MAVS -at- LAKERS - 3/11 - Thoughts and :-(( ratings

[DancingBarry]

Record-Setting Shellacking... "We were embarrassed today," Phil said. "That was an embarrassing loss for us and there is no excuse for the way we played." That about sums it up. Obviously, it was going to be a difficult game to win with our current injury situation, but you still want to battle every possession. You still want to compete. The Lakers were smoked on their way to a 36-point loss, the worst in L.A. for the franchise.

All that said, Kobe has to play a sensational game for these current Lakers lineups to get a win. He can't play average or above average, he has to play superb. When he sat late in the first quarter, we lost our lead. When he returned, his perimeter shot was somewhere on the IR next to Vlad, Mihm and Lamar.

On energy guys -- Turiaf and Evans -- are beat up and it showed. Others needed to step up and, instead, they stepped back. Smush Parker has no excuse for making this team another man short by taking himself out of the game with his mouth.

Only two Lakers scored in double figures as the team shot 37 percent for the night. We had just 13 assists, a far cry from those games where we were in the high 20s or even 30s. The Lakers are lucky they also didn't set a new team record for scoring ineptitude. Jordan Farmar and Andrew Bynum saved the Lakers from setting that mark by scoring two baskets in the last minute to finish out the 108-72 loss.

The only good news was seeing Luke in his warmups and hearing Lamar is cleared to give his shoulder a test in practice. May the Basketball Gods finally throw us a bone.


Kobe -- -- After a quick start to the first, he faded with the series of missed jumpers. He perimeter game was MIA all night. He adjusted decently, attacking the paint and getting to the line, but it didn't matter. Phil wanted him to trust his teammates a little more, hard to blame Kobe if he did lose a little faith in them looking at the lineup around him. Kobe was playing some fairly weak D, looking stickier than ever when screened. Kobe scored 25 points on a poor 6-19 shooting and a poor 13-18 from the line. The FT numbers show how his shot was off. He also had 9 boards, 3 assists, but with 5 turnovers. On to the action: He saw a gap, attacked and pulled up for a baseline jumper. He crossed over Buckner, sending him staggering backwards, attacked and drew a foul on Howard, he made one FT. He scooped up a loose ball and drew a clear-path foul, he made both FTs...then he swished a fading elbow jumper on the same possession. He missed a jumper, getting hit on both arms with no call. He missed a three. He pulled up and drained a top-of-the-key jumper over George. He airballed a turnaround. He pulled down an offensive board, then was fouled by George, he made both. He took a series of dribbles between the legs, then pumpfaked George into a foul and made both FTs. He missed an 18-footer. He missed a three. He missed a runner with his left. He missed a long turnaround against the shotclock. He drew a double and found Cook under the basket for a score. He attacked George off the dribble, drew a foul and made one FT. He attacked down the lane and finger rolled in traffic. He fumbled a perimeter pass away. He threw a weak perimeter pass that was easily picked off, he contested the layup and luckily the halftime buzzer went off before the tip in. Kobe was 4-16 at the half for 16 points. He drew a foul and then bricked both FTs, wow. He pulled up at the FT line on the pick and roll and hit Kwame for a dunk. He posted up Terry and banked at the front of the rim. He blew past George and drew FTs, just missing an And-1, he made both. He attacked on the baseline and threw it away for a dunk on the other end. He hit Ronny with a bouncepass for an And-1. Down by 30, Phil sent him back in. Kobe drew FTs on a jumper, he made both. He attacked, drew FT missed another one flat, made the other. He missed a runner, then tapped it back in.

Bynum -- -- Bynum got the start, but it wasn't in the plans. Phil then sat him in the second half. Drew was a non-factor in this game. Even though he want 1-4, he only had one back-to-the-basket post up attempt where we entered the ball to him and he tried to go to work. In a blowout, especially, we should be feeding the post, getting him some work. Bynum scored 2 points, grabbed 4 boards, dished 2 assists and blocked 1 shot in 23:49 of action. He bricked an easy jumphook. He swatted Howard's penetration. He missed another easy shot in front of the rim. He got his first back-to-the-basket opportunity midway through the fourth and took an awkward half-jumphook, half-jumpshot and missed short. He dunked off an Evans bouncepass in the last minute.

