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Sorry Ghazi.“Dallas never won another game,” Van Gundy said. “You know, series can change.”
Los Angeles at Orlando Preview
Game info: 9:00 pm EDT Tue Jun 9, 2009
TV: ABC, TSN
By Antonio Gonzalez
Kobe Bryant has changed his look.
Gone is the teeth-baring, nose-flaring, eyes-on-the-prize scowl that the Los Angeles Lakers star showed again and again in Game 1 of the NBA finals. The intensity diminished after Game 2, his expression morphing into one of relief and sheer luck.
A botched layup by Magic rookie Courtney Lee is perhaps the biggest reason why these finals are not tied and why Bryant isn’t smiling even with his team up 2-0. That level of seriousness might be cause for Orlando to grimace.
The Magic nearly returned from Los Angeles with the best-of-seven series tied. Instead, they’re down 2-0, and now Bryant has a promise for Game 3 on Tuesday night.
“We’re about to kick it up,” he said. “You’d better believe it. We’re close. You see what I’m saying? This is the finals. We’re going to be ready to go.”
For all the bravado, the Lakers can be careless, a team with holes and an inability to finish off an opponent as a champion must. They let Houston extend a series despite the absence of Yao Ming. Denver outmuscled and outhustled a Lakers team that seemed to lose its enthusiasm until Game 6 of the conference finals.
Los Angeles believes those days are over.
“We’re playing tougher,” forward Pau Gasol said. “We understand what it takes to go get the championship.”
This is a franchise closing in on its 15th le. It is facing Magic team still searching for its first finals victory. Bryants insists this is no time to get comfortable.
“What’s there to be happy about?” he asked. “The job’s not finished.”
The Magic have had their shots—one in particular—to change the series.
Lee missed a wide-open, alley-oop layup that would have won Game 2 at the fourth-quarter buzzer Sunday night. It was another chapter in a long history of Magic misery, one that now has them 0-6 in finals games.
Call it the “alley-oops.” This mistake, however, might hurt the most.
Orlando has been able to come back from seemingly every heartbreak this season—injuries, four last-second losses in the playoffs and series deficits in two rounds. But this could be too tough a challenge. Only three teams have won a le after losing the first two games in the finals, most recently Miami over Dallas in 2006.
“We’ve just got to go home and take care of business,” Magic center Dwight Howard said. “The Lakers did a good job of protecting their home, and now it’s our turn to do the same thing. We’ve been in some tough situations. We’ve just got to fight our way out.”
Magic coach Stan Van Gundy led the Heat to start that 2005-06 season before stepping aside. He was still on the Heat payroll helping Pat Riley from afar.
“Dallas never won another game,” Van Gundy said. “You know, series can change.”
The Magic would need quite a turnaround. Their backcourt has been dreadful. Rafer Alston and Jameer Nelson, who returned for the finals after being out since early February because of shoulder surgery, were so inconsistent that Van Gundy benched them for most of the fourth quarter to have 6-foot-10 forward Hedo Turkoglu run the point.
The Magic had 20 turnovers, just 22 assists and no true ballhandler to make the Lakers pay for double-teaming Howard. With Nelson coming off the bench in place of reliable reserve Anthony Johnson and Alston having already said he wasn’t pleased with his minutes in Game 1, Van Gundy might face another dilemma.
“We were just trying to see if we could get somebody out there who would make shots off of the double teams and off the pick-and-rolls and things like that,” Van Gundy said. “I thought our guys fought hard, but we couldn’t make enough plays. And the 20 turnovers crushed us.”
The Lakers know the Magic, too, could change in a moment.
One of the streakiest teams in the league all season, Orlando has shot well at home. It plays with a carefree at ude, and Bryant says that’s reason to be wary.
“This is a very loosey-goosey team we’re playing against,” he said. “You seen some of the shots they hit. Those are tough shots—supposed to be tough shots. For them it’s like shooting fish in a barrel. They’re just thinking about Game 3, and so are we.”
Sorry Ghazi.“Dallas never won another game,” Van Gundy said. “You know, series can change.”
Here is NBA.com's look ahead video to game 3, for anyone interested.
Orlando is going to be pumped as at home, and the L.A. supporting cast will dissapear like they always do on the road. Magic SWEEP all 3 games at home, and close it out in Game 6 in L.A. Yeah I said it...
Here's where I say "You wanna bet on that?," after which you backtrack on your prediction.
Bet what?
