LAKERS -at- SUNS – 3-2-19 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

 
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DancingBarry
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 02, 2019 9:14 pm    Post subject: LAKERS -at- SUNS – 3-2-19 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

They’re Done… That fork in the Lakers back was finally stuck there by the Phoenix Suns.

Games like this won’t “make” a run for the playoffs, but they can “break” them. The Lakers simply could not lose this. The chances to make the playoffs have been slim at best, but this one did them in.

It’s never a good sign when the Lakers give up a high scoring first quarter. It’s usually a barometer of the rest of the night. The Lakers trailed 33-26 after the first quarter with another lackluster showing to start a game. They’d give up another 33 points in the second quarter.

They would trail by 17 points to start the fourth, slipping back even further.

Of course, this is the Suns. Anything is possible. They seemingly stopped defending McGee for a stretch in the fourth quarter, and the Lakers scored a series of easy ones. LeBron had a couple of three-point possessions. The Lakers forced a couple of turnovers. A three by BI and the lead was just 5 with 3:46 left. They trimmed it to 3 off a LeBron dunk.

It looked like the Lakers got a stop on the defensive end with a hook call on Ayton, but the refs called the foul on Hart instead. Follow that with Ayton making two FTs and LeBron missing his two FTs and the Lakers completed the face-plant in Phoenix with the 118-109 loss.

With the Spurs winning, the Lakers had to hold serve tonight. Instead, they fell 4.5 games back.


LeBron -- -- Time to deactivate? That draft pick might be taking priority, but pride will likely get in the way. And the Lakers probably need a couple more losses to convince them that they aren’t still in it. LeBron led the team with 16 assists tonight. He had 5 assists in the first quarter and would finish with 7 by the half to go with a team-high 19 points, while sinking three threes. Some near momentum killing poor D in the fourth quarter, fouling a three shooter and then not helping Hart when he was screened by LeBron’s man to give up a layup. But he had back-to-back three-point plays to keep them going. Just a few too many miscues, however, including one where LeBron went to inbound the ball in the backcourt and hit the backboard for a turnover. Painful. So was the FT shooting. The Stats: He scored 27 points on 10-21 shooting (4-9 from three, 3-7 from the line) to go with 9 boards, 16 assists, 3 turnovers and 2 fouls in 41 minutes. He was a -1. The Action: He hit Bullock for the open corner three. He dunked off the two-man game with Bullock finding him. He got tapped on an open wing three. Swing pass to BI for a three. He soared for a lob from Rondo on the break and threw it down. He lost the ball in the backcourt. He hit McGee out of a timeout for a dunk. Good rotation to knock a ball loose and force a shotclock violation. His interior pass was picked off, not high enough to McGee. He sank an early offense three. He attacked and missed a scoop. He hit Muscala from the corner for a layup off a semi-transition sequence. He pushed out and bounced to KCP for a layup on the break. He attacked at the end of the quarter and drew FTs, he missed both, however. He attacked off the three line and muscled in a layup. He scored a layup off the bounce pass from Bullock. He jab-stepped and swished a three. Running start on Ayton and he took contact for FTs, he made both. He missed an early offense three. He let the ball roll all the way down to the three line, grabbed it and drained the three. He attacked with high speed and lost the ball, dunk the other way (extended conversation with the refs at the half on that one). Second Half: He lobbed to McGee for a dunk to start the half. He missed a deep three on a stagnant offensive set. He missed a forced three. He missed a fallaway. He tried to inbounds to Ingram in the back court and he hit the backboard, turnover. He attacked, spun and his layup was blocked. He backed a man down then settled for a fading airball with his left instead of trying to power up. Swing to Hart for a three. He found McGee open under the hoop for the layup. He lobbed to McGee for another layup out of a timeout. He attacked the paint, spun and muscled in an And-1 layup over a big, he made the FT. He drained a big three on a kickout from BI. He missed a wing three that could have cut it to 5. He pushed it up, attacked and kicked to BI for the open corner three to cut it to 5. Out of a timeout, he hit McGee off the set play for a dunk. He attacked and missed a layup that could cut it to 3, big miss. He rotated over and took a charge on Booker. Out of a timeout, he attacked baseline and dunked to cut it to 3. Quick attack and he drew FTs with 47 seconds, he missed both clutch ones, killer.

