Kobe can do better. That was directed at you, Lebron. You gave us an amazing shot, Kobe gave us an amazing fourth quarter. I'm expecting something special from you tonight. And this is the part where I remember that I'm betting against Lebron and punch a wall a few times. By the way, since we're on the topic of my bet, I realized that it really is the definition of a win-win situation. I win the bet and I get 30 dollars, I "lose" the bet and I get to eat a whole box of Eggo cereal. Was that just me trying to rationalize a stupid bet after picking against Lebron James? You bet your ass it was.
Lakers-Nuggets
I don't want to be seen as someone who shies away from my mistakes, so let me be the first to say that I was wrong. I said that the Nuggets would win Game 3 and was wrong. I said that Carmelo would prove to us that he's on the same level as Kobe and Lebron (which he is, he just wasn't last night) and was wrong. And probably most importantly, I forgot that Kobe Bryant was on the Lakers, which wasn't just wrong but was flat-out stupid. And even though I mentioned it in the previous paragraph, I'm not buying into this supposed Kobe-Lebron duel with each trying to top the other's exploits. Yes, Kobe is aware of what Lebron is doing. So are about a billion other people. Yes, Kobe knows that somewhere along the line this year we all decided to move the title of "The Best Player In The World" off of him and on to Lebron. And yes, a small part of what Kobe did in Game 3 was probably a giant bitch-slap to every basketball fan's collective face after we idolized Lebron for 24 hours, but I believe that the main reason Kobe won the game was, well, because they needed to win the game. It's as simple as that. Kobe knew, like he's known so many times before, that the Lakers needed him to carry them to the finish line and he did just that. There was no "take that Lebron" or trying to outdo The King, there was just a cold-blooded killer breaking the hearts of 20,000 fans in a game his team had to have.
That being said, the Nuggets should have won this game. But instead we were treated to "Furious George Screws Up An Inbounds Play: The Sequel," which was quickly followed by Carmelo Anthony fouling out, effectively ending the game. I still think that the Nuggets are the better team in this series and that they should be up 3-0, but the Lakers have Kobe Bryant and it's starting to look more and more like that just might be enough. At least as long as the Nuggets keep making unintelligent plays down the stretch. And now, rather than going for the sweep on Monday night, the Nuggets will be fighting to stay in the series. It's funny how much one guy changes things. It's also funny how some people never learn.
Don't get me wrong, I believe the Nuggets have a great chance at winning the series, but thanks to two floating, careless passes it's going to be a lot, lot harder. Unnecessarily harder, which might be the worst part. So what do they do now? I would recommend finding a reliable player to pass the ball in. A half-decent sideline inbounds play wouldn't hurt either. After that, they continue to do what they've been doing. They're better than the Lakers, if they stay the course, the winning will come. If not tomorrow, in Game 5. But it will come. Carmelo won't disappear in the second half again like he did in Game 3, Kobe Bryant won't single-handedly win two games in a row (He's getting older and he's getting tired. In his post-game interview both of his hands were on his knees and he was panting more than he was speaking. 2006 Kobe would have never admitted he was drained, let alone show it to the world on national television. Like it or not, he doesn't have enough left in him to dominate every single night.) and the Nuggets won't lose two games in two tries at the Pepsi Center. Hopefully.
And just to clarify, "dominate" doesn't mean scoring 30 for Kobe. That' s nothing for him. Dominate means holding the ball at the end of games for 15-20 seconds per possession and either shooting or creating a shot every time the Lakers go down the floor. And he just can't do that every night anymore. Even after Game 3 he said that the reason the Lakers went to Pau two times on a row late in the game because he was too tired to carry them and needed a break.
Showing posts with label Game 3. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Game 3. Show all posts
5/08/2009
Game 3 Preview
After two hard-fought, gritty, exiting games in Los Angeles where the Rockets won one more game than the "experts" thought they would, the series comes back to Clutch City for Games 3 and 4. Game 3 is huge for both teams, but is more important to the Rockets, who need to win out at the Toyota Center to win this series.
