The Lakers ended their 2014 on a high note, beating the Nuggets, in Denver, on Tuesday after a triple-double by Kobe and some very hot shooting from the other perimeter guys not named Nick Young or Jeremy Lin. The game actually reminded a lot of the win over the Warriors a week earlier — the ball moved, shots fell, and the other team looked sloppy and out of sorts for most of the night. The only difference, of course, is that Kobe was there to be part of the action.
He did more than participate, however. He mostly navigated the flow of the Lakers’ attack whenever he was on the floor, taking over point guard duties for most of the possessions regardless of who his backcourt partner was. Initiating the offense via the high P&R or by simply making the first pass to the wing to initiate some of the team’s motion sets, Kobe dictated the flow and did his part to ensure that the ball kept moving. As noted, the result was a triple-double for Kobe and a nice, balanced attack for the team.
After the game Kobe commented about the shifting of his game since his return from various ailments that sidelined him for three contests. Via Baxter Holmes of ESPN Los Angeles:
Bryant did admit that, after some reflection, his game is “evolving,” to some degree, but don’t mistake that to mean that he’s shedding his identity.
“I’m a natural scorer, but it doesn’t mean I can’t evolve,” he said. “I’ve played more the point guard role in our first three championships, so I’ve been taught very well how to do that. It’s not something that’s unfamiliar to me.”
Kobe also noted that all he’s really been doing is taking what the defense gives him, which the tape backs up. Against the Suns and the Nuggets, defenses tried to trap Kobe at the point of attack and it made his reads out of 1-4 sets pretty easy to discern. He did a good job of accepting double teams and then hitting the right man who could either shoot an open shot or move the ball onto an open teammate against the rotating defense. When Kobe did work off the ball he would try to back his man down and force the defense to commit extra attention and then make similar reads from the wing rather than the top of the floor.
By mixing in some shot attempts to this approach, Kobe struck a nice balance and the results were good from his own efficiency standpoint while the team played well overall.
Tonight, then, I expect to see more of the same approach, though much of that will be dictated on how the Grizzlies try to defend Kobe. Memphis typically does not trap at the point of attack, instead playing below the P&R with their big men to help contain dribble penetration while the on ball defender fights through picks. Tony Allen is quite adept at locking on and getting through screens while Marc Gasol is one of the best angle takers in the league when sitting below the screen. With that, we’ll see how Kobe tries to navigate the Grizzlies’ P&R defense and whether he can find the same creases that allow him to move the ball on quickly to teammates who are in a position to hurt the defense.
If he’s not, the onus will shift off Kobe and onto his teammates to create some good looks for themselves and that is where things can get dicey. Outside of a post move or two from Jordan Hill when isolated at the shallow wing, no other Lakers’ starter can really create a shot for himself. The team, then, will need to work hard off the ball to create the needed separation to get open shots if Kobe cannot draw the extra attention that relieves that burden. This will require strong screens, timely cuts, and an overall awareness level from the other guys that hasn’t always been there this year. That said, as the team adjusts to working with Kobe operating in the manner he has been and with Ryan Kelly (a high IQ player who can also space the floor and open up driving and cutting lanes) set to make his return from his hamstring injury tonight, the hope is to see continued growth in this area.
Defensively, the Lakers will have their hands full dealing with a balanced Grizzlies’ attack that can go in a variety of directions to hurt you. Mike Conley’s ability to score off jumpers or by getting into the lane sets this all up, but Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph also provide inside-out skill sets that are foundational to their attack. With Courtney Lee, Vince Carter, Jon Leurer, and Quincy Pondexter doing strong work off the ball as spot up players and slashers the entire team must be disciplined defensively and not get caught ball watching nor paying too much attention to only their own assignment.
Overall, the Grizzlies are a much superior team to the Lakers and even with Zach Randolph questionable they will be a load. I do not expect the Lakers to be victorious at the end, but continued progress in the areas they have been improving recently would be nice.
Where you can watch: 7:30pm start time on TWC Sportsnet. Also listen on ESPN Radio 710AM Los Angeles.
Calvin Chang says
I liked how Kobe was patient in the Denver game, making a conscious effort to read the defense before making a play. If Kobe has the ball and he takes his time to patiently back his defender down, the defense will have to help. Otherwise, Kobe ends up with a high-percentage short fall-away. Kobe has to do more of that. Play Point-Kobe and have him back his defender down like Mark Jackson to force opponents to double. Once they do, someone will get open and receive an assist.