Ingram -- -- Some difficulties finishing around the rim in the first half. He seemed to be on the floor a lot with no calls. He was fighting in this game, including making a big three in the fourth quarter (he’d go 2-2 behind the line). That was off a LeBron pass. The two of them have really improved their chemistry. It’s come a long, long way from the start of the season. Right now, BI is one of the only things worth watching. I hope he continues to throw up huge numbers on a healthy amount of attempts. The Stats: He scored 25 points on 10-19 shooting (2-2 from three, 3-4 from the line) to go with 7 boards, 1 assist, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls in 39 minutes. He was a -5. The Action: He missed a turnaround on iso. He pushed out a board and drew FTs, he made one. He drained a three off the swing pass. He was blocked on a layup attempt. He didn’t hit rim on a turnaround and wanted the foul. Quick pushout off a made basket and he soared for a layup. He couldn’t finish a layup on a drive. He attacked, lost it, got it back and couldn’t power in the layup. He cut off Kuzma’s drive, took the handoff and dunked. He attacked Booker, put on the brakes, pivoted and scored the layup. Second Half: He iso’d and drained a wing jumper. He attacked, spun in a crowd and scored a layup. He attacked a defender in transition and drew FTs a few seconds later, he made both. He lost the ball in traffic when Kuzma gave it to him in a bad spot. He missed a pull-up. He attacked, spun, hung and airballed. He scored a layup off the high entry pass over a fronting defender. He iso’d and swished the face-up wing jumper. He attacked in early offense and slithered through the D for a layup. He attacked the paint, drew LeBron’s man and kicked out behind his back to LeBron for the three. He sank a big corner three in transition off a kickout. He missed a pull-up two when we should have been going for a three.

Kuzma -- -- Last night Giannis, tonight he got to guard the Suns center, Ayton, in the small ball. He picked up a couple early fouls as a result. I don’t envy the assignments for him in the small ball scenario’s at least Luke adjusted mid game in this one. Quiet night offensively from Kuzma, which has usually been the case when he and LeBron are run at the C/PF spot if you go back to the start of the season, too. He’s getting much better at drawing charges, which is great since his size won’t protect the rim much. The Stats: He scored 13 points on 4-9 shooting (0-1 from three, 5-7 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 3 assists, 1 block, 1 turnover and 4 fouls in 35 minutes. He was a -3. The Action: Easy layup running the floor off a made basket. He flashed to the ball in the lane and hit the one-hander. He couldn’t put back in a BI miss. He attacked from the corner and drew FTs, he made both. He attacked the paint, ball-faked and handed off to Ingram for the dunk. He airballed a pull-up at the buzzer. Second Half: He sealed his man under the hoop, took the pass and scored the layup. He threaded an interior pass to McGee for the dunk. He drew a charge on a rotation on D. He missed a tech. He was fouled filling the lane on the break, he made one FT. He got beat to a loose ball for a dunk. He posted up and drew FTs. He lost the ball in transition. He attacked, spun and missed. Good challenge to prevent a dunk. He found McGee wide open for another dunk. He posted up, spun baseline and scored a layup. He missed a wing three.

Bullock -- -- Team low -18 tonight. He was benched, sort of, in the second half. Luke wanted McGee in to start the second half to help with size, sending Bullock to the bench. Could have sent Rondo, but went with Bullock. He’d also go with KCP and Hart ahead of him in the rotation before bringing him back in. The Stats: He scored 5 points on 2-7 shooting (1-3 from three) to go with 2 boards, 2 assists, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 19 minutes. He was a -18. The Action: He sank a wide open corner three to start the game. He got middle on the handoff and bounced to LeBron for the dunk. He attacked and threw a kickout away. He missed a three trailing the break. He moved in off the fly by and sank the 17-footer. He missed a pull-up at the FT line (might have been blocked). He was blocked on a pull-up. He took a pass in the lane and then found LeBron for the layup. Second Half: He missed a tough, fading 21-footer. He missed a corner three.

