In the past week, a couple of Lakers (both past and present), have made television appearances. On August 27, Derek Fisher interviewed Kobe Bryant on Jim Rome is Burning.
Three days later, Kareem Abdul Jabbar made an appearance on Jeopardy and goofed on a question involving him and ex-UCLA Bruin Bill Walton. Check the clip:
Led by Magic Johnson and a venerable cast of stars and role players, the Showtime Lakers left an indelible stamp in NBA history books. Though his game lacked the same flash as some of his teammates, A.C. Green’s timeless work ethic consistently provided a spark during both of his stints with the Lakers. More than anything, Green regularly reminded fans and other NBA players how fortunate they were to play basketball for a living.
For A.C., playing in the NBA for 17 seasons was just as much about the love of the game as it was about simply showing up for work and collecting a hard-earned paycheck. That is exactly what the NBA’s ultimate iron man did, playing in a league record 1,192 consecutive games. To put that staggering number into perspective, Kobe Bryant—widely considered one of the NBA’s great warriors today—amassed a streak of 235 consecutive games played that ended earlier this year.
Green hardly watched the clock while he was “on duty,” as he was a pivotal role player on three championships squads (1987, 1988 and 2000). In fact, he led the Lakers in rebounding in six of the nine years he played for the team, boosting his career averages to 7.4 boards and almost 10 points per game. His play was rewarded through selections on the 1990 All-Star team and the 1989 All-Defensive Second Team.
While many fans remember the unselfish forward for his deep religious beliefs off the court, A.C. was also a devout and loyal teammate who was willing to do whatever it took to help his team. Green’s even-tempered attitude was hardly representative of his on-court play though, where his tenacious defense and all-out commitment served as his bread and butter. A.C. was crafty player who was fundamentally sound on both offense and defense, always boxing out in the most advantageous spot or ready to nail a baseline jumper.
In many ways, experienced, savvy veteran role players like Green have become some of the most coveted players in today’s NBA. In the same way that Derek Fisher’s contributions have been instrumental to the past five Lakers titles, championship teams need players like A.C. to fill in the holes around their stars, to remind them that winning takes a whole lot of hard work too.
From Dan Loumena, LA Times: There are reports out today that the New Orleans Saints, reigning Super Bowl champions (and doesn’t that sound odd?), have asked Lakers point guard Derek Fisher to deliver a pregame speech for their season opener against the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 9. The Saints evidently believe that Fisher can give them insight into claiming back-to-back titles. With five rings to wear on his fingers, which include a three-peat from earlier this decade and the last two NBA championships, it’s hard to argue with his success as a floor leader and champion. It didn’t hurt that he’s played with some superstars — Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, for those really wondering — and had what many consider the sport’s best coach if not finest motivator in Phil Jackson.
From Lakers.com: After playing in all 82 games in his previous two seasons, Kobe Bryant missed nine games with various injuries throughout 2009-10. In his absence, Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol picked up the slack for L.A., particularly in two February games at always tough arenas in Portland and Utah. It was Odom shining in Portland, as he matched his career high with 22 rebounds to lead the Lakers to a 99-82 victory at the Rose Garden, snapping a nine-game losing streak in that building. Four days later, Gasol had 22 points and 19 rebounds as the Lakers won their third straight game without Bryant, beating Utah and ending the Jazz’s nine-game winning streak. Odom was nearly as big with 25 points and 11 rebounds, while Jordan Farmar added 18 points off the bench.
From Kevin Ding, OC Register: Byron Scott took himself off the market and almost off the radar. He is heading into the apocalypse now known as post-LeBron Cleveland … and starting a new supervisory job at the Cavaliers’ old manufacturing plant just as Phil Jackson is vowing this will be his final season as the Lakers’ head coach. Is it a purplish and golden opportunity lost for Scott? Yes, if you believe Jerry Buss saying last November that his next head coach would be someone he and son Jim have “a special fondness for” meant Scott would be trusted to keep the current Lakers in dynasty mode.
