The Association

Five Questions (Not WTF X 5) After The Lakers Lose Game 4

By Craig Kwasniewski

Nothing gets me out of a year long writer's block faster than a terrible Lakers loss.  Terrible you say, but didn't they steal back home court advantage on Friday?  Aren't they playing with house money, just a chance to steal a 3-1 lead with a shot at closing out the series on Tuesday?  Yes for any other team in the NBA, but these are the two-time defending champs, with Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson, Pau Gasol and the reigning 6th man Lamar Odom (more on him later, oh yes, more on him later!)... 

Point blank, the Lakers have no business struggling against New Orleans Hornets.  It's not about being an arrogant Lakers fan it's simply about match-ups and overall talent.  The Lakers have championship talent and coaching whereas the Hornets have 7th seeded talent with their all-star power forward out for the year. At best/worst this is a five-game series and nothing more.

Let's get right to it, five questions after the Lakers lost Game 4:

1 - What's wrong with Pau Gasol?  How is it that the triumvirate of Carl Landry, Aaron Gray and DJ Mbenga are constantly giving one of the best big men in the NBA constant fits?  Didn't Gasol finally exorcise his demons last summer against the Celtics?  Isn't he supposed to be fired up after hearing Kendrick Perkins call him out for being soft?  Yet here we are again and three very physical bigs are throwing 48 minutes of body blows and Pau's leaning hard against the ropes.  It's actually brilliant coaching by Monty Williams.  He knows his bigs can't match Gasol point for point so instead lean, push, shove and occasionally elbow the willowy forward out of his comfort zone.  And you know what? It's working!  One of the surest, most reliable bigs in the NBA is questioning himself, dropping sure passes and missing bunnies.  It's ugly, but not incurable.  Pau needs to be patient and trust the Triangle, feed the cutters and move up to the pinch post, opening the key for Bynum to work inside.  But really, Monty Williams has been a genius in handing Gasol.

2 - Will Kobe's ankle hurt the Lakers in Game 5?  Over this back-to-back championship run, the Lakers actually play better when Kobe's dinged up.  Suddenly he realizes he's human and actually has to trust the system.  The system?  Oh yeah the Triangle Offense that brought Phil Jackson 11 NBA titles.  During the Lakers slide in April, Kobe's need to prove he's still a top 5 player has hurt the Lakers offensive rhythm.  With a dinged ankle he will realize he can't break down defenses one-on-five and has to initiate the Triangle as intended from the inside out. With Bynum, Gasol and Odom inside, the Lakers should be fine.

However if Kobe goes out to prove he's not hurt and tries to find a "Jordan Flu Game" situation then the Lakers will struggle on Tuesday.  But I really don't see that happening.

3 - Lamar Odom... WTF?  This was going to be a "Five Questions About Lamar Odom's Heart" post but Matt Moore correctly pointed out that he's not really a major storyline for the Lakers.  So I'll just waste one question on the guy, but trust me one more game like this and I'm starting a Lamarmustgo.com blog.  How the hell can you mail in two playoff games?  How is it that the media continues to give Odom a hall pass for these shit-storm efforts?  Can we revoke the 6th Man Award?  

I read how Gasol has disappeared, how Kobe's shot selection is off and how Bynum isn't getting touches, but what about Odom averaging 8 points and 2.5 rebounds in the two losses?  (And really it's 5 points per but Odom hit two late BS threes in Game 1 to bring his total to a respectable 10.)  Watch Game 4 again and focus on Odom, the guy spent the 4th quarter running away from action.  How?  Why?  How?  Why?  Seriously, I'm not sure where to start but I know where to finish, Lamar you played like ass in games 1 and 4 and if nobody will say it I will... DO YOU REALIZE IT'S THE PLAYOFFS???  

At least Phil Jackson called you out (well indirectly but anyone who watched the game knows who PJ was talking about) when he said, "We punked out there on the court tonight.”

That's you Lamar!  In this series he's averaging 11.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per, far less than 14.4 and 8.7 that the "6th Man of the Year" winner was dropping nightly.  Is this just Monty Williams pushing all the right buttons again?  Hardly.  This is Lamar Odom on Sunday mode and no coincidence, the Lakers lost both games on Sunday.

