Lakers-Spurs: Los Angeles Manhandles San Antonio to Take 2-0 Lead

The Los Angeles Lakers will be hard pressed to play better than they did in Game Two, as they completely dismantled the Spurs, 101-71.  The surprising thing is not that they beat San Antonio—it is the way they have been doing it. 

L.A. has played excellent team defense—especially against the pick and roll, which Tony Parker thrives on.  Individually, Sasha Vujacic has tormented Manu Ginobili into two very sub-par efforts.  Ginobili finished Game Two with only seven points, on 2-8 shooting. 

The Lakers are prepared and Phil Jackson knows exactly how he wants to defend San Antonio—and so far they are executing their game plan.

The Spurs seem to be playing on their heels and look tentative.  Tony Parker in particular seems to be playing less aggressively than he did against the Hornets.  Derek Fisher is a good, experienced defender, but Parker doesn’t seem to be able to get to the basket consistently.  If San Antonio is to rebound at home, Parker is going to have to be one of the reasons why.

The Lakers have not lost much when their bench comes in, either.  They have actually extended leads when their starters are off the floor. 

By contrast, when San Antonio’s bench was in the game, they struggled to score points.  Gregg Poppovich may have to adjust his rotation, because there were too many times in Game Two where there were just two Spurs on the floor who were legitimate scorers.

That gave Los Angeles the opportunity to double team off of guys like Robert Horry, Jacque Vaughn, and Bruce Bowen.  Bowen, to his credit, has been making a decent amount of his open shots—but the Lakers don’t fear him as a scorer.

After sub-par performances in Game One, Fisher and Lamar Odom (20 points, 12 rebounds) set the tone in this game, and were very active on offense and defense.  Along with Jordan Farmar (14 points), they continually pushed the ball up the floor with every opportunity, and the Spurs looked like they were playing with lead weights on their feet.

Kobe Bryant was his usual unstoppable self, but he didn’t have to be extraordinary this game.  The Lakers dismantled the Spurs as a team, and now San Antonio finds themselves in the same predicament they were in versus New Orleans.

In order for the Spurs to win, Popovich will have to come up with schemes to free up their scorers so they get easier baskets.  The condition of Ginobili’s ankle will be key as well. If Manu cannot attack the basket he will become a jump shooter, and he has not been effective at that so far.  The Lakers have had success defending Ginobili during the season, so this is not new for them.

Parker will have to step up, put pressure on the Laker defenders, and get to the basket. When that isn’t happening he needs to set up Finley, and perhaps Brent Barry, for open threes.  Parker and Duncan need to get fifty points together to have a chance.

Defensively, San Antonio has to decide to take away something from L.A.  If they decide to let Kobe go one on one, they can’t let him set up his teammates for easy baskets.  They can let Kobe get forty points, but they have to limit the rest of his team.  Kobe has learned that setting up other players is just as important as scoring, and San Antonio must make a decision on how to limit the damage he is inflicting.

I wouldn’t count the Spurs out.  They have not looked good, but as they have shown us in past series, they will not go out with out a fight.  They have the heart of a championship and they are truly a team.  I look for them to win game three at home and generate some momentum.  It is really a must win game.