LAKERS -at- SPURS - 1/12 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

[DancingBarry]

The Walking Wounded... The car's engine sputters to a halt just miles from town. You roll the Nova into the shrubs, pack your bags and hoof it. This is trip isn't off to a good start, and it's not long before it gets worse.

You come across something you don't want to see. Ahead on the side of the road, slumped over his pale horse is the one called Death. As you approach, you ask if he needs help. He just grunts beneath his hood and waves you on.

You follow the hoof prints in the dirt and brush for miles. Your feet begin to blister and you limp until your back aches. Finally, you come across a river. "Should have taken the damn boat," you grumble.

Since you were on foot, you missed the action. The tracks, however, explain it all. They were ambushed. They pushed as far as they could and then walked right into it. They had no answer.

You spot a message in the dirt and read it just before the wind wipes it clean. Maybe that's a good thing. It's DancingBarry:

The Horsemen were here. But in name only. Injured, hobbled and moving stiffly, they were ambushed. They haven't fared so well away from the city lately. Unfortunately, they now approach a long stretch of life on the road.

I will continue to track them.

The team looked as stiff as Kobe's back. Their offense struggled as the Laker third and fourth options became their first options. Their defense lacked mobility, and their rotations were slow to challenge and help.

Still, with Pau in a suit and Kobe in the locker room, they trailed by just 6 in the fourth. Instead of being able to bring either of their one-two punch, Phil dusted off Luke and let him get his first run since his injury. Luke played well, but the Lakers soon started to misfire.

"When you get down by six points, you turn the ball over twice in situations like that, you’re just giving the game away," Phil said. "There’s no excuse for that.”

The Spurs would steamroll the Lakers the rest of the way with 8-0 and 10-0 runs. Winning on the road, especially in San Antonio, requires limiting the errors and mental mistakes. The Lakers didn't do that and fell 105-85. They've lost their fourth straight road game.

Anytime Kobe doesn't play, you've go to be concerned. “I could barely move,” Bryant said afterward. “I tried to orchestrate some things for my team, couldn’t walk. I literally couldn’t walk. It’s the only way I don’t play.”

Still, Kobe said they could make no excuses for this loss. “It’s part of the business,” Bryant said. “I won’t allow my guys to even think about that or have that attitude.”

No Kobe, no Pau...the team is going to have to scrap like mad anytime that happens. Unfortunately, injuries affect depth and you have to play more cautious. "You have to stay out of foul trouble," Phil said. "You can't be as aggressive. You have to do things with a different attitude."

They are in survival mode now. Unfortunately, Dallas is waiting for a little payback.


Kobe -- -- The player wearing No. 24 out there was not the Kobe league knows. He was hobbled for most the night with a stiff back. Just watching him made your own back ache. He didn't take any warm up shots at the half and stayed in the locker room for more treatment. When he came out in the third, he never shot, never attacked and couldn't give a lot on the other end. He wasn't able to rotate very well defensively because of that injury. If he had to change directions or hustle to cover a shot, the pain just kept him planted to the floor a lot. He never came back, despite the Lakers cutting the lead to just 6. Kobe had some turnovers unable to protect the ball on the dribble or react to reaches because of his back. He was just very up-right and stiff for most of the night. He's known for recovering from injury quickly. He probably won't be able to get back to his old self for the next game, but who knows? The Stats: He scored 16 points on 7-10 shooting (1-1 from three, 1-1 from the line) to go with 1 board, 3 assists, 3 turnovers and no fouls in 32 minutes. He was a -6. The Action: He missed a turnaround over Parker with the shotclok low. He posted up Bogans and hit the baseline turnaround. Bad lob pass to Bynum who had spun for a sure dunk. He swished a long sideline jumper over Manu. He missed a short jumper over Manu next time down (odd Kobe didn't attack him in transition). He iso'd on him, changed directions after taking contact and scored the easy And-1 layup, he made the FT. He iso'd again, spun and banked over Manu. He went to the locker room with a back spasm. They were up by 2 when he left, trailed by 6 when he returned. He swished a wing three with the shotclock low. He swished a short turnaround from the low post. He was stripped for a layup. He sank a pull-up wing jumper. He missed a wing fallaway at the buzzer. He had 16 points on 7-10 shooting. Second Half: He lobbed to Bynum on a spin, this time connecting for the jam. He traveled bringing the ball up the court (unable to bend over while bringing it up). He was subbed out at the end of the third and again went straight to the locker room.

