JAZZ -at- LAKERS - 11/30 - Thoughts and :-)) ratings

[DancingBarry]

52 Pick Up... Jazz fans can celebrate that they held Kobe down for the second straight fourth quarter. Unfortunately, Kobe dropped 52 points on them the three previous quarters, including a monster 30-point third quarter on his way to a 132-102 blow out of the Jazz.

Kobe tied his Laker record for most points in a quarter and went on a stretch where he hit 11 straight shots from the floor. Then, he throttled it back from the attack mode in the fourth. Had this game been close, Kobe might have gone for 70 if they needed it.

In the last game against the Jazz, the Lakers were out rebounded by a huge margin and had a number of breakdowns against the Jazz system. Both of those problems were fixed in this one. The Jazz normally kill teams on the boards, holding a big advantage in rebound differential against the league. Tonight the Lakers took 9 more boards than the Jazz.

Defensively, the Jazz have problems. They probably should have zoned a bit more and doubled Kobe, but they are still a team that can be exposed, regardless. They went to the zone for a few possessions and Kobe ripped it apart and then kept rolling.


Kobe -- -- I said as soon as we see Kobe knocking down multiple threes and hammering dunks over people we'll know he's getting close to being back. Kobe threwdown tonight. That's a good sign. He served up his first real poster jobs of the season. "I've seen a lot of great games from Kobe, but that was a terrific performance," Phil said in the Times. "It was a combination of things he did tonight … maybe not as dramatic as in the past, but there's still plenty of fire in there." Kobe scored his 52 in the first three quarters. He shot an extremely efficient 19-26 from the floor (2-3 from three) and made 12-15 FTs. He also had 3 assists with just 1 turnover. Early on, he attacked AK in transition and scored around him with his left. His man doubled the post, leaving Kobe open under the hoop for an easy dunk. He drained a wing jumper off a catch and shoot. He muscled in a step-through layup on the baseline. He got hit on the arm, hung and swished an And-1 jumper from the top of the key, he missed the FT. He missed a heave at the first quarter buzzer. He hit a jumper from the top of the key. Quickly after returning from his first rest, he hit a turnaround at the FT line. He drew FTs in transition and made both. He attacked, drew FTs and missed both. He got into the lane, stepped through and hit a floater straight away. He missed a layup with his left. He trailed a break, took a feed from Smush, brough up and stretched out to bank with his right over AK. He attacked in transition, got a picked, went down the lane and crammed over AK and two other Jazz players. Huge dunk. He had 22 points on 10-16 shooting at the half...apparently just getting warmed up. The Jazz went to the zone, Kobe got a feed in the middle of it, took a dribble and powered another jam over the rim (much better than shooting threes over a zone anyday). He flashed to the wing and hit a quick turnaround. He attacked in transition, drew a foul and made both FTs. He blocked Boozer from behind saving a sure basket and resulting in a jumpball, which Kobe won. Good look to Luke who flashed to the low post and scored before the D could react. He took a low post handoff from Kwame and powered in an And-1, making the FT. AK switched onto Kobe and Kobe immediately went after him on three straight possessions, scoring with a one-footed runner, a wing jumper and FTs off an attack. On his next touch, Kobe faced up and knocked down an elbow jumper over AK. He faced up on the wing and drained a three. Next time down, he sank another three from the other side. He drew two FTs on an attack and sank both. He drew three FTs on his next attempt at a three and sank all three. He faced up and swished another jumper from about 19 feet. Kobe hit 11 straight shots at that point and tied his Laker single-quarter scoring record with 30 points. Sensational quarter, making all 9 of his shots and all 10 of his FTs. After a rest, he finally missed a runner to end his streak. He settled back and looked to set up others for the remainder of his minutes. He hit Farmar for a wing three. Great feed over AK's head right to Bynum under the hoop to draw FTs. Kobe talked in the Daily News about breaking the zone quickly: "It helps when I get in there," he said, "and start doing things like that because then we all start getting confidence from there."

