Lakers vs Nuggets (11/30/12)

Who is this Lakers' bench we're seeing?  I like this version ;)  They are playing with energy, confidence, and rhythm and the results speak for themselves.  Jodie Meeks shot 7/8 from 3 point land.  Antawn Jamison poured in 33 points (12 reb) with a flurry of 3's, layups, and his signature scoop shots.  The Lakers were up big throughout the game and win with a final score of 122-103.

Coach D'Antoni again adjusted the rotations by allowing more time for Antawn Jamison at the 4 with Dwight Howard at the 5 for better floor balance.  He also had Gasol manning the 5 (where he is more comfortable) with the second unit.  Both adjustments had great results as Jamison got great looks, and Pau facilitated the second unit offense to the tune of 8 assists.

Notables:

The Good:
- The Lakers made 17 three pointers tonight and tied a franchise record.  The kicker here is that the 17th three came from none other than Dwight Howard in the corner towards the end of regulation. LOL
-The Lakers kept Denver off of the offensive glass all night
-The ball movement was excellent, leading to many open shots without over passing
-High energy on defense all night.  Shots at the rim were constantly contested (when Dwight was in)

The Bad:
-No rim protection when Dwight sits (as he did tonight when he got cut above his eye).  Pau has got to contest more.  Even at the risk of fouling.  The tendonitis in his knees may be a factor here.
- Related to the first point, too many points in the paint tonight

The offense was flowing all night and the Lakers have proven they can play uptempo against uptempo teams.  The next step is imposing their will and playing uptempo against good defensive teams (see SAS and IND games for reference).

Lakers vs Pacers (11/27/12)

The Indiana Pacers are an elite defensive team, but not that elite.  The Lakers lose a low scoring battle tonight 77-79, and shot just 54% from the free throw line.  They left a lot of points at the charity stripe that could have gotten them the W.  The game was ugly all-around, but the Pacers managed to eek out the win on a last second dribble drive by George Hill.

Against good defensive teams it’s even more imperative that the Lakers execute their offense crisply.  That is a tough task with no true point guard available to orchestrate Mike D’Antoni’s offense. With Nash and Blake out, Kobe is essentially the only facilitator on the team.  He was under the weather for today’s game and it showed.  Before the game Bryant skipped warm-ups.  Instead he chose to lay out in front of the Lakers’ bench with towels covering his head.  He struggled to get his legs under him until late in the game, and turned the ball over 10 times.  As a result the Lakers struggled to get dribble penetration for easy buckets.  To compound matters their outside shots were not falling.  Any type of offensive structure was non-existent from start  to finish.

Notables:

The Good:

-Kobe gutted this out despite clearly being sick.  He played the most minutes of anyone on either team, and didn’t rest in the second half.  Enjoy him before he retires folks, he’s one of a kind.

-The team showed effort and did not quit.  This was true especially on the defensive end.

-The Lakers did a good job on the boards against the best rebounding team in the league

The Bad:

-Turnovers (Kobe being the biggest culprit, as the refs did not agree with him or the Staples’ Center crowd)

-Poor free throw shooting.  23/43 will NOT get it done

-Poor offensive flow due to little ball/player movement, no dribble penetration, missed open looks

-Terrible production from the bench

Even though it was ugly, I see this as a throw away game.  Because Kobe was sick it was a huge disruption to the Lakers offense since Indiana actually plays defense.  And we already know this team has a slim chance if the Mamba isn’t 100%.  Let’s hope he’s better by Friday’s contest.

Lakers @ Mavericks (11/24/12)

The Lakers took out all of their frustration on the Dallas Mavericks tonight. They won a blowout in Dallas with a final score of 115-89. It was the second of a back-to-back and their 4th game in 5 nights, but it didn't matter. From the onset they were aggressive offensively and defensively. Metta World Peace had 16 points in the 1st quarter, and started 5/5 from the floor. Dwight Howard was huge defensively. He blocked shots and altered many more. Antawn Jamison continued his stellar play from last night by recording a double double in the first half.

Coach D'Antoni made a huge adjustment that may go unnoticed in this game. He simply made more substitutions to keep the Lakers' legs fresh. Despite the numbers suggesting otherwise, the Lakers' bench is not that bad when used correctly. They have several players who can play when given consistent minutes and defined roles.

