Proud of You!

Well it's good to see the Lakers doing something useful, I guess.

Razzle Dazzle!

All doubts, all fears, all criticisms swept aside and left to suffer a miserable death in the gutter. The Lakers welcomed the Thunder back to LA with open arms and then crushed the life out of them. They didn't even have a chance. Right from the tip off the Lakers went 10-0 up and continued through the entire games to make the Thunder look like deers caught in the headlights.

The Lakers did everything right, defense, offense, hustling, passing, everything. It was a sight to see and it was the first time in a long time the Lakers looked like the NBA champions that they are. While everyone did a fantastic job two players stand out the most and that is Pau with his 25 point and 11 rebounds and Kobe Bryant who hustled and lead the team with ferocity. The Thunder were just never going to win this one.

The Lakers made it seem that the team that has boundless energy ready to always fight back look like they had nothing left in the tank.

"It was tough to fight back. Once we tried to, we didn't have any more energy left." Durant

Back we go to Oklahoma to see if this spark will carry into the Ford Center in front of the maniacal Oklahoma crowd.

My Man With A Plan

The Thunder are soon going to regret what they have just done. Phil among others does not like losing and when Phil says things like “We’re going to get this thing turned around tomorrow.” Good times are ahead for the purple and Gold and it's about time.

Phil has gone back and taken a good hard look at this series and has come up with his diagnosis.

“Oklahoma (City) is inconsiderate so much of our team speed that they’ll throw all five of their guys at the boards without defensive balance, and we’re unable to take advantage of it,” he said. “The same thing at the other end of the court. We can do a couple things about that, and we’ll take advantage of it."

Come on Lakers. it's game time!

Sigh...

Well apparently the Thunder want to continue past the first round and it seems like the Lakers are content for them to do so. Guess what happened again to the Lakers, that's right poor shooting an lackluster play. I think I've mentioned this before. Hopefully a return home will get our boys back into the groove and put us past these pesky kids. I'm too depressed to write anymore. I'm going to go sulk in my room.

You May Have Won This Battle

You've got to hand it to the Thunder, they don't stop. An impressive rally late in the game resulted in a come from behind win for Oklahoma. The Lakers controlled the game until the end of the third quarter and then suddenly went completely limp on offense. Kobe went 1 for 10 in the fourth quarter, very un-mamba like.

With a boisterous crowd unrelenting in their support for the home team, the Thunder used their aggressiveness and speed to etch out a win. The Thunder had 22 more free throws then the Lakers and swarmed the paint again which resulted in LA settling for jump shots which they refused to make.

It's no surprise that Oklahoma won this with so much energy behind them and well balanced team effort. However I doubt they've rattled the champs who will come be looking for blood and believe me when I tell you Kobe won't miss in the next fourth quarter. Ever heard of the phrase don't poke the sleeping bear, well Oklahoma are poking fairly viciously and in the next game we will see if they've awoken the beast.

Blowouts Just Aren't Our Style

No matter what happened in the game it's a win, say it again with me, it's a win. A win that sent the Los Angeles Lakers 2-0 up against the Thunder.

With lack luster offensive play LA scraped out a win in the dying seconds of the game. Never really panicking but not truly inspiring either. The Lakers did what they always do and made the game more difficult than it needed to be. That in itself is quite a talent. Instead of repeating a solid performance of pounding the ball inside to the big men, they felt quite content to float up soft layups and poor shots that helped the Thunder acquire 17 blocked shots. Despite a lull in the end of the second quarter LA's defense stayed tight and kept them in the ball game while Kobe pulled the Lakers kicking and screaming to the other end to put the ball in the basket and keep LA in the game.

Despite the flaws it was good to see Kobe doing what he does best and scoring points. He looked a lot less troubled by the injuries that would bring mere mortals to their knees. Kobe was able to slice through the defense pick his shots and his elevation on the jump shots seemed much improved. You honestly didn't think that Kobe was going to become on non factor for the Lakers did you? Well, 39 points argues otherwise.

