GirlsAloudFan
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"We were just messin around last night. That game doesn't count."
NBA Basketball 2008-09: The Thread Part 2
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"We were just messin around last night. That game doesn't count."
disagree, sorta... i think orlando did a terrific job of taking advantage of what the lakers gave them. in the first few games they tried too hard to dump it into howard, who was being double and triple teamed before he even got the ball, and the offense stagnated because of it.
last night they spread the floor, moved the ball and used howard as a decoy... only good things can happen for the magic if they continue this approach. either the lakers will continue to allow them to shoot wide open shots, or it will force the lakers to stop sagging two guys onto howard before he gets the ball, and then they can start feeding him the ball more.
trying to force the ball into him right now would be a mistake. let him get it in the flow.
RedRocksU2
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Exactly
Hilarious.
and the fact that everything the threw went in. 75% FGA in the first half? unbelievable.
LMP
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Pau's new nickname is The Ostrich, by the way. His little hook shot is indefensible though.
A lot of those Magic points came from driving to the basket, scores in the paint, etc... not as much errant jumpers as the last 2 games. Rafer Alston showing a pulse early on really got them going. Great ball movement all around, especially by Turkoglu.
A lot of those Magic points came from driving to the basket, scores in the paint, etc... not as much errant jumpers as the last 2 games. Rafer Alston showing a pulse early on really got them going. Great ball movement all around, especially by Turkoglu.
thetitans2k
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the magic won because the shot the lights out. Hedo and Lewis were hitting everything from outside. They can only beat the lakers when their shooters are really hot.
lazarus
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I agree with this to an extent, but I imagine Jackson will be making that adjustment next game, no? If Lewis AND Alston continue to play well this is something he had to be prepared for.
Back to my original point--last night was a "nothing to lose" game for the Lakers. Many people felt that they would be in coasting mode and get beat handily (if not blown-out), but that didn't happen. They showed up not just to play, but to win. And Odom & Pau also seem to be locked in for good now. If they are both playing at that level, the Magic are in trouble, because they certainly aren't going to maintain that high shooting percentage.
namkcuR
ONE love, blood, life
Oh, I'm not disagreeing with you, they absolutely shouldn't force the ball into him when he's being clobbered like that. I'm just saying there were a few possessions in the fourth where they wouldn't have had to force anything with regards to Dwight, because he was standing near the hoop, either open or with just a single guy on him(I think one possession he was totally open and the one or two others I remember he had one guy on him), and his teammates passed up the opportunity.
I'm all for balancing the offense and not forcing the issue when Dwight's being smothered, that makes perfect sense, I just get annoyed when an elite big man who was in a pretty good offensive rhythm is passed over when he's relatively open is all.
Anyway, they won the game, so all is good.
i'd also like to add that michael jordan would be up 3-0 right now and would never play the way kobe did down the stretch when he had a team on the ropes.
never (and i say never because i am of the thought that the brief return after baseball and the 2 year return with the wizards never happened)
never (and i say never because i am of the thought that the brief return after baseball and the 2 year return with the wizards never happened)
namkcuR
ONE love, blood, life
Surely when you say 'brief return after baseball', you are referring just to the 1995 playoffs when the Bulls lost to Orlando, and not the three championships that followed, yes?
Also, I hate to be picky - and I will always be with you 100% on MJ being better than Kobe - but in 1993, the Bulls won the first two games of the finals vs the Suns in Phoenix, and then proceeded to lose game 3 in Chicago in triple OT. And in 1996, the 72-10 year, the Bulls were up 3-0 over the Sonics in the finals and lost games 4 and 5 in Seattle before winning it in game 6 in Chicago. And in 1998, they were 3-1 over Utah going into game 5 in Chicago, and they lost, and had to win it in game 6 in Utah.
But I guess your point was that MJ wouldn't have played as poorly as Kobe did in the final minutes of a crucial game...which I agree with.
yes, but in none of those games could you write it up to "... and the bulls lost 'cause michael jordan sucked down the stretch"
I would agree if the Lakers as a team hadn't played all that well, but I'd say that even with Kobe's 2nd half silence the Lakers played well, and the Magic still managed to come out on top.
Now granted, if your team finishes a game shooting nearly 70% from the floor, you should be winning games by more than 4 points. But I'd say there's a glimmer of hope for the Magic now that wasn't there before, and wouldn't have been there had the Lakers simply had an off game.
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What's that from?
RedRocksU2
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I believe it's from Sasha's dunk.
GirlsAloudFan
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Isn't it awesome?
