WIZARDS -at- LAKERS – 3-28-17 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

 
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 28, 2017 9:32 pm    Post subject: WIZARDS -at- LAKERS – 3-28-17 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

Did You Think They Were Going to Win This One?… That 16-point lead… The 20-point first half by Russell… The 15 made shots in a row in the third quarter… Yes, it looked like the Lakers might pull off a win. They had it going.

Then the fourth quarter came and that all fell apart. The Wizards stormed back as the law of averages caught up with the Lakers.

They missed wide open looks again and again. Their miscues turned into points the other way. The Wizards would win the fourth quarter 37-13.

“We were playing unselfish. It was beautiful and a lot of fun to watch. Unfortunately, the fourth quarter started with us missing some open looks that we had been hitting, then we had a couple of turnovers,” Luke said. It was all downhill from there.

“Once they got the momentum, we didn’t do a good enough job to stop it,” Luke said.

They flirted with a W most of the night, but fell 119-108.


Russell -- “He was brilliant,” Luke said. He led the Lakers with a 20-point first half as well as a team-high 4 assists to give the team a halftime lead. He was hitting threes and getting into the paint for floaters or layups. They ran some nice sequences to free him up for catch-and-shoot threes coming off a screen on the left sideline. He did most of his damage while working off the high screens. He’d either pull-up for the three or attack off the dribble. He cooled off in the second half, shooting blanks in the fourth quarter as the Wizards were making their run. He went 0-4 from three in the second half (2-8 overall), some wide open looks, too. Passing wise, some excellent reads coming off the screens to find teammates. He also hit Clarkson on that Huertas slow cut play (this one for a lob). Defensively, only one play really stood out to me because of when it occurred. He gave up a straight line drive to Wall in crunch time with a bad angle. That one was in the heat of the battle and hurt. “He was active on defense, he was trying to tag cutters, and do all the things we ask,” Luke said. The Stats: He scored 28 points on 10-21 shooting (4-12 from three, 4-4 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 9 assists, 4 turnovers, 1 block and 1 foul in 39 minutes. He was a -6. The Action: He hit Zubac off the two-man game for the floater. He weaved through the D and no-looked to Zubac for the floater. He missed a wing jumper. He got a nice bounce on a three up against the shotclock. He missed a three behind a screen. Sweet bounce pass to Randle rolling to the hoop and it drew FTs. He crossed over, got himself squared up and swished the 19-footer. He swished a three straight away off a kickout from Nance. He came off a screen on the sideline, took the pass from Clarkson and drained the three. He attacked the pressure applied 35 feet out and blew past his man and the help D for a layup. He dribbled too much and had his pocket picked (should have hit Nwaba earlier in the play, basketball gods made a ruling). He broke off the help D on a cross over after a screen and hit the floater. He missed a three in transition. He zipped a backdoor lob to Clarkson for the score. He swished a wing three when the D went under the screen. He froze the D on a probe and hit the floater. Tapped on a corner three coming off the screen. He missed a two-for-one three. He scored 20 points on 8-13 shooting (4-8 from three) to go with 4 assists with 3 turnovers. Second Half: Soft touch on the wing pull-up jumper and bounced in. He took a handoff and bounced a pass to the corner (two bounces) to Clarkson for the jumper. He nailed Wall to the floor with a head and shoulders fake and drew FTs, he made both. He threaded a pass to Black rolling for the layup. He spun in the post and missed the one-hander. He hit Black rolling to the hoop for the dunk. He missed a wing three. He missed a jumper off a busted motion weak sequence. Bad angle on D to give up a layup. He was stripped by the help D for a dunk the other way. He missed an open corner three. He missed a wide open wing three. He had the crowd buzzing as Wall stumbled and Russell attacked the other direction for a layup. He attacked and drew FTs next time down, he made both. Wild chuck from three out of a timeout, not sure what that was, not close, either.