The Lakers jumped out big early and never looked back.

Notables:

The Good:
-Great aggressive D and excellent rotations
-The offense was just as aggressive and the Lakers owned points in the paint when the game was in contention
-Not very many second chance points allowed
-Lakers gave several second efforts by diving for loose balls

The Bad:
-Still more turnovers then you'd like to see

Overall it was a great effort from all of the Lakers' players. It was nice to see both Pau and Dwight have aggressive bounce back games.

Lakers @ Grizzlies (11/23/12)

The road has not been kind to the Lakers as they drop tonight's game 98-106 at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies.  It was the first of the Lakers' second back-to-back on the current road trip.  Surprisingly the Lakers' bench played well, but their starting front court did not.  Early in the 2nd quarter and midway through the 4th the Lakers' bench brought the team back from double digit deficits. The starters could never close the deal.

Sub par games from Pau, Dwight, and even Kobe will not get it done on most nights.  They played well in spurts, but there was no consistency offensively.  They need Steve Nash back in the worst way.  Unless Kobe is playing the facilitator role while Nash is out, the team has no direction on offense.  Coach D'Antoni experimented with lineups at one point even running Duhon and Morris in the back court simultaneously.  The Lakers have to find a better way to use the bigs than they have over the past 2 games.

Notables:

The Good:
- Bench play. Especially Antawn Jamison who finally had a breakout game.
- 3 point shooting (44%)

The Bad:
-Poor effort and execution from Pau (He's got to step it up and get on the block, or he will be on the trade block unfortunately)
-The Lakers failed to get good low post looks.  The post plays look too simple.  No weak-to-strong actions
-Too many second chance points allowed
-Too many turnovers again

Overall this was a poor effort from the Lakers' starters.  They should have lost by more with the way they played.  They must figure out how to use everyone effectively until Nash returns.  Perhaps Pau off the bench?  Either way, they'll get another shot at it tomorrow.

Lakers @ Kings (11/21/12)

It's tough for me to catch Wednesday night games as I attend a college group at church.  Luckily I can provide a link to another great site to go to for game reviews.  See below for DancingBarry's review over at Lakersground:

DancingBarry's Thoughts and Smiley Ratings

Fatigue, turnovers, and defense seem to be the culprit in this loss.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  Lakers have a tough game on the road tomorrow at Memphis.

Lakers Highlights and Twitter features added...

Links have been added to Lakers highlights in the upper-right corner of the blog.  Usually takes 1 hour or 2 after the game for the latest highlights to be added.  These are super helpful if you missed the game or want to see a play again.

Also added the twitter feed of the Lakers' reporter Mike Trudell.  He's got all the goods on the team.

Enjoy!

Lakers vs Nets (11/20/12)

Tonight the Lakers win a nail biter at home against the new-look Brooklyn Nets. The final score was 95-90 as the Lakers' poor free throw shooting made the game much closer than it should have been. The Lakers defense held the line in the 4th, and they were able to hold the Nets to just 17 points in the final quarter. It was their first game with Coach D'Antoni on the sidelines. It wasn't a pretty game at the end, but the fans can't help but be happy with the W.

We saw more of Kobe in the facilitator role for 3 quarters. However in the first quarter he was in attack mode shooting 100% on his first 5 shots. Look for Kobe to return to attack mode full time when Nash comes back. That's when this team will be even more scary.

The Lakers are 5-1 in their last 6 games. The Lakers also proved they can win in the Hack-a-Dwight scenario. An important confidence builder for this team.


Notables:

The Good:
-The offense continued to develop, and the Lakers did a better job limiting turnovers
- Defense was solid throughout the 4th
- Three headed monster of Dwight, Pau, and Kobe played well. Metta was also solid, especially defensively

The Bad:
- Free throw shooting was atrocious tonight, and it wasn't just Dwight.
The team shot 19/37. That won't get it done on most nights.
- The Lakers didn't do the best job of keeping the Nets off of the offensive glass. They weren't terrible but it wasn't a strength tonight.
- Poor bench production

Overall, this is a quality close-win against a much improved Brooklyn team. It should do wonders for the Lakers' confidence going forward.