Anybody else have video of the empty press conference room when they were doing the post game interview?
Whatever.....Kobe is on a mission and the Rockets are just a minor speed bump. Go Rockets PS: Look at all those Laker fans ......
Kobe is a great talent,he has a better outside shot than MJ but he isn't as physically strong as Michael. Michael was less likely to get 81 against the Raptors but he was way better than him against physical teams like the Karl Malone/John Stockton led Jazz. Don't see Kobe ever being able to replicate a Game 5 38 on the road with the flu or a 45 in Game 6 at the Delta Center. That is the main difference between the two of them IMO.
kobe is going to make the rockets his b**** lol. if yao doesnt go for 30 a game, lakers sweep us in 4
Because Gasol and Odom played pretty well and got the majority of the frontcourt playing time (both 40+ minutes).
MJ's jumpers were as good as Kobe's, if not better. And his stronger physique allowed him not to use fadeaways as often as Kobe (though his fadeways were deadly and beautiful too) . You can probably make a case of Kobe being better for 3-point shooting, but MJ actually had a similar career average as Kobe, only launching a lot fewer treys in the games.
the jazz doubled kobe and that was effective at times. i feel this something we should try more often if we play the lakers in the second round.
The only way to beat the Lakers is to play tenacious defense and be good enough on offense. The Rockets aren't good enough on offense. Like most good defensive teams, the Rockets' effort and success on defense often falters when the offense breaks down, which will happen against the Lakers. The only team capable of stopping the Lakers is the Cavs.
Is Ronnie Brewer really that good of a defender? The Jazz seem to get lit up by opposing wing players routinely the past 2-3 seasons.
The best advantage we have matchup wise is Brooks and Lowry against Fisher. The good AB that is. The bad AB will dribble around on offense, and give up open looks to Fisher on defense. Wafer has had some nice games against them also. It's not a definite that the Lakers will employ the fronting strategy on Yao. Pryzbilla has done a fabulous job on Yao, and I don't think Bynum or Mbenga could replicate that.
Yao/Artest would be the key if Rockets ever win any game against Lakers, let's get real, Rockets can't win against the best in the league by playing role players, period. Kobe will get his average, or close to that number considering the Artest/Battier combo, so lock down Paul, lock down their 3 pointers, and hope that their fronting defence is not as good as Blazers. Like Tmac or not, with him in the team, at least it's lota easier to pass Yao to the post.
No one can stop wing players in isolation, and the Jazz have never had anyone contest shots at the basket. He's not consistent at all but when he tries he is fairly good at staying in front of his man and contesting shots. If we gave Battier a 8/10 for wing defense, I would give Brewer a 7/10 and someone like Udoka a 6/10.
From what I can tell, he definitely has the talent and athleticism, but it's like the Jazz don't do any defensive scouting. I never see him trying to send his opponent away from his dominant hand, never tries to get them to to shoot from their lower percentage areas on the floor, etc... I mean look at today. Sure he was contesting Kobe's shots, but he wasn't trying to deny the catch, wasn't trying to direct him to cretain areas... Kobe was shooting from spots wher he loves to shoot. Watching that really made me thankful for our staff and Shane Battier.
Mbenga has done a good job of fronting Yao. The individual matchups aren't as important as the JVG era, the Rockets need to work on efficient offense because they play under Adelman. They have been pathetic against Portland in games 2 and 3. You don't advance in the playoffs if you can't execute, no matter how deep your team is. ...And the Rockets have not made efficient passes at all in critical games down the stretch, they rely on their defense to bail them out. They wipe 10-14 seconds off the shot clock when they attempt to make an entry pass to Yao and let him battle it out for position instead of swinging or moving off the ball and getting into open positions. Nothing short of illiterate, I just can't believe how steep the learning curve is for some of these guys.
