THE SPORT COUNT

Entries tagged as ‘Los Angeles Lakers’

Count Q+A: Hedo, Ron & Trevor

July 4, 2009 · 1 Comment

So, the silly season is upon us, and the Count is ready to weigh in with opinions left, right, and centre on Ron, Trev, Charlie and Ben — who sound like a 1960s mod rock band but are, in fact, all basketball players.

What will he do? Get it?

What will he do? Get it?

Where should Turkoglu end up? Where is he likely to?

Anton: Let’s do the second part first. I see him signing with the Raptors, a poorly-run franchise desperate to surround Chris Bosh with known entities. Toronto want name players, guys with ‘championship experience,’ and they’ll pay for it. Being the league’s only non-US franchise, the Raptors seem to pride themselves on their international flavour, so securing the Turkish Jordan will blow minds north of the border.

Never mind that he’s yet another long three-point man who doesn’t rebound, sliding in next to Bargnani, who is carving out a semi-successful career without ever setting foot in the paint on either end. Never mind that he’ll be overpaid.

You know where he should end up? Orlando. He’s perfect for them. He can run the offense when Jameer Nelson isn’t on the court, and he can nail open bombs off kick-outs and screens. His sporadic defensive failures and lack of rebounding are offset by the brute interior strength of The Manchild.

Yes, he should stay in Orlando. But they can’t offer him enough money, so he won’t.

James: Turkoglu will get overpaid. Let’s be frank: he’s playing in a set up that suits him perfectly, and he’s the third-best player on his team. Without a solid, shooting 4 like Rashard Lewis, he has a lot less space to operate, and he flourished in a situation where he’s the go-to guy in the clutch.

Ideally, you’d like to see him as the final piece on a contender… but he’ll take a pay day. If Portland offer him the bucks now — and it would be a horrible move if they do — that’s where he’ll be; they’re an exciting team and probably good enough for the WCFs next year, taking a game or two off the Lakers.

I’d actually love Turkoglu at the Mavericks. Think about it. He’s a much better fit for that team than Howard is at the 3, as he can camp on the perimeter and get kick-outs from Dirk. Likewise, he’s a guy who revels on good looks (otherwise shooting woefully from the field) so he’d be fit if Kidd is feeding him the rock.

Having said that, I see him taking a pay day from the Blazers or Raptors.

(more…)

Categories: Count Q&A · Signings & Firings
Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A Cheapening Of Championship Glory: Why You Never Want To Sweep Your Opponent

June 11, 2009 · 9 Comments

The Magic have given the Lakers a real fight.

The Magic have given the Lakers a real fight.

In the first game of the finals series, the Lakers looked absolutely dominant, the Magic completely outmatched, the talent gap between the two teams vast.

The imagination of serious basketball heads ran wild, conjuring images of LeBron and his Cavalier mates going toe-to-toe with Kobe Bryant and his crew, challenging them on every possession, fighting for every rebound. It seemed like an injustice that The Manchild, Hedo, and Rashard had stolen from us the showdown we deserved: The King and The Black Mamba.

In the second game, that feeling faded, and the 100-75 scoreline in game one looked like an aberration; a result dictated by the nerves of the Orlando players, a surprisingly engaged Los Angeles crowd, and Kobe Bryant playing at the peak of his game.

And in game three, the developing sense that Orlando deserved their spot in the last dance was assured. It was clear: they’d earned the right to be there. They were the best in the east, a (sporadically sputtering) offensive juggernaut, a tenacious defensive crew anchored by a beast in the middle.

But if the Lakers had won game three — making a sweep the most likely outcome — the average basketball fan would have been sorely disappointed. Hell, the Lakers would have been too. Their victory would have been cheap.

Cheap. The worst label that can be affixed to glory. That grotesque asterisk. Barry Bonds’ home run achievements? Cheap. George W. Bush’s Florida win in 2000? Cheap. For the Lakers to be ‘true champions’ — with the ideas of fairness and equity of ability attached to that — they needed a tough opponent.

