Comments on: The Preseason Finally Ends

By: Hassan

Hassan — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 21:51:47 +0000

Well said alex v.

By: Snoopy2006

Snoopy2006 — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 19:01:17 +0000

^I agree with Portland’s bench. Not sure on the others. Because if you count Lamar on the bench, then I’m assuming both Bynum and Gasol are starting. (Still, I do think our bench can compete, with Farmar, Sasha and LO alone). Same thing with Artest/Scola, at least one of them will start. And I doubt Utah’s bench could compete….Atlanta was the 8 seed last year, and their lineup of Bibby/Johnson/Horford and the others seems stronger than Utah’s bench.

But I get the main point of your post. There are some very deep teams in the West. If they gel, Houston has the potential to gi ve us trouble too (yes, I realize everyone’s been excited about Houston for the last 3 years and nothing happens, but hypothetically, if everythin goes their way). Yao’s length gives Bynum problems. Scola’s activity and motor will give Pau problems, I cant see Pau sticking with a ton of backdoor cuts, he’s not used to moving a ton on defense. Artest/Battier is probably the best combo to slow down Kobe. Ariza would have to start to give us a T-Mac defender. I doubt Ariza can defend Artest effectively, he struggles with the stronger wing players. But then leaves Kobe on Artest. Not saying they’re better than us at all. Just saying that matchup-wise, they might give us the most trouble if we meet them in the Western playoffs. (although Chris Paul by himself is more of a matchup nightmare, that’s for every other team in the league)

By: Stephen

Stephen — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 18:12:32 +0000

Somewhat off-tangent,but there are at least 4 teams in the West that have second units that could contend for a Playoff spot in the East.

Portland-Rodriguez,Fernandez,Outlaw,Frye,Pryzbilla
LA-Farmar,Sasha,Ariza,Lamar,Bynum/Gasol
Hou-Brooks,Barry,Artest,Landry,Scola/Hayes
Utah-Price,Korver,Kirilenko,Milsap,Collins

By: alex v.

alex v. — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 17:56:13 +0000

I think Gasol is really taking advantage of his freedom now that he doesn’t have to bang down low all the time and it’s fun to watch. I agree that we’re going to see a lot of Gasol-to-Bynum interior connections, but I’m really looking forward to the first Bynum-to-Gasol lob. That’s when I’ll know this team has really learned to work together.

By: KurkPeterman

KurkPeterman — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 17:10:30 +0000

31 – ESPN’s camera work made this call very tricky to read. They focused on Mbenga the whole time despite the foul being called on Joe Smith as IE and Mamba24 mentioned. Just goes to show how easy it is to manipulate peoples perceptions based on what you’re showcasing.

By: Mamba24

Mamba24 — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 15:46:01 +0000

Kenny,
When he got called for the offensive foul and went to the ref and they called a Tech, I though it was called on Mbenga too as well. But when I saw Sasha shooting the free throw, I rewinded it a little bit and saw that ref pointed to Smith, not Mbenga. It had me confused for a little bit too as well.

By: From the IE

From the IE — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 14:27:24 +0000

Kenny – The technical was on Joe Smith, not on MBenga, so that’s why Sasha took it.

By: passerby

passerby — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 09:07:54 +0000

and so the regular season begins… i think we’re doing fine. give and take our pluses, i think 65 wins is a possibility. 70+ may be too much to ask. i get the feeling that a slump shall happen midway because of some injury or getting a bit too sloppy. i HOPE NOT. then we’ll finish the season strong and i hope we have 1st seed locked by that time. we need homecourt and i think we have yet to show that killer swagger particularly on the road. this is where defense will matter.

i think bynum will be a beast. i think he will surprise. he is extending his range and the only thing to slow him down is his own self. pau will be pau and i hope he always has that intensity to his game. that makes up for thick bodies. i think chemistry won’t be much of an issue among our big men. that said, odom should feel the pressure. he should recognize that as a good laker it’s his job to be worthy of remembrance whether he takes a pay cut next year or he leaves us with a ring (then the trade rumors will always be there). i think kobe has another mvp season in store but we’ll realize if it does materialize later in the year.

the league better be ready for us. but then, are we ready to take our rightful place? after so many ups and downs, i am left with the answer of what could be. for some, that’s not enough. for me, it’s a nice problem. =)

By: Kenny

Kenny — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 08:30:09 +0000

I have a question regarding the THunders vs Lakers game…
When MBenga committed a technical foul during offense (when he elbowed someone while trying to go to the hoop), how come it was sasha who threw the free throw? Shouldn’t the Thunders be shooting the ffree throw?

By: Darius

Darius — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 08:06:55 +0000

bchamp,
Yeah, Gasol looks very good. It’s amazing how polished he is as a player. Bynum may have more size and athleticsm, and with his physicality, an even higher ceiling than Gasol, but I doubt that Bynum will ever have the smoothness of Gasol’s game. That’s not a knock on Andrew, but moreso a tribute to Gasol’s skill level as players his size rarely show the type of ability and hoops acumen that Pau utilizes.

I was also very impressed with Westbrook. His explosive first step is already elite and he’ll find himself getting into the lane at will in the open court. If he develops a jumper and can find a better feel in the P&R game, I don’t see how he doesn’t become one of the better scoring PG’s in the league. He reminds me of Monta Ellis (but a bit bigger and not as good with the mid-range jumper…yet) and I can see him being a very good player within his first couple of seasons.