Lakers @ Suns 3-2-19

[Bufalay]

That's great, I'm still going to comment on what I saw and what people claim. That might be good for Ayton I don't think it's great overall. If Lebron was truly in carry the team mode then how did he have 16 assists? That just doesn't seem to match up with what I saw in the 4th or the stat line. I know stats aren't the be all end all and 6 minutes in the 4th quarter isn't everything either but I find it hard to believe someone played great defense on someone if they basically stopped with 6 minutes left in the 4th quarter and let them get their team back in the game. That's when defense really matters, when the game is on the line and you can play great for 3 1/2 quarters and still lose, the Suns have done that a lot and no one would consider the overall product great in any of those losses either. Thankfully we didn't lose this one though.

Ayton didn't look terrible but he didn't look great, that's all I'm saying and if people take exception to that then I believe you're being way too defensive of Ayton.

Remember when Thomas Bryant had 2000 points in a row against Ayton? That’s the kind of defense we expect from him. Tonight he was guarding the best player in the league on the perimeter and basically held him to his averages. That’s pretty impressive.

 

[CardsFan88]

Punk move by L.A.Bron to walk off the court without shaking any of the Suns' hands. Sheer punk move. And people wonder why the Lakers have a "team chemistry" problem.

Still a step up from last night. I was like WTF when I was watching it.

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[Hoop Head]

Remember when Thomas Bryant had 2000 points in a row against Ayton? That’s the kind of defense we expect from him. Tonight he was guarding the best player in the league on the perimeter and basically held him to his averages. That’s pretty impressive.

I can understand that. I'm not a fan of lowering standards because they've been a disappointment up until that point but that does make a lot more sense. When put that way, I guess I can see "great".

 

[BC867]

You'd think that, as smart as LeBron pro ports to be, he would be keeping his nose clean in his quest for GOAT instead of acting like a child and destroying his image more than ever.

I would suggest that DBook, a young player involved in the same type of dysfunctional team situation, consider the same.

 

[JCSunsfan]

You'd think that, as smart as LeBron pro ports to be, he would be keeping his nose clean in his quest for GOAT instead of acting like a child and destroying his image more than ever.

I would suggest that DBook, a young player involved in the same type of dysfunctional team situation, consider the same.

Its different. LeBron created this mess himself. I will give Book a little more room.

 

[CardsFan88]

http://www.espn.com/nba/recap?gameId=401071615

James finished with 27 points, 16 assists and nine rebounds. Phoenix, which entered the game an NBA-worst 12-51, is the worst team James has lost to while playing in his NBA career (minimum 25 games into a season), per ESPN Stats & Information.

 

[95pro]

I’m loving this tonight.

 

[TJ]

LeBron signed on for four years of this.

 

[Finito]

Haters gonna hate

 

[Chaplin]

Ayton had 26 points, 10 rebounds and played excellent defense on Lebron.

Still Lebron had a huge game with 27 points, 16 assists and 9 rebounds.

Only 10 rebounds? What the hell??

 

[SirStefan32]

What a game! I am so glad I watched it when I got home. I *almost* decided to watch the Mavs instead.
This game reminded me of that Denver game where they just played hard for 48 minutes and never stopped.
They had a few bad stretches tonight, but they dug in defensively every single time, and they found ways to score. I loved Ayton's performance tonight. Just by being active, he gets fouled a lot. When he figures this out, he will be scary. He had one bad possession where he couldn't score on a guard, but he got bailed out by the refs. Outside of that, he played a near-perfect game. Everyone played defense, including Booker and Ayton (who actually played James extremely well), and everyone found a way to do something on offense as well.

We know the Suns are capable of winning when they stay aggressive for 48 minutes. Now we just need to see them do this more consistently.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

You clearly did not watch this game if you weren’t impressed by Ayton. Why are you even on here if you didn’t watch it.

He was a monster tonight and here you are with the Ayton sucks stuff. Dude really

No, he wasn’t a “monster.” He had a really good game. But he wasn’t a “monster.” I think you’re really overstating things.

 

[CardsFan88]

Salt mine

https://twitter.com/search?q=lakers&ref_src=twsrc^google|twcamp^serp|twgr^search

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[Chaplin]

No, he wasn’t a “monster.” He had a really good game. But he wasn’t a “monster.” I think you’re really overstating things.

Semantics. You're definition of a "monster" isn't going to be the same as everybody else's. Don't color your opinion with unreasonable expectations.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Was a fun game to watch. Proud of the kids for not unraveling. Quick thoughts:

Ayton hard a good game. Was stoked to see 14 free throws!!!!! Would still like to see him get better position in the post. They started the game with a much shorter and lighter defender in Kuzma on him. And while he scored well against him, he settled for jumpers. And as has already been pointed out, he couldn’t back josh hart down. In comparison, anytime any of the Lakers bigs had even the slightest height or weight advantage they backed our guys down for dunks and layups. Ayton needs to learn how to do that.

Interesting twist putting our centers on lebron. Wasn’t just Ayton. They threw Holmes at him too.

Thought Melton looked good in limited fashion.

If this team could create more turnovers they’ll be crazy dynamic on the break.

Book does a lot more bitching all game than I remember from prior seasons. And he’s got some really lazy passes. But he hit some big shots down the stretch.

Thought Daniels mere presence had an effect. You could see how tight they cover him. So even if he doesn’t hit a lot of 3s he impacts spacing in a positive way.

Oubre played within himself and it was s big plus.

Bender hitting a single three at the beginning of the game changes how defenders treat him. Even if it’s the only he hits, hitting the first is a big deal for him and the suns if he’s going to get burn.

And I’ll end with this: 14 free throws for Ayton!!!!!! And it seemed like he got some calls tonight!