Rondo -- -- He was a poor 1-6 shooting in the first half and continued to look inept in the second half. My favorite stretch was hoisting up an early offense 17-footer when he was stone cold, then coming down and double dribbling on the next possession. Beautiful. Man, he’s hard to watch sometimes. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 1-10 shooting (0-3 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 turnovers and no fouls in 26 minutes. He was -13. The Action: He attacked from the wing off a screen and banked a tricky layup over a big. He didn’t hit rim on a wild attempt in the paint. He lobbed to LeBron on the break for the two-handed dunk. He missed a wing three after ball died in his hands. He iso’d and bricked a fading, pumping jumper, sheesh. He threaded a bounce pass to KCP for a layup. He crashed the offensive glass and was fouled for FTs, he made both. Poor pass in early offense and Hart ended up getting a foul trying to track it down. He airballed a pull-up 15-footer. Second Half: He barely hit rim on a pull-up 17-footer in early offense (what are you doing?). He double dribbled next time down (the question still stands). He missed an open corner three. He missed another open three. He attacked too deep and couldn’t finish at the end of the quarter.

McGee -- -- “He was playing with energy,” Luke said, annoyed that the rest of the team wasn’t until the fourth quarter. McGee had 9 points on 4-4 shooting in the first half, hitting a couple long-range jumpers in the process. He led the team with a +3 in the first half. Luke started him in the second half because the small ball was problematic for the Lakers. McGee would get a series of easy ones off defensive breakdowns or set plays from the Lakers to finish 10-10 and lead the bench with 21 points. Some lapses at times on the defensive end when we couldn’t afford it, but this was a good game from him, giving the Lakers another glimpse of how he played to start the season. The Stats: He scored 21 points on 10-10 shooting (1-2 form the line) to go with 7 boards, 1 block and 3 fouls in 26 minutes. He was a +9. The Action: He hammered over his man out of a timeout when LeBron found him under the hoop. He was fouled in transition, made one FT, had the second one go right back to him and he took it off a hop for a dunk. He flashed to the ball and swished the jumper from the top of the key. He sank a 20-footer that got Luke to stand up when he launched it, then sit down when it went in. Second Half: He slipped a screen and dunked to start the half. He dunked off the interior feed from Kuzma. Layup pretty much left open under the hoop. Open again on a screen from Hart and he scored a layup off the lob. Wide open again and Kuzma hit him for a dunk. No challenge on Booker as he came off a screen to score (he wasn’t covering anyone else on that sequence and was right there). Set ATO play, he took a pass from LeBron in the middle of the paint coming off a screen, spun and dunked.

Caldwell-Pope -- -- If/when Lonzo comes back, I’ll be happy that I don’t have to watch more KCP and Rondo. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-5 shooting (0-2 from three) to go with 1 assist in 15 minutes. He was a -4. The Action: He iso’d and missed a pull-up jumper. Slip screen for a layup. Second Half: He missed a pull-up three in transition. He missed a wing three on a swing pass.

Hart -- -- Wow, tough call on Hart as he was D’ing up Ayton with 52 seconds left. Looked like a clear hook and a stop (maybe a travel), instead they called the foul on Hart. Looked like Laker ball, down 3. I thought that might be the defensive possession of the game with how feisty Hart is in the post, but rough call. Better game from Hart. He was able to hit another three, came up huge on an offensive board and only got burned on the perimeter a couple times it seemed. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 3-6 shooting (1-4 from three, 1-1 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 1 steal, 1 block and 5 fouls in 26 minutes. He was a -2. The Action: He knocked away a pass in transition D to get a stop. Low clock, he rose up and airballed a three. Second Half: He took a bounce pass, had a player come down on him but he still powered in the And-1 layup, he made the FT. He missed a wing three on a kickout. He drained a corner three next time down on a swing pass. He rejected his man from behind. Up high for an offensive board and he scored a layup. He missed a wing three.

Chandler -- -- We went more traditional in the second half, running more McGee and a brief bit of Chandler. That worked better than the small ball. Not much action from Chandler, though, and the lineups he was in were a bit painful. The Stats: He didn’t shoot or score in 5 minutes and had 1 board and 2 fouls. He was a -6/ The Action: He did not play in the first half. Second Half: Nothing to report.