The Good
- The Rockets are back at home, where we are 3-0 in these playoffs so far. The crowd at the Toyota Center has done a great job helping the Rockets this year, and there's no reason that this should stop.
- Yao Ming will not have another foul plagued game like Game 2, where he only played 26 minutes and took 4 shots.
-The Rockets are once again playing our theme song from the 90s and dynasty days. The version they play at the games doesn't have the singing, so feel free to cut it off at 45 seconds. If you want to hear the vocal talents of Capella, keep listening.
The Bad
-Kobe Bryant is still a memeber of the Lakers, and as we saw in Game 2, that can be very, very, very bad. Keeping him in check is going to be a huge part of who wins Game 3.
-Derek Fisher is suspended. I know what you're thinking: Wait, a team loses a veteran, championsip tested player and gets better? Yes, because FISHER HAS NOT BEEN ALIVE SINCE 2004. This forces them to use a Brown/Farmar combination at the point guard, which will let them match up much better with the speed of Kyle and Aaron.
- Because of Bynum's knee, the Lakers are playing Odom more at the 4, allowing Gasol to play center. Odom has been posing matchup problems for us all series long, and Scola is limited in his effectiveness when he has to guard either Odom or Ariza. How the Rockets handle this change is crucial to our hopes in Game 3 and ultimately in the series.
The Ugly
Key Matchups
Point Guard - Now that the Lakers don't have their offense being run by Derek Fisher's Dead Body, they should match up much better with the speed of Brooks and Lowry. If Brown/Farmar can push the tempo match Brooks/Lowry's production, the Lakers have a great shot at winning the game. The Rockets have had an advantage at the point for the whole series, and Fisher's suspension could change that.
Kobe vs. Battier - There's nothing that needs to be said about this matchup. We know what happens when we hold Kobe in check and we know what happens when he's focused. Hopefully Shane's done his homework.
Yao vs. Gasol/Bynum's Injured Knee - The more time Bynum gets on Yao, the better shot we have at winning the game. If the Lakers front Yao like they did in Game 2, the Rockets have to move the ball quickly and maintain the effort and patience to run the offense through him.
Scola vs. his hair - Scola has underpeformed in the first two games of this series, and if the Lakers are going to key their defense on stopping Yao, he HAS to step up. The Rockets playoffs hopes might rest on one Argentenian man's 18 foot jumpshot. He's been solid all year and really stepped up when teams focus too much on Yao, so I'm not worried too much about this.
Benches - The Rockets bench has outperformed the Lakers bench in the first two matchups, and that has to continue for the Rockets to win. Von Wafer will play mainly because the Rockets can't afford to not have him and the hot-headed 10 points a game he gives us. The Lakers' already thinning bench is made even weaker by Shannon Brown having to start, and the Rockets need to exploit this to win the game.
The Point
I don't want to bitch about the refereeing but if the refs can't call this game well, the Rockets can't win. Steve Javie and company cannot ignore all of Kobe's "incidental" elbows and have to make sure Yao isn't manhandled by the Lakers' centers. Not that Pau's Pubic-Hair Beard and Bynum's Limp could manhandle him anyways. Dealing with the quickness of Odom-Gasol at the 4-5 could be difficult for the Rockets, so don't be surprised by extended playing time for Carl Landry and even an extended cameo by Chuck Hayes.
The Rockets have played smart, efficient, empassioned basketball throughout the playoffs. We have defended with heart and scored when we needed to, and we're going to need all of that against this Lakers team. They are a well coached, talented team, that despite its proneness to stretches of laziness cannot be taken for granted. We fought to take home court away from them, let's not throw that away tonight. The single most important 3 hours of our season begins at 7:30 PM, or 2:30 AM Botswanian time. Look for a hard fought, chippy game with more than a few confrontations that will require the Rockets to execute down the stretch, which I believe they will. Go Rockets.
