CELTICS -at- LAKERS - 12/7 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

 
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DancingBarry
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PostPosted: Tue Dec 07, 2021 10:41 pm    Post subject: CELTICS -at- LAKERS - 12/7 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

Nothing Like a Laker Win and a Celtic Loss... The Lakers have been hearing it from fans and media lately. Had they not won this home game against the Celtics, the volume on that chatter might have gone up considerably.

Thankfully, they handled their business. The Celtics were down one of their stars, the Lakers had theirs. There was no excuses and nowhere to hide if they failed to bring the required effort in this one.

They took control of this game behind Russell Westbrook’s third quarter. He got downhill off screens. The Lakers got in the paint over and over, and they imposed their will on the Celtics, winning the quarter 31-20.

With the paint open for business, Westbrook and the team were relentless at getting to the rim that quarter, scoring 26 points in the paint. Early in the fourth, they extended the lead to 20 and held on for the 117-102 win over the Celtics.


LeBron -- -- A 16-point first shift for LeBron on 6-7 shooting. Nice to see him come out with the fight early when Tatum scored the Celtics first 14. The perimeter shot was dropping, but he was also able to score some at the rim. He tipped in miss over Tatum. He also went between his legs on the dribble to beat Tatum and scored a layup in early offense. He’d score just 2 points in the second quarter. He kind of stalled out the offense in the fourth quarter as we went on a scoreless drought for 4 minutes. It could be that his conditioning isn’t quite there, but we also have seen that from him quite a bit. Where we’d pound the dribble, not get any paint touches and things go south. Some good off-ball cuts by Lakers in this game. I don’t know if they worked on it or not. There were certainly set plays that had that element. But it seemed multiple guys were diving from time to time, LeBron included. He cut off THT late in the game for a layup. Just a couple defensive boards tonight, but we dominated the glass. We saw him swoop in for a defensive board like I don’t think we’ve seen this season. Felt like there was a little extra intention and effort there by everyone on that defensive end. Can we throttle that up with consistency? The Stats: He scored 30 points on 13-19 shooting (2-5 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 5 assists, 3 turnovers and 2 fouls in 36 minutes. He was a +18.

Davis -- -- I like that he avoided the three ball tonight. He only took a few midrange jumpers and those were generally open or shots he needed to take. When he had time and was iso’ing, he didn’t settle. He was looking to face up and attack. On one faced up on Horford, jabbed to his right, attacked left and reversed. Defensively, he had a couple of blocks and a couple steals. He was more disruptive switching and forcing the Celtics to iso. Look, when you have a strong guard in Westbrook and a mobile big like AD, that’s what you need to do. We don’t need to be hedging and recovering. Make them beat Russ in the post or AD on the perimeter. There was one sequence where Russ had Horford, three-quarter fronted the pass, deflected it and we got the turnover. Let those guys handle the mismatches. That’s our strength defensively with AD at the C and a strong PG. The Stats: He scored 17 points on 7-13 shooting (3-4 from three) to go with 16 boards (4 offensive), 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 3 turnovers and 3 fouls in 35 minutes. He was a +17.

Westbrook -- -- The Lakers didn’t impose themselves until Russ imposed himself. He had 8 points on 3-8 shooting and 6 assists in the first half. He was clanking the three ball early. Very nice score at the end of the first half, sealing AD’s man in the corner, then taking the feed in the dunker spot as LeBron drew Russ’s man, and Russ scored the layup. In the third, he got downhill. We were getting him attack with confidence and speed off high screens. That resulted in some easy scores as he exploded into the paint. One of those led to a hammer dunk to extend the lead to 19 and get Staples going. Some bully moments against Schröder when they matched up on iso, but getting him in attack-mode with speed is what pushed the game in the Lakers favor.. “I think at the beginning of the year that Russ was a little passive,” AD said afterward. As we build up our playbook and teammates are all on the same page, we will get more of these strong shifts with more consistency. The Stats: He scored 24 points on 9-16 shooting (1-4 from three, 5-6 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 11 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers and 2 fouls in 36 minutes. He was a +11.

Horton-Tucker -- -- He has made 2 of his last 24 from three (8%). Dumb shot attempt of the night goes to THT with 2 minutes left and the lead at 13. He jacked up and bricked an early offense three and missed. You’ve hit two threes in your last 9 games. The Celtics scored a three on the other end to cut it to 10. We had just gone into garbage time a minute earlier, so Vogel called a timeout and told them to run clock. THT did and scored a backhand layup out of that on iso. Next time down, he ran more clock and hit Monk for a three. A little late game teaching moment for Vogel. So...THT’s three shooting. It’s not good. He went 0-5 tonight and is now currently 22.7% for the season. Putting him on the floor with Westbrook and AD? Guess who is the best three shooter of that bunch? Russ is your floor spacer there, so good luck with that lineup offensively until AD and THT start hitting. They managed to work it out tonight. Defensively some good moments from THT with 2 steals and a block. (He blocked Schröder on iso D after nearly stealing the ball from him on that same possession.) We had a couple of plays in this game, getting the ball to THT on the move in the paint. One was a nice SLOB sequence where he came off the down screen from LeBron to take the pass as he curled into the paint. The Stats: He scored 12 points on 5-14 shooting (0-5 from three, 2-3 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 3 turnovers and 3 fouls in 35 minutes. He was a +16.

