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Lakers @ Heat - Game Thread #50 2/10 12:30 PST, ABC

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Erik Eleven
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Post#341 » by Erik Eleven » Mon Feb 11, 2008 5:09 am

Tesla wrote:Good to get a win, I knew that Miami would come out with energy and emotion, I never for one second thought before this game that it was going to be an easy one.

Kobe played great! Where are all those people that were so down on him about playing with a dislocated pinky? It looks like Kobe has adjusted, and he is playing damn well.

Few things:

1. Pau Gasol: I think a lot of Laker fans were so excited that they got way to high on their expectations with him. He is a good player, but he's not a great player, and he lacks defensivley. While we have a great talented squad, most of that talent is on the offensive end, I think that might be a bit of a problem for us. That said... Pau has only played 4 games with us, and he's played pretty damn well, considering chemistry, and knowing your teammates, system, etc. Don't expect so much so soon, let them click. He is also playing out of position, he can play Center,but only sometimes for some spot minutes. He is too much of a finesse player to bang.

2. Lamar Odom: After being so down on him after the Detroit game, I'm coming around to really enjoying how he is fitting in as a 3rd/4th option. There are not many players at his talent level that would be happy in his role, but it seems like he doesn't care, and actually likes it. He's been playing pretty well. He just needs to find his jumper a little more, so he is respected out at the three point line - I know some of you don't like him shooting outside 15feet, but in order for him to be effective as SF he needs to be respected on the perimeter.


Bynum get back, and get back healthy! He is the key


Good post.

Odom loves to do the dirty work down in the trenches. Loves it. That's why coaches love him as a player, that's why fans don't appreciate him enough.

And, yeah, I agree that Bynum is key. :lol:
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Post#342 » by Gerald3Wallace » Mon Feb 11, 2008 5:59 am

Erik Eleven wrote:-= original quote snipped =-



Good post.

Odom loves to do the dirty work down in the trenches. Loves it. That's why coaches love him as a player, that's why fans don't appreciate him enough.



lol..when they ABC "wired" odom..he went to pat riley to greet him..and riley was like..I love man..I loved u since you were 18...and odom responded with an awkward "yeah" u traded me.haha..
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Post#343 » by ChocolateThundr » Mon Feb 11, 2008 6:01 am

Pau Gasol is a great player, but he is not a superstar like Kobe or potentionally Bynum
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Post#344 » by YiYaoYue » Mon Feb 11, 2008 6:41 am

i'm more impressed with odom then gasol... i expected gasol to average what he averaged.. and he has been doing just that... odom has been stepping it up lately as the 3rd wheel... right now odom has me convinced he shouldn't be traded... but we will have to wait till he goes back to SF position to see if he thrive at the 3... however the trade deadline will be over at that time.
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Post#345 » by Kirk Moon » Mon Feb 11, 2008 6:57 am

the biggest knock on Lamar is not his talent, but his consistency.
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Post#346 » by snaquille oatmeal » Mon Feb 11, 2008 7:04 am

gothik wrote:the biggest knock on Lamar is not his talent, but his consistency.
and his huge paycheck
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Post#347 » by ChocolateThundr » Mon Feb 11, 2008 7:43 am

YiYaoYue wrote:i'm more impressed with odom then gasol... i expected gasol to average what he averaged.. and he has been doing just that... odom has been stepping it up lately as the 3rd wheel... right now odom has me convinced he shouldn't be traded... but we will have to wait till he goes back to SF position to see if he thrive at the 3... however the trade deadline will be over at that time.


Odom hasnt "stepped up", someone (Gasol) stepped above him and like you said he thrives at being the 3rd or 4th option.
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Post#348 » by lakerboy » Mon Feb 11, 2008 7:46 am

todays game i seen LO get some rebounds that should have gone to the heat,but because of those long arms,he gets them.I think when bynum comes back Gasol and LO will work out just fine,Gasol can pass out of the post,i just hope he can move alot better without the ball in his hands.when bynum comes back,i can see it now,bynum down low in the post and Pau at the freethrow line wide open,man we are going to be hard to beat in a 7 game series..
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Post#349 » by what would jack bauer do? » Mon Feb 11, 2008 8:41 am

I was actually really pissed when Wade tried that so called "block" attempt. He was completely out of control and he not only got all forearm and head, but he body checked Kobe midair. Those kinds of plays belong on the ground and in the NFL. Mauling a player midair at that speed is incredibly wreckless and I'd be pissed if it resulted in a significant injury for Kobe. If Kobe did that to anyone in this league, let alone Wade, he'd get bad press for a week and be labeled a thug.

Concerning Wade's athleticism, he's been declining since the year before the Heat's championship. He used to be a guy that dunked over the top of guys, but he hasn't been that type of player for the last two season's before this one. Instead he goes for contact and throws his back into defenders while he attempts over-the-shoulder layups a la Ginobili. I don't blame him though, why not? especially if he keeps getting those calls. Plus, it saves his body from unnecessary wear and tear.
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Post#350 » by tayzer » Mon Feb 11, 2008 8:51 am

I think Laks need to be more physical on d. Watching the Spurs and Celts game, the Celts constantly grab and push the Spurs to throw them off, Laks need to adobt the same cheap tactic if they want to win it all.
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Post#351 » by milesfides » Mon Feb 11, 2008 10:20 am

We're not that type of team. We're the sunshine boys.