That’s true of all the Lakers, but especially Kobe. If he wants a ring sans Shaquille, as the best player on his team, he needs to avoid that asterisk.

Had the championship scoreline ended up at 4-0, no one would have remembered how hard the Magic had fought throughout. The series would have fizzled, becoming nothing more than a slow death march for the Floridians, and an extended championship parade for the Lakers.

The Lakers will likely get their rings. Only three teams have ever recovered from being down 0-2, and the Magic appear too streaky, too dependent on the three-ball, to be the fourth. But the fact Orlando has taken a game — the only finals win in franchise history — ensures the Lakers can’t be labelled as cheap champions.

The Lakers will deserve their rings.

The Spurs hardly earned their 2007 title.

The Spurs hardly earned their 2007 title.

Unlike, say, the Spurs in 2007, when they demolished a poor Cleveland team who’d weaseled their way through a weak conference on the back of stellar efforts from LeBron James. The Cavaliers shouldn’t have been there, and the Spurs never faced adversity. It was a cakewalk. A 4-0 embarrassment.

Unlike the Rockets in 1995, who beat up a young Magic team, and didn’t have to face Michael Jordan, freshly returned from retirement, and still easing into game shape.

Unlike the Pistons in 2004, who defeated a Lakers team who had completely imploded. The series finished 4-1. That Lakers team stole a game, but they weren’t a match for the Pistons who, despite a significant lack of real talent, at least played well as a team.

As they say in politics, you’re defined by your opponent. For your championship to count, you need to have been beaten, bloodied and bruised.

The Magic aren’t giving the title away. They’re giving the Lakers all they’ve got. And so, when the Larry O’Brien trophy* heads to California, justice will have been served.

There will be no asterisk.

Posted By: Anton

Follow The Sport Count team on Twitter.

*This feature originally misidentified the NBA championship trophy as the Maurice Podoloff trophy. That is actually the regular season MVP trophy.

Categories: On The Court
Tagged: , , , , , , , , , ,

Count Q+A: Key Questions From Game 2

June 8, 2009 · 1 Comment

After watching the first two games of the NBA finals, ‘underwhelming’ seems to be the consensus. I’m sure pundits, TV ratings people and fans across the globe are all feeling slightly similar; that the Magic, despite their best game 2 efforts, still aren’t playing their part in giving us the finals that we wanted.

We’ve got queries, we’ve got questions, and given that we have a Web 2.0 outlet to potificate, predict and ponder, that’s exactly what we’re going to do.

So many opinions, whether right or wrong.

So many opinions, whether right or wrong.

Question 1: Is there a way back for the Magic?

James: Yes! Let’s keep in mind that they were within a Courtney Lee layup (well, two, but who’s counting?) of squaring the series at 1-1 — which would’ve seriously made the Lakers sweat going into the belly of the beast.

Game 2 showed off Orlando’s threats, and if Howard can get smarter at reading the help defense and start kicking it out to the corners more efficiently, we could see a blow out going the other way in the next couple of games.

Orlando needs game 3 on their terms — not just a win, but an uptempo, exclamation point of a win that gives them the momentum to take game 4 on energy, setting up game 5 as the true decider.

Anton: Absolutely not. It’s likely they’ll take game 3, with a home crowd desperate for a finals win (Orlando are 0-6 all time in finals games), and the serious possibility of Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu and Dwight Howard firing on all cylinders at the same time. But with the way the Lakers are playing — inside-out, constant ball distribution — there’s no way for the Magic to claw back.

They’re playing for dignity now. Game 2 was make or break. And they broke.

Question 2: What to do with the PG situation for Orlando?

James: Play Jameer Nelson from the outset. Currently, either through lack of confidence or his talent level finally catching up with him, Alston is playing with neither skill nor passion. Even J.J. Redick is doing a better job of getting to the hoop against Derek Fisher, showing how much swagger Skip To My Lou has lost.

