Bleacher Report - Articles by Carlo Linga

LA Lakers Midseason Awards: Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom Deserve Recognition

Carlo Linga — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 12:56:08 -0500

With the NBA season near its halfway mark, and the Lakers having the best record in the Western Conference, it's about time we handout some midseason awards for the LA Lakers' strong 2008-'09 season.

For this round, I'd be giving four awards—MVP, sixth man, most-improved, and their Mythical Five. Feel free to comment and suggest other awards.

Most Valuable Player: Kobe Bryant

Even without looking at the stat sheets, I think nobody will argue that Kobe is still, and would continue to be in the next few years, the Lakers' best player. The Lakers still don't have a One-Two Punch, or a Big Three, or the Strong Five. They only have one MVP and that's Kobe Bryant! No more, no less.

But let's be objective and look at his numbers.

His stats are a bit off this season (27.2 points, 4.7 assists, 1.32 steals) compared to his last year's performance (28.3 points, 5.4 assists, 1.84 steals) that made him the league MVP. But this is attributed more to the improved performance of his teammates rather than his diminishing contributions.

He's playing less minutes this season (36.2 vs. 38.9 last season) but his performance efficiency rating (PER) improved from 24.09 to 25.06, the second best this year behind Miami's Dwayne Wade. Wait...let me check that again.

Oh, sorry. The Lakers lost in their last two games and Bryant's PER dropped to 24.97, just good for number three behind Portland's Brandon Roy.

Bryant also increased his contributions to the team this January when the level of competition increases as we approach the middle of the season and the trading deadline. He averaged 30.1 points on 49.2 percent shooting (45.9 percent from beyond the arc), 7.1 assists, and 6.0 rebounds in nine games this January.

And for those who think that Kobe shoots too much and misses a lot: Well, he has the best field goal percentage (47.8 percent) for shooting guards with PER of 20 or more (Roy is second, Wade third).

Sixth Man Award: Lamar Odom

Just by watching their games, it's not easy to see Odom's contributions to the team. He's coming off-the-bench; he plays shorter minutes; he usually doesn't score much; his rebounding is off; etc. etc.

Moreover, his stats are all off from last season. Last year, he averaged 14.2 points on 52.5 percent shooting, 3.5 assists, 10.7 rebounds in 37.9 minutes of playing time. This season, his averages dipped to 9.1 points on 47.3 percent shooting, 2.4 assists, 6.1 rebounds in 26.4 minutes of playing time.

So why am I giving this sixth man award to Lamar in spite of his seemingly diminished performance? Well, this award should go to the player who contributes the most to his team by doing the other things that bench players are supposed to be doing when they are on the court.

The little things that current statistics don't track like setting screens, taking charges, drawing double teams, etc.

And that's what Odom keeps on doing.

By looking at his on-court/off-court statistics, which measures a player's contribution to the team when he's on-the-court and how the team performs when the player is on-the-bench, it's easy to realize how the Lakers could dominate their opponents when Odom is on-the-floor.

Odom's net on-court/off-court stat of +15.4 is the highest on the team. It's even better than Bryant's +8.7 and Fisher's +4.8 stats. This doesn't suggest that Lamar is more important than Kobe for the team.

It's just that Odom is very good playing in his position (power forward) that he's either outscoring his counterparts or limiting their productions by his active defense.

Odom is No. 5 in the league on the net on-court/off-court performance per 100 possessions, behind New Orleans' dynamic duo, Chris Paul and David West, Miami's Dwayne Wade, and Cleveland's LeBron James.

All the top 16 players in this category are regular starters on their team except for Odom and Utah's Andrei Kirilenko (No. 10).

With this stats, you'd wonder why Phil Jackson continues to have Lamar come off-the-bench. I also do. In fact, I wrote an article last month regarding the need to have Odom return to their starting lineup.

Most Improved Player: Trevor Ariza

Trevor Ariza really improved a lot this season. Last year, he averaged 6.5 points, 1.5 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 24 games he played for the Lakers. Those stats are already a marked improvement over his performance in Orlando (3.3 points, 0.7 assists, 2.2 rebounds, and 0.5 steals)

This season, he raised his averages to 9.2 points, 2.1 assists, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game. His PER has improved from 15.83 to 17.66 and now ranks 10th among small forwards in pure point rating.

Ariza ranks second among small forwards in free-throw rate, eighth in rebound rate, and fourth in field-goal percentage.

So you wonder again why Jackson keeps Trevor coming off the bench? More on this later.

Mythical Five: Fisher-Bryant-Ariza-Odom-Gasol

This combination should be the Lakers starting lineup. It is their strongest unit producing +70 and 72.7 percent winning percentage in the 82games.com rating vs. the +57 and 48.0 percent winning percentage for their current starting lineup.

But why Jackson in not putting this combination on floor to start the games? Because he feels this unit is just a minor upgrade from the lineup that was routed by the Celtics in the NBA Finals last season. Admittedly, Ariza in place of Radmanovic is a minor upgrade.

