BOBCATS -at- LAKERS - 1/27 - Thoughts and :-(( Ratings

[DancingBarry]

Double OT Heartbreaker... Kobe Bryant had just orchestrated a near miracle comeback. With the Bobcats missing freethrow after freethrow down the stretch, the Lakers somehow clawed their way into overtime. Kobe had scored 8 points in OT before picking up his fifth and sixth fouls. Now, he stood on the sidelines and had to watch. It's been a long time since he's had to do that at Staples Center.

With a 3-point lead, Lamar Odom sagged off Boris Diaw and let him tie the game with a three on a kickout. On the other end, the Lakers put together a feeble attempt to take the lead, eventually turning it over. Double overtime.

With Pau Gasol putting together his worst game of the year, only Andrew Bynum appeared to rise to the challenge. He was superb in both overtimes, blocking shots and scoring big hoops. He got little help and the Lakers fell 117-110.

There's something about the Bobcats that seem to have the Lakers befuddled. They've won five of the last six games against the Lakers.

"We almost stole a ballgame that we shouldn't have won," Phil said. "So, I think sometimes justice prevails and that happened tonight."

Or, you play with fire enough, you'll get burned. The high screens again caused us problems. The lack of intelligent effort by some down the stretch took its toll this time. Phil pulling Bynum for a struggling Pau in overtime for a stint also hurt.

Despite the loss, this did seem to be a game that continued to show Bynum's growth. Pau wasn't the man. Lamar wasn't working it. Bynum was the only one beside Kobe imposing his will on the opponent. That's the kind of experience and game situations that build character. Glad to see the bigman rise to the occasion.


Kobe -- -- He hadn't fouled out in a game at Staples for 7 seasons until tonight. He picked up some cheapies, including the one that knocked him out of the game and probably cost the Lakers a miracle W. It's a damn shame, too. The MVP was putting on a show and leading his team through some adversity at home. The wheels fell off the Lakers offense when he left. We tried to run things through Pau, but he was MIA tonight. This left a vacuum for others to fill. Only Bynum stepped up. Kobe struggled early in this game, but the offense finally came to life when he did. The offensive flow was a big stagnant tonight. A lot of iso. Kobe generally worked the wings and looked to back his man down whenever he had space. The Stats: He scored 38 points on 15-28 shooting (1-3 from three, 7-8 from the line) to go with 8 boards, 5 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers and 6 fouls in 45 minutes. He was a +2. The Action: He missed a short jumper from the FT line. He missed an 18-footer, then fouled in transition. His kickout was stolen, points the other way. He fronted Wallace and gave up a layup. Trevor switched, Kobe didn't, dunk Wallace. He missed a sideline three. He clanked a pull-up jumper at the end of the quarter. Back in, he missed a 21-footer. With 5 minutes in the half, he finally sank a wing jumper with the shotclock going off for his first hoop. He posted up Bell and hit the turnaround from the right side. He swiped the ball from Bell and took it for an uncontested dunk. He missed a layup, getting shoved from behind on a lob, he made both FTs. Third straight foul on Bell, who hit him on a turnaround, Kobe made both FTs. He missed a 21-footer. He hit a turnaround from the midpost. He had 12 points on 4-10 shooting and 1 assist. Second Half: He drained a pull-up elbow jumper. He swiped a pass to save a breakaway, then hit a fade from the right side. He was drilled from behind with no call while powering up. He missed a pull-up elbow jumper. He was called for an offensive foul trying to post up Bell. He sank an elbow jumper off the handoff from Bynum. He picked up his fourth foul and then a tech with 2:22 left in the third. He missed an open wing jumper to start the fourth. He missed a baseline turnaround way short. He hit Sasha for the three. He backed his man down and drew FTs on a step-through, he made one. He up-faked off a screen, floated to his right and banked. He drew two offensive fouls on Wallace battling with him under the hoop (then a tech on him). He got tapped on a three. He posted up and hit a baseline turnaround. He hit a tricky wing jumper with a man on to cut the lead to 3. He sank a three next time down with 1:12 to cut the lead to 2. He hit Fish for a three on a drive and kick to tie the game up with 14 seconds left. Overtime: He iso'd on Bell and hit the FT jumper. He found Drew who was going full speed for a dunk on the break. He missed a wing fallaway. He crossed over Bell from the left wing, attacked and scored a layup, 6-point lead, 99-93. Looked like we were about to win here. Then, he picked up his fifth foul with 2:32 left. He pumpfaked Bell into the air and drew FTs on a jumper, he made both. He swung through, attacked to his right and swished the baseline jumper. He fouled out with 39.8 seconds left, his man ran into him, bumping knees on the perimeter, soooo weak. Sensational job by Kobe in crunch time, but the refs sent him to the sidelines. Too bad.