Odom -- -- Very nice, complementary game from Mr. Near Triple Double as he tallied 14 points on 5-9 shooting, 11 boards and 8 assists. With Kobe going off, there was not need for LO to step it up...but he still picked his spots well and was one of the keys to the team scoring as well as they did. Lamar drained an 18-foot jumper. He grabbed an offensive board, spun and scored a layup. He curled off a weakside screen, took the pass from the post and dunked over AK on some nice Tri execution. He drew FTs, busting out in transition off a Farmar steal. He parked himself under the hoop for a few seconds and then Kwame fed him for FTs, Lamar made both. Lamar at his best, he grabbed a defensive board underneath the hoop, then pushed out the dribble and fed Luke for the breakaway And-1. He hit Evans under the hoop with a behind-the-back bounce pass from the three point line. He swished a long wing three to end the third quarter. He posted up, fed Bynum cutting toward him and Drew scored. He jammed back in a missed jumphook from Bynum. He pushed out the break and hit Evans for a dunk. He attacked and kicked out to Farmar for a three.

Smush -- -- Fairly quiet night from Smush, but he seemed to play steady. He scored 7 points on 2-6 shooting, had 3 assists with 3 turnovers and also had 2 steals. He stole the ball from Deron, then pushed it up court and finished the And-1, making the FT. He threw a pass away for an uncontested dunk. He hit a nice looking pull-up jumper off the pinch post for his other make. He drew a loose ball foul for FTs and knocked them down. He swiped the ball from Okur and pushed up the break and fed Kobe for a score.

Walton -- -- He airballed a jumper from about 18 feet out. He swished a three from the top of the arch on his next attempt (he went 1-1 from three in this game). He took a missed FT from LO, then attacked and fed Turiaf for a score. He attacked quickly in the offensive set for a two-for-one situation, drew a foul and made both FTs. Sweet finish after flashing to the post, taking a feed and flipping it in over his head all in one motion. He busted out in transition, took the pass from Lamar and scored an And-1 with his left, he made the FT. Luke finished with 10 points on 3-5 shooting in 26 minutes.

Kwame -- -- Both he and Bynum were outplayed by Turiaf tonight. Kwame got the start, but only managed 2 points on 0-2 shooting and 2-4 from the line to go with 5 boards in 22 minutes. He did do well setting up others, scratching 4 assists on the night. He bricked consecutive layup attempts, not going up strong to dunk. Kobe's man doubled Kwame in the post, so Kwame dished to 24 for the dunk. He got called for an offensive foul, shedding his man while posting up. He drew a foul on his next touch and made one FT. He and Luke lost a sure defensive board, then Boozer scored on Kwame off an inbounds return feed. He drew back-to-back fouls on the Jazz bigmen, sending Okur to the bench with his fourth early in the third on one.

Bynum -- -- Bynum came off the bench for the first time this season. Phil picked a good game to do it, considering how the Jazz will pick apart your D if you hesitate on your decisions. After a weak start he got some decent PT later in the game, so that will help learning-wise against this opponent. He had a sleepy first stint in the game and I didn't have any worthwhile notes until later. He scored 6 points on 1-3 shooting (a nice 4-4 from the line), and had 6 boards and 2 turnovers in 14 minutes. He came off the weakside screen in the Tri, took the pass, drop stepped and powered in a layup (first time I've seen him come off that Tri sequence, been waiting for it for a while). He tried to pass out of a double and hit the backboard. He missed a jumphook, but Odom cleaned it up. He missed a tip in, got it back and drew FTs, making both. Nice catch on a rocket pass from Kobe, he drew FTs and made both.

Radmanovic -- -- He was a non-factor tonight, as he wasn't really in the thick of the battle earlier. He finished with 5 points on 1-2 shooting, 5 boards and 3 assists without a turnover in 10 minutes. He attacked off the dribble, drew a foul and missed both FTs. He cut down the lane, took a feed from Ronny and scored an And-1, making the FT. Good job on the glass.

