LAKERS vs. BULLS Recap -- 12/19 -- Thoughts and :-(( ratings (DB Sick, Mike@LG sub)

DancingBarry · Last edited by DancingBarry on Tue Dec 19, 2006 8:14 pm; edited 1 time in total

I've been fighting off a flu bug, but it got the better of me last night.

Please feel free to fill this thread with your own for tonight. Thanks.

Get Well Soon DB.

The Lakers played a relatively mundane game against the Bulls. The energy of the team was sporatic. Kwame, Kobe, Walton, and Evans had their share of energy plays, whether it was Kwame in the paint, Kobe hitting the open man, Walton doing what he does best, or Evans finishing under the basket.

The Lakers had a chance to blow out the game in the 2nd quarter, holding the Bulls to 44% shooting in the 1st half. After leading up to 10 points, the 3rd quarter came with a flurry of quick baskets and quick 7-0 runs by both teams.

Midway through the 3rd quarter, the Bulls were shooting at a 75% clip, while the Lakers dropped from 50% in the first half to 43%.

In the end, a series of pick and roll situations with Sweetney opened up a considerable Bulls lead. Bynum drew poor angles denying the cutter position while the PG defender never really contested the pass and at times looked lost. Team rotation was late from the weakside, and from there on out, was the ball game.

Kobe Bryant -

Kobe Bryant did what he could, but even superstar players have bad games. Mostly defended by Duhon, he settled for an awful lot of turnaround jumpshots from midrange, most of which did not hit. Usually Bryant torches the Bulls because of the smaller defenders. In the 4th quarter, Sefalosha defended him and he was practically shutout by wingspan. Bryant didn't come out with a lot of energy all game, but tried to attack the basket with real aggression in the 4th quarter. Nothing was going his way.

Bryant hit a turnaround 14' jumper over Duhon and another 18' J straight away over Duhon. Hit Kwame on a great post entry pass on the move for a layup. Kobe was able to block a Duhon layup in midtransition and hit Kwame and Walton a couple more times for open 3pt. shots and finishes right under the basket. He stepped up in the 4th attacking the basket on a couple drives, hitting a layup on a stutterstep dribble on Duhon and a 17' J over him, but got tapped on 5 shots throughout the game and had to bail out the team several times. He just never got into a groove.

Smush Parker -

Parker came out more aggressive this game. He was more aggressive attacking the basket on Ben Gordon when the timing was right and came out firing from the perimeter. He did a strong job in regards to staying in front of his man and his responsibility in regards to PnR defense. He did get burned a few times and had a few costly turnovers, but was able to draw a couple charge fouls against Gordon and Sefalosha to keep the Lakers close.

Parker got a steal off of a Ben Wallace pass and was fouled, hitting 1 of 2 FTs. He hit a 19' J with good footing and a proper use of a pick. He had a series of layups and floaters against Gordon and Duhon in the 2nd and 3rd quarter, utilizing his wingspan to get the ball high up on the glass. He finished the game off with another layup and slam dunk. All of his shot opportunities were within the confines of the offense. Solid game by him.

Vladimir Radmanovic -

:roll: :roll:
Radmanovic had a tough assignment against Loul Deng. Deng has long strides, a strong frame, and an aggressive mindset. When he's open, he'll pull from midrange and drive hard with his left hand striaght into contact for a basket. Vladimir couldn't get any kind of offensive rhythm going, and kept getting beat on Deng's drives and on team rotation as well.

After hitting an early 3pt. shot off of a Walton drive/dish situation, his best productivity was best done defensively. He finished the game with 3 steals, tapping passes and stealing off of Hinrich's drive. Otherwise he struggled to get good shot attempts up and seemed to make up his mind before reading the defense and reacting properly. No doubt the ligament problem is affecting his shooting, but it shouldn't affect his decision-making this much.

Luke Walton - 8) 8) 8)
Walton had a subaverage game. He was able to hit a 3pt. shot off of Bryant's courtvision and do a strong job playmaking for a team high 7 assists to a variety of teammates.

He hit a 14' J off of a garbage play early, a 3-point shot, and a dunk off of a gamble steal defensively. Otherwise, there isn't much to highlight.

Kwame Brown -

Kwame Brown played a hell of a game. The entire game he was being setup by Walton and Bryant, and it's clear that his aggressive play is directly linked to to how well he's able to finish offensively.

After starting out flat on a 2' miss over Ben Wallace, he hit a layup on Parker's drive/dish in midtransition, a 4' jumphook over Ben Wallace, a "block" on Ben Wallace's dunk attempt (though it looked like he lost control on the way up), and hit another layup after a Bryant post entry pass. That was quite a productive 1st quarter. Later in the game he hit another 2' jumphook over Ben Wallace, came from a weakside help rotation block on Chris Duhon's layup attempt, got an And 1 situation on a baseline Pick and Roll situation, finished with a dunk on Walton's drive/dish, another And 1 from a Bryant post entry pass, a weakside block on Loul Deng's layup attempt, and another layup off an offensive rebound. His activity on both ends of the floor was unparalled and he looked like he was the only guy ready to play for the Lakers. Once his offense was going through, his mind woke up defensively and turned him into not just a shotblocker, but an active player in the paint on the boards. He finished with 18, 12, 2, 1, 2 on 8 of 14 shooting. Games like that are precisely why he was a #1 pick in 2000. Doing it every game is another story...

