CELTICS -at- LAKERS – 3-9-19 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

 
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 09, 2019 8:31 pm    Post subject: CELTICS -at- LAKERS – 3-9-19 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

Deep Bench Minutes… The Lakers appear all in on the tank.

With rumors that Lonzo might be ruled out for the rest of the season, the new restricted minutes for LeBron, Kuzma sidelined again and the team now playing their G-Leaguers big minutes, it was exactly a game to go hyped for. The news prior to this game that Brandon Ingram would be out the rest of the season with a blood clot was sobering.

There was little buzz going into this Lakers/Celtics game. Whether it was because of the Ingram news or the shift to the tank, the Lakers/Celtics game did not feel the same.

Still, it was enjoyable to watch the young Laker G-Leaguers give an honest effort. Laker fans appreciated Wagner and Williams hitting the floor or the boards with hustle plays and scoring big numbers. (They combined for 40 points.)

When LeBron played he was dominant, managing a 30-10-12 triple double in just 28 minutes. On the court, we were a +11 with him. Off the court, a -24 in the 120-107 loss. The Lakers are now in the top 10 in the lottery with 16 games to go.


LeBron -- -- Sneaky quiet triple-double. Just 13 minutes in the first half as the Lakers are restricting his minutes. They were a +4 when he was out there and a -14 when he sat in the half. You could see him impose his will in the third quarter when the Lakers went down 17. He manufactured several scores at the rim and set up teammates to cut the lead back to 5 before sitting. He’d finish with 30-10-12 in 28 minutes. Had he played another 10 minutes (he was a +11), this game would have been a lot closer. The Celtics didn’t have anyone who could guard him tonight. Some good moments of hustle out there. Whether that was because that’s been in the spotlight, this was a national game or that he could put in a better effort in shorter minutes, hard to say. But definitely appreciated in a Lakers/Celtics game. The Stats: He scored 30 points on 13-23 shooting (1-5 from three, 3-7 from the line) to go with 10 boards, 12 assists, 3 turnovers and no fouls in 28 minutes. He was a +11. The Action: He sank a baseline fade in early offense. His bounce pass was picked off. He threw down a soaring dunk trailing the break. He missed a baseline floater. He backdoored his man, took the pass and dunked. He iso’d and swished the baseline fade. He took contact in early offense and chucked it up to earn FTs, he made one. He iso’d and missed a corner three. He found Hart for a three in transition. He missed a floater. Pocket pass to Williams for the throwdown. He attacked the rim, missed, got it back and earned FTs, he missed both. He missed a three in transition. He forced up a brick in traffic in the middle of the paint. He iso’d and airballed. Second Half: He attacked a crowd and turned it over. He faced up, attacked baseline and reversed. He attacked in transition, spun and scored a layup. Next possession, he attacked off the high screen and drew FTs at the rim, he made one. Good closeout to help force a turnover. He hit Moe for a three. Hesi dribble and he took it for a layup. He threw a pass away for a layup the other way. He scored a layup when Moe found him form the post. Long outlet to Moe changing ends for the layup. Lob pass to Caruso to start the fourth. He threw a pass away. He posted up, attacked baseline and reversed. He stepped back and drained a wing three to beat the shotclock. He missed a step-back three next time down. He missed a three against the shoclock. He probed in early offense and reversed around the D. Pocket pass to Williams for the dunk. He threw down when Williams found him cutting. He attacked a big and powered in the And-1 runner (catching Kyrie with elbow to the face in the process), he made the FT. He missed a short one.