 

[sdscard4]

I hope all 4 years he doesn't see the playoffs...he could literally kill his own legacy by being a laker

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Semantics. You're definition of a "monster" isn't going to be the same as everybody else's. Don't color your opinion with unreasonable expectations.

True. But if you saw someone else in a OC score with 26 and 10 would you really be thinking “monster” game? If so, I think you’ve got s really low threshold for what you consider “monster.”

For example:

Zach Randolph had 26 and 10. Monster gsme!!! Eh, no.

Joel Embiid has 26 and 10. Monster game!!! Eh, no.

Al Horford goes for 26 and 10. Monster game!!! Eh, no.

It doesn’t sound like a “monster” game because I just don’t really think manywoukd consider it such.

 

[slinslin]

Remember when Thomas Bryant had 2000 points in a row against Ayton? That’s the kind of defense we expect from him. Tonight he was guarding the best player in the league on the perimeter and basically held him to his averages. That’s pretty impressive.

Thomas Bryant scored mostof his points after ayton fouled out and before that he usually scored when Ayton had to help on Beal.

 

[SirStefan32]

Also, Igor got a tech. I think he did it just for whoever the two posters here are who are always complaining he doesn't get techs.

 

[Hoop Head]

True. But if you saw someone else in a OC score with 26 and 10 would you really be thinking “monster” game? If so, I think you’ve got s really low threshold for what you consider “monster.”

For example:

Zach Randolph had 26 and 10. Monster gsme!!! Eh, no.

Joel Embiid has 26 and 10. Monster game!!! Eh, no.

Al Horford goes for 26 and 10. Monster game!!! Eh, no.

It doesn’t sound like a “monster” game because I just don’t really think manywoukd consider it such.

Another comparison, in this same game Lebron had 27 and 9 but no one is calling him a "monster". Instead of being dubbed a "monster" like Ayton, it's being said that we played "great defense" on him and allowing only those stats was a good thing. Those are pretty close to his averages so maybe it's unfair to judge them the same but another Laker, Javale McGee, posted 21 & 7 while going 10 for 10 from the field. No one is calling that a "monster game" either.

I'm rewatching the game now and while Ayton does look good I don't think it's wrong to say he wasn't "great". He played good defense, which is what he should be doing since he claims he's a good defender and people cherry pick defensive stats to knock him. Those are his own words and those of some here but they're mainly his. He's had maybe a half dozen good defensive games this year and this was one of them. The problem with that is this came after his claim of being a good defender. If he keeps this up that would be great and I'll gladly say he's a really good defender.

 

[Chaplin]

True. But if you saw someone else in a OC score with 26 and 10 would you really be thinking “monster” game? If so, I think you’ve got s really low threshold for what you consider “monster.”

For example:

Zach Randolph had 26 and 10. Monster gsme!!! Eh, no.

Joel Embiid has 26 and 10. Monster game!!! Eh, no.

Al Horford goes for 26 and 10. Monster game!!! Eh, no.

It doesn’t sound like a “monster” game because I just don’t really think manywoukd consider it such.

Considering how little some people think of Ayton statistically at this point of his career, I would think 26 and 10 would be quite "monster". Why do you compare Ayton to guys that have YEARS more experience?

 

[Hoop Head]

Thomas Bryant scored mostof his points after ayton fouled out and before that he usually scored when Ayton had to help on Beal.

Ayton fouled out in the 2nd OT. Bryant had a dunk and a layup after Ayton fouled out in addition to 2 FT's. That's 6 points out of 31. He had 25 when Ayton fouled out. I didn't know 6 was "most of" 31. Is math different in Germany?

Ayton played in 38 minutes to Bryant's 36. Bryant played in 1 more overtime period than Ayton to get those 2 field goals and 2 free throws. So Bryant's career game did come against Ayton.


Here's the play by play for that game, it provides much more detail than a boxscore. It lists fouls and substitutions also, plus you can see when Ayton got sat the last time. If you want to try making a claim about when something happens then you might want to check that instead of just the boxscore like you normally do, before you say something in the future.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/pbp/201812220WAS.html

 

[Phrazbit]

LeBron and Magic, as a combination, will likely be the league's worst GM over the next few years (unless someone hires Billy King). I really hope they get Kobe involved as a "consultant" too, what slays me about Lakers fans killing LeBron for his behavior is that Kobe did the same crap, only Kobe didn't just trash his BAD teammates but anyone who was good enough to get a fraction of the spot light.

Also, this kind of game reminds me that Ayton is a virtual lock to be one of the best bigs in the NBA... just figure out ways to get him involved you dopes! I know everyone would love it if he killed on defense even if he was getting ignored on the other end, but I can see how your teammates using you as a decoy over and over (or just chucking mindless transition threes) can get you rapidly disengaged from the game.

Len sucked and I saw Len have more opportunities with his momentum going towards the basket bounce of his brick hands than Ayton has seen all year.

 

[slinslin]

When you have 26 points on just 11 shots along with 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and a block that qualifies as a monster performance

 

[sunsfan88]

Ayton fouled out in the 2nd OT. Bryant had a dunk and a layup after Ayton fouled out in addition to 2 FT's. That's 6 points out of 31. He had 25 when Ayton fouled out. I didn't know 6 was "most of" 31. Is math different in Germany?

Ayton played in 38 minutes to Bryant's 36. Bryant played in 1 more overtime period than Ayton to get those 2 field goals and 2 free throws. So Bryant's career game did come against Ayton.


Here's the play by play for that game, it provides much than a boxscore. It lists fouls and substitutions also and you can see when Ayton got sat the last time. If you want to try making a claim about when something happens then you might want to check that instead of just the boxscore like you normally do, before you say something in the future.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/pbp/201812220WAS.html

Stop letting facts get in the way of a narrative!