Lakers weaknesses: -Houston Rockets Reasons: -Yao Ming: Even in that relatively bad game Yao had, he still was punishing Bynum/Gasol. We all get mad at Yao, but lets face it, 80% of the time he is unstoppable. Hopefully he gets in the same form he was in before last year's injury. Once he gets there, Bynum and Gasol are just too weak (especially in the legs) to contain Yao. So that will force doubles which creates lanes and open shots. -Overall Defense: We are a good defensive team so just wait until Shane gets back. Can you imagine a line-up of Battier, Artest, a healthy and motivated (i.e. playoff form) T-Mac, and Yao on the floor at the same time? Then we have a physical PF (Hayes), a pesky PF (Scola), and an athletic PF (Landry). Those are some good looks to toss around. I still think the season is basically going to come down to Lakers v. Rockets in the West semi-finals and the a Lakers/Rockets v. Celtics finals showdown. Those three teams are just head and shoulders above everyone else as far as talent (at least on paper) goes. Now obviously the Celtics are the furtherest ahead because they have played the most with each other, followed by the Lakers (who need to get Bynum/Gasol working together), and then the Rockets (who need to get Yao , AB, and Artest in the rotations). N.O. has a punchers chance, but I just don't think there is enough outside of Paul and West to push them past the Lakers or Rockets. But it sure is going to be a fun season!
Michael Jordan could never advance to the Finals until Phil's arrival. With the same nucleus of key players as his predessor, MJ and Pippens, Phil won 3 rings in his first years with the Bulls. Likewise the tandem of Shaq / Kobe could never advance past the first round of the playoff until Phil's arrival. with the same nuceus of key players as his predecessor, Kobe and Shaq, Phil won rings in his first 3 years with the Lakers. these turnarounds speaks volume of Phils' coaching ability.
Phil's results with the Bulls and Lakers, as compared to his predecessors, Doug Collins and Del Harris, contradict Berri's claim, such as it it.
when you include Dallas, i know u don't know what ur talking about. clearly ur clueless. name me one team whose 2nd unit is better than the Lakers, not the Rox, nor Jazz, nor Sun nor Celtics.
Kobe wasn't even in his 20's and Pippen played just 2seasons in the league prior to Phil.. Phil was just at the right place at the right time.
Both a strength and a weakness. They still rely too much (of course) on their star player. Pin him down and pin the the rest of the Lakers down. If someone will do a Bell on him then they will go down. Remember also the 2007 finals series. They were ripped apart then. Pin the star, pin them all down as well. Their strenght can also be their weakness. Didn't see that comin', didn't ya?
I've been thinking about this myself. I think its going to take a really good effort to beat them in 7 games. I think they have some player that are soft at the core, but they're disciplined,well oiled and losing in the finals was a great teacher. When you can bring Odom of your bench, walton and mihm can't see the floor, you have a pretty good team. People can say Jackson is overrated, but he's won the ring when he was suppose to. If mailman doesn't get hurt, that's another ring. Last year, Boston was the better team.
How about mentality? They got spanked by the Celtics in the Finals. Especially how everyone and their moms said the Lakers would take it. Some even called a sweep. They blew multiple huge leads at home and didn't even show up in the Final game. That kind of performance on the biggest stage raises interesting questions.
I thought you were supposed to be Lakers' fan and you don't even know their own history. Shaq (in Orlando): Went to Finals, once and Eastern Conference Finals, twice. While, he made it to the playoffs, every season of his career, except in his rookie year. Shaq (in LA): Never lost in 1st round, before Phil Jackson. 96-97: Lost in Western Conference Semi-finals (to Jazz) 97-98: Lost in Western Conference Finals (to Jazz) 98-99: Lost in Western Conference Semi-Finals (to Spurs) Phil is good coach, but I still think Shaq was talented enough to win 2 to 4 titles without Phil. Also, consider the elite level in centers and players of 90s were all reaching the twilight stage of their careers. If you stuck Shaq in his prime on the team, like Trailblazers, Mavs, or the 76ers. You don't think those teams would have a great shot at the title.
- They cant defense outside shooters. - They're not doing good with aggressive teams. We need to be aggressive if we want to win something. It's not only Lakers, you should be aggressive on the court if you want to pass any single round in play-off's. Just ask TMac. - Bynum is way overrated. Yes he is talented but he is really overrated right now. A mentally healthy Yao will kill him. Yao needs to fix his mental issues. Don't worry about the Lakers that much. Wait for Shane to be back and you'll see how Rockets improving.
Has everyone forgotten about last June already? It's the same team. What's changed? Bynum's back, and Gasol's back at power-forward--does this suddenly turn a team of soft pretenders (Kobe excepted) into the 96-97 Bulls?
whether u realize or not, u r making the argument for me. assuming what u say is true, then Phil should be credited for developing Kobe and Pippen. facts are, both Kobe and Pippen were already all-stars before Phil's arrival.