Wagner -- -- First NBA start of his career and he had a career-high scoring night. Valuable minutes. Good to see both from a development standpoint and rewarding guys who play hard. He had 6 points on 2-5 shooting with 2 turnovers in 15 first half minutes. Then turned it up in the second half. You could see the energy drop off a bit when he sat in the third quarter. He made just one three, but got to the line and made all seven attempts (refreshing to see). Great job changing ends to get some easy ones (wish Lonzo was out there playing with him to see that tempo more often). Defensively, he was active, always hustling and hit the floor for loose balls. Obviously, the strength still needs to come and will. Really liked seeing him hold ground on the block he had on Horford who tried to power up. “Good learning experience for him and something to build on,” Luke said. The Stats: He scored 22 points on 7-13 shooting (1-5 from three, 7-7 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 3 assists, 1 block, 3 turnovers and 2 fouls in 34 minutes. He was a +3. The Action: He ball-faked, stepped back and missed the wing three. He attacked from the corner and fed McGee for FTs. Good job changing ends and Rondo found him for the oop. He attacked the paint and charged. He changed directions with a behind-the-back dribble and missed a layup, but Williams cleaned it up. He spun in the post and earned FTs, he made both. He flipped in a layup around a defender in transition. He traveled off the three line. He missed a corner three. Second Half: He took a feed in the lane, spun and scored off glass. He attacked off the three line and fed McGee around a defender for a dunk. He sank a three when the D doubled LeBron. He attacked a seam off the three line and drew FTs, he made both. He was fouled on the roll to the hoop, he made both FTs again. He posted up and hit LeBron cutting for a layup. He changed ends with speed and LeBron hit him with the long outlet for the layup. He stepped in off the three line and sank the wing jumper. He missed a wing three. XXX He spun baseline and was blocked. He backed a big down, moved from side to side and eventually score the And-1 over him, he made the FT. He missed a three straight away.

Rondo -- -- Early on, he did a good job finding teammates on the secondary break action for scores. He’d have a few more setups throughout the game, but really not much a factor in this game. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-7 shooting (0-2 from three) to go with 6 boards, 9 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers and 2 fouls in 31 minutes. He was a -16. The Action: He knocked a ball from a bigman on a mismatch. He hit LeBron trailing the break for a dunk. He iso’d and bricked a long running jumphook. He lobbed to Moe changing ends for the oop. He blew past his man for a layup. He attacked on iso and charged. He iso’d and missed a runner. He iso’d and lost the ball out of bounds. Lob to McGee on the roll for the dunk. He traveled trying to skip through a crowd. He found Moe in transition for a layup. Second Half: He missed a three up against the shotclock. He missed a wing three. He was blocked trying to hit a jumper off the two-man game. Long pass down court to Bullock for a layup. He iso’d and hit the midrange jumper.

McGee -- -- Some moments of hustle early on, including some disruptive D, but there are stretches when he and KCP just look like they are trying to get theirs. He was a -15 in 16 minutes. He lost his job to Zubac because he was consistently putting in negative impact nights. (Must…not…go…on…a…rant…about…that…trade). The Stats: He scored He scored 8 points on 3-5 shooting (2-2 form the line) to go with 5 boards, 2 steals, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 16 minutes. He was a -15. The Action: He hit a running hook on iso. He was hacked off the interior feed from Moe, he made both FTs. He missed a short jumphook. He threw down a lob dunk off the Rondo two-man sequence. He deflected a pass to get a stop. Second Half: He dunked off the drive and dish from Moe. He missed a forced, long jumphook.

Caldwell-Pope -- -- The iso possessions in this game just annoyed the (bleep) out of me in the first half. Very indulgent, selfish plays that are not his strength. He was a -10 in the first half with 2 points on 1-5 shooting and 1 turnover. A few minutes into the second half Luke benched him. “The start of the third was no good,” Luke said of the Lakers effort. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 1-5 shooting (0-3 from three) to go with 1 turnover in 16 minutes. He was a -17. The Action: He missed am iso pull-up jumper on our first possession after the first option busted (got to have better second and third options than that). He missed a wing three. He attacked off the three line and scored a layup. He missed a corner three in transition. Good challenge on Tatum to force an airball. He missed a corner three. He iso’d after bringing the ball up and dribbled it right out of bounds (sit down). Second Half: Nothing to report.

Bullock -- -- He fired a series of catch and shoots throughout the game. He’d sink just one three in six attempts. No impact. Frankly, if we don’t keep him for next season…I would have enjoyed watching Svi play tonight. The Stats: He scored 7 points on 3-9 shooting (-16 from three) to go with 1 board and 2 fouls in 22 minutes. He was a -14. The Action: He missed a pull-up at the top of the key. He sank a wing three off the handoff. He swished a catch-and-shoot at the FT line. He missed a corner three next time down. Second Half: He missed an open corner three. He missed a wing three. He scored a reverse off the outlet in transition. He missed a wing three.