So he's really is trying to get Gasol and Bynum play together. He's very strategic-minded. If he succeed, the Twin Tower of Gasol and Bynum would be very formidable, indeed.

Jackson is trying to develop Bynum to be a defensive-minded center while Gasol, an unstoppable offensive power forward. But the problem is, the two are not getting it yet. They are taking away scoring opportunities from each other.

Pau Gasol's scoring dipped from 18.8 points per game on 58.9 percent shooting last season as a Laker to 17.6 points at 54.8 percent shooting this season. Andrew Bynum's 13.1 points on 63.6 percent shooting last year also went south with 12.6 points on 53.7 percent shooting this season.

In fairness to Gasol and Bynum, they are very good at center position. They combined to make the Lakers the third-best in that position in terms of PER difference. The best in that category is Dwight Howard's Magic. No wonder they couldn't beat Orlando.

The second-best in that category is Cleveland. And they would be playing them tonight. Watch their performance.

Gasol ranked sixth among power forwards in the league in efficiency rating at 21.77 PER. But he only plays around 50 percent of the time at that position, the other half being played by Odom. Half of the time, Gasol is playing center, which is where he's more effective.

He produces +162 net points in the 82games.com rating with net48 of 12.7 with 75 win% as a center. As a power forward, he's only +76 with net48 of just 5.5 and 50 win percentage.

In contrast, Odom, playing at power forward, is +303 with net48 of 16.5 and 85 win percentage. Andrew Bynum is +183 with net48 of 8.2 and 66 win percentage.

These stats are quite complicated but it clearly shows that Odom and Gasol should be given more playing time at their natural position—that is at power forward and at center, respectively.

I'm not suggesting that Gasol and Bynum split the 48 minutes available playing time for one position. They are both too good to be playing just 24 minutes each. Sure, play Pau some minutes at forward but reduce it a bit to give more time for Lamar to be more effective.

This is it for now. Again, feel free to comment and suggest other awards for their other worthy performances.

Note: This article originally appeared in my blogspot.

The Lakers Can't Beat Orlando

Carlo Linga — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 00:22:43 -0500

Inspite of a spectacular game from Kobe Bryant, the LA Lakers lost to the Orlando Magic 109-103 Friday night. Bryant had a triple-double performance, the 15th of his career and first since April 2005, scoring 28 points, grabbing 13 rebounds, and dishing out 11 assists in 41 minutes.

With the Magic leading by three, Bryant missed a 27-foot three-pointer from the right wing that could have tied the game with 8.9 seconds left in the game. Jameer Nelson, who got the offensive rebound, was quickly fouled by Pau Gasol. He made both free throws to increase the lead to five.

Bryant again tried and missed a three-point shot with 4.9 seconds to go but no effort could have saved the game with only few seconds remaining in the game with the Lakers suffering their second consecutive loss to the Magic.

But the Lakers didn't lose the game on that last two shots of Bryant. They lost it in the third quarter where they were outscored by Orlando 30-21.

The Lakers entered the third period leading by eight points. Andrew Bynum scored 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting in the first half helping lift the Lakers to a 52-44 lead over the Magic at halftime. But he went 1-of-4 in the second half and finished with 14 points with just three rebounds.

In the Lakers' loss in Orlando last December, Bynum scored just three points on 1-of-4 shooting and had just a single rebound. He's a non-factor again in the second-half this time.

Pau Gasol, who scored just 11 points with seven rebounds in their previous game in Orlando, only scored 13 points on 5-of-13 shooting with nine rebounds in 33 minutes. Their two 7-footers combined for just 27 points and 12 rebounds, seven on the offensive end.

In contrast, Orlando's Dwight Howard scored 25 points, grabbed 20 rebounds, eight on the offensive end, and blocked three shots. Howard had his fourth 20-20 game this season in a game against the Lakers' Twin Tower! If you're the Lakers' GM, would you trade 7-footers Gasol and Bynum for 6'11" Howard? I would...

Also, for the first time in Orlando's franchise history, the Magic sweep their season series with the Lakers. The Magic wasn't able to do that when the Lakers had a 6'11" Kwame Brown as their starting center going against Howard.

Maybe the Lakers should hire Brown as special consultant to teach the Lakers big men how to play "defense" against the likes of Howard. Too bad he's still active and wouldn't be available. He's still warming the bench in Detroit!

Derek Fisher also struggled missing eight of his 11 attempts for just nine points. In their last game, he scored 27 points on 9-of-16 shooting.

Sasha Vujacic returned after missing two games with back spasms, but he didn't score in his 13 minutes on the court. Trevor Ariza added just 7 points off-the-bench.

On the positive note, Lamar Odom had a decent game this time. He had 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting and grabbed nine boards. In their last meeting, Odom was also a non-factor on offense with only four points on 1-of-7 shooting, although he matched the total rebounding contributions of their Twin Tower with eight boards.

