DarrinS
05-28-2008, 08:14 AM
Lakers
Kobe Bryant was more of a shot-taker-and-maker than a playmaker — 14-for-29, 10 rebounds, only one assist, and 28 points. He made some boneheaded plays, occasionally over-handled, but also hit several huge buckets. Indeed, Kobe has raised his own bar so high that anything less than total dominance seems to be disappointing. Oh, well, such is the price of greatness.
By the way, Kobe also took a few turns in defense of Manu Ginobili and held him scoreless.
Derek Fisher dropped several key shots — 4-for-7, 9 points — and played his usual stout defense. Where would this team be without him?
Vlade Radmanovic continued to play with a quiet kind of excellence — 5-for-8, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, one steal and 11 points. Moreover, his size, strength and diligent defense were crucial factors in shutting down Ginobili.
Lamar Odom was in a funk until the end-game, when he blew past the slow-footed Fabricio Oberto for a critical 3-point play. In all, Odom registered 4-for-9, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, only a single turnover, and 16 points. He was certainly more aggressive than he'd been in Game 3, and, once again, his number was called on the Lakers' initial possession.
Pau Gasol was much more aggressive in his own relatively gentle and reactive fashion — 4-for-7, 10 rebounds, a team-high 6 assists, and 10 points. And it was Gasol's clever pass-work that was his most vital contribution.
Luke Walton forced several passes and shots, but ended up making amends with his hustle — 4-for-10, 5 rebounds, 3 turnovers, 9 points.
Sasha Vujacic played like he was rushing to catch the last train home, and Jordan Farmar ran fast, played hard, but produced little.
For all the glitter that (rightly) surrounds Kobe's accomplishments, the game was won with speed, quickness and hustle — all of which contributed greatly to the Lakers' superb effort on both window panes. Overall, they out-rebounded San Antonio by 46-to-36. But their most significant margin was their 13-6 edge in offensive rebounds — which contributed to the Lakers taking 11 more shots than the Spurs.
However, should the Lakers take their collective foot off the accelerator and their eyes off the road in Game 5, the Spurs could still provide a formidable road-block.
Spurs
Ginobili was hounded by a variety of defenders and double-teaming schemes, and had another bummer of a game — 2-for-8, 6 assists, 2 turnovers, only 7 points. The Lakers successfully pushed him right, crowded his penetrations, and forced him to expend lots of energy on defense. In fact, Ginobili was posted (and posterized) several times — and as bad as his offense was, his defense was even worse.
Tim Duncan had nice numbers — 10-for-26, 17 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks, 29 points. But he also missed a not-so-grand total of 7 layups! And, although the Lakers frequently doubled him — usually with the player guarding the cut-through player who had made the entry pass — Duncan had several opportunities to go at Pau Gasol 1-on-1. Trouble was that too often he failed to get into Gasol's body as a way to limit the extension of Gasol's long arms. As a result, Duncan was rarely able to get off a shot without a bothersome challenge by Gasol.
Tony Parker played with his usual brilliance — 8-for-17, 9 assists, only one turnover, and 23 points. On one sequence, Parker's tricky jukes and cross-overs literally faked Sasha Vujacic to the floor.
Bruce Bowen had an excellent effort — 3-for-6, 7 points. And since Bowen's job is to play defense, here's what happened when he went head-to-head with Kobe Bryant: Counting ball-denials, turnovers induced, passes made by Kobe that gained no advantage, and missed shots, Bowen's score was 17. Counting made baskets, fouls drawn, and assist-passes, Kobe's score was 10. In other words, Bowen's performance was not why the Spurs lost, and Kobe's mano-a-mano battle with Bowen was not the main reason why the Lakers won.
Robert Horry, Ime Udoka and Michael Finley did nothing and scored nothing.
The most heroic achievements were obviously those of Brent Barry — 7-for14, including 5-of-12 from downtown, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 23 points. An incredibly clutch game from a totally unexpected source.
Overall, the Spurs were simply out-quicked by the Lakers' young legs.
Not to belabor a point I've made several times already (nah, I'll go ahead and belabor it anyway), the Spurs win when they shoot well from the perimeter and lose when they don't. After shooting 24-for-50 on their jumpers in Game 3, they were only 10-for-34 on Js from 15 feet and beyond in Game 4. The prosecution rests.
In the end, the Spurs were a shot short (a trey-attempt by Ginobili, and one by Barry), a rebound short (the defensive carom that Horry failed to secure), and a call short (Fisher's climactic foul on Barry that was ignored),
Still, the old bromide rings true: Never underestimate the heart of a champion. The Spurs don't have to win three games in a row. They just have to win Thursday night in L.A. — a feat that's absolutely within the realm of both possibility and probability.
