LAKERS -at- GRIZZLIES - 1/9 - Thoughts and :-(( ratings

[DancingBarry]

Stupid Ball... Is this team predictable or what? They get up for the big games, then get drilled by the cellar dwellers...and in typical fashion, too -- hoisting threes over a zone and getting destroyed 39-10 on the break in the process.

And when they did try to get the ball inside, they couldn't finish. The Lakers probably missed more layups and chippies in this single game than the past five. Missing long shots and turning the ball over got them on their heels defensively.

I'm sure Phil will have plenty of fodder in this one. He can just look at the third quarter, where the Grizzlies scored a team-record 46 points. No matter how many times the coaches preached controlling the tempo and getting the ball inside, the team failed to execute. "We made mistakes, we made a lot of mistakes," Phil said afterward. At one point after a couple of timeouts, eight of nine attempts by the Lakers were all from beyond the arc. Just some sad passing around the perimeter, settling for the long shot.

The entire team played soft D (if you couldn't tell by the 128-118 score), but the transition D was especially poor. From Kobe to last guy off the bench, they put themselves into a bad spot and couldn't recover from it. On the offensive end, Sasha bumped his career-high to 18 points and Mo Evans was on fire scoring 21 points in 21 minutes. Not much else to say. Move on and try to get the next one.


Kobe -- -- Well, Stu was hoping Kobe would get some rest in this game. Unfortunately, it was watching from the bench as our bench played out the rest of the Memphis blowout. He played 30 minutes scoring 25 on 7-15 shooting, 2-6 from three. He had 6 assists, 3 boards, 3 steals and 2 blocks. He drained a three from the wing. He lost the ball, swiped it back and hit Luke, who found Bynum for a dunk. He drew FTs on a reach and made both. He attacked off a weakside bounce pass, drew contact on Gasol for FTs, he made both. He picked up his second foul on a baseline hook and had to sit with six minutes left in the first quarter. Back in to start the second, he took Kinsey to school with a swing through for two FTs, which he made. He drew another foul on him attacking to his left, rising up and drilling an And-1 jumper after taking contact, he made the FT. He hit Farmar under the hoop for an easy reverse when Chucky came over to double Kobe. He got into the lane, drew contact, lost the ball, got it back and drew a foul on Chucky reaching, he made both FTs. He got into the middle of the zone, passed up on the 10-footer to hit a cutting Cook for the reverse layup. He worked his man off the dribble, got him in the air, then rose up to shoot, but hit Bynum instead for a score under the hoop. He shook his man, got into the lane and had a layup rejected by Swift...we got the ball back, sent it back to Kobe, again he attacked, spinning to lose his man, this time he threw down a huge jam that had the crowd buzzing. He had 16 points (hit all 9 FTs he attempted) at the half. He missed a layup, attacking the baseline. He swished a wing three over the zone. He attacked to his left, floated around Gasol and scooped in a layup with his left. He stripped Gasol after a Laker miss, then hammered down a dunk. He missed a three over the zone. Finally, Kobe broke a Laker streak of three shooting with an attack down the lane for an easy score. He missed a three over the zone at the end of the quarter.

Walton -- -- Uggh. After a great game against Dallas, Luke scored just 4 points in this one on 1-8 shooting, 0-3 from three. He had 6 boards, 5 assists, 3 steals. He posted up Miller on the first sequence of the game and banked (Miller injured his wrist on the play). He stepped around Eddie Jones in the post to steal a soft entry pass. Nice steal off a passout under the hoop. He attacked the baseline and fed Drew in the lane for FTs. Good hustle to track down a loose ball and it resulted in two FTs, which he made. He got into the heart of the zone and hit Bynum with an interior feed for a dunk. He threw an outlet way over Smush's reach for a turnover. He didn't box out Swift and fouled him on an offensive board. He missed a point-blank layup on the break.

Smush -- -- Smush scored 9 points on 3-9 shooting, getting all his points in the first half before the wheels came off in the second. He followed a miss by Kobe in transition for an easy putback. He attacked quickly in transition, drew a foul on Chucky and made both FTs. He took a baseline kickout from Cook and knocked down a jumper. He posted up Chucky and drew his third foul of the half, he made one FT. He got a lucky break when Memphis goaltended a wild shot attempt by Smush. He missed a floater. He had 9 points on 3-7 shooting at the half.

