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Quick Thoughts and Queries for An Open Thread on Game Five
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(Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE/Getty Images)
NBA Finals, Game #5: Boston 98, Los Angeles 103
Series to date: Boston up 3-2
Other assignments prevented me to compiling a good three pointer for last night's game, and it is already late in the day to slap together some of my impressions and questions about the contest. But given the exquisite recent feedback this site has received from a great mix of both Celtic and Laker partisans, KG fans, and everything quasi-neutral in between, I thought I'd briefly weigh in and open the floor for discussion. In any case, I'll have something more thorough after Game Six.
* I woke up this morning somewhat surprised that the "Kobe fouled Pierce" line seems to have generated some legs. Personally, I thought the worst call of the game was the third whistle on KG, when he obviously had a clean block on Gasol and yet was forced to go to the bench. The Kobe "foul" on the steal from Pierce was minimal contact, and given the stage of the game and the very slight infraction, I thought I was an appropriate no-call. But both the second and third fouls on KG were huge in deciding the game, and both were very questionable calls. Without Kendrick Perkins, the Celts were already hamstrung down in the low block. Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom finally seem to have gotten the message that they have to attack the paint with some urgency. Garnett discovered that guarding an energized Gasol is a tougher task than handling Odom; and James Posey on Odom should almost always be, and usually was, a mismatch in Odom's favor. On a night when the Celts again did a good job on Kobe (post first quarter) and Paul Pierce was unstoppable, I think Boston wins if KG stays on the floor more than 11 minutes in the first half. Yes, LA got a majority of the "could go either way" calls, including the crucial ones like KG #2 and 3 and the Kobe steal. That's a natural tendency when a team is at home and trying to stave off elimination.
* I am rooting for the Celtics (but not so hard that I don't want to see, close, well-played games) and have been a big critic of the Laker defense during the series, but did anyone else think that Van Gundy, Jackson, and Barry in particular were way too harsh on the Lakers' indifferent D? JVG at least tried to be very specific, as when Jordan Farmar didn't want to take the charge on Pierce, and I'm all for roasting Vlad Rad, but I can't ever recall such vitriol being directed against the *winning team* in such widespread fashion. Barry essentially predicted the Lakers will get blown out on the return trip to Boston. Uh, I'm not so sure. The fact remains, the Lakers have a very good team, and that they don't play team D nearly as well or tenaciously as the Celts shouldn't obscure the fact that they have a superior offense and the game's most talented player, and that the Celts are starting to physically break down. What sort of perverted logic will these pundits deploy if the Lakers snatch Game Six, which is not totally outside the realm of possibility, even if they play defense as porously as they performed last night? Do you folks agree or disagree with this? In any case, I was amazed at the negativity directed toward LA; maybe because many of them had picked the Lakers and are overcompensating for currently looking wrong.
* KG lovers, including yours truly, have to own up to the fact that those two misses at the line in crunchtime were killers, the sort of misses that can invade the psyche if he's put in a similar situation in the next game or two. Another ray of hope for LA's chances of keeping this thing alive.
* Yes, Pau Gasol is a lousy defender. But he is underrated for his grit on the offensive boards and I think his contesting for rebounds wore KG down some last night. Garnett is usually a master at snatching rebounds that are up for grabs and Gasol and Odom were able to keep many of them in play last night. Given how little ground Gasol covers on defense, especially compared to KG, he expends much less energy during a typical game. Thus, here is what I'd say to KG, who usually is very receptive to messages that emphasize defense as opposed to offense: "KG, unless you want to be worn out down the stretch, you need to take it at Gasol and get *him* in foul trouble so *he*'s the one who has to sit. Because Gasol is a key to their offense right now, both in the low block and the high post, where he can feed the perimeter shooters or dish down to Odom. The best defense you can execute right now is drawing fouls on him, which is what will inevitably happen if you go strong and hard in the paint when you guys have the ball."
* How many points did Odom score with the right hand last night? Why hasn't he been switching hands on the penetration off the dribble this entire series?
