution).

Peace -- -- Metta…wide open from three…with 24 seconds left…swish. The Lakers had 46 points from their bench tonight to outscore the Warriors bench, despite Jack‘s 29. He came off the bench again, but we saw him close the game at the SF. We also saw a lot more Hill at PF with Dwight‘s foul trouble. Great two-way game from MWP. He got his 20 points tonight in efficient fashion, scoring double digits after just 4 shots. Not a lot of ball stopping, either. Defensively, he was a pest, but not as disruptive as we‘ve seen of late. You can feel the energy change for the team on that end of the floor when he comes in. “It‘s a good start for us,” Metta said of the four-game streak. It does feel like a “start.” The Stats: He scored 20 points on 7-13 shooting (3-6 from three, 3-4 from the line) to go with 5 boards (2 offensive), 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover and no fouls in 38 minutes. He was a +8. The Action: He attacked Lee with speed and scored a layup. He sank a step-back baseline jumper off a Pau handoff. He sank a corner three in early offense. He attacked and dumped it off to Hill for a layup. He sank a quick-fire corner three in transition. He missed a fading three from the corner, got to square up. He attacked in transition, crossed over his man and drew FTs, he made one. He missed an open wing three. He missed a corner three on a kickout. He had 11 points on 4-7 shooting (2-5 from three) and 2 assists in 16 minutes. Second Half: He fumbled a dribble out of bounds. He was held on the offensive glass to draw a foul with one-hand trying to score a putback, he made both FTs. He missed a drive across the lane. He faced up Thompson, spun and scored a layup. He iso’d on another man, attacked across the lane and got tapped. He swiped a post entry pass. He tapped out an offensive board. He then iso’d on Thompson, spun baseline and scored a layup. He swished a clutch corner three left up with 24 seconds left in the game to take a 2-point lead. Overtime: He got to a loose ball and airballed a fade, but Dwight dunked it down.

Meeks -- -- Not a great game for Meeks, but he helped match the Warriors energy. He struggled to defend Jack (who didn‘t?…I think Blake has had some good games against Jack defensively, but we threw just about everyone but him at Jack tonight). Offensively, he was a bit turnover-prone anytime he stuck the ball on the floor. I feel more confident in an off-balance, quick-fire chuck from three from him, then when he puts the ball on the floor to attack the paint. I liked seeing Nash on the floor with Meeks as some of the rotations cycled through. It will be interesting to see how that pair develops when they get time on the floor together. Meeks is a key for Nash as he can usually give a good defensive effort on the PG if we need it to hide Nash elsewhere. And offensively, of course, the deadly three shot has to be respected and will open up the floor. The Stats: He scored 12 points on 4-9 shooting (2-7 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 7 boards, 3 turnovers and 1 foul in 33 minutes. He was a -5. The Action: He attacked from the corner and was stripped. He swished a quick catch-and-shoot corner three. He missed a three in transition. He was stripped trying to attack off the three line. He stripped a Warrior in transition D to save a layup (looked good, despite the Warriors’ complaints). He tried to attack off an inbounds and fumbled it out of bounds. He drew a foul when Nash got the D scrambling on a switch and we moved the ball around, he made both FTs. He had 5 points on 1-2 shooting and 3 turnovers. He was a -10. Second Half: He missed a corner three in early offense. He missed a quick-fire three in transition, didn’t seem squared up on that one. He attacked, fumbled it, got it back and scored the layup. He got tapped on a wing three. He missed an open wing three, got to hit those. He scored a layup when Pau hit him under the hoop out of a timeout. He swished a wing three set up off a Nash two-man game and dump to the post for a kickout.