4 - Is Chris Paul the difference in the series?  Yes and no.  He's been absolutely stellar in the Hornets two wins.  He's turned the clock back to his near-MVP season of 2008 with huge assist numbers and a jarring triple double tonight.  He's exactly what we thought he'd be (slam the dais!).  But the real difference-maker is Monty Williams.  He's devised a punch-you-in-the-face physical defense that has Gasol reeling.  Plus by managing Chris Paul's minutes during the regular season (obviously a trait he picked up from Gregg Popovich) he has a very spry and healthy CP3 to work with.  The Hornets might not have the talent to match the Lakers, but with Williams on the sideline the actually believe they have a decent shot at knocking off the defending champs... and really that's half the battle: belief.  

5 - Can the Lakers pull through?  Cliche alert!  The better team always wins in a seven game series.  The Lakers still have more talent and Phil Jackson still calls the shots, so in theory the Lakers will still prevail.  It's frustrating because the Lakers know EXACTLY what to do to beat New Orleans but they can't find the energy to execute.  It's a matter of effort and talent.  They have the talent but they haven't given the right amount of effort to advance.  Simply put, it's about initiating the offense from inside-out, contesting the perimeter on D and controlling the boards. Done and done in Games 2 and 3 but the Lakers underestimated the Hornets resolve and expected them to simply give up after dropping Game 3.  That wasn't the case and now they're faced with the dreaded "must win" game on Tuesday.  

The dominant defensive Lakers will return on Tuesday and they'll match the same energy for a Game 6 win, but this should never have been a 6 game series against an undermanned New Orleans Hornets squad.

NOLA's Jeff Bowler is Quite the Bower... Wait What?

By Craig Kwasniewski

Some people fit the look and some people look the fit... NOLA's head coach Jeff Bowler ooops Jeff BOWER looks almost tooooo happy at Peja Stojakovic's third annual Charitabowl celebrity bowling event.  Rumor has it he doesn't bowl on Shabbos.  I say Bower just owns it for the rest of the season... coach every game with a bowling shirt and a Miller High Life in hand. Don Nelson used to coach in Milwaukee with fish ties so why the hell not?

Seriously, how can his players ever take him seriously after seeing this?

BTW in another photo, here's the New Orleans Hornet pulling more chicks than Tiger Woods these days. It's all in the stinger baby... all right, terrible joke.

And finally, how can you go with a bowling reference and not quote Walter Sobchak:

Walter Sobchak: I told those fucks down at the league office a thousand times that I don't roll on Shabbos!

Donny: What's Shabbos?

Walter Sobchak: Saturday, Donny, is Shabbos, the Jewish day of rest. That means that I don't work, I don't get in a car, I don't fucking ride in a car, I don't pick up the phone, I don't turn on the oven, and I sure as shit [shouts]

Walter Sobchak: don't fucking roll! Shomer shabbos!

The Dude: Walter...

Walter Sobchak: Shomer fucking shabbos.

Message to Lakers Fans: Byron Scott is a Terrible Coach and Should Never Be in LA

By Craig Kwasniewski

Byron Scott was fired this afternoon as head coach of the NOLA Hornets. Really it was never a matter of if or even when but more like it's about damn time. Two teams, two firings, two times having feuds with All-Star point guards, two times with the locker room eventually tuning him out... this is a pattern not a matter of diminishing talent in either of his stints with New Jersey or New Orleans.  Byron Scott is a terrible coach plain and simple.

And I haven't even mentioned his X and O's skills.  Let's just say, he's very Mike Brown on the offensive end of the floor.  The Hornets literally ran one single solitary play with the high screen and roll with the center.  It worked a lot two years ago simply because of Chris Paul's immense talent and the chemistry between him and Tyson Chandler.  But better coached teams like San Antonio and the Lakers eventually exposed their bland offense game plan. 

Hell he even ran zone last night against the Suns, who by the way happen to be the best three point shooting team in the NBA.  To the surprise of nobody the Suns killed NOLA last night.  Come on people!