* I don't understand why Rondo and the other Celtics haven't been able to make LA pay for sloughing off Rondo when he is running the half court sets, but after three games of this pattern, isn't it time to start thinking about starting House, essentially matching him up with Fisher, and bringing Rondo in when the Lakers go to Farmar and Vujacic?
* Will there be a fight before this thing is over? If so, my money is on either Posey or Vujacic as the instigator.
31 Reader Comments
I was unable to watch the game last night but one officiating tactic that in my opinion has been one of the keys to the series has been the lack of handcheck calls. It blows my mind that something is called all year, the league puts an emphasis on it, then once the playoffs come everyone can get away with it. One of the keys to slowing Kobe down this series has been handchecking him, in my opinion. I don't think the Lakers have done it nearly as much as the Celtics, which very well could be why they are down in the series.
Also, on the Donaghy scandal, I'm more of a media conspiracy theorist than a NBA conspiracy theorist, and I don't hold Disney in the highest esteem. I think the most interesting part of the story is that ESPN has slowly become more of a sports news outlet than just a sports outlet. Given that they dominate sports related news with ESPN.com, is it possible they are using this story, or at least covering it in a way that actually heightens the popularity of the NBA? After all, any media is good media (some say), and they are generating interest in something their televising on another outlet, ABC. Or, perhaps the story is big enough that it generates website hits and increases their legitimacy as a news organization, and generates more money on the website. Anyway, no one else probably cares, it's just my hippie media studies degree getting me thinking.
It makes me laugh when Celtic fans cry about fouls. Game 2 was a foul calling mismatch of historic proportions, a skewed result with tiny probabilities of ever happening. Even that 2002 Game 6 that everyone thinks was fixed had merely a 15 point free throw disparity, with Sacramento committing deliberate fouls down the stretch and on Shaq.
Having said that, the refs did miss the second call on Garnett but I'd venture that reaching to slap a ball elicits many bad calls. The Lakers have suffered from unmerited reaching calls, but I agree with what Doc said, and Garnett affirmed, players need to stop reaching and play straight up.
Garnett is pretty lucky that he got this ride with Pierce and Allen (or they with him). Kobe is experiencing how hard it is for 1 man team to battle in the finals, especially against 3 perennial all stars (RA 8, KG 11, PP 6). What other team, featuring only 1 repeat All Star did it? Pippen's 1996 team was one terrible call (in favor of Hubert Davis) from making the finals.
But this Laker team made it, beating some good teams. Liek many were posting before the series started, there was no way the Lakers should be favorites. Good but seriously flawed starters at center and PF, a non entity at SF and short, unathletic jump shooter at PG is not a scary team. Yet, they’ve been in every single game with the #1 seed, the best defensive team in years, and home to 3 hall of famers. Either the Celtics are playing very badly or Kobe is very, very good.
The answer is 1994 Houston Rockets, whose second bananas were Cassell and Otis Thorpe (1 All star appearance each), which is more than the Lakers offer. The early 90s in general seemed like a weak period in the league, though. Its "greats" seem pretty ordinary.
I meant to say Garnett's 3rd was a bad call, where he slapped the ball as GAsol brought it up. Reaching over Gasols shoulder and hitting him seemed like a good call. Nice to see they've started calling him on all his moving screens since he got to LA; there was more sliding on his screens in Games 1 and 2 than at a Michael Jackson concert.
You're all wrong -- by far the worst foul call on KG was the first one, a few minutes into the game, where Derek Fisher. ahead of the fast break, drove to the rim, lost control and the ball and fell out of bounds. Absolutely no contact was made on the play, but since KG was near Fisher, the refs blew the whistle. That one play changed the entire game, as the subsequent questionable whistles on KG (the block for his 2nd and ball denial for his 3rd) took him out of the game.
And Chastised, if thers was historic negligence by the refs in Game 2, please provide specific examples. Referring only to the free throw disparity is simply unconvincing -- free throw disparity can be indicative of offense aggressiveness, poor defensive rotation and judgments, and on and on. All those folks letting the numbers argue this point may as well be blind or have been channel surfing during the game if you ask me.
Izi--
Thanks for the reminder: yes it was indeed KG's first foul on the Fisher drive that, in addition to the Gasol block called a foul, were two lousy calls, IMO.
