BOBCATS -at- LAKERS - 1-31-14 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

[DancingBarry]

3-12 in January… If you are pulling for the tank, this one was tough to pull off. The Lakers, however, proved they can give up big numbers even to a struggling offensive club like the Bobcats.

The Laker lost their sixth straight game, 110-100. In the process, they gave up their 21st season high to an opposing player, this time it was Al Jefferson with a career high tying 40. Got to love playing L.A. these days.

“This was disgusting,” said James Worthy, not pulling for the tank.

“You can almost write off the rest of this season if they continue in this mode,” he continued. Apparently, he hasn’t looked at the standings and the Lakers need to play near .800 ball to try to make the playoffs.

As the clock wound down, Staples gave the Lakers a chorus of boo’s not getting their money’s worth. Yeah, this one wasn’t very entertaining.


Gasol -- -- Career high for Jefferson. Pau may have played him the best, but that wasn’t saying much. It was far too easy for Jefferson tonight, almost as if we didn’t scout him or take away his strengths like we usually do (make him a passer, don’t allow him to get to that right handed jumphook). Pau started the game with one of those offensive flurries. Then disappeared for long stretches. The Stats: He scored 24 points on 9-17 shooting (6-6 from the line) to go with 9 boards, 2 assists, 2 blocks, 2 turnovers and 5 fouls in 33 minutes. He was a -11. The Action: He sank a turnaround in the middle of the lane on the first possession. He missed a baseline turnaround. He missed a 17-footer next time down. He swished a turnaround in the lane from about 12 feet out. He faced up from the midpost and attacked to draw FTs, he made both. He missed a 17-footer straight away. He took the bounce pass from Marshall and flipped in a layup over a defender. He swatted a shot to ignite a break. He kicked out to Meeks for three. Bad read and he threw it right to a Bobcat under the hoop. He sank the FT jumper off the two-man game. He sank a top-of-the-key jumper. He had 12 points on 5-8 shooting and 3 boards. Second Half: He missed a running hook, dunk the other way. He missed a jumper from the top of the key. He was hacked hard as he spun to the middle of the lane for FTs, he made both. Poor outlet and it was picked off easily. He faced up and swished a baseline jumper. He was fouled on a long turnaround jumper. He one-handed back in a Kelly missed drive. He swished an elbow jumper when Marshall drew the D. He sank a FT jumper next time down. He missed a short one off the Marshall setup.

Meeks -- -- Not a great shooting night, but he still put up the numbers. He’s been very consistent this year with the big numbers. He has probably priced himself out of the Lakers range with his play, however. He’s gotten big minutes to improve his stats, but he’s improved his game, as well. (Having to run at PG only helps improve on his handles, too.) He’s averaging 14.6 points per game on .454 shooting. He wasn’t efficient from the three line tonight, but did scratch out some points at the line. The Stats: He scored 19 points on 5-15 shooting (3-10 from three, 6-6 from the line) to go with 2 boards, 1 assist, 2 steals, 4 fouls in 37 minutes. He was a -17. The Action: Not close on a quick-fire three. He was fouled on a layup in transition, he made both FTs. He swished a three from the top of the arc on a kickout from Pau. Not close on a drive with his left. He drained a wing jumper off the screen handoff. He missed a wing three on iso at the end of the quarter. He cut backdoor in transition and Marshall hit him with the bounce pass for the dunk. Second Half: Marshall found him for a wide open three. He attacked and couldn’t finish around a big. He missed a long three. He missed a baseline pull up. He was fouled on the perimeter for FTs, he made both. He swished a wing three. He drew FTs on a runner from the wing, he made both. He missed a wide open three. He missed another open three straight away. He missed a wing three.