From Henry Abbott, TrueHoop: A few days ago I blogged about defense winning championships. Then I blogged about it again. Now that I’m getting a heck of a lot of e-mail, phone calls and comments about it, I can’t stop! To recap: We’re not really just talking about the old adage here. Instead, we’re talking about newly unearthed numbers showing that being an elite defensive team has, historically, make it more likely that you’d win a title than a team that was similarly good at offense. Neil Paine at Basketball-Reference looked at a half-century of title-winning teams. They’re pretty much all good at offense and defense. However, he noticed that small improvements to defense increased a team’s chances of winning titles a lot more than the same improvement to offense. In general, especially when you measure by possession, the game is half offense and half defense. Right? Makes sense. Possessions alternate just about all game — you get a chance to score, and then its our turn. All game long you’re playing offense or defense, in alternating stints. They ought to both be important.
From Ben Polk, A Wolf Among Wolves: Kevin Love is bright white and a little lumpy. His steps are plodding and thick. He does not really look like an NBA basketball player. And he certainly seems a little bit out of place among his fellow world-class North Americans with their lithe, elastic bodies and their liquid skills. He does resemble, however, quite a few of his opponents in these FIBA World Championships; perhaps its no accident, then, that, as Sebastian Pruiti has pointed out at NBA Playbook, Love appears to be a natural at the international game: Kevin Love is a very good rebounder in the NBA, and we shouldn’t be surprised that this skill carried over to the FIBA Worlds, but at this pace? Love has grabbed 21 rebounds in his 26 minutes of play, which comes out to an insane 31.5 rebounds per 40 minutes (h/t J.E. Skeets via John Schuhmann). How is Love able to grab so many rebounds? By simply outworking and outsmarting his opponents.
From Chris Tomasson, NBA Fanhouse: Greece vs. Turkey historically has made North Carolina-Duke look like a friendly game of backgammon. But when a group of 50 visiting Greek fans were allowed to hang one banner in hostile territory Tuesday at Ankara Arena, a message of peace was chosen. The banner read in Greek and then was translated into English underneath, “We are neighbors, not enemies.” That wasn’t all. Many of the Greek fans wore T-shirts that had a similar phrase and showed an interlocking puzzle, with one piece being the Greek flag and the other the Turkish flag. “We want to show that sports should unite,” said Kostas Tsibogiannis, 53, a flower importer in Athens and one of the organizers of the Greek fans who traveled to Turkey for the FIBA World Championship
From Hal Spivack, NBA Fanhouse: Lithuania miraculously rallied back from an 18-point deficit to shock Spain, the reigning FIBA world champions, 76-73 in Izmir, Turkey. Lithuania moves to 3-0 in group play, while Spain falls to 1-2 in the tournament. Spain, the defending champions and Group D favorites desperately need a win in at least one of two remaining games if they hope to advance to the knockout stage. Lithuania outscored Spain 23-9 in the final quarter. Spain committed a handful of costly turnovers, including one on their last possession when they were down three and had an opportunity to send the game into overtime.
From Matt Moore, Hardwood Paroxysm: Let’s get past the elements in which this revolves around New York, because as a Southern Midwesterner (or Midwestern Southerner, take your pick), I know most of what I know about New York from friends and various films. Though I will say the films, television, books, and radio programs do paint quite the vivid picture of a thriving metropolis! So yes, the fact that this team is primed to finally be relevant, while not dominant, is particularly culturally relevant for the city. And yes, a resurgence there does speak quite plainly to a mythos that has been held in the old barn and echoed throughout the boroughs. But let’s try and move past that to what this team could resemble.
From Sebastian Pruiti, NBA Playbook: Going into the FIBA World Championships, I thought if Kevin Love could find a way to get some minutes, he could make a positive impact for Team USA because he seems to be your prototypical International-style big man. Love crashes the boards hard, passes well, and is a legitimate threat from the outside. He hasn’t been playing a ton (only 13 minutes in each of the two games), but he has made his presence felt. Rebounding Kevin Love is a very good rebounder in the NBA, and we shouldn’t be surprised that this skill carried over to the FIBA Worlds, but at this pace? Love has grabbed 21 rebounds in his 26 minutes of play, which comes out to an insane 31.5 rebounds per 40 minutes (h/t J.E. Skeets via John Schuhmann). How is Love able to grab so many rebounds? By simply outworking and outsmarting his opponents
From Blair Angulo, UCLA Blog: UCLA men’s basketball coach Ben Howland hosted the second annual HDSA LA Hoop-A-Thon inside Pauley Pavilion on Friday night, with many former players stopping by to promote the awareness of Huntington’s Disease. HD is a genetic disorder that causes uncontrollable body movements and deprives people of their abilities to walk, talk, eat and think rationally. Howland’s father-in-law passed away from the disease six years ago. More information on the disease can be found by clicking here. Recent Bruins Arron Afflalo (Denver Nuggets), Trevor Ariza (New Orleans Hornets), Darren Collison (Indiana Pacers), Jordan Farmar (New Jersey Nets), Ryan Hollins (Cleveland Cavaliers) and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute (Milwaukee Bucks) attended the event.
