LAKERS -at- SUNS - 4/22 - Thoughts and :-(( ratings

[DancingBarry]

Folding in the Fourth... Barbosa got hot, Kobe went cold, and after the Lakers played a solid game, they fizzled badly down the stretch, losing 95-87. The Lakers scored just 10 points in the fourth quarter as Kobe went just 1 of 10 in the fourth and settled for too many tough looks.

The Lakers controlled the tempo in the first half, holding the Suns to just 39 points. Then, they gave up a 35-point third quarter as Barbosa took it to Smush and others. We threw Sasha on him, but the only guy who can do a good job on locking up Barbosa is Kobe. Luke played him decently.

The Lakers did a poor job working the post as effectively as they need to. They never went after the Luke/Barbosa match up in the post. They never set up Kobe in the post (he was playing from 15 feet and out all game). Kwame was semi-useless in the post. Lamar got a few looks, but we needed to go to it more, of course. "They bait you into taking jumpshots and when you do, they got a guy like Barbosa running up your back," Kwame said. Despite reporters trying to bait the Laker players into saying it was Kobe's fault, Luke and Kwame didn't bite. Luke said you need to feed the hot hand. Kwame added that both he and LO need to step up and show some leadership in the post.

Memo to Lakers Bench: Game time was 12:00. Outside of Bynum, the other 5 players off the Laker bench scored 2 points on 1-8 shooting.


Kobe -- -- Poor decisions down the stretch by Kobe after a brilliant first half. He went cold, but kept firing difficult shots, missing 11 of his last 12, not including a charge. He had a great first half, scoring 28 of his 39 points and giving the Lakers a nice lead going into halftime. We never saw him in the low post with any purpose. He was mostly working from the perimeter. In the regular season, he had some overpowering moments against Raja in the post. He got his 39 points on 15-33 shooting (4-8 from three, 5-7 from the line), he had 5 rebounds and just 1 assist. He missed his first two jumpers. He attacked off the pinch post and dunked. He hit an And-1 turnaround in the high post. He hit an elbow turnaround. He hit a baseline turnaround. He was hit on a jumper and made one FT. He hit a short turnaround in the lane, flashing weak to strong. He missed a wing jumper. He drew a foul on a jumper and made one FT. He flashed weak to strong, took the feed, went up and under for a layup. With the Laker offense sputtering in the second quarter, he started to throttle it up. He hit a hanging jumper in the lane. He drained a wing jumper standing on the three line. Next time down, he went to the same spot, this time he pulled up and swished the three. He went to the same spot on the right wing again and drained a three. With 1 second left in the half, he drained a three over a double team from the other side of the court. He was 11-17 for 28 points, scoring the Lakers last 15 of the half. He swished a wing three. He got tapped on a wing jumper. He sank an elbow jumper. He sank an elbow jumper from the other side. He missed his next attempt. He missed a two-for-one three. He charged into Amare with 3 seconds left. He missed a 17-footer. He missed another perimeter jumper. He worked the screen-roll to Bynum for a dunk. He attacked and missed a layup. He attacked and drew a foul, making both FTs. He got into the lane, went down wanting a foul with no call after missing. Phil then sat him with 7:37 left. Back in and he missed a three. He missed a runner in the lane, big miss. He missed a tough, fading baseline fallaway off one foot (can't be what we drew up out of the timeout). Kwame got the ball back to him with an offensive board, Kobe attacked and scooped in a layup. He missed a tough turnaround over a double team (bad shot). He missed a three (ball game). He made 1 of his 10 attempts in the quarter.

Lamar -- -- Nice game from LO, doing a lot of dirty work. He bricked a big layup and had a turnover down the stretch that were killers. Wish we could have tried to milk him in the low post a little more since he seemed like the one guy who wanted to work from there with consistency. He only took one attempt from three. He got into a little foul trouble in this game, with 3 in the first half, but he didn't pick up another one the rest of the game. He finished with 17 points on 8-16 shooting and 16 boards in 40 minutes. He missed a layup off an attack. He missed a three. He got tapped on a jumphook. He had to get some medical attention on the sideline for a cut above his eye and wore a bandage the rest of the game. He posted up, drew a double, but scored over them off the glass. He attacked from the wing, spun to his right to lose defenders and scored a layup. He hit a 10-foot turnaround from the post. He picked up his third foul forcing the issue in transition and picking up the charge, he had to sit with 3 minutes left in the half. He worked off the pinch post counter and powered in a layup. He attacked down the middle of the lane and drew a foul, he made one FT. He attacked off the high pinch post, no one covered him so he dunked with ease. He got a pass in transition under the hoop, turned into Bell who flopped directly under the basket and he scored a layup. He posted up out of a timeout and hit a turnaround after a series of pivots. He posted up and scored easily. He missed under the hoop, got it back and rimmed out a point-blank layup (that was killer, would have cut the Sun lead from 4 to 2). He turned the ball over on the next possession and the Suns scored on the break.

Luke -- -- Pretty reasonable game from Luke...we just need to work him in the post more when the Suns try to hide Barbosa defensively on him. We knew this going into the game, yet we just brainlocked on it. "We want to pound the ball inside as much as we can," Luke said. "We did a good job in the first half...we only did it a couple times the second half. That's not what we should be doing." Luke finished with 10 points on 5-8 shooting, pulled down 6 boards (3 offensive) and dished a team-high 6 assists in 32:44. He missed a layup underneath. He dunked on the breakout after Farmar found him. He took an offensive board and hit Kwame for a layup. He missed a turnaround over Barbosa. He got tapped on another post up. He swished an open baseline jumper. He worked off the pinch post and powered in a layup. He attacked and flipped a pass over his shoulder to Kwame for a layup. He overpowered his man for an offensive board and hit a short one in the lane. He scored easily over Barbosa when we finally got him the ball again.

Kwame -- -- Some poor hustle at times for loose balls, probably his ankle, but there were a couple of plays early on where he needed to hit the floor and didn't. We need to be more methodical in getting the ball to Kwame and Kwame needs to be more aggressive getting position. We need double figures scoring from him. He scored just 4 points on 2-6 shooting, grabbed 7 boards (4 on the offensive end) and dished 1 assist in 29 minutes. He missed a bank in the post. He scored a layup off a pass from Luke. Good switch on Nash and he forced a missed jumper. He missed a dunk attempt with some contact. He missed a layup and was blocked on his next attempt. He scored a layup off a drive and dish from Luke. He bobbled a pass and couldn't beat the shotclock. He fumbled the ball away after Nash bothered him with a double team.

Farmar -- -- Farmar got the start and did a good job on both ends. He got some genuine rookie treatment on the calls and had 4 fouls in 31:40 of action. One thing Farmar needs to do a better job of is be more of a floor general. If we are not getting the ball in the post or if we have mismatches, he needs to recognize it. Naturally, you don't expect a lot of that from a rookie -- and we haven't gotten it all season from anyone outside of a couple players -- but eventually that will be strength that Farmar can bring to this team. Perhaps, he will start to lock in even more after getting his first playoff experience out of the way. He scored 9 points on 4-9 shooting, dished 2 assists, pulled down 2 boards and had 2 steals. He attacked baseline and scored a layup for the Lakers first points. He snagged a ball from Nash and hit Luke for a score. He deflected a Nash pass on one end, then set up the offense for Kobe who scored an And-1 in the post (this is the floor general work we need, he pointed Kobe to fill the Tri post, then hit him with the pass). He missed a three. He worked the pick and roll, attacked the lane and hit a floater. He missed an elbow jumper. He missed a three. He twisted his ankle on Kwame's foot. Phil had him run it off for a couple plays. He swished an open baseline jumper to start the second half. Wow, back-to-back rookie calls, one on a break where Nash never had position and Farmar charged, the other when Farmar, just stood in the middle of the lane and got run over. He swished a corner three after Kwame kicked it out. He missed a three against the shotclock. He got the ball into Luke against Barbosa for an easy score (good recognition). Whenever he inserts more leadership onto the floor, this team's hoop IQ goes up. Hopefully, we see him do that as this series goes on.

Smush -- -- Uggh. Soft game from Smush. Barbosa torched him, and Smush was mostly MIA in his 10 minutes. He did cause a couple of steals, and made a nice pass to Bynum, but other than that he faded like most of our bench outside of Bynum. He didn't score on just 1 attempt and he grabbed 1 board. He worked the pick and roll with Bynum and set him up for a dunk. He switched on Diaw and gave up a layup (Suns milk that instantly anytime it happens). Barbosa drilled a big three over him at the third quarter buzzer. He gave up an And-1 to Barbosa to tie the game up shortly later. He then shaded Barbosa and he scored another layup over Bynum. Phil then benched Smush for Sasha.

Bynum -- -- Drew was the only bench player that had any impact. I'd like to see him work a little more coming weak to strong and getting a quick entry pass. He scored 6 points on 3-4 shooting (0-2 from the line) and grabbed 3 boards in just 12 minutes of action. In late in the first and he quickly hit a 9-foot jumphook from the post. He drew a foul, but missed both FTs. Great finish, dunking with both hands down the middle of the lane off the pick and roll with Smush. He got tapped on a turnaround. He dunked off the screen-roll with Kobe.

Evans -- -- Cold Mo. He missed a turnaround in the lane. He missed a three. He missed a corner three. He drew a foul posting up. He didn't score in 15:29. He did play reasonably well defensively.

Cook -- -- He missed a wide open wing jumper off a Kobe pass and had a couple of fouls in 6 minutes.

Turiaf -- -- I thought we missed his presence on the floor. Honestly, I wouldn't mind seeing him against Marion or Diaw, if need be. I think he can wreak havoc on the glass and we can feed him in the post. He missed a 19-footer, grabbed 1 board and drew a foul crashing the glass on another. He played just 6:44.

Vujacic -- -- Not much to talk about. He scored 2 points on 1-2 shooting in 12:25, and he had 3 boards and 2 turnovers. He ballfaked from three, moved in and hit the 19-footer. Barbosa went backdoor on him for a layup. He missed a good look at a sideline three. Not much impact in this one.

Phil -- -- Well, we should know what we need to do. Phil probably hit on it all week. Then had to hammer on it some more during the game. Admirable first half from the team. Horrible third and pathetic offensively in the fourth. We struggled to play with intent and purpose, especially down the stretch. No surprise... Good first quarter, holding the tempo. Later, the Lakers trapped a couple of times in the backcourt and it resulted in uptempo ball and scores from the Suns... The Suns started to get their flow going and Phil used a couple of timeouts to try to slow it down late in the second quarter... In the end, the Lakers held the Suns to 39 points in the first half. We won the battle of the tempo for the first two quarters... The Lakers lost that battle in the third quarter, giving up 35 points. Smush gave up a huge three at the end of the quarter to Barbosa. Barbosa continued his damage against Smush to start the fourth. (Only guy who can cover Barbosa is Kobe.) Barbosa scored 15 straight points over 4:33...With 7:37 trailing by 5 and starting to lose a little ground, Phil subbed out Kobe. We missed a couple of threes, then went into to LO in the post. We held ground while Kobe got some rest... Barbosa was on Luke, we weren't going to the post for several possessions. Finally, Farmar got Luke the ball and we got an easy score. Was that so hard?... Kobe took a one-footed, long fading jumper out of a timeout. That was a freelance... Bottom line, we need to execute and we need to just get one on the road. Hopefully, we bring it in the next one...

[lakerboy]

hmm, after every game it seems like they know what they did wrong, but in the next game same mistakes happens again and again. they talk and talk, but nothing changes

[kups]

Quote:

Farmar -- Wow, back-to-back rookie calls, one on a break where Nash never had position and Farmar charged, the other when Farmar, just stood in the middle of the lane and got run over.


^not to make any excuses, but those back-to-back plays stuck out like a sore thumb. i hope the team can learn some positives from this game & make the proper adjustments.

thanks for the solid recap DB!
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#2 Lonzo
#28 Derrick White, Jordan Bell, Deonte Burton

[magic_bryant]

It would appear that Phil has accepted the situation that come 4th qtr, the other guys aren't capable of creating or being relied upon, by running the high P&R solely. Why else would he switch it up so dramatically and never go back to what was working? Bringing in Brian Cook and Sasha are also ways of encouraging "Kobe Ball".

Just a bad game-plan by Phil.
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Stephon Marbury on Kobe: "He's the only person on 'dis earth that can do 'dat. He guards people, like shuts 'em down. Then, to do 'dat on 'da offensive end. It's like 'Damn, I can't score on him AND he about to bust my ass."

[jmark]

Turning point Farmar gets a charge on Nash on a horrible call. Game changed after that....
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"I appreciate all those who have supported me. Thank you for believing in me. My family and I are going to need your support and prayers now more than ever." Kobe

[ProjectAB]

You know, even though Bynum played well in the 1st half, I can help but wonder what would have happened if Ronny subbed for him in the 2nd half. It seemed like whenever the other team is making a run, Bynum is right in the middle of it. Even though he wasn't directly responsible, you get the feeling that he just doesn't seem to be able to make the critical play(like an offensive rebound, if not a blocked shot) to halt the momentum. Plus, Ronny might have gotten more respect from the refs(it seems like with Bynum, the ratio of questionable calls in his favor is 1:2, whereas with Ronny it's 2:1.)

I think we need to go exclusively with the Kwame/Turiaf combo in the 2nd game. Win a game first, then we can play Bynum, especially at home. The margin of error is very small now. We saw how even one small, bad substitution can cost this team.

If we're going to play Bynum, then he's going to have to dig even deeper. For example, when Phoenix was making a run and both teams were trading baskets in a battle of will, you can tell Bynum choked on his hook shot. This isn't the regular season any longer. We need him to grow up, fast.

[Mr. EiGhTy-OnE]

-Did Turiaf get hurt? He didnt come in until half way through the 2nd qtr (just like the Kings game) and only played 6 minutes. his energy was needed. as you said DB Kwame could have fallen to the floor for the loose ball a couple of times but didnt. Kwame also did not put a hand up when he came out to help on jumpers. Lazy D. not to mention the missed layups/dunks.

I cant believe the refs let Amare get away with murder. he and Marion were jumping over the back play after play. the play were 3 lakers could have rebounded the ball but it bounced off kwames head was because marion jumped over lamars back and caused it to bounce off kwame. it was ridiculous to call kobe for a charge on amare. but let amare run over lamar and kobe on two different occasions. what was farmars 3rd foul about? amare ran into him! i think kobes charge should have been a no call.

I believe that Kobe going cold started in the 3rd. there was like 6 straight possesions where he didnt even touch the ball mid way through the 3rd qtr. that was the problem, we were scoring quickly and exchanging baskets in the 3rd. we were playing phoenix suns basketball. thats what got them hot and back into the game. smush let barbosa catch fire and the rest is history. while im on barbosa (ive mentioned this in other threads) phx must pay a penalty for playing small ball. everytime he gets switched on a big he gets the whistle when he is bumped. the contact is minimal but because he is so little he gets the calls. that should be the risk they pay for playing small ball, not a reward.

where is the veteran leadership from shammond and mckie?

i was really hoping for sasha to hit that 3 when Kobe was on the bench in the 4th.

lamar has got to make his freethows and stop shooting 3s. he usually gets marion in foul trouble, but not today

did we use all of our timeouts? i hope so, i hate when phil sits on timeouts when we could have used them. i was really hoping he used one in the 3rd to slow the suns down before they got on a roll.(and while we still had a lead) i found it funny that farmar tweaked his ankle and phil wouldnt let him call a 20 sec timeout. but i know how valuable timeouts are in the playoffs.

the lakers have a history of almost winning game 1 only to come back and win game 2. lets keep our fingers crossed.
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"When (Kobe) gets you on life support, he won't give you mouth to mouth. HE PULLS THE PLUG." -stu

[Mr. EiGhTy-OnE]

[PopcornMachine]

GameFlow BoxScore

Hard to figure a 4th quarter shooting just 4-21, and Kobe just 1-10.

I was fortunate enough not to see it.

Did the Suns do something different defensively, or did the Lakers just go stone cold?

[ProjectAB]

[magic_bryant]

[prisma8slg]

thanks DB.

three good quarters of basketball and one bad one
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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."

[LakerLanny]

[cr8zy0]

what it comes down to is kobe needs to pass the ball more. yes in the first half he was great. but he absolutely never realizes when he is cold and what makes it worse is HE NEVER REALIZES WHEN OTHERS ARE HOT. odom was having his way in the post. my god just post him up a few times. stop hogging the ball. oh is farmar under the basket wide open, o well ill shoot a fadeaway over 2 people. that mind set does not help us. he has to make teams pay for doubling him.

i would post up odom every single possession. the same way the nets posted up kidd against tj ford if anyone watched that game. odom makes better decisions than kobe. when they doulbe him he will pass it. and kobe will then be facing less double teams. if he plays off the ball more it would help us out a lot. luke needs to post up barbosa every time he is gaurded by him. kobe has to recognize what is going on on the floor. he can't continue to make bad decisions. yes it is nice when he starts making 4 straight 3's. but we don't need that. if you're hot then okay. but when you miss 3 straight shots. don't come back down the floor and launch up another bad shot.
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SMUSH FOR MVP

[KingKobe20]

Destroying them the whole game until Barbosa and his fourth quarter heroics.
Seriously it bugs the hect out of me evertime he kills knowing that we selected Brian Cook instead of Barbosa.
We need to cool him off by iritating him with Kobe bullying him on defense and offense. Every single time we play good against the Suns Leandro trys to will them back. Normally does. I am pretty sure it is safe to say that if we was to chill Barbosa out we still got a good shot at taking this punks out from Arizona. We ned to steal this next game so we could go back home with some type of edge or else it won't be

[TooCool]

Thanks DB for the writeup.