If Nelson is your guy, then he’s your guy. The team is better off playing an extra shooter or going super big with Hedo at the point, sacrificing nothing in mobility, than playing Alston, who can’t contribute.

No one doesn’t feel for the guy — he was a big part of getting them there, but the coaching staff need to see that it isn’t working, and that Nelson is the option for Orlando when they go back home.

Anton: Agreed 100%. You just can’t have Rafer Alston on the floor. For the series, he’s done just what the Lakers want him to, jacking up horrendous jumpers, acting as a black hole on offense, slacking off on defense. Courtney Lee has had issues — lazy defense on Kobe in game 1, the botched lay-up in game 2 — but at least he’s trying. Alston looks lost.

It has to be Jameer. If he’s healthy, you start him, and you play him big minutes. He’s too good to be benched in the name of ‘chemistry.’

Question 3: Does going big with Gortat and Howard help or hinder?

James: It hinders, because one of the Magic’s key advantages is the ability to spread the floor. Having two centres with no offensive moves playing in the 4-5 spots is creates a log jam in the paint — which helps LA help defend and rebound as soon as the big guys put it on the floor.

Ariza is staying home on whoever he’s playing, and Bryant is helping the big guys against Dwight, meaning that the Lakers are daring Courtney Lee, Pietrus or Redick to shoot Orlando to the win. This line up helps the Lakers narrow Orlando’s options on offense, which allows them to get more rebounds.

Additionally, with Gortat and Howard lumbering up the floor, the transition game which advantages Orlando so significantly is redundant, making it tough to get the easy buckets they’ll need when games are on the line.

Pau Gasol isn't bothered by Gortat.

Pau Gasol isn't bothered by The Polish Jordan.

Anton: Unfortunately for the Magic, you just can’t do it. During the regular season (when Van Gundy, for whatever reason, rarely played The Polish Jordan and The Manchild together), Orlando might have created terror on defense with the two monsters roaming the paint.

Against the Lakers? Not so much. Odom is too agile, too capable of handling the ball. Gasol has post moves good enough to get Gortat off his feet. The Lakers, with their big, versatile big men, aren’t worried by two roaming shot-blockings.

Whatever defensive advantage the Ebony & Ivory Towers frontcout might give — and it’s arguable it helps at all — is betrayed by how offensively weak Gortat is. He misses lay-ups. He’s apparently capable of nailing jumpers, but he hasn’t proven that in a game environment yet. Near the basket, on the offensive end, he’s a liability.

Question 4: Single strangest moment of the finals thus far?

Anton: Every moment that J.J. Redick spends on the court is strange.

Let’s get this straight: the guy is a famous shooter who can’t shoot (3-11 in the series). He’s a clutch guy who disappears in the clutch. Tell me again why he’s on an NBA roster, let alone getting substantial minutes in a do-or-die playoff game?

And forget what you’ve read about his defense improving. Relatively, it has. Because now he occasionally plays it. He’s still laterally slow. He’s consistently abused on pick and rolls. He lets his offensive inadequacies frustrate him, and that effects his effort on the defensive end.

He shouldn’t be in the game. Not with Courtney Lee capable of playing off-guard. Not with Pietrus available. Heck, not even when Anthony Johnson could spell some minutes at the two.

James: Apart from the NBA Cares segment where Sasha Vujacic playing Monopoly with disadvantaged kids? Probably a D.J. Mbenga appearance in Game 1. DJ is the human personification of salt in the wound.

That appearance was strange because I didn’t expect it.

It was also strange, because D.J.’s head is way too small for his body, and he may or may not be a 12-year old with mild progeria.

Question 5: How do we see these Finals impacting the NBA next season?

James: Game 2 just got a whole bunch of teams interested in Lamar Odom. He might be inconsistent as hell, but such a big time display will get teams like OKC — and maybe even Utah and New Jersey — looking at Odom to fill holes, with his ability to score and handle mismatches on D. I was in no doubt that Odom would re-sign at LA, but this makes me start to think he’ll be tempted by an inflated contract; which he’ll inevitably rarely justify.