And now to my point... Lakers fans for the most part are excited at the notion of Byron Scott "coming home" to LA to coach the Lakers once Phil Jackson retires.  Are you kidding me?  The guy has been fired twice for basically the same reason... this is what we commonly refer to as a pattern.  Being a member of "The Lakers Family" doesn't mean they should roll out the red carpet and hire the guy.  In fact, if we're talking Byron Scott and family... we'll this is the one time I'll accept a little domestic violence.  There's no way in hell a franchise like the Lakers should waste any time on Bryon Scott as a coach. 

Where are the CP3 / NOLA Fans Now?

By Craig Kwasniewski

Where oh where are all the CP3 fans? Where are the ones who felt "slighted" when Kobe won the 07-08 MVP award? Where are the "experts" who predicted NOLA will win the Western Conference... ever? Where are the media people who: a) gave Byron Scott the 07-08 Coach of the Year award, b) were heaping praise on the Hornets GM for assembling that "talent" and c) were giving Chris Paul hourly courtesy reach-arounds and telling the world that he's the best player in the NBA.

WHERE... ARE... YOU???

The greatest thing about sports is the final score. You can write, talk or text your arguments to your hearts delight but at the end it all comes down to... scoreboard.

121 to 63

 

NOLA and ATL Impressive in Key Losses

by Craig Kwasniewski

So what did we learn from the two headline games last night?

1 - Boston and Los Angeles are CLEARLY 1 and 1A in the NBA. It's like it's 1985 all over again with both teams keeping a distant eye on each other as they roll over and through everyone in their way. You know Boston's pissed at all the attention the undefeated Lakers are getting and after thrashing Detroit and beating Atlanta last night they're sending a message to the rest of the league, "The Road to the Finals still goes through Boston!" I just hope neither team catches the injury bug... we need to see how the full 82 plays out with these two gunning for each other!

2 - Atlanta and New Orleans were impressive despite losing last night. Both teams were looking to deliver a message last night and both teams came up short.... barely. Atlanta went into Boston with an undefeated record intent on telling the defending champs that the seven game series last spring was no fluke. And outside of a clutch/miracle jumper from The Truth, they almost pulled of a W.

Atlanta can take away a few things from the loss. One, the C's respect ATL. They looked scary-motivated playing like it was June... nobody's played the Hawks that hard since 1994! Two, the Hawks hung in there against the defending champs without Josh Smith and with KG looking like he drank 760 Red Bulls at before the tip. Again, it says a lot about the respect for the Hawks after the C's virtually celebrated the W with parade and banner ceremony... IN NOVEMBER!!!!

New Orleans, a team that most of the media picked to topple LA simply because EVERYONE loves Chris Paul, withstood 3 quarters of the Lakers dominating them and almost stole a W at the end. What impressed me was their patience throughout the game. The Lakers were killing them on the boards, were getting well-timed steals and defended NOLA's dangerous perimeter game for three quarters leading by 19. Instead of rolling over and clearing the bench, NOLA took the Lakers punch... paused... and went right back with CP3 doing his thang, opening lanes and hitting guys for wide open threes, which finally started falling.

As I texted Brett last night, "NOLA's three point game always gives them a chance no matter what deficit." And NOLA showed me that despite the Lakers strong start, they'll be right there at all season.

Steve Kerr Can Learn a Thing or Two From the Hornets

by Craig Kwasniewski

New Orleans came through with a very impressive 108-95 win at Phoenix last night despite missing Tyson Chandler and losing Peja Stojakovic early in the second half.

The Suns were obviously gassed from Wednesday's win over San Antonio as they didn't match the energy or effort of the Hornets and opened trailing 14-2 at home. But that wasn't the real reason why the Suns lost nor was it Chris Paul shouldering the offensive load down the stretch nor was it all those UGLY turnovers by the Suns (which seems to be their new calling sign in the Shaq era).

What really lost the game was the 1-4 set that New Orleans ran in the last half of the 4th quarter. David West comes over at the top of the key to set a pick on CP3, freeing him up to do one of the following:

1 - Hit West for a pick and roll dunk.
2 - Hit Rashual Butler in the corner for a three.
3 - Hit Mo Pete in the other corner for a three.
4 - Dribble to the right a little and sit back as the defense rotates over to close off the lane… and then hit James Posey for top of the key three.

