Posted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 12:09 am Post subject: PACERS -at- LAKERS - 3/2 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings
Who Is This Man?...You've got a lot of traveling to do this month. As you pack your bags and gear up for the road, you come across the Tru Warier file. You were given it months back, and it has a rap sheet that spans pages upon pages. You know them well -- the stories, the trouble -- Tru Warier was a magnet for crazy.
Some thought that "crazy" was his edge, that's what made him feared. You've always thought it his great weakness. The inevitable implosion. The faulty foundation upon which hopes and dreams would often crumble.
You thumb through the pages of the Tru Warier file and pause at the thickest section -- the Indiana years. None of what you read echoes anything you've seen from him. If the Horsemen are the law men in this corner of the world, Tru Warier is their main prison guard and a model citizen.
You wonder, just who is this man?
At the last chapter of the Indiana section, you find a Post-It note from DancingBarry:
"The Horsemen were here. They took on Tru Warier's former comrades and dispatched them with ease. One wonders if Tru Warier, himself, has finally dispatched his own demons.
I will continue to track them..."
The Lakers haven't had scoring output like this since, well, the last time they played Indiana and scored 118 points. It took one quarter of lockdown D tonight and the Lakers were on their way to a 122-99 blowout.
The Pacers have the sixth worst road record in the NBA. The Lakers took care of business as they should.
They were slow to start, but ended up scoring 60 in the first half. Unfortunately, they gave up 54 points as the speedy guards and perimeter shooting of the Pacers bigmen caused problems.
In the third, they put the clamps on. Again, Ron Artest set the tone with 5 steals in the quarter. Danny Granger was his latest victim. He was held to 9 points and 4 turnovers. This is the Ron Artest the NBA feared would show up in L.A.
Actually, I'm not sure the NBA has seen this Ron Artest. Who is this man? The stranger who locked down Granger. This version of Artest is combining great D with being a great teammate on and off the court.
Indiana never had that Ron. He didn't exist.
With 11 games on the road in the month of March, the Lakers will try to make up some ground on the Cavs. Cleveland is one game ahead of L.A. in the loss column and they own the tie-breaker. If this is a Death March, they hope it's for their opponents.
Kobe -- -- It's rare when Kobe gets to the line like he did tonight, but very nice to see. With his off shooting, any way he can manufacture points, the better. He wore a big white wrapping on his index finger again. Not sure when this thing is going to clear up, but sure isn't good to see that at this point. Some sloppy passing from Kobe early, although it seemed like his teammates weren't expecting a few of those. Kobe seemed to sense when to go for the kill in the third quarter and he set up both Ron and Lamar for corner threes that helped push the game out of range. "He's looking like it's getting better," Phil said of Kobe's shot. Hopefully, he finds his jumper. If not, I'll take more of these games any day. The Stats: He scored 24 points on 5-14 shooting (0-4 from three, 14-15 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 6 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers and 1 foul in 30:27. He was a +18. The Action: He drew FTs posting up Rush and faking him in the air, he made both. He was hit on a turnaround with no call, seemed obvious. He missed a wing three. He gave up open threes to Rush. He drew FTs when his man fell and Pau found him, he made both. He couldn't connect with Bynum on a couple of passes. He back-rimmed a wing turnaround. He drew FTs on the perimeter, he made both. He missed a drive, but Pau cleaned it up. He found Farmar cutting baseline for a layup. He missed a wing jumper. He overpowered his man in the post and scored a layup. Poor perimeter pass and it led to points the other way. He drew FTs and used some body language to get the first to go, before hitting the second. He was checked on the perimeter, more FTs with 4 seconds left, he made both. He took an inbounds with 2 seconds left at the top of the key and hit a step-back jumper at the buzzer. He had 14 points on 2-7 shooting (10-10 from the line) and 3 turnovers. Second Half: He let his man fly by at the three line, moved in a few inches and swished the jumper. Quick step around his man and he scored a layup. He attacked, took contact under the hoop and drew FTs, he made one. He made a tech FT. He missed a leaning three trying to draw contact at the shotclock buzzer. He took an inbounds under the hoop and scored a layup. He was hit hard while trying to throwdown over a Pacer in transition, he made both FTs. He crossed over and missed a three next time down. He kicked to Artest and LO for corner threes. He missed a lefty scoop on the step-through. He missed a three.