Smush -- -- I probably wouldn't have blamed him if he got tossed in the fourth quarter of this blow out. I know I didn't want to watch much more. But Smush was sent packing early. Very early. He played 6 minutes, had 3 turnovers, 2 fouls and 2 techs. Ouch. We have a couple walking wounded players, and a host full of others on our IR. You've got guys who are our 11th, 12th men getting major minutes along with guys who should be IR spots 1, 2 and 3... and you get ejected? Not smart. Here's the notes on Smush when he was in the game: He attacked quickly off the dribble, drew a foul and made both FTs. He picked up his second foul and was quickly sent to the bench. On the next trip down, he picked up a tech from the bench. Horrible pass, forcing it to a bigman in traffic in transition (never a good idea) and it led to a clear-path foul the other way. He attacked off the dribble, was fouled with no call, then said something to the refs and was tossed early in the second period.

Evans -- -- Phil mentioned that Mo would be sitting out if we had more warm bodies. He certainly didn't seem to have that extra juice that we usually see crashing the boards and making things happen. He had 4 points on 2-8 shooting and just 1 defensive board in 29 minutes. Mo's highlights: Nice rotation on George and he forced an airball and shotclock violation. He missed his first two attempts, both from the three line. He missed another jumper. He got a fortunate bounce on a pull-up jumper in the lane. He took a dribble in and swished a corner jumper. He hit Bynum with a bouncepass for a dunk.

Cook -- -- It seemed like a reasonable game from Cook. Obviously, he's not going to fill LO's shoes anytime soon going up against the mavs, but had he brought this kind of game that off the bench, it would probably be a good effort. Unfortunately, that won't cut it right now. He scored 9 points on 4-10 shooting, grabbed 3 boards and had 1 block and 1 steal in 29 minutes. He never got any real clean looks in our offense as the Mavs did a pretty good job rotating and contesting. He cut with speed off the Bynum post, took the return pass and reversed. He picked up a couple of fouls and had to sit late in the first. Decent D on Dirk in that first stint. He banked down low when Kobe found him under the hoop. He swished a jumper from the wing. He airballed a long three attempt rushing to beat the shotclock. He bricked a jumper over Dirk. He missed a turnaround. He hit an open three (a rare look at one of those in this one).

Kwame -- -- He had some soft finish attempts and some freethrow problems, but he helped shore up a weakness we had against this team without him. Bynum had been getting outmuscled under the hoop the last couple of times we played the Mavs. Kwame's strength helped neutralize that weakness. It still didn't matter much. Kwame had 10 points on 3-4 shooting (4-9 FTs) and 4 boards in just 24 minutes. He posted up, made a series of moves, then banked as he took contact and fell, he made the FT. He was fouled away from the ball and missed both FTs. He attacked and clanked a layup at the front of the rim. He had a jumphook goaltended. He posted up, drew a foul and missed both FTs again. He was hacked again, airballed the first FT, made the second. He attacked off the pick and roll, was hammered, then made both FTs. He threaded the needle to Kobe with a bouncepass for two FTs. He dunked off the screen-roll with Kobe.

Turiaf -- -- He was grimacing a couple of times during the game, but Ronny still gave a spirited effort. He scored 7 points on 3-4 shooting in 14 minutes. He came in for Cook with 3 minutes left in the first. He posted up and drew a foul, making one FT. He hit a jumphook on an extra pass from Shammond in the key. He scored an And-1 from Kobe using his left, he missed the FT and we got it back...McKie then found Ronny for the And-1 dunk, he missed the FT on that one, too.

Shammond -- 8) -- Steady game again from Shammond. I wish he was a bit more aggressive shooting wise in this game, we obviously needed it. He started the second half with Smush tossed. He scored 7 points on 3-4 shooting and dished a couple of assists. He drained a pull-up jumper from the elbow. Horrible over-the-top entry pass not paying attention to the weakside D and it was picked off, then he got scored on matching up with Dirk in transition (some of the blame on that play needs to go to the other big, who needs to flash to the FT line to clear out the backside). He started the second half for Smush and quickly hit a wing jumper on our first possession. He sank a three over his man. He hit Ronny with an extra pass for the short jumphook. He missed a FT catch and shoot.

McKie -- -- McKie didn't score in 17 minutes and only took one shot. He grabbed 4 boards and dished a couple of assists. He jumped a passing lane and stole the ball. He was called for a weak loose ball foul that looked like it should have gone the other way. Nice interior bounce pass to Ronny for the And-1 dunk. He missed a long wing jumper.