Gasol -- -- With Kobe out with foul trouble, Pau watched almost all of the second overtime from the bench himself. He had played that poorly all game, and he just wasn't a viable option. I'm not sure why Phil put him in late in the first overtime. We lost our lead and lost our mojo that Bynum was giving us. There are a lot of things you can look at for the loss in this game. Had Pau put together his normal offensive game, that makes our offensive execution so much easier, we probably take this game in regulation (despite the missed Bobcat FTs.) This was Pau's worst game of the season. Phil said it was probably his worst game as a Laker. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 4-16 shooting (2-3 from the line) to go with 7 boards (just 1 defensive), 3 turnovers and 3 fouls in 41 minutes. The Action: He missed a turnaround in the low post. He missed a jumphook off the glass. He spun baseline around Diaw and reversed. He got tapped on a left-handed scoop in the paint. He missed a baseline pick and pop. He was rejected point-blank in front of the rim. He tipped in a missed Sasha layup. He airballed a hook. He overpowered his man easily, but then bricked the layup at the front of the rim. He got hit in the head for a flagrant And-1 dunk off a long outlet pass, he made the FT (Kobe then scored for a 5-point possession). He had 7 points on 3-11 shooting. Second Half: He missed a jumphook with his left. He airballed a wing jumper, wide open, too. He gave up FTs to Diaw on a drive. He missed an open FT jumper, uggh. He cleaned up a Lamar missed Lamar throwdown with a dunk. He drew FTs on an in-bounds pass in the paint, he made one. He was called for a travel trying to post up, looked like he was rooted first. He fumbled away a post entry pass. He pulled down a Kobe missed FT and reset the offense. He couldn't secure a defensive board, then got caught in no-man's land against a guard and fouled him with a reach. He missed an easy tip in and wanted a foul. Overtime: He posted up and drew a non-shooting foul. He was stripped on the next attempt, ball out of bounds. Overtime 2: Nothing to report.