Gasol -- -- Pau was in close finishing tips and dunks. Almost all of his points came that way. Defensively, he did a good job sticking with the perimeter bigmen. His team-high +/- reflected that. He seems to be picking up his effort on the offensive glass. His improvement in this aspect of his game has been impressive. He used to average around 2.4 offensive boards per game. Last year, he improved that to 3.2. This season, he's at 3.6. He's also on a career-high pace of 11 boards per game. All of his career-high rebounding games are also in this season. The Stats: He scored 14 points on 6-11 shooting (2-2 from the line) to go with 16 boards (4 offensive) to go with 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and no fouls 32:39. He was a +24. The Action: Poor concentration on a leak out and he missed the layup. Caught flat-footed, Pau let Murphy blow past him for a dunk. He missed a short turnaround. He scored off the drop-step move around McRoberts (more please). He hit Bynum on the high-low for a score. He got hacked under the hoop with no call. He missed trying to power the ball in while getting past the Fox censors with an expletive. He tipped in a missed Kobe drive. He scored a layup off the Lamar feed. He dodged a reach while spinning into the lane and scored a layup with his left. He scored off a transition lob from Shannon. He dunked when Fish found him freed under the hoop. He kicked out instead of taking an open elbow jumper. His challenge saved Kobe who ball watched and let his man get loose under the hoop. He had 12 points on 6-10 shooting and 8 boards. Second Half: He missed an elbow jumper. He managed to tap a loose ball away from a couple defenders, attacked and drew FTs, he made both.
Bynum -- -- Good job tonight in getting low position, even against Hibbert. Off-the-ball battling like that will make a huge difference in how often he gets the ball and how he scores. Of course, the Lakers came into the game wanting to establish the post. That helps, too. Defensively, he had to deal with speedy guards and perimeter shooting bigs. That's a tough combo for Bynum to defend. Occasionally, he got caught out of position in transition, which led to good looks or easy scores. However, he did have some nice challenges when the D was able to get set. Some very good help D sequences for him and he did it against a kind of team that could typically cause issues. Very nice to see. The Stats: He scored 16 points on 6-8 shooting (4-5 from the line) to go with 8 boards, 2 turnovers and 3 fouls in 27 minutes. He was a +21. The Action: Low position on his first touch and he drew a foul on Hibbert, he made both FTs. He missed a close jumphook. Lost on D, he gave up a lob. He scored a layup off the high-low from Pau. Nice help D challenge to force a brick. He grabbed a Pau miss and dunked it back in while fouled, he made the FT. He grabbed a pass around a fronting defender then reversed. He challenged Murphy's drive well, not giving up on the play. He overpowered Murphy and dunked with both hands. Nice help on Granger to force a travel when he got by Ron. He had 11 points on 4-5 shooting. Second Half: He was stripped in the paint. He missed a jumphook. He sealed his man, took the post entry and dunked with both hands. He dunked on a lob from Artest in early offense. Nice challenge on a guard jumper to force an airball. He denied guard penetration on one side, then swatted Murphy's drive on the other on one defensive stand. He was fouled on a backdoor lob, he made one FT. He had 5 points in the third and got to sit the rest of the game.
Artest -- -- Danny Granger, are you ready to Artestify? Granger had 9 points on 2-9 shooting and 4 turnovers. He has been averaging 23 points this season and has been scoring at a high clip in his last few. That all came to an abrupt halt. Granger has had just two other games that he has scored in single digits. Just another dominating defensive performance by Ron, which again included a crazy third quarter with 5 steals. "We're starting to adjust to what he can do defensively, which helps the team out," Phil said. In other words, don't send unneeded help. When the help comes, Ron is still there with those quick hands and causing problems. Farmar said Ron's focus on Diet and D has been contagious for the entire team. Got to love it. The Stats: He scored 11 points on 5-9 shooting (1-3 from three) to go with 4 assists, 5 steals, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in 28 minutes. He was a +21. The Action: He missed a baseline jumper. He couldn't connect with Bynum on a quick high-low sequence. He jammed while cutting off Pau in the post. He threw a pass away trying to hit Lamar, dunk the other way (Phil sat him for Shannon after that). He missed a corner three. Granger was 1-7 in the first half. Second Half: He missed a wing three. He missed a step-back 19-footer. He poked a ball loose from Granger. He pounded the dribble with his left and scored a layup around defenders. He kicked out to Fish for three. He lobbed to Drew in early offense for a dunk. He drilled a top-of-the-key jumper, flashing to the ball. He then swiped the ball from Granger at the three line and hit Kobe in stride for points. He swished a corner three. He swiped an inbounds pass. He sank a fallaway in the lane, posting up a smaller man. He stripped Granger and fed Farmar for a dunk. He then pounced at midcourt to knock another ball away. He had 5 steals in the third, and the guys on the bench mobbed him when he came over.