Anton: I can also see Odom collecting a surprisingly fat contract on the basis of his play in these finals. Only LeBron James and Dwyane Wade as are versatile as Odom, who can run the offense, attack the basket, distribute, block shots, box out and rebound strongly, read passing lanes, and nail threes. He’d be perfect playing for D’Antoni in New York. He’d be a killer at the Warriors, where he’d be called on to play primary point guard much of the time. And he’d be wonderful to watch on the Nets, forming a formidable frontcourt with Brook Lopez, and finally rendering Yi Jianlian officially expendable.

I can also see the Magic attracting some big names in free agency now that they’re a legitimate force in the weaker East. With downward pressure on salaries, the opportunity to play for a winner will become more important. Rasheed Wallace could be an incredible back-up at the power forward and centre spots. Ben Gordon would be an incredible off-guard — everything J.J. Redick was supposed to be. And Charlie Villanueva would be perfect.

Winning attracts winners; I’m sure a pundit has said that before. And it’s true. The Magic can only benefit from their finals appearance, even if they don’t end their run with rings.

Posted by: James & Anton

Follow the Sport Count team on Twitter.

Categories: On The Court
Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Jameer Nelson & The Myth Of Chemistry

June 7, 2009 · Leave a Comment

If he's healthy, playing Jameer Nelson isn't a risk. It's logical.

If he's healthy, playing Jameer Nelson isn't a risk. It's logical.

Last Friday (Sydney time), before the game, The Sport Count tweeted this:

The likelihood of Jameer playing two games, the Magic losing both, and the media slagging Orlando for messing with their chemistry? 2.5-1.

The odds were way off. It was always going to happen. At least in some quarters.

And it did.

Nelson came back a little out of sorts: despite facilitating three assists in his first three minutes, his offensive game appeared disjointed, like a driver forgetting how to switch gears on a manual after years in an automatic. But he wasn’t that bad. A -19 in 23 minutes certainly isn’t good, but not a single one of his Orlando brothers contributed a positive +/- (the closest was J.J. Redick, with a neutral plus-minus in seven garbage time minutes).

The Magic shot appallingly. Their defense was sub-par. Little of that is on Jameer. He didn’t help the team, but he didn’t destroy them.

But, as the most obvious changed variable on a previously dominant Magic squad, Jameer — and the trainers who okayed his return, and the coach who played him — are copping it.

The Associated Press proclaims that the ‘Magic want chemistry right for Nelson’s return’ (the implication is, of course, that Jameer threw it off in game one).

The Bleacher Report has a letter to Jameer: ‘even if you do play decently, ultimately you will have a negative impact on the team unless you are able to play at a higher level than Rafer Alston and overcome the disruption in team chemistry at this critical juncture.’

Dime Magazine urges Jameer to stay benched.

It’s all too obvious. Chemistry is important in basketball, without a doubt, but it’s more about personality than Xs and Os. You want guys desperate for a win, in it together, looking out for each other, hustling hard. Fitting an old piece — in the case of Jameer, a guy who has played in Orlando for five years — back into the jigsaw isn’t difficult to plan for. The team has practiced with him for hundreds of hours. He’s been on the bench, sporting street clothes, cheering his healthy teammates, listening in on huddles. Dwight Howard still knows how to run a pick and roll with him. Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu know to expect kick-out passes from him. It’s not rocket science.

Dealing with the mid-season addition of Rafer Alston — a point guard who quietly covets the jumpshot — is a much tougher ask than re-integrating a high-level point man like Jameer Nelson.

So, forget the myth of chemistry. If Nelson is healthy, and Orlando’s training staff say he is, you play him. You realise that, yes, he wasn’t having the best night… but no one on the Magic was. It was an off night for a team seemingly taken surprised by the Lakers’ strong rebounding, apparently stunned by their inside-out attack.