Bradley -- -- The starters have some spacing issues, but they should be better on D with Dwight out and Bradley in there. That third quarter, they held the Celtics to 20 points. We saw them go on a run to extend the lead to 15 before that starting unit rotated out that quarter. They got it done. Loved seeing AD tip a kickout on defense and Bradley then tipping it as well to get a stop that led to a LeBron breakaway. When we get those hands in passing lanes and disrupt plays, then good things happen. We just don’t see enough of it. Offensively, he tipped in his own miss in the paint and hit a corner three. The Stats: He scored 5 points on 2-6 shooting (1-2 from three) to go with 3 boards, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 24 minutes. He was a +4.

Anthony -- -- Good first shift, getting into his post turnarounds for a couple easy scores. He also hit a long jumper and got a layup on a rim run. Defensively, Schröder got him on switches a couple of times to make things difficult. Melo did steal a pass under the hoop. He had 8 points on 4-6 shooting and 5 boards in the first half. In the fourth quarter, he had a series of misses in a row, including an uncontested putback layup. That caused a little bump in the momentum. The Stats: He scored 9 points on 4-11 shooting (0-4 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 8 boards (3 offensive), 1 steal and 3 fouls in 21 minutes. He was a +2.

Howard -- -- Off the bench while AD rested, he hit the boards and kept things in check. He had a couple offensive boards on one play, eventually tipping it in for a score. He finished a highlight play when Russ cut off the post, took a pass and quickly sent it to Dwight for the dunk. Lakers did well with the post doubles. (The passing from the post was decent tonight, but the Celtics were doubling from spots we’re very capable of exploiting via the pass). The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-4 shooting to go with 8 boards, 1 block and 1 foul in 13 minutes. He was a -2.

Monk -- -- He had a couple of dunks on the break tonight, including what was probably the dagger -- a windmill with 5 minutes left to go up 19 and break the Celitcs will. Efficient night offensively. He hit a three on ATO straight away. He did a good job finding guys (LeBron for a three, AD for an open jumper). Played very much in the flow on both ends. He’s the smallest guy out there on some of these lineups with Russ on the floor. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 4-6 shooting (2-3 from three) to go with 2 boards, 2 assists, 1 steal and 3 fouls in 20 minutes. He was a +12.

Ellington -- -- Pretty decent game defensively from Ellington. He had some good recoveries, deflected passes and even cut off a man with foot speed and challenged to force a brick. More of that, please. He knocked down a couple of threes. One on a dribble to the left on a LeBron kickout, another on one of those inverse screen sequences where he ghost screened to get open. Good working with LeBron on those sequences. I like seeing both of them on the floor at the same time to work on those. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 2-4 shooting from three to go with 1 board and 3 fouls in 14 minutes. He was a +3.

Reaves -- -- Just 3 minutes in garbage time tonight. Nothing to report. The Stats: He had no stats in 3 minutes. He was a -3.

Bazemore -- -- He came in with 3 minutes left for garbage time. Showed those youngins how to run clock. The Stats: He had no stats in 3 minutes. He was a -3.

Vogel -- -- Key Moment: There was a 2-minute stretch midway through the third where the Lakers went on an 11-2 run. A lot of defense to offense sequences. We had Russ going and Staples responding. A much more enjoyable game tonight.

Key Substitution: Let’s go with Russ coming back in the fourth after we had a scoreless stretch of nearly 4 minutes. LeBron kind of sucked the life out of the ball for a stretch there and the Lakers lost their edge that Russ had given them in the third.

Key Stats: The Lakers won the points in the paint 66-42. They dominated in the third quarter, scoring 24 of those. I also like the 51-34 advantage on the glass, including a 13-7 advantage on the offensive boards.
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mhan00
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PostPosted: Tue Dec 07, 2021 10:45 pm    Post subject:

So nice to have a fun game.
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TooMuchMajicBuss
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 1:38 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB! Always good to see the Lakers beat the Celtics.
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 2:54 am    Post subject:

Two blowout wins in our last three games. Maybe we're heading in the right direction.

Great to see Westbrook playing well consistently, especially in the second halves of games. Seems lately like when he gets going, he gets the team going, which is one reason we got him, so LeBron won't always have to do that.
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 4:49 am    Post subject:

Did a lot of things right in this one.

It began with the effort. Could be the longer rest between games. Lebron was playing at a level you want to see more often. Especially on D. If Lebron can defend at this intensity 3 out of 4 games, I can live with it.