The Good
- The Rockets are back at home, where we are 3-0 in these playoffs so far. The crowd at the Toyota Center has done a great job helping the Rockets this year, and there's no reason that this should stop.
- Yao Ming will not have another foul plagued game like Game 2, where he only played 26 minutes and took 4 shots.
-The Rockets are once again playing our theme song from the 90s and dynasty days. The version they play at the games doesn't have the singing, so feel free to cut it off at 45 seconds. If you want to hear the vocal talents of Capella, keep listening.
The Bad
-Kobe Bryant is still a memeber of the Lakers, and as we saw in Game 2, that can be very, very, very bad. Keeping him in check is going to be a huge part of who wins Game 3.
-Derek Fisher is suspended. I know what you're thinking: Wait, a team loses a veteran, championsip tested player and gets better? Yes, because FISHER HAS NOT BEEN ALIVE SINCE 2004. This forces them to use a Brown/Farmar combination at the point guard, which will let them match up much better with the speed of Kyle and Aaron.
- Because of Bynum's knee, the Lakers are playing Odom more at the 4, allowing Gasol to play center. Odom has been posing matchup problems for us all series long, and Scola is limited in his effectiveness when he has to guard either Odom or Ariza. How the Rockets handle this change is crucial to our hopes in Game 3 and ultimately in the series.
The Ugly
Lou Adler (R), aka Colonel Sanders' metro cousin
Key Matchups
Point Guard - Now that the Lakers don't have their offense being run by Derek Fisher's Dead Body, they should match up much better with the speed of Brooks and Lowry. If Brown/Farmar can push the tempo match Brooks/Lowry's production, the Lakers have a great shot at winning the game. The Rockets have had an advantage at the point for the whole series, and Fisher's suspension could change that.
Kobe vs. Battier - There's nothing that needs to be said about this matchup. We know what happens when we hold Kobe in check and we know what happens when he's focused. Hopefully Shane's done his homework.
Yao vs. Gasol/Bynum's Injured Knee - The more time Bynum gets on Yao, the better shot we have at winning the game. If the Lakers front Yao like they did in Game 2, the Rockets have to move the ball quickly and maintain the effort and patience to run the offense through him.
Scola vs. his hair - Scola has underpeformed in the first two games of this series, and if the Lakers are going to key their defense on stopping Yao, he HAS to step up. The Rockets playoffs hopes might rest on one Argentenian man's 18 foot jumpshot. He's been solid all year and really stepped up when teams focus too much on Yao, so I'm not worried too much about this.
Benches - The Rockets bench has outperformed the Lakers bench in the first two matchups, and that has to continue for the Rockets to win. Von Wafer will play mainly because the Rockets can't afford to not have him and the hot-headed 10 points a game he gives us. The Lakers' already thinning bench is made even weaker by Shannon Brown having to start, and the Rockets need to exploit this to win the game.
The Point
I don't want to bitch about the refereeing but if the refs can't call this game well, the Rockets can't win. Steve Javie and company cannot ignore all of Kobe's "incidental" elbows and have to make sure Yao isn't manhandled by the Lakers' centers. Not that Pau's Pubic-Hair Beard and Bynum's Limp could manhandle him anyways. Dealing with the quickness of Odom-Gasol at the 4-5 could be difficult for the Rockets, so don't be surprised by extended playing time for Carl Landry and even an extended cameo by Chuck Hayes.
The Rockets have played smart, efficient, empassioned basketball throughout the playoffs. We have defended with heart and scored when we needed to, and we're going to need all of that against this Lakers team. They are a well coached, talented team, that despite its proneness to stretches of laziness cannot be taken for granted. We fought to take home court away from them, let's not throw that away tonight. The single most important 3 hours of our season begins at 7:30 PM, or 2:30 AM Botswanian time. Look for a hard fought, chippy game with more than a few confrontations that will require the Rockets to execute down the stretch, which I believe they will. Go Rockets.
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