As for the reffing in Game 2, it was pretty thoroughly discussed in past threads both here and elsewhere. Suffice to say that Laker fans really felt they got jobbed, and provided specific examples. I agree that most of the calls went Boston's way, but not to the extent that it decided the game. In many respects, ditto the other way on Game 5, although I do think the pro-Boston officiating in Game 2 was more lopsided than the pro-LA officiating in Game 5.
Absolutely -- I'd say the officiating has ultimately, and fortunately, been a non-factor, at least up to this point. God forbid there's a Derek Fisher-Brent Barry moment in an elimination game. Or worse yet, another Radmonovic epic travel to keep the Lakers alive.
A final note before Game 6 tips off -- I constantly find myself sticking up for KG to those less familiar who insist every 18-footer he shoots is a poor shot, and plead for him to take the ball to the basket. But even I am losing patience with Doc and KG for failing to exploit Gasol and Pau in the post. KG has not shot (that I can recall) even one of his Hakeem-dream shake-esque fadeaways in this entire series, which he demonstrated was a potent weapon just a series ago against Detroit. Before Game 5 I predicted a hyper-aggressive KG on the post would be key in jump-starting the C's and slowing down the fast-out-the-gate Lakers. I still feel that way for Game 6. Especially as long as KG's 18 and 20-footers are clanking the rim. And unless he does find that stroke, most of America will go another year without recognizing KG's one of the best 3 or 5 in the entire league from 16-20. A trophy will shut em up though.
Wow- this is embarrasing
as much as i love the woofs
all of my fears are coming true (ie- now that he is out of the frozen tundra, kg is winning his title)
i think that this speaks to kevin mchale's ineptitude as a gm
i will be absolutlely embarrased if he is still with the team (which i am sure he will be) next year
at the very least, please take oj mayo instead of brook lopez
finding it hard to stay true
a wolves fan since game 1
e2bhw6
I think what's most painful to me is that KG could have another 6-8 years of his career. By that time, he will only be considered a Celtic, and the wolves will only be that accident that happened at the beginning of his career, like Shaq in Orlando. I guess it's deserved, too. After he left, Taylor and McHale spent alot of energy blaming the wolves woes on his game. The finals is a fitting eulogy where the wolves brain trust gave him none.
Speaking of which, Britt, do you think you could get us that KG retrospective you promised us a year ago.
What I think the consensus was, and Curt Schilling said this too, was that the Lakers committed most of the fouls called on them in Game 2, but the Celtics got away with a bunch of fouls. Moving screens alone could have been called 4 times (although the teams usually adjust after 1 or 2 (e.g., Game 4), so that's unrealistic). But its really neither here nor there, the Lakers were close late and could still have won.
What is interesting though is that tonight's refs are Eddie Rush, Bennett Salvatore, and Joey Crawford who ref'd that Game 2 debacle, who missed 3 calls in the last 40 seconds of the Laker San Antonio game where Fisher crashed into Barry and are just terrible. Look for a spotty stop & go game, lots of arguing, lots of confused players, lots of fans talking about calls and so on. Way to put your best foot forward NBA.
Or, maybe they're the fixers and will make up for Game 2 to get us a Game 7.
Chastised--
I disagree. I know perfectly well why I picked the Lakers to win this series, and much of it was because both Gasol and Odom are simultaneously long and quick. I underestimated the lack of mental tenacity both would have going up against a hungrier, veteran team that has folks like Posey and PJ, who know how to win, plus three guys either at or slightly past their primes in KG, Allen and Pierce who know that trips to the Finals are very rare. But in terms of talent, I thought Boston would have to pick its poison: Gang up on Kobe and let Gasol/Odom roam in the paint, or let Kobe go off. That they've been able to throttle Kobe *and* both Gasol and Odom has been the biggest surprise to me, and I blame Odom and Gasol for not being mature enough to kick it up another mental notch. They both showed signs of it in their first elimination game--way too late. Also, I am very surprised that the Lakers bench has been outplayed so thoroughly by Boston, especially in the backcourt. Why Vujacic and Farmar aren't supplying a lot of ball pressure in 3/4 court sets and traps is perplexing. Eddie House and Sam Cassell can be trapped; the Lakers can thus make the Celtics into a scrambling team, which would suit their pace--I presume anyway. Bottom line, I don't think this Lakers team is Kobe and a bunch of chopped liver. Yes, that's the way they've played. But the series against the Jazz and the Spurs looked very different and indicated why this team was, in my obviously wrong view at the time, clearly the favorite to win.