"After 13 years," smirked Bryant, "you think they'd know better."

Now it will be off to Okalahoma where the Thunder will be looking to impress their fans. LA seems to play particularly well in hostile grounds so Oklahoma shouldn't take anything too lightly. Oh yeah there is another guy who plays well against adversity, what is his name again?

This Be The House Of Bynum!

There's one in the pocket, LA controlled Oklahoma to win the first game of the series. In any series Jackson has coached when he wins the first game he has always won the series.

It turns out that the warnings about Bynum were correct, who went out onto the court and established himself, making it perfectly clear whose court the Thunder were trespassing upon. An early warning sent by Bynum straight into Jeff Green's chest set the tone for the rest of the game.

The Lakers did an outstanding job making the Thunder feel as uncomfortable as possible and did it with Kobe severely out of rhythm resulting in a poor shooting night. Don't worry about Kobe it's still early, he'll be fine.

If the Lakers keep this type of play going the Thunder will be unceremoniously removed from the playoffs very quickly.

Keep that quiet confidence going Laker fans and hold your head up high, it's looking good.

In the Red Corner...

There is one bit of news about one certain player that Oklahoma will be having serious concerns over. That player's name is not Kobe, it's not even Pau but one Mr. Andrew Bynum. That's right, he's back and with his return the Lakers revert back to the nightmare match up team that haunts the NBA. Your boys are back.

As promised I've broken down each starting position and have done a comparison of the Lakers and Thunder.

Point Guard

Los Angeles

Derek Fisher
There has been a lot of criticism around the wily veteran, mainly about his speed and his defensive ability to stay in front of younger and faster guards. These criticisms do have validity but there are many more reasons to keep the old man on the court. The toughness, the leadership, the experience, all of these traits will be crucial in the games to come. Derek's role will be clear, close down the perimeter shooters and funnel the opposition into the two seven footers behind him. There is a reason that this man is co captain with the best player in the world and don't forget it.

Oklahoma City

Russel Westbrook
What Fisher has in age Westbrook has in youth. The young guard will be looking to use all his speed to get a jump on Fisher hoping he can create space for Durant. With the length of the Lakers he will probably be looking to dish inside rather than drive to the bucket himself. He's going to have to close down Fish on the perimeter and not fall asleep, like a lot of guards do, allowing Fish to get superior positioning to hit those dagger threes that he loves so much.

Match up: Fisher is the favorite here due solely to his experience, nobody can teach that.

Shooting Guard

Los Angeles

Kobe Bryant
Well, there isn't much to be said that hasn't been said before. One of the most prolific scorers of a generation Kobe is a danger to any opponent. If Kobe's injuries don't hamper him it is always a mighty chore to slow this man down. All eyes will be on him to be the fire burning under the Laker juggernaut.

Oklahoma City

Thabo Sefolosha
It will be this man's duties to do the near impossible, contain Kobe. However if there is one player out there suited for the job it's Thabo. Probably one of the best perimeter defenders in the league, Thabo has already given Bryant difficulties this year and was a main factor in Bryant's season high nine turnovers against the Thunder. But these are different times and a different Kobe, will lightening strike twice?

Match up: It has to go to Kobe the man's a voice of a generation or is that Kanye?

Small Forward

Los Angeles

Ron Artest
Ron's task will be to glue himself to Durant. Seems straight forward enough and I think Ron will be savoring the task, this is the reason he was brought to LA and this is his chance to prove that he is still the defensive force we all expect him to be.

Oklahoma City

Kevin Durant
Kevin has a mighty big task ahead of him. He his going to have to put the team on his shoulders and make a bold statement against the Lakers. With his recent scoring barrage big things are expected, can the young forward live up to the hype? Being in Artest's cross hairs it's not going to be easy but he does have the skills to challenge the champs, but one has to question his mentality.

Match up: I think we have to go with Durant in this one because the whole team will be looking to get Durant's offense going early, they need him to be on top form.