Kelly -- -- He helped provide a little spark in an otherwise uneventful second half. Offensively, he’s moving with a lot more confidence on the court. He’s making a lot out of his minutes. He’s not completely ready for them yet as a rookie, but he’s working, which is all you can ask. He plays good team D, poor man D (which will improve some), and struggles on the boards. D’Antoni brought him off the bench in the second half. No Laker got double digit boards in this one as the Cats shot a decent 52%. The Stats: He scored 13 points on 4-10 shooting (1-4 from three, 4-4 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 3 assists, 1 block and 2 foul in 33 minutes. He was a +2. The Action: He missed a wing three, way short but regained the possession. He up-faked and attacked off the three line and missed a short one in the lane. He attacked off the three line under control and scored a layup. He pushed out the break and hit Nick for the three next time down. He missed a lefty runner attacking from the corner. Second Half: He was fouled on a wing three for FTs, he made all three. He up-faked, attacked off the three line, left the ground and hit the tough floating jumper (looked like he wanted to pass). He blocked a shot in transition off a man to get a stop. He missed a wing three on the other end. He swished an And-1 three from the corner off a kickout, he made the FT for the 4-point play. He sank the 10-footer to start the fourth quarter. He missed a three straight away. He attacked the paint and missed the layup but Pau tipped it in.

Marshall -- -- He’s averaging 10.5 points and 9.5 assists per game. Prior to the game he was atop the three point shooting charts, ahead of names like Bonner, Freddette and Korver – guys known as shooters. Talking about it, of course, jinxed him. He went 0-3 from three in this one. He’s second in the league in assists per game behind Chris Paul. No jinxing him there. He’ll put up numbers in this system. Unfortunately, the Lakers are just 3-16 with Kendall Marshall running the team. The guys he’s replaced are warming up in the wings and nearing return. Blake plays the best D of all the PGs and will probably make the biggest impact. Kendall could learn a lot from those guys. He struggled with some foul issues in this one, which we haven’t seen before. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 5-11 shooting (0-3 from three) to go with 6 boards, 12 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers and 5 fouls in 35 minutes. He was a +2. The Action: He was stripped on a drive, turnover. He missed a 17-footer off the screen straight away. He got tapped on a three. He hit Pau with the bounce pass for a layup. He bounced it to Meeks off the dribble for the dunk on the baseline backdoor play (sold that well looking into the corner as Meeks cut). He sank a pull-up jumper at the top of the key after working off a screen. He hit Pau for the FT jumper. He attacked the paint in early offense and scored a layup. He missed an open pull-up jumper from the elbow, got to knock those down. He had 4 points on 2-5 shooting and 7 assists. Second Half: He hit Meeks for the open three. He missed a long three on a kickout. He gave up a layup. He probed the lane, ball faked and scored the layup. He weaved his way through the lane and wrapped a pass around a man to Sacre for the dunk. He couldn’t finish a drive. He got picked and was called for the weak foul, he had to sit with his fifth with 7:50 left. He scored a garbage time layup. He tipped in a Pau miss, don’t see that often.

Johnson -- -- It looked like maybe he wanted to hit the boards hard and make an impact early on. He seemed to think about it briefly. Then he disappeared into the Invisible Man role that he’s been perfecting. He’s got too much athleticism to settle watching from the perimeter. He needs to mix it up in the paint, play above the rim. Use that athleticism and quick ups to his advantage. If he doesn’t want to be a minimum contract player, he needs to stop putting in the half efforts. Luke hit it on the head: “In the NBA you don’t know when it’s over. Whether it’s an injury or you don’t get picked up next year, you’ve got to take full advantage of opportunities and right now he has an unbelievable opportunity with the Lakers and playing big minutes in this league.” Wes just isn’t taking advantage. The Stats: He scored 3 points on 1-5 (0-1 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 5 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 20 minutes. He was a -10. The Action: He got tapped on an offensive board and putback. He crossed over to lose his man and sank the 20-footer from the wing. He missed a long wing jumper, looked unsure on it. He was fouled for FTs, he made one. He missed a wing pull-up in transition when he should have attacked. Second Half: He airballed an ill-advised three.