Robert says
Kobe Alert: KB showed he is still an elite player while racking up an enormous statistical game of 23 points, 11 rebounds, 11 dimes, and 2 steals in just 31 minutes. It was Kobe’s 21st triple-double which ties him for 15th all time. KB tied Terry Porter for games and needs 4 more to catch AC Green for 20th. Kobe ended the game right on 25,000 FGAs for his career. To do this on a triple-double night just took away the opportunity from the Abbott’s of the world to write an article about the 25k. He needs just 41 FGs to move by Shaq and into the top 5 all time in that category. Just 2 more 3 pointers and Kobes moves into 12th there ahead of Steve Nash. The 10 defensive boards pulled #24 into a tie with Dale Davis for 53rd all time as Kobe continue his attack on the top 50 for defensive rebounds, as a guard. He needs 40 more dimes and he moves up to 29th ahead of Hondo. Kobe moved by James Worthy into 6th alone in the Laker all time blocks list. He needs 5 more to get by Andrew Bynum and Kobe will be top 5 in all 18 major Laker cumulative statistical categories. He is #1 in 13 of those categories (think about that). All star voting is underway so please vote for Kobes so he can add to his unmatched All Star resume. After first returns – it appears as though another starting nod is in order for Kobe. The man is relentless. He has 4530 points to “go get Karl”. MJ told him to do it, so how can Kobe refuse? Let’s start the extension discussions early. Kobe rules !
rr says
Arash Markazi ? @ArashMarkazi
Tarik Black ends every media session by shaking every reporter’s hand and saying, “Thanks for the opportunity.”
Retweeted by Kamenetzky Brothers
PurpleBlood says
another fine game-preview Darius, thanks as always; to me the 2 most important points are the following:
a) `the entire team must be disciplined defensively and not get caught ball watching nor paying too much attention to only their own assignment.´
b) & a repeat performance as an all-round scorer/facilitator by Mamba
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Tarik Black ends every media session by shaking every reporter’s hand and saying, “Thanks for the opportunity.”
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it ´s always great to have a stand-up guy like this on the squad – give `em hell Tarik!!
Aaron says
Kobe has gone “unselfish” many times before in the last twenty years… But it only lasts at most five or six games. I doubt anything will change now.
Robert says
Aaron: We often agree – even though we come at things from different angles. Yes – Kobe will never change and the FO had to know this when they signed him. He eats first – thankfully.
rr says
I expect that you will see more teams, starting tonight, playing KB straight-up, instead of running DTs at him. Also, as DS notes above, Memphis doesn’t trap, and, of course, they have Tony Allen. Finally, the other four guys in Scott’s starting line-up have little/no ability to create their own looks. The other guys who can do that, Lin, Young, and to a lesser extent, Ellington; all play on the second unit.
Celestyus says
I’m reading this blog for a long time but this is the first time i post something so… Hello everybody ! First I would like to congratulate Darius for the job he’s doing, and appreciate the vast majority of users for the quality of their comments.
Second, I was wondering if someone can look at Kobe stats (from 2002-2003 season) and compare them with Westbrook stats (this season) and please explain me the big discrepancy in PER (26.2 vs 32.48). Because the stats look somehow similar to me, i would even say they favor Kobe but while his PER is (very) good, Westbrook’s is historically good !
Ps.I am from Bucharest (Romania), 30 years old, Laker fan since 1996 and I would like to apologize for any spelling or grammar mistakes i might have made since English is not my native language.
R says
rr : “‘I expect that you will see more teams, starting tonight, playing KB straight-up, instead of running DTs at him.”
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Let’s hope so! He will make them regret it.
Rob Westbrook says
Actually before Kobe went down with his Achilles injury, he was averaging 28-6-7 after the all star break. That’s 24 games averaging 7 ast. That would’ve been an interesting playoffs with Kobe playing like that, if it wasn’t for the injury.
Tim says
Nice hustle by Ed Davis to swat that layup out of bounds.
PurpleBlood says
he was averaging 28-6-7 after the all star break.
___
yeah, that was sweet
reggyray says
I love Stu but he was wrong with his commentary just now. Pondexter was in the air when he put back his own miss so there is no way he could have committed a travel.
