09 Playoffs- Lakers vs Rockets Series thread

[mojorizen7]

Oh dear Lord gimme a break already.lol

Bryant, who finished a distant second to LeBron James in NBA MVP voting announced earlier Monday, scored 32 points, doing his best to keep the Lakers in the game despite missing practice on Sunday with a sore throat. He scored 22 of the Lakers' final 42 points. “I'm fine,” Bryant said. “My energy felt fine, I was OK.

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[elindholm]

They couldn't win because of TMac in past years, since the team relied too much on TMac's dominant scoring in regular season, which would NOT be that easy in the playoffs, with better defensive attention. Do we not have a similar pattern on the Suns, though in a less severe version?

You mean with Stoudemire? Surely you can't mean Nash, who has never been a dominant scorer and, unlike McGrady, has led teams deep into the playoffs.

 

[95pro]

yeah, kobe had a sore throat or the flu.
thats why he made 32pts with 31shot attempts.

please...

 

[cly2tw]

You mean with Stoudemire? Surely you can't mean Nash, who has never been a dominant scorer and, unlike McGrady, has led teams deep into the playoffs.

I mean a dominant grip on the team's offense, the shutting-down/sufficient-dealing of which by opponents defense almost surely kills your team. That was neither Yao nor Amare, but everything TMac and Nash. Don't you agree?

Well, LBJ, Kobe, Wade, TD, Dream, MJ are the few similar dominant forces that can't be really shut down or even sufficiently contained. Nash, Magic, TMac, Pierce, Paul, etc. are not that category. You need much more responsibility for co-stars to make a team led by them work, towards winning a title. Malone/Stockton almost got there, as Payton and co. Pistons and Celtics just did it. In some sense, Wade shared it with Shaq to win it, helped out with a weak opponent.

 

[D-Dogg]

Oh dear Lord gimme a break already.lol

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So Kobe downplaying the media trying to harp on his sore throat is now probably evidence of his arrogance?

I did laugh when Harlan said he had flu-like symptoms. uhm, no..he had a sore throat.

Plus the swine flu. And I also heard he died from cancer the night before.

It's not his fault the media is borderline idiotic.

 

[D-Dogg]

I don't think so.

You don't have to.

But you'll watch it happen.

 

[Shane]

You don't have to.

But you'll watch it happen.

Come on bro. You dont bet any of your money anyhow. Might as well donate it to me.

 

[arwillan]

If the lakers lose tomorrow, they're as good as done. However, I don't expect kobe to let the Lakers lose. I think Houston understands they'll probably lose tomorrow, but the fact that they got the split is just as good as they could have hoped for.

 

[Darth Llama]

If the lakers lose tomorrow, they're as good as done. However, I don't expect kobe to let the Lakers lose. I think Houston understands they'll probably lose tomorrow, but the fact that they got the split is just as good as they could have hoped for.

I agree, the next game is an elimination game for the Lakers which plays well for the Rockets. Game 1 was a disaster for LA, Gasol was terrible, Odom was invisible, they just played a crappy game. If their current situation doesn't motivate them to come out and put the pedal to the metal on Wednesday, then they don't deserve to win the West anyway.

I still remain unconvinced that anyone can beat Cleveland anyway.

 

[leclerc]

So Kobe downplaying the media trying to harp on his sore throat is now probably evidence of his arrogance?

I did laugh when Harlan said he had flu-like symptoms. uhm, no..he had a sore throat.

Plus the swine flu. And I also heard he died from cancer the night before.

It's not his fault the media is borderline idiotic.

It's the exact same thing. First "someone" leaks the breaking news that the oh mighty Kobe is playing hurt/ill, then he gets to brush it off and act tough when the reporters ask him. The media is idiotic though I agree on that.

I hope the Rockets win but the Lakers probably will get it in 5 - 6 max.

 

[D-Dogg]

I still remain unconvinced that anyone can beat Cleveland anyway.

The Lakers have, can and will.

However, they can't beat Orlando.

Such is the NBA.

 

[D-Dogg]

If the lakers lose tomorrow, they're as good as done. However, I don't expect kobe to let the Lakers lose. I think Houston understands they'll probably lose tomorrow, but the fact that they got the split is just as good as they could have hoped for.