Farmar -- -- Farmar was dusted off and inserted into the mix. Unfortunately, he was second on the team in turnovers with 4 on the night. Surprisingly, he was also second in rebounding with 5 boards. He scored 6 points on 3-8 shooting (0-2 from three). He missed a floater from the right side. He missed a baseline jumper. He charged trying to attack Harris off the dribble. He threw an outlet pass away. He hit a tough layup in the lane with his left. He missed a good look at a jumper. He bobbled a pass, but finished the uncontested layup. He missed a pull-up three after stealing the ball. He threw another pass away. He hit a late baseline jumper.

Vujacic -- -- Sasha gave nothing. He chucked up 5 threes and missed all 5 and managed to do that in 13 minutes. All I had in the notes were missed threes and pulling down an offensive board off a missed FT by Ronny.

Phil -- -- There was a lot of rumbling about getting some of the injured reserve back. Hopefully, it happens soon. We already have two walking wounded in Turiaf and Evans. With Walton suited up but not playing and Lamar cleared to run a little practice to check out his shoulder, perhaps help may be on the way... After pulling out to a 7-point lead early, the Lakers got steamrolled with bad passes and poor execution, leading to trouble... The Lakers got the Mavs into the penalty with more than 8 minutes left in the second, but didn't take advantage. They ended up going 3-15 shooting in the second and fell behind by 2 at the half with an 11-point quarter... Phil started Kwame and Shammond in the second half. (He was going to start Kwame for the game, but Kwame showed up late). Smush, of course, was kicked out, forcing our No. 2 guard into the spot... There's little shuffling he can do at this point until we get more bodies. When/if we do get some guys back, we need to get them into a rhythm...quick...

[Heyvoon24]

i guess this is our lowest point of the season. i can't see us being any worse. hopefully luke and lamar will get us out of this mess.

[RYZ]

Thanks, DB.

As Laker related things go, best effort of the night. By far.

[Mation]

Thanks DB; this one was difficult to watch.

There was one play where Dallas stole the ball at halfcourt. Instead of running back on D, about two or three of the Lakers just tried to swap at the ball coming up court. It was in the dreaded second half as well.

At least Ronnie seems a bit more comfortable at the forward position; kind of like a reverse-Kwame situation.

Shammond has strung some nice outings together, hopefully he'll be able to carry that when Luke and Lamar comes back.

We really need these set of days off, especially for Mo.

Have you ever seen a Laker hit the rookie-wall this hard before?

[angrypuppy]

Thanks DB. I appreciate you going through the pain. Good Lord that was ugly.

[Laker7]

Painful and embarasing. Bout sums it up.
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Darvin Ham is an idiot!

[The_Coach]

I'm not sure ugly even begins to describe that game.

DB ... Something looked wrong with Kobe. Not exactly sure what, but he was missing short all night. That is usually a sign of tired legs or worse ... something wrong. Is it just my imagination or did it appear that way to you as well?

And is this the beginning of the end for Smush? I have a difficult time believing the Lakers are going to put up with his attitude much longer.

[20,000]

Last I checked, Lakers were down 34 with two minutes left. I was STILL hoping to come online today and find a ) from DB showing us the Lakers pulled it out.

Why are the Lakers trying so desperately to get back to .500? A bad season is a bad season (very philosophical), but I am not sure which is more hard to stomach: a season of transition like the Rudy T season where we just weren't very good, or this season with all the injuries.

What bothers me most is that it sometimes just looks the Lakers have given up and don't care anymore. The lazy passes, not getting back on defense, poor defensive rotations, losing track of your own man.

Is the lack of talent around him wearing Kobe down, or is he just tired of carrying everyone? This was supposed to be the season when the Lakers carried the team through 3 quarters, then Kobe would take over in the 4th and win it for us. But now he has to play playmaker, scorer, best defensive player, and lately, best rebounder.

I keep telling myself that once the playoffs start it is a new season and we still have hope, but it has been looking very dismal lately.
_________________
Courage doesn't always roar.
Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying...'I will try again tomorrow.'

[8750]

thanks, DB...
injuries, it's obvious... but something with this team is more painful than injuries... you can be a total scrub and have the lowest iq on this planet, but you always must fight... this team never shows any passion, any fire, any intensity... this team plays without any motivation... where is gone the great motivator on our bench?...
even more painful is kobe's state of mind... this guy -the only one who always plays with passion- seems disenchanted... they told him to share with his teammates, and he trusted them... now he sees that his teammates not only don't have technical skills but are mentally losers... the lakers organization and coach are wasting the best years of the best player in the game, and now kobe is fully conscious...

