Gasol in game 5
Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2010 5:25 am
Celtic fan here but I call them like I see them and right now I would say the Lakers have about a 35-40% chance to win the series so this series is far from over even though I wish it was. Both teams are fairly evenly matched but unfortunately LA has the HCA for the series.
Anyways, Pau Gasol is getting criticized by some members of the media and even in these boards for his game 5 performance. Or he is being given a pass for having his first "bad game".
I don' t think the numbers lie in this instance but they aren't being looked at objectively simply because the Lakers lost the game. He had 12 rebounds in game 5 including 7 offensive rebounds. And 2 steals. The Celtics only had 8 offensive rebounds as a team. Sure, he just shot 5 for 12 but realistically that would have probably been 6 for 12 if not for a truly spectacular play/block by Tony Allen. In addition, the Celtics have been sending some of their best and fresh defenders at Gasol. He has been covered by KG, Perkins and Wallace. None of these 3 defenders is as good as Tony Allen, who has done a great job on Kobe in limited minutes, but they are all better then Ray Allen on defense. To be fair to Kobe, he played spectacular in the second half of game 5 but for the series I still think by a slim margin Gasol has been the best Laker in the series. His play has forced the Celtics to double him more then they would like to do.
Odom played well in game 5 but the other Lakers on the bench didn't.
Ever since the games played in LA, Artest has been the Lakers starter whose offense has hurt the Lakers the most. He has missed shots and enabled the Celtics to cheat off of him at times but it's not like he is bricking most of his shots. Ray Allen has gone into a massive funk from the 3 point line despite 2/3rds of those shots being very good looks so even all time great outside shooters can go into slumps.
Even though I fully expected LA to increase its intensity, I am actually still very impressed this series with the Lakers effort. It is far superior to the uneven effort I saw the Lakers do against Phoenix. Despite his bad series offensively, you have to give Artest some of the credit for the Lakers increased toughness. They really have played hard every game and the Celtics have too even though in game one it looked as though the Celtics lacked effort.
The Celtics lost the turnover battle in game 5 and the battle of the boards and that realistically can't happen if the Lakers aren't putting forth a great physical effort given the Bynum just got 1 rebound. Some of the Celtics increased turnovers is a result of risky passers that can result in easier shots if the ball isn't turned over.
But as a Celtic fan I am concerned with turnovers/rebounding and Ray Allen's 3 point shooting funk.
Anyways, Pau Gasol is getting criticized by some members of the media and even in these boards for his game 5 performance. Or he is being given a pass for having his first "bad game".
I don' t think the numbers lie in this instance but they aren't being looked at objectively simply because the Lakers lost the game. He had 12 rebounds in game 5 including 7 offensive rebounds. And 2 steals. The Celtics only had 8 offensive rebounds as a team. Sure, he just shot 5 for 12 but realistically that would have probably been 6 for 12 if not for a truly spectacular play/block by Tony Allen. In addition, the Celtics have been sending some of their best and fresh defenders at Gasol. He has been covered by KG, Perkins and Wallace. None of these 3 defenders is as good as Tony Allen, who has done a great job on Kobe in limited minutes, but they are all better then Ray Allen on defense. To be fair to Kobe, he played spectacular in the second half of game 5 but for the series I still think by a slim margin Gasol has been the best Laker in the series. His play has forced the Celtics to double him more then they would like to do.
Odom played well in game 5 but the other Lakers on the bench didn't.
Ever since the games played in LA, Artest has been the Lakers starter whose offense has hurt the Lakers the most. He has missed shots and enabled the Celtics to cheat off of him at times but it's not like he is bricking most of his shots. Ray Allen has gone into a massive funk from the 3 point line despite 2/3rds of those shots being very good looks so even all time great outside shooters can go into slumps.
Even though I fully expected LA to increase its intensity, I am actually still very impressed this series with the Lakers effort. It is far superior to the uneven effort I saw the Lakers do against Phoenix. Despite his bad series offensively, you have to give Artest some of the credit for the Lakers increased toughness. They really have played hard every game and the Celtics have too even though in game one it looked as though the Celtics lacked effort.
The Celtics lost the turnover battle in game 5 and the battle of the boards and that realistically can't happen if the Lakers aren't putting forth a great physical effort given the Bynum just got 1 rebound. Some of the Celtics increased turnovers is a result of risky passers that can result in easier shots if the ball isn't turned over.
But as a Celtic fan I am concerned with turnovers/rebounding and Ray Allen's 3 point shooting funk.
its open season on his ass.