After Team USA’s recent win over Brazil, it was hard to remain optimistic about their chances to bring home the gold. The Brazilians were able to expose Team USA during long stretches on both sides of the basketball before dropping a game for the first time in these FIBA World Championships.
Both teams got out to hot starts with Team USA scoring 18 points on 12 possessions in the first 6:40 and Brazil scoring 17 points on 13 possessions in the same time. We expected the US National team to be this efficient on the offensive end with their athleticism, but they’ve been winning their games because of their defensive prowess, and haven’t allowed opposing offenses to be as efficient as the Brazilians were on the whole first quarter and the better part of the second half. The Brazilians – namely Marcelo Huertas – lived in the paint in the first half. Brazil’s first five field goal attempts, all good, were in the paint. Their sixth field goal attempt was a wide-open three pointer after a penetration and kick out. Their next six field goal attempts after the three-pointer were in the paint. Of Brazil’s first 12 field goal attempts, 11 were in the paint, and one made three-pointer because the point guard got in the paint. To end the first quarter, Brazil hit three straight three pointers and Tiago Splitter was found for a wide-open dunk.
Brazil was able to pick Team USA apart for most of the first half, scoring 46 points on 43 possessions, giving them an offensive efficiency rating of 106.97 for the half. Brazil ran a plethora of screen and roll sets and back screens off of the ball, allowing Huertas to run amok the American defense, living in the paint and finishing with six points and five assists in the first half. Huertas’ propensity to get into the paint at will didn’t just propel their offense, but it helped slow down Team USA’s offense. The Brazilians certainly didn’t score on every possession, but a lot of their misses came in the paint, reducing the amount of long rebounds that get Team USA in their coveted transition game. When Brazil did take shots behind the arch, they hit them at a 63 percent clip. Team USA had to play a large portion of the game in the half court.
While Team USA did have some very good stretches of offensive basketball (a 150 Ortg for the starters in the first quarter), they struggled mightily in the second half. Team USA was able to stymie the Brazilian offense by trapping hard on their high screen and roll sets, but weren’t really able to put a good offensive stretch in the second half. Of their 42 second half possessions, 11 ended in turnovers and nine more ended in missed shots around the rim, 20 wasted possessions. Team USA had ball movement problems, recording only eight assists for the game (compared to 15 for Brazil). Kevin Durant was able to score effectively, but the rest of the team struggled for most of the second half – especially the second unit. With at least two reserves on the floor, Team USA had an offensive efficiency rating of 76.92 compared to an offensive efficiency rating of 100 when at least four starters were on the floor (these number aren’t counting an absolutely awful fourth quarter for both teams, which forced me to tweet, “4th Q numbers: 18 pts, 9TOs, 9 missed layups/tips, 10 missed 3s and 10 minutes of Lamar Odom looking lost” – and yes, those were the numbers for both teams combined).
What the Brazil game taught us is that Team USA can be beat by their opponent repeatedly getting into the lane, limiting their time in transition, and shooting a high clip from behind the arch. Brazil played Team USA perfectly in the first half, and went into the break with a 46-43 lead. And as bad as they played in the second half, they were able to turn Team USA over enough to finish the game only one possession away from a victory. The US National team is going to have to move the ball much better than they did against Brazil. There were too many possessions where shots were taken off of one or fewer passes. Also, Team USA’s second unit leaves much to be desired. Russell Westbrook has had shaky confidence entering games, and has had to gain that confidence as the game progressed. Turnover problems start with the point guard, and if Westbrook can’t hold onto the ball, it’s going to continue to be rough for Team USA to keep their play consistent for 40 minutes – which they’re going to need to do when the Worlds begin the elimination rounds. Team USA has today off, but plays again Wednesday against Iran.
