NateL
05-20-2008, 02:57 PM
Copied from MSNBC/NBC Sports -- Click Here (http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/24728021/)
Kobe, Lakers can expect ambush in Texas
By Mark Whicker
The Orange County Register
Welcome to defense.
Welcome to Bruce Bowen, and his assortment of quick feet, slappy hands, brass knuckles and foreign objects.
Welcome to Tim Duncan, who, over the course of seven games, spreads across the paint like one of those frowning trees in Oz.
Welcome to Fabricio Oberto and Ime Udoka, who are not guest musicians on "Morning Becomes Electic" but who uphold San Antonio's rich tradition of obstruction.
The Spurs are coming, fueled by their Game 7 victory in New Orleans, in which they endured Chris Paul and David West and made everyone else shoot 37.7 percent.
They gave the Hornets just 82 points, on a New Orleans floor, and they finally barred Paul from the lane when it mattered.
Yes, it took the Spurs a while, took them three consecutive road wipeouts and an 0-2 series deficit to figure it out.
Hey, they're old. You don't always remember where you left your playbook.
But the Spurs and Lakers tee it up Wednesday in the Western Finals, and the Lakers might as well freeze-frame the final open shot they got against Utah. They won't see another for a while.
Bowen will be around to hassle Bryant, a role he only defines by the final score. In the 2003 conference semifinals, when San Antonio denied L.A. its fourth consecutive ring, Bryant averaged 32.3 points but also shot 43.4 percent, including a 16 for 38.
The next year, when Derek Fisher became Mr. Oh-Point-Four, Bryant averaged 26.3 points but shot 46.2 percent, and the Lakers won four consecutive games after they lost Games 1 and 2 by 10 points apiece.
The difference now is that Bryant is rarely baited into Pop-A-Shot displays. But at some point the Lakers will move all the furniture to the side of the room and let Bryant monopolize, and that is where Bowen will begin to earn his boos.
This time Bowen can be even more aggressive, which is not often said about human wolverines, because there's a mini-Bruce named Udoka to relieve him during times of foul trouble.
Udoka was a solid but unnoticed defender in Portland. Before that he played in the D-League, Europe and for three different colleges, winding up with Portland State. He and Bowen know all about hotels without lobbies. They also know they have been through too much to fear anything Bryant can deal them.
It is extremely hard to imagine Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom continuing to frolic against Duncan and the hulking Oberto, a teammate of Ginobili's on Argentina's 2004 gold medalists. Behind them, Kurt Thomas brings a baleful glare and 72 games of playoff experience, and a pretty good jump shot, too.
Ginobili shot just 21 fewer free throws than Duncan this season and led the Spurs with 19.5 points per game — in just 31.1 minutes per game. Expand the stats to 48 minutes and Ginobili ranks ninth in NBA scoring. He also shot 40 percent from the 3-point line and will likely hang some fouls on Gasol and Odom as he crashes the lane. Parker will contribute to that project as well.
Duncan? He looks beleaguered at times, especially when double-teamed, and Odom will give him a nightly fit there. On certain nights, Duncan sees the doublers coming and makes the correct pass. On other nights he doesn't. He also inspires no confidence on the foul line.
All of which is pretty harsh treatment of the dominant NBA player in this decade, if you believe what the jewelry says, and perhaps the final player to spend four years in college and then rule the pros.
Who is Tim Duncan? The guy who made his only 3-pointer of the season at the end of Game 1 against Phoenix, to send a game into double overtime that San Antonio would win, and who also scored 40 that day, a season high.
When Memphis traded Gasol to the Lakers, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said the deal was "beyond comprehension" and said it would have been rejected "by a committee that vetoes trades that make no sense."
The twinkle in his eye was more telling than the printed quote; sure, Popovich wasn't happy to have Gasol in his way, but his Spurs have weathered more clouds than Lewis & Clark in going 4-0 in NBA Finals.
No one will be shocked if the Lakers win. But the Spurs will be far less shocked by the competition level than the Lakers will. They're 2-0 in elimination games already, and their Game 3 against the Hornets might as well have been.
The Lakers have scored at least 110 points in half of their playoff games. That goes out the window of the Alamo, which, of course, has no back door.