Power Forward

Los Angeles

Pau Gasol
The scruffy Spaniard is a huge offensive threat that very few can contain. He is an integral part of the offense and I think the Lakers will be using him to establish dominance down low from the get go. With his much improved defense Pau is vital to his team and has deserved his paycheck. His role is just to keep on going.

Oklahoma

Jeff Green
With a size disadvantage, Green will be looking to spread the floor and get Pau out of position. On the defensive end try to disrupt Pau and keep the ball out of Pau's hands, which will a mighty task indeed. His role will be to do anything he can to disrupt Pau's rhythm and keep him away from the low post.

Match up: It has to go Pau with his near endless offensive abilities Gasol is a major threat.

Center

Los Angeles

Andrew Bynum
He's back and itching to go. This young center wants to pick up where he keeps leaving off. His first real playoff run this man mountain's main concern will be defense, defense, defense. Bynum will look to establish his presence in the paint and attach himself to any ball that needs a home. Offensively he will be looking to clean the glass and put back missed shots with authority.

Oklahoma

Nenad Krstic
The lanky center will be trying to use his length to get those all important rebounds and block shots. Defense will be key for Nenad and for the Thunder. This young Serbian will try and spread the floor on the offensive end with his face up shooting and try to catch the slower Andrew Bynum flat footed.

Match up: Bynum edges Kristic out due to his superior low post abilities. It helps when Abdul-Jabaar is your training partner.

Bench

Los Angeles
With Lamar Odom ,the third best Laker, returning to the bench it's hard for any team to match that ability and depth. The bench should be looking to keep the energy going throughout the game and use their depth to expose the Thunder and rip open games.

Oklahoma
This bench will be hoping that it can exploit any complacency or lack luster play that the Lakers might show. If their is a chink in the armor they will have to pursue it with ferocity. This will be how they win the series.

Match up: The Lakers are too deep and talented on paper now they just have to live up to it.

Overall: This series is the Lakers' to lose and the Thunder will be more than happy to assist the defending champions in giving up their crown. The Lakers need to execute their offense, control the tempo and use their size on the inside. If the Lakers assume their respectful roles this series is a lock down. The Thunder will have to rally around Durant and bring the game to the Lakers to hope for an upset, stranger things have happened.

See you at game time!

Dance, Dance Little Puppet!

The Zen Master is weaving his wily webs once again, already probing the the mental stability of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Saying that Kevin Durant gets preferential treatment from the refs. Not an original claim, one that has been stated by Kevin Garnett before, but definitely a well timed one. Kevin Durant has already fired back falling straight into the trap, claiming that Phil was being disrespectful to his game. I think someone forgot to tell Kevin the more you kick and fight the tighter the grip becomes, silly Kevin.

Though Mr. Durant has the skill set, he needs to be aware of mental toughness, especially in playoff time. If he thinks Phil was disrespectful wait until he hears the words coming out of Artest's mouth, I'm reasonably assured he won't be whispering sweet nothings to the young star.

This makes you glad that our players especially Kobe can rise above all of this as Andy Kamenetzky from Espn remarked "Kobe Bryant wouldn't bat an eye in this situation. He'd just smile, offer up a reasonably clever one-liner, then go about his business, which is typically going out and destroying whatever team features said detractor. But he'd definitely go out of his way to portray indifference."
Kobe probably receives the most criticism out of anybody in the NBA so it is safe to say that if Durant is serious about establishing his presence in the league he's going to have to take several leaves out of Kobe's giant volume of books.

Hey! This Isn't About the Lakers!

You wanted it, you got it! Here it is the Western Conference Playoff rundown. I'll exclude the Lakers and Thunder for the moment because there will be a much more detailed article about that in the days to come. I can hear you shaking with glee.

I've been looking over the teams and the series match up and I've got to say this is going to be one tough playoff run for every team involved. It's going to be tricky to predict the winners here, but hey, I'll give it a go.