Randle -- -- He went 0-5 in the first half for just 2 points to go with 3 boards. He struggled to hold onto the ball in this one. It seemed like he fumbled away passes that hit him in the hands three or four times. Scoring-wise he had a couple of nice drives off crossovers for scores and hit teammates on the break or cutting into the paint for scores. In crunch time he was in on a few miscues defensively. Some weakside zoning that we got burned on for a three on one stand that was probably the dagger. Worthy said he frustrates the coaching staff with his lack of D. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 2-7 shooting (0-1 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 5 assists, 3 turnovers, 1 block and 2 fouls in 32 minutes. He was a -4. The Action: He muscled around his man baseline but missed the reverse. Extra interior feed to Zubac for the layup next time down. He missed a three in early offense. He blocked a jumper on a switch. He missed his fade across the lane. He drew FTs unable to finish the And-1 dunk, he made both. He missed a short jumphook. Late reaction on help to give up a dunk. He broke up a lob pass. Second Half: He fumbled away a perimeter pass, turnover. He pushed out the break and fed Brewer for the layup. He hit Clarkson popping free in the paint for a short one. He crossed over his man, attacked left and scooped in the layup. He crossed over and this time hit the floater. He backed his man down and zipped a pass to Black for the layup. He was stripped in the paint. He gave up an And-1 jumper on a switch with 2:51 left. He threw an interior pass away after we recovered his fumbled pass (turnover on what would have been a Nance dunk).

Clarkson -- -- Strong third quarter for Clarkson, making all six of his attempts, including a couple of threes. With Russell going off in the first half and Clarkson picking it up in the third, they were taking it to the Wizards in those first three quarters. A few bonehead plays from Clarkson throughout (dribbling into a crowd for no reason, poor decisions on passes), but he and Russell combined for 50 points and 12 assists (Russell getting most of those assists). Still, they made half their shots, scored 20+ each, got their bigs involved…good production by the duo tonight. Clarkson was finding Russell coming off screens for some sideline threes. It seems like they are starting to get a little of that chemistry back that they had last year. The Stats: He scored 22 points on 10-19 shooting (2-5 from three) to go with 4 boards, 3 assists, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in 39 minutes. He was a +0. The Action: He got backdoored for a layup. He missed a scoop down the middle of the lane. He missed a deep three in early offense, poor shot selection. Nice ball fake off the screen to freeze the D and score the layup. He broke down the D and zipped it to Nwaba for the dunk. He missed a wing three, stepping back. He hit Russell coming off a screen for three. He missed a wing pull-up jumper. He dribbled into a crowd and lost it. Why are you giving it up to Black in the middle of the floor on a semi break? (That was back-to-back dumb plays.) He broke down the D but missed the easy floater. He pushed out the break, faked behind his back and scored the layup with speed. Great athleticism, catching a lob a little behind him and the board and pulling it back to the rim for the score off the backdoor cut. Lol, Clarkson mad at Zu for not rolling to the rim when Zu was held from behind, so Zubac grabbed Clarkson by the waist to show him. He missed a drive. He attacked off the screen and hit Zubac for FTs. He crashed the glass and flipped it in over his head. He cleared Randle out of his way on the break and just missed the 40-footer at the buzzer. He had 8 points on 4-11 shooting and 2 assists. Second Half: He drained a three on a kickout. He sank a pull-up wing jumper, moving to his left. He sank a baseline jumper. He cut baseline, then curled back to the middle of the paint to get open and Randle hit him for the short one. Wild lob in transition, not close, turnover. He sank a pull-up elbow jumper. He attacked and fed Black for the layup. He swished a three on iso. He missed a pull-up three. He got tapped on a floater out of a timeout.