Fair enough, the experts I respect the most favored the Lakers too. But some posters here did say, hey wait a minute that ain't right. I believe I wrote that Boston should be slight favorites given the home court advantage and that San Antonio series was misleading because the scheduel and earlier series really harmed San Antonio. And the Lakers have been in every game, so its not looking like a mismatch.
I also wrote that Gasol was overrated and that Memphis gave up on him because he's paid like a star but clearly not one. His offense looks skilled at times, which gins up the hype machine, but the total game is no more than good and often just decent. Let's compare him to contemporaries at C or PFs (where he'd play with Bynum back) in the west and rank him. I'd put him behind Duncan, Stoudemire, David West, Nowitzki, Boozer, Yao Ming, Chuck Hayes (Who is going to be very good soon) and in a group with Chris Kaman, Mehmet Okur, and LaMarcus Aldridge.
Having mainly watched him only this season and having looked over his stats, to me his defensive knowledge, intensity and determination is periodic at best. His rebounding disinterested (in 7 years he's averaged 10 rebounds only once). Even on offense, his participation looks great at times, but he also passes out of advantage situations or on screen roll settles for jumpers unless his coach and teammate stay on him.
If that's your second best player, then the first best is very very good.
Well, you were more accurate than I was--at least thus far. The only rebuttal I'd give is that Gasol and Odom get synergy with each other (or certainly should) and then synergy again with Kobe. Thus, Gasol on the Grizz is a damn sight different than Gasol on these Lakers; ditto Odom, although I do recall him working well with Wade the year they spent together in Miami. In any case, both were tough matchups for the Jazz, and even for the Spurs some.
The JVG-Jackson bashing of LA's defense was interesting to me, mainly because I was feeling the same degree of negativity, but for different reasons. JVG kept hammering home the simple point that LA doesn't take charges, while I was completely dumbfounded that they continued to pressure Paul Pierce, rather than give him a little space and hope he settles for jumpers. It's hard to argue with most of the calls Pierce got, since he was simply driving it against overaggresive defenders that eventually led to too much contact. For those cheering for Boston, you have no idea how frustrating it is to watch Paul Pierce beat your team with penetration. For one thing, he's not especially quick, so he shouldn't be THAT hard to stay in front of (unlike guys like Allen Iverson, who are simply too difficult to stay in front of to avoid giving up 10+ free throws), and for another, so much of it is just "head down and dribble" plowing to the basket, you'd think more can be done to stop it. However, the guy continues to get it done and I'm getting to be less "in denial" about his true quality, and more hoping that Phil can figure out a way to contain him.
Since I've been watching the refs pretty closely since the Game 2 debacle, I'll briefly say I didn't think they had a huge impact last night, and Games 1 & 3-5 have all been pretty balanced (I'd say they were all quality, but sometimes it's just that there are roughly the same amount of bad calls against each team). KG's attempts to reach over Pau and tip passes are among the most frustrating for offenses, in that they are very-much illegal, and yet extremely effective at creating steals, when allowed. (A worse call was the 4th Quarter one on Walton, when the ball was legitimately up for grabs and Walton made what would have been a great tip to a teammate). I can't remember for sure, but I believe this was the type on Garnett's second, which I didn't find to be questionable. The third, when slowed down with their amazing cameras, showed he barely grazed Gasol's hand, and got mostly ball. The color crew was right that it was probably a bad call. A few bad ones that had this Laker-backer getting upset were Pierce's headfirst slide down the lane, with the ball, before hitting Posey for an open three. I thought that was a travel. Also, Ray Allen grabbing Fisher's wrist and tossing it aside before the ref decided Fisher was at fault for a 2-shot bonus foul that the 93% Allen converted.
