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plaschke is a dumb got
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-...5741780.column
The last people in the world Lakers wanted to see
Bill Plaschke
Los Angeles Times
The Spurs are the one team that appears capable of denying the Lakers their date with destiny in the NBA Finals. And don't the Lakers know it.
By now, you've surely read about our happy Lakers family enjoying dinner together while watching the seventh game of the other Western Conference semifinal Monday night.
What you didn't read was any mention of cheering.
That's because, I'm guessing, there wasn't any.
The wrong team won, and they know it.
The bad guys are here, and they hate it.
In the San Antonio Spurs, the Lakers are playing the only Western Conference team they privately feel is capable of beating them in a seven-game series.
This doesn't mean the Spurs will necessarily win the Western Conference finals beginning tonight at Staples Center.
But they can.
As eerie as a Tim Duncan stare, they have been hovering out there all spring as the Lakers' ultimate measuring stick.
As pesky as a Manu Ginobili flop, they have been the challenge the Lakers figured they eventually would have to face, but quietly hoped they wouldn't.
Lamar Odom shook his head.
"To beat them, you have to play perfect basketball," he said.
Kobe Bryant shook his head.
"You've got to beat them . . . they're so seasoned, they're not going to beat themselves," he said.
Derek Fisher shook his head.
For longer than four-tenths of a second.
"These guys have established themselves as the consistent power in our league," he said. "It's going to be a challenge for us."
This talk would all be just gamesmanship, except the Lakers have been saying it for a couple of months, ever since they realized they would probably make the playoffs and be in this position.
Anybody but San Antonio.
Any coach but Pop.
Any point but Parker.
Any bench but one containing Big Shot Bob.
Only the Spurs, it seems, are completely unafraid to play under the lights of Hollywood.
Heck, Tony Parker married the lights of Hollywood.
In the 1999 conference semifinals, the Spurs completed a sweep of the Lakers at the Forum.
In the 2003 conference semifinals, the Spurs finished off the Lakers at Staples Center.
Plus, these Spurs have already won a Game 7 on the road against New Orleans, and a brilliant Game 3 on the road against Phoenix.
When Bryant was asked if he felt sorry for the Spurs after they were forced to sleep on their broken-down plane Monday night, his short answer spoke of his deep respect.
"No."
Only the Spurs, too, are completely unafraid to play Bryant.
He'll score his points against them, but they will be tough points, painful points. The Spurs will shove him, scheme him, tie him up in Bowens.
And if all else fails, old friend Robert Horry will simply hip-check him into the press table.
"We have had our battles, we've had some good classic confrontations," Bryant said.
Finally, most importantly, only the Spurs are completely unafraid of the last five minutes.
No team in basketball is better during that time, the veteran teammates knowing exactly where they are supposed to be, doing exactly what they are supposed to do.
"When they got up about nine points against the Hornets in that Game 7, I knew the Spurs would not let it up, even when it got close," Odom said. "When it counts, they know exactly what they are doing. They are a machine."
In games decided by fewer than 10 points in this postseason, the Spurs are 4-0, while the Lakers are 3-2, giving the Lakers one of several mandates.
Don't let the Spurs stay close. Don't let their guards get good looks. Don't let Duncan feel young. Don't let Horry anywhere near the three-point line with the game on the line.
While all the talk this postseason has been about the "Big Three" in Boston or L.A., Bryant noted that the Spurs have a different sort of big three.
"Tempo, tenacity, execution," he said.
The only unknown here, as usual this spring, is Pau Gasol.
He played once for the Lakers against the Spurs, and scored 14 points with 11 rebounds, but that was late in the season when the Spurs were short-handed and not paying much attention.
Bryant already knows how Gasol will change things.
"In the past, when we've played them, I'd have the ball on the wing and they'd just be standing on the block," Bryant said, noting that Duncan would camp inside to keep him from driving. "Now we have somebody down there who can catch and deliver."
But, in the next breath, Bryant sighed.
"But they're so good, I'm sure they'll make the adjustments," he said.
OK, so, facing the defending NBA champs and the only team that has won more les in the last nine years, it's going to take the Lakers a while to find their swagger.
"This is the matchup everyone wanted to see," Odom said, shrugging.
Well, not everyone.
plaschke is a dumb got
Plaschke, give me a friggin' break!
Enough with the en speculations. We'll know soon enough.
One of the millions of dumb gots in L.A.
It's a good piece and I think it reflects the way that most fans will view this series. The Lakers are probably the favorites and rightly so, but the Spurs, at this stage of the game, are measured by things other than regular season records and playoff seeding.
The Lakers understand, it seems, that what makes the Spurs so good isn't overwhelming talent but an incredible commitment to team and focus on the task at hand.
The Lakers didn't see that sort of commitment from the uber-talented Nuggets in Round 1 and they didn't see that kind of focus from the usually tough-minded Jazz in Round 2.
It's the fact that the Spurs bring those intangibles to the table that gives them a chance to beat LA -- the best chance to date in these playoffs, I'd argue.
There's a lot of respect going around and I think that's all fairly genuine at this point.
Even Philip has been remarkably complimentary of the Spurs in his missives leading up to Game 1. . . .
Good analysis!!!
I read that column this morning....Plaschke.....aka Mr. Bandwagoner!!
You are my favorite poster.
+1
I don't think the Lakers on-court chemistry has really been tested to this point.
We'll fix that for them.
This series looks to be amazing, and the other one out East could go 7 games as well.
Does anyone remember when Jim Rome called Phil Jackson "berry picker" a few years back? Rome may have been quoting someone when he talked about Jackson hanging out Montana picking berries.
I love that nickname: Berry Picker
It's funny how one possible NBA final is the one everybody dreams about, and another one is the one everybody has nightmares about.
All four teams have a genuine shot though, only time will tell.
Unless he's sucking off the Lakers, right?
its a great article, no faults in it at all.
I think its very reflective of the collective mindsets of any intelligent Laker or Laker fan.
Hopefully its a series for the ages, and even more so, lets get the win and be one step closer to the repeat.
why the knee-jerk hate for the article? I thought it was well done...
Next headline: "Lakers Sobered by Task Ahead Against Champs, Idiot Fans and Journalists Have No Idea Why."
Another good, enjoyable article, imo. It's both a good and bad sign that the Lakers are taking the Spurs seriously, good because they deserve and should command that level of respect and bad because it means they won't be y and underestimate the Spurs.
Somehow I foresee this series like the one in 2001, where the Lakers stomped the Spurs in every facet of the game.
Somehow I foresee you being wrong... AGAIN
but keep posting, you are a good luck charm to us
You can only hope for a jinx but not in this series.
Somehow I foresee you being a complete and total -nozzle.
By the way, how are the Suns doing? That's right, they got
Thanks for playing.
It's gonna be a good series...Spurs in 6...
Dude, where did you find that? That's awful.Somehow I foresee you being a complete and total -nozzle.
By the way, how are the Suns doing? That's right, they got
Thanks for playing.
Admit it, you laughed.
To answer your question, here.
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