GM1: Dallas at LA Lakers

[Real Deal]

During the start of the 4th, our bench kept chucking up jump shots and three-pointers. By the time Phil put Kobe back in, the lead was pretty much gone. That killed us.

From a seven-point lead, to one, if I recall correctly.

[Real Deal]

If you had a choice, would you trade Bynum to have Gasol play better, get rid of Gasol, or just keep them both?

Honestly, I really don't know. I usually have an answer for that.

 

I'm waiting for Gasol to turn into the player he was last year...not THAT much of a physical presence, but someone that still tried to be, and one that would get down into the low post and put in those efficient hook shots.

 

Right now, he's holding the ball for far too long, not taking shots he's supposed to take, not playing deep in the post, and struggling to play defense and contest shots. He can put up 15/10, but it's the weirdest 15/10 any player can log.

 

If you told me that Drew was going to be healthy for the rest of his career, I'm trading Gasol...no doubt about it.

[Nitro]

Efficiency is defined by how many shots you make, versus how many you take. He made 48% of his shots. He's efficient.

 

He was efficient from the field, but overall he wasn't very efficient scoring the ball. FT's are a huge part of efficiency, and it's why guys like Kevin Martin are considered among the most efficient in the league despite shooting 43% from the field.

 

Bryant has been doing everything he possibly can to get to the line for the last 2-3 months, but hasn't been getting the whistle. In yesterday's game, he relied on jumpers because a) he's on a bum ankle, and b) he's not going to get the whistle. When he drives in, gets clotheslined, doesn't make the shot and doesn't get the whistle, people look back on the shot chart three hours later and see how he missed his layup, look at his FG% and see it lower, and make their statements based on that.

 

Maybe it's Kobe's fault because he doesn't drop his head, close his eyes, and recklessly go to the rim to get to the line all season long, like other players do. Because of that, referees aren't used to calling them and putting him at the charity stripe, so they just don't do it.

 

I love the bum ankle excuse...every single year there is something new for you to use as a crutch when someone criticizes Kobe. At this point in his career, he's never going to be 100% healthy, especially come post-season time.

 

Kobe simply did not force the issue going to the rim enough last night, and when he did get into the paint he was careless by holding the ball out, which led to him being stripped on numerous occasions. Sometimes putting your head down and forcing your way to the rim is necessary.

 

To be honest, he's been shooting jumpers over driving and flopping for the last 2-3 years, and it has resulted in two consecutive championships. It's embarrassing to see other players score 10-15 undeserving points at the line, so I'm proud to say that Kobe has more to his game than just that.

 

Kobe has never been much of a driver or flopper since he became a star, it's just that now he can't finish like he used to, and without lift his jumper has become significantly less efficient (between 32-33% from 3 the last few years, and his FT% has also dropped sharply which hurts his efficiency).

 

And it doesn't matter how a player gets his points, as long as he gets it done. I'd rather have my player get those undeserving FREE throws over spending those shot attempts on 20-25ft jumpers. If it helps you sleep at night to know that Kobe chooses to do the latter, then more power to you, but it's less effective.

[Real Deal]

Not sure what else to tell ya. Kobe doesn't need to live off the referees, and I'll pump my fist for that. Less effective? Cool...that's probably why Allen Iverson has been out of the league for years.

 

At the end of the day, Kobe gets it done. You can bitch about it all you want. Kevin Martin isn't even on the same planet, and never will be, so I find all of those points pretty funny, to say the least.

[Guru]

Kobe has never been much of a driver or flopper since he became a star, it's just that now he can't finish like he used to

I disagree. I think he chooses not to finish like he used to.

Perfect example:

[Nitro]

Not sure what else to tell ya. Kobe doesn't need to live off the referees, and I'll pump my fist for that. Less effective? Cool...that's probably why Allen Iverson has been out of the league for years.

 

At the end of the day, Kobe gets it done. You can bitch about it all you want. Kevin Martin isn't even on the same planet, and never will be, so I find all of those points pretty funny, to say the least.

 

AI was extremely inefficient even with all those FT's...awful example.

 

And I brought up Kevin Martin as an example of how FTA's increase efficiency. If you want more examples of player's who are in Kobe's league, look at Durant, LeBron and Wade. Or, look at Kobe from just a few years ago. Kobe played a solid game yesterday scoring the ball, but he wasn't even as efficient as his season average from the last time he won the scoring title.

[Nitro]

I disagree. I think he chooses not to finish like he used to.

Perfect example:

 

I can show you plenty of videos from 2-3 seasons ago that were more impressive than those dunks. Kobe doesn't have that same explosiveness off the dribble, and most of the time he can't finish with contact around the rim like he used to. His decline in athleticism is also apparant in his inability to get the same lift on jumpers, which shows up in him going from a 35-36% 3pt shooter to a 32-33% one despite taking roughly the same amount.

[Real Deal]

AI was extremely inefficient even with all those FT's...awful example.

 

And I brought up Kevin Martin as an example of how FTA's increase efficiency. If you want more examples of player's who are in Kobe's league, look at Durant, LeBron and Wade. Or, look at Kobe from just a few years ago. Kobe played a solid game yesterday scoring the ball, but he wasn't even as efficient as his season average from the last time he won the scoring title.

Durant, LeBron and Wade all get fouls called out the ass for getting looked at...awful examples.

 

And, ironically, when he won his scoring titles, he was also jacking almost seven threes a night, and I don't think those shots are layups.