Tra says
Good Scrappin’ by JL ..
In regards to Ryan Kelly – a player who I’m fond of and, before the season began, was looking forward to seeing the growth of – it’ll be interesting to see how Byron integrates him into the lineup. Especially since the 2nd unit has seemed to established an identity.
Ko says
Jordan Hill’s number are tanking last month. Perhaps that health kick has been kicked.
J C says
I like the way the team is playing.
Showing heart and grit.
Time to give coach Scott some credit.
Jaye says
I agree, Jordan hill has dropped off wonder if he’s hurt?
Tim says
Jeremy Lin forgets the clock and to foul so Kobe has to run up and foul. Lakers down by 2 and have a chance to tie or win. Kobe was not happy with Lin on that play.
Rob Westbrook says
Kobe with 9 boards and we’re still being outrebounded by 8. Still a huge fan of efficient Kobe, especially with only a pair of turnovers tonight. Those third quarters…
Rob Westbrook says
Kobe 0-13 on shots to win or tie at the end of the game. I would’ve liked to see Nick Young take it; Lin also had the hot hand tonight.
godaddy says
kobe can be better than Magic as per point god. Can last another 4 yrs. He has finally gotten the point that he draws a crowd, rightly so and can pass it like Big O. just saying. go lakers. the tide has turned. tuff loss but gr8 beginning/. btw: clips should trade the guy from oklahoma. just saying.
Calvin Chang says
Why didn’t Byron ask Lin to foul earlier? You can see Lin looking at the coach whether to take a foul or not, and Byron just staring at the game like a casual fan. Kobe had to finally come out and take a foul. I’ve coached high school kids before, and I’d be yelling at them to either take a foul in that situation, or trap to force the pass to a weaker free-throw shooter. But just staring blankly with your arms folded doesn’t provide any direction.
rr says
. I would’ve liked to see Nick Young take it; Lin also had the hot hand tonight.
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Uhhh, it was a heave from behind the arc with .6 of a second left on the clock that was a little long but actually did “draw iron.” I also notice that both your comments deal exclusively with Kobe, and you only mention other players in the context of saying something about him.
Mike says
Lin didn’t forget the clock. He pointed at it when he was asking Scott if he should foul. Scott told him to wait, while Lin kept asking him.
Rob Westbrook says
Fine rr. Davis great game; really bolsters our D and scores it around the rim. Lin great game especially on offense. Boozer scored as usual, but had some TOs and only 4 rebounds and 6 fouls in 22 min. Nick young chucking but big buckets late; only 1 reb at SF in 24 min. Johnson only 2 reb at SF in 27 min. Sacre 0 reb in 13 min. No Clarkson again; 3 straight DNPs after averaging 13 min while Kobe was out. Clarkson plays decent D and rebounds well for his position. Also shoots a decent % from 3. Young or Lin should’ve taken the final shot; both are better 3 point shooters than Kobe, especially this year. I don’t care if it’s 6 seconds or 0.6 seconds.
rr says
.For people wondering why Kobe has approached the game differently since taking those three games off, here’s as succinct an explanation as I’ve heard him give.
Q: Is that something (meaning the elevated assist totals, not forcing through double teams) by design, where you know you’re probably not shooting 20 times a game?
KOBE: “I don’t know if my body can take it. I don’t know if it can. I think in this situation, where teams just just double me all over the floor, it’s not like I’m passing up shots, I don’t have them. Because you stack up, you trap. Back in my younger days, I could go through that stuff and still have 30 or 40 points. Now, my body can’t take it. So I dominate the game in a different way.”
The interesting thing to see is what happens if/when teams stop doubling him consistently, which is what opposing teams would do if they were smart (and not behaving out of habit). Kobe is too effective finding the open man, and lesser Lakers players get easier opportunities because defenses are scrambling to rotate and recover. Kobe will likely take more shots if single covered regularly — which is perfectly fine — but it certainly appears he’s come to some important realizations about how he needs to approach the game in order to play effectively, night in and night out.
There will still be games, I’m sure, where Kobe goes off and launches with impunity, but probably not that many.
–BK
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=408748639286299&id=125544260940073
tankyou says
This version of play by Kobe definitely seems to contribute strongly to a tough Lakers team. It was another good game vs. one of the best teams in the league. Just wish we could pull out more of these last second losses, but oh well we had a good shot at it and it was competitive game.