Fisher -- -- His three ball has looked better in the past two games (sinking 5-8, mostly swishes). The team had some dribble penetration issues defensively early on. They buckled down as the game went along, but it was causing some issues. Fish had some very nice defensive sequences in third quarter, including a block on Granger on the break that was somehow called a foul. Maybe the ref couldn't believe it. That's understandable, but DFish is crazy good as the only man back defending a break. The Stats: He scored 9 points on 3-8 shooting (3-6 from three) to go with 1 board, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 24 minutes. He was a +16. The Action: He missed a three with his man on the floor, should have moved into his midrange. He deflected a pass on the other end. He was blocked on the break, it led to a three the other way. He swished a three on the LO kickout. He passed up a three and hit Pau under the hoop for a dunk. He missed a baseline jumper. He swished a three in transition next time down, getting set up better. He missed a corner three. He pressured Ford into a turnover with 2 seconds left (this would lead to a Kobe deuce). Second Half: Wow, he swatted Granger on the break but was given the foul (it was all ball by Fish). Nice defensive sequence, freezing Hibbert with help D, then drawing a clear-out foul and a tech on Watson. He swished a sideline three off the kickout from Ron. He missed a wing three.
Lamar -- -- Some nice passing from Lamar in the game. He led the Lakers with 7 assists. He didn't have a big scoring game, but did have an impact offensively. "Good ball movement, guys hit shots, it's fun," Lamar said. He said he wasn't concerned with the slow starts the team had. "As the game goes along, just wear them down," he said. The Stats: He scored 5 points on 1-3 shooting (1-2 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 2 boards, 7 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and 1 foul in 22 minutes. He was a +7. The Action: He posted up, drew the double and kicked out to DFish for three. He swatted a drive and controlled it. He whipped a pass off the dribble to Pau for a layup. He hit Morrison filling the lane for a layup. He missed a wing three at the shotclock buzzer. He posted up Granger and drew FTs, he made both. He didn't match up with Murphy in transition and gave up a three. He tied up Rush on an offensive board and won the jumpball. Second Half: He drained a corner three off the Kobe kickout. He airballed a pull-up jumper behind Pau. He swiped a bounce pass.
Brown -- -- While winding up and swatting a shot out of bounds, Shannon tweaked a thumb on his shooting hand. He was holding it for a while, but still hit a three. After a deadball, he got it wrapped up. Hopefully, we don't have another SG with a bad shooting hand. Shannon looked good after the injury, but it may hurt a little more tomorrow. The Stats: He scored 12 points on 5-10 shooting (2-2 from three) to go with 5 boards, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and 1 foul in 22:27. He was a +12. The Action: He lost his man on a hesitation at the three line and banked in a runner. He missed a wing jumper. He swiped the ball out of Jones hands with a quick reach. He fumbled a dribble on a break, tracked it down and quickly lobbed to Pau for the score. He crossed over, overpowered his man but was tapped on the layup. Second Half: He measured a sideline three and sank it. Nice D on his man, then he grabbed the board. He then rejected Jones badly out of bounds, but hurt his thumb. He swished a three despite the injury. He missed a pull-up jumper on iso. He missed on a drive to his right. He hit Mbenga for a jumper on a kickout. He swished a long jumper standing on the three line. He attacked off the cross over, slammed on the brakes and hit the wing jumper.