Vladimir Radmanovic added 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including 5-of-8 from beyond the arc.

Jameer Nelson was the top scorer for Orlando with 28 points with 8 assists. All the Orlando starters scored in double figures, with Rashard Lewis getting 15, Hedo Turkoglu 13 and Courtney Lee 12.

Note: This article first appeared in my LA Lakers News Blogspot

Pau Gasol the Key to Lakers' Dominance

Carlo Linga — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 11:39:01 -0500

There is no doubt that having Kobe Bryant in their lineup makes the LA Lakers a great team. However, Bryant alone can't make this team win a championship. One great player can't beat five opposing players, even with lesser talents playing on the same court for 48 minutes.

Even the great Michael Jordan couldn’t have won a championship without another great player—Scottie Pippen.

Let's look at the great NBA duos (or trios for the Spurs and Celtics and a quintet for the Pistons) in the past two decades.

Jordan had Pippen in Chicago. They made the Bulls the most dominant team in the '90s and had six championship rings together.

David Robinson had Tim Duncan earlier, and Duncan had Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker later in San Antonio. They made the Spurs one of the best teams of the 2000s by winning four championships between them.

Shaq had Kobe in the previous edition of the LA Lakers, and they made the Lakers the most dominant team early in this decade by winning three consecutive titles.

Chauncey Billups had four other Pistons in Detroit, and they won a championship together.

Dwyane Wade had Shaq for one championship ring, beating a good Dallas Mavericks team featuring just one MVP player, Dirk Nowitzki.

Last year, Paul Pierce had Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett. The "Big Three" won the championship last season beating a Lakers team with one great player and another All-Star material who played very well in sweeping through the Western Conference playoffs but seemed to get "lost in Spanish translation" in the NBA Finals.

And Kobe? He had Caron Butler in 2004 and they failed to make it to the playoffs.

He had Lamar Odom, Smush Parker, Kwame Brown, and young Andrew Bynum. They made the playoffs but lost in the first round for two years.

Last year, he had Pau Gasol for half of the season. Immediately, the Lakers made it to the NBA Finals. Unfortunately, they lost to Boston's "Big Three."

Now that Gasol is playing a full season with the Lakers, the team is expected to achieve what it failed to accomplish last season—win that elusive NBA title!

But they can't do that while Gasol is playing as just a sidekick or an afterthought to Kobe. He has to dominate the same way, or at least close to the way, Kobe is dominating in his position.

Gasol is a very good player, especially now that he's playing mostly at forward position in a very balanced Lakers team. But he doesn't always play aggressively.

This season, Gasol averages 17.8 points on 55.4 percent shooting, 9.4 rebounds, and 12.1 field goal attempts per game. For comparative purposes, Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs averages 20.4 points on 51.6 percent shooting, 10.1 rebounds, and 15.5 field goal attempts.

Duncan is attempting more shots despite having two other stars in Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. In San Antonio, you wouldn't know which of their three stars is the first, second, or third option on offense. All of them are good, reliable, and aggressive.

Of course, the Lakers have more wins than the Spurs. But can they win important games against championship caliber teams while Gasol is playing just a "second option" to Bryant? Their records show they can't!

To be a championship caliber team, the Lakers need more offensive contribution from Gasol. He shouldn't always defer to Kobe, especially in close games. Their recent victory against Golden State showed how Gasol can be dominating if he stays aggressive, especially when closing out games.

He needs to be as aggressive as Duncan and take more than 15 attempts per game. The Lakers haven't lost a game this season with Gasol taking more than 15 shot attempts.

In their six losses this season, Gasol took less shots (10.8 on average) than his tally this season while Bryant is taking the slack by shooting five more shots (25.5 per game) than his average (20.1) this season.

This is not indicative of "Bryant shooting too much to the detriment of his team." In fact, he scored more than his average (32.2 in losses vs. 27.0 average this season) in the Lakers' six losses while Gasol scored less in losses (15.7 average) than in wins (18.3).

Can you blame Bryant for scoring 39 points on 14-22 field goal shooting while Gasol only had 10 points on 3-8 shooting in their last loss against a New Orleans team that featured a shorter frontcourt?

Clearly, it's Pau Gasol that needs to be more consistent to provide the Lakers the "one-two punch combination" that Shaquille O'Neil was so proud of during his three-peat with Bryant. It was Shaq looking at Kobe as the "two" in his boxing analogy and claiming the Lakers to be "his team" that ended their run.

The Lakers are already dominant with Kobe Bryant, probably the best player of this generation. But it takes more than one great player to make a championship team.

If you still don't believe that, ask LeBron James and Dirk Nowitzki, who both went to the NBA Finals but lost to better teams featuring more than one great player.

Miami's one-two punch of Wade and O'Neal vs. Nowitzki's Mavericks in 2006 NBA Finals...

And San Antonio's big three of Duncan-Parker-Ginobili vs. James' Cavaliers in 2007...

It both instances, one is less than two or three...