I expected KG to miss his first FTA, since it was his first attempt of the game and it came that late--most guys would struggle to make their first attempt after exerting the type of energy that Garnett does for 3 quarters. However, I expected him to make the next one after getting the feel of one miss.
Spot on with Pierce. He's basically got a "put your head down and go "move, with his only counter a weak back spin/drop step. But he's great at using his shoulder and elbow to create contact and maintain balance. You really do have to play position defense because you'll never contest his shots without getting called. He's very strong, relentless and physical. A really fun player to watch.
The thing about Pierce is that he's not really graceful or ultra quick or an elite ball handler or proto-type shooter or physically dominant. He just can get it done in all sorts of different little ways and that makes him a fun player to watch.
He's got ridiculous balance, body control and court vision. The sequence late in the game where he got bumped off the ball and hit the floor and still managed to get a perfect pass out to an open Posey or House (can''t remember who) downtown was sweet.
Andy G--
The Pierce trip was a travel and would have negated the Posey trey. The Walton call was if I remember a makeup of sorts--I remember being irate at a noncall and then, seeing the whistle on Walton, figuring they were fingering a relative scrub as a makeup. Either way, bad call on Walton.
I don't remember KG's second foul right now, but I replayed it off my tape during the first subsequent timeout and thought it was a bad call. Hopefully I'll remember to look at it again so I can be more specific.
Pau Gasol was much more impressive to me than Odom this game--he had KG on him, whereas Odom had Posey mostly--not only for his passing and putbacks but because he didn't bitch and whine nearly as often. I remember one play where I thought he should have gotten the call but didn't and after a moment's frustration his head was right back in the game. That was different than the previous games in the series.
Good amendment on the KG FT's--yeah the first miss was understandable. But it was also the kind of thing that slightly unnerves KG. Put it this way, Celtic fans would much prefer Allen or Pierce at the line with crucial free throws in Games Six and Seven (if necessary).
Finally, even if they are overaggressive on Pierce, JVG is right that LA almost never executes interior rotations. I know that's what is driving Van Gundy nuts and frankly I'm stunned that Phil Jackson and company have allowed it to go on for so long; not only with Pierce, but everybody. Remember when Allen badly beat Vujacic off the dribble at the close of Game Four; why was he able to get to the rim unscathed? It blows my mind.
There is certainly a problematic inconsistency going on with the LA defensive scheme. Plays like the one you cite from Game 4 are nearly inexplicable, especially given the timing. How can you have Sasha pressuring Allen that far out on the court, and then have absolutely no signs of help when he (predictably) is beat off the dribble and can't afford to commit a foul?
Same for most of Pierce's Game 5 success--he's getting pressure way out court, and if any help comes, it's too late and usually an arm to hack him instead of a body waiting to take a charge. I guess where JVG and I differ, is that I'd continue to avoid helping off shooters (other than Rondo) but I'd lay off Pierce until he's inside the 3 line, and try to frustrate he and his teammates with the sort of quasi 1-2-2 zone type defense that Boston has utilized when Kobe has the ball at the top. They can get a hand up on Kobe, but they are certainly living with his 3-attempts (and dying as they did in the 1st Quarter) but are absolutely not going to let him rip through the paint, where he is most dangerous. I remember some of the Wolves-Celts first game, and I remember thinking that Pierce was trying to force his own shot, especially when we didn't pressure him--he'd chuck away from outside, and it wasn't until we let him get into the paint and draw fouls that he made a real impact.
It's about the only ray of hope for LA fans to hang onto, needing to sweep 6 & 7 in Boston: the fact that such a simple, seemingly fixable problem (Pierce's continuous penetration into the lane) was the difference between winning by 15 and squeeking it out in a nail-biter. While KG & Allen can certainly play better, I suspect Kobe & Co. feel good after today's practice about whatever Jackson told them will make things better on D. Now that Gasol & Odom have found some confidence, this series could be on its way to a close finish. However, if The Truth shoots 12+ free throws in a Game 6 win, scratch what I said and either Jackson and the Laker staff are unwilling to make adjustments, or his players can't carry them out.
i think PP is deceptively quick... his "wide" body makes him seem slow. if you rewatch game 5 (esp 4th qtr) he went around Kobe a couple times off the dribble with relative ease. and, kobe is not sloutch on on-ball D.