AD at the 5 meant once again a role and lineup change from Frank. Tough for Frank, he is clearly trying to figure out solutions. Yesterday AD at the 5 definitely worked to our advantage. Was very obvious the additional spacing gave Bron/Westbrook and even THT a lot more room to get into the paint. Here's the thing though. AD did not shoot any 3 pointers. I loved that. At the 5 just because the team sags off you, doesn't mean you need to shoot the 3s or long 2s. Wait for a paint touch. Get yourself in the paint off the ball. By forcing the Celtics to be concerned about AD at the 5 off the ball in the paint, there was less defensive coverage on Westbrook/Bron when they drive. That's what Vogel was saying. Set Westbrook good screens and in a way where you have opportunities for him and yourself to get to the basket.

The defense was awesome. Believe it or not, despite all this mess of a start, injuries and interrupted Lebron play, lineup changes/altering, we're now in the upper half of the league's defenses. 14th in D rating. Yesterday you saw them play with a lot more consistency on thise schemes. Shows you how much of an asset Vogel is if the team buys in and plays the defense.

That defense leads to so many chances on offense, it's crazy. A lot of easy points off stops.

Would love to say that we found our lineup here with AD/Bron/THT/Bradley/Westbrook. I wish they can stay healthy and they can run this lineup a good 10 games. Lets see. THT requires the most patience. He made so many awful plays on offense (mostly forced plays). He needs to think play finisher, not play creator, unless both Bron/WB are off the floor. He had some great plays as well. Defensively I was very impressed with some of his plays. There was a play that stood out. A Celtic drove and he did not let him get past him to an open basket. He was right there all through the drive between the player and the basket. Awesome play. He had another one on Dennis like that. THT's defensive upside is huge.
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 5:33 am    Post subject:

Lakers decisively won points in the paint and rebounds allowing them to decisively win the game. Need to clean up the turnovers and shoot better from three (under 30%) but a much more enjoyable game to watch.
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 6:07 am    Post subject:

2 games where the defense was top notch lately, we see the playoff blue print but man, paint is small without snipers
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 8:07 am    Post subject:

GET THAT CELTICS ASS

https://streamable.com/p6bku6
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 8:15 am    Post subject:

Yay Winning!!! And another real, really good win!!!! Against the Celtics!!!!!

Thanks DB
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 8:52 am    Post subject:

Thanks, DB!

Hopefully, we've turned the corner and are going in the right direction.
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 9:20 am    Post subject:

Thanks DB. That was fun. My Celtics loving, Laker hating cousin is not happy

Russ showed us last night what he's capable of doing, even with Bron and AD on the court. That 3rd quarter was special.

I may be getting ahead of myself, but this is my ideal starting 5 when Ariza is healthy

AD
Ariza
Bron
Monk
Russ
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 10:22 am    Post subject:

Texas_Pete wrote:
Thanks DB. That was fun. My Celtics loving, Laker hating cousin is not happy

Russ showed us last night what he's capable of doing, even with Bron and AD on the court. That 3rd quarter was special.

I may be getting ahead of myself, but this is my ideal starting 5 when Ariza is healthy

AD
Ariza
Bron
Monk
Russ

Is Monk ready to defend elite starters? I don't think he is. He is average against the backups. Now you put him in against the best of the best? And the playoffs? I think THT has shown more defensive upside of the two, but THT does not play well on offense. It's really tricky. One guy (Monk) is much better on offense and fits in. The other guy is better on D but doesn't fit in on offense right now (but could eventually). Which happens first? Does Monk become starting level defender or does THT become a reliable (in control of himself) offense role player around the big 3? I think it's much easier to coach THT into discipline and playing off the big 3 than it would be to teach Monk starting level defense.

I don't want to talk about Ariza until I see him play. I know we had some expectations from him. But he 1) doesn't know the system at all 2) hasn't played basketball in 5-6 months by the time he comes back. I hope he can start, but I can't get my hopes up, this season has been rough.
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PenG_
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 11:12 am    Post subject:

Lebron's shot selection was a microcosm of that game. Aside from what DB mentioned about his ball stopping to start the 4th, he never settled. Took in-rhythm shots and always passed out if he held the ball for a long time. He's been very inefficient this year on settled threes, especially after holding the ball for several seconds.

We played a smart game and it was pretty fun to watch.

It says a lot that the scoring drought occurred when Lebron was playing without Russ/AD in the 4th. He can still draw a crowd, but he so rarely collapses the defense these days. His drive and kick model of basketball has been non-existent since the ab injury, even when the lineups call for it.
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 1:59 pm    Post subject:

Best game of the season imo.

Played a full 48 minute game for the first time this season.
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 2:55 pm    Post subject:

LakerSD wrote:
Best game of the season imo.

Played a full 48 minute game for the first time this season.


Also the most entertaining thus far too.
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 8:29 pm    Post subject:

Thanks DB - as I said in the in game thread, solid W, especially against the green gobbies, but this team has not earned my trust yet. So its game to game until further notice for me - not reading into anything.
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