The Lakers needs to seriously figure out how to keep Ed Davis, no reason to let him walk next year. He deserves to get paid, his vet min days are over, maybe he will prefer LA if they offer him a decent package. I think LA needs to give up on the idea of bringing in a 30yr old point guard for their “rebuild” efforts. Time to give up on the Ronnie Price experiment and give LIn a shot. They likely can keep Lin for less than 5 mill, which will help their cap space situation in going after some bigs. This team needs a center, and please get us another true SF.
Kobe passed great today, he cut down his TO’s big time and the team seems to be responding well. Hope it pays off with a win Sunday!
bleedpurplegold says
Still pissed about a clear flagerent foul on davis, i think it was allen…..all man trying to prevent an easy layup….bad call
Joe Houston says
My Lord people are funny. Just 30 secs earlier, Kobe hit a 3 to put the Lakers in position to tie or win the game. That 0-13 stat is a pointless stat. Anyone who has ever taken a Statistics class, or done data Mining or data analysis knows that stat means absolutely nothing on its own. How many players in the NBA could get open to take a straight 3 point shot with .6 of a a sec left?
tankyou says
Kobe’s shot was a great shot and nearly went in. My only problem with Pre-Rest Kobe, was that he was shooting them out of games in the 4th quarter shooting 25% or less and taking nearly all the shots in the last 6mins of the game no matter how horrible they were. Post-Rest Kobe thus far makes me feel like a fan of him again! Kobe has adapted his game, which makes me respect him that much more, if he plays like this the rest of his contract I’ll be more than happy with him. Plus, if he becomes a primary assist guy and secondary scorer he can end his career with a different type of caption than “bad gunner” which was what he was for most of this season.
Kobe without a doubt helped LA be competive last night, and so did Lin and Ed Davis. This team can be fun to watch if they keep playing this way, but they may very well blow up the roster soon with trades? At this point it looks like they can just trade away Jordan Hill and it won’t even hurt us, especially if Tarik is decent defensively.
bleedpurplegold says
@joe housston: remember kob vs portland? 😉
Jo Houston says
Jeremy Lin is too inconsistent to be a starting guard. At least with Ronnie Price you know every night he will compete.
Ko says
Good news is this team is getting better.
Bad news is this team is getting better.
Another well conceived plan.
As for Hill now you know why Mike D and other didn’t play him.
Rumor has been for years drinking was not his issue. Big fan of Bob Marley though.
Robert says
For the last three games, those hoping for a new Kobe have gotten their wish. Perhaps they like this version better. I like any version. However we are 1-2 in our last three and that is the percentage we have been winning for the past 1 1/2 years. So whichever Kobe you prefer is fine, just do not end your post with a harrumph and a statement about how the Lakers would win significantly more games if Kobe played a different game. We are a 33% win team, with either Kobe and with either coach (that was a bonus for the Byron bashers). Any comments on the fact that Pau is going to be a slam dunk All Star starter and we could not seem to utilize him?
J C says
I prefer Scott’s coaching to Dantoni’s.
Even if their winning % is similar so far.
I think Scott would have known Pau’s value and used him more effectively.
Dantoni would have been asking Ed Davis to work on his 3-point shooting.
On the other hand, a junior-high school coach would have been instructing his players to foul! In last night’s situation.
So that sequence was mind-boggling.
rr says
I don’t care if it’s 6 seconds or 0.6 seconds.
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Well, you should, because it matters.
Also shoots a decent % from 3.
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Ever heard of sample size? And again, if you want more Clarkson, focus on Price, not Kobe.
rr says
On the other hand, a junior-high school coach would have been instructing his players to foul! In last night’s situation.
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The KBros covered this. Scott wanted to wait until there were 10 seconds:
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=408744319286731&id=125544260940073
rr says
Any comments on the fact that Pau is going to be a slam dunk All Star starter and we could not seem to utilize him?
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Well, the fans vote for the starters, presuming that is what you mean. Also, Pau’s stats aren’t really much different than last year’s, and he is actually shooting less. He is just in the right situation now, playing on a good team, with two good defensive bigs, Noah and Gibson, and a far better defensive backcourt, Rose and Butler. The Bulls’ personnel accentuates his strengths, hides his weaknesses, and he is their 4th best player.