Farmar -- -- His three ball has been looking great lately. It seems like he's loading up and firing with good body control. "Just trying to take good shots and they're going in for me," he said. The more he can elevate his game and his consistency as the team heads to the playoffs, the better. The team is very difficult to deal with when they get impact ball from the PG spot. That's just a back-breaker. Defensively, he had some issues in the first half with dribble penetration. The defensive funneling again seemed to break down at times. The more he can make his man take an indirect path, the more time his help has to contain the penetration. The Stats: He scored 19 points on 8-10 shooting (3-4 from three) to go with 1 board, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 turnover in 23:41. He as a +7. The Action: He swished a three in transition. He missed a three on his next attempt shortly later. He cut off Kobe, took the pass on the baseline, shielded a defender with his body and put in the the layup. Ford blew past him for a couple of layups. He attacked and flipped in a reverse with his left on the way down. He gave up another layup. Typical Farmar dribble error, he got caught picking up his dribble while off balance under some pressure and threw a pass away. Second Half: He missed a reverse. He swished a pull-up from the elbow. He drained a wing three next time down. He ducked around a bigman and hit the layup. He sank a wing three. Key steal in Taco Time in the back court to help the cause.
Morrison -- -- He started the second quarter while the game was still up for grabs. That unit did well and Ammo scored a couple of times. Some ugly minutes on both ends for him in the fourth-quarter garbage time. The fans had some minor irkage for Ammo during Taco Time with some of his play on both ends, but the team still held on. He looked a little rusty on some of those Tri sequences. "He didn't shoot the ball like he can or does in practice," Phil said. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 3-8 shooting (0-2 from three) to go with 2 boards, 2 assists, 3 turnovers and 1 foul in 15 minutes. He was a -3. The Action: He scored a layup filling the lane on the break. He swished his runner off the curl (a play they seem to set up for him). Second Half: He missed a short wing jumper. He missed a runner, got it back and was swatted from behind. He was called for a travel. He hit a cutting Mbenga trailing the break for a dunk. He threw a pass away out of a timeout. Another miscue, this time with Farmar on a handoff and it led to a breakaway dunk in Taco Time. He missed back-to-back threes on one possession. He attacked from the wing, dodged defenders and banked in a drive.
Powell -- -- He got half a quarter of garbage time run, but somehow didn't get a shot off. Blame DJ, I guess. Josh was the only Laker who didn't scratch. The Stats: He didn't score, had 1 board and 1 foul in 6 minutes. He was a -5. The Action: He did not play in the first half.Second Half: Nothing to report.
Mbenga -- -- Despite Mbenga's quick trigger in the fourth, the team was still able to secure the all-important tacos for the fans. Some garbage time run for Mbenga, but he always puts in a good effort. The team lost a little of their lead when he came in, but the game was over even with 8 minutes left. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 3-6 shooting to go with 3 boards (2 offensive), 1 assist, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 8:25. He was a -7. The Action: He did not play in the first half. Second Half: He sank a turnaround over Hibbert. He swished a baseline 15-footer. Ammo found him trailing the action for a dunk. He missed a 17-footer. He missed another wing jumper from the other side.
Phil -- -- The Lakers started off 0-6 from the floor and Phil called a timeout after 5 minutes. They were getting to the line, however... He brought in Lamar for Pau up by 2... The Lakers trailed 28-27 after the first... Phil went with a Pau, Lamar, Morrison, Brown, Farmar unit. They pulled out to a 41-34 lead... He went back to the starters midway through the quarter... Lots of guard penetration given up by the Lakers... The Lakers led 60-54 at the half. L.A. shot 50 percent (21-42), the Pacers shot 46.7 (21-45). The Lakers were 15-15 from the line, Pacers 5-7. L.A. needed to tighten the screws defensively... They did that in the third... The Lakers pulled out to a 12-point lead midway through the quarter... They went for the kill, bombing threes and locking down... The Lakers won the third quarter 38-17, Ron had 5 steals in the quarter... They led 98-71 heading into the fourth... Phil started a Pau, Lamar, Kobe, Brown, Farmar unit... Deep bench after a few minutes of that... The Lakers hit 10-23 from three and 22-24 from the line... They had 33 assists...
Game Flow -- LINK -- Ron Artest with 9 points, 5 steals and 4 assists in the third. Dominating third from him and the Lakers.
I recall at least 5 layups of Ford and Watson, because of Farmar's matador D. He didn't run the triangle-offense on-the-ball, nor our gameplan (outlined by Jim Cleamons). Statistics look good for Farmar offensively, but Fisher changed the entire game defensively, after he subbed-in for Farmar in the second/third quarter.