Duhon -- -- Some poor D on Jack when the two of them matched up. Meeks had him some of the time, Nash, Kobe, Metta, but Duhon wasn‘t even close to him on a few scores when they were matched up. Disappointing defense lately. Offensively, he had some nice passes, including one to Dwight off the two-man game for a rare easy score for D12. The team as a whole was really moving the ball much better (finishing with 33 assists). Nice to see Duhon back on the bench. Hopefully, Nash will show the guys exactly how they need to play in this system and they learn from him by watching him in action. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-1 shooting to go with 7 assists, 1 steal and 1 turnover in 12 minutes. He was a +6. The Action: He slipped a bounce pass between defenders to Dwight for the dunk. He threw a pass away on the two-man game. Not close to his man (Jack) defensively on a couple scores. Second Half: He hit Kobe backdooring his man on an inbounds pass under the hoop for a layup. He missed a long three.

Hill -- -- You want to trade this guy? Really? I saw a guy diving on the floor for loose balls (that one led to a Laker three), battling like mad on the offensive glass to regain 6 offensive boards (probably more total second chances than that), and scoring from the perimeter off Nash passes. He was outstanding. “When they all play good, you can‘t hardly make a mistake,” D‘Antoni said of his rotations. When you’ve got a superstar-studded lineup, you need a guy who can play the garbage man role. Rambis, McAdoo, Horace Grant. Metta played a lot of SF tonight and the team still looked very effective. You’ve got to find a way to get Hill some minutes. Hill on the game tonight: “We‘re tough. We play aggressive. We never gave up.” When Dwight gets into foul trouble, we will look pretty soft without Hill doing his thing. The Stats: He scored 14 points on 6-9 shooting (2-2 from the line) to go with 8 boards (6 offensive) and 1 foul in 21 minutes. He was a +4. The Action: He sent Landry to the floor with a strong challenge and foul. He got a Kobe miss and drew a foul for FTs, he made both. He scored a layup off the drive and dish from Metta. He sank a pull-up 17-footer on the kickout. He saw a loose ball on the floor and dove to knock it away from a Warrior, that led to a Kobe three. Nice help on Nash’s defender to force a man out of bounds. He sank a hanging jumper on the screen-roll with Nash in the lane. He sank a jumper in the lane in transition when Nash hit him. He had 10 points on 4-5 shooting and 4 boards (3 offensive) in the half. Second Half: He battled to get the Lakers a couple possessions back, one resulted in a Kobe score. Great job stepping in and taking a charge on Landry in the middle of the paint. He swished an 18-footer from the right sideline. He crashed the glass on a missed hook by Nash and threw it down. He missed a jumper in transition. He grabbed a Kobe miss, missed the putback, but stayed with it and we got it back.