Muscala -- -- It’s not fair to Muscala to compare him to Zubac, but the comparisons certainly have to be made because he is what we got for Zu. Still, it’s not Muscala’s fault the Lakers front office made that somewhat puzzling move (after not bring back Lopez or Bryant). I’ll rant on that elsewhere. He scored a layup in his 7 minutes, playing at the PF spot. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 1-2 shooting (0-1 from three) to go with 1 board and 2 fouls in 7 minutes. He was a +4. The Action: He reversed off the feed from LeBron in semi-transition. He missed a wing three. Second Half: He did not play in the second half.

Wagner -- -- He was a -6 in 1 minute. He got some brief run in the first half when Luke gave McGee a breather. I suspect the Lakers will play Moe more once they are pretty certain they won’t make the playoffs. How soon that will occur to them, no telling. The Stats: He had 1 turnover in 1 minute and was a -6. The Action: He fumbled away a bounce pass, dunk the other way. Second Half: He did not play in the second half.

Walton -- -- Ouch, Luke… McGee in for Kuzma who picked up a couple fouls early. Hart in for Rondo, Lakers down 5… Timeout down 9 with 3:23 left on a Suns 11-2 run… Muscala and KCP in to go with Hart, LeBron and McGee… The Lakers trailed 33-26 after the first quarter… He started the McGee, Muscala, Hart, KCP, Rondo lineup. Hmmm. They better get out in transition because this lineup is the suck… Kuzma in for Muscala down 5… And LeBron and BI back with 8:10 left down 9. Yeah, that rotation by Luke was hot garbage… Luke stands up when McGee shot a 20-footer, then sat down when it went in… Wagner in a minute later for McGee… Bullock in for KCP… Lakers fall back further by 11, when Rondo came in for Moe. Down 14 a moment later… McGee in for Bullock, Lakers down 8… The Lakers trailed 66-59 at the half. They gave the Suns 20 FTAs in the first half… Slow start but the Lakers at least started to get out on the break more… No Laker went for a loose ball, Ayton got it took it for a dunk. Luke called a timeout… Out of that timeout, a 24-second violation. Camera shot of Luke… Chandler and Hart in with 5:29 left for Kuzma and McGee. Lakers down 11… KCP in for Rondo, Lakers down 13. Hmmm, no Bullock yet… Rondo and Bullock in for LeBron and BI, who we probably want to keep one on the floor at all times. Lakers down 13. So Chandler, Hart, Bullock, KCP, Rondo lineup. Wow… The Lakers trailed 95-78 heading into the fourth… He started a Kuzma, Hart, Ingram, Bullock, KCP lineup… LeBron in for KCP after a couple minutes… McGee in for Bullock. Not much run… The Lakers trimmed it back to 8 after some easy scores for McGee and a couple of LeBron 3-point plays. Luke called a timeout with 4:25. Turnover out of that… Down 7, he sat McGee for Bullock with 2 minutes left… Timeout down 5 with 1:19 left… They trimmed it to 3 but couldn’t close the gap. Too big a hill to climb… Just like this playoff run, it seems… “I’m confident in our group and believe we can get it done,” Luke said. The Lakers will likely have to go something like 14-5 or 15-4 barring a complete collapse of some type from the teams in front of them…
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Tony Almeida
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 02, 2019 9:18 pm    Post subject:

First!

...did we just lose to the Suns? Did DB really have to do a writeup on that (bleep)?

DB - What do you think are the three biggest problems with this team? When you lose to the PHOENIX SUNS, in what is essentially a must win game near the end of the season, there are just some serious serious issues and plenty of blame to go around.
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DancingBarry
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 02, 2019 9:23 pm    Post subject:

Poorly constructed roster (not to mention losing assets in the process), not enough continuity season after season, and really bad timing with the three injuries of LeBron/Rondo/Lonzo...that flipped the season on its head.

Great to see you around, TA!!!
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Tony Almeida
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 02, 2019 9:29 pm    Post subject:

DancingBarry wrote:
Poorly constructed roster (not to mention losing assets in the process), not enough continuity season after season, and really bad timing with the three injuries of LeBron/Rondo/Lonzo...that flipped the season on its head.

Great to see you around, TA!!!