 

I disagree. I think he chooses not to finish like he used to.

Perfect example:

Kobe doesn't get to the line because he doesn't try.

 

http://www.jimrome.com/cimages/var/ezjimrome/storage/images/repository/photos/kobe-bryant-2011-nba-playoffs-game-5-vs-new-orleans-dunks-on-emeka-okafor/338412-1-eng-US/Kobe-Bryant-2011-NBA-Playoffs-Game-5-vs-New-Orleans-Dunks-On-Emeka-Okafor_photo_medium.jpg

 

No foul!

 

I think Bryant needs to work on his flopping skills, honestly...not even saying it as a joke.

[Real Deal]

His decline in athleticism is also apparant in his inability to get the same lift on jumpers, which shows up in him going from a 35-36% 3pt shooter to a 32-33% one despite taking roughly the same amount.

Weird that he actually lost lift in his jumper back in 2004, when he shot around 32% from three (after a season he shot 38%), then got it back just slightly the following season...then did pretty good for a few years, and lost it again this season.

 

I wouldn't think it would have more to do with players getting in his face as he takes the threes, more contested over the last year or two. That wouldn't make sense, just because.

[Nitro]

Durant, LeBron and Wade all get fouls called out the ass for getting looked at...awful examples.

 

And, ironically, when he won his scoring titles, he was also jacking almost seven threes a night, and I don't think those shots are layups.

 

Durant, LeBron and Wade also know how to initiate contact and sell the foul, and are all better at getting to the rim now than Kobe is (especially LeBron and Wade). All of them also score more efficiently from the field (hell, LeBron even shot better from 3 this season than Kobe did).

 

When Kobe won his last scoring title he took the EXACT same amount (4.6) 3's per 36min as he did this past season.

 

Weird that he actually lost lift in his jumper back in 2004, when he shot around 32% from three (after a season he shot 38%), then got it back just slightly the following season...then did pretty good for a few years, and lost it again this season.

 

I wouldn't think it would have more to do with players getting in his face as he takes the threes, more contested over the last year or two. That wouldn't make sense, just because.

 

He had more defensive attention payed to him from 05-08 than he does now, including being contested on 3's, yet he still shot better on those jumpers. When hitting jumpers/fadeaways with a hand in your face is the focal point of your arsenal, getting elevation on those shots is huge...I saw it with T-Mac when he started losing that elevation, and I see it with Kobe now too.

 

Any way you cut it, Kobe is not the same player he was a few years ago, and him losing some of that explosiveness is a major reason why.

[Real Deal]

When Kobe won his last scoring title he took the EXACT same amount (4.6) 3's per 36min as he did this past season.

That wasn't the point. He still took a lot of threes, which is bad in your opinion, because he should've been getting to the rim with those fresh legs of his. Efficiency trumps all, correct?

 

And when he won his other scoring title, he took 6.5 threes a night, which is just stupid because he could still jump.

 

He had more defensive attention payed to him from 05-08 than he does now, including being contested on 3's, yet he still shot better on those jumpers. When hitting jumpers/fadeaways with a hand in your face is the focal point of your arsenal, getting elevation on those shots is huge...I saw it with T-Mac when he started losing that elevation, and I see it with Kobe now too.

The defensive attention is still the same, dude. Artest and Fisher have been getting just as many wide-open looks as Smush did. People are still doubling Kobe out by the three. When they don't, he hits 50% of his shots, like he did last night. Dallas didn't double.

 

If Gasol was more of a threat, and played in the post, it's a different story...but you won't even talk about that. I rarely see you discuss anything other than Kobe when it comes to LA.

 

Any way you cut it, Kobe is not the same player he was a few years ago, and him losing some of that explosiveness is a major reason why.

Oh yes, the numbers (meaning, just the three-point percentage) is very telling of this.

 

Kobe will continue to change his game, slightly, to accommodate the obvious lack of explosiveness, but you're talking something that has been happening since 2008, and he's still doing his thing. The fact is, it's Phil's choice to play him less and less, not Bryant's, and his "per 36" is better than last year's, and as good as it was in the 2007-08 season.

 

If a few years ago means 2006-07, that's pretty clear...but he has led a team to a couple of championships since then, and just last season, he had 30+ in a stretch of 11-12 playoff games, so I'm not going to sit here and bother with this much longer.

[The Regime]

I didn't get to watch the game live because I was working, but I just finished watching it on DVR and a few things...

 

This was easily Kobe's best postseason performance thus far. He was phenomenal outside the last three minutes of the game (took a couple contested three's and had a costly turnover). We wont lose another game this series if he plays at that level. Also Kobe couldn't have had a better look at the basket on that final shot, it just didn't fall.

 

Defensively we weren't disciplined in the first half, Peja and Terry had too many open looks. We were good for the most part in the half court, but the Mavs killed us when they leaked out in transition. We need to double Dirk more when Stevenson and Brewer are in, we can live with them shooting jumpshot as opposed to playing Dirk one on one.

 

I'm not surprised we blew that huge lead in the third quarter, that's our style. Not sure who gave Ron Artest the green light to shoot away and create shots off the dribble. We played way too much iso ball which ultimately allowed the Mavs to dig themselves out of that double digit hole. Should we have gone to the post more? Yes. But every time we did our bigs turned it over or forced up some garbage.

 

I'm pretty confident going into Game 2, I can't see the Lakers falling back 2 games.