Dagger
You all know much of a Kobe fan I am - haven't always liked the way he's carried himself, but as a complete player, there have been none better in the last 4 or 5 years. With that said, I've also never been one to say Kobe is "on the same level" with Jordan - never. BUT, what he did in the second half of that game was nothing short of amazing. 26 points in the second half, 17 in the fourth. There was no chance he was coming out in that second half (more on this later).
Unfortunately for Duncan, Kobe's performance (and Laker win) over-shadowed his remarkable game and yet again showed why he's the best at his position in the game...and has been for some time. Triple double in a losing effort - ain't that a bitch. And how Tony Parker is able to get to the basket like he does I'll never understand. They simply wore out against a younger and more athletic Laker team - they'll be back...they always do. Horry has to retire...HAS to retire. He's got 7 rings and was a huge liability against a younger, stronger Odom. Great career for the Will Smith stunt double, but it's time to hang it up.
Other than that the Spurs have their core locked in for the next 2 seasons so I imagine they won't drift far from the top 2 or 3 teams in the West anytime soon. Their management/coaches have proved themselves plenty of times in building this team and maintaining this talent.
Gasol:
So if you read my last post you may have come away thinking I'm a Gasol "hater". Not true. I have been critical of his play as of late primarily because of his softness. I may need someone to give me an intervention on Gasol because I swear to everything Holy I was cursing his name left and right during the entire game. Funny thing happened when the game ended - I read the box score and saw his stats......I then went and banged my head against a brick wall a few times, re-read the stat sheet and fainted. 12 points, 19 rebounds (10 offensive), and 5 assists. Wh-wh-wh-whaaaat? When in the hell did he do that? I guess I stand corrected because I will take those numbers on any day against any team in any situation.
He's clearly a finesse player (like most European players) and that's not a bad thing. If all stays constant, will be very interesting to see how he plays with Bynum down low and back at the power forward position - his natural spot. Unfortunately, him moving from a 5 to a 4 doesn't make him a tougher/more physical player - that's going to have to come from somewhere else on this team.
Zen Master:
Two things that were such brilliant and ballsy moves by Phil that you don't realize until it's analyzed after the fact. First, they were down by 17 in the second quarter with the second team in the game...and he kept them in for 4 to 6 minutes and maintained his rotation. No way any other coach would have done that...not in a second. Odom, Kobe and Gasol on the bench for that stretch.....and thos second-teamers cut the lead by a few points. That's confidence.
Second, he played that second half like it was a MUST WIN even though he was up 3-1. The beauty of that was he was right. You gotta think most would agree that if San Antone could pull out that win in LA they would most definitely find a way to win game 6 in the River City. And no way the Lakers, Jackson or anyone wanted any part of a game 7. He knew he needed that win and coached like it. I'm not positive, but I believe Kobe played every second of that second half. And he should have. Win this one and you're off for a week.
Kobe:
If you ever wonder if Kobe is attacking these playoffs with a greater sense of urgency than anyone else, look at his playoff averages: 32 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Better yet, his performance in the last two close-out games has been astonishing. 30+ in both games and a HUGE fourth quarter in both.
I previously wrote on this blog about my worry with either/both teams in the East, but after last night, I just feel there's no way Kobe will let this team lose a series. Another key element is home court advantage - in that the Lakers no longer have it regardless of who wins the east. But, the beauty of the finals is the format is 2-3-2 so three straight games in LA won't hurt.
Regardless, Kobe seems to be doing what ever he wants, when ever he wants to against some very, very good teams. You've likely heard it before, but the Lakers are 0-2 against the Celtics this year, but that was before the Gasol trade and before Kobe turned into a freak in the playoffs. It's hard to say if the Celtics are under performing or if it's just the parity in the league, but based on what I'm seeing right now, no one is playing with as much confidence and as well as the Lakers. Not making any projections, but I'm clearly much more confident than I was just 24 hours ago.
Random Thoughts (Some Sports, Some Not):
Unfortunately for Duncan, Kobe's performance (and Laker win) over-shadowed his remarkable game and yet again showed why he's the best at his position in the game...and has been for some time. Triple double in a losing effort - ain't that a bitch. And how Tony Parker is able to get to the basket like he does I'll never understand. They simply wore out against a younger and more athletic Laker team - they'll be back...they always do. Horry has to retire...HAS to retire. He's got 7 rings and was a huge liability against a younger, stronger Odom. Great career for the Will Smith stunt double, but it's time to hang it up.
Other than that the Spurs have their core locked in for the next 2 seasons so I imagine they won't drift far from the top 2 or 3 teams in the West anytime soon. Their management/coaches have proved themselves plenty of times in building this team and maintaining this talent.
Gasol:
So if you read my last post you may have come away thinking I'm a Gasol "hater". Not true. I have been critical of his play as of late primarily because of his softness. I may need someone to give me an intervention on Gasol because I swear to everything Holy I was cursing his name left and right during the entire game. Funny thing happened when the game ended - I read the box score and saw his stats......I then went and banged my head against a brick wall a few times, re-read the stat sheet and fainted. 12 points, 19 rebounds (10 offensive), and 5 assists. Wh-wh-wh-whaaaat? When in the hell did he do that? I guess I stand corrected because I will take those numbers on any day against any team in any situation.