Cook -- -- A shooting night like this would usually have Cook on the bench, but with Gasol's size and our injuries, we needed a big body. Cook scored 8 points on a poor 4-13 shooting, missing all four attempts from beyond the arc. He did have 7 boards and 3 assists in his 24 minutes. He missed a post up on his first attempt. He missed a jumper trying to create off the dribble. He doubled Chucky on the sideline and forced a turnover. He sank a wing jumper with his heels on the three line. Nice cut and he scored a reverse off a Kobe interior feed in the zone. He swished a long jumper from the baseline on a kickout. He drew a charge on Miller on a pass off. He contested Warrick well in the paint to force a miss. He missed back to back threes. He completely bricked a point-blank layup under the hoop. He missed a three over the zone. He flashed from the weakside and knocked down a 9-footer in the lane.

Bynum -- -- Drew was missing a few chippies and easy ones he normally makes. He scored 11 points on 5-13, grabbed 8 boards, blocked 3 shots and had 4 turnovers in 34 minutes. Hopefully, he's got something in the tank for the next one. He dunked when Luke hit him with a pass after a scramble for a loose ball. He missed a couple of chippies underneath the hoop. He threw down a putback dunk and the refs erased it with a bad offensive interference call. He sealed the fronting man, Luke got penetration and fed him and Andrew got fouled trying to finish strong, he made one FT. He scored a layup when Kobe faked a shot and found him under the hoop. He swiped an offensive board away from Swift, pivoted and then threwdown with both hands. He had 7 points on 3-7 shooting and 5 boards at the half. He missed an easy layup off a drive and dish from Smush. Luke found him in the lane against the zone and Bynum dunked. Nice offensive board, then he threw the pass into the backcourt and Memphis scored. Swift tried to take him off the dribble and Bynum rejected his shot off the glass, resulting in a transition score the other way. He scored a layup off a quick entry pass from Farmar.

Radmanovic -- -- Not a favorable matchup for Vlad when we stuck him against Gasol, who is just to big for him. Vlad fouled out in 17 minutes after scoring 6 points on a poor 1-6 shooting. He didn't grab a stinking board in that time. I know we've got the hand injury to deal with, but that doesn't effect his ability to grab boards. He attacked Gasol off the dribble and was blocked. He Kwame-bricked an easy low post shot off the glass. He faked a three, attacked the paint and drew a foul, he made both FTs. He missed a corner three over the zone. He missed another three over the zone. He swished a 19-footer from the wing. He faked the three, attacked and drew FTs, making both. He fouled out with 7 minutes left trying to D-up Gasol in the post.

Turiaf -- -- He was able to top Vlad's fouling out in 17 minutes by fouling out in just 13 minutes. Damn. Ronny scored 4 points on 2-4 shooting, grabbed 4 boards and pretty much was in over his head at times. He worked the two-man game with Farmar, missed a layup, then tipped it in. He gave up position on the defensive glass and had to foul Gasol. He blocked Kinsey trying to score a reverse. He faced up and sank a 16-footer over Gasol who gave him space. He missed a jumper. He gave up some fouls on the defensive glass and sat very early in the fourth, fouling out.

Evans -- -- We wasted a good game from Mo, who was feeling it. He scored 21 points on just 6-7 shooting, hitting 3-3 from the arc and 6-7 from the line in just 21 minutes. He traveled trying to create off the dribble early on after coming in for Kobe who had gotten into early foul trouble. He drew a foul posting up his man and earned a couple FTs. He hit a three over the zone. He hit another three over the zone. He got into the lane and hit short pull-up jumper. Out in transition off a Bynum block, he pulled up at the elbow and hit an And-1 jumper as he was bumped from behind, he made the FT. He swished a wing three. He pumpfaked, got the defender in the air and drew FTs, he made one. He pulled up and swished another mid range jumper.