Andrew Bynum -

Andrew Bynum had a good 12 minute stint with 6 points, 5 rebs, and 2 blocks in limited time. However, the Bulls key scoring run came against him and his baseline pick and roll defense. Sweetney did a solid job denying him block position that he usually gets, and Bynum improperly executed pick and roll defense on Sweetney, who got real deep position in the paint and finished with 8 points on a series of layups and And 1 situations in a 2 minute span to give the Bulls the breakout run and start taking over the game. He had a lot of good signs during most of the game, but it was the subtle fundamentals that burned him and cost the Lakers the game.

He had a great offensive tip in off of a Bryant missed baseline jumper. Had a flat jumphook against Sweetney, slightly out of his usual range. He hit Farmar with a sweet drop pass on a reverse layup, but was missed. He blocked a Sweetney shot and got a layup trailing the play and getting inside position on Sweetney in transition. Bynum hit another 3' bank jumphook over Sweetney once again.

Jordan Farmar -

Farmar had a tough night from the field. None of his layups hit, but he was able to throw Evans a good lob And 1 opportunity. Nothing else to really note except, the kid needs some added strength. He's an excellent system player and blends in the triangle well, but if he pushed the offense a bit with dribble penetration, he could get himself going more quickly.

Brian Cook

Cook didn't really show much defensively, but scored well in limited time. Late in the 2nd quarter, he had a 6 point spurt, with a 16' jumper off of an exit post pass by Kwame against zone defense, drop stepped Ben Wallace for a layup, and hit a 21' J on a pick and roll situation to give the Lakers a 48-42 lead at the half.

Maurice Evans

When Evans steps into the game, you know what to expect; aggressive play, high energy, and aggressive paint play from the guard position.

He finished and And 1 on a backdoor cut on a Farmar lob pass, hit a 10' jumpshot over Ben Gordon in the paint, and drew a charge on Sefalosha late in the game near the low block. He was aggressive on the boards but had more trouble the further away he was from the basket. You can tell that his comfort is 15' and in, and most comfortable exploding off of two feet right under the basket.

Sasha Vujacic

Sasha came in for limited minutes, but hit an early 3pointer off of a Bynum post exit pass, and had a transition steal and layup.

That is the best we could ask of Sasha and he's still showing he's willing to compete.

Team Summary
Right now the Lakers are lagging. The energy level has dropped dramatically since the Texas trio was played. All of those games were very competitive and tight towards the end and the Laker energy level was high for all of those games.

The Lakers have a game tonight against Minnesota, and considering the energy level of the last game, the competitiveness of the team will show tonight. If they come out lethargic from the get-go once again, it should be a considerable win for the Timberwolves.

The loss of Lamar Odom really shows with how much effort the Lakers have to expend just to keep things tight or barely ahead. Odom does a great job keeping the team efficient with his rebounding and playmaking abilities, along with solid defense.

The Lakers can only hope that Kwame continues to build on his confidence from last night and come out with a great power game tonight against KG.

Maybe then it'll sink in his head that he's an All-Star talent.

Melon Tea · Star Player Joined: 14 Feb 2006 Posts: 1528

judging from that smiley face we won yay!

Muad'Dib · Star Player Joined: 19 Sep 2004 Posts: 3903

I'll start:

Sasha--

Get well soon, DB.

Mike@LG · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 5:26 pm Post subject:

But I don't have TIVO!
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RYZ · Star Player Joined: 02 Jul 2003 Posts: 1393

msb212 · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 5:57 pm Post subject:

Feel better db

Mike@LG · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 5:59 pm Post subject:

My own tv won't even record.
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Resident Car Nut.

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I am not an economic advisor nor do I advise economic strategies or plans.

Tanlentueux · Star Player Joined: 20 Jul 2005 Posts: 7169

angrypuppy · Retired Number Joined: 13 Apr 2001 Posts: 32754

Sorry to hear, DB. Get well soon!

ocho · Retired Number Joined: 24 May 2005 Posts: 53795

your report will be missed. get better soon DB.

drink emergen-c. stuff works miracles.
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14-5-3-12

LakerLanny · Retired Number Joined: 24 Oct 2001 Posts: 47580

That is not a good sign from the outset that DB is under the weather

Get better soon DB, the team needs you!!

We will try and pick up the slack, but you know how that goes...

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Love, Laker Lanny

JZIANNE · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 6:36 pm Post subject:

Your recaps are like dessert to the main course. Get well bro.

ShowtimeDynasty_24/7 · Star Player Joined: 04 Mar 2005 Posts: 8361

get well, drink your fluids...

Melon Tea · Star Player Joined: 14 Feb 2006 Posts: 1528

DancingBarry · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 8:17 pm Post subject:

Thanks guys.

I musta jinxed Kobe. Haven't seen him that off for a long time.