Bynum -- -- Your Western Conference Player of the Week, Andrew Bynum played like a man tonight. He was one of the few Lakers who was balling. He and Kobe were dominating the overtime, especially defensively by Drew, when Phil pulled him for Pau. Phil wanted better screen-roll D, but Bynum had been playing strong D. Mistake by Phil. He was the only thing holding the fort down defensively and he had given the Lakers a huge spark. He was rejecting shots, grabbing boards and scoring on the other end. Can't do that from the bench. This game was good for Drew. With Kobe out and Pau on the bench, Bynum became the soul of the team for the second overtime. He's never been in that position before and he seemed to really rise to the occasion. This kind of situation helps build experience and character that can pay off in future pressure-cooker games. Bynum gave a hard foul to Gerald Wallace. After the game, they mentioned Wallace may have had a collapsed lung or broken ribs. "I didn't mean to hurt him at all," Bynum said. "I was too late to get the charge." He was caught in tough spot and tried to take a foul to prevent the layup. Happened real fast. Hopefully, the league doesn't think it was a mean-spirited play and penalize him. Prior to the game, Phil on Bynum's defense this season: "His size and his ability to clog the middle really confused our defensive opponents earlier in the year. Now people are changing up their strategies, using different screen rolls, using that aspect of our defense to their advantage. Andrew has had to make a secondary adjustment and I think he's making that adjustment now." The Stats: He scored 24 points on 10-14 shooting (4-5 from the line) to go with 14 boards, 1 assist, 6 blocks, 4 turnovers and just 1 foul (got his money's worth, too) in 41 minutes. The Action: He threw down a sweet lob from Fish who worked the weakside pinch post with Pau to perfection. He blocked Wallace to save Luke's poor D. He grabbed an offensive board and hit the 10-foot turnaround. He dunked off the drive and dish from Luke. Quick attack off the post entry and he hit a jumphook in the lane. He altered a sure layup from Diaw. Quick attack off the post entry, he power drop-stepped and went glass. He bricked a face-up jumper from the right side. He shot 5-6 in the first quarter for 10 points (rest of the team, 3-16). Back in, he attacked Howard, overpowering him for FTs, he made one. He was stripped on an attack from the high post, dunk the other way. He finished the half with 11 points on 5-6 shooting and 7 boards. Second Half: He missed a layup off a power move. He took the high entry from Fish off the dribble and scored over Diaw with ease. He got tapped on an And-1 putback, he made both FTs. He was stripped for a dunk the other way. He missed a frozen rope 9-footer left open. Out of a timeout, he was called for a three-second violation. He drilled Wallace with a hard foul with 2:08 left down by 5, flagrant. Lakers some how survived that as the Cats missed four FTs. Overtime: He swatted Bell on one end, floored it on the break, took the Kobe pass on the fly and dunked. Good switch on Felton to D-up and recover, then grab the board. He "stripped" his man in the paint to get a stop (should have been a foul). Phil then sat him for Pau. Ugggh. Overtime 2: He swatted penetration. He reversed around his man for the Lakers first score. He swatted Okafor's jumper. He backed down Okafor, looked like it might have been a travel, then dunked on him. He swatted more penetration to deny a drive. Finally (after some guards missed jumpers), he got the ball back in the post down by 5 and he hit an And-1 jumphook, he made the FT. He missed a good look at a drop-step bank on the right block.

Luke -- -- Sigh. I'm not sure what we were supposed to do on that in-bounds pass with 3 seconds on our shotclock and 6.8 in the game. It certainly wasn't throwing it away when Luke tried to thread it to Lamar after he couldn't find an open man. Just another failed possession in last-second execution. We got to get a shot on that play. Some kind of shot. We didn't give ourselves a chance to win. Defensively, he had issues with Wallace. Kobe later took Wallace and we didn't have Ariza to help after the injury. The Stats: He scored 5 points on 2-5 shooting (1-2 from three) to go with 2 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 turnovers and 2 fouls in 18 minutes. He was a -8. The Action: He missed a short oneafter putting Wallace on the floor with his turnaround footwork. He up-faked his man, attacked, drew Bynum's man and fed him for the dunk. He grabbed a rebound, sped up in traffic and scored a layup on the break. He was called for stiff-arming Wallace on a drive. Second Half: He swiped a pass, looked back under the hoop and chucked it behind his back to a teammate. He missed a top-of-the-key jumper. He sank a three from the top of the arc off the Fisher kickout. He missed a sideline three. He got sealed by Wallace, layup. Overtime: With the game tied and 3 on the shotclock, 6.8 on the game clock, he threw away the in-bounds pass.

Fisher -- -- Well, might as well go to the good first. DFish hit a huge three with 14 seconds left to tie the game. Kobe sucked in the D and found him for the clutch shot. That's Fish at his best. The Bobcats did the same sort of thing to us on the other end, however. Derek was the point of attack for the Bobcats. They worked the high screens and went after him. As a result, they were able to get good looks and keep our defense scrambling. This proved to be too much to handle. Down by 3, Felton attacked to his right and Lamar sagged. Mistake. This led to a Diaw three and a tie game late in overtime. One wonders if we had Trevor, if Phil would have gone to him defensively in that situation. DFish led the team with a -10. Fish actually led the team with 6 assists, but his lack of ball movement was also evident on several plays. The Stats: He scored 14 points on 6-11 shooting (2-3 from three) to go with 1 board, 6 assists and 5 fouls in 42 minutes. The Action: Sweet lob off the pinch post attack and Bynum jammed it in. He swished a wing 20-footer in early offense. He missed a pull-up in transition. He missed an open three in transition. He swished a pull-up baseline jumper on iso. He stuck a long wing three off the swing pass from Vlad. He had 7 points on 3-5 shooting. Second Half: He forced up an 18-footer with a man on and wasn't close. He attacked to his left and threw a high entry to Drew for an easy score. He sank a baseline jumper off the Bynum screen. He attacked and kicked to Luke for a three. He sank a baseline jumper over a couple defenders to take an 83-81 lead. Stupid drive into traffic on his next trip down and he turned it over. He swished a huge, huge, huge three with 14 seconds left when Kobe attacked and kicked to him at the left wing. Overtime: Nothing worth reporting. Overtime 2: Got sealed by Felton on the screen and it led to Okafor FTs. He missed a toe-on-the-three-line two, the DFish Special, when we needed to take a three.

