mavericks and thunder have no chance. loss of butler hurts. if they had butler, they have a great chance. but there's dirk. the thunder, as you are seeing, rely on jumpers way too much. they suck and 3s, and they still take 3s. and their defense has slipped. the thunder have the capaility if they have a decent post game. the spurs can b/c they have a post game. they can run. they can play halfcourt. they have athleticism. they have experience. and they will have home court.
I am sick and tired of Lakers dominating playoffs all the time. I really do hope someone beats them early on this time. BUT - Matchup wise LA has an advantage over the Spurs when it comes to 2nd unit. Spurs have Hill and McDyess while Bonner and Neal are over-achieving scrubs. Lakers have Blake, Parker, Barnes, Gasol, Ratliff/Smith.
Parker? Smush? You might want to replace him with Brown. Shannon. Steve is just an overglorified 3pt shooter. Barnes is a thug. Gasol? He's starting. All in all it'd be a pretty close matchup.
He He. My bad, what was I think Smush Parker? Thanks Bro it should be Brown. And I mean Odom sorry. Watching the game and typing is too much for me. Blake has good experience and solid shooting, can run sets for Jackson. Brown is hell atheletic, can shoot and defend a bit as well. Barnes- you said it. Odom is a beast off the bench, we all know what he provides. Ratliff is a good defensive enforcer and has a wealth of expeirence.
The Lakers played OK, but this game was more about how poor the Thunder were on offense. I've said before that I don't think Scott Brooks deserves all the credit he gets because the Thunder half-court offense is basic playground. They don't have a system they can rely on to create good shots in half-court when the going gets tough. Now that Ron Adams is gone, it's plainly obvious to everyone Brooks definitely is nothing special teaching defense either. I won't go into his substitution patterns, which is another story altogether. Twilight Zone stuff sometimes.
LaMarcus Aldridge: 37pts (15-24 FG), 12rebs, 1ast, 2stls, 2blks. Now averaging 27and 10 for the month. He needs to be an All Star.
Can't wait for t_mac's excuse this year PG position has been atrocious, partly bc Blake hasn't been utilized properly. Artest has looked awful on O and drifts from Team concept of D early this year. So majority of games Fish/Artest tandem have been complete liabilities on the floor. Gasol is coasting, and Kobe seems to be recovering slowly this year - but seems to be getting quicker as season progresses. Bynum being worked in also and getting LO acclimated to bench role again. Despite all this Lakers still boast 2nd best record in the West & tied for 3rd least losses in the league. We're far from peaking still & PJ's team's usually do better 2nd half of season, so counting HCA for L.A. this early is premature. But marked* Just hope you eat crow and not use some excuse when L.A. is playing in June.