Nelson is too good to risk not playing. He can attack the basket, with his scorching footspeed, tight handle, and subtle ability to drop the (apparently uninjured) shoulder into bigger men. He spreads the floor, opens the wings. He’s developed into an eagle-eyed passer. He can drain threes. Before he was injured, he was everything Rafer Alston isn’t: consistent, an orchestrator of the offense, and a shooter.

If anything, Jameer should be applauded for taking it slow. He didn’t force shots. He made smart passes. He didn’t do much, but he didn’t do too much. Perhaps Stan Van Gundy shouldn’t have played him for the entire second quarter — Van Gundy recently said as much, saying he’d limit Nelson to 7-minute spurts for the rest of the series — but as coaching moves go, it wasn’t the worst. Far from it.

It was perfectly understandable. When you have a point guard as effective as Jameer Nelson available, you use him. The myth of chemistry be damned.

Posted By: Anton

Categories: On The Court
Tagged: , , , , ,

The Battle Of The Benchwarmers: Part Two

June 5, 2009 · Leave a Comment

An incredible bench battle.

You’ve seen him sitting on the bench. You’ve seen him pat his teammates on the back. You’ve even seen him get three minutes in a blow-out, contributing hustle rebounds and inexplicable turnovers. But what do you really know about D.J. Mbenga?

Didier Ilunga-Mbenga is an enigma, a large-eyed Belgian mystery. He appears good-natured, the Fezzik of the league. Like that friendly giant of popular culture yore, Mbenga was born into cruel circumstances:

“Congo Cash” was born in and raised in Zaire [...] where his father was a government employee. When a new regime took over power, it sought everyone who worked for the previous leader. As unrest in the country escalated, Mbenga’s father was imprisoned. Although he was eventually unable to save himself, he did manage to negotiate on behalf of his sons, who were also imprisoned and waiting to be executed. Mbenga fled the country on a plane to Belgium, where he received asylum. While living in a refugee center, he was discovered by Belgian basketball legend Willy Steveniers, who eventually served as Mbenga’s personal basketball mentor.

An incredible story… and just the kind of tale of misfortune overcome that Adonal Foyle would really enjoy reading about.

Yes, Adonal is a reader. (He’s also a member of a profession in which simply reading books consistently marks you as a person of substantial interest).

He’s also a writer of poetry — he collaborates with Washington Wizards centre Etan Thomas — and book reviews. In 2001, he founded Democracy Matters, a grassroots organisation designed to ‘counteract apathy’ on campuses across the United States. In other words, he’s a very good human.

And so, when an enigmatic benchwarmer with a personal history out of a James Baldwin anecdote goes head-to-head with a literate, thinktank-operating walking inspiration, what do you have?

You have a battle played out in the timeouts and stoppages of the Finals; two engaging (if only sporadically active) ballers duking it out in the ‘getting to know the players’ promos run by ESPN, ABC and TNT.

Human interest — that’s Foyle’s bread and butter. But with Mbenga’s tale of international adversity, D.J. is a dark horse candidate to steal the narrative limelight from Adonal.

Advantage: Anyone who loves a good story!

Tyronn 'Ken' Lue Vs. Sun 'Chun-Li' Yue

Tyronn 'Ken' Lue Vs. Sun 'Chun-Li' Yue

Yue starts the round by blocking — a prudent move against the fireball happy Lue, who blazes away with two medium punch hadokens.

Lue then leaps backward, only to be thwarted by Yue’s spinning bird kick, which is good enough for first strike and some additional damage.

Now cornered, Lue brings out the big guns, a three hit dragon-punch, right to the guts, sending the bench splintering and Sun Yue’s hopes at game time spinning away as fast as the birds around his head.

Dizzied, Lue throws Yue across the screen. This one looks like it’s over…

The screen flashes yellow… you know what time it is: ULTRA COMBO! Sun Yue strings together a 16-hit spinning bird kick, feather kick finisher, ending this bout.

Neither player flirts with court time throughout the whole round.

Posted By: Anton & James

Categories: Battle Of The Benchwarmers · Sport Count Guide
Tagged: , , , , ,