Lamar -- -- Lamar, Lamar, Lamar... Why are you sagging too far off a three shooter when we are up by three and the Cats need a three? You've got to make sure one thing doesn't happen on that defensive possession late in overtime and that's a three. "We just didn't run it right," Phil said afterward. Kobe was ticked from the bench on that mistake. I don't know if we are learning any lessons or not on some of these late-game defensive errors. We seem to repeat them over and over again. There couldn't be a more blatent example for us to learn off than this one. Hopefully, we do. Lamar also tanked from the freethrow line. That's a fundamental flaw that can bite us down the line. The Stats: He scored 7 points on 2-8 shooting (3-6 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 blocks and 3 fouls in 33 minutes. The Action: He sank a face-up baseline jumper. He attacked Diop with speed and drew FTs, he made one. He attacked Howard on the baseline to get FTs, he made one. Second Half: He missed a jumpbook attacking across the lane. Quick attack off the baseline, he missed the dunk, but Pau cleaned it up. He grabbed a rebound in a crowd, exploded from it off the dribble and scored a layup over defenders on the other end. He missed on a drive from the right side. He ate up Howard with a block on one end, then blew past him on the baseline on the other for FTs on a dunk attempt, he made one to cut the lead to 2. He missed a layup. Overtime: He sagged off his man to help Fish and gave up a three to Diaw to tie the game. Not smart. He blocked Diaw's shot at the buzzer. Overtime 2: He shoved a man, then didn't grab the defensive rebound when no whistle came. He bricked on a drive to his left.

Ariza -- -- He got hit in the head on a screen and had to go to the locker room. He didn't return. He was diagnosed with a concussion and had some nausea and dizziness. We missed his spark and his D. Hopefully, he'll be feeling well and back in action for the next one. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-1 shooting and had 1 board and 1 block in 10 minutes. The Action: Trevor switched, Kobe didn't, dunk Wallace. On the other end, Bynum thought Ariza was cutting, he didn't, turnover. He missed a wing three.

Farmar -- -- One thing he needs to remember is to not always settle for the three. He gets sucked into that some games, and when his shot isn't falling, it's not pretty. The team still seemed to play (defend) better when he was out there. He was a -2 for the game, which turned from a positive to a negative when he was lined up with DFish in that second overtime. The Stats: He was 1-7 (0-5 from three) to go with 1 board, 2 assists and 3 fouls in 21 minutes. The Action: He swished a wing jumper in transition. He missed a wing three, way short. He found Sasha with a long baseline bounce pass for the three. Second Half: He missed a hanging layup on the baseline. He missed an open sideline three. Overtime: Did not play. Overtime 2: With Kobe out, Phil brought him in. He missed a wing three.

Vujacic -- -- The Machine seemed to have it going, then someone pulled the plug. After draining a few shots, he had some big, big opportunities and failed to hit them in crunch time. He missed his last 5 attempts. We needed someone else to step up. Sasha seemed to be doing that, then just faded badly. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 3-9 shooting (3-8 from three, 1-1 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 1 foul. His +/- was 0. The Action: Horrible lob to Ariza who was wide open on the break, turnover. He rattled in a corner three from a baseline pass by Farmar. He missed a layup on a quick attack breaking a press, but Pau cleaned up the miss. Second Half: He drained a wing three on the kickout from Kobe. He made a tech FT. He swished a sideline three off a Kobe flip pass to tie the game with 5:50. He missed an open sideline three. He missed an open three out of a tiemout. He missed an open corner three way short, down 2 with 30 seconds left. Overtime: Nothing to report. Overtime 2: He was called for a reach foul on a double. He missed a rushed three and missed. Down by 6, he missed a wing three.