Young -- -- “It’s been frustrating…I ain’t going to lie, it’s taken its toll on me,” Nick said. The losses are piling up and even Nick’s smile and swagger have taken a beating. He was especially streaky in this one. In the first half he had a stretch where he knocked down several shots and brought the Lakers back in it. Then he went cold missing shot after shot for a long stretch. The Stats: He scored 21 points on 8-22 shooting (2-7 from three, 3-4 from the line) to go with 2 boards, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnover and 2 fouls in 36 minutes. He was a -8. The Action: He curled into the lane off the dribble to attack for FTs, he made one. He drew a hand-check foul on the perimeter for FTs, he made both. He missed a pull-up at the FT line. He drained a wing three with a man on. He missed a pull up at the top of the key in early offense. He missed a chuck from the wing. He swished a pull-up jumper straight away. He missed a wing jumper. He sank the baseline pull-up jumper. Bad chuck, but he hit the 20-footer in early offense anyway. He sank a sideline three in transition when Kelly found him. He missed a forced wing jumper. He then got lost on D and gave up an uncontested dunk. He missed an open corner three. He missed a pretty good look at a three to end the half. He had 15 points on 5-12 shooting. Second Half: He missed a wing three. He missed a wing three in transition. He choked an open layup, going stone cold now. He probed and hit the short step-back inside the elbow. He missed a chuck at three out of a timeout. He faked off the three line and hit the elbow pull-up jumper instead. He missed a wing jumper. He threw down a garbage-time dunk.

Hill -- -- Not much of a game from Hill. He got the start in the second half, but Kelly sparked the team off the bench. Sometimes he just comes out flat. That was the case tonight. Seemed like he was thinking about other things tonight. The Stats: He didn’t score on 0-3 shooting (0-2 from the line) to go with 3 boards and 1 foul in 12 minutes. He was a -10. The Action: He backed his man down on his first touch and earned FTs, he missed both. He missed a 21-footer with the shotclock low. Second Half: He kept a possession alive battling on the glass. He missed a short jumphook. He missed a short one in the lane.

Harris -- -- He struggled in the past couple and is probably due for another big number game. He’s got to get after it if he wants a contract. The Lakers are going to get a little healthier here and more warm bodies will be returning. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-5 shooting (0-1 from three, 0-1 from the line) to go with 3 boards and 1 foul in 18 minutes. He was a -3. The Action: He grabbed the loose ball, pushed it out with speed, changed directions in the lane and scored the And-1 layup, he missed the FT. Second Half: He sank the long 22-footer, pulling up at the top of the arc. He missed a layup, but Sacre cleaned it up. He missed a wing three. He was rejected out of bounds after getting a late pass on the break.

Sacre -- -- Jefferson had his way with Sacre. When the Lakers had a little momentum early in the fourth, the Cats when back to Jefferson against Sacre and slammed that door shut. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 2-5 shooting (2-2 from the line) to go with 5 boards (3 offensive), 1 assist and 3 fouls in 15 minutes. He was a +1. The Action: Jefferson took it to him when Pau sat. He missed a FT jumper. He was fouled on a reach for FTs, he made both. He was a -9 in 6 minutes. Second Half: He slammed off the great interior feed from Marshall. He crashed the glass, got the board and reversed. He missed a long open jumper (you’re open for a reason). Jefferson worked Sacre for a couple of easy ones in the post to force a timeout and quiet the crowd.

