SB Nation - Shannon Brown

Lunchtime Shootaround: Ron Artest's Hardcore, Shannon Brown's Hops, Dr. Charlie, and Life Sized Cut Out of Jonas Jerebko

Packey — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 17:09:48 -0000

The shootaround didn't help for the Lakers game, but I have a feeling it can be helpful for the Bobcats tonight. Click & read away.

Ron Artest is a "hardcore dude," so it's only fitting that he would want to play in Detroit, one of the "hardest core cities."

Former MSU player, Shannon Brown, shamed Chucky Atkins with this block on Sunday evening. The Lakers players are lobbying for Brown to be in this year's slam dunk contest. Kobe says Brown can jump higher than he did in his younger days and Michael Jordan, no question.

Ben Gordon is still not sure why he wasn't wanted in Chicago. After the Bulls' 35-point collapse to the Kings, I think it's more than safe to say that anyone in the Bulls organization who didn't want him before, wish they had him now.

As I mentioned in the Lakers game recap, Charlie Villanueva went without his mask on Sunday evening. However, it appears he made an executive decision without an OK from team doctors. CV was never comfy in the Rip-mask, even though his play never seemed to suffer with it.

I've said this all along with the injuries that the Pistons are experiencing up to this point in the season: It's a blessing in disguise for the rookies. They are getting plenty of playing time and thus, we're getting an early look at how they may fit into the Pistons system, not only now, but in the future. So far, they are definitely holding their own.

Boris over at Midwest Sports Fans does a weekly Pistons watch that is worth checking out. You could probably guess what the title of this past week's is called: Injuries Lingering and West Woes Continuing.

With Christmas just a few days away, Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, and Austin Daye played Santy Clause for children in the Detroit area. I don't know if Rip should be having any kids sitting on his lap with that hammy problem!

Grasping for last minute gift ideas? The Pistons official auction site has some stuff you might be interested in, including a life sized cut out of Jonas Jerebko!

Appetite for Destruction: Lakers Demolish Jazz

DexterFishmore — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 07:07:18 -0000

I'm feeling a bit dazed at the moment, as I'm sure are the Utah Jazz. That fourth quarter was a lot to take in. In a matter of minutes, a tightly contested game that looked like it would go down to the wire turned into a brutal street crime. The Los Angeles Lakers, cranking up their defense like we've never seen, strangled the Jazz into submission, stole their wallets and ice, and then kept kicking their lifeless bodies just for fun. Utah managed only six points in the fourth. Seis.

Someone should probably get them to a hospital.

The masterpiece that was the fourth quarter redeemed what had been an uninspired effort to that point. In the first half, the Lakers looked annoyed that someone was asking them to defend the Utah offense, which ran with its usual Swiss-engineered precision. Open looks were abundant for Jazz shooters, who hit four of their first eight three-point attempts. Shannon Brown (failing to follow cutters) and Andrew Bynum (failing to rebound) were the chief offenders, but nobody in Lakerdom distinguished himself.

In the third, Utah finally started missing threes - they would end up honking their last nine attempts from distance - and the Lakers exploited the chance to claw back into the lead. Kobe Bryant had 13 in the third, which ended with a Jordan Farmar money ball. Jordan had another in a string of quality efforts. He finished with 11 points, four rebounds and a net plus-minus of +17.

And then the fourth quarter started, and there was BLOOD EVERYWHERE. Voracious and predatory was the Laker defense. For the quarter the Jazz turned the ball over eight times in 24 possessions and shot 2 for 18. It was, let's just say it, the best 12 minutes of Laker D any of us have seen. Like, ever. The final score was 101 to 77.

Here, for your amusement, is how the teams fared in points per possession by quarter.

	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Game
Utah	1.14	1.27	0.83	0.25	0.86
Los Angeles	1.14	1.04	1.09	1.17	1.11

The Lakers are now 17-3 and have won 10 straight. They're undefeated since the return of Pau Gasol. Here are the game stats, followed by a tasty dunk by Shannon. I believe it will meet with your satisfaction.

	Poss.	TO%	FTA/ FGA	FT%	EFG%	TS%	Off Reb%	Def Reb%	PPP
Utah	90	19	0.22	79	36	41	33	75	0.86
L.A.	91	10	0.40	77	49	55	25	67	1.11

Lakers Dominate Suns, Look Better Than Ever

Josh Tucker — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 19:38:35 -0000

More photos » by Gus Ruelas - AP

NCIS is my favorite show. Gibbs is my role model.

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In 2008-09, the Lakers won the NBA Championship (you know ... in case you hadn't heard). Along the way, they won 65 games. Throughout all this, their longest winning streak was 7 games. They had more than one such streak.

During the regular season, they often struggled to maintain focus and intensity. Their ceiling was very high, and they had the fortunate ability to play at nearly full potential when needed — but not consistently, and not when the competition was less than top notch. They often gave too much ground to bad teams, and though they were solid against Denver in the Conference Finals, and handled Orlando quite quickly en route to a 4-1 Finals victory, they weren't nearly as good as they should have been in the first two rounds, against lesser competition.

Many of these things appear to be changing, and last night's game is just the latest piece in a nine-game string of of games that punctuate that statement. With Pau Gasol still getting into shape, Ron Artest still learning the offense, and the schedule tougher than the pundits would have you believe, the Lakers' win over Phoenix last night has them riding a winning streak of nine games — already two better than anything they did last year.