Radmanovic -- -- He came in to run with the starters with half a quarter left in the half. That was essentially his big stint and action. We played better then, but that was essentially Kobe finally getting on track. The Stats: He didn't shoot, didn't score and 1 board and 1 foul in 6 minutes. The Action: He made the extra pass to Fish on a Kobe kickout and Fisher hit the three. Second Half: Nothing to report.

Phil -- -- Not sure what it is about the Bobcats. Apparently, the Lakers don't know either... Phil called a quick timeout 2 minutes into the game to chew out Pau and Luke for giving up two easy hoops. The score was 4-4... Late in the first quarter, the Bobcats went on an 8-0 run. Poor offensive execution from the Lakers. They rarely made the extra pass. Both Kobe and Pau couldn't hit and the Lakers trailed 23-16 after the first... An 8-0 run by Lakers, all Kobe late in the second quarter and the Lakers cut the lead down to a hoop... With a 32-point second quarter, the Lakers trailed 49-48 at halftime. The Lakers had just 9 assists at the half. The Cats shot 52.5 percent, the Lakers 47.5 percent. Both teams had just 3 offensive boards... The Cats had 16 layups or dunks in that first half. Ridiculous breakdowns at times... "They were playing harder than us," BShaw said... Phil went with a Farmar, Sasha, Vlad, Lamar, Pau lineup down by 6 with Kobe in foul trouble with 2 minutes left in the third... The Lakers gave up a three at the end of the third and trailed 76-70... Defensively, Kobe matching up with Wallace now. Holding his own... The Lakers were in the bonus with 6:43 left... Phil brought back in Fish and Bynum. We took a brief 83-81 lead before getting out-scored 9-0. They trailed 90-83 with 3:06 left. Phil called a timeout and brought back in Pau for Lamar... Drew got called for a flagrant on Wallace with 2 minutes left, down by 5 (Bell missed both FTs, then Diaw missed two on that possession)... Down by 3 with 30 seconds left Phil called a timeout. He set up Kobe to attack and Fish for a three off the Kobe drive and dish. Tie game. OT... Overtime: He subbed in Pau on the defensive end for Bynum with 2:07 left in OT. This was to defend the screen-roll, Well, the screen-roll with Pau was broken down easily for a dunk... Kobe fouled out, Phil went to Luke up 3 with 39 seconds left... Lakers tied 103-103 with 3 on the shotclock, 6.8 left in the game. Phil brought back in Bynum for Pau. Luke throws the in-bounds away... Overtime 2: Phil brought in Farmar to take Kobe's spot and possibly help create. Bynum was the only thing holding the team together at this point. Pau watched from the bench... The Lakers shot 17-23 from the line. The Bobcats nearly choked it away with 18-27 from the line. The Lakers had just 19 assists, the Bobcats 31. The Bobcats had only 9 turnovers, the Lakers 12... "They outplayed us tonight," Phil said. "They had more assists and more rebounds. Those are things that really matter."

Game Flow -- LINK -- Some crazy back and forth in the fourth and overtime. Runs by both teams.

[Omar Little]

Yuck!

Sure, I finally get first on this game!
_________________
“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” ― Elie Wiesel

[brenterprise]

That was terrible D down the stretch and what was with Sasha trying to be the hero in double OT poppin' that 3 with about a minute left down 3?

[Teamof2000]

[Texas_Pete]

Thanks DB!!

Silver lining: I'm hoping that Drew can keep this up. He's had another solid showing against another quality big. Boarded, swatted, and intimidated. Maybe, just maybe PJ will install the inside-out version of the triangle in the near future? Drew seemed to respond really well when Kobe fouled out - meaning he may be ready to carry the inside load.

I expect a huge road series from Pau after tonight's stinker.

I hope my man Ariza is ok!!

[DancingBarry]

[DancingBarry]

[8750]

thanks, DB
is it some weird kind of perversion that when we are up 3 in the final seconds we always always always let wide open some threepoint shooter?! why our coach still goes on with this masochist strategy?