Kobe Bryant was more of a shot-taker-and-maker than a playmaker — 14-for-29, 10 rebounds, only one assist, and 28 points. He made some boneheaded plays, occasionally over-handled, but also hit several huge buckets. Indeed, Kobe has raised his own bar so high that anything less than total dominance seems to be disappointing. Oh, well, such is the price of greatness.
By the way, Kobe also took a few turns in defense of Manu Ginobili and held him scoreless.
Derek Fisher dropped several key shots — 4-for-7, 9 points — and played his usual stout defense. Where would this team be without him?
Vlade Radmanovic continued to play with a quiet kind of excellence — 5-for-8, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, one steal and 11 points. Moreover, his size, strength and diligent defense were crucial factors in shutting down Ginobili.
Lamar Odom was in a funk until the end-game, when he blew past the slow-footed Fabricio Oberto for a critical 3-point play. In all, Odom registered 4-for-9, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, only a single turnover, and 16 points. He was certainly more aggressive than he'd been in Game 3, and, once again, his number was called on the Lakers' initial possession.
Pau Gasol was much more aggressive in his own relatively gentle and reactive fashion — 4-for-7, 10 rebounds, a team-high 6 assists, and 10 points. And it was Gasol's clever pass-work that was his most vital contribution.
Luke Walton forced several passes and shots, but ended up making amends with his hustle — 4-for-10, 5 rebounds, 3 turnovers, 9 points.
Sasha Vujacic played like he was rushing to catch the last train home, and Jordan Farmar ran fast, played hard, but produced little.
For all the glitter that (rightly) surrounds Kobe's accomplishments, the game was won with speed, quickness and hustle — all of which contributed greatly to the Lakers' superb effort on both window panes. Overall, they out-rebounded San Antonio by 46-to-36. But their most significant margin was their 13-6 edge in offensive rebounds — which contributed to the Lakers taking 11 more shots than the Spurs.
However, should the Lakers take their collective foot off the accelerator and their eyes off the road in Game 5, the Spurs could still provide a formidable road-block.
Spurs
Ginobili was hounded by a variety of defenders and double-teaming schemes, and had another bummer of a game — 2-for-8, 6 assists, 2 turnovers, only 7 points. The Lakers successfully pushed him right, crowded his penetrations, and forced him to expend lots of energy on defense. In fact, Ginobili was posted (and posterized) several times — and as bad as his offense was, his defense was even worse.
Tim Duncan had nice numbers — 10-for-26, 17 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks, 29 points. But he also missed a not-so-grand total of 7 layups! And, although the Lakers frequently doubled him — usually with the player guarding the cut-through player who had made the entry pass — Duncan had several opportunities to go at Pau Gasol 1-on-1. Trouble was that too often he failed to get into Gasol's body as a way to limit the extension of Gasol's long arms. As a result, Duncan was rarely able to get off a shot without a bothersome challenge by Gasol.
Tony Parker played with his usual brilliance — 8-for-17, 9 assists, only one turnover, and 23 points. On one sequence, Parker's tricky jukes and cross-overs literally faked Sasha Vujacic to the floor.
Bruce Bowen had an excellent effort — 3-for-6, 7 points. And since Bowen's job is to play defense, here's what happened when he went head-to-head with Kobe Bryant: Counting ball-denials, turnovers induced, passes made by Kobe that gained no advantage, and missed shots, Bowen's score was 17. Counting made baskets, fouls drawn, and assist-passes, Kobe's score was 10. In other words, Bowen's performance was not why the Spurs lost, and Kobe's mano-a-mano battle with Bowen was not the main reason why the Lakers won.
Robert Horry, Ime Udoka and Michael Finley did nothing and scored nothing.
The most heroic achievements were obviously those of Brent Barry — 7-for14, including 5-of-12 from downtown, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 23 points. An incredibly clutch game from a totally unexpected source.
Overall, the Spurs were simply out-quicked by the Lakers' young legs.
Not to belabor a point I've made several times already (nah, I'll go ahead and belabor it anyway), the Spurs win when they shoot well from the perimeter and lose when they don't. After shooting 24-for-50 on their jumpers in Game 3, they were only 10-for-34 on Js from 15 feet and beyond in Game 4. The prosecution rests.
In the end, the Spurs were a shot short (a trey-attempt by Ginobili, and one by Barry), a rebound short (the defensive carom that Horry failed to secure), and a call short (Fisher's climactic foul on Barry that was ignored),
Still, the old bromide rings true: Never underestimate the heart of a champion. The Spurs don't have to win three games in a row. They just have to win Thursday night in L.A. — a feat that's absolutely within the realm of both possibility and probability.