Turiaf -- -- Before the game was a blow out and our bigs were struggling, Ronny came in off the bench and gave the team a lift. In 14 minutes, he scored 8 points on 3-3 shooting and 2-2 from the line. He grabbed 3 boards, tallied 2 assists and had 2 blocks, but altered a couple other shots, too. He came in with a nice cheer after Staples seemed a bit underwhelmed by our other bigmen. He quickly gave Fish some of his own medicine drawing a charge when Fisher tried to attack the paint. He drew FTs in transition on a feed from LO and made both. He took an interior feed from Luke, went up strong and finished with both hands. Good box out to secure a defensive board. He hustled to save a ball under the hoop and we took possession. He blocked Miles and contested Boozer on one defensive sequence to hold back the Jazz. He posted up, dropstepped to lose his man badly and scored a layup. He powered in a layup under the hoop. Nice feed to a cutting Radmanovic for the And-1.

Evans -- -- Talk about a quiet 17 points. Mo led the bench scoring in 24 minutes, shooting 6-9 from the floor and grabbing 5 boards. The up-and-down tempo, mix in a perimeter shot and some FTs with some general good hustle and you get a good night. He was sporting the old-school socks. Perhaps, he should keep them. In the game, he quickly attacked the lane and hit a fade. Next time down, he grabbed an offensive board and scored. He drew a foul on a feed in transition from Farmar and made one FT. He hit a left-handed jumphook in the lane. He drew FTs off a great feed from Lamar and he made one. He was reluctant to take a three, then jacked it up and swished. He threwdown after taking a pass from LO on the break. He flashed weak to strong, to the post feed, got his man on his hip and scored easily.

Farmar -- -- Up and down night from Farmar. He led the Lakers with 4 turnovers, a couple of those were off some standard Tri stuff. He scored 8 points on 3-7 shooting (2-4 from three), and dished one assist. He had some good moments and some poor moments defensively against the Jazz. He seemed to overplay a bit and drew fouls or got out of position at times. But, he also had some good reads against the Jazz system which is nice to see from a rookie. He missed a three on a kickout. Bad sequence, he threwa pass away, then overplayed Fisher which allowed for transition numbers and a score. He double dribbled at midcourt, anticipating Vlad to come to the ball for a pass. Good hustle to save a ball on the sideline, then he pushed out in transition and hit Evans for FTs. Excellent switch defensively against the Jazz back screens and then he slipped around his man to steal the entry pass, which he then pushed up and it resulted in transition FTs again. He jumped the passing lane for a steal, then fed LO, which again led to transition FTs. He fumbled away a pinch post handoff. He swished an open baseline jumper. He drained a three from the corner on a kickout from LO. And he got some props from Kerr on how he ran the triangle.

Vujacic -- -- Sasha played 9 minutes and scored 5 points on 2-3 shooting. He scored a layup, cutting off the pinch post. He drained a wing three on a pass from Kobe. He got one of those "new ball" bounces that hit rim and backboard and went in for a three.

Phil -- -- Phil gave Kobe a nice greeting as he came off the court. "Like I've said, when I play, I play to please him," No. 24 said in the Times. "If he stands up and gives me a high-five, then I know I've done my job."... He started Kwame and brought Bynum, Evans and Farmar off the bench with about a minute left in the first quarter... He subbed Turiaf in early in the second and left him to finish out the half as Turiaf's energy helped solidify the Lakers D... The Lakers got the Jazz in the penalty with 8 minutes left in the third, that helped for a few points, but Kobe led the big 42-point quarter getting into the zone... Phil got to experiment with some lineups in the fourth, including a Bynum/Turiaf combo... The Lakers hit 28 of their last 39 shots. The Lakers scored 79 points in the second half and finished the game shooting 60 percent... Cook was suited up, but got the only DNP...

[DancingBarry]

Sorry for the delay, went and saw a crap movie earlier tonight. So, I was running a little late.

[jbjb]

[DancingBarry]

Wish I could have my $20 bucks and 2+ hours of my life back. (Babel sucks, BTW.)

[A Mad Chinaman]

DB - What was the "crappy" movie?!?!

Re: LO
It was good seeing him stay and look to be aggressive many times, despite Kobe going off big time. This was seen in LO taking the ball and immediately pushing or passing the ball quickly to players such as Luke

Re: Bynum
As noted on TNT, it appeared that the Jazz players were playing faster, stronger and more precisely than what Drew was used to - hence he was a little slow and/or losing the ball cuz he wasn't strong enough to maintain possession. With Sloan running a very offensive sets with concise and strong cuts, players not used to that precision often get lost (especially with an active player like Boozer) - so it was just a learning experience, especially since he was playing a PF-type player in the "5" hole.