Zubac -- -- Luke has mentioned recently that part of Zubac’s problems defensively are that he’s not ready to make plays on that end, standing too upright. That reaction time is what he’s got to cut down on. That fraction of time it takes for him to go from standing upright, to on the balls of his feet, back and knees bent, hands up…he should already be in that position. Luke mentioned when Zubac is engaged in a play that his reaction time is pretty good. It felt like he was more engaged defensively early on this one, thus you had the 2 steals and block. In the second half, he picked up some foul trouble and sat for the rest of the game. He said the assistants have told him he needs to work on the D to stay on the court in the fourth. Offensively, was scoring with ease on his floaters early on. Sometimes he makes that look so easy. I think as he gets stronger and more explosive, we’ll see a few more of these as hard finishes at the rim. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 3-8 shooting (4-4 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 block and 4 fouls in 18 minutes. He was a +0. The Action: He scored a layup off the interior feed from Randle. He hit the short floater off the two-man game again. He swiped a bounce pass (in a ready position defensively). On the other end, Russell hit him rolling for another floater. Wall dunked past Zu after sealing his man, Zubac might have been held, but never challenged (looked like Madsen was talking to him about that one at the timeout). He rejected Gortat trying to score at the rim (got some hand). He missed a floater (should have tried to dunk that one). He couldn’t finish a throwdown over a man in transition. He couldn’t get a tip to drop. He posted up and was wrapped up on the spin before he could get the shot off. He drew FTs on the screen-roll with JC, he made both FTs. He took a tough outlet pass and forced a miss over his head (but Clarkson cleaned it up…when he’s stronger, that’s an explode-up-and-dunk finish). He was fouled on a finish for more FTs, he made both. He scored 10 points on 3-7 shooting. Second Half: He up-faked and missed the jumphook.

Brewer -- -- He had a stretch in the third quarter where he was getting up and down court with speed for points. We only had 5 fastbreak points in the second half. It felt like he probably had them all. The Stats: He scored 9 points on 3-4 shooting (3-4 from the line) to go with 2 boards, 1 turnover, 1 block and 1 foul in 15 minutes. He was a +2. The Action: He fumbled a dribble away in transition, then fouled in transition D. He blocked a shot in transition D. He scored a hanging layup off a quick counter strike shortly later. He airballed a floater. Second Half: He attacked with speed, spun like a top and flipped in the layup. He drew FTs a few seconds later attacking in transition, he made both. He scored a layup filling the lane on the break. He was fouled on a layup attempt on the break (looked like a good block), he made one FT.

Nance -- -- DFish brought up an interesting point prior to the game suggesting that Larry has the qualities to be the leader of this team, but that he’s not assertive enough on the court. I think there’s some truth to that. He’s certainly one of the more thoughtful, intelligent guys on the squad. It’s always the aggressiveness to me that comes and goes. He doesn’t impose his will on the game with regularity despite all that athleticism and length. Tonight, he was doing the little things, hitting the boards and blocking shots in the first half on his way to a team-high +7. In the second half, he was a -24. I like the work on the offensive glass. I feel like that’s there for him most games with his skills. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-6 shooting to go with 11 boards (5 offensive) to go with 1 assist, 2 blocks and 3 fouls in 24 minutes. He was a -17. The Action: He missed a floater and a follow tip. He kept a board alive and hit Russell for the three. He rejected a perimeter shot and it led to a Nwaba breakaway score at the buzzer. Second Half: He sank a wing jumper. He tipped in a missed jumper. He missed a point-blank one-hander.

Nwaba -- -- He had 3 steals, showing that defensive activity…but he gave it back with 3 turnovers (a couple bad ones on perimeter passes that led to points the other way). He’s learning. Take away those turnovers and you’ve got to like the rest of the game. Luke gave him some good minutes in this one as a result. He had one of the plays of the game by scoring a layup at the first quarter buzzer, just getting it off in time (not riding it in or going for the dunk) to beat the clock. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 4-5 shooting to go with 8 boards, 1 assist, 3 turnovers, 3 steals, 1 block and no fouls in 23 minutes. He was a -5. The Action: Great switch to steal a pass, but he got caught in air in transition and threw it away for a dunk the other way. He dunked off the drive and dish from Clarkson. He volleyball spiked a shot out of bounds on help D. He forced Jennings to give it up after unsuccessfully trying to iso against Nwaba. Superb clock recognition at the end of the quarter on a bustout off a blocked shot by Larry, Nwaba opted for a layup, getting it out of his hands a little early (instead of dunking or riding it in) and he got it off with a tenth of a second left. He fumbled away a kickout. Attacked strong to his right and powered in a layup. Second Half: His perimeter pass was picked off for points the other way. He attacked the paint and couldn’t finish the layup to his left. Putback score off a missed Black post up.