Definitely good points. Which is why, the first two, I think we really need to be super careful how we execute this offseason. The constant roster turnover, loss of assets, and just throwing (bleep) at the wall, needs to end. Really tired of seeing a total revolving door at seemingly every position (not to mention management & coaching), you're not gonna build any chemistry that way. I know there's going to be another overhaul this summer but I just really hope it makes more sense then the 18-19 Meme Team, otherwise this franchise could be set back for some time. This season was a chore to watch.

And thanks!! Always love reading your Thoughts & Ratings. If the Lakers had 1/10th the consistency, effort and leadership as you, they'd be in the playoffs.
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 02, 2019 9:40 pm    Post subject:

Thanks DB:(.

Just sad.
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Nobody
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 02, 2019 10:21 pm    Post subject:

Another pitiful effort with their backs up against the wall. I honestly don't even know why I continue to waste my time watching this team try to play basketball. Sputtering offense, non-existent defense and 4.5 games back of a first round sweep against the Dubs. Yeeesh.

Trivia stat of the day: the team has had 6 double digit victories in the last 3 months. 6.
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BK
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 12:00 am    Post subject:

I rarely post, but god this was painful to watch. Thanks for the writeup DB.
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A Mad Chinaman
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 12:06 am    Post subject:

When will somebody actually gets MAD or ANGRY!

Maybe Luke needs to do a “Pop” - sub out all the players on the court

When our vets are not providing the expected leadership or mentorship, what are they doing on the roster

Even coaching geniuses such as Brad Stevens (Celtics) have problems when players are playing to expectations. When Pop is having problems getting the Spurs into the playoffs - omg!!!

If the players don’t have the passion or drive at this time of the season, this is great for Magic and Rob to see. Players seem to be satisfied with giving a good effort, but what we need are players that are hurt/angry/mad after any loss. The players should be embarrassed at their efforts and results.
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 12:58 am    Post subject:

Do you guys think an all-star is going to want to join this mess of a team?
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 1:53 am    Post subject:

That tank next to Luke is so painful to see.....

We are at that again. After holding the fourth and climbing.
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 3:05 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB. Excellent recap as always.

Not making the playoffs with LeBron on this team. Ugh. That's gonna really impress free agents this off season.
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 4:06 am    Post subject:

Disappointed in Magic....his trust in employing mercenaries to bring us gold has us here. The cherry on top is seeing the success of former players whom weren't used/developed/ valued correctly. While adding lebron sped up the timeline...what is more important...the Lakers or maximizing Lebrons final years....crazy thing is we JUST saw this with Kobe.
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 4:28 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB

BI is rocking and the only bright spot on the team. It is Bonga time.

I echo the thoughts on poor roster construction and wasting what should be valuable assets.

Randle 20.5/9 35% from 3. Roster need small ball center, PF, 3 pt shooting. Was made to feel unwanted and let got when team had all the leverage. Stupid does not begin to describe this move.

Bryant Roster need Center: Starting Center and 10/6 only a 2nd year player

Zubac for a stiff: He had a low cap hold and could have been resigned after we signed a FA. Stupid and has cost us at least 3 games.

Engaging in AD trade talks: Magic should have known they were wasting their time and pulled out. Fallout was that the it impacted the entire team.

Bullock for SVI okay I guess but next year will probably regret this as Bullock will be gone.

Signing Rondo, Beasley and Stevenson: All have been really terrible and at best poor.

Resigning KCP: Terrible move unless it was a Lebron requirement. If it is a Lebron requirement let the be the last time he influences a roster decision.

Russel trade I am okay with but he has matured as a person and player and is now what we hoped he would be.
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danzag
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 5:59 am    Post subject:

DancingBarry wrote:
Poorly constructed roster (not to mention losing assets in the process), not enough continuity season after season, and really bad timing with the three injuries of LeBron/Rondo/Lonzo...that flipped the season on its head.


And all that trade talk bullsheet.

The season is over. I've given up.
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 7:24 am    Post subject:

Luke tells Kuzma (one of his top 3 scorers) to guard Ayton this game and Lopez the last game. Both players are bigger and stronger that Kuzma causing Kuz to spend a bunch of energy on the defensive end causing his scoring to go down.

The Lakers are already challenged offensively and instead of using one of our lower scorers to guard bigger players, he hurts the offense by using Kuzma on bigger players.