D'Antoni -- -- He started Morris on Curry and Nash on Thompson… He sat Morris after 5 minutes for Meeks who took the PG… Dwight picked up his second foul (both on the offensive end) and had to sit after 5 minutes. He brought in MWP to go small… The Lakers trailed 10-7 midway through the quarter… The Lakers led 17-16 when the timeout came with 3 minutes left… D’Antoni brought in Hill for Pau and Duhon for Nash… Seeing some Kobe in the post with MWP at PF, as we should… The Lakers led 31-27 after the first quarter… He started a Howard, Hill, MWP, Meeks, Duhon lineup… The Lakers lost a lead with some poor D on Jack. He sat Duhon for Nash (this won’t help the poor D on Jack) and Hill for Pau out of that timeout with 8 minutes left… Howard picked up his third and had to sit for Kobe with 7:37 left in the half… He brought in Hill for Meeks… He sat Metta for Meeks down 3... Lakers unable to get any stops to close the half with Dwight out… The Lakers were outscored 34-22 in the second quarter… The Lakers trailed 61-53 at the half. They shot 46% (21-46, 5-12 3Pt, 6-9 FT). They had 12 turnovers (Nash 0, Dwight/Pau/Meeks had 10 of those). The Warriors shot 51% (24-47, 6-12 3Pt, 7-7 FT)… Dwight picked up his fourth foul just 3 minutes into the half (his first foul on help D) and had to sit for Metta. Uggh, just not even breaking a sweat in this game. Lakers down 9... After some wild play by Morris, he sat him for Meeks at the 7:37 mark… Lakers getting no calls and frustrated with some the Warriors are getting. Home court advantage, but it’s seriously affecting the Laker chances… Down 13, he brought in Duhon and Hill for Nash and Pau… The Lakers trailed 87-74 heading into the fourth quarter… He started a Dwight, Hill, Metta, Meeks, Duhon unit… They trimmed it to 8 when a timeout came 3 minutes in. He brought in Nash for Duhon and they scored to cut it to 6 out of that timeout... Down 4, and with the ball, he sat Metta for Kobe with 7 minutes left. (We cut it to 2 on the Kobe dunk off the inbounds after that deadball)… After back-to-back scores going through Jack (who we had to put Nash on because of Kobe’s 5 fouls), we trailed by 7 and D’Antoni called timeout… He sat Hill for Pau out of that. Nice set play to get Meeks under the hoop off a screen with the ball in Pau‘s hands and it led to a Meeks layup. Next time down, a variation off that same play where Nash sets a back screen for Howard now and Dwight threw down the lob from Pau to quickly cut it to 3 again. They tied it up on the next possession. Great timeout, great play calls... They trailed by 4, but two Dwight makes from the line and a Nash three put them up by 1 with 1:46 left… Down 1 with 33.9, D’Antoni called a timeout. Metta for three on a Dwight kickout (crazy play, practically daring the Warriors to foul Dwight off that screen-roll)… Up 2 with 24 seconds left, he sat Pau for Morris. They got a Jack jumper, too easily to tie it with 14.9 left. Kobe/Howard mucking that coverage up… Tie game, though, and D’Antoni called timeout, bringing back Pau for Morris. Kobe missed a wing jumper to win, overtime… He started Howard, Pau, Metta, Kobe, Nash. (D‘Antoni said this is the lineup they will mostly go with to close.)… Dwight fouled out with 8.8 seconds, Lakers up by 3. D‘Antoni went with Morris, got to switch everything. They got the stop… What allowed them to pull it out? “Defense and we just stayed after them,” D’Antoni said…


Last edited by DancingBarry on Sun Dec 23, 2012 2:14 pm; edited 2 times in total
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Half Baked Hero
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 12:41 am    Post subject:

First!
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ignardlakerfan
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 12:42 am    Post subject:

damn....i was almost first.....
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RIP.....Pop (AJ Sr.) 7/09/23-01/20/09
Thanks for 35 years of love, sacrifice and joy...also for taking me to all the lakers games at the GW forum as a youngster and helping me understand the joy that comes from watching a lakers game
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AceFresh
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 12:47 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB
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limchrc
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 12:52 am    Post subject:

Good win.
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mugwump
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:03 am    Post subject:

Wow, there hasn't been a write up with these names since 24 games ago!

Taken a herculean amount of effort and minutes for this 4 game win streak, but hopefully it get's easier going forward. The funny thing is before the season I envisioned the team would be resting the starters for many 4th quarter blow outs...
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busym
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:14 am    Post subject:

A great game Again the Lakers gutted it out and got a win. Nash and Kolbe willed the team to win. They would not give up. It is hard to believe Nash has missed so many games. He played great.Pau earned his money tonight. And world Peace was a beast as always. Morris seems to be picking up skills and confidence from Nash and Kolbe. Meeks is great coming off the bench. Meeks struggled but still managed 12 points and 7 rebounds. Not bad for a bench player. And Hill has more heart than any one on the team. He brings energy off the bench. The Lakers are jelling. Look out Western Conference.
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busym
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:16 am    Post subject:

Another great wriiteup DB. Thank you.
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thurloly
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:23 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB!

I also have my personal take for this game:

Nash: dude can play D. He, maybe, is not the biggest man out there to body up or jump high to block, but he plays smart (fundamental things like hand up, close out, timing help D, quick hand for a steal). I applauded him when he stopped 2 of Warrior transition plays all by himself.

Howard: despite foul trouble, he still plays impressive D. I am glad to see a player with a passion toward D like him. Btw, he nailed 2 clutch FT.

Hill: instead of being down (an odd man out), he still plays his heart out. I like that mentality and attitude: just go out there and play.