His three ball has looked better in the past two games (sinking 5-8, mostly swishes). The team had some dribble penetration issues defensively early on. They buckled down as the game went along, but it was causing some issues. Fish had some very nice defensive sequences in third quarter, including a block on Granger on the break that was somehow called a foul. Maybe the ref couldn't believe it. That's understandable, but DFish is crazy good as the only man back defending a break.
He also stopped the basketball, to help his teammates defend in transition. I can recall 3-times specifically, where he stopped TJ Ford's penetration in transition, just staying infront of him. Even forced the TO, before the half, to set up Bryant's buzzer-beater.
Fisher deserves more than a wink, DB. .
I'm not sure what's about 19 points on 8-10 shooting. Defensively, yeah he had issues which I called out. Still, that's superb production off the bench.
Fish also had D issues. His man had 9 assists in the first quarter. But I do think he played some very good D later on.
Nice work as usually DB. Man what happen to Brandon Rush? I was a big fan of him in college, but it seems like he has yet to put it together mentally. The skills are definitely there....
Tough road trip coming up. Given that these are teams fighting for a playoffs spot, the officiating will be very hostile. Will probably have to play with our best effort and focus to have a chance at homecourt.
Also, the Magic game will be at 11:30. I wonder if Drew will have to alter his sleeping habit, because his energy has fluctuated wildly on the day games this season.
Posted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 3:18 am Post subject: Re: PACERS -at- LAKERS - 3/2 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings
[quote="DancingBarryGasol -- -- Pau was in close finishing tips and dunks. Almost all of his points came that way. Defensively, he did a good job sticking with the perimeter bigmen. His team-high +/- reflected that. He seems to be picking up his effort on the offensive glass. His improvement in this aspect of his game has been impressive. He used to average around 2.4 offensive boards per game. Last year, he improved that to 3.2. This season, he's at 3.6. He's also on a career-high pace of 11 boards per game. All of his career-high rebounding games are also in this season.[/quote]
Some round here blame Bynum for not being a great rebounder, but Pau rebounding stats (Odom´s too) , benefit greatly from Andrew job, that is , altering shots, keeping opponent bigs out of our board, or just keeping them busy in their own board...
I recall at least 5 layups of Ford and Watson, because of Farmar's matador D. He didn't run the triangle-offense on-the-ball, nor our gameplan (outlined by Jim Cleamons). Statistics look good for Farmar offensively, but Fisher changed the entire game defensively, after he subbed-in for Farmar in the second/third quarter.
His three ball has looked better in the past two games (sinking 5-8, mostly swishes). The team had some dribble penetration issues defensively early on. They buckled down as the game went along, but it was causing some issues. Fish had some very nice defensive sequences in third quarter, including a block on Granger on the break that was somehow called a foul. Maybe the ref couldn't believe it. That's understandable, but DFish is crazy good as the only man back defending a break.
He also stopped the basketball, to help his teammates defend in transition. I can recall 3-times specifically, where he stopped TJ Ford's penetration in transition, just staying infront of him. Even forced the TO, before the half, to set up Bryant's buzzer-beater.
Fisher deserves more than a wink, DB. .
I'm not sure what's about 19 points on 8-10 shooting. Defensively, yeah he had issues which I called out. Still, that's superb production off the bench.
Fish also had D issues. His man had 9 assists in the first quarter. But I do think he played some very good D later on.
So what's the main issues with Farmar's D? Physical or mental limitations?
I saw in many cases, he got stuck under the screen, or when facing one-on-one gave clear lane to the attacking pgs.
Posted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 4:38 am Post subject: Re: PACERS -at- LAKERS - 3/2 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings
DancingBarry wrote:
Actually, I'm not sure the NBA has seen this Ron Artest. Who is this man? The stranger who locked down Granger. This version of Artest is combining great D with being a great teammate on and off the court.
Indiana never had that Ron. He didn't exist.
Didn't he?
I didn't pay this close attention to Artest before his arrival. But he got DPY one season. He must have played great D then. And untile recent couple of games, he didn't give the Lakers supposed amazing defense.
Joined: 27 Jun 2005 Posts: 29999 Location: Likely nowhere near you
Posted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 6:19 am Post subject:
I didn't see the game, but jd2k's highlights made it seem like Morrison got a lot of minutes this game. However, I only saw his offense. Was he really bad on D?
I don't see the Lakers bringing him back, but will he land anywhere next season? _________________ Courage doesn't always roar.
Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying...'I will try again tomorrow.'
Thanks, DB. Even though Granger is on my fantasy BB team, I'm glad Ron shut him down. His D has been tremendous. His hands are much quicker IMO. Tough little three game road trip over four days. I'm curious to see how we do.
Actually, I'm not sure the NBA has seen this Ron Artest. Who is this man? The stranger who locked down Granger. This version of Artest is combining great D with being a great teammate on and off the court.
Indiana never had that Ron. He didn't exist.
tw-lakbfan wrote:
Didn't he?
I didn't pay this close attention to Artest before his arrival. But he got DPY one season. He must have played great D then. And untile recent couple of games, he didn't give the Lakers supposed amazing defense.
Yes, he was an impact baller and defender, but he was cancer in the locker room and just plain insane on the court. That was DB's point. Great defender, and good teammate. Ron seriously has some issues, but he has managed to keep it under control in LA, and even in Houston. Post Indiana/Kings/Palace Brawl Artest has been an incredible asset. He does lose his temper ever once in a while, but he manages to keep it in check. Probably my favorite Ron moment of the year:
If he was still in Indy, he would have knocked that motha out! It shows how far he has come, and makes me happy to know that he is an enforcer on our team (I totally believe Carmelo is afraid of him, after that Joey Grahm sequence, Carmelo was on the bench and the look on his face was priceless...ie. this guy is absolutely nuts).
Joined: 02 Jul 2009 Posts: 13874 Location: Los Angeles, CA
Posted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 9:24 am Post subject:
tw-lakbfan wrote:
DancingBarry wrote:
JUST-MING wrote:
Jordan Farmar,
- Defensively.
- Offensively.
I recall at least 5 layups of Ford and Watson, because of Farmar's matador D. He didn't run the triangle-offense on-the-ball, nor our gameplan (outlined by Jim Cleamons). Statistics look good for Farmar offensively, but Fisher changed the entire game defensively, after he subbed-in for Farmar in the second/third quarter.
His three ball has looked better in the past two games (sinking 5-8, mostly swishes). The team had some dribble penetration issues defensively early on. They buckled down as the game went along, but it was causing some issues. Fish had some very nice defensive sequences in third quarter, including a block on Granger on the break that was somehow called a foul. Maybe the ref couldn't believe it. That's understandable, but DFish is crazy good as the only man back defending a break.
He also stopped the basketball, to help his teammates defend in transition. I can recall 3-times specifically, where he stopped TJ Ford's penetration in transition, just staying infront of him. Even forced the TO, before the half, to set up Bryant's buzzer-beater.
Fisher deserves more than a wink, DB. .
I'm not sure what's about 19 points on 8-10 shooting. Defensively, yeah he had issues which I called out. Still, that's superb production off the bench.
Fish also had D issues. His man had 9 assists in the first quarter. But I do think he played some very good D later on.
So what's the main issues with Farmar's D? Physical or mental limitations?
I saw in many cases, he got stuck under the screen, or when facing one-on-one gave clear lane to the attacking pgs.
Farmar had a great game. Unfortunately, there's Laker fans out there that just hate the guy no matter what he does..
Joined: 07 Jun 2002 Posts: 9674 Location: San Diego
Posted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 9:31 am Post subject:
Lakersneuron wrote:
Quote:
DancingBarry wrote:
Actually, I'm not sure the NBA has seen this Ron Artest. Who is this man? The stranger who locked down Granger. This version of Artest is combining great D with being a great teammate on and off the court.
Indiana never had that Ron. He didn't exist.
tw-lakbfan wrote:
Didn't he?
I didn't pay this close attention to Artest before his arrival. But he got DPY one season. He must have played great D then. And untile recent couple of games, he didn't give the Lakers supposed amazing defense.