Note: This article first appeared on my blogspot. Please visit http://lalakersnews.blogspot.com/ for more news and articles on the NBA'S most prominent team, the Los Angeles Lakers.

Lakers' Twin Towers No Match for Hornets' David West and Chris Paul

Carlo Linga — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 04:24:48 -0500

The New Orleans Hornets made the improbable. They pulled an upset and won over the Lakers 116-105 in their Jan. 6 game at the Staples Center behind double-double performance from David West (40 points, 11 rebounds) and Chris Paul (32 points, 15 assists).

Kobe Bryant scored 39 points on 14-22 field goal shooting with seven assists in 42 minutes. Derek Fisher had 19 points and 6 assists.

Lamar Odom would have had a spectacular game, scoring 12 points on 4-7 field goal shooting and dishing three assists despite playing for only 13 minutes, but he was injured late in the second quarter with a hyper-extended right knee.

The Lakers' Twin Towers were ineffective in this game with Pau Gasol scoring only 10 points on 3-8 shooting in 42 minutes with eight rebounds, five assists, and five fouls. Andrew Bynum missed five of his seven field goal attempts for a seven-point eight-rebound effort.

The Lakers' loss was the first in three games against the Hornets this season. They won their first meeting in New Orleans on Nov. 12 behind a very balanced scoring from their best players.

Bryant had 20 points and six assists in that game. Fisher also scored 20 points on 7-11 field goal shooting (4-6 from three-point area) while Gasol and Bynum contributed 14 points each.

The Lakers also won their last game in New Orleans on Dec. 23, two days before their Christmas day matchup with the Celtics. Bryant, Gasol, and Bynum combined for 59 points on 49 percent field goal shooting with 20 total rebounds. They scored 26, 20, and 13 respectively.

In their game at the Staples Center last night, the three combined for 56 points on 51 percent on the field--slightly slightly better than their performance in their last game.

But that's just because of Bryant shooting 64 percent from the field. Only Bryant and Odom shot better than 50 percent from the field in this game. The team shot 42 percent from the field overall but only 32 percent if you take out Bryant's and Odom's numbers.

Too bad Odom was injured in the first half. They could have won the game had he stayed on the floor a little longer.

But was it really Odom not playing in the second half that cost them the game?

Well, Odom's scoring was also a non-factor in their two wins in New Orleans--just two points on 1-7 shooting in the first game and eight points on 3-9 shooting in the second game.

Was it Bryant "trying to do too much?"

Nope! If fact, this game was Bryant's most efficient game against the Hornets this season although he scored only two in the fourth quarter, shooting 1-6 after going 13-16, including 6-6 from three-point range in the first three quarters.

New Orleans really turned on their defense, especially on Bryant, in the last quarter and relied on dominating plays by West, who had 15 of his 40 points in the final period and outscored the whole Lakers team by himself.

The whole team was 5-21 from the field, including 3-11 from three-point range while being outscored 27-13 in the fourth quarter.

Not to take anything away from the Hornets, who played a very good game especially in the last quarter, but the Lakers lost this game because their Twin Towers played like two of the Seven Dwarfs!

C'mon Pau and Andrew! You made the 6'9" David West looked like 9'6" the way he dominated your 7-feet ceilings inside and outside! What happened to your vaunted wingspans that made the Lakers one of the best shot blocking teams in the league?

If you two play like this in your game tonight against the Golden State Warriors, expect another upset in Oakland! The Warriors are bigger, or at least they play bigger, than the one that blown your team out in your home court.

Good luck!

Note: Please visit my blog site for more articles on the Los Angeles Lakers and other NBA teams.

Lakers Are Now the Best: It's Official

Carlo Linga — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 00:36:37 -0500

With their win against the Portland Trail Blazers, after the Celtics lost at New York and the Cavaliers lost at Washington on Sunday night, the Los Angeles Lakers claim the top spot with a league-best 27-5 record. Boston (29-6) and Cleveland (27-6) are now looking up to the Lakers' best record in the league.

Kobe Bryant played for just 33 minutes and scored 26 points, Pau Gasol added 19 points in 28 minutes, and Los Angeles beat the Portland Trail Blazers 100-86 Sunday night for its sixth consecutive victory and 15th straight at home.

Earlier on the same night, Paul Pierce played 42 minutes and scored 31 points, Ray Allen contributed 16 points in 37 minutes but Boston suffered another loss to a sub .500 team, the New York Knicks (13-19) 100-88.

On the other game in Washington, the Cleveland Cavaliers, for the first time this season, lost to a team with a losing record. LeBron James played for 41 minutes and scored 30 points in an 80-77 loss to the Wizards (7-25).

Cleveland and Boston are really trying hard to win regular-season games by playing their MVPs playoff-level minutes. In spite of James playing 41 minutes and Pierce 42 minutes, they both lost their games against their respective opponents last Sunday.

And the Lakers? Kobe only played 33 minutes and they won by 12 points!