With the stage now set, let's take a closer look at last night's blowout of the Suns at Staples Center...

Okay, I just can't help myself. Two more fun facts about this streak that I just have to point to:

On this nine-game winning streak, the Lakers have broken 100 points nine times. They have held their opponents below 100 points eight times.
Their average margin of victory over these nine games is 15.3 points per game. Basically, they're on a dominant nine-game winning streak, averaging a blowout.

Okay, on to last night's game. We'll do this with bullets.

Defense

The Suns have the NBA's best offense. Even after last night, they still rank nearly a full point per 100 possessions better than second-ranked Denver in that category. The Lakers, meanwhile, have one of the NBA's best defenses — 3rd by Offensive Efficiency rating, but first in defensive FG%, eFG%, and TS%. When the two clashed, the Lakers' defense easily won out.
The Lakers held the Suns under 100 points; only two other teams have managed that all year. They also held the Suns under 90 points; no other team has managed that all year.
They also held the Suns to under 100 points per 100 possessions (or, as we like to say around these parts, under 1.00 point per possession). By Hollinger's measure, they managed an efficiency rating of only 95.8 points per 100 possessions (0.96 PPP); by Dex's more accurate count (Hollinger uses a formula; Dex actually tallies it all up, possession by possession, superhero that he is), they were up to 0.98 PPP (98.0 points per 100 possessions). Either way, considering these two facts: (a) the Suns average 112.1 points per 100 possessions (1.12 PPP), and (b) a defensive efficiency rating of 95.8 points per 100, by Hollinger's rating, would be good enough for best defense in the League.
The Suns are 3-point shooting maniacs. They average 22.7 three-point attempts per game, and they convert at a mind-numbing rate of 43.4% from that range. Last night, the Lakers defended the arc very well, holding the Suns to a mere 13 attempts, of which they made only four. For the mathematically challenged, that's 30.8% shooting from distance. For some perspective, note that if they shot that poorly from three all season, it would rank them 23rd in the NBA in 3-point accuracy, instead of where they currently rank — first.
They also rank 3rd overall in total field goal percentage, at 49.3%. The Lakers held them to 44.6% on the night. Solid.
Phoenix didn't break 30 points in any quarter. They were held to 22 or less in three out of four.
Some subjective observations: Ron Artest was awesome as ever on D. Five steals, very disruptive overall, and never gave up on a single play. I was also very pleased with our bigs' defense. Taking a page from Toronto's playbook (I can't believe I just typed that; Toronto is ranked dead last in defense), LA switched on screen-rolls with Nash, sending Gasol or Bynum out to challenge the floppy-haired Canadian. I was impressed with both big men, who were very active defensively, moving their feet and generally preventing Nash from getting by them and into the paint. Great effort there, and great result overall. They didn't shut him down, but they kept him pretty quiet, at 12 points and 10 assists.
Final thought on last night's defense, back to offensive/defensive ratings: Tallying a defensive rating that, if maintained over the course of the season, would rank the Lakers first in the league, against the best offense in the league? Yeah, I'd say that's pretty damn good defense.

Offense

The Lakemen are slowly climbing their way up the ranks in Offensive Efficiency. They're still ranked only 13th overall, but the offense has actually been quite good of late, and their rating is slowly increasing. Last night, they scored 121.0 points per 100 by Hollinger's formulaic rating — a number matched identically, in this case, by Dex's more accurate exact count, which yielded 1.21 PPP. For perspective: Phoenix boasts the best offensive rating in the League, a point better than 2nd-ranked Denver, at 112.1 points per 100 (1.12 PPP); last night, the Lakers were 9 points per 100 better than that.
21 three-point attempts, 10 makes, which is a conversion rate of 47.6% from distance. Yeah, they stole the Suns playbook on that one. Ron Artest, Kobe Bryant, Derek Fisher, Shannon Brown, and Jordan Farmar — all hit at least 50% of their three-point attempts.
26 free throws earned, a very solid rate of 0.32 FTA/FGA, and converted at a very high rate of 84.6%. Ron Artest didn't miss a single freebie.
The Suns doubled heavily in the paint, since the Lakers destroyed them down there last time. The Lake Show simply responded by hitting jumpers, knocking down threes, and passing out of the double team down low. On a couple occasions, I was very pleased to see Bynum take a page from Gasol's playbook, drawing the double with his back to the basket and then dumping the ball off to his low post-mate.
Good ball control. A temporary lapse in the second quarter, where they committed six turnovers, but only 11 overall — and only one in each of the first and third quarters.
Six guys in double figures, including two off the bench. (I'm telling you, the more I see the Farmar/Brown lineup, the more I love it.)

Bench Play

I've decided to refer to the reserve lineup that Phil Jackson plays when it still matters — typically, in the 2nd and early 4th quarters, and sometimes in the 3rd — as the Bench Unit. This is the lineup that features Jordan Farmar, Shannon Brown, and Lamar Odom (or at least two of those three), but NOT Sasha Vujabric, Adam Morrison, Josh Powell, or DJ Mbenga. The lineup featuring Vujabric/Morrison/Powell/Mbenga, usually accompanied by either Farmar or Brown, is what I will refer to as the GarbageTime Unit. It's nothing revolutionary, just calling a spade a spade, since the GTU guys simply do not play when it still matters.
The Bench Unit was very good last night. They were part of a 2nd-quarter 8-0 run, and a 3rd-quarter 15-1 run (that's where the game was decided, going from a still-in-question 9-point game at 72-63 to an insurmountable 23-point lead at 87-64). They also managed to play even in the first half of the fourth quarter, responding to a mini-run by Phoenix which cut the lead to 13 thanks mainly to a pair of threes by Shannon Brown, which pushed the lead back to the 20-point margin the Lakers ended the game with.
The Lakers won every quarter but the fourth, and they only lost the fourth by 1 point.
The GarbageTime Unit didn't lose a single inch. The Bench Unit lost only 1 point to Phoenix in the first part of the fourth quarter, but held a 20-point lead when the GTU replaced them. The GTU held its own and ended the game with that same 20-point lead.