A terrific L.A. season also sprawls in Texas dust and heat, at the end of Game 6.
Kobe, Lakers can expect ambush in Texas
By Mark Whicker
The Orange County Register
Welcome to defense.
Welcome to Bruce Bowen, and his assortment of quick feet, slappy hands, brass knuckles and foreign objects.
Welcome to Tim Duncan, who, over the course of seven games, spreads across the paint like one of those frowning trees in Oz.
Welcome to Fabricio Oberto and Ime Udoka, who are not guest musicians on "Morning Becomes Electic" but who uphold San Antonio's rich tradition of obstruction.
The Spurs are coming, fueled by their Game 7 victory in New Orleans, in which they endured Chris Paul and David West and made everyone else shoot 37.7 percent.
They gave the Hornets just 82 points, on a New Orleans floor, and they finally barred Paul from the lane when it mattered.
Yes, it took the Spurs a while, took them three consecutive road wipeouts and an 0-2 series deficit to figure it out.
Hey, they're old. You don't always remember where you left your playbook.
But the Spurs and Lakers tee it up Wednesday in the Western Finals, and the Lakers might as well freeze-frame the final open shot they got against Utah. They won't see another for a while.
Bowen will be around to hassle Bryant, a role he only defines by the final score. In the 2003 conference semifinals, when San Antonio denied L.A. its fourth consecutive ring, Bryant averaged 32.3 points but also shot 43.4 percent, including a 16 for 38.
The next year, when Derek Fisher became Mr. Oh-Point-Four, Bryant averaged 26.3 points but shot 46.2 percent, and the Lakers won four consecutive games after they lost Games 1 and 2 by 10 points apiece.
The difference now is that Bryant is rarely baited into Pop-A-Shot displays. But at some point the Lakers will move all the furniture to the side of the room and let Bryant monopolize, and that is where Bowen will begin to earn his boos.
This time Bowen can be even more aggressive, which is not often said about human wolverines, because there's a mini-Bruce named Udoka to relieve him during times of foul trouble.
Udoka was a solid but unnoticed defender in Portland. Before that he played in the D-League, Europe and for three different colleges, winding up with Portland State. He and Bowen know all about hotels without lobbies. They also know they have been through too much to fear anything Bryant can deal them.
It is extremely hard to imagine Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom continuing to frolic against Duncan and the hulking Oberto, a teammate of Ginobili's on Argentina's 2004 gold medalists. Behind them, Kurt Thomas brings a baleful glare and 72 games of playoff experience, and a pretty good jump shot, too.
Ginobili shot just 21 fewer free throws than Duncan this season and led the Spurs with 19.5 points per game — in just 31.1 minutes per game. Expand the stats to 48 minutes and Ginobili ranks ninth in NBA scoring. He also shot 40 percent from the 3-point line and will likely hang some fouls on Gasol and Odom as he crashes the lane. Parker will contribute to that project as well.
Duncan? He looks beleaguered at times, especially when double-teamed, and Odom will give him a nightly fit there. On certain nights, Duncan sees the doublers coming and makes the correct pass. On other nights he doesn't. He also inspires no confidence on the foul line.
All of which is pretty harsh treatment of the dominant NBA player in this decade, if you believe what the jewelry says, and perhaps the final player to spend four years in college and then rule the pros.
Who is Tim Duncan? The guy who made his only 3-pointer of the season at the end of Game 1 against Phoenix, to send a game into double overtime that San Antonio would win, and who also scored 40 that day, a season high.
When Memphis traded Gasol to the Lakers, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said the deal was "beyond comprehension" and said it would have been rejected "by a committee that vetoes trades that make no sense."
The twinkle in his eye was more telling than the printed quote; sure, Popovich wasn't happy to have Gasol in his way, but his Spurs have weathered more clouds than Lewis & Clark in going 4-0 in NBA Finals.
No one will be shocked if the Lakers win. But the Spurs will be far less shocked by the competition level than the Lakers will. They're 2-0 in elimination games already, and their Game 3 against the Hornets might as well have been.
The Lakers have scored at least 110 points in half of their playoff games. That goes out the window of the Alamo, which, of course, has no back door.
A terrific L.A. season also sprawls in Texas dust and heat, at the end of Game 6.