He's certainly crafty, and has a great rocker step and triple-threat position. But, I'm still amazed at how frequently he can penetrate the lane, since he's not all that explosive. He's not slow, but just about every team in the league has one or two starters that are better athletes than him, and yet almost none could do what he's done this series. Most less-than-explosive forwards that are dominant nonetheless, are great because of their ability to catch & shoot. Pierce is certainly a good shooter, but his dominance in this series has been on screen & rolls and straight isolation sets. It's like he's challenging the whole Laker team, and (many times) winning. I've seen PP enough to know he doesn't always dominate like this, and I think the right approach could limit his production. However, he's played enough great games in this series alone to make it obvious that he's worthy of all those All-Star appearances and will be MVP of the Finals if Boston wins.
Apologies for not sifting through comments and appending to existing threads, but it's been a long happy hour and I feel the need to chime in with a couple of quick notes.
Pau has taken KG like I ever thought I would see - the postgame crew was ripping on Kobe for not taking over and feeding Gasol so much, but Pau has played very well against KG this series, and it was the right thing to do.
The steal was a correct no-call - Pierce is (IMO) a terrible ballhandler, and while there was little contact with the ball, there's also little reason to lose it either. I may have pimped it on this blog before, but there's a wonderful This American Life episode ("Pros vs. Joes") which recaps that sweet Nike commercial from a few years back and makes note of Pierce's ballhandling.
Boston really needs to spread the floor and the Lakers need Derek Fisher. Doc played Sam and Eddie quite a bit, which was smart - if you had told me before the season that House would be the most versatile option at PG, I'd say there's no way this team makes the finals. Conversely, reliance upon a Farmar/Sasha spark is a gamble. It could happen, but don't you want a proven results at this stage?
Finally, Lamar Odom is Fool's Gold. There is little in his game for Boston to be worried about - he will perpetually win the Darius Miles award for unrealized "potential." He doesn't make FTs, he's a disaster off the dribble, and he doesn't have the wherewithal to get anything other than cheap points when the Celts' D gets lazy. Yes those cheap points are points nonetheless. Everyone points to his "versatility" but he's not proficient enough in any skillset to do real damage, not to mention his propensity to disappear at crucial moments. Compared to other quality SF/PFs, I think the Lakers would have a better chance to win by trading Odom for Gomes or Prince or Butler or Outlaw or etc. etc.
Did anyone hear Stephen A Smith call out Luke Walton as being AWOL this series? I found that interesting, since Walton is not a very key-guy for LA, he hasn't done anything noticeably stupid or detrimental thus far, and because SAS works so closely with Luke's dad on so many nights for ESPN. I realize it's got nothing to do with the game itself, but I sort of look forward to seeing the next booth that has both guys on it. While I'm all for the media criticizing who they feel deserves it, I thought that was a little cheap, for the three reasons I listed above. Considering the history of Bill & SAS being somewhat contentious with one another, I wouldn't be surprised if it approaches awkward viewing if and when Bill takes some jabs back at his colleague.
I'd also add that it should embarrass ESPN how obvious SAS shows his Kobe/Laker-favoritism. Obviously, their best writer has the exact opposite feelings and makes them completely clear, but at least he doesn't disguise it. SAS says stuff like "...we can only HOPE that Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol will show up..." Since when do the color guys and post-game crew "hope" anything? Walton's son is playing in the series, and he delivers more unbiased commentary than Smith. I'm all for LA, but have still been irked by this.
great article by Asche at Minpost along with interview with KG.
http://www.minnpost.com/stories/2008/06/17/2264/after_12_years_often_filled_with_frustration_in_minnesota_kg_is_finally_one_step_away_from_the_ring
http://www.minnpost.com/stories/2008/06/17/2258/garnett_through_heartaches_and_tough_times_you_learn_to_appreciate_new_opportunities_ive_been_able_to_do_that
Thanks Andy.