Individual Play

Kobe Bryant. Awesome as usual. 26 points on only 16 FGAs. 9-16 from the field, 50% on threes, 7 rebounds, only one turnover, 8 trips to the line, in a pretty average 36 minutes.
Ron Artest. As I already mentioned, 5 steals, very disruptive overall, never gave up on defense. Lights out from three (3-5), hit all his free throws. 15 points on 11 FGAs, along with 5 assists. Solid.
Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol. 5-9 shooting for Bynum, 6-10 for Gasol. 13 points for Bynum, 14 for Gasol. Between them, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, and only one free throw miss and one turnover. Played very well together offensively, and both were excellent on defense. Bynum even attempted a 3-point attempt (didn't have much choice), which almost bounced in (factoring out that desperation attempt, he was 5-8 from the field).
Lamar Odom with the little things. 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, 1 steal.
The Point Guards. All three of them. Good three point shooting, good defense, good energy.

Final Thoughts

It's worth noting that Phoenix was once again playing on the second half of a back to back, in Los Angeles. Not ideal circumstances. On the other hand, the Suns are a good team, and good teams pose a serious threat even on the second half of a back to back, on the road. Yes, it was a bit of an advantage for the Lakers, but don't undervalue the effort they gave or the credit they deserve for this win. They controlled this game in every way, and it wasn't because Phoenix didn't come to play.

Speaking of controlling the game: The Suns play at a pace of 98 possessions per game. The Lakers play at a similar pace of 97.8 possessions per game. Nonetheless, because of the Suns' ability to run with Nash and to take high percentage threes in transition, as well as the Lakers ability to dominate in the post, and in the half-court set in general, I think it's safe to say that in this particular matchup, a slower game is a good idea for the Lakers. With that in mind, the pace of the game was yet another thing the Lakemen controlled very well, as the game went 89.5 possessions (89 for LA, 90 for for Phoenix).

Bottom line: Another game, another blowout.

No Surprises Here, Suns Drubbed by Lakers 108-88

Wil Cantrell — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 05:30:33 -0000

More photos » by Gus Ruelas - AP

Mr. Gentry was not in the holiday spirit Sunday night.(AP Photo/Gus Ruelas)

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Tonight was deemed "Mission Impossible Part 2" by a respected Suns journalist. The local commentators were hoping for a rain out (hur, hur). While there was no rain or Tom Cruise sightings at the game, winning was to be a monumental task. The "tired" Suns on the second night of a back to back didn't play a perfect game, and even if they did, they probably still would have lost to the defending champions.

There was certainly some good that came out of this game, and there of course, was some bad.

The Suns at least competed tonight. The first quarter witnessed an active Suns team, combatting a nearly flawless Lakers attack. Amare Stoudemire showed up, feeling his outside game and battling inside for rebounds. But five turnovers leading to a 9-2 Lakers run in the first 7 minutes left the Suns in an early hole.

The Lakers D held, as it did for the rest of the game, limiting any Suns inside penetration. Pau Gasol switched off on Steve Nash, thus alleviating any pick 'n roll success.

Still the Suns were making shots, ad held close. A Jared Dudley three brought the Suns back to a 2 point deficit, the Lakers still held a 29-26 first quarter lead.

The Suns battled in the second quarter as well, going on a nice little 6-0 run. Yet the Suns struggled on D, allowing Laker penetration and two wide open threes. Robin Lopez left his man too early, allowing the first, while Steve Nash went underneath a screen allowing the second. The Suns were still playing respectable and even managed a free throw, their first with 3.49 to play in the second. But this was as good as it was to get for Phoenix on this night as they ended the first half down 54-44.

The Suns were outscored by 11 in the third quarter and all was, well, finished at that point. The lakers continued to attack and get what they wanted on the offensive end while the Suns went cold from outside, and continued to have trouble getting in the lane.

The Suns second unit closed the lead to 13 midway through the 4th quarter, but back to back three pointers by Shannon Brown ended the Suns small run.

The Rest of the Good (which wasn't a whole lot)

The Suns shot 57% 1st quarter, Nash had 7 Assists (who cares, I know)
Goran Dragic had a nice little pick off of Shannon Brown, took the ball the length of the court for a layup. (It was nearly dropped. You gotta DUNK, Goran).
Robin Lopez didn't look dreadful and confused, in fact he looked serviceable. Heis aggressive at the rim and has a nice little 5-6 foot jumper. I'm hoping he can get in shape and put in 10-15 minutes eventually this season. he could be valuable against the more sizeable teams.
The Suns second unit played pretty well. Lopez, Dragic, and Dudley all played solid. Earl Clark had a nice 15 footer off the dribble.

The Rest: A Very Small Ode to the Lakers:

OK the Suns are tired and this was a back to back game on the road. We didn't expect much. But this Laker team flat plays defense. The cut off the lanes and the Suns simply couldn't penetrate to the hoop. The Lakers also rebounded and played good perimeter defense. The Suns couldn't shoot from the field, they couldn't make a three. Further, the Lakers executed their offense flawlessly. Ron Artest made threes, Kobe Bryant simply toyed with Suns defenders. Bynum was all over the glass, and Gasol confounded Amare Stoudemire. So...what in God's name were the Suns supposed to do tonight? They played the reigning champion and got trounced. I don't like it, you don't like, but that's the way the mop flops.

End of story.

Pertinent Numbers:

Suns shot 4-13 from three point land. The Lakers were 10-21.
The Suns shot 11 free throws, making 10. The Lakers shot 22-26.
The Suns had 14 turnovers, the Lakers 11.
The Suns had 37 rebounds, the Lakers 42.
The Suns had 36 points in the paint, the Lakers had 40 (maybe I missed them, but I do not recall the Suns scoring that much in the paint).
OH, AND THE LAKERS HAVE PLAYED 16 OF THEIR FIRST 19 GAMES AT HOME. (yep, I'm just a smidge bitter).

FINAL - 12.6.2009	1	2	3	4	TOTAL
Phoenix Suns	26	18	22	22	88
Los Angeles Lakers	29	25	33	21	108

Next up, @Dallas, 6.30 PM on Tuesday, 12/8

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Silver Screen and Roll

Lakers Handle Pistons as Kobe Finds Balance

Josh Tucker — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:13:21 -0000

More photos » by Jeff Gross - Getty Images

Back to his old tricks, but with some new ones to boot.

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Lakers fans understand what I mean when I say that sometimes, watching Kobe Bryant play, it's almost as though the game in progress becomes secondary. The greatness of Kobe Bryant simply transcends the moment, and you could almost forget that there is an event taking place, the outcome of which matters quite a bit to the players, coaches, and indeed, Kobe Bryant himself. You could almost forget that anything bigger was happening than you, sitting transfixed, watching Kobe be Kobe. This was one of those nights — not quite to the extent of 81 points, or 62 in three quarters, but nonetheless.

And yet, even as Kobe Bryant finished with 40 points for the 100th time in his career — only the third player in history to reach that mark — there was a game taking place. And it just so happens that it was a game that mattered just a little bit more than your average November NBA game against middling competition. The Lakers were on their first "losing streak" of the season, having lost their last two games, and those two losses had been bad ones. Too soon to be freaking out? Yes, of course. Important to right the ship? Also, yes.

So while it would be so tempting to simply bask in the beauty of Kobe's one hundredth 40-point game, and the way in which he scored those 40 points, we're going to resist that urge and get into some other observations about this mostly encouraging game.

Okay, so maybe we'll bask for a moment, at least. Let's do this quasi HP-style.

Thing That Mesmerized Me

Kobe Bryant. Perhaps it was poetic, in some sense, that Kobe started the night with an unchallenged airball, before roaring out to a frustrating 1-6 start. Then, in a performance that is indicative of Kobe's challenge this year, he shot 16-23 for the rest of the game, including an unbelievable stretch in the second and third quarters in which he hit 12 of 15 shots.

The challenge for Kobe, this year perhaps more than ever before, is adaptation. As most of you know, I'm a huge fan of his significantly augmented post game, and I'm not alone. I think it could equate to a leap in Kobe's overall game, as well as increased longevity at a very high level as he plays into his thirties. However, as dominant as Bryant's post game has been in the early season, it has at times been so much the focus that it has rendered both Kobe and the team one-dimensional. If Kobe is going to play almost exclusively from the post, and the Lakers are going to force the ball into him on every possession, then defenses will pack it into the paint and both Bryant and the Lakers as a whole will sputter. Even Stu and Joel picked up on this, admiring Kobe's new post moves while also calling for him to mix it up, keeping opponents guessing rather than falling into a predictable routine.

Last night, he did just that, and he was brilliant. If the last few years have been "Good Ol' Kobe," and this year has been "Post Kobe," then his 100th forty-point game was a devastating combination of the two. At times, he posted up. At others, he attacked from the perimeter, off the dribble or on cuts within the offense. At times, he created head-shakingly easy shots for himself with superb footwork and the full utilization of the broadest, most fundamentally sound skill set in existence. At others, he simply hit impossible shots, as he always has done — fadeaway jumpers after absorbing the foul, super-extended hook-layups, and no-look, over-the-head toss-ins that have no business finding the net. But best of all, while busy being unstoppable, he still found time to look for his teammates.

As Kobe's game changes, and the needs of his team also change, teams will adapt to counter him. For Kobe, continued dominance — both for himself, and for his team — depend not on any one skill, but on his ability to balance all of his many skills, keeping defenses guessing and playing not only to his strengths, but to his team's. This is what he did last night.

Oh, and 40 points on 29 field goal attempts. Sweet.

Things I Liked

The second and third quarter efforts. The Lakers played very good defense during these two periods, holding the Pistons to 0.90 points per possession. They were active and persistent, and the Pistons' offense often struggled to find a shot at all (let alone a good one) before the buzzer. On the other side of the ball, the Lakers' offense was untouchable, scoring at a jaw-dropping rate of 1.45 points per possession. Their passing was crisp, willing, and frequent, and it was a thing of beauty to watch. Of course, it didn't hurt that the Lakers' new dynamic duo were on fire in these two quarters, with Kobe scoring 27 on 12-15 shooting, and Andrew Bynum hitting 6-8 for 14 points, along with four rebounds.

Andrew Bynum. Offensively, it's safe to say the kid has arrived. He is so long, so soft of the hands, and so talented, that few teams can keep Bynum from getting his points these days, and at a very efficient rate. Tonight, however, his effort was there in every aspect of the game. He was moving his feet on defense, showing on pick and rolls and even challenging guards on the perimeter. He was altering shots, lunging after rebounds, and even scrambling after loose balls. Offensively, he wasn't forcing it, made good decisions, and knew when to kick the ball out, resulting in an open shot for a teammate or a re-post for himself. He has had better numbers, but it is with all-around efforts like these that he is at his best, and makes the Lakers that much harder to beat.

The Bench. They didn't mesmerize me, but they were good enough. Josh Powell remained steadily consistent, Jordan Farmar attacked the basket and remained under control, and Shannon Brown continued to be a spark of energy whose impact on the game was far more positive than his 4-12 shooting line would seem to indicate. Yes, I was watching in the fourth quarter ... see below.

Ron Artest, role player. Has he ever been less noticeable, or less noticed, in his entire career? At this point, he is flying so low under the radar, playing with such poise, and fitting so well into the system without drawing attention to himself, being a distraction, or wasting Laker possessions, that I don't feel like it fits to call him anything but his full name, at this point. No Crazy Pills, no Tru Warier, not even Ron Ron. When you forget he's there, he's just Ron Artest. And it's a very good thing.

Pau Gasol, hopeful. The Spaniard has been very vocal about his frustration with his injury, and has shown a rare willingness to express some pretty serious negativity regarding it to the press. The fact that during the third/fourth quarter interview, he was hopeful and positive, and seemed to think it very possible that he could be back by Thursday, was encouraging to me. Also, Phil Jackson was tickled pink not to have to do said third/fourth quarter interview.

Things I Didn't Like

The First Quarter. The second and third quarters were a relief, because the first was continued frustration. Non-existent defense, sloppiness on offense, overall lack of effort and interest, and general bobbleheadedness. The Lake Show was discombobulated and distracted in the first quarter, and a good team would have put us in a pretty decent early hole.

Pau Gasol choosing the wrong CSI. I'm all about Gasol branching out. The dude's a scholar and a philosopher, and was studying to be a doctor before he decided to go pro ball. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he can act, and I wish him the best of luck. And since I just like the guy so damn much, if he does act, I'm probably going to want to see it. Which now poses a problem, since watching CSI: Miami is against my religion. Seriously, Pau?

Thing I Hated

Staples Center Boo-ing Kwame Brown. Disappointing doesn't say it. Appalling is closer. Way to stay classy, Los Angeles.

Thing I Didn't Care About

The Fourth Quarter. Perhaps you're upset about the end-of-game lapse. You wanted the bench to come in and hold the 25-point lead. You wanted a good, old fashioned blowout. The fact that the Pistons cut the lead from 25 to eight, before finally losing by 13, really frustrates you, and you can't see how I could list the bench as a positive.

Frankly, I could care less whether we win by 13 or 25. I fully expect that a team up 25 in the fourth is going to let up a bit, play with less intensity, and thereby let the other team back in a bit. Let's be honest, a 25-point fourth quarter comeback is virtually impossible — consider, for example, that between the two teams, only three times (out of eight) did a team score more than 25 total quarter points. 25 more than your opponent in a single quarter? Not happening. So yeah, a team up 25 in the fourth quarter relaxes a bit, and the other team gets back in it a bit. The game was never in danger, so I couldn't care less.

Thing I'd Like To Leave You With

Clearly, this season is still a process. If you honestly thought the Lakers could win 70 games, you didn't consider that this team still has many lessons left to learn — and to Phil Jackson, the regular season is for learning those lessons, not for chasing meaningless records. Because there are still lessons left to be learned, there will be ups and downs. The weekend was a down, and a bit discouraging. As of this moment, we're back on the up. No, all problems are not fixed, and this team is not ready to win a championship yet. But we're seeing very good potential from them, and an ability to understand their own problems, along with a willingness and ability to address and resolve them. While not enough to inspire entitlement arrogance supreme confidence, it is certainly an encouraging indication.

Ariza Loses Footwear, Wins Game

DexterFishmore — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 05:39:32 -0000

Things aren't going that well right now.

The pregame ring ceremony for Trevor Ariza was nice. Classy. The 16-2 run to open tonight's game against the Houston Rockets was even nicer. From there the Rockets outscored the Lakers by 24 points, which I don't recall seeing in the script.

L.A. got shredded by David Andersen (wait, who) and Aaron Brooks. I'm sure those two are nice guys, but when they're lighting your D up for Stockton-Malone numbers, something isn't right. Not helping the situayshe was the Lakers' second straight ghastly shooting performance. Laker guards not named Shannon Brown shot 10 for 42. Here's the box score if you don't believe me.

The best part? Kobe Bryant limped off the floor late in the game. According to beat reporter Mike Trudell, he was playing with a hurt groin that was injured last Sunday against New Orleans. We're just finding out about this now?

After the jump, see Ron Artest toss Ariza's shoe into the courtside seats. The Lakers are 7-3. Hmph.

	Poss.	TO%	FTA/ FGA	FT%	EFG%	TS%	Off Reb%	Def Reb%	PPP
LA	100	13	0.32	74	42	47	12	71	0.91
Houston	100	19	0.21	84	47	51	29	88	1.01

Lakers Bully Suns, 121-102

Josh Tucker — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:43:37 -0000

More photos » by Noah Graham - NBAE/Getty Images

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What's not to like, right? Well, actually a few things, if you want to nit-pick. And it doesn't even matter.

You might be surprised by the number of key statistical categories that the Suns won last night. Turnovers, free throws, rebounding, all categories in which the Suns had an advantage — and they really shouldn't have. Not that it did them much good, of course, and we'll forgive the Lakers some minor lapses in what was, overall, an absolutely dominant performance. To sum it up, the Lakers simply scored better and defended better, and the game was never close. Period.

Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum dominated in the paint, and the Lakers effectively contained Steve Nash while thoroughly thwarting the Suns' scorers. All of them. The leading scorer for the high-scoring Suns? Jared Dudley with 14 points, most of which were scored after the game was already decided.

The Lakers shot 57.6% from the field and 50% on threes, while holding the Suns to 36.5% from the field and 34.8% on threes. Game over.

Hey Boston, did we mention Pau Gasol hasn't played yet?

Let's go ahead and get into the negatives, the things the Lakers didn't do well, and then I'll explain to you why they were completely acceptable concessions to make to this Suns team.

	Possessions	TO%	FTA/FGA	FT%	eFG%	TS%	Off Reb	Def Reb	PPP
Lakers	103	14.6%	19.6%	38.9%	62.0%	58.7%	16.7%	57.5%	1.17
Suns	103	12.6%	27.9%	62.1%	40.4%	49.5%	32.9%	64.6%	0.99

As you can see in the table above, the Suns turned the ball over at a lower rate, earned free throws at a higher rate, hit their free throws at a much higher rate, and thoroughly out-rebounded the Lakers on both ends of the court. Let's start with why this might bother you.

The Suns are one of the most turnover-prone teams in the NBA, and not very good at forcing turnovers; the Lakers force turnovers quite well, but are pretty good at controlling their own. And yet, the Lakers turned the ball over at a higher rate than the Suns last night. The Suns also rebounded at a much higher rate than the Lakers, which is in keeping with the trend on the defensive glass, but pretty unusual on the offensive boards, where the Lakers usually dominate. And even beyond statistics, it could be seen as a bit disappointing that the Small Suns out-rebounded the Long Lakers.

Finally, the Lakers earned fewer free throws than the Suns — all of which is in keeping with their trends thus far, but it's worth noting that the Lakers fell well short of their usual .271 FTA/FGA mark, at only .196. Worst of all, they made only 38.9% of their free throws. Unacceptable.

Now let me tell you why none of this is as big a concern as it might usually be — well, aside from all the missed free throws, that is. The reality is that most of this was simply part of the Lakers' game plan — a game plan that worked to perfection.

The Suns are a running team. As Timbo made quite clear to us all yesterday, Jason Richardson in particular is the king of leaking out early as soon as the Suns' opponents take a shot, where the Suns feed him for early offense in the forms of layups and PUJIT threes. They're also great at spacing the floor and knocking down absurd amounts of three-pointers at a very high rate.

The Lakers solution to this was three-fold. First, forget about offensive rebounds and get back on defense. Don't let them run out on you. They did that, and the Suns had a hard time scoring as they usually do. Second, send the ball into the post on offense and bring the entire Suns defense below the free throw line. This they also did, and it further limited long rebounds and easy run-out opportunities for the Suns. Specifically, Kobe going into the post was particularly effective, not only because he decimated the Suns in the paint (which he did), but also because Jason Richardson was his defender, and getting him so close to the basket on defense made it hard for him to run out on early offense; you don't just sneak out on Kobe Bryant. Third, cover the shooters. Chase them off the three-point line, contest their shots. In general, don't give them a chance to shoot themselves into the game with open threes. They did this, and the Suns shot 34.8% from long distance, compared to their 47.4% mark from the first nine games of the season.

In addition, the Lakers played a containment game with Steve Nash. We're all well acquainted with Nash's ability to dribble penetrate into the heart of the defense and then dish to cutting forwards and open shooters. Last night, they looked to limit his effectiveness in that role, and part of that simply means less gambling and more defense. Again, the Lakers were successful in their efforts, as Nash was held to 13 points and, most impressively, only five assists.

While the Lakers FTA/FGA rate was pretty low, it could have had something to do with the fact that they shot the ball so well and scored so easily. The Suns aren't exactly a physical team, and they didn't have a prayer against the Lakers superior size.

Let's talk a bit more about defense before we lavish praise on Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum, shall we? Andrew Bynum, Ron Artest, and Kobe Bryant were fantastic, and the team as a whole was quite stingy. Bynum completely frustrated Amare Stoudamire, holding him to 2-15 shooting for eight points and only 5 rebounds. Jason Richardson and Leandro Barbosa struggled against the Lakers' backcourt, with Richardson going 2-9 for five points (0-5 on threes) and Barbosa going 4-12 for nine points. Between the five starters and sixth man Barbosa, Nash was the only one to score in double digits, with 13 points.