D’Antoni -- -- An aggressive Pau to start the game and the Lakers were tied 12-12 when the timeout came midway through the quarter. Pau had 8 of the Lakers 12 points. He brought in Hill, Young and Harris for Kelly, Johnson and Meeks… With 4:31 left, he sat Marshall for Meeks down by 1 when Kendall picked up two fouls… Up 1, they brought in Sacre for Pau… The Lakers trailed 31-27 after the first. Cats shot 57%, Lakers 38%... He started the Sacre, Hill, Young, Harris and Meeks unit that closed the first quarter… He quickly sat Harris for Johnson… Down 6, he brought back in Marshall for Hill… They fell back by 8 when the timeout came after 3-plus minutes… He went back with the starters and Nick instead of Meeks… The offense went dry while the Bobcats are sinking their easy looks. The Lakers trailed by 12 when D’Antoni called a timeout… They cut it back to 5 points when Nick got hot from the perimeter and forced a timeout… He sat Marshall for Johnson to save a third foul. The Cats started to extend their lead again… The Lakers just gave up 62 points to the Bobcats in the first half. Wow… The Lakers trailed 62-49 at the half. They shot 42% (18-43, 3-10 3PT, 10-15 FT). They had just 4 turnovers. The Bobcats shot 58% (25-43, 2-8 3PT, 10-14 FT). They had 34 points in the paint… He started Hill for Kelly in the second half… The no D Lakers quickly trailed by 17 and D’Antoni called a timeout… He brought in Nick for Johnson, that will help the D… He brought in Kelly for Hill, the Lakers down 17… Down 20, he brought in Sacre for Pau… They cut the 20+ lead down with a strong close to the quarter… They trailed 86-74 heading into the fourth… The crowd started to get into and pump up the Lakers youngins. The Lakers started to play some D… That was short lived as the Bobcats went back to Jefferson in the post against Sacre… He sat Young who was stone cold… He brought back Young later for Marshall who had foul issues… The team D looked awful. They looked preseason awful. They were not on the same page at all. D’Antoni called another timeout after some breakdowns…

[mhan00]

Another crap game.

[eddiejonze]

first?
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Creatures crawl in search of blood, To terrorize y'alls neighborhood.

[mhan00]

Still no clue why Rob plays over Chris. He does nothing well. He tries hard, but he's horrible at seemingly every aspect of the game. Chris at least can score.

[SweetP]

No, this one was not entertaining. None of the recent games have been at all fun to watch.
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“There is always light if only we're brave enough to see it, if only we're brave enough to be it.” --Amanda Gorman

[fansincemagic]

March 3rd they play Portland and Aldridge will drop 50 on them if they continue to defend the post this way.

[Goldenwest]

Can't stand D'antoni's scheme. He shelves our best bigs: Hill and Kaman for Kelly and Sacre.

I understand Kelly can score but so can Hill and Kaman plus they can defend the paint and rebound which we kind of need to do, if we want a chance to win. Sacre just looks lost.

Defensively the team just looks completely disorganized. Please don't tell me thats due to injuries.

[magicdays]

This game they not only looked disorganized defensively but offensively as well. That 3 point shooting and jump shooting percentage is killing us.

Thanks, DB.
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Ahhhh, those were the days...time for a new beginning!

[PLATNUM]

Does the coaching staff do any kind of pre-game scouting of the opposition? It's like the guys go thru the same motions game in and game out. It's as if the only instructions the players get is... "if you get the rebound, run back on offense for a quick score... if they make the shot, take the ball out of bounds quickly and run back on offense for a quick score"..... rinse, repeat.

[Omar Little]

One of the biggest problems with losing, deliberately or otherwise, is that it is corrosive, and the effects go on long after you would think. I always loved the old adage that the only thing losing teaches is how to lose.
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“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” ― Elie Wiesel

[waterman40]

Tanks alot!

[OregonLakerGuy]

Thanks DB

[Chronicle]

I think Billy Mac is one of the best jinxers in the league.
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Kobe

[BigE32]

Thanks DB. I enjoy your write ups tremendously. I know it can't be easy given the circumstances.

[pio2u]

[LakersMD]

Just wanted to give thanks to DB for having the strength to continue doing these write ups recapping some of the worst basketball I can remember watching. Better days are ahead.

[wolfpaclaker]

[lakerjoshua]

Thanks DB.


Im over the MDA experiment. I'd rather have Kurt step in and this point and start teaching the guys the triangle for next season, at least we would have something to look forward to.

[angrypuppy]

[A Mad Chinaman]

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

[angrypuppy]

[DancingBarry]

Thanks, guys.

[Romano338]

I'm ok with the loss (how sad ) but not the way.
20 points ahead for the Bobcats, and 10 points at the end, it's too much. 40 points for Jefferson, it's too much.