Yes, he was an impact baller and defender, but he was cancer in the locker room and just plain insane on the court. That was DB's point. Great defender, and good teammate. Ron seriously has some issues, but he has managed to keep it under control in LA, and even in Houston. Post Indiana/Kings/Palace Brawl Artest has been an incredible asset. He does lose his temper ever once in a while, but he manages to keep it in check. Probably my favorite Ron moment of the year:
If he was still in Indy, he would have knocked that motha out! It shows how far he has come, and makes me happy to know that he is an enforcer on our team (I totally believe Carmelo is afraid of him, after that Joey Grahm sequence, Carmelo was on the bench and the look on his face was priceless...ie. this guy is absolutely nuts).
I love this move by Artest, the hand on his face afterwards is classic.
He's like, don't even breath in my direction or I will have to kill you baby boy! _________________ Never argue with stupid people! They will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience!! - Twain
So much for RonRon being a locker room cancer, the man's intensity and work ethic is rubbing off, for the best, on everyone. Even the Staples crowd, so used to cheering for offense, are now starting to cheer for his D.
I actually felt kinda bored watching the game. And if I'm bored, I can imagine how difficult it is for the players to actually get up for a game like this one.
Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 12825 Location: Somewhere watching a Laker game
Posted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 10:55 am Post subject:
Thanks DB.
Loved the defense Artest was displaying out there. It looks like his feet are feeling better. It also appears that his offense is coming around as well. I'm seeing some sequences where he is taking players in the post and punishing them.
Drew looked dominant at times last night. There are still some subtleties to his game that needs fine tuning (i.e. crisp passes out of a hard double and reposting, boxing out better, pick and roll defense, and guarding perimeter-oriented bigs). I am loving his steady progress as a player. I have to keep reminding myself of how young and inexperienced he really is.
Farmar actually looked good too. I think he can put more effort out there on defense though (it's in him because he played for Howland at UCLA). I find myself rooting for him to make Fisher's minutes dwindle, but until he puts forth more defensive effort it is not going to happen - which is sad.
I'm looking forward to this upcoming roadie. I think that we are starting to see the light at the end of this regular season tunnel and the team is starting to ratchet up their play. The half time adjustments Phil has made in these last few games has been spectacular. It's great to see because it shows me that they can make adjustments - which is key in the playoffs. The second halves of these last few games have been more like what is expected of this team. Most recently locking down Denver, locking down a then complete Boston lineup in the 4th qtr without Kobe, and beating playoff caliber teams without Kobe at home or on the road. I think we are on our way.
Posted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 11:56 am Post subject: Re: PACERS -at- LAKERS - 3/2 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings
tw-lakbfan wrote:
DancingBarry wrote:
Actually, I'm not sure the NBA has seen this Ron Artest. Who is this man? The stranger who locked down Granger. This version of Artest is combining great D with being a great teammate on and off the court.
Indiana never had that Ron. He didn't exist.
Didn't he?
I didn't pay this close attention to Artest before his arrival. But he got DPY one season. He must have played great D then. And untile recent couple of games, he didn't give the Lakers supposed amazing defense.
Defensively, yes. The mental game? No. Not even close.
Artest has been playing great D for longer than a couple of games. It's been going on for a few weeks now. He just hasn't had crazy good games like the last two.
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-- It's rare when Kobe gets to the line like he did tonight, but very nice to see. With his off shooting, any way he can manufacture points, the better. He wore a big white wrapping on his index finger again. Not sure when this thing is going to clear up, but sure isn't good to see that at this point. Some sloppy passing from Kobe early, although it seemed like his teammates weren't expecting a few of those. Kobe seemed to sense when to go for the kill in the third quarter and he set up both Ron and Lamar for corner threes that helped push the game out of range. "He's looking like it's getting better," Phil said of Kobe's shot. Hopefully, he finds his jumper. If not, I'll take more of these games any day. 
-- Pau was in close finishing tips and dunks. Almost all of his points came that way. Defensively, he did a good job sticking with the perimeter bigmen. His team-high +/- reflected that. He seems to be picking up his effort on the offensive glass. His improvement in this aspect of his game has been impressive. He used to average around 2.4 offensive boards per game. Last year, he improved that to 3.2. This season, he's at 3.6. He's also on a career-high pace of 11 boards per game. All of his career-high rebounding games are also in this season. 