Hmm, where to start. LA has a great team this year. If they won the whole thing I wouldn't be surprised at all, because they have one of the games best players and lots of surrounding talent. But unbeatable...no weaknesses? I don't think so. LA has been running a lot of zone this season. Their perimeter defense isn't really great...most teams just can't shoot. Go watch the Pistons game or our game. We got tons of open looks....we just missed. After the Pistons game, Prince noted they got every shot they wanted because they are a good passing team. I'm not saying their defense sucks, but they aren't a "defensive team" like the Celtics are. Their frontline still doesn't handle physicality very well. Bynum was just done up by Kwame Brown. Sheed gave Gasol fits. When push comes to shove, they still haven't shown that they will shove back. But how many teams are really physical squads like that...at least that have enough talent to put points on the board to beat LA? Maybe 5? If you can keep Kobe out the lane and firing jumpers you can still beat them. Sometimes he hits them, sometimes he doesn't. But if he's off, I don't see Gasol or Odom dominating for an entire series against a very good team. I still think Boston would beat LA in a series. They have a better and more physical frontline (KG and Perkins). They have an athletic PG that can defend and rebound. They have shooters. They have two wings that Kobe can't defend (Pierce and Allen), and both of them are very good closers. Both have a sack. Let's not forget that Allen played like garbage for most of the playoffs last year. If their Big 3 are all clicking they will be a tough out. More importantly, they won't get the "ref benefit" against Boston....at least not for an entire series (i.e. outside of LA). I think Detroit and Houston could beat LA in a series because they can score and both have defenders that can make Kobe work (Prince, Battier/Artest). I think a healthy Spurs team can beat LA. I think a healthy Spurs team would have beaten them last year actually. If LeBron ever got others to hit shots I think the Cavs could beat anyone. They play good defense and have that one player that can change a series. Lastly, let's not forget that it's possible that this team (KOBE INCLUDED) may look good as roses when things are going good, but fold in a series when things are going bad. That 39 point drubbing last year may have given them a new mindset....but we won't know until they are really challenged.
And as far as Phil's coaching goes....I think Phil is a great motivator and a great coach in the same manner that Rudy T was. Get him the right talent and he can get the guys to come together and play for him. That's part of coaching. As far as him being an X's and O's guy....I don't think it's there. The schemes aren't his, and I saw Larry Brown and Doc coach him under the table. With that being said, Phil had great timing IMO. When he took over the Bulls MJ had been getting his butt kicked for years by more talented teams. His supporting help (mainly Pippen and Grant) were just coming into their own. I don't see Phil being the difference....the difference was the supporting talent around MJ got better. The same goes for him in LA. He got Kobe as a pup and won when Bryant matured and when Shaq became the games most dominant player (either he or Duncan). Management getting rid of dudes like Van Exel and Jones and getting vets like Harper, Horry, Grant, Rice didn't exactly hurt either. Again, the difference was great talent maturing. I don't think Rudy is the best coach ever just because he caught Hakeem at the right time......
Last June they were in the NBA Finals, 2 wins away from an NBA Championship. They finished with the best record in arguably the toughest conference in league history. Then they beat the Suns, Jazz and Spurs, a much tougher road than the Celtics took to the finals. Bynum back is a factor as are the noticeable improvements in Farmar and Ariza. This team is loaded. There is no way around it. In two pages, the only weaknesses people have come up with are: -Jackson is overrated (overrated or not, he's won 9 championships and this team has the talent to give him a 10th, deserving or not) -Bynum is overrated (I think the bigger concern is if he can stay healthy, if he does, he's only 21 and has improved every season, he is a legit presence in the paint and 2nd in shotblocking while playing under 30 mpg) -perimeter defense is weak (I'd be content with Kobe, Ariza and Fisher, especially when you take into account all their other strengths) -playing aggressive against them (I think you have to do this to have any chance to play with them, it's a testament to how deep and talented they are) -force Kobe to try to do too much (that may have worked 2 and 3 years ago but they have so many options now, their 2nd unit is blowing teams out like they did to the Rockets) I think all those weaknesses are overrated and it sounds like people are reaching to come up with anything. And if those are their biggest weaknesses, which I don't really see as legitimate weaknesses other than possibly the fourth one, it pretty much confirms my original point: They are by far the best team in the league and it's hard to see anybody beating them in a 7-game series except maybe the Celtics because of their hacking-style defense and ability to get under the Lakers' collective skin. The way I see it, the Lakers and then the Celtics are the cream of the crop and no other teams are even close right now. I'd like to see somebody honestly put together a list of the Rockets' weaknesses. You don't have to reach at all.
Kobe was voted in as an all-star before Phil got there. He didn't even start for his own team at that point (Eddie Jones did). And you do realize there is a difference between being an all-star and being one of the best players in basketball, right? Kobe wasn't that before Phil got there. Pippen had like 2-3 seasons before Phil got there, right? Did Phil suddenly make him hard as to where he decided to stop letting migraine headaches take him out of a game? You are ignoring all the additional help that came right when Jackson did, or how players improved/peaked right when he got there. Hakeem pre Rudy wasn't the Hakeem in 94/95. His game improved. The Bulls were making strides with Collins. They took the defending champs to 7 games the yr before.