Re: Farmar & Smush
Smush played his "normal" game of showing how talented he is by the steals and providing additional tangible evidence of "brain-lock" or minimal "Basketball/Hoop IQ" by throwing ill-advised passes. Jordan, on the other hand, provides much more confidence and court savvy/Tri-Understanding that makes the P&G's offense seemingly run much smoother than when Smush is in the game. Another reason that might be happening is that the team trusts Jordan to run the offense where nobody knows what Smush is supposed to do on the court (initiate the offense - no, shoot the ball - no, defend - hopefully, etc.)

Re: Evans & Vlad
Evans has Hops and can provide adequate "D." It's exciting seeing him how he can work more and more effectively within the Tri. Vlad is still feeling his way around the Tri, but he provides more "D" than Cook, more passing ability than Cook with the same offensive threat that Cookie provides - despite his hand problems

Good team effort and rebound from a bad loss with the Bucks.

[Sage_10]

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

[dino]

thanks db...great game from kobe...

OT - shoulda gone to see "happy feet" or casino royale" instead...

and i thought i saw a sigh of relief from sasha after the 3 went in...

[kups]

Thanks for the recap DB. Great & very efficient game by Kobe, posterized AK a # of times. Maybe that will keep him from opening his trap next time around.

BTW, I loved Ronnie's energy in this game, made Boozer work hard on the glass & even challenged a few shots. It felt like once Turiaf came in, momentum slowly shifted our way.
_________________
#2 Lonzo
#28 Derrick White, Jordan Bell, Deonte Burton

[twoface723]

Good job.

Amazing Game from Kobe. He looked invincible in the 3rd qtr. And from the team stand point, great win. Beating one of the best teams by 30 points is always a goody way to forget about a bad loss.

[prisma8slg]

[Texas_Pete]

Great stuff as usual DB!! One word: Turiaf. Kwame is my boy, but he and Bynum could not contain Boozer. Turiaf came in swatting shots, taking charges, hitting from the field, etc. As much as I want Kwame resigned, Turiaf looks like our future PF alongside Bynum. Is Turiaf's stamina enough to play 30 effective mpg? If so, start him! Here should be the lineup: Bynum/Turiaf/LO/Kobe/Smush.

And Kobe didn't play to bad last night either

[Flight]

What I loved about Kobe was that when he got back in the 4th and missed his first shot, he decided to facilitate and create for his teammates instead of going for 70. He made a few nice passes. Even on one possession, Mo Evans was calling for him to come out to the 3 point line to get the ball, but Kobe refused, so Mo took and hit the 3. I liked that Kobe realized that he had scored enough points. It shows a lot of maturity.

[BigE32]

Thanks as always, DB. I thought Turiaf brought great energy when he entered the game in the second quarter. That third quarter by Kobe was simply amazing. Very nice win after a very disappointing loss on Tuesday. I'm looking forward to see how part two of the "hallway" series goes on Saturday night.

[magic_bryant]

Just a couple thoughts about the game:

The team knew they needed this W, not only for their own confidence, but to be noticed. AK-47 had laid down the challenge last week when he said he noticed that Kobe didn't score when he was guarding him.

To add to that, Kobe couldn't get it going vs Redd.

But damned if the kid didn't come out like a man on a mission tonight. He's the best player on the planet every single day, but when he's rolling, there's barely a player better than him in history.

So, Kobe comes out a man on a mission. Pissed off early. He looks vortex to start the game, which I was worried about. But then you notice that he's got a nice rhythm to the game. Next thing you know, he's got 20 points with 7 seconds left in the 2nd Qtr, and then in happens.

The dunk on AK-47. The kind where you've been hunting down a certain guy all game long and the moment comes as the half is winding down.

SLAAAAAAAAAM DUNK!!!

Third quarter comes, and I don't really want to dwell on it too much, as that's going to be discussed enough here and in the media. I'll just add that my brother, Mitchell, and I were watching the game, and all Mitchell could do was complain that Kobe was getting "too hot", that Kobe would start getting ahead of himself and shooting much. I kept telling him, "ride the hot hand, ride the hot hand" etc etc.