Hart -- -- Very quiet night, but he would drain a couple of three attempts. The Lakers were a sad 5-27 from three tonight. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 3-10 shooting (2-6 form three) to go with 2 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal and 2 fouls in 28 minutes. He was a -13. The Action: He missed a wing three. He attacked in transition, spun and hit the floater. He rattled in a wing three in transition. He missed an elbow fade. Second Half: He was blocked out of bounds on a drive. He swished a wing three on a kickout. He missed a wing three. He missed an off-balance wing three. He missed a wing three.

Williams -- -- With vets pouting or phoning it in this time of year, it’s nice to see guys out there who covet these minutes. Great first half by Williams to get a career high 10 points in 10 minutes to go with 5 boards. He’d pick up where he left off in the second half, finishing around the rim off hustle or setup from teammates. Dunk after dunk and finishes at the rim on his way to the 18-10 game. “He had another really good night for us,” Luke said, mentioning you don’t waste opportunities in this league. He did not. He gave the Lakers pretty good minutes early on in the season prior to getting Chandler. It definitely seems like he’s elevated his game more. Everything looks a bit more confident (he was even flexing and yelling off some of those dunks). We haven’t seen any of those awkward three attempts yet. The Stats: He scored 18 points on 9-16 shooting to go with 10 boards (4 offensive), 1 assist, 1 block and 2 fouls in 29 minutes. He was a +0. The Action: He tipped in a missed drive from Moe. He couldn’t finish in traffic. Trailing the break, he took the feed and scored a layup. He missed a pull-up at the FT line. He was blocked by the rim, got it back and scored the layup. He wound up and threw down off the pocket pass from LeBron. He stuffed down a missed jumper. Second Half: He yanked a defensive board away from a Celtic to get a stop. He was blocked trying to rise up in a crowd. He attacked left off the dribble and hammered. He choked a lob at the rim. He was fouled on a drive with no call and missed. He dunked off the pocket pass from LeBron. He battled for an offensive board then found LeBron cutting for a dunk. He faced up, attacked and missed the lefty layup. Reverse dunk off the drive and dish from Caruso. Dunk off the corner feed from Caruso.

Caruso -- -- Very strong defensively. Some great rotations behind the play to disrupt passes. He also took a charge in transition D and another on a rotation. Scrappy defensive ball that the Lakers have been missing since Lonzo went out. The Lakers were a +5 in his 30 minutes. He was a quiet difference maker because of that disruptive D and hustle. JVG gave him some good praise during the broadcast and mentioned he should be on an NBA roster. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 3-3 shooting (2-2 from the line) to go with 2 boards, 2 assists, 1 block and 5 fouls in 30 minutes. He was a +5. The Action: He hounded Tatum into a turnover. He crossed over a big and scored a layup. He deflected a pass under the hoop to get a stop. He drew a charge on transition D, deftly cutting off Tatum. Great read on D to rotate and knock a pass loose under the hoop. He denied Kyrie on iso and forced him to pass. Second Half: He stepped in to draw a charge on a rotation. He forced Brown into a brick. He threw down a two-handed lob dunk to start the fourth. He scored a layup off the UCLA cut. He attacked the paint and bounced to Williams for a dunk. Feed from the corner to Williams for a dunk. He blocked a big from behind to get a stop. He attacked with the shotclock low and earned FTs, he made both.

Bonga -- -- He started the second quarter to take some of those LeBron restricted minutes now available. Really not much going on out there. He had a block and a turnover on the break. The Stats: He didn’t score or shoot and had 1 board, 1 block, 1 turnover and no fouls in 6 minutes. He was a -9. The Action: His bounce pass in transition was picked off, nice try, though. Second Half: He blocked a big from behind.