Farmar -- -- Some up and down minutes from Farmar. At the end of the night he had some respectable numbers, scoring 12 points on 5-9 shooting and dishing 4 assists in just 20 minutes. He attacked the lane, missed, but Drew would have cleaned up the dribble penetration if not for the bad offensive interference call. He posted up Chucky and hit a short turnaround with ease (he's actually decent at that turnaround and gets great elevation. I'd like to see it more). He fumbled the ball on the last possession of the first quarter and then forced a pass and we had a shotclock violation. He set up Ronny off the two-man game for an easy score. Chucky left him under the hoop and Jordan scored an reverse layup when Kobe found him. He tapped Miller on the arm on the break for an easy And-1, and then was benched. He missed a baseline jumper. He charged on a drive. He forced a pass into traffic for a turnover. He swished a three from the corner on a kickout from Bynum. He attacked the baseline and kicked out to Sasha who hit a three. He missed back to back threes. He found Bynum under the hoop for a layup. He swished a three off a Walton kickout. He stole the ball, took it the length of the court and dunked.

Vujacic -- -- Good news is Sasha continues to hit on the offensive end. After going for a career high in the previous game, Sasha extended that career high to 18 points on an efficient 4-6 shooting (all threes) and 6-6 from the line. He had 3 steals, 2 assists, 2 turnovers and 5 fouls in 23 minutes. He had some foul-prone minutes, even some turnstile moments on D, but he kept hustling to the final buzzer. He knocked down an entry pass for a steal. He forced a pass into traffic and it resulted in a breakaway score. He then got called for a weak technical for bouncing the ball off the standard. He missed a three from the corner. He did his best Chucky defensive impersonation, with the turn and watch, and Chucky blew past him for a layup in transition. He swished a three from the top of the key. He sank a three over the zone. He missed his next three attempt over the zone. He telegraphed a pass to Kobe who was waving for it and it resulted in a dunk the other way. He started the fourth, sinking a wing three. He sank a three straight away off a kickout from Farmar. He poked a ball loose on the perimeter then drew a foul, he made both FTs. Sasha attacked down the lane and drew FTs, he made both. He grabbed an offensive board, drew a foul and made both.

Phil -- -- Got killed by the zone, yet again. He's going to have to keep drilling these guys because they just don't get it some times... The coaches didn't like the tempo of the game in the first half, even though we had the lead. We were missing three's instead of pounding it inside and Memphis got out on the break. They wanted the team to work it inside and slow the game down in the second half... After a couple of interior attacks to start the half, they settled for threes and let the Grizzlies get out in transition again and again and take the lead. Phil was ticked and called a timeout, trailing by five. The Lakers missed some chippies, played soft transition D and Phil had to call another timeout trailing by double digits...The starters were just getting killed in transition, so out of that timeout he made a change. He benched everyone, but Kobe and went with Sasha, Mo, Vlad and Ronny. We then took six straight three's out of that timeout and got killed on the other end unable to come up with a single stop. After a Kobe drive, we missed two more threes. So that was 8 of 9 attempts from beyond the arc against the zone after that timeout. I don't think that's what the coaches had in mind. They were outscored 46-22 in that quarter playing right into the Grizzlies hands. Stooopid... The Lakers need to put together a good effort tomorrow, the fifth game in seven nights. Hopefully, we don't get zoned...

[angel]

Thanks DB!

There were a couple of bright spots in this stinker.
_________________
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that." ~~Martin Luther King Jr.~~

[8750]

thanks, DB...
let me talk about philosophy for ten seconds... the problem with phil is that he's zen but he's not taoist... he has good ideas, but then he becomes very rigid with his good ideas... the way he coached in playoffs against the suns is emblematic... now he's very happy with kobe as facilitator and this "equal opportunities" team... the problem is that this formula doesn't work always... some games, you need to change... some games, you need a fifty points kobe in order to win... especially because this team is always mentally very soft: when everything flows these players are good, when something doesn't work these players show lack of character.... and in these situations you desperately need that kobe takes possession of the game... maybe we could give to phil some books, beginning with lao tzu...

[A Mad Chinaman]

[DancingBarry]

[DancingBarry]

[TheMitchell05]

Thanks DB. I don't have KCAL so these recaps are great even though it was a loss. Oh and you put Sasha with 4 of 4 free throws when he had 6-6. Thanks again.

[angel]

I hope this ignites the Grizzlies into a winning streak. We don't really want Greg Oden in the West. Anything we can do to improve the Grizzlies record might have to be considered. Besides, the Lakers own the Bobcats second round pick, which may be better at the end of the season if the Grizzlies can win a few. Now, the Grizzlies are elevated to 9 wins, which is the same as the Bobcats and Sixers.
_________________
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that." ~~Martin Luther King Jr.~~

[DancingBarry]

[A Mad Chinaman]

[prisma8slg]

thanks DB. so predictable to bring their "C" game vs a bad team. only a few bench players really played.

hope the starters take advantage of the "rest" they got.
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"I define success by championships, by winning..." Kobe Bryant

"I've seen it all. Sasha dunked on somebody," Kobe Bryant said. "I'm ready to retire now."