Ennis -- -- I don’t think the +/- was really telling of his game. He had a strong first half with 8 points on 3-4 shooting and some solid D. Can’t ask for much more from him. Two halves like that would have been a superb game. We got killed later in the game when he came in. Like everyone else, he was missing the shots he was making earlier in the game. The Stats: He scored 11 points on 4-9 shooting (2-4 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 1 assist, 4 turnovers, 1 steal and 2 fouls in 27 minutes. He was a -24. The Action: Called for a travel on an up fake that looked legit. He threw a pass away on a drive down the lane. He stood in and took a charge on help D. Straight line drive and he scored the layup. He attacked the paint, drew the D and dumped it to Black for the dunk. He swiped the ball at midcourt. He swished a deep three. He drained another three when the D went under the screen. Second Half: He worked off the weave into the middle of the paint and flipped in the score. Short on a three out of a timeout. He missed a floater. He attacked the paint and missed the layup. He was fouled with 3:50 left, score tied, and made one FT. He missed a wide open corner three.

Black -- -- Much better game from Tarik. His teammates were finding him open on their drives or as Tarik rolled off screens and that led to some points for him finally. This was more like him. Setting screens, finishing at the rim and doing the little stuff on both ends. The guards were aware of the D changing to take the ball out of their hands and worked it to him. He picked up some fouls as the game went along (Zubac had foul issues, as well). The Stats: He scored 10 points on 5-6 shooting to go with 2 boards, 1 turnover, 2 blocks and 5 fouls in 22:35. He was a -1. The Action: He dunked off the drive and dish from Ennis. Second Half: He was called for three seconds in the paint. Russell threaded one to him for a layup. Randle found him in the paint, he spun and scored the layup. He scored a layup off the drive and dish from JC. He missed a post-up. Bad goaltend on the other end, wasn’t close. He dunked on the next play when Russell fed him rolling. He pushed on the offensive glass to give up FTs. He stopped a three-on-one break with a rejection.

Walton -- -- The Lakers were down by 9 when Nwaba came in for Brewer with 4:35 left… Nance in for Randle… Zubac out for Black with 2 minutes left, Lakers down 9… A 12-1 run for the Lakers… The Lakers were tied 27-27 after the first quarter… Black, Nance, Nwaba, Russell, Ennis lineup… Russell out for Clarkson, score tied 31-31… Black out for Randle, Lakers down 3 when the timeout came midway through the quarter… Russell and Zubac in for Nance and Nwaba… Russell on fire this half with a good mix of off-ball plays and creating off the screens… The Lakers led 58-55 at the half… Zubac picked up his third and fourth foul and sat, Lakers up 7 with 8 to go. Black in… Lakers on a 10-1 run… Lakers up 9 when the timeout came after 5 minutes… Nwaba in for Brewer who had an excellent quarter, Lakers up 14… Up 16, Ennis in for Russell… The Lakers made 15 straight shots. Their D was a little soft so the Wizards stayed in striking distance… The Lakers led 95-82 heading into the fourth… He started a Black, Nance, Nwaba, Russell, Ennis unit… The Wizard cut the lead in half, forcing Luke to call a timeout at the 10:33 mark… An 11-0 Wizards run… They cut it to 4… Clarkson back in for Nwaba, Lakers up 2 with 6 to go… Black out for Randle, score tied shortly later… Some miscues down the stretch while the Wizards made a couple of big shots. The Wizards led by 7 with over a minute left…
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OregonLakerGuy
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 28, 2017 9:33 pm    Post subject:

Thanks DB.

