duncan228
05-19-2010, 04:02 PM
Andrew Bynum Is Feeling Better, But How Much Do the Lakers Need Him? (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=tsn-andrewbynumisfeeling)
SportingNews
After two very successful series to start the playoffs, Lakers center Andrew Bynum has hit a bit of a snag. Near the end of the opening-round series against the Thunder, Bynum suffered a slight tear to his meniscus in his right knee, and while he did just fine during the Utah series averaging 12.5 points and 12 rebounds per game, he’s now having some difficulty.
Dave McMenamin of ESPN has an update on Bynum’s status (http://sports.espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/news/story?id=5199608&campaign=rss&source=NBAHeadlines):
"I feel fine," Bynum said a day after opening up the conference finals with four points and four rebounds in 19 minutes of play. "I just finished getting some treatment done on it, and [there’s] a lot less swelling."
The decrease in swelling is great news considering Bynum said the condition of his knee had worsened in the six days between the Utah and Phoenix series, but with his averages dipping to 3.3 points and 5.0 rebounds in his last three games, the Lakers are cautious to count on Bynum’s production increasing.
"I really have no idea," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said when asked how Bynum might respond in Game 2 on Wednesday. "We hope we can get him going again at halftime. I think sometimes the activation is good at the start of the game and the second half, he came out and I didn’t think had quite as much activity as we like him to have."
It would obviously help L.A. if Bynum is near his best—their imposing frontcourt is far from its best without him. Yet it’s not clear exactly how much they even need him in this series against the Suns.
The reason Bynum might not be necessary is that Lamar Odom matches up extremely well with the Suns. Lamar had a rough go of it against the Thunder and Jazz, but his defensive versatility is extremely important in closing out on Phoenix’s three-point shooters, especially Channing Frye. Offensively, he has the length and agility to frustrate the Suns’ defenders while not getting pushed around by their average-sized front line. Odom might not match his 19 points and 19 rebounds from Game 1 for the rest of this series, but he should perform with more consistency than he showed in the first two rounds.
The Lakers obviously want Bynum to improve as fast as he can. But their focus should be on making sure he’s right for a potential Finals appearance, because Odom should be able to handle the Suns just fine.
SportingNews
After two very successful series to start the playoffs, Lakers center Andrew Bynum has hit a bit of a snag. Near the end of the opening-round series against the Thunder, Bynum suffered a slight tear to his meniscus in his right knee, and while he did just fine during the Utah series averaging 12.5 points and 12 rebounds per game, he’s now having some difficulty.
Dave McMenamin of ESPN has an update on Bynum’s status (http://sports.espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/news/story?id=5199608&campaign=rss&source=NBAHeadlines):
"I feel fine," Bynum said a day after opening up the conference finals with four points and four rebounds in 19 minutes of play. "I just finished getting some treatment done on it, and [there’s] a lot less swelling."
The decrease in swelling is great news considering Bynum said the condition of his knee had worsened in the six days between the Utah and Phoenix series, but with his averages dipping to 3.3 points and 5.0 rebounds in his last three games, the Lakers are cautious to count on Bynum’s production increasing.
"I really have no idea," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said when asked how Bynum might respond in Game 2 on Wednesday. "We hope we can get him going again at halftime. I think sometimes the activation is good at the start of the game and the second half, he came out and I didn’t think had quite as much activity as we like him to have."
It would obviously help L.A. if Bynum is near his best—their imposing frontcourt is far from its best without him. Yet it’s not clear exactly how much they even need him in this series against the Suns.
The reason Bynum might not be necessary is that Lamar Odom matches up extremely well with the Suns. Lamar had a rough go of it against the Thunder and Jazz, but his defensive versatility is extremely important in closing out on Phoenix’s three-point shooters, especially Channing Frye. Offensively, he has the length and agility to frustrate the Suns’ defenders while not getting pushed around by their average-sized front line. Odom might not match his 19 points and 19 rebounds from Game 1 for the rest of this series, but he should perform with more consistency than he showed in the first two rounds.
The Lakers obviously want Bynum to improve as fast as he can. But their focus should be on making sure he’s right for a potential Finals appearance, because Odom should be able to handle the Suns just fine.