So which team is the best now? The Lakers best record of 27 wins with only five losses says it all.

The Lakers might have won more games had Phil Jackson allowed Kobe Bryant to play the kind of minutes that LeBron and Pierce are playing. Remember their one-point loss in Indiana? It was a won game that was lost when Kobe was resting on the bench.

Even Jackson admitted it was a coaching mistake, that he should've put Bryant back at least two minutes earlier in the fourth quarter. He vowed he'd play Kobe more in the fourth quarters of their succeeding games.

Phil Jackson is more concerned about preparing his team as a potent group for the playoffs than boosting his best player's statistics. He's probably the only coach in the league who gets a bit frustrated when his best player scored 40 points in just 31 minutes saying that Bryant “tried to do too much” in the fourth quarter in their “win” against the Utah Jazz on their first game this year.

Wow! Can you imagine Mike Brown or Doc Rivers saying things like that about their best players? Only the highest-paid NBA coach can do that!

James averages 36.8 minutes per game this season compared to 36.4 for Pierce, 35.7 for Allen and 35.3 for Kobe. Not much, you'd say. But the disparity in their playing times is more prominent in their crucial games.

LeBron had 10 games where he played 40 minutes or more including a 46-minute game in a loss in Atlanta and 43 minutes each in back-to-back games against Miami. He even played for 43 minutes in Oklahoma!

Yes, that's right! Forty-three big minutes against 4-30 Thunder! What was it with the Thunder that made Mike Brown so nervous that he wouldn't take LeBron out of the game even when his team was leading by 14 points in the last two minutes?

The Celtics are even worse. Or better if you feel that grinding it out in the regular season is more important than preparing your team for the playoffs and risk losing some games by giving playing time to your supporting casts.

Paul Pierce had played a staggering 15 games in which he played 40 minutes or more including a four-game stretch against Toronto, Atlanta, Denver (a loss) at home, and in Milwaukee. And another three-game stretch in home games vs. New Orleans and Utah and a road win in Atlanta.

Oh, I thought Boston didn't have one MVP—they've got three!

Well, the other MVP, Ray Allen, played nine 40-plus minute games including a three-game stretch in a loss to Denver (yes, the same game where Pierce played 41 minutes), a road game against the Bucks, and home game against the Knicks.

Boston even had a game where all of their “big three” played more than 40 minutes—a narrow 122-117 win in Indiana. Pierce played for 44 minutes, Garnett for 42, and Allen for 41 in avenging their 16-point road loss early in the season.

No wonder they won that game!

In stark contrast, Kobe Bryant only played four 40-plus minute games. One of those games, of course, was their Christmas day match-up against the Celtics where he played 43 minutes.

Of course, everybody knows who won that game.

He also played 41 minutes in a close game vs. the Knicks and 40 minutes in a 7-point win against the Mavericks.

The Lakers' only loss when Kobe played 40 minutes or more was their game in Orlando. Bryant scored 41 points in 43 minutes in that game but they still lost by three points!

Could they have won that game if Kobe played a few more minutes? Maybe!

But you know, Phil Jackson wouldn't want that. He'd do everything to keep Bryant from “trying to do too much...”

So which do you think is more impressive?

The Lakers achieving their best record without burning out the reigning MVP...

Or the playoff-level minutes being played by Boston's big three...

Or maybe the unstoppable force in Cleveland who stays on the floor even on blowout games to dominate video highlight plays on TV and YouTube...

You pick! I already made mine...

Note: For more articles on the Los Angeles Lakers, please visit my blogspot

The Lakers Are Now the Best in the NBA

Carlo Linga — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 19:50:08 -0500

With another impressive win against a quality opponent, the Utah Jazz (19-15), the Los Angeles Lakers have now secured their status as the NBA's best team.

The Lakers beat the Jazz 113-100 Friday night for their fifth straight win and 17th in 18 home games, while the other top two teams in the league also won their home games on the same day.

The Celtics won in Boston over the 6-25 Wizards, 108-83, while the Cavaliers defeated the 14-19 Chicago Bulls, 117-92 in Cleveland.

Of the top three teams in the current NBA's standings, the Lakers (26-5) have the better record against the Boston Celtics (29-5) and Cleveland Cavaliers (27-5) in terms of quality of wins.

Of the Cavaliers' 27 wins, only seven are against winning teams. Of the seven, only two were road wins (Dallas and Denver).

All five Cleveland losses are against winning teams (Boston, New Orleans, Detroit, Atlanta, and Miami).

Their perfect record at home is mainly due to the fact that they've only played five quality opponents at home. We'll see on Jan. 9 when they host the Celtics in Cleveland if they can still keep their home-record clean.

The following is the list of their wins against teams with winning records:

Nov. 3 @ Dallas 100-81
Nov. 13 vs. Denver 110-99
Nov. 15 vs. Utah 105-93
Dec. 19 @ Denver 105-88
Nov. 22 vs. Atlanta 110-96
Dec. 23 vs. Houston 99-90
Dec. 28 vs. Miami 93-86

The Celtics have seven home wins and three on the road (Houston, Detroit, and Atlanta) against quality opponents.