Then, Kobe's at like 7 shots in a row as he starts taking the 3s. Mitchell is just rolling his eyes, knowing that these aren't the smartest of shots. He's a pretty tough critic on Kobe, as am I. We just expect near perfection. But oh well.

So, Mitchell is beginning to just laugh at EVERY made shot, cause he knows that these shots are not supposed to go down like they are. But you can't help but watch in utter amazement. We're just high-fiving, having a good ol' Lakers beatdown, good time.

Then, Kobe catches the ball on the wing. Giricek is ALL OVER him. My brother and I say in unison, "just pull it...let it fly!!" Sure enough, Kobe swings the ball at his legs a couple times, rises, and "SPLASH".

Utterly amazing.

But that's not the two main things that I found so interesting about the game. What I found most interesting, was:

A) Kobe swiitched on Kirilenko during the run. It basically blew the game open as Kirilenko was no longer getting good looks, had the room to make crisp passes, and no hustle points. Or say in the 4th Qtr when Deron Williams was beginning to get it going again and it looked like another possible Jazz comeback, Kobe switched to Deron defensively and the comeback was null and void.

but more importantly

B) The fourth quarter started. I was thinking there was no reason to bring Kobe back in, assuming he'd be chasing 60, just jacking up shots. He caught the ball, took that one runner, and it missed. I remember thinking, "here it comes, time to start throwing up shots as only Kobe can do".

But...it never happened. Kobe and the 2nd unit just ran the offense from there. It was as if he had went cold and said, "Ok. I missed one. It's over. Let's get back to what we're supposed to do fellas."

That more than anything, was the most surprising thing of the night.

That was a level of maturity that I've never seen out of Kobe.

Wow.

Best player on the planet and not a player close.
_________________
Stephon Marbury on Kobe: "He's the only person on 'dis earth that can do 'dat. He guards people, like shuts 'em down. Then, to do 'dat on 'da offensive end. It's like 'Damn, I can't score on him AND he about to bust my ass."

[NYLakerFan]

I always love your writeups DB and almost never disagree. But your take on Vlad's game last night seemed a bit off. I remembering thinking as I watched that he still could not throw a pea in the ocean but was bringing a LOT more to the party than I was led to believe he would. His old label as nothing but a gunner seems to be way off base. He played decent D, grabbed every rebound within a body or two of himself, and showed pretty damn good court sense and passing. Even though he was only in for a short while, I felt he made a difference. And the biggest thing of all was his hustle. He is certainly not the "stand around the perimeter gunner" that I thought he was before coming to the Lakers.

Maybe his injury is a blessing in disguise. Is he playing a more complete game now than he has in the past perhaps forced by his inability to shoot?

[20,000]

I love these kinds of games.

Can't tell yet if it lessens the heartache of the loss to the Bucks, or makes it sting worse. But maybe the loss to the Bucks is what we needed. The low point (if you can call it that) that wakes up the beast inside. The "How could we lose to such an inferior team?" moment. Like in 1994 when the 49ers got trounced against the Eagles, Steve Young was removed from the game, cursed out George Seifert on the sidelines, and the 49ers went on to steamroll to the Superbowl.

Yes, lofty expectations, but I will never back down from championship aspirations for the Lakers.

Everything seemed to look good yesterday. The defense, the offense, the switching, the energy. Unlike against Milwaukee when everyone seemed confused, when no one had an answer, when everyting looked ugly. All players were hitting shots, giving it their all. Hell, even Sasha finally hit a three. It was an ugly three, but perhaps this gets him going?

And while Vlad is not getting rave reviews, I still like what he does for this team. He hustles. He plays defense. Sure, he won't win DPOY, but he is a good defensive player. He gets steals, he bothers his man, he rebounds.

Kwame still needs to walk around every day with a basketball in his hands to get a good feel for it, though. He is still uncomfortable at times going up for a regular layup. He just throws things up without knowing what will happen to it. Yet then he amazes me and hits some good runners.