Refs: super crap.

Meta World Beast...nuff said.

4 wins in a row and 5v8 this one?

D'antoni: I still think he is a good coach. Just because we don't have Phil, it doesn't mean we should take it all on D'antoni. I like his rotation. To be fair, he should has his chance to experiment rotation and find who fits.

Kobe and Pau had up and down moments. But hey, glad to see our big 4 back. Hopefully, they will be all healthy.


Last edited by thurloly on Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:48 am; edited 1 time in total
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OregonLakerGuy
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:31 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:44 am    Post subject:

I was so wrong about Jordan Hill. I thought he was the worst.
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:49 am    Post subject:

After a while, it should have been obvious, DMo on Jack.....C'MON MAN!!!
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mhan00
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:50 am    Post subject:

A string of happy faces in a row. Keep the streak alive Lakers!
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Hard_Butter
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:58 am    Post subject:

I loved your point about Nash being a threat. I guess this is what MDA was waiting for- a PG who's an offensive threat from everywhere on the court AND able to make the right decision with the pass. The Nash pick and roll was basically unstoppable, which boggles the mind as to why MB decided to stash him away in the Princeton offense.

Jordan Hill needs to stay on the team and off the pine. Period.

Kobe continuing to get shafted by the refs is getting beyond ridiculous. The NBA is run by Stern's grimy fingers and it's truly sickening.
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lts
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 2:10 am    Post subject:

You want to trade this guy? Really? Yes, the GMs of LG have traded him for hundred of times.
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George the Greek
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 2:17 am    Post subject:

lts wrote:
You want to trade this guy? Really? Yes, the GMs of LG have traded him for hundred of times.


I don't want to trade him, but I also don't want him rotting on the bench.
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 2:29 am    Post subject:

My only real criticism was the crap play called for the end of regulation. Gotta find something better than a Kobe Iso.
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 5:50 am    Post subject:

duhon's stats are off
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1hu2ren3dui4
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 7:12 am    Post subject:

Good stuff DB. As always.

It's long climb out of this hole.
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 7:43 am    Post subject:

I was really encouraged by what I saw last night.

Meeks, Hill and MWP off the bench brought energy and scoring. The Lakers bench actually outscored the Warriors bench last night despite Jarrett Jack lighting us up for 29. The energy on the defensive end was huge. Hill down low and Meeks getting back on breaks saved several points.

Kobe seemed more comfortable at the three with Nash at the one. He spent time cheating off of Barnes helping others rather than chasing Klay or Curry all over the floor. He also seemed to be more comfortable getting the ball in the corner rather than at the top of the key.

Lakers won despite a poor shooting night from Howard and Kobe. Neither shot for a good percentage yet we won. Usually when Kobe and another starter have an off night shooting we lose.
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 8:34 am    Post subject:

Is it just me or has anyone else noticed a league wide trend of coaches shuffling lineups like never before? Not just the Lakers but it seems many teams are experimenting with their starting lineups even without necessarily being due to player injuries. In the past this was somewhat looked at as a cardinal sin, especially with Mike Brown as recently as a month ago. But now it's treated as no big thing and I haven't noticed too many players complaining about it instead they have adjusted without much drop off in production.
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 9:07 am    Post subject:

lol only 29 minutes for Dwight. Silly refs.
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cycl0nus
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 9:23 am    Post subject:

I wish I saw the game last night. I really wanted to see how nash played especially after being out soooo long. btw, besides his game looking good, how was his leg/foot during and after the game? I don't want to remember the Malone syndrome...
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JUST-MING
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 9:24 am    Post subject:

cycl0nus wrote:
how was his leg/foot during and after the game?

He was thrown to the floor twice. Held his knee after one fall.
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cycl0nus
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PostPosted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 9:30 am    Post subject:

JUST-MING wrote:
cycl0nus wrote:
how was his leg/foot during and after the game?

He was thrown to the floor twice. Held his knee after one fall.




thx. steve is one tough sob. he's like a small pg version of kobe. glad hes on our side!
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