Oh, and first!
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akgolf
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 28, 2017 9:36 pm    Post subject:

Thanks DB.
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 28, 2017 9:36 pm    Post subject:

Thanks DB, this season must be giving you a lot of headache, hoping to see you positive even with another lottery season.
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Rek
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 28, 2017 10:52 pm    Post subject:

Thanks DB

Seemed like someone reminded our guys to get their tank on in the 4th
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 28, 2017 11:11 pm    Post subject:

Thanks DB.
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 28, 2017 11:36 pm    Post subject:

Thanks DB.
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RYZ
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 28, 2017 11:53 pm    Post subject:

Thanks, DB.

To your question, yes, I was convinced they were going to win, and my goodness, even after the nearly half-decade tanqueray, it still feels very odd on nights like tonight when relief washes over me as the Wizards finally secure the victory. I'm looking forward to a different kind of relief next year when, even if they turn out to be historically bad, I'll simply have no reason to want them to lose.
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tox
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 12:36 am    Post subject:

RYZ wrote:
Thanks, DB.

To your question, yes, I was convinced they were going to win, and my goodness, even after the nearly half-decade tanqueray, it still feels very odd on nights like tonight when relief washes over me as the Wizards finally secure the victory. I'm looking forward to a different kind of relief next year when, even if they turn out to be historically bad, I'll simply have no reason to want them to lose.

Sadly, even at our current standings, there's still a 45% chance that's not the case
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A Mad Chinaman
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 12:48 am    Post subject:

Hopefully the young players will learn from the lessons given to them

Hopefully Randle did not pick up the Kwame Brown disease of the hands.
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 4:34 am    Post subject:

Awesome. Thank you!
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 8:15 am    Post subject: Re: WIZARDS -at- LAKERS – 3-28-17 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

DancingBarry wrote:



Zubac He said the assistants have told him he needs to work on the D to stay on the court in the fourth. Offensively, was scoring with ease on his floaters early on. Sometimes he makes that look so easy. I think as he gets stronger and more explosive, we’ll see a few more of these as hard finishes at the rim.



DB - Thanks for the comments on Z and the assistants. I had a feeling he was focusing more on D than O as offensive numbers have been down lately. Nice to know there was a good reason.
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 9:38 am    Post subject:

RYZ wrote:
Thanks, DB.

To your question, yes, I was convinced they were going to win, and my goodness, even after the nearly half-decade tanqueray, it still feels very odd on nights like tonight when relief washes over me as the Wizards finally secure the victory. I'm looking forward to a different kind of relief next year when, even if they turn out to be historically bad, I'll simply have no reason to want them to lose.


It would be nice to have a few games buffer between us and the Suns and there wouldn't be as many mixed feelings about a W.
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 9:39 am    Post subject:

tox wrote:
RYZ wrote:
Thanks, DB.

To your question, yes, I was convinced they were going to win, and my goodness, even after the nearly half-decade tanqueray, it still feels very odd on nights like tonight when relief washes over me as the Wizards finally secure the victory. I'm looking forward to a different kind of relief next year when, even if they turn out to be historically bad, I'll simply have no reason to want them to lose.

Sadly, even at our current standings, there's still a 45% chance that's not the case


Get those negative vibes out of here.
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 10:16 am    Post subject:

akgolf wrote:
Thanks DB.

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PostPosted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 11:23 am    Post subject:

tox wrote:
RYZ wrote:
Thanks, DB.

To your question, yes, I was convinced they were going to win, and my goodness, even after the nearly half-decade tanqueray, it still feels very odd on nights like tonight when relief washes over me as the Wizards finally secure the victory. I'm looking forward to a different kind of relief next year when, even if they turn out to be historically bad, I'll simply have no reason to want them to lose.

Sadly, even at our current standings, there's still a 45% chance that's not the case


Correct, but to be more precise, regardless of this year's outcome, the fate of the free world won't seem like it's riding on 3rd worst vs. 4th worst next year: We'll either have our pick or we won't.
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