They've lost to two opponents with losing records (Indiana and Golden State) and three against teams with winning records (Denver at home, LA Lakers, and Portland).

The list of Celtics wins against quality opponents is as follows:

Oct. 28 vs. Cleveland 90-85
Nov. 4 @ Houston 103-99
Nov. 9 @ Detroit 88-76
Nov. 12 vs. Atlanta 103-102
Nov. 20 vs. Detroit 98-80
Dec. 1 vs. Orlando 107-88
Dec. 5 vs. Portland 93-78
Dec. 12 vs. New Orleans 94-82
Dec. 17 @ Atlanta 88-85
Dec. 15 vs. Utah 100-91

The Lakers, on the other hand, have already won 12 games against winning teams, five on the road (Denver, Dallas, Phoenix, and New Orleans twice). Two of their losses are against losing teams (Indiana and Sacramento).

Three are against teams with winning records (Detroit at home, Miami, and Orlando). The following is the list of their wins against teams with winning records:

Oct. 28 vs. Portland 96-76
Nov. 1 @ Denver 104-97
Nov. 9 vs. Houston 111-82
Nov. 11 @ Dallas 106-99
Nov. 12 @ New Orleans 93-86
Nov. 21 vs. Denver 104-90
Nov. 20 @ Phoenix 105-92
Nov. 28 vs. Dallas 114-107
Dec. 10 vs. Phoenix 115-110
Dec. 23 @ New Orleans 100-87
Dec. 25 vs. Boston 92-83
Jan. 2, 2009, vs. Utah 113-100

ESPN's Hollinger Power Ranking currently ranks the Lakers at No. 4, even below the 26-7 Orlando Magic, and I can't understand why.

Maybe it's about time that John Hollinger modifies his computer program to make its forecast more accurate. It failed in its prediction about the Utah Jazz last season, right?

Anyway, as John pointed out, it's an entirely automated ranking, so certain "human" factors are missing. So Marc Stein's Power Ranking should be more accurate, as he now ranks the Lakers as the best team in the NBA.

No doubt about that!

Note: This article first appeared on my blogspot. Please visit http://LALakersNews.blogspot.com/ for more news and articles on the Los Angeles Lakers.

Boston Celtics Struggling against Top Offensive Teams

Carlo Linga — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 03:11:18 -0500

With Boston Celtics' loss to the Trail Blazers and the Cleveland Cavaliers' (26-5) loss to Miami on Dec. 30, the two top Eastern Conference teams now have the same number of losses as the Los Angeles Lakers (25-5).

The Celtics' five losses are hardly surprising. Although Boston (28-5) is still a top defensive team, leading the league in limiting its opponents' field-goal shooting (41.9 percent) and second in the NBA in opponents' points allowed (90.8 per game), the C's really struggle against the best offensive teams in the NBA.

Let's break down their losses:

Loss No. 1: Pacers (10-21)

Nov. 1, 2008 at Indiana, 95-79

Indiana is a good offensive team, averaging 102.3 points per game, good for sixth best in the league. They are fourth best when playing at home, averaging 106.6 points per contest. Indiana's offensive superiority was really evident in their game, as the Pacers led by as many as 25 points in the fourth quarter.

They also made hustle plays that forced 24 Celtics turnovers, which the Pacers converted to 19 points. Boston is the worst team in the NBA in that department, averaging 15.9 turnovers per game. The Pacers also had 20 assists compared to 15 for Boston. Indiana averages 22.4 assists per game (third best in the league).

Loss No. 2: Nuggets (21-12)

Nov. 14, 2008 vs. Denver, 95-85

Boston's only home loss so far was against the Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets average 102.7 points-per-game (fifth in the league). With the arrival of Chauncey Billups, they've become a top defensive team also, limiting their opponents to 43.6 percent field goal shooting (fourth in the league).

They're also one of the best Western teams in matching up against Eastern teams. They are 8-3 in their games against teams in the Eastern Conference and are undefeated (5-0) in their games against Atlantic Division rivals.

In their game, Denver hit 48.8 percent from the field, well above the 41.9 percent the Celtics allow opponents to score against them, with six Nuggets scoring in double-figures. The Celtics only shot 39.7 percent from the field. Denver also won the rebounding battle, with 43 vs. 37 and Carmelo Anthony leading the way with 13 boards.

Loss No. 3: Lakers (25-5)

Dec. 25, 2008 at LA Lakers, 92-83

The LA Lakers lead the league in scoring, averaging 107.3 points per game. And their scoring average at home is even better at 109.4 points per contest. The Lakers are also underrated defenders. They actually limit their opponents to 44 percent field goal shooting, for sixth best in the league. They are also top rebounders, with 44.8 boards per game (second in the NBA) and the second best passing team in the league, with 23.3 assists per game.