He's clearly a finesse player (like most European players) and that's not a bad thing. If all stays constant, will be very interesting to see how he plays with Bynum down low and back at the power forward position - his natural spot. Unfortunately, him moving from a 5 to a 4 doesn't make him a tougher/more physical player - that's going to have to come from somewhere else on this team.
Zen Master:
Two things that were such brilliant and ballsy moves by Phil that you don't realize until it's analyzed after the fact. First, they were down by 17 in the second quarter with the second team in the game...and he kept them in for 4 to 6 minutes and maintained his rotation. No way any other coach would have done that...not in a second. Odom, Kobe and Gasol on the bench for that stretch.....and thos second-teamers cut the lead by a few points. That's confidence.
Second, he played that second half like it was a MUST WIN even though he was up 3-1. The beauty of that was he was right. You gotta think most would agree that if San Antone could pull out that win in LA they would most definitely find a way to win game 6 in the River City. And no way the Lakers, Jackson or anyone wanted any part of a game 7. He knew he needed that win and coached like it. I'm not positive, but I believe Kobe played every second of that second half. And he should have. Win this one and you're off for a week.
Kobe:
If you ever wonder if Kobe is attacking these playoffs with a greater sense of urgency than anyone else, look at his playoff averages: 32 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Better yet, his performance in the last two close-out games has been astonishing. 30+ in both games and a HUGE fourth quarter in both.
I previously wrote on this blog about my worry with either/both teams in the East, but after last night, I just feel there's no way Kobe will let this team lose a series. Another key element is home court advantage - in that the Lakers no longer have it regardless of who wins the east. But, the beauty of the finals is the format is 2-3-2 so three straight games in LA won't hurt.
Regardless, Kobe seems to be doing what ever he wants, when ever he wants to against some very, very good teams. You've likely heard it before, but the Lakers are 0-2 against the Celtics this year, but that was before the Gasol trade and before Kobe turned into a freak in the playoffs. It's hard to say if the Celtics are under performing or if it's just the parity in the league, but based on what I'm seeing right now, no one is playing with as much confidence and as well as the Lakers. Not making any projections, but I'm clearly much more confident than I was just 24 hours ago.
Random Thoughts (Some Sports, Some Not):
- Very random, but there's a great show that had a short stint on FX (I think) called Firefly - I got into it via a former co-worker (DBell) and they randomly had a marathon on the sci-fi channel (which has some crazy shit on it if you ever check that channel out) and was able to record them. Sort of a sci-fi/western show - very entertaining so check it out if you stumble on it. They made a movie about the show a few years back called Serenity - show is better.
- I'm going to ask this yet again - why has it become a foregone conclusion that Greg Oden is going to elevate the Blazers to an elite team in a very strong conference? I still don't get that - WE HAVE NO IDEA WHAT HE CAN DO AGAINST PREMIER COMPETITION!! Half of a college season - that's all we've seen. AND, his obvious weaknesses are easily exposed in this league. Not saying he'll completely suck, but to assume he's going to elevate this team to premier status is a bit overzealous.
- Do the crazy people out there realize how similar Obama's and Clinton's proposed policies are? Seriously. The organized Democrats may be facing an implosion of mass proportion - who amongst us can look away? It's funny....it's just not ha-ha funny.
- One more note on the election front - it's interesting how no one was putting up a fuss over Michigan and Florida 6-10 months ago when it was announced that their delegates would not be seated at the convention (because they blatantly and intentionally broke the rules that were crystal clear). Now all of a sudden it's a big deal, huh Hillary? The funnier thing is if she were winning she wouldn't give two hoots about it and Obama would be screaming his head off about it - stupid politicians.... Look, I know the rules were probably asinine and I'd be lying to you if I said I understood it, but the fact remains: they knew exactly what they were doing when they did it and they knew exactly what the consequences would be. Given that there should really be no debate/question as to whether or not those delegates should be allowed to be seated. The best part you ask? Now they've gone in and compromised to seat half of them. OK, so now we remove the accountability and responsibility part about following the rules? Stellar work guys.
- I don't watch WNBA, but rookie Candice Parker is pretty damn impressive - she may dominate the league for the next few years.
- Saw a headline on the Bush allegations at USC - is that still going on? Between that and OJ Mayo incident it may be a long year for USC.
- Well, I didn't follow as much as I normally do this year, but Texas' baseball season ended on Sunday with a loss to Rice in the regional championships.
- Saw a few new movies this weekend as it was a lay-low weekend at our house: Michael Clayton was pretty darn good, very entertaining. Oceans 13...I liked it better the first time when it was called Oceans 11. Seriously, stop making these movies. And finally, I'm not ashamed to admit I rented and watched Rambo (wife wasn't around for this one). By a mile the most violent and at times, disturbing movie I've ever seen. Seriously, I'm not a wuss about superfluous violence in most instances, but this was just way too much. Some of the graphic scenes (and there were A LOT) were just way too overboard. And I swear to you right here and now I only understood about a third of what Stallone was saying throughout the entire movie. As you may have guessed, this was a "film" where dialogue was not important/necessary.
- I'm ready for football season already...
posted by The Bearden Wonder at 6:45 PM
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