As long is the threes are falling, there's no way to stop that. And Butler and Posey hit EVERY SINGLE SHOT last night.

The funny thing is that the Hornets crunch time set was straight out of the Phoenix Suns circa 2006. And that's the difference between teams... the Suns no longer have consistent deep threats. This is where Steve Kerr dropped the ball. They need 3 or 4 guys who can stretch the defense and allow Stat and/or Shaq to roam the lane off pick and rolls with Nash. Instead, the defense can collapse and dare the likes of Grant Hill, Matt Barnes, Leandro Barbosa and Raja Bell to hit from three… which they can't. (BTW - This is also why the Lakers start Radmanovic over Odom, he's consistent enough from the perimeter that defenses can't just camp out in the lane.)

It's a little surprising to see a GM that earned his rings as a perimeter jump shooter completely ignore that aspect of the Suns roster. Does he always want to be the HORSE champ after practice? Does he still think he has a shot at player/GM with the Suns? The Hornets are LOADED with perimeter shooters, playing to CP3's strength of breaking down defenses and finding the open man... again much like Nash has been doing his entire career. But he can't do it with this roster.

NBA Draft Trade Roundup: Jermaine O'Neal to Toronto for T.J. Ford Is the Biggie

by Brett Edwards

A few quick trades to report today as we get ready for tomorrow night's draft.

Jermaine O'Neal to the Raptors in exchange for T.J. Ford: Good deal for both clubs. Indiana gets to rebuild with two first-rounders, and Toronto gets to team Chris Bosh and JO together (for at least the 50 games that O'Neal's healthy). Also, solves that silly point guard feud about who should start for the Raps.

Nuggets give trade their only pick to the Bobcats: Looks like Denver has no interest in the players who might be available at 20, and looks like Charlotte gets a chance to improve quickly with two first round picks. Nice move for the Bobcats, curious one for the Nuggets. Some possible reasons Denver might have done this.

Portland buys New Orleans' #27 Pick for $3M: Interesting move by the Blazers, who already seemed to have too many picks and players to begin with. Could they be stockpiling to move WAY up in the draft? Stay tuned.

Crash Goes the Hornets Bandwagon and Other Thoughts

By Craig Kwasniewski

Normally I'd break out a MMPG to round of some thoughts over the past weekend but I wanted to see who'd win last night (and was I wrong!). Anyway, here are some random thoughts now that we know the match-ups heading into the Conference Finals:

Who will the Media blow now that NOLA is gone? CRASH! BAM! BANG! The CP3 Bandwagon has crashed, blood is spilled all over the place at ESPN, AOL and all other media outlets. As great as Chris Paul was this season (and he WAS awesome!), the lovefest was getting very uncomfortable. Seriously, we were a Game 7 victory from media passes that double as knee pads.

The gushing was so bad that people were praising the efforts of the Hornets GM. The guy didn't draft Paul or David West and all he did this season was trade for Bonzi Wells. Yet somehow that's worthy of a 3rd place finish in the GM of the Year award behind Ainge and Mitch Kupchak. You're telling me that RC Bufford of the Spurs (who acquired Kurt Thomas for nothing and reacquired Bones Barry in a wink-wink deal) is worse? Ummmm, who won Game 7 last night?

And let's not forget to mention who won the Coach of the Year Award. Byron Scott is making a career of riding the coattails of brilliant point guards (Magic, Kidd, Paul). All he did was benefit from a healthy team and a breakthrough season from CP3. What about Jerry Sloan or Greg Popovich? And let's not overlook what Phil Jackson did in 07-08. He coached the Lakers through the Kobe saga in October, found success with Andrew Bynum as a solid No. 2, held the Lakers together through a myriad of injuries, blended in the skills of Pau Gasol (just ask Avery and D'Antoni how difficult that is) and molded the Lakers into one of the most efficient and explosive offensive teams this season. Oh and the Lakers improved by 15 games to lead the Western Conference. But forget all of that and give Byron Scott (a coach that runs one single offensive play) the Coach of the Year Award.