It's from earlier this season...a crazy ass blocked shot that Shannon Brown had against the Hawks.
lazarus
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The most important thing to me again is that this was a game the Lakers were EXPECTED to lose, and lose by a large margin. First game on the road team's court after going down 0-2? As I said, Lakers had essentially nothing to lose. They played well, but as you said, the Magic shot a high percentage, and still only won in the last 30 seconds of the game.
If Kobe has a normal night at the free throw line, Lakers probably win that game. Kobe doesn't uncharacteristically lose the ball (he's known as the best handler in the league, no?), same thing. You think he's going to let that happen again?
I still think this goes to 6 games, at least. But they're not leaving Orlando without a win.
Hewson
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Its when the Lakers were at their best...Bynum in street clothes.
Eh, I'd say they won it before that, they just managed to hold on in the last 30 seconds. I don't know if the Lakers were expected to lose or not or by how much, but they certainly came out playing with the clear intention of taking the game, and Orlando was able to stop that.
Probably not, but Kobe did start out with guns blazing, but seemed to get increasingly frustrated as the game went on. Orlando's never going to be able to really stop him, but if they can make him work hard enough that he ends up getting frustrated... you never know.
Agreed.
LMP
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If they win this game, they pretty much break Orlando's back Bane-style. Why pass this up when you're supposedly the superior team with Kobe, who really, really wants it, apparently?
If, and this is a big 'if', the Magic win the next game, it seriously could go either way. I still think the Lakers have a better chance of winning the series, but my boys still do stand a great chance.
lazarus
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Why does any team pass up the chance? It was just shown above that a lot of teams that go up 2-0 fail to close it out during the third game. The Lakers actually played with more resolve than anyone was expecting last night, but they came up against a rejuvenated and inspired Magic offense. If that shooting percentage hadn't been good-to-great instead of superlative, no victory for the Magic.
Does that make sense? And yes, with each game the Magic wins, it doesn't seem like as much of an uphill climb. But correct me if I'm wrong, no one has beaten the Lakers two games in a row these playoffs, let alone three times.
Does that make sense? And yes, with each game the Magic wins, it doesn't seem like as much of an uphill climb. But correct me if I'm wrong, no one has beaten the Lakers two games in a row these playoffs, let alone three times.
LMP
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Yeah, I bet namkcuR posted the stats. That's true, but a lot of those shots were as much as product of stagnant defense (shots in transition, close to the basket, etc...) as they were an insane offense. Plus, the Magic had little to no answer for Gasol last night, and he only puts up 11 shots? He started putting Lewis into foul trouble when they put the ball in his hands around the late 3rd/early 4th quarter. Then again, if he doesn't make that dumb pass while he's on the ground, Pietrus doesn't get that steal and pretty much seal the game with his free throws.
Also true, but they're certainly better than those Jazz or Rockets teams that they faced... the Nuggets, possibly the same, if they weren't a pack of headcases with a choke-artist coach. If the Lakers bounce back tomorrow night, the series is over (no shit), but if they end up snagging Game 5 and go back to L.A. with a 3-2 lead, it's still kind of up in the air, even if it favors them.
Hell, if the Magic win all 3, which I really doubt, then who knows?
namkcuR
ONE love, blood, life
Huh? What stats?
phillyfan26
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I'm of the opinion that the Lakers are getting too much credit. They have a significant advantage right now, but this whole idea that Game 3 was an anomaly simply because of how well Orlando played doesn't sit right with me.
LMP
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It's because Kobe REALLY WANTS IT.
phillyfan26
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My one buddy told me tonight he doesn't understand my hate of Kobe. That's sort of like saying, "I don't understand why you dislike Ivan Drago."
LMP
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If Kobe was married to Brigitte Nielson he'd be 20x more entertaining.
"You think you're so berry, berry good, when we're so berry, berry bad."
"You think you're so berry, berry good, when we're so berry, berry bad."
he does.
see? clearly that scowl means that kobe is much angrier this year. if he had that scowl last year he would have beaten the celtics in 2 games. yes that's right... two. they would have beaten them so badly in the first two that boston would have just given up.
he really wants it.
it's not the only thing he wants
grrrrr.
i heard kobe puppet asked lebron puppet the same thing. boy sure does get his vitamins.
Hewson
Blue Crack Supplier
Kobe puppet should know you don't ask, you just do it, if he played for the Magic, coach Hedgehog would have taught him that.
namkcuR
ONE love, blood, life
LMP
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It was sarcasm.
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