[angrypuppy]

It isn't just injuries. The team has been deflated since Kobe's first suspension. They desperately need something to believe in, that they can win. Additional threats of suspension and chest beating by Stu Jackson aren't helping the cause.

[20,000]

[BigE32]

Thanks, DB. I'm glad that game is over because it was painful to watch.

[Addicus]

Thanks DB. I went to bed wondering how you could stomach this game enough to write this one. I am truly impressed.

Wow man - that was ugly. We started out playing well which only made this game worse in the end.

Not being a big Farmar fan for this system I must say I've noticed he does three things better than Smush:

1. Defensive Rebound
2. Attack the basket while in control (neither one completes the play anymore)
3. Keeps his cool and maintains a balanced outlook.

My thoughts when Smush got himself tossed were:
"Wow. I wonder if he just cut himself off the squad? If not now, during the summer." I really believe he gets too much blame for the failures of this team, but if the owner talks to you one on one about your attitude you have to realize the next step is to go bye bye if no improvement is percieved.

Kobe looks very unhappy. Everyone is looking for him to be the savior and throw up 60 point games every night and he doesn't look interested in that at all.

We have no ball movement on offense. Worse - we have no people movement either. It's easy to defend people when no one cuts. Ever.

Bynum is done for the year. He's running on flames. He is not ready for this much playing time at this level yet. He really reminds me of Yao for the first few years. Seeing how I gave up on Yao and was taught my lesson, I won't give up on young Drew. He really needs to be playing 10 minutes a game max.

Sasha - one word - USELESS! Even if he is the 2nd hardest worker on the team the guy just doesn't get it. He does the same thing every game. He never attacks the basket and he chucks up ill-advised 3's that lead to unbalanced breaks for the oppposition. On defense he gets bad fouls 30-40 feet from the basket. I really think he has the skillset to do be good, but he won't adjust his game to what his skillset is. He is determined to be the 3 point shooter and not a basketball player. He needs to watch film of great shooters and notice how they get hot by attacking then moving their game out further. I would prefer if he was cut for Scottie if Scottie can really run 10-15 minutes a game.

I am proud of our guys who are playing hurt. Kwame, Mo and Turiaf are no where near healthy and it shows. I appreciate them giving us anything at all.

I am also happy with what Shammond brings to the team and wish he had been healthy all year. We really need him to bring back some of that old Shammond and start putting up points.

THE FEAR FACTOR IS GONE!!!!!!! No one fears us. No one is intimidated because they know if they can throw 3 guys at Kobe the others will wilt. That is the formula to beating this team. It is tried and true and everyone from the top of the league to the bottom will apply it. The scary part of this is it everyone will continue to do this when we are healthy and I'm not sure if our personnel will respond and react properly for us to be victorious.

Peace and Love DB
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[ProjectAB]

Well, I gotta disagree with your rating a little bit there. Bynum was a non-factor because Phil didn't allow him to be a factor. He started out playing with energy, playing effective D, then Terry made a great shot over him, though he wasn't late, just couldn't jump high enough to contest it well.

Then Smush picked up his 2nd foul, and I was like thank God. To my surprise, Phil took both Smush AND Bynum out. I was like WTF, we have a 3-point lead you moron. I guess he thought we could built up the lead to 10 on the Mavs, by the end of the quarter

I thought Bynum played with great energy, at least when it still mattered. He just needs to learn to not get tense on his shots. And truthfully, I think he's a much better defender than Kwame when he tries hard.

[angel]

Thanks DB!

It was like the charge of the light brigade. They were outnumbered and impending doom was hanging over them. They were slaughtered, but at least some fought bravely. They went out there knowing they would get killed. Someone mentioned this was the first season series loss to the Mavs in 20 years. It was only one game, one very ugly game.

If this team hasn't suffered enough hits, the NBA is still looking at possibly suspending Kobe again for an elbow.

I still see light at the end of the tunnel. LO and Luke may return Thursday.
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"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]

[Mr. EiGhTy-OnE]

i blame phillip for not calling a timeout near the end of the 1st during that 15-2 run. we never recovered from that.
_________________
"When (Kobe) gets you on life support, he won't give you mouth to mouth. HE PULLS THE PLUG." -stu

[JIFISH]

We were outmanned and outrun. We were short on healthy players, particularly starters, and the Mavs kept a fast pace and a frequent rotation of players and that wore us out. It was a great strategy by the "Little General", and given our circumstances, I'm not sure why anyone is surprised.
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I would rather have questions I cannot answer than answers I cannot question - Richard Feynman

[A Mad Chinaman]