Lakers' engine is purring heading to Orlando
by Greg Heakes
Kobe Bryant couldn't repeat his 40-point performance of game one, but then he didn't have to as he got all the help he needed from a balanced attack in game two of the NBA finals.
Bryant had 29 points, eight assists to go with seven turnovers as the Lakers survived a scare in game two of the best-of-seven series for a 101-96 triumph and a 2-0 lead.
By his own admission, Bryant said he didn't play well and could have done a better job of figuring out the Magic's game plan.
"I didn't read the coverages well but we still managed to win the game," Bryant said. "It is up to me to make those adjustments. It is like when the quarterback throws an interception once in a while."
Lakers coach Phil Jackson said the Magic did a better job of guarding Bryant and preventing him from getting to the basket.
"I didn't think Kobe had a good game at all as far as his standards go," Jackson said. "They double-teammed him and they trapped him. They came on all his drives and we didn't adjust to it immediately.
"We were able to find other guys that did things for us. Lamar (Odom) had an outstanding game, Pau (Gasol) was there again."
Gasol and Odom combined to shoot 15-of-23 from the field for the Lakers, registering 24 and 19 points. Four Lakers hit double figures as they forced Orlando into 20 turnovers and matched Orlando's normally potent three-point attack (33.3 percent).
"I don't think we had a drop off, our engine was higher," Bryant said of game two. "We have a great coach and we made great adjustments."
Asked if they got lucky, Bryant said, "I don't think we dodged a bullet. I think they (Orlando) played well enough to win. They bounced back like we knew they would."
Bryant said his teammates have done everything he has asked of them.
"We did our job defending home court," Bryant said. "The last two series we didn't do that. We put ourselves in jeopardy having to go on the road and win a game three and here we managed to do it. Now it is time to go to Orlando and see if we can't get one."
Under the 2-3-2 format, the Magic host the next three games, including game three on Tuesday.
The Magic, who are zero-of-six in franchise finals games, are up against long odds.
The 2006 Miami Heat are the only team since 1985 to win a NBA championship after losing the first two games.
"I've seen series turn," Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy said. Right now it is frustrating not to have gotten (a win). We had chances to win."
Jackson, who once described Bryant as headstrong and "uncoachable" in a book he authoured several years ago, said Bryant has matured as an individual and a teammate on the court.
"That was a contentious point for us when I first got here because I felt that there were a lot of times Kobe was trying to commandeer games. With the team and the talent we had, we didn't have that kind of an activity or a presence on the floor because you always had the equalizer to be able to throw the ball into a post player and take control of the game through that.
"So over the years he's kind of learned how the game feels, what it feels like and the difference between taking on a challenge of an individual to the challenge of the team."
The Magic will be looking for their first win ever in the NBA Finals in game 3. I think it will suck for the Magic if they don't win at least a game. The Magic and Cavs are the only teams that have been to the Finals but have never won a game.
Don't be surprised when the Magic win the next 3
expect salvatore tomorrow. if that holds true we will not win on the road with that dude
Here come the excuses for your non-killer instinct team.
CIA POP!
JUST WAIT TIL MANU IS HEALTHY!
IT'S THE REFS FAULT!
Collusion!
IT'S A CONSPIRACY!
Getting knocked out by the Mavs in the second round.
2009 champs . We don't need an excuse.
Referee Assignments
Tue. Jun. 9
L.A. Lakers @ Orlando: J. Crawford, D. Stafford, M. Wunderlich
you said Magic would win the next four...I'll bet any amount of money that they don't. So take the bet (we can discuss how much later on) or just admit that you're talking out of your assBet what?
you forgot " the refs are calling that foul on Kmart for holding Sasha's foot."
CIA POP!
JUST WAIT TIL MANU IS HEALTHY!
IT'S THE REFS FAULT!
Collusion!
IT'S A CONSPIRACY!
2009 champs . We don't need an excuse.
That was by far the most pathetic complaint about a foul ever.
You got big brass ones, but +1.
It starts now.
Like they did in that 27 point win in Denver, or like they did all season long where they earned themselves the best road record in the league. Nice try.
Orlando doesnt belong in the finals but its been amusing to watch them play poorly and still almost beat the lakers at home.
Hate to say I told you so. Bringing up ONE road win in a series isnt .
And you got here when Mr. 400 somethin posts? Oh when the Lakers started being good again all of a sudden huh?
CIA POP!
JUST WAIT TIL MANU IS HEALTHY!
IT'S THE REFS FAULT!
Collusion!
IT'S A CONSPIRACY!
2009 champs . We don't need an excuse.
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