Mr. EiGhTy-OnE · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 8:23 pm Post subject:

I HATE WHEN WE LOSE

_________________
"When (Kobe) gets you on life support, he won't give you mouth to mouth. HE PULLS THE PLUG." -stu

Freakout · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 8:27 pm Post subject:

Smush - B

Kwame - B

Everyone else gets a F

Mr. EiGhTy-OnE · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 8:34 pm Post subject:

when Kobe does have to rest, what do you guys think of a Smush/Farmar backcourt? I really cant take anymore of Sasha. I cringe everytime they show his grill on TV
_________________
"When (Kobe) gets you on life support, he won't give you mouth to mouth. HE PULLS THE PLUG." -stu

- Sean - · Star Player Joined: 23 Apr 2002 Posts: 7339 Location: L.A.

The Bulls are 11th in the league in shooting at 46%. They shot 50% tonight....which is higher than the league leading 49% Phoenix shoots at.

Everybody is going to want to play the Lakers if they keep up w/ the porous defense.

ajaxxx · Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 9:03 pm Post subject:

ok here goes nothing:

Kobe

Sasha

Kwame 8)
Smush

Evans

Walton

Cook

Farmar 8)
Radmonivic

Bynum

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New Orleans Hornets superstar point guard Chris Paul is reportedly headed to the Los Angeles Lakers in a blockbuster trade.

Heyvoon24 · Star Player Joined: 10 Dec 2006 Posts: 3933

kwame was a monster tonight. too bad we lost.

A Mad Chinaman · Star Player Joined: 07 Apr 2005 Posts: 6142

Get Well DB!

Here are some short thoughts and opinions for discussion since I couldn't TiVo it since it was on Channel 9

GAME
Game started well, especially the reserves. When the Bulls made an adjustment, the Lakers didn't react effectively enough with the Bulls getting many more points in paint - as evident by their effective shooting percentage in the second half. The team gave a good effort while providing evidence that this might still be a successful road trip (.500 percentage) - though they still have a lot to learn about winning on the road.

KOBE
He got "tapped" (when will he get the fouls that DWade/Arenas/etc. get?!?!) and had many "deep into the clock" shots that made his shooting percentage a lot worse than the actual stats. His shots, still, weren't quite falling tonight. His defense is getting better, though the Bulls' movement on offense was a challenge. Kobe fouled out, first time in over a year, near the end of the game while trying to defend.

LUKE
He had a workman-like performance that was neither good or bad. People are still waiting if he would be the 2nd offensive option - whether passing or scoring - for the Lakers. The verdict is till out.

SMUSH
He was actually more aggressive and had exerted more energy throughout the game - he even touched hands with everybody on the bench when he was taken out (hey, maybe he got the message from all the complaints on LG)

KWAME
He effectively "body-up" Big Ben and forced him to defend him since he got 18 & 8 (apx. stats). He was a presence throughout most of the game though people still hope that he can be even more effective offensively

BYNUM
Up and down - he showed flashes while showing that he is still a rookie. Made some nice moves and blocks throughout the game

JORDAN
Provided constant, continual and persuasive evidence that he is the future PG - in addition to showing that he is still a rookie

SASHA
Came in and within seconds drained a 3pointer - WOW. He seems to have adapted Kobe's attitude of going forward it and being aggressive while trusting his talent - whatever level it is. This is much more preferable than disappearing without a whimper. If he is going to be dammed, he might as well go out with all guns blazing - have to give the brotha credit

VLAD
Coming off his best game as a Laker, he returned to his previous numbers while developing/showing other parts of the game

EVANS
Provided good energy, with a few acrobatic plays. In the first half, was part of the reserves that stretched the lead to 11 points - unfortunately, couldn't do that in the second half

TURIAFF
Did he play?!?!

COOK
Did he play - must have missed him?!?!

Klone_dd · Star Player Joined: 11 Mar 2002 Posts: 7330

The Lakers were beaten by another fat man. Sweetney was a handful in his 11 minutes, scoring 11 pts & 4 boards.

We gave up way, way too many layups and also committed too many turnovers.

Kobe had a poor (and hopefully rare) shooting game. The shots he took were well within his rhythm and range, but just didn't go down. If he had a typical Kobe game, the Lakers would've pulled this one out.

Smushie had fewer brain locks and actually did some good things out there.

Kwame played big. 8)

Luke, although he played his normal steady game, is not the 2nd scorer on this team without Lamar.

Vlad - what happened? I thought you had a breakout game on Sunday.

Shaber · Posted: Wed Dec 20, 2006 12:02 am Post subject:

Sports.espn.go.com ranks Tuesdays players in "Extreme behavior":

"Tuesday's Best
Bulls forward Luol Deng:
Nets 23 points and pulls in 12 boards in Chicago's 94-89 win over the visiting Lakers. That was the Bulls' 12th win in 13 games. Only a headband can stop this team now.

Tuesday's Worst
Lakers guard Kobe Bryant:
Departed the United Center floor with some Mutombo finger-wagging after fouling out for the first time in over a year. Scored a combined 98 in the previous two games, but finished with 19 points on 6-of-19 shooting."

Texas_Pete · Posted: Wed Dec 20, 2006 4:38 am Post subject: