RAPTORS -at- LAKERS - 3/9 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

[DancingBarry]

Previously on 24... The clock ticks down, time is about to run out, it's do or die. That's Kobe's office. Sometimes he saves the day, sometimes he doesn't. We're shocked when he doesn't.

Working off the same split play that the team has hit a number of game winners this season, Kobe attacked to his right, stepped back along the right baseline and hit the game-winner with 1.9 left. With a 109-107 win over the Raptors, the Lakers snapped their three-game losing streak.

The team worked on their fundamentals in practice. They talked about better effort. Maybe that helped the offense, but the Lakers struggled with controlling this game.

"Our offense looked fine, but that's not how you win championships," Kobe said afterward. "You don't win championships by your offense being pretty. If that was the case, we would have won two years ago. We got to ugly the game up. Defend. Stop people and that's how we win."

The team trailed going into the fourth, pulled ahead by 4 points, but struggled to get stops down the stretch. Andrew Bynum put together a strong two-way game and led the team with a +10 as a result. Phil was ticked when the team went away from him.

The Lakers saw more zone D and still seem lost against it. Overall, there was better weak-to-strong cutting in the Triangle to help against the overplays defensively. This is a counter to help against the ball denial and something the Lakers have not run with much fluidity. But the team still had issues. Phil thought they weren't patient enough.

One home game, one win. The Lakers hit the road for another three straight on the road. They hope the results will be much different this time.


Kobe -- -- He's been crazy clutch this season. The Lakers have two go-to plays for him. One is just giving him the ball in the backcourt and let him attack with speed. On the road we saw him hit one and miss one with the game on the line in that situation. The other play is off the sideline inbounds, working a split screen with him and the inbounder while the ball is in Pau's hands. They've killed teams on this play multiple times this season. Kobe did it again tonight. Better balance in the offense tonight. Now if they can put both sides of the court together for a stretch they might get the kind of streak they are more used to. The Stats: He scored 32 points on 11-20 shooting (0-1 from three, 10-11 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 6 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers and 4 fouls in 37 minutes. He was a +3. The Action: He sagged off his man and gave up a jumper. He was called for a hook on a spin. He missed a challenged pull-up jumper in early offense. He hit Pau on the screen-roll for a layup. He spun and hit a one-hander in the paint. His man scored a layup when Kobe ran into a screen. He lost the ball in traffic. He backed his man down drop-stepped and banked. He was stuffed on a forced jumper, layup the other way. Quick step past his man and he scored a layup. He sank a baseline jumper. He hit Powell on the screen-roll for a jumper. He split a double team, ball-faked a third defender and scored an And-1 layup with his left, he missed the FT. He missed a three badly, points in transition the other way. He was fouled on an attack from the wing and drew FTs, he made both. He had 12 points on 5-8 shooting and 5 assists. Second Half: He drew FTs working across the lane, he made both. He missed a drive and yelled at the refs. He hit Bynum cutting weak to strong for an easy score. He faced up and attacked from the wing for a layup. He swiped the ball from his man. He cut from the wing, took the pass and powered in the layup. He missed a runner off a spin in the lane. He missed a tough fallaway in the lane. He hit a face-up jumper from the wing. He attacked, spun and drew FTs on the short bank attempt, he made both. He swished a wing pull-up jumper and was looking for the foul after getting hit on the arm. He cut weak to strong and drew FTs, he made both. He attacked a seam in the zone and was hit on the drive, he made both FTs. He missed a long hanging jumper over the zone. He attacked before the D could get set up and hit a runner to his right. He was called for an offensive foul trying to get post position with 1:30 left. He tried to power in a layup in traffic and missed. Working off the angled split play, he took the pass from Pau, attacked to his right, stepped back and drilled the baseline jumper. Ball game.

Gasol -- -- Down the stretch, Pau was involved in several scores for the Raptors. He sat for most of the fourth as Bynum was playing strong, but Phil went back to him with a couple minutes left. Bynum, Lamar and Pau all played in the 30-minute range. That's leaving a good chunk of minutes from impact ballers on the bench. Most of Pau's offense took place in the first quarter. He got a number of trips to the line with some aggressive play, but later picked up a tech when some obvious fouls weren't called. Pau needs to work on that high post game. It would help against the zone if had a little more confidence in his jumper. The Stats: He scored 17 points on 4-11 shooting (9-11 from the line) to go with 9 boards (3 offensive), 1 assist, 1 block, 1 turnover and 4 fouls in 30:31. He was a -1. The Action: He sank an elbow jumper. He missed a jumphook. He blocked a layup. Excellent challenge on Bargnani's step-back jumper. He scored an And-1 layup off the screen-roll, he missed the FT. He spun and missed a short one and a follow tip. He tipped in a Bynum miss. He drew FTs on the repost and made both. He was held on an offensive board and drew FTs, he made both. He was hit with 0.1 left in the corner on the defensive boards and drew more FTs, he made one. He had 12 points and 5 boards. He biffed a layup over his head. He was fouled on a turnaround, he made both FTs. He had 13 points on 3-8 shooting (7-9 from the line), just 1 point in the second quarter. Second Half: Instead of powering up and dunking off the great interior feed from Kobe, he didn't hit iron on a reverse. He scored a layup off a feed by Ron. After kicking out and seeing the ball swing away, he aggressively battled for position and drew FTs off the ball, he made both. He picked up multiple fouls in the third quarter. He grabbed a missed three and was given a tech after missing a layup and yelling for the foul that never came (his shorts were practically pulled off on the play). He lost his man in the paint and gave up a score with a minute left.

Bynum -- -- If there is a bright side of things lately, it's that Bynum has been putting together some of his better games. Tonight was an excellent two-way game from him. He's been getting real low in his crouch defensively, and that was particularly helpful against Bosh. Not only was Drew challenging Bosh well, he also continued to show some strong help D. That's the combo defensively that people have been wanting more of. Offensively, he used his size well. "I was very disappointed after he scored a number of times that we went away from him...simply by them fronting the post," Phil said afterward. The guards get too easily deterred from taking advantage of the post. Bynum also went to one of his counters against a fronting, ball-denial defense. He started working weak to strong off the ball to take passes on the move and score in the lane. He's too big of a load for defenders when he's getting the balls in those situations. The team needs to go after that more. Phil had Pau on the bench late in the game because of Drew's play. "If you're a coach and your guy is playing well, you better have him in the game," Phil said afterward. Bynum led the team with a +10. The Stats: He scored 22 points on 8-12 shooting (6-8 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 2 blocks and 3 fouls in 31:24. The Action: He blocked Bosh's jumper, but let him swish a corner three without a challenge. He was called for an over-the-back foul. Center sprint and he sealed Bosh under the hoop for a layup. Excellent challenge on Bargnani's drive. Early low position again and he scored a reverse. He missed a layup, but Pau tipped it in. He drew FTs on a quick hit from Pau, he made both. He drew FTs working the post, he made both. He had 8 points on 2-3 shooting and 3 boards. Second Half: He dunked off a pass from Fish in transition. He curled into the lane, took the pass from Kobe and scored. He drop-stepped and drew FTs trying to power it in, he made one. He overpowered Bosh, missed, but got it back and scored the layup. great recovery on Bosh's drive and he swatted him off the glass. He then dunked while trailing the break on the other end. He saved some poor D by Fish that allowed penetration by challenging his man after the guard passed and forcing a travel. He curled weak to strong, took the pass and scored a layup. He missed a turnaround, getting hit with no call. Nice challenge to deny dribble penetration. He hit a jumphook on the baseline. He sealed his man on the corner sequence, took the post entry and was hacked on the reverse, he made one. Another nice challenge to force a missed jumper. He drew an offensive foul on Amir away from the ball on the next stand. He missed a rushed lefty jumphook.

Artest -- -- He shaved the yellow Rodman-esque hair and proceeded to go back to locking down on D. Hedo used to be a handful for the Lakers last season. He was held to 6 points on 2-7 shooting, 4 turnovers and didn't score in the second half (in two games, he's 3-13). It's much better seeing Ron go up against this type of player versus the speedy/athletic types he covered on the road trip. Offensively, he's still having a tough time getting into the flow with his team. He's hesitating on shots. He's posting up or attacking in crowds when he shouldn't. As teams start zoning or taking away initial reads, the team has to go into its counters. This is happening more and more lately and Ron is unsure what to do. In the playoffs, he might be in sync a little more when he gets to focus on just one opponent and he can learn some offensive "rules" for himself to overlay on the game. The Stats: He scored 9 points on 1-5 shooting (1-2 from three, 6-6 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 5 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 37:21. He was a +6. The Action: He blocked a three. He didn't take an open three, hesitated, then took a step-back jumper and missed. Nice challenge in transition to force a missed layup. He missed a sideline three. He pounced on a loose ball and drew FTs while pushing it out, he made both. He poked a ball loose from Hedo. He sank an open sideline three over the zone. He was blocked in the paint, but recovered it. He tried to post up and attack into a crowd, dunk the other way for the Raptors. He had 5 pionts on 1-4 shooting and 2 steals. Second Half: He poked the ball from Hedo to ignite a break. He drew Hedo's fourth foul on a cut and sent him to the bench early in the third. He passed on a shot, probed and hit Pau for a layup. He drew FTs sealing his man in the post off the ball, he made both. He faced up and didn't draw iron a short wing jumper. He drew FTs trying to hammer a dunk on the break with Fish, he made both.

Fisher -- -- Despite some confusion between him and Pau defensively in crunch time, Fish came up with one of the bigger plays of the game. He snagged a kickout pass with 30 seconds left and was fouled, where he promptly swished both clutch FTs on his first trip to the line. Offensively, both of Fish's makes were from distance. (One, of course, was his patented foot-on-the-three-line job). Fish played some extra minutes tonight as Phil sat his bench guards early in the fourth for the vets. This is probably more of a game-by-game thing than Phil mixing up rotations. The Stats: He scored 7 points on 2-5 shooting (1-4 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 1 board, 1 assist, 2 steals and 2 fouls in 30:35. He was a +3. The Action: He missed a three on a kickout to start. He missed a three on a Kobe kickout. He swished his third attempt from behind the arc, nope, toe-on-the-three-line two (the DFish Special). He sank a corner three over the zone. He had 5 points on 2-5 shooting. Second Half: He snapped a chest pass over his man to Bynum for a dunk. Great anticipation to intercept a cross-court pass, then he fed Ron trailing the break for FTs. He missed a three over the zone. Big steal, swiping a kickout from Hedo with 30 seconds left and he drew FTs, he swished both.

Lamar -- -- Lamar sank just one of two FTs with 19 seconds left, giving the Raptors the chance to tie it up with a three. It was an up and down game from Lamar. Phil was not happy with his start this game. Lamar missed a couple of the strong-side zone help D plays in his first stint. Phil called a timeout on the second one and got on him. Later, he benched him for Powell it seemed. Some very poor rotations and recognition in the first half. In the second half, the active/aggressive Lamar showed up and that generally makes a huge difference for this team. That's the LO -- attacking, posting up, working off the ball -- that has to be on the floor with one or both of our bigs. Lamar played a little SF in this game, but with Powell at the PF spot. Go figure. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 4-8 shooting (2-4 from the line) to go with 8 boards (3 offensive), 5 assists, 2 turnovers and 4 fouls in 30:12. He was a -3. The Action: He shoved his man off the block, offensive foul. He missed a long wing jumper badly, points in transition the other way. No rotation until it was too late and the Lakers gave up a wide open three. He bricked a wide open baseline jumper on the other end. Only 2 rebounds in the first half. Second Half: He grabbed a Bynum miss and scored an And-1 layup, he made the FT. He finally posted someone up, drew a double and kicked to Shannon for three. He attacked from the FT line and scored a layup. He missed a putback layup and a point-blank tip. Next time down, he attacked down the lane to his left off two long strides and scored the And-1 layup, he missed the FT. He flashed weak to strong, took the pass, attacked and scored the layup. He fouled a three shooter. He got the possession back on a missed FT when his jersey was held as he went for the board. He fumbled the ball away trying to attack the zone off the dribble. He was fouled with 19.6 left up by 2, he made just one FT.

Brown -- -- Shannon, Jordan and DFish combined for 2-12 from three. You've got to have good perimeter shooting to provide balance to your bigmen. The advantage that Shannon has over DFish is that he doesn't need to settle for the three. If the ball goes into the post and he's left open, he can cut into the paint. That provides the team some much better off-the-ball action and less predictability. It's vital he mixes that in instead of spotting up because others don't do a good job of it. The Stats: He scored 5 points on 2-9 shooting (1-4 from three) to go with 2 boards, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 19 minutes. He was a -1. The Action: He attacked, his shot was blocked, he stayed after it and finished the layup as if the the blocked shot were a pass. He swiped a pass in transition, then missed a wing pull-up jumper on the other end. He helped Evans fumble a ball out of bounds. He stepped on the gas, but couldn't finish a drive in early offense. He set up Powell for FTs with an interior pass. He bricked an off-balance 18-footer. Second Half: Nice recognition to chuck the three and just beat the shotclock and Farmar was able to score off the rebound. He bricked a three next time down on a good look. He sank a three on a kickout from LO in the post. He missed a corner three. He traveled on a drive.

Farmar -- -- Farmar couldn't connect from behind the arc in several attempts. That might have gotten him benched later in the fourth. Phil wanted the team to go into the post. With Shannon and Farmar looking to perimeter-oriented, he gave them the hook early in the fourth. Defensively, some of the same issues. Again, he relied too much on the help D zone and got burned. The more of an obstacle he can make himself, the more those late zone rotations start looking like they are on-time. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-7 shooting (0-4 from the line) to go with 2 boards, 1 assist and 3 fouls in 14:33. He was a +1. The Action: He swished a midrange wing jumper out of the offense. He got knocked to the floor on post D, then was called for a tripping foul while on the floor. A rare repost to Pau (and nice cut by Farmar) and Pau drew FTs. He gave up FTs on the perimeter 35 feet from the hoop (very well might have to start calling this "The Farmar" instead of "The Sasha"). He missed a wing three with the shotclock low. He missed an early offense wing three. Straight-line attack for his man and Farmar gave up a layup (he was shading, no one was covering...but again Farmar relying too much on help D when he didn't need to). He missed another three. Second Half: He grabbed a Shannon miss and hit a jumper in the lane. He attacked and missed a runner. He missed a wing three (feed the post).

Vujacic -- -- Obviously, Sasha's minutes were the key to the win. With shoulder padding under his jersey, he came in at the end of the first at the SF spot for Kobe and later at the end of the second quarter. He finished the third for Kobe at SF again for a minute. In all 2:35 of action. Just enough rest for Kobe to have his legs under the game winner. See, told you he was a key to the win. The Stats: He didn't have any stats in 2:35. He was a +3. The Action: Nothing to report. Second Half: Nothing to report.

Powell -- -- He came in at PF along side Bynum in the second quarter and later ran with LO at the SF. Some very odd lineups and they didn't work very well on either end. Not sure whether it was to send a message to LO, who was sleep walking early or whether Phil was looking to shake things up, especially against a zone D. Either way, it's not something with a future. Powell led with a -11 in limited minutes. The Stats: He scored 3 points on 1-1 shooting (1-2 from the line) to go with 2 boards and 2 fouls in 6:38. The Action: He drew FTs off an interior feed from Shannon, he made one. He sank a pull-up 10-footer off the screen-roll with Kobe. No box out and his man scored a putback tip in. Second Half: He did not play in the second half.

Phil -- -- Some rotation and lineup mixing by Phil tonight... First sub was Lamar for Pau with 4 minutes left in the first. He brought Pau back for Bynum 2 minutes later (along with Farmar and Brown for Fish and Artest)... The Lakers led 29-24 after the first... Phil started a Pau, Lamar, Artest, Brown, Farmar unit... They went scoreless in the first minute and a half and looked soft on D so Phil called a quick timeout... Phil ran a Bynum, Powell, Artest, Kobe, Shannon unit... He then brought in Fish for Shannon with 4 minutes left... He brought in Lamar for Artest with 3 minutes left. So he was running a Pau, Powell, Lamar, Kobe, Fisher unit. They had size, but hoisted long jumpers, which resulted in transition scores the other way off their rebounds. They struggled with the zone... Phil brought in Sasha for a final 30 seconds for Powell... After losing the second quarter 34-21, the Lakers trailed 58-50 at the half. Poor play on both ends. They shot 41 percent (16-39), the Raptors shot 52 percent (23-45). Raptors were 7-10 from three, Lakers 2-9. The Lakers had just 7 assists... The Lakers were down by 3 when Phil sat Bynum for Pau and brought in his bench guards... After two techs, the Lakers trailed 86-81 to start the fourth... The Lakers led by 1 after working the ball through Lamar and Bynum, then quickly trailed by 5 when the ball went through Shannon, Farmar and Ron in straight possessions... Phil sat Shannon and Farmar for Kobe and Fish with 8 minutes left in the fourth. First offensive play, they went to Lamar in the lane for a score... Raptors went to the zone with the Lakers starting to get some mo' down the stretch... With a 4-point lead, Phil sat Bynum for Pau with 2:30 left... Out of that timeout, they managed to miss a long three over the zone, not a good possession... Up by 4, the Lakers needed to protect against the three or a quick score with 30 seconds left. They gave up the quick layup off some poor D... Next possession when they needed to protect against just the three, they gave up a three to Bosh with 9.5 seconds left to tie the game. (Could have fouled for two FTs if Phil wanted)... Inbounds play for L.A., they ran their split sequence they like to at the end of the game. The Raptors actually covered it better than we usually see, but No. 24 drained a tough baseline step-back jumper with a couple defenders trying to take him. Love that play...

[uberzev]

FIRST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks DB!
_________________
Lakers Gonna Lake

[Mr. Zero]

_________________
Phil Luke

[dmlakerfan01]

Kobe & Bynum

Love Pau, but Drew just looks better right now.

[Fleur-de-Lis]

[lounger]

Thanks DB! lol at Sasha's part. I needed that one.

[STiG909]

Great game for Bynum. Phil needs to make sure he's always getting his 30 minutes, he deserves it.

[night89]

Drew is starting to become as dominant as I predicted(actually quite a bit faster than I expected. It's gotten to the point where I'd rather look to the off days because I know even with just two days, his explosiveness and strength take a noticeable leap). I seriously think he has the potential to be as good as Dwight on defense and as Shaq on offense. He can literally carry this team on his back, at the very least, the midgets in the backcourt, who can't play a lick of D out there.

The last time we saw this kind of potential from him, however, something bad happened. He has to be very very careful from now, about how much or how hard he jumps defensively or for a rebound. We can beat anyone without homecourt, the way he's playing. In fact, I can even foresee a sweep of the Cavs, if his strength keeps progressing the way it's been. What we can't afford is any type of bad landing, playing for something that I don't think we really need(I'm more convinced than ever that he should just sit out and work on improving his strength, but ah well.)

Phil needs to tell everyone, don't even jump in his vicinity, when he goes up for the rebounds. He is literally a "gift from God," so pray that he stays healthy. I wish there was a better way, but so far, being careful has worked, so I would "stick with it. " The good thing is that the stronger he gets, the more he'll dominate offensively, and the less effort or "dangerous jumps" that he'll have to make defensively(this is called the Shaq-approach.) He can also shorten the game by being supremely dominant.

Only 17 more games till the postseason. He can either make Jimmy Buss look like a genius, or a fool. If he can win the Finals MVP, then there will be no more trade talks. However, he'll have to be very very strong to do that, because Shaq is a much bigger obstacle than Kobe's man(he'll have to overcome Shaq with defense and rebounding basically.)

15 rebounds per in the postseason Drew. Will you do whatever it takes to reach that number?

[night89]

On another note, I normally would have been impressed with his defense on Bosh. But after Sunday's game, I kinda expected it. Shows you how far he has come. We can add Bosh to the list that Drew likes to own now.

Next challenge will be Amare. Now he's a guy that Drew usually owns, however, Amare has been playing on a completely level, since the All-Star break, so I would be very impressed if Drew can keep him under 20. Perhaps that should be Drew's mission, shutting down or at least containing all of the All-Stars.

[adtz]

lolx. really funny for sasha comment. he really vital afterall

[IPK]

That's cold DB!
_________________
Our tribute to Phil, the man behind LG

[Tanlentueux]

[prisma8slg]

[limchrc]

nice win

[Shaber]

[RVCdesigns]

Thanks DB and thank you Sasha.

[LakersRGolden]

[mhan00]

our guards are idiots. bynum basically always dominates guys smaller or weaker than him, and we just stopped going to him for huge stretches as our guards (shannon and farmar mainly) just started jacking up jumpers instead of posting our guys inside. a few times pau and drew kicked it out and instead of reposting our guards tried to drive or swung the ball to the other side for a contested jumper. just dumb.

[squidward]

Not a great win, but a win nonetheless. Hope we can assemble a nice big streak now. Bynum is starting to play better and as long as Lamar steps it up we'll be getting wins a lot easier. But like you mentioned DB, we need to better from the perimeter.

[BigE32]

Thanks, DB. It's a W but I'm not very happy with what I've been witnessing lately. I just hope that we right the ship. "Previously on 24"- love it.

[JTS1]

two things have been scary lately, the lakers d and ronron not making shots.

the lakers cannot make key stops at the end of games. this is the trend that needs to get fixed. this is what makes teams, championship teams. right now the lakers do not look like a championship team.

w/ronron...he not making shots has had an affect on him. there was at least one play where he had an open look, but hesitated, then took the shot. it's not like he's getting tapped, some of his attempts are flat out ugly misses. i'm glad the man can contribute on the d side of floor, but he's still needed on the other end of the floor or it's 4-5. other teams should be leaving him wide open until he makes them pay.

it was a shame that the lakers left someone open for a 3-point attempt. they've done it so many times, i don't even get mad about it anymore. that's another trend that needs to stop. the lakers just seem to love to let players be a 'whodafuc' player of the game.

i thought by this time of the season, they'd be rounding into form. if this is what they're rounding into, the post season is going to be a stress filled one, w/a lot of drinking during games and after games. guess i better start stocking up the liquor cabinet now. :rolleyes:
_________________
'How many kids can say growing up that they'll turn pro and play for their favorite team in the world and spend your entire career there? IT'S BEEN A DREAM!'-Kobe Bryant 11.29.15

[Klone_dd]

"Previously on 24" and the clock ticking - great imagery, DB.

Kobe: That's just what he does. He is the most dangerous man in the world.

Great activity by Bynum. Another inkling of his potential. Only 2 blocks, but he altered several shots.

Can we give the fan in the front row some props for tipping that ball away from Calderon? That guy played better D than Farmar.

[A Mad Chinaman]

[City_Dawg]

[Luca Brasi]

excellent game breakdown as always.

i wish you would've included andrew's pick n roll defense on one particular play in the second half, where he not only denied turk's penetration but turned him around and made him drive to sideline and throw a pass which lead to TO.

it was one of the best displays of pick n roll defense this season, and a great example that pick n roll defense involves two players, not just one. whoever is guarding the pick man has responsibilities too, and andrew displayed them to perfection on that particular play.

i know it there's been a lot of discussion about where our weak links are defensively, and without question the perimeter defense has been shoddy this season; but our back-line defense hasn't always been there in support either, and it needs to be for us to be successful.

in this regard, i have a good feeling about andrew really providing a real defensive presence during these playoffs.
_________________
"i was born down in the valley where the sun refused to shine, but i'm climbin' up to the highlands, goin' to make that mountain mine" ~ Lakers, 2011