Lakers Thread

[ABQCOWBOY]

Did they play well? Because it was a beat down until late in the fourth

That's not true. The Lakers were leading at the end of the 1st quarter. They got way down in the 2nd to the tune of 15 points. They were even in the 3rd at 22 points scored apiece and the Lakers won the 4th quarter, outscoring the Thunder by 8. I mean, if you say they were down most of the game and take that approach, then you also have to acknowledge that the final score was 114 to 108. That's a close game in the NBA.

 

[Bleu Star]

Well the Lakers didn't win, but OKC is a damn good team and nearly unbeatable in that crazy atmosphere at home. The Lakers did compete very well. Really wasn't expecting to win this game considering how depleted we were in the backcourt. When you're down to your third and fourth point guards and you face one of the best in the game in Russell Westbrook gonna be difficult to win. This kind of loss I don't mind. The losses that piss me off are the ones against those weaker teams like Orlando, an undermanned Dallas and Indiana team, Portland, Utah, and Sacremento.

I wasn't expecting to win this one either. If it wasn't for the ole' defense on Westbrook, we might have actually had a fighting chance. Duhon on Westbrook is commonly referred to in many circles as "highway robbery". Morris is serviceable but inconsistent, Blake has disappointed since becoming a Laker, and Nash brings nothing to the defensive side of the ball. In short, our front court defense is a marvel of epic failure. Getting Nash back will help create more consistency on the offensive side of the ball which will be great. We will have to become very good at outscoring opponents.

Gasoft needs to get with the program quickly or prepare to don a different color uniform. We need athleticism at that 4 position and if he can't bring it, get him out of LA.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

Well the game really wasn't close until the Lakers made a little run at the very end, but the outcome was never in doubt.

But like C&L said, can't really expect to win that game in OKC with Nash and Gasol in street clothes. So no big deal.

What do you Lakers fans think about all those stories of Kobe and Howard not liking each other? True concern or overblown media story?

I do have to laugh at the people like casmith (where'd he go) who always claimed Westbrook sucked...

 

[Bleu Star]

Well the game really wasn't close until the Lakers made a little run at the very end, but the outcome was never in doubt.

But like C&L said, can't really expect to win that game in OKC with Nash and Gasol in street clothes. So no big deal.

What do you Lakers fans think about all those stories of Kobe and Howard not liking each other? True concern or overblown media story?

I do have to laugh at the people like casmith (where'd he go) who always claimed Westbrook sucked...

Westbrook's game is amazing and the scary thing about it is that he hasn't even reached his peak yet. I do believe the Kobe/Dwight stories are completely overblown by bored uninsightful media.

 

[Cowboys&LakersFan]

Well the game really wasn't close until the Lakers made a little run at the very end, but the outcome was never in doubt.

But like C&L said, can't really expect to win that game in OKC with Nash and Gasol in street clothes. So no big deal.

What do you Lakers fans think about all those stories of Kobe and Howard not liking each other? True concern or overblown media story?

I do have to laugh at the people like casmith (where'd he go) who always claimed Westbrook sucked...

Overblown media story. As Kobe said yesterday in his interview he told Dwight when he arrived that he wasn't gonna be easy on him or anybody else. Kobe knows time is running out on his career and he can't afford to be baby sitting anyone right now. Kobe also said that Dwight welcomes that. It's not easy to play with a guy like Bryant. Anyone who has played with him will tell you that, but if you really wanna win than you'll listen to what the guy has to say. He may be stubborn, but the guy just wants to do everything in his power to win. During the course of a long season guys will have disagreements. I remember last season Durant and Westbrook did as well and people made a huge deal of out it when it wasn't really warranted. That's just the nature of the game.

Speaking of Westbrook the guy is an amazing talent. Without question the most athletic guard in the game. His problem is sometimes he tends to play out of control and go away from Kevin Durant. At times he has poor shot selection, but I will say over the course of his career he has improved in that aspect. That's part of just growing up and maturing as a player. It was the same thing with Kobe. Westbrook is only shooting about 42 percent, but the other areas such as rebounding, defense, and play making have improved immensely. He just needs to continue to grow. As far as guards go I think he's the third best in the game right now behind only Kobe Bryant and Chris Paul.

 

[juck]

9-12 Karma? :

 

[MC KAos]

That's not true. The Lakers were leading at the end of the 1st quarter. They got way down in the 2nd to the tune of 15 points. They were even in the 3rd at 22 points scored apiece and the Lakers won the 4th quarter, outscoring the Thunder by 8. I mean, if you say they were down most of the game and take that approach, then you also have to acknowledge that the final score was 114 to 108. That's a close game in the NBA.