[karlmalonefan]

It's called coming back down to earth. They were due for a stinker. Phil and Kobe will get them back on track. We sure missed kwame and LO in this one. I wish we would have tried throwing a zone at them in that third quarter...maybe they did. I was watching it on my Tivo and fast-forwarded the marjority of the second half 'cuz I just couldn't stand to watch it.

Hopefully they'll get up for the game tonight. Oh, and props to the bench for at least making it respectable there at the end.
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Welcome to OverreactionGround.net, where a single possession can make you the savior of mankind or a total moron. -Ozendorph

[Hades]

That Sasha turnover really pissed Kobe off

[angrypuppy]

Thanks DB.

It looks like Kwame was really missed, despite the fact that Lakers have repeatedly played to the level of the competition this season. The sooner they give Kwame serious minutes at the 4 the better, because he has irreplaceable skills at defending elite bigs. Even when Andrew becomes the starter, Turiaf and Mihm can't duplicate what Kwame brings to the table.

I was going to catch the end of the game last night, but when I looked at the box score during the fourth quarter I decided not to bother. Cook is best on offense when he's standing on the arc and being ignored. He's like Bruce Bowen, benefiting from defensive collapses and double teams. But when they remain covered, their limitations are exposed. At least Bowen knows his limitations, and doesn't try to score. Unfortunately once Cook has to put the ball on the floor, you know he'll probably miss... and you pray for a pass that probably won't be made.

That being said, without viewing the game I would imagine that Cook would have had an awful time last night. When Bynum is missing shots, there's no need for Cook's man to double Andrew. When the team isn't attacking the basket, the defense doesn't need to collapse.

The lone silver lining was Sasha's shooting, but even that was compromised by poor defense.

I sure hope Phil's message starts to hit home.

[ryuvienco]

Sadly, I had a feeling this would be a let down game. I didn't get to watch the game, but saw highlights this morning on Sportscenter. Didn't know that Mo had 21 pts. They didn't really say that during the highlights.
I hope they pull it out tonight. Looks like they were already thinking about the rockets anyway.

[Klone_dd]

I was in Memphis over the weekend, thinking I should stay Tuesday to go to the game, but, thank God, work beckoned (probably the only time I'll ever say that) and I returned to LA Tuesday morning.

Unfortunately, I still watched the game on TV. Uggh.

Nothing positive other than to say that we're consistent like DB said. Consistently bad against bad teams.

[TheProdigy]

Bynum's really gotta start dunking those chippies. I'm watching a couple of Shaq's clips right now and I don't see anything that prevents him from doing so. I mean, Shaq doesn't exactly get up that high on the two-handed dunks(one-hand though is a different matter.) Also, unlike Kwame, his hands are big(huge in fact) that there's no worry about the ball slipping out and hitting the back of the rim.

You can usually judge if a player can dunk from a certain distance after what you've seen what he's done previously. I rewatched the 3rd quarter and Bynum missed three consecutive layups, two of which he could have powered in(though the first one, he could have taken a dribble.)

[DancingBarry]

Bynum's improved a lot on playing above the rim over last year. He hasn't gotten swatted with as much regularity as he used to. With a little more experience and strength, I think he'll eventually be powering up all of those around the rim.

[f-lakerhaters]

Thanks for the update, since I can't get away games here in Vegas, at least I can read how they played.

[Mr. EiGhTy-OnE]

why can't a cocah who gets paid $10 million a year coach against zone D? phil was outcoached by an extra from the Sopranos
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"When (Kobe) gets you on life support, he won't give you mouth to mouth. HE PULLS THE PLUG." -stu

[TooCool]

[Mr. EiGhTy-OnE]

Phil needed to call a timeout sooner in the 3rd to stop the bleeding before the game got out of control like it did. i know he likes to let them play thru it, but you cant do that with such a young and injury plagued team.
_________________
"When (Kobe) gets you on life support, he won't give you mouth to mouth. HE PULLS THE PLUG." -stu