I was so pissed because the Lakers like to get completely brain dead for a few minutes every quarter.

The way Phoenix plays, we need guys to step in front of the basket, and TAKE THAT CHARGE. Over and over, I see Odom "dodge" away from a Suns player and they get a easy layup or a dunk. I mean, sure... Odom is probably hurt, and doesn't want unnecessary contact. But get guys in there like Cook and Bynum, who can take the hit. I mean, you should be down there anyway for the rebound on the defensive end.

I also got really pissed when they feel like they have to double Nash. Nash is not worth doubling! If he makes the 2, let him make it. I rather he make the 2 than have him dish it out for a 3.

The way the Suns missed their 3 Pointers and Free Throws, this was practically a free win but instead Kobe tried to play hero, when his hands were ice cold and cost us the game. Sure, players weren't cutting to the basket, or even going for offensive rebounds. But there were STILL too many situations where Kobe got double and triple teamed, and he still refused to trust the other shooters.

Think about it. Sasha, 1-2. How do you know if he had a bad shooting night? Mo, it was obvious he was cold. But Sasha, Luke, and Jordan weren't shooting all that bad.

Then you got Odom. This guy works his way in the post and EASILY dominates whoever is guarding him. Then I get so pissed when he decides to hang around the perimeter and do absolutely nothing for a few minutes.

We have all the right pieces to win this series, but not when you go brain-dead because it's funny.

Sorry, just had to vent. I haven't been this pissed all season. Again, it's just a very winnable game that was thrown away in the 4th quarter. Argh.
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[manlisten]

If Kobe hasn't learned how to trust his team after this game I don't think he ever will. I've never seen him force up and brick so many shots. But damn was he cold blooded at the end of the first half. Made me want to go out and murder somebody

Odom showed off some moves that I haven't seen from him on this team. We really need to feed him throughout the game.

[Klone_dd]

The Lakers still haven't shaken what's been bugging them the whole second half of the season. Inability to close out games in the 4th.

Kobe forced more shots in the 4th than he has in a long time. When he gets it going, it's a beautiful thing. We all know the guy just oozes supreme confidence, but when he gets cold or tired, he's gotta make better decisions. Get rid of the ball, get it back in better position.

LO had a steady game. It's clear that Phx fears him. We just don't milk him enough. Luke, as well. We did a poor job of recognizing his mismatch. JoFar was okay.

Everyone else left their games on the bus.

The high p&r doomed us once again. Wouldn't mind seeing Phil throw in a zone every once in a while, just to mix it up.

Speed (aka Barbosa) kills. Damn, the guy is fast. Then again, when Smushie is guarding you with his cement feet, most people look pretty fast.

[A Mad Chinaman]

[ocho]

[coop-a-loop]

I hope we go to Luke in the post every single time Barbosa is guarding him for the rest of the series. The Lakers did not recognize the mismatch.

On the other end, I hope Kobe guards Barbosa.

[Mation]

Thanks DB,

Lamar sounds vengeful for the next game:

[angrypuppy]

[cusu32000]

[LongtimeLakerLover]

I'm not understanding where the whole "I didn't the the call so now I'm trudging back on defense" fits into things. It drives me crazy. I think all the Lakers did it at some point yesterday. How in any way is this professional? I get that you could be upset by a non-call, but to let it affect your ability to get back on defense just goes towards a score down at the opponents end. How is this good basketball? I'm seriously tired of it.

Kobe was brilliant first half. Brilliant. Terrible decision making in the 4th. Someone up above said they thought it started in the third where he had about six possessions without touching the ball. I thought the same thing.

I don't think they'll win the series without some serious luck, but they can do some things that will hurt the Suns if they can get their mental act together. I still have a little bit of hope they could pull off an upset. But we would need EVERYBODY to contribute. Not soft Smush and Cold Mo. Let's see what they can do....

C'mon Lakers - it's do or die time.
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