From Broderick Turner, LA Times: If you are a Lakers fan and you happened to catch USA defeat Brazil, 70-68, Monday in Istanbul in the FIBA (International Basketball Federation) World Championship, you had to see Lamar Odom do what he does best. Odom was so bad one moment and then so good the next moment. It is something Lakers fans have come to expect from Odom. He finished with eight points on four-for-10 shooting, nine rebounds, one assist, one steal and three turnovers in helping USA to a 3-0 record in Group B competition. But it was his play late in the game that was typical Odom.
From Mike Truddell, Basket Blog: On Monday, August 23, Kobe Bryant turned 32 years old. In the last 14 of those years, the Lakers’ 6-6 guard has shot, driven and dunked his way to 12th on the NBA’s all-time leading scoring list. That’s certainly an impressive enough feat, but when Bryant turns 33 next year, he may very well have vaulted all the way up to sixth on the ledger simply by producing at or even below his usual – if remarkable – rate. Let’s take a look at how Bryant has put himself in a position to get there: First, rewind the clock by two years, prior to the 2008-09 campaign, when Bryant was 26th on the scoring charts with 21,619 points behind a career average of around 25 points per game, plus an ability to avoid or play through injuries. Kobe was perched (or waiting to strike, rather) just behind Larry Bird (21,791), Gary Payton (21,813) and Clyde Drexler (22,195). During that season he jumped all three, and then splashed nets past Elgin Baylor (23,149), Adrian Dantley (23,177), Robert Parish (23,334) and Charles Barkley (23,757).
From Andy Kamenetzky, Land O’ Lakers: More than any Laker, Derek Fisher proves beauty remains in the eye of the beholder… and beholders tend to view things through a lens of extremity. To some, Fisher is feisty, wise and virtuous — a local treasure who knocks down big shots with a frequency surpassed by only Kobe Bryant during his second tour with the Lakers. To others, he’s well past his prime, and sentiment helps fuel his popularity. To them, Fish gets used defensively by every point guard in the league, and clutch as he may be, the old man bricks more than his share of ho-hum shots.
From David Dwork, Peninsula Is Mightier: Something that we should all be expecting and even accepting as a certainty is that there is going to be a ton of Heat-bashing as we get closer to training camp. This is something that is going to be coming from all angles, regardless of the source. As basketball becomes relevant again there are going to be more and more stories finding things wrong with the Heat, their roster and the way they went about making that roster. Friday afternoon on ESPN’s ‘Jim Rome is Burning’, a pair of Los Angeles Lakers got the chance to take over the show. Derek Fisher sat down and interviewed his teammate Kobe Bryant on a bevy of topics, and I bet you can guess what came up pretty quickly.
From Chris Tomasson, NBA Fanhouse: As Brazil’s Leandro Barbosa walked by after Monday’s game, Team USA’s Chauncey Billups patted him on the back and said, “See you next week.” After getting a scare in their first test in the World Championship, the Americans wouldn’t be surprised if they run into Brazil in the medal round. “I think so. I really do,” Billups said of anticipating Brazil will get another crack at Team USA, which escaped with a narrow 70-68 victory at Abdi Ipekci Arena.
From Rob Mahoney, Pro Basketball Talk: Team USA is filled with hyper-athletic and versatile players, but the squad’s greatest strength is not its speed, its leaping ability, or the varied skill sets of its players. Above all else, the Americans’ greatest asset is their depth. While a team like Spain may have as many as eight NBA-caliber players, the American squad is loaded with NBA talent at every position. Even without the likes of LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, et al on the roster, Team USA has more talent from top to bottom than any other squad in the tournament. Yet thus far, in games against Team USA’s most skilled opponents, Mike Krzyzewski has turned to a top-heavy rotation heavily dependent on its starters. It’s an understandable tactic for most NBA and NCAA teams, but given how talented this roster is? And more importantly, how roughly congruent every non-Durant talent on the roster happens to be? It’s ludicrous.