Denver and Utah will play each other in the first round. Two power houses that have no love loss between each other. This promises to be a gritty series with Denver using its muscle to try and deal with Utah but that doesn't mean Utah are weak, they will give as good as they get. What will be especially interesting will be the battle of the point guards, Deron Williams and Chauncey Billups. Deron has really shown himself this season and runs the offense with precision as well as being a scoring threat himself. Chauncey has come to Denver in a seamless transition and has demonstrated his maestro ability orchestrating the team. The keys for Utah will be tempo, they will have to push on the offensive end and slow Denver down on defense. Denver will have to use it's size and athletic ability down low. These two teams are very similar so it could really go any way. I'm going to go with Denver just because they have a slightly better interior game, with the likes of Nene and Andersen however we will see how well they do with their coach struggling with throat cancer, it could prove to be a distraction or an inspiration, we shall see.
Denver 4-3

Phoenix will take on Portland in this series. Again two teams that are not at all dissimilar both like a faster tempo, small lineup. I think Phoenix will be able to edge Portland slightly out of their game because they are a much faster, high scoring team. I just don't think Portland's defense will be able to stop the quick scoring pace of Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire. Brandon Roy will continue to be a thorn in their side and it will be on his shoulders that Portland will win and he is more than capable of doing just that. Portland will have to take care of the ball, prevent turn overs and hustle back on transition defense, easier said than done. Phoenix will have to keep Amare moving on offense and not fall into the trap of focusing too much of their defense on Brandon Roy. I'm going to give this one to Phoenix because of the fluid offense they are able to produce.
Phoenix 4-2

Finally we have Dallas and San Antonio. This one is interesting because we just don't know what San Antonio team will show up. Will they be solid reliable vets using their potent basketball knowledge or will they be the slow old men staying up past their bed time. Dirk Nowitzki is going to provide a lot of problems for the Spurs spreading the floor where San Antonio would prefer to remain in zone defense. Tony Parker is going to have to go to his quickness to out pace Jason Kidd and Ginnobli will have to have his scoring hat on to provide the spark on offense. If those two get on a roll it will be extremely difficult for Dallas to keep up. Let's not forget Mr. Duncan whose post game will be very lucrative against the slack defense of Dirk. So, that job will probably fall to Haywood who is going to have to show all of his defensive prowess in dealing with Tim. Dallas will have to pick up its defensive intensity to contain and dishearten the Spurs, they are extremely vulnerable when they don't get into a rhythm. San Antonio will have to make sure their offense is oiled up and ready to go. In my opinion they should let Dirk do all of Dallas' work on offense and keep players like Caron Butler and Jason Kidd quiet. This will allow San Antonio to control the pace something that will help establish their rhythm. I'm going to go with Dallas, it was very close and I nearly went with San Antonio but I think the energy that Dallas will have will be the final victor.
Dallas 4-2

Lambs to the Slaughter

The Lakers will face the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the playoffs. This is the first time The Thunder have made post season and I am sure they're eager to show what they can do. However, it's not always fun when th first team you have to play are the defending champions with eyes on repeating. On paper The Lakers should brush these youngins aside without too much difficulty but these kids have proven to be feisty. The Lakers' job is simple use their size and Oklahoma will surely crumble.

If the Lakers win against the Clippers and the Magic lose against Philadelphia then The Lakers will regain home court advantage over Orlando if they meet again in the Finals, which is not out of the realms of possibility.

Before the playoffs start I will give you a complete rundown of the Western Conference and maybe the Eastern one if they're lucky! Aswell as a position by position break down of the Lakers and Thunder. I know you're excited and brimming with anticipation but you're just going to have to wait!

Cheerio Laker fans!

Thou Art Blessed

The NBA world remains a balanced and harmonious place as the Lakers rightfully clinched the Western Conference number one seed. It is the third year in a row they have done so. This is excellent news and it is cause for much merriment!