Kuzma is in no way shape or form a small ball center. Just does not work. Did not work at the beginning of the season and will not work now. Kuzma is a stretch 4 / big three who can shoot, drive, and handle the ball. Ray Charles can see this and Ray is blind and dead.
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Luminous8
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 7:53 am    Post subject:

Laker7 wrote:
Luke tells Kuzma (one of his top 3 scorers) to guard Ayton this game and Lopez the last game. Both players are bigger and stronger that Kuzma causing Kuz to spend a bunch of energy on the defensive end causing his scoring to go down.

The Lakers are already challenged offensively and instead of using one of our lower scorers to guard bigger players, he hurts the offense by using Kuzma on bigger players.

Kuzma is in no way shape or form a small ball center. Just does not work. Did not work at the beginning of the season and will not work now. Kuzma is a stretch 4 / big three who can shoot, drive, and handle the ball. Ray Charles can see this and Ray is blind and dead.


He guarded brook in the post ONE time. He was our primary Giannis cover. And stop acting like it’s above him to have to guard someone bigger. Everyone has done it. You think it’s fair Brandon has to cover the pg’s and sg’s? Kuzma has to be better on D period. He’s become the late game POA for the other teams guards. They’re purposely switching him onto them over and over and attacking.
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TDRock
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 8:23 am    Post subject:

So are we mathematically out of the playoffs yet? I'm ...yeah..

Anyway thanks for the write up DB!
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deal
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 9:11 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB...
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Dark Matter
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 9:16 am    Post subject:

This really hurts.
I hope that our season record will not be a hindrance to getting some star free agents, this summer...
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 11:11 am    Post subject:

omg please stop playing Kuzma at center! Fluke has deflated Mcgee who was playing spectacular, and he's ruining Kuzma, who unlike iso ingram, was smart enough to learn how to cut into lanes with lebron, and to score in the flow. If ingram is getting 20 plus points, it means the offense is not balanced. Horrible rotations, broken chemistry, total disaster......
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 11:27 am    Post subject:

Yeah, the lack of a regular rotation has not helped this team. It has frustrated everyone, especially the vets.

If Lebron all of a sudden claims an injury, it will likely be a partial fake out to shut it down.

The two bright spots for this team is seeing both Kuz and BI show flashes of their future.

I see Kuz as an eventual 6th man, coming off the bench to replace Lebron or BI and even our SG. We need to figure out a guard rotations. We are a mess there. I like Lonzo on defense and as a distributor, we need a 3 and D SG who can stop that penetration. Then a solid defending and rebounding C/PF to pair with Lebron and BI.
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 3:52 pm    Post subject:

Thanks DB.

Our inexperience is really showing. I'm talking about Luke and the FO.

Luke: All he really has experience in is player development. He's just not yet capable of grasping the nuances of X's and O's or player sub patterns.

Rob: No prior experience as an asst GM. Sure, he knows the players and team FO's as a former agent but that has no bearing on being able to construct a team.

Magic: No prior experience in a front office. Oh yeah, he sucked badly in his very brief tenure as head coach. He does have experience in running his big fat mouth, over-hyping young talent before they are ready to fulfill expectations, and trading away young talent right when they are starting to get it.

For Magic and Rob, the bill becomes due this summer. Will we get a well respected capable coach to replace Luke? Will we get an all-nba type free agent in their prime to take the load off aging LeBron? That's the expectation Magic set for himself and Rob. Currently, I am skeptical.
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A Mad Chinaman
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 03, 2019 11:52 pm    Post subject:

Lakers#1Team wrote:
Thanks DB.

Our inexperience is really showing. I'm talking about Luke and the FO.

Luke: All he really has experience in is player development. He's just not yet capable of grasping the nuances of X's and O's or player sub patterns.

Rob: No prior experience as an asst GM. Sure, he knows the players and team FO's as a former agent but that has no bearing on being able to construct a team.

Magic: No prior experience in a front office. Oh yeah, he sucked badly in his very brief tenure as head coach. He does have experience in running his big fat mouth, over-hyping young talent before they are ready to fulfill expectations, and trading away young talent right when they are starting to get it.