D’Antoni’s problems with Howard, Pau, and Hill didn’t actually revolve that much around how he utilized them; they revolved around the fact that he couldn’t get along with them.
J C says
I’d disagree with Scott’s intentions if he wanted to wait to foul. Nor was his team even trying to trap the ball-handler to force an errant pass or turnover.
If you’re losing you want to give yourself more time time to catch up. You may miss your game-tying shot attempt but get an offensive rebound so more time is better.
This was a case of an automatic foul instantly to extend the game if possible.
I disagree with the strategy employed or lack thereof.
rr says
However we are 1-2 in our last three and that is the percentage we have been winning for the past 1 1/2 years. So whichever Kobe you prefer is fine, just do not end your post with a harrumph and a statement about how the Lakers would win significantly more games if Kobe played a different game
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I agree with this to a large extent, in that the team simply does not have the talent to be a playoff team, regardless of how Kobe plays and what Scott does or does not do. They have no solid NBA starters on the roster. Kobe changing his game might mean nothing more than, as you said, that they go 30-52 instead of 25-57, which may end up hurting the organization in the long run. So the intense focus on Kobe and Scott is understandable but not especially useful.
That conceded, the team does in fact look better on O this way, and has been more competitive, so the 1-2 record doesn’t tell the full story. So, IMO we will need to see:
a) If Kobe keeps doing this for 10-15 games.
b) How opponents adjust to that
c) What the results are
Before we reach more conclusions.
But the big picture is still the big picture either way. As I said before, the only thing that it could perhaps affect long-term other than draft position is FAs, and that is probably a long reach.
the other Stephen says
@Joe Houston
It doesn’t seem fair to say Lin’s effort wavers from game to game, when his aggressiveness in trying to create opportunities for his teammates or get into the paint is pretty apparent each game. Lack of awareness on defense, maybe; added confusion over what he’s being asked to do by the coaches, yes. Ronnie Price hasn’t been anything approaching consistent himself, shooting 40% or below 8 out of 13 starts, and scoring below double digits 9 out of 13 times.
Archon says
At this point it’s hard to argue that the version of Kobe we have seen the past couple games isn’t a more effective player than the Kobe we saws the previous 30. Now given the overall talent of the team it might mean the Lakers only win a couple more games with this Kobe but what it should do is make the idea of high end talent coming to play alongside “Magic” Kobe much more appealing. Definitely more appealing then playing with high usage/low fg percentage Kobe.
You put this new version of Kobe, (an 18/7/7 guy) next to two high end players (not even superstars just very good players) and the Lakers are right back in business next year.
Aaron says
Coach Scott agrees with me… Kobe is helping the Lakers play too well not chucking up shots left and right
http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/story/_/id/12115240/los-angeles-lakers-coach-wants-more-shots-kobe-bryant
bryan S. says
Really fun game to watch. It’s a terrible thing when a loss might also be a win! Looking forward to R. Kelly getting his game legs as he is really suited to Scott’s offense. Jordan Hill’s slippage might be related to his name coming up in rumored deadline trades. . .
rr says
Coach Scott agrees with me… Kobe is helping the Lakers play too well not chucking up shots left and right
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Stealth tanking plans are a complex business.
Aaron says
rr,
That’s why we have Bryon to help Kobe get back to his old ways
tankyou says
Did Byron ever detail his logic in telling Lin to wait to foul?
@Robert, saying the 1-2 “post-rest” Kobe doesn’t make a difference has to be one of the worst stats you could use, in addition to the sample size being extremely small. First off, 2 more inches and Kobe drains that last shot and we are 2-1 in his return. It seem beyond obvious the team plays better when Kobe takes less shots and is an active assist guy. There is strong data from the fatigued Kobe games showing he averages nearly double the amount of assists (nearly 8 assists) during our wins this season.
Kobe’s recent play makes it much tougher on teams defensively, that can’t just overload on Kobe and let him shoot low % shots most of the night. Plus, Kobe seems to be saying that this way of playing will help save his body a bit more as well. So less fatigue is good, and Kobe fans should be really happy about that, Lakers fans as well. Doesn’t mean this Kobe makes us a playoff team, but we can be a feisty team that wins more than we did the first 30 games anyway.
Plus in terms of free agency if Kobe keeps stringing games like this together, guys will take notice and likely be more interested in signing here.