What I also found telling was how Kwame and Kobe were kidding around on the bench in the 4th. I saw Kobe laughing and throwing a towel over Kwame's head. Kwame needs this, the comradery, the trust of his teammates, not the scowl of MJ when things don't go how they have to go.

And like others noted above, Kobe got his points, then made sure others got theirs. I thought it was a bad move to put Kobe back in the fourth, but now that I think about it, it was a brilliant move on Phil's part. Get Kobe out there when we all know he is hot, when the Jazz know he is hot, when martians from Omega-5 know he is hot, and have him look for others to generate points. Get Walton some points. Get Farmar some points. Get Evans some points. It was brilliant, not only to teach opposing defenses that no matter how many points Kobe CAN get, you have to look out for our other players as well.

But it was also brilliant for our own team. That no matter how hot Kobe gets in a game, don't just stand around watching him. Get involved, and Kobe will find you. The offense will work if you are active, and not just a spectator. You too will score points, and as a team, you can blow out anyone.

This was a huge victory for so many different reasons. Now we just need to keep this up for the Spurs, and all other 28 teams. Hopefully the Lakers learned something from this.
_________________
Courage doesn't always roar.
Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying...'I will try again tomorrow.'

[angrypuppy]

I liked what I saw out of Radman too, but it was during the extended garbage time. Still, it was Jerry Sloan garbage time, which means that the Jazz reserve players (to their credit) played with lots of energy.

[rpadma12]

^ magic_bryant, completely agree with that post.. I had the same feeling watching the game.. i.e. What was Kobe going to do when he cools off? Glad he didn't force it...

From La Times:

Bryant said he didn't want to stay in the game and try for 60 or more because he didn't want to "make a circus out of the situation."

[lakers4peat]

By the way, just being curious, DB:

Do you vary the amount of "))" or "(("?

This one probably deserves three of themat the least ... .


_________________
"[...] the Celtics coach squinted closer and understood that these [misses] weren’t nerves. “It was because of that big [expletive] running around". [...] It was Bynum. Andrew Bynum. Yes, he changes everything."

[maddprophet]

ohhhh that was fun to watch. my own personal psyche needed that one.

nice to see we kept the pedal to the metal all night. typically once you get such a big lead you relax and allow a team to make a run and bring it to single digits. but once we got up by 20, the jazz tried to get back in it, but we kept it above 18 or so the rest of night. never even allowed to think it was possible to get back in.

even during scrub time, our guys were playing hard, and running the system. and everyone continued to play within the system while kobe went nuts. great all around game. and thats one you have to have against a team like the jazz on the 2nd niight of a back to back in our house. just taking care of business.
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Spark the ism, my expertism, is lyracism, my flow will take you over like I was hypnotism...so where's the lighter, to start the cypher....

[20,000]

Best line of the night. When talking about the Bucks' loss the other night, they talked about Tex Winter and how he was brought in to talk to the team about the zone.

"Hey, guys, the 1962 book I wrote was written when we only faced zone defenses. The triangle was designed with the zone in mind. If you just run the triangle as you normally would, you will still in."

Of course, this is a summary of what the reporter said, and does not reflect Tex Winter's, LA Lakers, or TNT's actual words and thoughts.
_________________
Courage doesn't always roar.
Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying...'I will try again tomorrow.'

[CorkyTomjanovich]

DB- You forgot to mention Kobe gave Kwame a noogie on the bench, late in the 4th.

[limchrc]

I love the way we outplayed the Jazz decisively tonight. Kudos Kobe.

[Klone_dd]

I hate to say it was vintage Kobe because every one of his exceptional game has a uniqueness to them. But, man, that was an incredible display. Perfection in the 3rd - 9/9 FGs 10/10 FTs, 1 board, 1 assist, 1 block, 0 turnovers. Yeah, but can he do it for 4 quarters.

Combine Kobe's perfection with Lamar's do-it-all game, Luke's steadiness and energy from Ronny, who also had a perfect night, = Lakers rout.

[Mr. EiGhTy-OnE]

i was very proud of turiaf and evans tonite. if we can get that consistency night in and night out....WATCH OUT.
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"When (Kobe) gets you on life support, he won't give you mouth to mouth. HE PULLS THE PLUG." -stu