For Magic and Rob, the bill becomes due this summer. Will we get a well respected capable coach to replace Luke? Will we get an all-nba type free agent in their prime to take the load off aging LeBron? That's the expectation Magic set for himself and Rob. Currently, I am skeptical.
Legitimate opinions. To counterbalance the views

Luke - if he is fired, he would find a job very quickly and thought very highly throughout the NBA. What coach would replace Luke, Mark Jackson - that’s not an upgrade.

Rob - his job is to know how to manipulate the cap space to get players that Magic wants. He has been successful

Magic for LeBron and the players he wanted. This team is more talented than the Cavs last season and still struggling.

LeBron is the leader of the team on the court and it is his job to get the player on the court to jell. Missing critical FTs and throwing the ball off the backboard is something the Black Mamba would have done. Maybe he is still not in top condition that usually is noted on defense.

The good thing about the tough schedule is that the team don’t have the opportunity to “play down” to opponents. They will be playing the teams that they have to beat to get into the playoffs (Spurs, Clippers, Kings) that would count for two games (win for their side and a loss to a team that needs to lose for the Lakers to get a playoff spot that might even be the Nuggets!!!
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Lakers#1Team
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PostPosted: Mon Mar 04, 2019 5:46 am    Post subject:

A Mad Chinaman wrote:
Lakers#1Team wrote:
Thanks DB.

Our inexperience is really showing. I'm talking about Luke and the FO.

Luke: All he really has experience in is player development. He's just not yet capable of grasping the nuances of X's and O's or player sub patterns.

Rob: No prior experience as an asst GM. Sure, he knows the players and team FO's as a former agent but that has no bearing on being able to construct a team.

Magic: No prior experience in a front office. Oh yeah, he sucked badly in his very brief tenure as head coach. He does have experience in running his big fat mouth, over-hyping young talent before they are ready to fulfill expectations, and trading away young talent right when they are starting to get it.

For Magic and Rob, the bill becomes due this summer. Will we get a well respected capable coach to replace Luke? Will we get an all-nba type free agent in their prime to take the load off aging LeBron? That's the expectation Magic set for himself and Rob. Currently, I am skeptical.
Legitimate opinions. To counterbalance the views

Luke - if he is fired, he would find a job very quickly and thought very highly throughout the NBA. What coach would replace Luke, Mark Jackson - that’s not an upgrade.

Rob - his job is to know how to manipulate the cap space to get players that Magic wants. He has been successful

Magic for LeBron and the players he wanted. This team is more talented than the Cavs last season and still struggling.

LeBron is the leader of the team on the court and it is his job to get the player on the court to jell. Missing critical FTs and throwing the ball off the backboard is something the Black Mamba would have done. Maybe he is still not in top condition that usually is noted on defense.

The good thing about the tough schedule is that the team don’t have the opportunity to “play down” to opponents. They will be playing the teams that they have to beat to get into the playoffs (Spurs, Clippers, Kings) that would count for two games (win for their side and a loss to a team that needs to lose for the Lakers to get a playoff spot that might even be the Nuggets!!!

Good addendum to my venting. I've no objections so I'll let it stand.
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All_Star_Laker
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PostPosted: Mon Mar 04, 2019 9:16 am    Post subject:

Luminous8 wrote:
Laker7 wrote:
Luke tells Kuzma (one of his top 3 scorers) to guard Ayton this game and Lopez the last game. Both players are bigger and stronger that Kuzma causing Kuz to spend a bunch of energy on the defensive end causing his scoring to go down.

The Lakers are already challenged offensively and instead of using one of our lower scorers to guard bigger players, he hurts the offense by using Kuzma on bigger players.

Kuzma is in no way shape or form a small ball center. Just does not work. Did not work at the beginning of the season and will not work now. Kuzma is a stretch 4 / big three who can shoot, drive, and handle the ball. Ray Charles can see this and Ray is blind and dead.


He guarded brook in the post ONE time. He was our primary Giannis cover. And stop acting like it’s above him to have to guard someone bigger. Everyone has done it. You think it’s fair Brandon has to cover the pg’s and sg’s? Kuzma has to be better on D period. He’s become the late game POA for the other teams guards. They’re purposely switching him onto them over and over and attacking.


You know who would be a great as a small ball center and might be a FA this summer? Julius Randle. I wonder if we can sign him.
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