The NBA Playoffs have been, for the most part, pretty boring, all in all. It was fun seeing the Dirk face, and it's been impressive watching the Magic steamroll people, albeit against some pretty silly little teams, but actually, these playoffs have been a letdown thus far. NHL has been a lot more exciting, sadly. LeBron, when you consider what we all expect from him, and what we all know he's capable of, has really kind of disappointed. This could of course all change, if he takes the bull by the balls, nuts up, and actually decides he wants to play in games 6 and 7 against the Celts, but we'll get to that later.
Let's start here since this is the only matchup we actually "know" for sure.
Phoenix Suns:
These creamsicle orange pansies have actually made a miraculous metamorphosis from an also-ran joke to a team that will kick you in the shins, slap you in the face, then hit a 3 in your eye and laugh about it. I have to say, as much as I truly despise Amare Stoudemire for being an asshole (there ya go Owen), I have to admit that they've become a force to be reckoned with. Steve Nash keeps cashing in on an apparent deal with the Devil and refuses to age (or shower, or get a haircut, or focus his eyes...), but remember the immortal words of Snoop Dogg, Steve. When your body starts trippin, that ass is His.
Grant Hill has also come back from the dead, and has adopted the role of defensive specialist. Yes, I'll give you a second to wipe up whatever liquid you just spat out. Grant Hill, he of one foot, the Lady Bing winner who has never been in the same sentence with the word "tough" other than to say "Grant Hill's had some tough luck in his career," has emerged as a defensive presence for this team. He single-handedly stopped Portland in its tracks after Game 1 and erased Andre Miller off the face of the planet. He also curtailed Manu's effectiveness in Round 2, with the help of Manu's nose.
Amare. There, I mentioned him. Moving on.
This team really comes down to two things: Jason Richardson and the bench. Both have been unconscious this postseason. If Richardson is not stopped, you cannot stop the Suns. If your bench does not keep pace with the Suns' bench production, you cannot stop the Suns. (Well, unless you're Orlando. But again, I'll get to that in a second.) That lefty Croatian guy, Channing Frye, Captain Barbosa, that ugly chick named Amundsen, and Jared Dudley have all demonstrated that they can push the pace, spread the floor, and get teams winded while Nash or Stoudemire or both take a breather. And this is with Sideshow Bob Lopez still nursing a sore back. If Lopez ever makes a return in these playoffs, then the Suns will get back the size they're currently missing.
Lakers:
Kobe's rounding back into form. Gasol is asserting himself offensively, playing quality helpside D, and committing to the boards. Lamar Odom is going to give a double-double. Ron Artest is crazy, and will still provide about 20-25 min. of decent to solid defense. It's boring, it's predictable, it's worked so far, and it's basically all that LA has going for it in this series.
Laker fans, be heartily encouraged that Kobe's midrange game and driving zeal has returned. It seems like he's been able to heal somewhat on the fly. Hell, that could very well be enough. He's the second-best player in the league, and in a few days, might be the best player left in the playoffs. Also, you are of course the defending champions. So you have that going for you. Which is nice. However, you have two dependable scorers. Count them. Two. You are about to play a team who can have as many as 8 guys score in double figures. You have no bench. None. Zero. Your best bench player is Lamar Odom, but he's not so much a bench player as he is "fill-in starter when Bynum's ass flares up." Other than that you bring in Bill's Kid, Shannon Brown, and Jordan Farmar. WHAT do you think will COME...OF.......THAT?! (I don't like the looks of it.)
Ok, so you just took care of Utah in four games. Good. You were supposed to. Well done. You have the Zen Master on the bench. Big plus. You have a definite size advantage, and all three of your tallest guys should average double figures in rebounds. You MUST capitalize on your size advantage, otherwise you're screwed. Ron Artest can't clamp down on everyone. You don't have the length out on the perimeter to bounce around and rotate. That's the only reason Portland won 2 games. They had the wingspan and enough young guys off the bench to at least try to hang. San Antonio just didn't. You don't either. If you try to unleash Kobe on everyone, he will lose his energy for the offensive end, which you can't afford. You MUST have a dominant Bynum, and you MUST get something from your bench.
Call: Phx in 6. Damnit all, Los Dorks are going to the Finals.
phoenix in 6? what's in your koolaid. this is such a bias post, i can't even believe i read it. way to root for whoever's playing against the lakers. Lakers in 7, maybe 5!
ReplyDeleteGren, I don't like either of these teams. I'm merely looking at the matchups. Can Kobe's knee hold up with Phx racing up and down the court? Also, Phx is not averse to physical contact like it used to be. The problem with you, and most Laker fans, is that if anything is said that doesn't sound like "oh my god, I'm gonna bust in my pants over how amazing the Lakers are," then it's "biased." If you will note, I pointed out what is going well for your team. Tell me I'm wrong about your bench. Go ahead. I'll wait...........
ReplyDeleteLet's look at the matchups. Steve over Fish, ok. Kobe over anyone in orange, check. Ron over J Rich or grant hill (side note: grant hill is one of my fave players, and my heart did sing a little bit when you labeled him a "defensive specialist" haha but better than ron? no way). Pau over Amare, probably arguable but lets see how Amare reacts when he gets stuffed in the middle. He'll most likely pull a lebron. Bynum over...who's their center? oh yea, channing frye or jarron collins. HA! and don't even say channing frye will extend the perimeter cuz lamar can guard frye all day. I really don't see how you can say phoenix has 8 dependable scorers?! are you kidding? they barely have 1. Amare will be gobbled up inside! And Ron Ron will put the clamps on J rich. You are discounting ron too much, he's a beast and you know it...even though he's STILL figuring out his role on the team. I don't care if he's 1 of 27 from the arc, he's still a scorer. I will agree that phoenix looks very impressive, and yea, their bench is better than ours, but so what! farmar and brown can both run and gun, which may be frightening at times, but they'll be step for step with those guys, AND they both have 6 fouls to give! The thing is, Nash will not have the luxury of resting on the sidelines while dudley and dragic extend leads. And when his back finally falls apart, then what? We're not talking about an undersized BRoy-less blazer team or an AARP sponsored spurs team...we're talking about the defending champs! So if you think Phoenix is gonna run us out of the gym, then you're mistaken. It's probably true that that is the only way they will beat us, but its not gonna happen. You forget how young we are. Get us in a half court set, then forget about it. You will eat your words my friend. Phoenix in 6 hahaha!
ReplyDeleteBynum has disappeared, little buddy. He could afford to against Utah, since the only player over 6'9" on their team was some Russian peasant from the highlands who just discovered basketball 3 months ago. But like I said originally, LA needs him to play well in order to have a chance at this series. Just sayin', other than Kobe, he might just be the most important player to the Lakers' chances of emerging from the West. How confident are you in his knee in a full-court game?
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