The Lakers shot 46.2 percent from the field (it would have been 50 percent if not for Derek Fisher's 2-of-10 field goal shooting) and hit 8-of-20 from beyond the three-point line in their Christmas Day matchup against the defending champions.

They had 27 assists against 22 for the Celtics and blocked nine shots (vs. three for Boston). The Celtics also had 18 turnovers (vs. 11 for the Lakers) that were converted into 22 points.

Loss No. 4: Warriors (10-24)

Dec. 26, 2008 at Golden State, 99-89

This game was the second game of the Celtics' back-to-back against the top two offensive teams in the league. The Warriors are the second best offensive team in the league, averaging 105.2 point-per-game behind the Lakers' 107.3 average. They are No. 1 when playing at their home court, at 109.5. (The Lakers are second.)

Despite the Warriors' undersized frontcourt, they are the best shot-blocking team in the NBA, with Ronny Turiaf averaging 2.2 blocks per game. They also average 13 offensive rebounds per game (third in the league).

For two straight nights, the Celtics' turnovers proved too costly for them. Boston had 23 turnovers that were converted into 27 points by the Warriors. Golden State shot 45.8 percent from the field and was only 10-of-27 from beyond the arc but used a 35-17 fourth quarter run to seal the win.

Loss No. 5: Trail Blazers (20-12)

Dec. 30, 2008 at Portland, 91-86

Portland is just an average offensive team, scoring less than 100 points per game. But the Trail Blazers are getting 103.5 points per contest when playing at home (ninth in the league). They are also the best Western team matching up with their Eastern counterparts. They are 10-2 against teams in the Eastern Conference and 4-1 against Atlantic Division rivals.

Portland is the most defense-oriented of the five teams that beat Boston. Its record against defense-oriented East teams shows this orientation. But they are just 10-10 against offense-oriented West teams.

Portland limits its opponents to 75.9 field goal attempts per game (third best in the league). The Blazers are one of the top offensive rebounding with 13.2 per contest (second in the NBA).

In their last game, the Blazers shot 45.2 percent from the field, hitting 6-of-15 attempts from beyond the arc while Boston was 3-of-14 from beyond the three-point line and 27-of-67 overall for 40.3 percent. The teams' rebounding disparity was more prominent with Portland getting 44 rebounds (13 in the offensive end) to Boston's 24 (just five offensive boards).

Conclusion

With the exception of its last game against the Trail Blazers, Boston's losses are against top offensive teams in the league. The Celtics' current record against seven of the top offensive teams in the NBA is as follows. (Boston owns the eighth best mark, at 101 points per game.):

1. LA Lakers: 1 road loss, next game at home on Feb. 5
2. Golden State: 1 home win, 1 road loss
3. New York: 2 home wins, next game on the road, Jan. 4
4. Phoenix: 0 games played, next game at home on Jan. 19
5. Denver: 1 home loss, next game at home on Feb. 23
6. Indiana: 1 road loss, 1 home win, 1 road win, next game on the road, Feb. 27
7. Cleveland: 1 home win, next game on the road, Jan. 9

Are the Boston Celtics really struggling against the top offensive teams in the NBA? We'll see this month, when they face New York, Cleveland, and Orlando (the ninth best offensive team) on the road and play against Phoenix in Boston. They might already be a nine-loss team before they meet the Pistons in Detroit on Jan. 30.

By then we can say whether they can match up with the best offensive teams in the league and beat the Los Angeles Lakers in their next game in Boston on Feb. 5

Note: This article first appeared on my blogspot.

Lakers-Warriors: Golden State Fails To Make It a Sweep

Carlo Linga — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 05:22:19 -0500

The Lakers routed the Golden State Warriors 130-113, on December 28. Reigning MVP Kobe Bryant scored 31 points on 9-of-15 shooting, hitting three of his six three-point attempts and a perfect 10-of-10 from the free throw line. He had 4 steals and 4 assists.

Derek Fisher, who had a lot of help from his teammates defensively, played for less than 25 minutes and scored 19 points on 9-of-12 field goal shooting. He had 5 assists and a steal.

Sasha Vujacic scored 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting hitting 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. He also had aix assists to go with his steal. Andrew Bynum played just over 25 minutes and made 6 of his 12 shots for 13 points, 10 rebounds, 2 steals and a blocked shot.

Pau Gasol added 13 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in 30 minutes. Trevor Ariza contributed 11 points, nine rebounds, four assists, a steal and two blocked shots off the bench (including a blocked jump shot by Marco Belinelli).

Jamal Crawford returned to the Warriors' lineup after missing two games with a groin strain and scored 22 points with five assists. Belinelli and Brandan Wright had 14 points each.

As expected, the Warriors front-court wasn't be able to match up against the Lakers big men. Andris Biedrins only scored eight points, despite inhaling 17 rebounds (including a season high 15 rebounds in the first half). Biedrins tied Amare Stoudemire of the Phoenix Suns for the most reboudns in a half.