-- Good job tonight in getting low position, even against Hibbert. Off-the-ball battling like that will make a huge difference in how often he gets the ball and how he scores. Of course, the Lakers came into the game wanting to establish the post. That helps, too. Defensively, he had to deal with speedy guards and perimeter shooting bigs. That's a tough combo for Bynum to defend. Occasionally, he got caught out of position in transition, which led to good looks or easy scores. However, he did have some nice challenges when the D was able to get set. Some very good help D sequences for him and he did it against a kind of team that could typically cause issues. Very nice to see. 
-- Danny Granger, are you ready to Artestify? Granger had 9 points on 2-9 shooting and 4 turnovers. He has been averaging 23 points this season and has been scoring at a high clip in his last few. That all came to an abrupt halt. Granger has had just two other games that he has scored in single digits. Just another dominating defensive performance by Ron, which again included a crazy third quarter with 5 steals. "We're starting to adjust to what he can do defensively, which helps the team out," Phil said. In other words, don't send unneeded help. When the help comes, Ron is still there with those quick hands and causing problems. Farmar said Ron's focus on Diet and D has been contagious for the entire team. Got to love it. 
-- His three ball has looked better in the past two games (sinking 5-8, mostly swishes). The team had some dribble penetration issues defensively early on. They buckled down as the game went along, but it was causing some issues. Fish had some very nice defensive sequences in third quarter, including a block on Granger on the break that was somehow called a foul. Maybe the ref couldn't believe it. That's understandable, but DFish is crazy good as the only man back defending a break. 
-- Some nice passing from Lamar in the game. He led the Lakers with 7 assists. He didn't have a big scoring game, but did have an impact offensively. "Good ball movement, guys hit shots, it's fun," Lamar said. He said he wasn't concerned with the slow starts the team had. "As the game goes along, just wear them down," he said. 
-- While winding up and swatting a shot out of bounds, Shannon tweaked a thumb on his shooting hand. He was holding it for a while, but still hit a three. After a deadball, he got it wrapped up. Hopefully, we don't have another SG with a bad shooting hand. Shannon looked good after the injury, but it may hurt a little more tomorrow. 
-- His three ball has been looking great lately. It seems like he's loading up and firing with good body control. "Just trying to take good shots and they're going in for me," he said. The more he can elevate his game and his consistency as the team heads to the playoffs, the better. The team is very difficult to deal with when they get impact ball from the PG spot. That's just a back-breaker. Defensively, he had some issues in the first half with dribble penetration. The defensive funneling again seemed to break down at times. The more he can make his man take an indirect path, the more time his help has to contain the penetration. 
-- He started the second quarter while the game was still up for grabs. That unit did well and Ammo scored a couple of times. Some ugly minutes on both ends for him in the fourth-quarter garbage time. The fans had some minor irkage for Ammo during Taco Time with some of his play on both ends, but the team still held on. He looked a little rusty on some of those Tri sequences. "He didn't shoot the ball like he can or does in practice," Phil said. 
-- He got half a quarter of garbage time run, but somehow didn't get a shot off. Blame DJ, I guess. Josh was the only Laker who didn't scratch. 
-- Despite Mbenga's quick trigger in the fourth, the team was still able to secure the all-important tacos for the fans. Some garbage time run for Mbenga, but he always puts in a good effort. The team lost a little of their lead when he came in, but the game was over even with 8 minutes left. 
-- The Lakers started off 0-6 from the floor and Phil called a timeout after 5 minutes. They were getting to the line, however... He brought in Lamar for Pau up by 2... The Lakers trailed 28-27 after the first... Phil went with a Pau, Lamar, Morrison, Brown, Farmar unit. They pulled out to a 41-34 lead... He went back to the starters midway through the quarter... Lots of guard penetration given up by the Lakers... The Lakers led 60-54 at the half. L.A. shot 50 percent (21-42), the Pacers shot 46.7 (21-45). The Lakers were 15-15 from the line, Pacers 5-7. L.A. needed to tighten the screws defensively... They did that in the third... The Lakers pulled out to a 12-point lead midway through the quarter... They went for the kill, bombing threes and locking down... The Lakers won the third quarter 38-17, Ron had 5 steals in the quarter... They led 98-71 heading into the fourth... Phil started a Pau, Lamar, Kobe, Brown, Farmar unit... Deep bench after a few minutes of that... The Lakers hit 10-23 from three and 22-24 from the line... They had 33 assists...
- Defensively.
- Offensively.
Love the Tru Warier analysis.