Both the piece and the interview are well worth your time. It's neither a puff piece nor a hatchet job, covers the bases and gives KG a chance to say some things that, if you read between the lines, tells you how he feels about the Wolves organization.
Hey Britt,
Was wondering if you will throw anything together for the draft. Would love to hear some insights about potential draft prospects.
Timberwolves.com had a lot of coverage on their site about bigs. Seems like they are leaning towards lopez/love. What are your thoughts?
hey KG-haters....
one of the very first words to come out of KG's mouth (literally) upon winning his first championship was "Thank you 'Sota".
please keep that in mind, minnesota.
Yeah! KG!!! KG's spitting, sobbing, screaming interview almost brought a tear to my eye. Couldn't be happier for him, and the shout out to 'Sota was great.
He's cemented his place among the all-time greats with this ring. Well deserved.
Yes, there's not too many KG haters this morning. Not sure if there ever was. The last commenter (anonymous) here who called out KG haters later revealed he was refering to BIll Simmons, one of KG's biggest fan although he wrote an article critical of his performance against Atlanta and questioning if he had it in him to be champion. I am pretty certain there is no one with a bigger smile on his face this morning than Bill Simmons.
There is a difference between hating and critiquing someones performance. KG's performance last night and thins year puts to rest a lot of that criticism, though there will always be doubters. As a former KG fan and great admiror of him while he was in a Timberwolves uniform I could not find it within myself to root for him in a Celtics uniform and despite all the aggregious mistakes of those in the Front office of the TWolves, I wanted greatly for the trading of KG to work out in the Wolves favor. I still do, although last night's result and KG's ring certainly makes that a difficult possibility to believe no matter how good Jefferson, Gomes, Telfair and the draft pick become short of champions in T-wolves uniforms.
I have to admit it was heartening to read KGs interview with Asheburner and his call out to "Sota" in the paper this morning. I imagine it might even sting a bit for Taylor and McHale to read those comments this morning because certainly his thanks was not directed at the TWolves organization but rather to his fans here instead. I'm genuinely happy for him now that the championship is over. I just wish I could have felt the pleasure of him winning the championship in a Timberwolves uniform, although I won't blame him any longer for that never happening.
Re: Game 6
Watched in a bar with the sound off. The Lakers tanking the 4th quarter, (or before) is a disaster for Kobe, Jackson, the Lakers, and the NBA. It was the most undignified exit I have ever seen. Kobe sat for the first two-plus minutes of the 4th, when he should have been either on the court or in the shower. If it were any city but LA, the fans would run him out of town. Same with Jackson for allowing it.
The Lakers ran up against a better team. I shut the game off in the 3rd qtr. I wanted to see the Boston celebration, but sleep was calling and I was only going to stay awake for a competitive game. Jackson was trying different combinations and t/os and pleaded at halftime for his team "Not to give it away!", but there was little he could do. Same with Kobe. Boston was not to be denied last night.
Kobe, Jackson and LA should have little trouble regrouping next year. If Bynum comes back healthy they have an even more formidable lineup to place around Kobe. Farmer should establish himself as the starting PG and Gasol has a year more of experience playing beside Kobe, Odom and the rest. If there is a rematch next year, I'd expect this year's experience will make LA that much more hungry and Jackson will not let them forget what happened. No reason to run Kobe or Jackson out of LA. I expect they will have a tough go of it in the West again with NO, Utah and others, but if they can get through that gauntlet and end up playing Boston and the Big 3 next year, I think LA will be much more competitive and will probably come out on top given this year's humiliation.
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Commentary:
Read Menace by Tom Bartel
Society:
The Adventures of Melinda by Melinda Jacobs
Politics:
Defenestrator by Rich Goldsmith
Food:
Breaking Bread by Jeremy Iggers & Ann Bauer
Books:
Cracking Spines by Max Ross
Music:
Hear, Hear by Staff
Art:
The Vicious Circle by 6 Critics
Secrets:
Secrets of the Day by Kate Iverson
Theater:
Seen in the City by Staff
Film:
Talk About Talkies by Staff
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