One final note, I really hope we retain some of these good role players, Ed Davis, Ellington, and Lin. We could end up having an amazing bench next year, I think we already have one of the best benches in the league–we just need better quality starters. Center and SF really need upgrades, especially on the defensive end. Moving Ed Davis to Power Forward all the time and having a real center would be nice. Glad Kelly is back, but man we have a so many PF’s already. Hopefully next year we will give Randle the starter role, even if his back-up has to split minutes until he gets experience under his belt.
Oldtimer says
That Memphis game should have been a W, wasting all the heroics of Lin, Price and Davis with a weak defense in the 3rd Q. Gasol and Udrih were defenseless, if we’ve Odom and Fish during their prime, those type of shots would never happen. Too easy with Lin and Booze, they just gave away whatever produced, referred as 50/50 players, good in offense and awful in defense.
I have not seen T. Black but based on what I read he is a better defender than Boozer and Hill. Gasol is not doing anything fantastic in fact, very awkward with his shot delivery, yet Lakers got no answer. That’s the game itself.
rr says
Did Byron ever detail his logic in telling Lin to wait to foul?
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It’s in the link.
BlizzardOfOz says
From the link, what Scott apparently said boggles the mind:
SCOTT: Just time, and I’m also looking at my timeouts. How many I have left. Can I save a few of those timeouts? With 20 seconds, you foul, we go down and score… or we miss. WE’ve got to foul again, so now we’ve got to call another timeout to get another play down. I try to weigh all of those things. I was down to, I think, my last two timeouts. I think I had two 20’s left.
Is that not a little, uh … alarming? Scott is apparently saying that he did not want to extend the game too much, because then he might run out of timeouts. First, that would mean that, instead of having the ball with no timeouts, the game would be over — and Scott is saying he would prefer the latter. Second, he had TWO timeouts left for the last 20 seconds. The result was that the Lakers had 0.6 seconds to get a final shot off, when a quicker foul might have given them a few more seconds.
I’m not sure how to explain that decision and that quote. Either Scott just screwed up and then made a horribly misguided attempt at CYA, or he is dumber than his worst critics have given him credit for. Or maybe, this could lend some credence to the stealth-tank theory.
Robert says
tankyou: Of course 3 games is a small sample size. However it is 3 games more than we had when everyone declared that “if” Kobe played this way, that we would win significantly more games : ) What is not a small sample is that over the past 1 1/2 years we win 1/3 of our games, with or without Kobe, with MD, with Byron, and of course we are 1-2 with the “new” Kobe : )
Aaron: When you originally credited the FO with a stealth tanking plan, I pointed out that they failed with the plan last year and that we would probably fail to execute it properly again this year. Sure enough as of this moment, we are “6th” to worst in the league. Not good. Jim is not a good GM and he evidently is not General Patton either.
rr: Pau – Watching him play the way he is just makes me cringe at how bad we were 2 years ago when we had Pau, DH, and a monster-pre injury Kobe. Somehow we only won 45 games that year which was the same we won in 2006. I know – ancient history, but Pau’s play is a current reminder.
Archon: “You put this new version of Kobe, (an 18/7/7 guy) next to two high end players ” Are you projecting years 21 + 22? I like it, but I have a feeling others may not.
dxmanners says
Couldn’t find ten minutes for Tarik BlacK? Might have won if you did, Byron…
Chearn says
Celestyus – good to have another person post their perspective. Hopefully, someone on the board can help you with those statistics.
Last night during the game, Kobe went to the locker room with the trainer numerous times. Whether or not that had any impact on how he played, the game is left to speculation. The first half of the game the Lakers play offensively and defensively with the last practice entrenched in their minds: However, by the third and fourth quarters the team resorts to bad habits acquired long before Scott was their leader. It’s not uncommon for bad teams to attain a lead in the first half only to lose a closely contested game in the second half.
No one appears to point to a pivotal time in the game when Hill received his sixth foul on a phantom call. Neither Hill nor Boozer was available down the stretch forcing the Lakers to play with players normally not on the floor to close out games.
Regarding Lin, no one disputes the fact that Lin plays hard the fact remains that he’s inconsistent. No excuses for Lin he’s been a starter or steady player off the bench since January 2012. He should, at this juncture, know how to play consistently in the NBA. Coaches require reliable, dependable, players to build a game plan.
rr says
Second, I was wondering if someone can look at Kobe stats (from 2002-2003 season) and compare them with Westbrook stats (this season) and please explain me the big discrepancy in PER (26.2 vs 32.48).