However, with Bynum protecting the basket, Odom and Bynum defensive rebounding, Turiaf's hard fouls, Kobe locking down the opponent's top perimeter player, Fish flopping and Sasha generally pissing people off, we could be a very good defensive team, without being dirty.
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Post#352 » by Erik Eleven » Mon Feb 11, 2008 4:14 pm

gothik wrote:the biggest knock on Lamar is not his talent, but his consistency.


The biggest knock on Odom is created by Laker fans' misconstrued illusion of him being a consistent second option scorer.
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Post#353 » by Gerald3Wallace » Mon Feb 11, 2008 5:18 pm

Erik Eleven wrote:-= original quote snipped =-



The biggest knock on Odom is created by Laker fans' misconstrued illusion of him being a consistent second option scorer.


+1
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Post#354 » by Sedale Threatt » Mon Feb 11, 2008 7:54 pm

milesfides wrote:
Sedale Threatt wrote:Not sure if that's a sign of things to come with Gasol -- my impression after four games: outstanding offensive skill, extremely soft on D -- or just one of those games.


Not just one of these games, that's how Gasol plays. He's a top scoring PF, but his defense is mediocre. Regarding toughness, I think he's mentally tough but his game isn't, especially not his defense. People call him soft - he's just not very strong or quick. He's crafty on offense, his height and length really help him.

On defense, he's always a step behind, he gets pushed around, he gets boxed out, etc.

It was one of the reasons that I wanted Jermaine O'Neal rather than Pau over the summer, although right now, O'Neal's injury and Pau's trade to our team makes that a moot point.

I'm happy with Pau, and although his defense wasn't very good, I expected that. His offense wasn't very good tonight, that was a surprise. Mark Blount outplayed him, and that's a bit disappointing.

One pattern seems to be emerging, Pau struggles against smaller, quicker teams. He struggled tonight, he struggled against Atlanta.

Phil sat Pau for a good chunk of the 4th quarter, and I hope that won't be a common thing. We can't afford that. We need to hide some of his deficiencies.

One thing's for sure, Pau needs to work out. His body reminds me of Bynum's in the past. Just a little soft, not strong enough in his base. A bit too slow to keep up. I wonder if our trainers could make him a bit stronger. It would really help his game.

Or, we can just take his 18 and 9 and take the bad with the good.

He might actually play better when Bynum returns though. He's a finesse player.


Don't get me wrong; I absolutely love Pau, especially for the price we paid. It's going to be fun watching how such an intelligent, skilled and team-oriented player partner meshes with Kobe. Heck, it's already been fun.

I'm just concerned that his addition might end up bolstering what was already an area of strength (offense) while weakening an area in which we weren't all that good to begin with (defense). As you noted, he just doesn't bring much of a physical presence, and I'm not sure any amount of weighlifting will change that.

That said, we've had some excellent posts here that illustrate the need for patience while we wait for Andrew to get back and everybody gets a chance to settle into their roles. I just wish we'd have 60 games, instead of 30, to get into a rhythm before the postseason starts.
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Post#355 » by zen_4_10 » Mon Feb 11, 2008 8:01 pm

I've only been able to watch 2 games now with Pau and besides some decent flops on Howard the only word that comes to my mind to explain his defense is 'putrid'

I don't expect him to be our main stopper while we wait for our team to get healthy but he does seriously need to improve his defense.
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Post#356 » by YiYaoYue » Mon Feb 11, 2008 9:02 pm

Erik Eleven wrote:-= original quote snipped =-



The biggest knock on Odom is created by Laker fans' misconstrued illusion of him being a consistent second option scorer.


The main trade for Odom that I have been eager about is lamar for marion... not because of how much better marion is over lamar... but a suns vs lakers matchup will be even more heated as Shaq and Marion are facing the team they have desired to leave because of some tension.
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Post#357 » by LAKESHOW » Mon Feb 11, 2008 9:05 pm

the thing about pau, and of course as everyone sees, scoring just comes naturally. whereas watching kwame holding the ball, posturing to move in for a score . . . it made you cringe hoping something good will happen.
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Post#358 » by dingclancy » Tue Feb 12, 2008 3:15 am

Eeeh.

I have no worries with Pau's defense. It's not like we replaced him with an All-D defender to be complaining like that.

Pau is natural in the offense but he has communication issues. There are times when (lazy Farmar) funnels his opposing PG and Pau is camped outside the paint guarding his man. The defensive schemes are not set.

His defense is not putrid/weak. The best term is still decent. The guy is long, lanky, smart, and quick with his feet - which is just another defensive dimension that we can bring.

With Bynum back we can sport the best defensive team - not only because of Bynum - but because we have very long defenders that can defend the pick and roll well and can extend to open shooters.
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