There’s really nothing the Wolves can do. When they single cover Shaq and Kobe, those two are scoring at will. When they double team those two, every other Lakers is making every single one of their open shots. You can tell the Lakers are really focused and have finally gotten things together. They're just too good.
It is amazing this topic has been discussed 1000 times and you still brought it up as if Yao is the Shaq stopper. Just make sure one thing, it is only valid whenever Yao can strictly play Shaq one on one most of the time.
Kandi is doing surprisingly well. i thought he would have fouled out with 2 points and 3 rebounds by now.
I just plain hate Fisher!!!!!!!! KG is eventually a jumper shooter, there is no coincidence in the past year he can't hit shots when they need him. To Malone, it must be much easier to guard KG than Duncan. Another valid lesson for Yao, fadeway jumpers can't save you in the playoff even you are the MVP.
I don't understand why KG doesn't drive it on Malone. The old man can't keep up with him. Fadeaways aren't gonna get it done. That WIDE open shot by Fisher was killer but then the Lakers were giving up open 3's all day as well. Oh yeah, Spreewell doesn't have that great of handles.
Garnett vanished with 16 pts and 10 rebs which is disappointing. When the Wolves established Garnett in the inside in the 4th Q the Wolves had plenty open looks and cut the lead from 11 to 2. That seems to be their formula to win against the Lakers. Garnett has to step it up, get agressive, get the fouls and establish himself in the inside. 16/10 isn't acceptable for the MVP. The game shows how important Yao was in containing Shaq for neither Cato nor MoT is as good as Duncan and Garnett on help defense.
You guys act as if you are surprised that KG is soft. He has never been one to score inside. That's not his game.
He has had that sticker for years, but just when people think that he might've turned a corner after the Kings... Disagreed. He can drive by any big men on the Lakers or post up effectively. KG's jumper is money. It's not about his skills. He's just not aggressive or mentally strong enough.
KG defers to his teammates ALOT in the 2nd half. This was seen last year in the 1st round against the lakers. It was Troy Hudson who kept burning the Lakers while KG slid out of the picture. For a guy that has fire and intensity 24/7 in the regular season, he sure plays timid in the playoffs.
Pretty good point. And how about a 40 year old outplaying the MVP, check these lines Player-----Min FG 3Pt FT Off Reb Ast TO Stl Blk PF Pts K.Malone--44 8-13 0-0 1-2 1 11 4 0 3 0 2 17 K. Garnett-45 7-15 0-1 2-2 0 10 2 4 2 2 2 16
i agree with the above. with Shaq and Duncan, and a lesser extent with Yao, there is a radius around the basket, inside of which, if you allow them to catch the ball, forget about it because it's too deep. there is no such radius with Kevin Garnett. Garnett certain things these players don't have, like range, speed, intensity. That block on Malone and slap to Malone's face was just awesome. However... he lacks the primacy it takes to carry the team on his back, every single time. Especially since his bread and butter is a fallaway jumper. He carried them against the kings no doubt, but he can't do it over and over. Which begs the question? Is KG more of a Pippen instead of a Jordan? I love him as a player... but he's not perfect.
He's a hell of a "Pippen" type player then. The thing is I don't know how to describe Garnett. He can score, he's an awesome rebounder and shot blocker (he changes a lot of shots in the lane). But is he dominant? Does he really have a post up game? His go to move is a fallaway jumper. I just don't how to describe his game because he can do it all yet he can't do it all, if that makes any sense.
I think you hit the nail on the head here. KG is great in many categories but not the ALL-time great a team needs to win a championship. Take tonight's game for instance, he only took 15 shots. An MVP player like him should take 25-30 shots a game mininum and put the team on his back like Duncan, Shaq, Kobe, Jordan, Hakeem, etc. KG is just not that type of player and that may cost him of getting to the promise land.
Pippen went as far as KG has, sans MJ, in 1994. That year his only semblance of help was Horace Grant.
I never said he couldn't do it. The problem is that he never does play with aggression on offense. A so-called 7 ft MVP should not be firing 15-20 ft jumpers all game long, especially when the Lakers are scoring inside every time with Shaq. There is no excuse for KG to go to the line only 2 times in Game 1. It's about time he take it to the rack every time he can. His settling for jumpers ultimately means his settling for getting swept. I'm not idiotic enough to think KG doesn't have skills. However, I am "smart" enough to realize over the last 8 years or so, that KG has an aversion to physical play, particularly on offense. People seem to love big men who can shoot. I think that's the worse thing a big man can have... Too many big men settle for it. If they were good inside, they wouldn't be labled as a good shooter.
It's kind of silly to compare the two, since KG faced a defense focused on stopping him, while Malone is not even the second option on the Lakers.
They also had Toni Kukoc who incidentally made the game winning shot against the Knicks in the playoffs while Pippen refused to come in for the final play because the play was not called for him.