Bynum -- -- Interesting game watching Bynum as the No. 1 option in the offense for long stretches of a game. Mind you, this is against Tim Duncan in San Antonio, so don't expect any breaks (he only went to the line once). He was giving Duncan all he could handle during some stretches, overpowering him at times. Duncan was doing the same at the other end. Neither team sent many doubles, so it was a very rare one-on-one, back-and-forth battle at the C spot. The shooting numbers are a little deceptive for Drew since he had a few tip in attempts and hoisted a three at the buzzer. Not a bad job as the first option in the offense. He missed some flat jumphooks when getting bodied up a little. Defensively, the Lakers could have sent a few more timely doubles against Duncan to help mix things up better. Drew couldn't afford to defend him aggressively because of Pau out. Where the real problem came was on those high screens. The Spurs guards were able to get a lot of space by attacking Bynum on the screens. This is where Pau's mobility would have helped make things tougher. A lot of minutes from Drew tonight. Hopefully, he can play with some good energy tomorrow. The Stats: He scored 23 points on 11-23 shooting (1-1 from the line) to go with 8 boards, 2 assists, 2 blocks, 1 turnover and 2 fouls in 42:29. He was a -21. The Action: He scored an And-1 layup on Duncan after some great ball movement by the Lakers, he made the FT. He power drop-stepped past Duncan and scored a layup. He swatted and controlled Duncan's turnaround. He missed a short jumphook. He hit the jumphook off the glass working on the right block. He missed an elbow jumper. He jab-stepped, spun and overpowered Duncan for the layup. He spun away from a double, stepped through on Duncan and dunked. He missed a short one across the lane. He missed a flat jumphook next time down. He had 11 points on 5-9 shooting. Second Half: He missed a baseline turnaround jumper. He was blocked from behind, not waiting for the help defender to clear out before making his move. He scored a reverse around Duncan. He swatted a drive. He posted up Duncan and went glass with his left. He spun on Duncan next time down and jammed. He was stripped in the paint, wanted a call. He hit the jumphook off the glass over Duncan. He had 8 points on 4-6 shooting in the third. He was tapped on a jumphook. He ball-fkaed to a cutting Luke to shake a double team, then hit the jumper over Duncan. He grabbed an offensive board, but was stuck under the basket and couldn't finish. He missed on a post attack, got it back and couldn't finish. He backed Duncan down and scored the jumphook. He missed a wing three at the buzzer.

Artest -- -- Even though the shooting numbers look pretty sad, he was actually making some things happen for the Lakers offensively. The team had to turn Bynum/Artest into their one-two punch. He got to the line a number of times (should have been a few more, despite one bad call that went his way). The Lakers badly needed someone to manufacture some points at the line with Kobe unable to do his thing. The Spurs tried a few different defenders on him and were struggling with his size. Putting that kind of pressure on them will have a much bigger impact when you have a healthy Kobe/Pau. He needs to watch those offensive foul calls when he's cutting or posting up. He gave away a few possessions that way, just can't do that on the road. Ron got hit multiple times on his right hand and was in clear pain. No telling what his real injury situation is, but Phil mentioned it as an issue after the game. Artest brushed it off and said it's up to the trainers whether he plays with his sprained finger. "No excuses. We're just losing," he said, not wanting to discuss the injuries. The Stats: He scored 13 points on 3-12 shooting (1-2 from three, 6-6 from the line) to go with 8 boards (3 offensive), 1 assist, 1 steal, 3 turnovers and 3 fouls in 33 minutes. He was a -6. The Action: He missed a short bank over Jefferson. He drew a foul on Parker posting him up. He swished an open wing three a few seconds later. He choked a layup after a great first step. He was called for shoving Manu's arms away on a high post. He was hacked with no call. He took an inbounds pass and missed the layup. He was called for another off-the-ball foul trying to cut baseline. Second Half: He took a pinch post handoff, went to work and powered in a layup while looking for a call that didn't come. He blew past Duncan and dunked, again looking for an And-1 that wasn't called. He posted up Jefferson and was hacked across the arm, this time getting FTs, he made both. He missed a layup trying to score in the post. He attacked down the lane to his left and was blocked, but this time got the whistle, he made both FTs. He drew another foul before the shot. He was smacked on a drive a few seconds later (a lot of pain in that right hand), he made both FTs. He missed a three, short. He tried to muscle a shot in a crowd at the end of the third, he hit the bottom of the rim. He threw a pass away, layup the other way.

Lamar -- -- Lamar was used poorly in this game. For long stretches he had a smaller man in Jefferson on him at the PF spot, yet he wasn't taking advantage of it. This really gave the Spurs a break as teh Lakers were playing smaller than they should have. Lamar did get in the post on a few possessions and the guards didn't look to exploit it, but he needs to get ticked when that happens. Demand the ball. Go after it. You've got to exploit that mismatch. Would have been nice also to see him take the bigger defenders off the dribble a little, too. That never happened. Phil on LO not stepping up like he should have: "We got to get Lamar playing basketball in an offensive way where he's taking some responsibility to play and step up when Kobe's out of the game," Phil said. Phil needs to micromanage Lamar's game. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 2-6 shooting (0-2 from three, 6-6 from the line) to go with 12 boards (2 offensive), 6 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 3 turnovers and 3 fouls in 40 minutes. He was a -12. The Action: He missed a wing three. He was hacked with no call on a drive. He swished an elbow jumper off the split play. He got tapped on a drive, but drew FTs, he made both. He hit Mbenga on the high-low for a layup. He lost a pass right out of bounds. Second Half: He sank an elbow jumper flashing to the ball. He was called for a travel. He finally posted up Jefferson, didn't work for low position and missed the jumphook. He was fouled on a loose ball and made both FTs. He swiped an entry pass. He swiped a pass on the perimeter, pushed it up, waited for the defender to commit and hit Brown for the layup (Lamar runs the break better than both Fish and Shannon). He drew FTs on the offensive boards, he made both. He missed a wing three.

Fisher -- -- In order to defend Parker, you need to have a very mobile defense. The combination of Fisher, Bynum and an injured Kobe will have issues. The team is a lot slower and wasn't challenging shots like they should have because of it. Fish tried to go under the screen quite a bit to prevent penetration. When Parker couldn't hit early on from outside, that worked. In the second half, he just filled it up. On the other end, Fish didn't provide anything, but at least he wasn't chucking. The Stats: He scored 3 points on 1-4 shooting (1-2 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 1 assist, 2 turnovers and 3 fouls in 32 minutes. He was a -16. The Action: He fell, got up, rushed around the screens to take a pass and hit a wing jumper. He missed a face-up wing jumper. He attacked and drew FTs, he made one. He airballed a baseline jumper. He was called for a foul on what was a completely clean strip on Duncan (he then picked up a tech after one of the FTs). He was called for a charge on a drive, weak call again. Second Half: His bounce pass to Artest was picked off. He missed a wing three.

Brown -- -- Shannon at SF? We saw that briefly with the strange lineups Phil was forced to run. The Lakers could have really used him at PG for stretches. His footspeed and athleticism would have helped make up some of the gaps defensively. While he sparked the team with some great plays, he also had a couple of key errors that the team couldn't afford. A botched break, a fumble into the backcourt, and getting picked from behind on the perimeter -- those were tough to overcome. The Stats: He scored 8 points on 4-6 shooting (0-1 from three) to go with 2 boards, 2 steals, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 20 minutes. He was a -15. The Action: He missed an elbow jumper, fading slightly. He attacked Manu and swished the floater. He swiped an inbounds pass on the sideline to get possession for the final play of the half. Second Half: Horrible pass on the break to blow a sure chance at a layup. He scored a layup on the break with LO. He sank a pull-up 15-footer. He missed a three. We got it back and he was picked from behind, unaware of Manu. He scooped up the loose ball, pushed it out, took off and dunked. He fumbled a ball into the backcourt, unforced error.

Luke -- -- After many weeks of no action, except for a couple radio announcing gigs, Luke finally made his way back on the floor. He didn't show any sign of the injury and looked like he picked up right where he left off. He came in trailing by 7 and left down 13, however. The bench, the team, badly needs his ability to orchestrate the offense when it goes into its funks. He's good on the team D schemes and showed a little of that, too. Good to see him back out there. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-4 shooting, had 1 board and 1 steal in 6 minutes. The Action: He did not play. Second Half: He attacked, spun and hit the jumper over Bogans. He swished an open jumper in front of the Spurs bench. He helped on Duncan in the post and swiped his pass, quickly igniting a counter strike. He missed in the post, got it back and clanked the 5-footer.

Farmar -- -- In the second half, he brought some spark to the floor. I wish, however, he would have orchestrated a better offensive attack. You've got LO in the post against a smaller defender, work the ball to him. Study the situation, be a floor general. Defensively, some mixed results. The team as a whole was scrambled. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 3-9 shooting (0-1 from three) to go with 2 boards, 2 steals, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 20 minutes. He was a -15. The Action: He drew a moving screen call. His pass was deflected for points the other way. He got tapped on a baseline jumper at the first-quarter buzzer. He was rejected by Ratliff for a layup the other way. Second Half: He stepped back and hit an 18-footer. He thought he swatted Parker from behind but was called for a foul, great block. He missed a wing three. He probed off a screen, attacked and scored a layup. He took the outlet from Luke, attacked with speed and scored a layup. He attacked from the wing, took contact with no call and missed a layup. He missed on a drive. He missed another drive.

Vujacic -- -- After brief minutes for Kobe, he strained his right hamstring and was said to be done for the game. Apparently that report wasn't true. He came back out briefly later. "I want to play tomorrow," Sasha said. The Stats: He didn't have any stats in 3 minutes. He was a -6. The Action: Nothing to report. Second Half: Nothing to report.

Powell -- -- There was a key sequence to start the fourth that could have been a disaster. Powell had to run at the C spot. With no Kobe out there, no Pau, that's not how you want to go into a fourth quarter. The Lakers, however, made a run. The second unit put a dent in the Spurs lead. Unfortunately, the wheels would fall off later after Powell sat. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-1 shooting and didn't have any other stats in 4:21. He was a +4. The Action: Nothing to report. Second Half: He missed a baseline jumper.

Mbenga -- -- The Lakers had only a handful of good passing sequences out there tonight. Mbenga was the recipient on one of their better exchanges from LO and Kobe. Not a lot of time for him as Phil ran Powell at some C and Bynum for most of the game. The Stats: He scored 2 points on 1-2 shooting to go with 1 board in 2:50. He was a -4. The Action: He scored a layup off the high-low from LO. He missed an 8-footer in the lane. Second Half: Nothing to report.


Phil -- -- Luke was available tonight and Phil hoped he didn't have to use him (to which Mrs. DB replied, "We all hope we don't have to use him." Come on Mrs. DB, why you gotta hate?). Phil brought Luke in late in the game and gave the team some good minutes, despite the lack of fire power... Pau is thinking Friday night vs. the Clippers. Phil said its up to Pau... The Lakers led 10-4 after 4 minutes. They looked to get the ball to Drew when Duncan was on him... Kobe had to go to the locker room with a back spasm, Phil went with Sasha and Farmar....The Lakers trailed 27-23. They got out-scored 10-4 when Kobe went to the locker room. He came back to start the second quarter with a Bynum, LO, Kobe, Brown, Farmar lineup... With 4 minutes into the quarter, down by 9, Phil took out Bynum for Mbenga and Farmar for Fish... Down 44-34, he brought in Powell for LO... The Lakers trailed 53-41. The Spurs shot 56 percent, the Lakers 45 percent. The Lakers didn't have very good defensive rotations... With Kobe hurt, he took a backseat to in the second half. Bynum and Artest were working the post... Kobe didn't take a shot in the third. The Lakers were down 12 when he went to the locker room. He would not return... Both teams scored 22 points in the third, and the Lakers trailed 75-63... Key situation to start the fourth. Here's an instance where Phil might normally leave one of Kobe/Pau on the floor, but he had neither. Phil ran a Powell, LO, Artest, Brown, Farmar unit. They cut the lead to 76-69... After a San Antonio timeout, Phil went to a Bynum, Luke, Artest, Brown, Farmar lineup. A couple turnovers by Brown and Artest and they trailed by 11... Fish, Farmar and Brown on the floor with LO/Bynum. That lineup severely lacks closers. They got closed, instead... The Spurs shot better from the floor (57 percent) than they did from the line (36 percent)... "They took our kids to school out there," Phil said. "They pulled some of their tricks that they are good at. Got easy shots and got themselves going."

Game Flow -- LINK -- After a series of rallies by the Lakers, they gave up two key runs, 8-0 and 10-0, that buried them in closing time.

[Omar Little]

That was quick DB. Can't say I blame you...


First?
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“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” ― Elie Wiesel

[venturalakersfan]

Good read, I haven't been able to watch the game yet. Even with Kobe hobbled, I think the Lakers beat the Mavs, they are in their heads.
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RIP mom. 11-21-1933 to 6-14-2023.