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I would say the biggest differences are AST and USG rates:
Kobe 03-27.2/32.9
Westbrook 15-49.4/41.2
41.2 is a stratospheric USG–higher than Kobe has ever had for a full season. Obviously with Durant back, Westbrook’s USG will drop.
So, what do the folks in Bucharest think of Jim Buss, Byron Scott, stealth tanking, and Kobe’s shot selection. 😉
tankyou says
@rr,
Enjoyed Kobe’s shot selection last game. IF Kobe could only drive to the hole like young Kobe things would be different. Kobe and Jordan both had plenty of games in their prime where their jumpers were off, but they were able to just relentlessly drive to the rim & dunk/score free throws. That part of Kobe’s game is one of the most noticeable aspect of his physical decline to me. It’s amazing how much Kobe can still impact a game with his jumping/explosiveness in steep decline.
I’m not a fan of stealth tanking, Byron Scott, or Jim Buss. But hey, that’s the hand we are dealt, so just hoping we win a few and have some great moments in another go nowhere season. At least we have a late 1st round pick from the Lin trade, and maybe we can salvage our teams rep this season enough to keep some good roleplayers, and sign some decent free agents (without breaking the bank please).
Aaron says
Robert,
I never said the FO was in any way “stealth tanking”. I have said all along they were just simply tankikg. If they were stealth tanking nobody would know it and most people even the half a brain Magic Johnson knows they are trying to lose… So if the FO was trying to be discrete about it they haven’t done a good job of keeping it under wraps.
KenOak says
Never thought I’d see the day where the Atlanta Hawks are the best team in the East and the Lakers are the worst team in the West. (well…second worst record wise.)
Quin says
I enjoyed Lin crossing over Mike Conley, lol. It was a good game for him. Little flub at the end didn’t really make or break anything. They would have had a few seconds more to dig themselves in a deeper hole with foul shots, as always happens in those situations where you don’t get a stop and then convert.
J C says
Condolences to the family of Stuart Scott.
Done too soon.
J C says
It’s intersting to note comments (including some of mine, previously) possibly from younger posters here that reference Magic’s current status as an opinionated retiree.
Those of us who have seen him play know he was nothing less than an icon, a pillar of Laker greatness and truly in the GOAT conversation.
Past glories are no guarantee of anything. Just ask Kareem. Magic’s comments which don’t always sound elevated or informed remind me that a reputation is always subject to update.
Aaron says
JC,
Magic was and is a very affable and engaging personality with a million watt smile. But the brains always belonged to Kareem. It just goes to show you in business it’s more about being liked than being smart… Which is why I don’t have any money.
Ko says
Your assuming the 2nd Aaron?
Kidding
Robert says
J C: Magic has been one of the most vocal critics of Jim Buss, and therefore he is in the running for the greatest Laker fan of all time.
Aaron: Stealth or Blatant, the bottom line is finishing “6th” worst is not a good thing.
Magic/Kareem: Without regard to who is more intelligent, the FO has made equal (meaning none) use of their support and services.
rr says
The focus on the Magic stuff is understandable, and I get that people who like Buss and MDA and don’t like Scott would be tired of it. That said:
1. The Lakers could, as Robert notes, bring Magic in to the operation a little more with a consultant title, presuming that the Dodgers agreed and that EJ wanted to. That might change these little things he says that bother some people. Ditto Kareem. They have AFAIK chosen not to do that. Also, along these lines: Jerry West has a position and ownership stake with the team that has the best record in basketball. That team is not the Lakers.
2. Focusing on Magic, Kobe, etc. just avoids the main issue, which is whether Buss and Kupchak can re-build the roster. Since the Veto, the Jim Buss FO has made a long series of decisions, some of which I supported, and some of which I didn’t. But these decisions have two things in common, which are that they mostly have not worked out very well, and that therefore requires supporters to constantly explain them while the team loses games. And as the losses mount, there are fewer people offering explanations. This season’s semi-tank is yet another example.
So, Jim Buss may actually be a really smart guy. But that doesn’t matter all that much. The NBA is full of smart guys. What matters us whether his decisions work and the team starts getting back on the path to winning. So far, that hasn’t happened.