Stephen Jackson struggled with his shots hitting 3-of-9 for nine points with a single rebound. Former Laker Ronny Turiaf was scoreless in 20 minutes with a single rebound, despite blocking four shots.

The game was a shootout between the league's best offensive teams. The Lakers are the number one offensive team in the NBA averaging 107.3 points per game while the Warriors are number two with 105 points per contest.

But the Warriors are also the worst defensive team in the league, surrendering 111.3 points per game while the Lakers only allowed their opponents to score an average of 97.6 per game. The Lakers are, in fact, the 3rd leading team in the NBA in terms of point-differential, which is the average margin of victory.

The Warriors have proven that an energetic offensive team playing in their home court could win against a defensive team in their recent game against the Boston Celtics, the number one defensive team in the league that limits their opponents to 41.8% field goal shooting.

The Celtics didn't have enough offense to counter the Warriors' offensive run in the fourth quarter. The Warriors outscored the Celtics in the last period, 35-17 to seal their win.

But against the Lakers? No chance! The Lakers had enough offense to allow any letdown in any quarter in their game against the Warriors. Can the Warriors do it when they play in their home court against the Lakers on Jan. 7 next year?

Maybe... But I doubt it!

Note: This article first appeared in my blog at http://LALakersNBA.blogspot.com/

Warriors Will Try To Get Back-To-Back Wins Against Top Teams vs. The Lakers

Carlo Linga — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 01:49:40 -0500

Tonight's game against the Lakers (24-5) and the Golden State Warriors (9-22) will be the first meeting between the two teams this season. The Lakers have won 13 of their last 16 games against the Warriors.

They split their four regular games last season 2-2. They last played on March 24, 2008 at the Oracle Arena in Oakland. The Lakers won 123-119. But we couldn't use their last season's record match-up to predict this game's winner as the Warriors is now a completely different team with the departure of Baron Davis, who went to the Lakers' hometown neighbor, LA Clippers, and the trade of Al Harrington to the New York Knicks for Jamal Crawford. Plus, Monta Ellis is still out with ankle injury.

Davis, Ellis and Harrington combined for an average of 57.8 points in their 4-game series with the Lakers—that's more than half of their teams' average of 113.8 points scored against their downstate rivals.

The trio scored 62 and 63 total points in their two wins against the Lakers last season. Where would the Warriors get those scoring contributions? From Jamal Crawford? Maybe! Crawford just had a breakout game, scoring 50 points in their 110-103 win against the Charlotte Bobcats last week.

The current Golden State lineup is a typical Don Nelson's small-ball, free-wheeling, offensive team. And they went even smaller after they sent forward Harrington to the Knicks for guard Crawford, who's now playing as their starting point guard while Ellis recovers from ankle injury. Crawford is averaging 19.3 points, 4.9 assists, and 1.1 steals in 16 games in Warriors uniform this season. He missed last night's game against the Celtics due to groin injury. But he is expected to play tonight's game.

The Warriors were coming from a stunning victory against the Boston Celtics at the Oracle Arena in Oakland. Stephen Jackson returned to their starting lineup and scored eight straight points during the decisive fourth-quarter stretch to finish with 28, and the Warriors sent Boston to back-to-back losses for the first time this season by rallying past the Celtics 99-89. The Warriors won five straight and was 12 of 15 against the Celtics at home.

The Lakers have had some difficulty playing against small teams with quick guards who can penetrate inside. Would Crawford get inspired by his game against Bobcats and his team's win against the Celtics without him in the lineup to score another upset?

I don't think so! First, Jamal Crawford has had difficulty scoring against the Lakers team. He only averages 15.8 points in his last 13 games against the Lakers. The Lakers is no Bobcats! They won't allow anybody to drop 50 on them. Not even Dwayne Wade, whom they allowed to score 35 points in one of their losses. That game would probably be the last time they would allow an opposing player score 35 or more points on them. Well, at least before they visit Lebron James and his Cavaliers on Feb. 8 next year.

Also, the Warriors front-court wouldn't be able to match-up against the Lakers big men. 6'11" Andris Biedrins only averages six points and less than seven boards in 13 games against the Lakers. 6'9" Brandan Wright was also ineffective, scoring just 6 and 0 points in his last two games against the Lakers.

Would Nelson start 6'5" Kelenna Azubuike at small forward with 6'8" Stephen Jackson at power forward? Or maybe former Laker, 6'10" Ronny Turiaf with 4.2 points per game. Maybe he could use Turiaf's 2.2 blocks per game to stop 7-footers Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum.

But hey, didn't the small-lineup Heat, playing like David, beat the the Giant Lakers? I'm sure Don Nelson has been spending nights watching and analyzing that game. He'd want to be the next David to defeat Goliath.

Only that Phil Jackson and his coaching staff are doing the same watching and analyzing. I'm sure they've learned already from that game.

I hope...

Note: This article appeared in my blog at http://lalakersnba.blogspot.com/