Perhaps my favorite thing about this game is that ever-controversial box score statistic, the assist. However, while assists are limited and often misleading in characterizing an individual player's passing, they are much more effective in characterizing a team's passing. And while the Lakers moved the ball extremely well, tallying a stellar 36 assists on 53 buckets, the Suns were held to only 12 assists on the night. For a team that spaces the floor and passes so well, that's a strong indicator of how well the Lakers defended this Phoenix team.

Offensively, there was plenty to be happy about. The Lakers knew their advantage, and they never strayed from the game plan. They took the ball into the post and imposed their superior size and strength at will. Jason Richardson had not a prayer against Kobe, who continued to dominate in the post. Andrew Bynum looks better and better every day, displaying an array of post moves and simply shooting over the Suns' "bigs." I never tire of admiring Drew's soft hands; last night, he caught several tough passes, throwing down what seemed like a handful of alley-oops, including a reverse-dunk alley-oop.

Both Bryant and Bynum had extremely efficient games. Combined, they were 26-39 from the field for 51 points, along with 19 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocks. Quite a superstar duo.

Of course, the rest of the team wasn't too shabby, either. Artest continued his solid defensive play, and continued to play well within the offense. Derek Fisher hit some shots, and Lamar Odom had a quietly efficient all-around game, as he is prone to do (4-5 shooting, 8 points, 12 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, 1 block).

Most impressive after Kobe and Drew, however, were the bench players. Josh Powell was 6-10 for 14 points with 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal. Shannon Brown was a BEAST, shooting 4-6 for 10 points, along with 4 assists and a couple of monster dunks. Dude got hops. Jordan Farmar was positively brilliant. Sure, he missed most of his shots, but who cares? He facilitated the offense like he rarely has, tallying 8 assists in just 21 minutes of burn. Adam Morrison hit both of his shots, and Luke Walton dished out 4 assists.

In all, the bench was 18-35 for 45 points, along with 17 rebounds, 17 assists, a couple steals, a couple blocks, and only 5 turnovers. They were much more controlled, their passing was crisp, and if they keep this up, we just might have the old Bench Mob back. The commentators, apparently uninformed overall (seriously, how do they not know about the MVP chants or the tacos?), stated that Phil Jackson has started reining the bench in more. He used to let them play loose and unstructured, letting them play more of a running game, but has recently decided to get them into the triangle more, to bring them more under control. The last few solid games from the bench could just be coincidence, but it could also be that this strategy is working. If the Lakers bench becomes a reliable force again, we'll be extremely hard to beat.

Overall, the Lakers held the Suns to an excellent 0.99 points per possession, while scoring at a very high rate of 1.17 points per possession on the other end of the floor. Good defense, good offense, plain and simple.

Oh, and hey Boston, did we mention Pau hasn't played yet?

Confirmed: Hornets Terrible

DexterFishmore — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 06:03:23 -0000

This one's for you, DJ!

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When Phil Jackson decides to retire as coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, someone, somewhere will float the idea that Byron Scott should get the gig. Whether emanating from those feeling nostalgic for the Showtime years or (much more likely) from his agent, Byron's name is sure to come up. And when it does, I want Jerry Buss and Mitch Kupchak to break out the tape from tonight's game.

The Lakers hammered Scott's New Orleans Hornets for a 104-88 victory whose outcome was assured two minutes into the third quarter. Looking even worse than their now 2-5 record, the Hornets were a toxic mess. Their offense couldn't manage even a point per possession against a Lakers team playing without Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol. Their defense allowed 1.17 points per possession even though the oft-maligned Laker reserves played 43% of the available minutes. At the end of the first and beginning of the second periods, Chris Paul moldered on the bench for over six minutes while the Lakers built a double-digit lead. And Scott insisted on playing guards Bobby Brown and Devin Brown, total zeroes who were completely overmatched in this game and probably shouldn't be in the league, ahead of demonstrably superior rookies Marcus Thornton and Darren Collison.

I'm not even a Hornets fan and I'm outraged by this. It's unacceptable that a magnificent talent like Paul has to spend the next three seasons with this turd of a team. I just hope Coach Byron Scott forever remains someone else's problem.

As for the Lake Show tonight, it was an awesome first half by Kobe Bryant, followed by a very solid mop-up performance from the bench. DJ Mbenga had a double-double [Ed.: mmm... double-double... I'll take two please], Shannon Brown tossed in 15 and Ron Artest and Lamar Odom both had strong overall stat lines in limited minutes.

More to come about this one in the morning. In the meantime, here's your box score, and the tempo-free numbers are below. The Lakers are 6-1.

	Poss.	TO%	FTA/ FGA	FT%	EFG%	TS%	Off Reb%	Def Reb%	PPP
L.A.	89	13	0.22	89	54	58	27	71	1.17
N.O.	90	14	0.27	83	41	46	29	73	0.98

P.S. - If you haven't done so, please also read commenter Justin N's Fanpost with his thoughts on the season so far, available here. It's good stuff and worth your time.

Lakers-Grizzlies Preview

DexterFishmore — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:00:38 -0000

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The Memphis Grizzlies are, in some structural sense, the opposite of the Houston Rockets franchise the Lakers just faced. The Rockets have a widely admired basketball organization but a shortage of ability on the floor. They've got a smart young GM and a successful head coach but no elite players. They're all system, little talent.

The Grizzlies are all talent, zero system. Maybe negative system, if that makes any sense (obviously no, it doesn't). Their roster is littered with high lottery picks, famous names and even a former league MVP, and yet they still blow. The problem, basically, is meddlesome tightwad Michael Heisley, whom SI recently dubbed the third-worst owner in the NBA. Under Heisley's stewardship, the Grizzlies have become really young and really cheap, and although that strategy might result in a winning product a couple years from now, they're not there yet.