[jack13]

3rd.

Really bad game, hope Kobe is fine.
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"These young guys are playing checkers. I'm out there playing chess." Kobe Bryant

[lounger]

thanks DB. Next game!

[chilake24]

[A Mad Chinaman]

DB - your report came out quick, but still a great job.

With Bynum acting like a typical young player needed to get his touches and taking advantage of many of them against a HOF, it will still would be nice if he got more boards thgan 8 - especially with all the PT he is receivng. Can't wait till he increase he can increase his base and be able to close offensive sequences with DUNKS! On defense, he is still learning what angles to use to block shots and/or be more of a defensive force. Hopefully, that will come with time as he learns what is necessary to win championship rings.

Isn't it sad that it has come to be epected that the Lakers will show how NOT to run a fastbreak. With LO's basketball IQ, wouldn't he know that it is necessary to take advantage of mismatches? With "24" and Paul (along with probably RonRon and Sasha) not even close to 100% (with Drew too young and inexperienced to be the closer), wouldn't LO know that this is the time to get mis "mojo" working?

As Emplay stated in his article, the PG position is up for grabs for the person that wants to claim the status - any takers? (none yet)

[Ray_Gonzoles]

Thanks DB!

Hope Kobe gets better quick and Pau is ready.

Good to see Luke back.
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"Just show up ready to work, ready to play, Have your big boy pants on, leave your diaper at home." Kobe Bryant
Anything less than a championship is a failure. Period.

[mhan00]

first of all, kobe is amazingly tough. i threw my back out once, and i couldn't walk, let alone run up and down a floor, shoot a few shots, and dribble a ball. amazing. he needs to finally, FINALLY get some rest though and heal up a bit.

ugly, ugly game. bynum did well offensively, but his rebounding was pathetic. artest did great in the 3rd quarter, even hobbled like he is. we were pretty much done after kobe hurt himself on that spin move. time to move on to the next game.

[City_Dawg]

Thanks DB
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*sighs*

!...

[Texas_Pete]

Thanks DB. Hope Kobe only tweaked his back.

Starters v. Dallas:

Fish
Shannon
Luke
LO
Bynum

Take the night off Kobe. Please. Artest should play limited minutes on a back to back while he nurses his plantar fasciatis. We need both of those guys to get healthy.

[Addicus]

I was coming on here to state these Lakers are the purple and gold version of the 2008-9 Cavaliers since we can't beat any of the top teams. Then I took into consideration how tough this damn squad is. Yeah we lost by 20 but we fought back from a gigantic deficit without our two best players. I feel if Phil had put LO and Bynum in at the 5 minute mark we could have pulled it off. The Spurs had 3 championship vets on the court at the end of the game at the time we had one. Too much experience. Let's go steal one from Dallas!
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Stop crying and start doing.

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/addicusbrown

[mbloves L.A.]

Nice write up as always.

You did get the date wrong.
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Where's Cokie the Clown when you need him?

[prisma8slg]

thanks DB


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"I define success by championships, by winning..." Kobe Bryant

"I've seen it all. Sasha dunked on somebody," Kobe Bryant said. "I'm ready to retire now."

[limchrc]

Thanks, hope we win the next game.

[hoopschick29]

We have to ride this out. It's a tough stretch for our guys. Kobe's right when he says health is the biggest obstacle in any team being able to repeat. We're certainly getting hit from all sides right now.
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So glad we gave you your flowers while you were here, Kobe.

[maddprophet]

eventhough drew only had 8 brds. i didn't really see him being lazy, or getting outrebounded. he had good position, and left some brds for others to get as he had his man blocked out.

it just wasn't the same issues he had during most of dec. in terms of rebounding.

he is looking more athletic out there. whether it's cause he is healthy and in better shape, or if he's turning that mental corner when it comes to knee injuries.

lastly, i thought the spurs played a really well game. we fought as best we could, but they were hitting shots and making plays. i haven't seen timmy play that well, and be that active in a while, and parker played great in the 2nd half. we were undermanned, and they played really well. this loss doesn't worry me as others have.

lets hope the guys can gut one out tonight, we need it
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Spark the ism, my expertism, is lyracism, my flow will take you over like I was hypnotism...so where's the lighter, to start the cypher....

[Klone_dd]

It seems that the dog days are already here, and it's only January.

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

Thanks DB. Hope we do better tonight.