At one point the thunder were up by 20 plus points, the game was never in question, despite the final score, it wasn't a close game

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

At one point the thunder were up by 20 plus points, the game was never in question, despite the final score, it wasn't a close game

At one point, that might be true but you can't say that they didn't play well. They outscored OkCity in two quarters, scored even in one and were outscored by a tone in one quarter. I don't think it's true to say that they didn't play well. At times, they did. Not well enough, we can easily agree on that but it's not like the Lakers were drubbed the entire game. They did play well against the Thunder at times during the game.

 

[MC KAos]

At one point, that might be true but you can't say that they didn't play well. They outscored OkCity in two quarters, scored even in one and were outscored by a tone in one quarter. I don't think it's true to say that they didn't play well. At times, they did. Not well enough, we can easily agree on that but it's not like the Lakers were drubbed the entire game. They did play well against the Thunder at times during the game.

Every team plays well "at times" but the fact is that game was teetering on being a blowout and the lakers just never gave the sense that they were going to win, like, at any point in the game

 

[MC KAos]

And by never, I mean they didn't play we'll enough on D to give themselves a realistic chance at winning that game. That's why it was never in question to me, because I knew when push came to shove the lakers couldn't stop the thunder

 

[juck]

All those expectations lol Poor Komeeeee

 

[crazytown41]

It's pretty comical how low this team has sunk. It seems so long ago when Laker fans were posting that starting 5 picture everywhere on the internet and how they were going to break the Bulls record.

2008 = This team would be unstoppable

2012 = Old, slow, and injury prone

 

[MC KAos]

The lakers first round pick is not lottery protected...

 

[juck]

The lakers first round pick is not lottery protected...

ouch :laugh2:

 

[Cowboys&LakersFan]

Greg Anthony said it best last night in regards to the Lakers. They have alot of individual talent, but right now they're a bad team. People get on Kobe for shooting too much, but he has to. Who else is gonna take the shots in the fourth quarter? Dwight obviously can't shoot free throws so it's hard to go to him. The rest of the guys like Jamison, World Peace, Duhon, Meeks, have just been incredibly inconsistent. Defensively is the main issue. The perimeter players can't contain their man and as a result Howard has to help and no one is helping him. That has to change and it's gotta chance quickly. I do think getting Nash back will help because he makes life easier for his teammates and he takes the ball out of Kobe's hands, but he won't fix the most pressing issue which is defense. It's not the coach's fault either. It's on the players. At the end of the day they're the ones playing not Mike. They just aren't playing with any intensity or passion.

 

[RastaRocket]

Greg Anthony said it best last night in regards to the Lakers. They have alot of individual talent, but right now they're a bad team. People get on Kobe for shooting too much, but he has to. Who else is gonna take the shots in the fourth quarter? Dwight obviously can't shoot free throws so it's hard to go to him. The rest of the guys like Jamison, World Peace, Duhon, Meeks, have just been incredibly inconsistent. Defensively is the main issue. The perimeter players can't contain their man and as a result Howard has to help and no one is helping him. That has to change and it's gotta chance quickly. I do think getting Nash back will help because he makes life easier for his teammates and he takes the ball out of Kobe's hands, but he won't fix the most pressing issue which is defense. It's not the coach's fault either. It's on the players. At the end of the day they're the ones playing not Mike. They just aren't playing with any intensity or passion.

 

[Boys122]

I'm not even sure if this team can win with Steve Nash. I really don't know what the problem is but they messed up by not hiring Phil Jackson back.

Getting beat by a team like Cleveland was embarrassing. I hope this isn't one of those it's a process coaches.

 

[JohnnyHopkins]

I'm not even sure if this team can win with Steve Nash. I really don't know what the problem is but they messed up by not hiring Phil Jackson back.

Getting beat by a team like Cleveland was embarrassing. I hope this isn't one of those it's a process coaches.

I agree 100% with the Jackson thing. D'Antoni has never been a big fan of adjusting his schemes to fit the personnel, so this might end up being a catastrophic hire (MWP and Gasol in particular are pretty darn slow for his style of play). Howard has not looked right since he put on that Lakers uniform, but he may end up coming around as he gets more comfortable with his teammates and his role on this team. They need to be careful with him though because he is very, very sensitive to criticism.

If they can get him on board with the game-plan and get Nash back healthy then they might be able to turn this thing around this season. They need him in a bad way.

 

[Cowboys&LakersFan]

41 points given up in the first quarter. :laugh1: :laugh2: :bang2:

 

[Cowboys&LakersFan]

Another loss.

That's four in a row. Gonna be five tommorow after we lose to the Washington Generals. After that we finish out the road trip with Philadelphia. In all likelihood we'll be heading back to L.A. on a six game slide. I'm not even sure the Lakers can make the playoffs at this point. If that's the case management should try to convince Kobe and Nash to retire, let Dwight walk, get some cap space, trade Pau, and tank.