From 48 Minutes of Hell: Fair or not, San Antonio Spurs fans have been awaiting the arrival of Tiago Splitter since the team first drafted Luis Scola. Since 2002 (the year Scola was drafted) each FIBA tournament has served as a tease of sorts for Spurs faithful. And with each passing tournament the concept of foreign big man savior grew in its myth. Brazil’s narrow 68-70 loss to Team USA offered a bit of nostalgia for Spurs fans tuning in to see their prized big man. There again were the beautiful offensive sets of Brazilian head coach Ruben Magnano (formerly of Argentina) running roughshod at times through the USA defense. Splitter, however, is not Luis Scola. For one, he is already under contract with the Spurs. And with the will-he-or-won’t-he-come speculation long since over, today’s game finally removed some of the mystery surrounding the Brazilian big man.
From Gregg Doyel, CBS Sports: Lamar Odom missed two point-blank layups, which is what he does. Chauncey Billups made like Allen Iverson and shot every time he touched the ball, which he doesn’t do. This was the fourth quarter of the United States’ game Monday against Brazil in group play of the FIBA World Championships, and there I was, growling at the television. There I was — furious. Furious at Odom for being the same knucklehead for the USA in Turkey that he is for the Lakers in Los Angeles. Furious at Billups, on the team for his veteran leadership, jacking up shot after shot while one of the most talented pure scorers in the world, teammate Kevin Durant, went ignored on the wing. Furious at Andre Iguodala for saving the ball under the rim to the other team for an easy Brazil basket. Furious at U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski for playing these numbskulls.
From Brian Mahoney, Yahoo! Sports: Derrick Rose thought it was going in. So did Leandro Barbosa, who shot it. Instead, Brazil’s attempt to tie at the buzzer fell out, and the United States remained unbeaten, though no longer unchallenged. A world championship won’t come easily for this young team—if it comes at all—so the Americans believe their 70-68 victory over Brazil on Monday will help them in the later rounds. “Sometimes family that goes through adversity gets a little better,” center Lamar Odom said. “It’s a game we probably needed. Probably a good tuneup, especially going into the medal rounds, trying to finish up this tournament.”
From John Schuhmann, NBA.com: At the Abdi Ipekci Arena on Monday, Brazil confirmed the thought that it would be the U.S. National Team’s toughest competition in pool play at the 2010 FIBA World Championship. The U.S. confirmed as well that the road to gold would not be an easy one, despite their exhibition play success. Flaws were exposed. Lessons were learned. Character was tested. And when Leandro Barbosa’s spinning attempt under the basket bounced off the rim at the buzzer, the U.S. had escaped with a 70-68 victory. With pool play games against Iran and Tunisia left, the Americans have essentially wrapped up the top spot in Group B and a top seed in the 16-team, single-elimination tournament that begins Saturday.
From David Friedman, 20 Second Timeout: The FIBA World Championship begins on August 28. This competition rarely receives much publicity in the United States but for many basketball-minded nations it is very important, equal to–if not even greater than–the Olympics in terms of prestige; American kids who play basketball dream of winning an NBA championship but kids in other countries dream of leading their homeland to the FIBA World Championship title. The significance of this year’s FIBA World Championship for Team USA is that the winner receives an automatic bid for the 2012 Olympics (Team USA captured the 2008 Olympic gold medal but the previous Olympic champion is not guaranteed a spot in the next Olympic games); if Team USA does not win the FIBA World Championship then the United States will have to qualify for the Olympics by playing in the 2011 FIBA Americas tournament and that could be a dicey proposition if the NBA endures a strike/lockout: during the 1998 lockout, the U.S. fielded a team of non-NBA players that worked very hard but only managed to win a bronze medal in the 1998 FIBA World Championship (after the lockout ended, Gary Payton, Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Tim Hardaway led Team USA to a 10-0 sweep in the 1999 FIBA Americas Tournament to qualify for the 2000 Olympics).
From Jenny Carlson, Newsok.com: If you want to know how big a star Kevin Durant has become, search his name on Twitter. The Thunder swingman had the Internet’s popular social-networking site buzzing after he led Team USA to another victory at the FIBA World Championships. He’d scored 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. He’d almost single-handedly held off Brazil’s upset bid. Durant was being talked about not only by folks from across the United States but also by people from around the world. There were 140-character comments in Spanish, Turkish, Italian and Portuguese.
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