Walton -- -- The Lakers were getting some points early on secondary break action as the Celtics did a weak job matching up… Up 2 when Hart came in for LeBron with under 5 minutes left… Down 3, 2 minutes later when Williams came in for McGee… Down 1 with 2 minutes left, he sat Moe for Reggie and Caruso came in for KCP… The Lakers trailed 25-24 after the first… He started a Williams, Hart, Bonga, Bullock, Caruso lineup… Down 5 with 10:34 left, LeBron came in for Bonga… Down 3 he brought back in the starters with 5 minutes left. Wholesale subs except for LBJ… Bonga back in for LeBron to make that wholesale sub complete a possession later… Predictable timeout shortly later down 6. Predictable not because of Bonga playing but rather putting 5 guys who have been sitting on the bench for extended minutes all back in the game at once… Bullock in for Bonga out of that… Weak close to the quarter with an offensive-challenged lineup and they fell back by double digits… The Lakers trailed 57-47 at the half… Quickly down 17 and Luke called a timeout. We’ve got them where we want them… He sat McGee and KCP, who just look like they are trying to put up numbers. Williams and Caruso in… They cut the lead to 5… Hart in down 5 with 4:44 left for LeBron… Bullock in for Wagner… Probably should sit Rondo soon… Bonga in… Lakers fell apart to close the quarter. They trailed 93-76, lead back to 17… He started a Wagner, LeBron, Hart, Bullock, Caruso lineup…
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Lucky_Shot
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 09, 2019 8:57 pm    Post subject:

How can you keep doing this to yourself DB? I can't even watch them let alone write a whole post game review.. take a break man lol

Good job none the less
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Shaber
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 10, 2019 12:51 am    Post subject:

Had Luke played Caruso right after Lonzo went down, we still might have a chance.
If there were no midseason trades for the Lakers, we'd be fighting for a playoff spot.

If this was a game with Svi and Zubac getting meaningful time along with Wagner and Caruso, it would make such a difference.
Now that there are mostly rentals playing, there is literally nothing to see.
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PG Johnson / Goodrich
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A Mad Chinaman
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 10, 2019 2:20 am    Post subject:

Good to see players finally starting to play with en edgy like before Christmas

Maybe now is the time to ponder these questions that was asked at http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/26213791/to-move-forward-lakers-need-long-look-mirror as we play these final games


What are we doing wrong here?
~ Roster makeup???

Why do so many players play their best basketball after they leave our team?
~ Most answers start with Luke, but with the problems seemingly with the vets

Why have our recruitment efforts in free agency failed?
~ No consistency

Did we hire the right people to make the big decisions?
~ Magic/Rob got rid of Deng/Mosgov contracts and got Lebron
~ Team was meshing till Christmas

Is that decision-making process coherent?
~ Time will tell

Why didn't our collection of high draft picks, in totality, translate into a winning team?
~ Nobody was teaching them how to win

Are we empowering our coaching staff or hindering them?
~ Hindering

Do those in the organization collectively feel they're working toward something, feel their work is valued, and have we conveyed what that something is?
~ Does Lebron or the staff have control?
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Lakers#1Team
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 10, 2019 4:12 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB!
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akgolf
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 10, 2019 5:13 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB!
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LakerLanny
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 10, 2019 9:08 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB, this team is shockingly awful.
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Laker7
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 10, 2019 9:12 am    Post subject:

Much more enjoyable game that some from the last couple of weeks. Players were actually trying to win rather than go through the motions to get a paycheck.

Agree with JVG that Caruso needs to be on a NBA roster rather than G League. Either as a back up PG or 3rd string guard. No worse than Ty Lue during the championship seasons.

Loved the effort and enthusiasm from Williams and Wagner. Need to bulk up / strengthen up this summer but should have a good shot at making the roster next year (Williams).

IMO Lebron feeds off the emotions of those around him. Last couple of games was mailing it in but when he was on the court with guys that were hustling he was hustling too.
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danzag
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 10, 2019 10:50 am    Post subject:

Good minutes from the kids. Caruso, Williams and Wagner deserve to be on a roster.

Our vets suck. KCP, Rondo, McGee... Can't wait to see them all gone.
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RYZ
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PostPosted: Mon Mar 11, 2019 1:52 am    Post subject:

Thanks, DB. LeBron is the master of the "sneaky, quiet triple-double."
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ibitegirls
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PostPosted: Mon Mar 11, 2019 7:48 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB.

These injuries are ridiculous. Lakers should clean house and dump the cursed medical staff with the coaches.
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