[DancingBarry]

[Tony Almeida]

[StuLantz#1]

What a waste of a game. I would have been so pumped about another great game by Bynum but the loss totally overshadows that for me. Our bench helps win games some nights, but they definitely helped us lose this one with their pathetic performance while trash like Felton and pathetic Shannon Brown were automatic. Still, no getting past Jackson's stupid yet routine game-losing substitution at the end. Gasol is usually pretty consistent and these games are pretty rare, but this is like the 2nd or 3rd NIGHTMARE game for him this season that led to a loss.

With our extremely tough schedule the rest of the way I think Boston and Cleveland (the only relevant teams--Orlando has no chance) are going to start pulling away, so it's important we at least maintain above the west. Top teams lose games when they just go through funks and because they're lazy. We COMPLETELY out-lazy Boston and Cleveland, so add all the road games and tough games ahead too and I think it's extremely unlikely we'll have homecourt throughout the entire playoffs. We need a move then to compensate. I know it's a broken record, but at the VERY LEAST we need to address the fact losers like Felton can easily go off on us.

[najim]

it was a bit surreal to see Bynum out there in the second overtime, seemingly ALL ALONE on his team, yet still imposing his will on both ends of the floor. if he had made that bunny jump hook at the end of the game (after catching the ball from 15 foot out wtf!?!)... he makes that and things might have turned out differently... we'd be talking about this as a MAJOR milestone in Bynum's progress. let's not let the loss take that away from Bynum, this was still huge what he did today, huge.
_________________
This is what a B. Scott offense looks like: http://i.imgur.com/q2hlUZc.jpg
(everyone standing still, and three guys pointing to each other)

[BT]

What an amazing way to get ready for a long road trip: losing against scum in 2 OT.

[Mation]

Thanks DB.

Good to hear some of the silver linings out of this loss. Hope Trevor makes a full and speedy recovery.

[DancingBarry]

[MedRomLaker]

Wow what a game, pau had the highest per for the lakers tied with vladi with +7, man per is a great stat.

Captain Triangle directed the ship into the iceburg and while sinking said "we look to be on course."

Sorry db but I really feel phil is to blame for this, you take a timeout after the 1st two point scored, I really thought he was gonna take this game seriously, ie boston game, and call for TO's and sub's as needed. But it seemed like he turned a blind eye.
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11/9/12 the day the brown was flushed down!!!!!!

4/30/14 the day the ant left the building!!!!!!

[mhan00]

idiotic plays by farmar and sasha in the double ot. bynum was wearing the bobcats out inside, and instead of going to him farmar pulls him out a couple times asking for a screen (which resulted in nothing), and sasha runs down the court and jacks up a CONTESTED 3 with 20 seconds left on the shot clock. just dumb.

[Dorray]

Some bad bball IQ showed late in this game. Gotta work the ball to Bynum when he is having it going like tonight. Get the big man the ball!

[limchrc]

Thanks. Hope we get the win next game.

[jmark]

For some reason the game was blacked out on all my stations including NBATV. Glad I went to bed .......
_________________
"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

[Panther]

What is that 5 wins in a row for my bobcats over you guys? I think thats right. I don't know what it is though. We seem to have y'alls number as of lately. It shocked me to see us win,because we lost to the pacers a few nights before. See you guys in charlotte on march 31st!

[BigE32]

Thanks, DB. I'm really happy with AB's game last night. I was asking myself "why" when PJ took him out with two minutes to go in OT. Just another time I'm left scratching my head with questionable substitutions IMO. He was a factor on both ends last night. It's great to see. We don't matchup well with this team and it shows. 3 straight losses at home. The Staples Center is the Bobcats home away from home, unfortunately.

[Mr. EiGhTy-OnE]

i dont understand why if we have 2 seven footers in the paint we continue to leave the 3 point shooters WIDE OPEN on dribble penetration
_________________
"When (Kobe) gets you on life support, he won't give you mouth to mouth. HE PULLS THE PLUG." -stu

[lakersfreak]

DB
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Forget carbon, reduce your government footprint

[angrypuppy]