We may have lost in Denver but that is ok, because we were without Mr. Bryant. Who, is being rested because of a swollen knee and his injured index finger is sore. We have nine days to rest him since the next few games this season don't matter to us at all. Very good news, because a well rested, healed Kobe is a very potent thing indeed. It's like sharpening our finest sword in anticipation for the battle ahead. It's going to be gritty but the Lakers will be ready.

Now we will just kick back and wait to see who will be the first up in the playoffs, could it be the Spurs or will it be Portland. My money is on the Spurs but who knows what will happen.

I dismiss thee to go be fruitful and celebrate!

Who Is This Guy?

That's it, that's all you need.

Now I'm Not One To Worry But...

Stressed? Yeah, a little bit. Worried? Very much so. The Lakers were pounded on by the Spurs recently adding to grey hairs amassing on all Lakers fans' heads from this season. I don't know what to do, the Lakers it seems are refusing to lay down the law. They are procrastinating to the point where it seems they will never establish dominance once and for all.

Are they just going to flip a switch in the post season and everything will be alright? Is it what PJ said that they have not been able to establish a rhythm in the season but will have a better chance when they are against a team for a seven game series? Well, there are no real answers at the moment we will just have to take each game as it comes and hope there is a fire burning some where deep inside our Lakers.

I'm Sorry Mr. Bryant, Did You Have Other Plans?

It's official, number 24 is keeping his rightful place amongst the Purple and Gold. Kobe Bryant has just signed a three year contract with the Lakers, it's not surprising but it is always nice to have that ink drying on the paper. I don't know about you but I can sleep better at night knowing that the legend is staying exactly where his destiny demands.

On another note the Lakers beat the Jazz who before losing this game were tied with two other teams for the second seed in the Western Conference, crazy huh? It is highly possible that the Lakers will play the Jazz during the playoff run and tonight we sent a message to all Western Conference teams by soundly beating Utah. The Lakers started strong but then conceded ground in the second and third quarter bringing the score line to just a four point difference. However in the fourth quarter Lamar happened and within minutes the Lakers had a nineteen point lead. The Jazz just couldn't compete with the long limbs of Gasol and Odom despite some inspired play making by Deron Williams. Seriously, the dude has laser precision passing. The Lakers played as a team and showed that when they set their defense up the offense just comes naturally.

It's good to see the Lakers executing on both ends of the floor something that plagued them on their recent road trip. Next up is San Antonio who are another playoff team looking to secure their position. I say bring them on, bring on everybody, come on NBA let's see what you've got!

Remember Me?

Hey Everybody! I know I'm sorry it's been a while in fact it has been over a week. I'm sorry I've been a little busy and I've had some internet issues, apparently if you don't pay them they cut you off! Who knew?

Unfortunately my blogging has been about as good as the Lakers recently. A five game road trip has once again ended in tears. The whole trip just seemed flat footed, we got a couple of wins but let's be honest we should have been aiming to win them all, especially at this point of the season. I've said it a few times already and I find myself once again repeating myself (I'm not even drunk yet), the Lakers need to start taking this seriously. Playoffs are too close for this amateur hour we can't just sit around and hope we repeat the championship we need to actually step forward and do it.

It's not all doom and gloom let's take a look at a few bright spots. The major thing I noticed was Phil's tinkering and adjusting of the rotation. Phil was keeping the bench playing a lot longer than he normally does and at points down the stretch the bench definitely stayed on the court longer than usual. Is this Phil feeling out the team from all angles while the games aren't really important? I think so, the playoff spot is secured and we are in a strong position for the number one seed. The more Phil can utilize all the players on the team the better he can coach them. We are a stronger team when the coach is aware of all aspects of the team and you can only find that out by trying different mixtures. A rut can be a very dangerous problem indeed, you know Denver are studying the tapes!

So let's hope that Phil knows what he was doing, I just don't know if ten championships is enough experience. I think we will just to have to hold our collective breath and wait and see.