Of course, Laker fans do have Heisley to thank for Pau Gasol, so let's keep him in our hearts as we preview Friday night's game.

The Grizz arrive in LA with a sterling 1-4 record. They're in the midst of a five-game West Coast trip of which they've dropped the first three. Here are their and the Lakers' other vital stats so far this year. Keep in mind that with less than 10% of the season in the books, these don't really mean much.

	Lakers	Grizz
Pace	96.3 (12th)	98.3 (7th)
Offensive Rating	100.6 (19th)	106.3 (9th)
Defensive Rating	98.1 (8th)	114.8 (30th)

("Pace" means average number of possessions per 48 minutes. "Offensive Rating" is the number of points scored per 100 possessions. "Defensive Rating" is the number of points allowed per 100 possessions. League rankings are in parentheses.)

As you can see, Memphis has been putting up points quite nicely, which is a huge change from last year, when they ranked 28th in the league in offensive efficiency. What's driven the improvement is ownage of the offensive glass. The Grizzlies lead the NBA in offensive rebounding rate thanks to strong work by new power forward Zach Randolph and bearded terror Marc Gasol.

Hey, guess who's dead last in defensive rebounding rate! You got it: the Lakers. They've been getting rocked on the defensive glass this year, and that's with Andrew Bynum playing full-time. No Pau and no Bynum on Friday night = ruh roh. Memphis is likely to enjoy a few three- and four-shot possessions, much to my outrage.

The Grizz frontcourt also "features" Hamed Haddadi, the only Iranian player in the NBA, and second overall pick Hasheem Thabeet. Thabeet has played only 29 minutes this season and stinks of eau de bustola.

On the perimeter Memphis rolls out wave after wave of unrepentant chuckers. You recognize the names - O.J. Mayo, Rudy Gay, Allen Iverson - but none is a tremendously efficient scorer. I'm not sure there's a coordinated offensive game plan here - mostly these guys seem to stand around and take turns launching J's. I suspect Ron Artest will guard Gay while Kobe Bryant checks Mayo. The more possessions that get routed through Iverson, the easier the night will be for the Lakers.

On defense the Grizzlies are a total mess. Last in the league in defensive efficiency, they're easier to score on than your sister after she's had a few. The Lakers will be missing two major frontcourt threats, so most of the scoring will need to come from Kobe, Ron and Lamar Odom. Mayo and Gay are poor on-ball defenders, so it wouldn't totally shock me to see Kobe hit 50 in this one.

It remains to be seen exactly how Phil Jackson will adjust the rotation in the absence of Bynum and Pau. Going small - with, say, Odom at center and Shannon Brown in the starting lineup - strikes me as inadvisable. Randolph and Marc Gasol are too potent inside and can do too much damage on the offensive glass. Dr. Fishmore instead prescribes heavy minutes for DJ Mbenga and Josh Powell.

Straight Outta Vancouver, our sibling Grizzlies blog on SB Nation, does good work and will have more on this matchup. Feel free to pay them a visit, but please be neighborly if you do. They have to root for the Grizzlies, after all. They don't need any additional grief.

Mavs Bounce Back: Beat Lakers 94-80

Wes Cox — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 06:31:56 -0000

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Dampier played good defense on Bynum all night - significantly better than Gooden.
I love how Matt Caroll rocks the headband while he's on the bench.
Shawn Marion played much better defense on Kobe Bryant than Quentin Ross.
Kris Humphries was very active all night, and he got rewarded with 20 minutes -- something he only did twice last season.
Rick Carlisle didn't go to the three guard lineup until the fourth quarter. Obviously they went to a zone at that point, and it worked pretty well. Dallas was +5 during that 8 minute stretch that effectively closed out the game.
The Lakers made 13 FG's in the second half.
Shawn Marion was a team worst -17 in game one, and team best +37 in game two.
Shannon Brown's dunk early in the fourth was sick. I was pretty surprised he didn't get a T for hanging on the rim, but I'm not going to complain since Dallas got the majority of the calls throughout the game.
James Singleton saw the court and made hist first shot of the season -- an open three (he was 13 of 40 from outside the arc last season)
I say this every time Dallas plays the Lakers at the Staples center, but I still love their stage lighting and would love to see it at the AAC.
After a win like that, they might have to wear those new blue unis more often. I thought they looked pretty good too.

Postgame Quotes Jason Terry

We owed our fans a better performance tonight, and we know they were all watching at home. The Lakers, we have huge confidence playing against them. Last year we let three games slip away that we thought we had an opportunity to win. Tonight our confidence was up, but everyone contributed. You look at what Humphries did off the bench, Shawn Marion. Those guys are just now getting acclimated to what we are doing, and we are learning how to utilize them offensively.

Postgame Quotes Shawn Marion

Not a lot of guys were talking about you before the season. Does this sort of victory put you on the map so to speak?

We're already on the map. Just because people didn't talk about us doesn't mean we're not on the map. Trust me, we're there. When you go look at the map you see Dallas right there.

Postgame Quotes Dirk Nowitzki

It was great. We haven't won in this building in what feels like forever. We played well, especially after losing the season opener at home which we took pretty hard. We played well together. We played well defensively. We competed. We kept them under 40% shooting.

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