I wouldn't think they would be done. Deep crap? Yeah. Up against the death knell? Sure. Done, no. I have absolutely zero doubt they can roll 4 straight (hell 8 straight) against the Rockets. The issue is that they actually have to show up to do so. They have been in a half-ass mentality for quite some time now. Houston out-hungered them in Game 1. They aren't better than the Lakers by a LONG shot. But they sure were more hungry.

The Lakers better come out having skipped a meal, because the Rockets are fasting. I'm betting the Lakers are as well.

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Nice start! Nice dunk by Ariza!

 

[Brian in Mesa]

End of 1st quarter.

Lakers 39
Rockets 25

 

[elindholm]

I mean a dominant grip on the team's offense, the shutting-down/sufficient-dealing of which by opponents defense almost surely kills your team. That was neither Yao nor Amare, but everything TMac and Nash. Don't you agree?

No, I don't. I agree that the Suns were stymied when Nash was shut down. That was a crippling problem and was the result of poor coaching. But they had the same problem when trying to force-feed Stoudemire at the ends of close games, as I've pointed out about 3000 times.

I don't know what you want from Nash. He is the point guard; he is supposed to run the offense. He led the league in assists for however many straight years. Last year, he was third on the Suns in FGA per game, far behind Stoudemire and Richardson. He was narrowly ahead of O'Neal, but O'Neal gets fouled on attempts much more often (making the attempts unofficial), so in fact O'Neal had more attempts as well. Even Barbosa was close behind, in nearly a third fewer minutes. So in shot attempts per minute played, Nash was no higher than fifth on the team, and if I crunched the numbers it wouldn't surprise me to see him behind Barnes as well.

The problem you're upset about is that D'Antoni got seduced by Nash's regular-season brilliance, allowed the Suns to coast on it, and never recognized that it wouldn't work in the playoffs when constant fouling is permitted. But that's not Nash's fault, nor is it a necessary weakness of a team on which he is the starting PG. Your contention that the nature of his game requires him to dominate the ball is simply false.

Also false is your assertion that keeping around a player who is still, by any measure, a top-five PG in this league will necessarily doom the Suns to mediocrity. They're doomed, all right, but it's not because of Nash. You don't make a team better by downgrading a position and hoping other people will step up.

As for the Rockets, it's pretty obvious that McGrady is a leadership vacuum, but we've known that his whole career. It shouldn't come as a big surprise that they are playing better in his absence. Perhaps I should remind you how well the Suns played during Stoudemire's microfracture year.

 

[Ronin]

I'm impressed with Houston.
They could've folded after being down by 14 early in the game, but no the houston rockets have fought back, and taken the lead.

 

[KloD]

Rockets take the lead, the announcer Laker/Kobe love fest declines. Yeah!

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Tied at the half.

 

[Proteus]

Has a team that won the season series 4-0 ever lost a playoff series against that team?

 

[D-Dogg]

Rockets take the lead, the announcer Laker/Kobe love fest declines. Yeah!

What broadcast are YOU listening to? These guys have a rumble in their throat for the Rrrrrockets. My goodness, I'm embarrassed for how much Harlan wants to have sex with anything in red right now.

 

[jandaman]

Come on Rockets!

Yao's 3 fouls will hurt... which I find hard to believe with... 3 fouls already?.... damn.

 

[D-Dogg]

I love Laker haters.

 

[hsandhu]

What broadcast are YOU listening to? These guys have a rumble in their throat for the Rrrrrockets. My goodness, I'm embarrassed for how much Harlan wants to have sex with anything in red right now.

That's probably a good sign you're both a little biased. i didn't notice any extra love from the announcers any one way or the other. the lakers start hot they get praise, houston's bench plays big they get praise.

 

[jandaman]

I loathe cocky Laker fans.... and its a pretty darn good chance of meeting one.

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Come on Rockets!

Yao's 3 fouls will hurt... which I find hard to believe with... 3 fouls already?.... damn.

His third one - he pretty much elbowed Gasol so hard he almost knocked him out of the lane and then argued over the call for a few minutes. Realy obvious foul that was ridiculous to argue about.