But as long as the Boston Celtics are around, there's still space for the media to pile on (there's no way in hell they fall for the Spurs or Pistons, people are still reeling from 2005).

22-3 is the most overrated stat since the Rockets winning streak: That's the record of the home teams in the Conference Semifinals and a CONSTANT storyline every single damn night. Just because the Celtics, Hornets, Jazz, Magic and Cavs all blow on the road doesn't make it a storyline. You want an impressive number try 3-2 (the Pistons road record) or 3-2 (the Lakers record on the road with 1 of those loses in OT). Could that mean something? Yeah, the Celtics, Hornets, Jazz, Magic and Cavs blow on the road (I'm not making predictions after last night!).

Doc vs. Flip... need I say anything? Does the Eastern Conference Finals involve the worst coaches not named Isiah Thomas? YES! Did Flip Saunders finally find someone he can outcoach? Yes and no only because we all know he doesn't coach the Pistons, but if he did he would. Will it be fun watching both dedicated, knowledgeable and passionate fans kill themselves over poor in-game decisions? YES! Will it be fun listening to Jeff Van Gundy lose his mind during the ABC telecast? Hell yes!

Pierce gives the Celtics a 4-2 lead with that hoop. AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

The Boston Front Runners: The Boston Celtics need to dial down all their crap! Yes, it's great to see KG's raw emotion and energy transfer up and down the roster, but show a little veteran poise. I really wanted to like this team after all the summer deals. It was exciting to see championship level hoops back in Boston again. The NBA ALWAYS is better with successful teams in Boston, LA, Chicago and New York... good, good, good. I even bought a KG No. 5 tee shirt that was an instant conversation piece whenever I wore it.

And then I saw scrubs like Kendrick Perkins trying to act like Rick Mahorn, Tony Allen running constant smack despite doing NOTHING and Glen Davis (btw - check out his pic here) being Glen Davis and I found them very unlikable. Mix in KG turing into The Big A-Hole after a win over hapless Minnesota and Paul Pierce doing his primal screams after a first quarter layup and I'm suddenly pulling for the Pistons. Whatever happened to acting like you've been there? Oh yeah, they haven't! Let's go with baby steps here... win a road game and maybe you can drop in some primal whispers.

Bring on the Spurs!: And finally, I knocked the Hornets all post season, but as a Lakers season ticket holder they had me scared. You had Chris Paul running roughshod through everyone to 28 and 14 every night, a very talented David West with his mid-range game and Tyson Chandler who's a very difficult player to defend. They had the potential to stretch the Lakers to 7. Instead, the Spurs come to town with a very physical defensive-oriented team, an All-Star power forward, a their brilliant coach and an awesome point guard. Didn't the Lakers just beat that? The difference is Manu Ginobili, but the Spurs are not as deep or as young as Utah. And Horry because of his Lakers background won't have the juice in him to pull any of his crap this time. Again, after last night, I'll pass on any predictions, but I feel better about this matchup.

Calling My Shot on the Spurs-NOLA Game

By Craig Kwasniewski

Just wasted to get in a quick prediction on tonight's Game 7 between the Spurs and Hornets. The Horry incident will backfire and give the Hornets that extra bit of raw emotion tonight. NOLA already feeds off the energy from their home court and instead of questioning their own ability after that blowout loss in Game 6, they come in with extra focus and a rallying cry. As hokey as it sounds, "Do it for West!" just might give them that extra intangible tonight. Also, I can't see the back injury getting to David West. He's easily one of the toughest players in the NBA and I see him responding with an exceptional game. Oh and we'll get the typical 28 and 14 fom CP3. Like every game in this atrocious series (Seriously, is this the worst 7-game series ever? No drama, the games are decided at the half and EXTENDED garbage time... I've seen way too much of Ryan Bowen on the floor).... ANYWAY, like every game in this atrocious series, tonight will not be close. The Hornets win easily 114-98.

Horry's Hit on West: Not Dirty

by Brett Edwards

Here's the video clip that has NBA fans all a-buzz this morning (no pun intended), the one where Robert Horry supposedly intentionally takes out David West. You can tell where I stand from the headline, and for my reasoning, check out the more detailed post I did at FanHouse.