Well D Wade now knows how Kobe felt a couple years back. It's him, and not much else. Actually Beasley and Chalmers have given the Heat a lift in supporting roles as rookies. Shawn Marion's status as always, is up in the air. Will they deal him or won't they?
On L.A.'s side, is Pau recovered from his sickness? If not, does Lamar continue to put up solid numbers in a starting role?
MATCHUPS:
I honestly believe D Wade will go off in this game. A nationally televised game on ESPN, and playing against his fellow olympian Kobe. The Lakers must pound it inside, as Beasley, Haslem and Marion are way too little for Pau and Drew. Kobe cannot get caught up in outplaying Wade. Dwyane will have better numbers than Kobe, but Kobe has a better team and should remember this.
RESULT:
Phil will make sure the fellas pound it down low. Pau will go off. Miami's energy and crowd will bring them back from a deficit but too little too late.
LAKERS 107 MIAMI 101
VS ORLANDO SAT DEC 20
Back to backs are never easy in the NBA. The Lakers don't, however, have to go too far for this one staying in the state of Florida. The Magic were impressive in their last West Coast roaddie winning against several '07 playoff teams.
MATCHUPS
Well Howard is 2 inches shorter than Drew, but seems to intimidate him with his jumping ability. Put Dwight down for a double double and five blocks. Rashard and Hedu popping from the outside means plenty of Ariza and Lamar as Phil will go small as well. This is a game Kobe can get off. Pietrus is hurt and they have small players like Bogans and rookie Courtney Lee to guard Kobe. Fish must play Nelson to a stand still.
RESULT:
Well we didn't guard the 3 against the Knicks and the Magic actually has an inside presence unlike New York. It's the second of a back to back and Orlando will be coming off a loss to San Antonio tonight (my prediction only).
ORL 116 LAL 107
- Mattie B
Memphis Grizzlies scouting report for 12/22/08
Starting lineups
PG – Mike Conley
SG - O.J. Mayo
SF – Rudy Gay
PF – Darko Milicic
C – Marc Gasol
PG – Derek Fisher
SG – Kobe Bryant
SF – Luke Walton
PF – Pau Gasol (Lamar may start as Gasol has strep throat)
C – Andrew Bynum
Keys to the game
Defense, Defense, Defense!
It’s been said many times and I’ll say it again. DEFENSE wins championships and the Lakers aren’t showing championship defense. Sure there’s glimpses of it but it’s not consistent.
Against the Grizzlies, the Lakers must provide help defense on Rudy Gay because Luke’s D is trash. (We all know that, don’t we?) Kobe cannot continue to play center field defense as OJ can drop 28 or more like he did against DWade. (Kobe’s D isn’t much better than Luke’s.) Memphis will try to play an up-tempo offense and the Lakers must get back. They are quicker and more athletic than the Lakers. The Lakers must win the rebounding stat tonight.
Use the Triangle!
Exploit Memphis’ lack of size. Drop the ball into Bynum and Pau and let them do their thing. Hopefully Pau will be back as he was sorely missed against the Knicks. Bynum and Pau have a great shooting percentage therefore the Lakers must continue to use them to their advantage. That is the bread and butter!
Start quick!
One thing I’ve noticed the last few games is the Lakers slow start to games. I’m not sure what it is but the Lakers have to be prepared to jump on the opposition! This is the most important as this is a road game. The Lakers have shown that their nerves can be rattled on the road. So wake up LAKERS!
Bench Productivity
Earlier in the year, the bench proved to be a force to be reckoned with. The second unit played a more up-tempo offense and aggressive defense. On those occasions, it was the defense that sparked the offense providing steals that led to easy baskets. The second team would actually increase the lead to double digits as the starters would not have to play that entire 4th quarter. Of late, the second unit has let leads slip away and momentum has swung to the point where the starters can’t recapture it. (ie: Indiana)
The second unit is led by UCLA standout Jordan Farmar. Jordan needs to get his head back into the game instead of letting one turnover frustrate him. Sometimes I think he’s only looking for his shot rather than initiating the offense or looking for that easy bucket. Don’t get me wrong, I really like Jordan’s game but it’s too erratic at times. He just needs to calm down a bit.
Another member off the bench who needs to get back on track is Sasha. Sure, he was great last year and provided some consistent 3 pt buckets but it’s not happening this season. Sasha is in his own world looking for his own shots. Watch tomorrow’s game against the Heat and count how many times Sasha shoots without passing. To me, he is now known as the “BLACK HOLE.”
Trevor Ariza and Lamar Odom need to shoot well this entire road trip. If they continue to do the little things (defend, pass, shoot, rebound) the Lakers should be fine.
Predicted Result:
110-102 L A K E R S
The Lakers will stay close the entire game and will make key stops on defense in the fourth. Look for Kobe to shut down USC standout OJ Mayo.
- Yipper
LA LAKERS @ NEW ORLEANS HORNETS
Tuesday December 23
There's a lot of external factors that go into this game without even considering a single thing about the game itself.
1) Its the final game of the road trip
2) Its the 2nd back to back in a row (4 games in 5 days)
3) Lakers went into NO back when they were good and haaaaaaaaaandled NO
4) Christmas day massacre looms just over the horizon
You put all these factors together and it's really hard to say the Lakers are going to win this game. The Hornets have 2 days to rest after playing Sacramento (who nobody has a problem beating save for LAL)
Tuesday December 23
There's a lot of external factors that go into this game without even considering a single thing about the game itself.
1) Its the final game of the road trip
2) Its the 2nd back to back in a row (4 games in 5 days)
3) Lakers went into NO back when they were good and haaaaaaaaaandled NO
4) Christmas day massacre looms just over the horizon
You put all these factors together and it's really hard to say the Lakers are going to win this game. The Hornets have 2 days to rest after playing Sacramento (who nobody has a problem beating save for LAL)
Matchups:
Lakers have the Odom advantage as long as he doesn't find Melvin Ely's secret stash in the visitors locker room. You can bet that Chris Paul will absolutely decimate Fisher and Farmar.. Look for something like 21 pts 8 rebs and 16 assts. David West will extend Gasol beyond his normal range.. As long as he doesn't get into foul trouble Gasol should be able to neutralize him and then some. Prob a good idea to have Ariza shadow Posey whenever he comes in. Chandler will get his dunks.. its up to Bynum to try to be aggressive and get him into foul trouble so eliminate the 12 pts that will be scored on lob passes. Walton will be a valuable asset for the Hornets.. should lead to 13 of their points.
Result:
Just don't see the upside to this game for LAL... Somebody like Julian Wright or Ryan Bowen or Rasual Butler will drop an uncharacteristic 23.
NO: 109 LAL: 96
-SRT
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