Big Baby Should have Started

[jfs1000d]

I like the baby idea. I would start him too. I like the posey at the 4 lineup offensively, but odom and gasol killed us inside and on the boards with that lineup. Baby is the guy to start IMO. Heck, if t doesn't work, get pJ or Powe in.

[MyInsatiableOne]

At worst Baby burns some fouls and dishes out some pain to keep those wimpy-ass **** Lakers from going inside.

[Datruth345]

I like the baby idea. I would start him too. I like the posey at the 4 lineup offensively, but odom and gasol killed us inside and on the boards with that lineup.

yeah thats been a concern all season long with the posey at the 4 lineup

i can recall yelling "no posey at the **** 4" a few times during the regular season

[sully00]

I think Eddie House is fools gold and starting him would be a disaster. If you are significantly ahead or behind Eddie is great because his shooting can just tip the scales, but in a close game his inability to do anything else well can really **** up the offense.

Besides Rondo is a second year player who plays significantly better at home than on the road. He did score 15 in game 1 and have 16 assists in game 2 I expect he will have a big game on Tues.

Posey at the 4 in this series isn't a big issue because he is actually the best match up against Odom. But Posey and KG playing a quarter and a half of basketball together up front is not a great thing as it takes too much out of them physically.

It is so funny how everyone is cracking Chief Triangle for going with Mihm but he knew what he was doing. If he had brought in Turiaf then Doc could go back to Powe. I mean it didn't work on the court as much as his team was unable to perform but his move kept Leon on the bench and his team did eventually win the game.

I think at home Doc would have and will go to Baby I think he just saw two quick fouls coming if he brought him into that game on the road.

[Rocky5000]

BBD can just do his patented 'jump on your back foul "to Gasol a couple of times and the man won't be the same for the rest of the game. I know it sounds strange to say this but I think Glen might do a better job on Gasol than anyone else on the team, even Garnett. His low CG will keep Gasol out of the post and his foot speed is good enough to cut him off.

[return2glory]

Without Perk, I think Powe is our best starting option, with PJ coming in as needed. This is a tough truth to swallow since we really don't have anyone to guard Pau. I mean, the dude is freaky long. I don't see how Baby can guard him any better than Powe.

Why is Powe our best starting options without Perkins? Just because he had one good game? It's all about match ups. Powe has a hard time with players taller than him on the offensive and specially defensive side. It was a joke how he couldn't even box out Gasol. I'm taking about Gasol's put back and 1.

It's all about matchups. I'll say it again. Davis is more physical than Powe. Gasol struggles against physical play. Davis is one of the strongest players in the NBA and uses his strength to push post players out of their comfort zone. Also having Davis on Gasol would have allowed KG to stay with and shut down Odem.

You didn't watch that play very carefully, that ball was tapped to Gasol by accident. He had him boxed out.
"just because he had one good game"?
Your a fool if you think games like that are a dime a dozen.
Powe's earned his time with his play.

Bull. I went back and watched it on tape. Powe did not out a body on him.

[MyInsatiableOne]

I think Eddie House is fools gold and starting him would be a disaster. If you are significantly ahead or behind Eddie is great because his shooting can just tip the scales, but in a close game his inability to do anything else well can really **** up the offense.

Besides Rondo is a second year player who plays significantly better at home than on the road. He did score 15 in game 1 and have 16 assists in game 2 I expect he will have a big game on Tues.

Posey at the 4 in this series isn't a big issue because he is actually the best match up against Odom. But Posey and KG playing a quarter and a half of basketball together up front is not a great thing as it takes too much out of them physically.

It is so funny how everyone is cracking Chief Triangle for going with Mihm but he knew what he was doing. If he had brought in Turiaf then Doc could go back to Powe. I mean it didn't work on the court as much as his team was unable to perform but his move kept Leon on the bench and his team did eventually win the game.

I think at home Doc would have and will go to Baby I think he just saw two quick fouls coming if he brought him into that game on the road.

You make good points. I think we should start Rondo, for the sake of the game and also his confidence. You dance with who you brought, you know, but keep him on a short leash if he passes up wide-open uncontested layups. Still, I'd move KG to the 5 and start Posey, Ray, and Paul...spreads the floor more and lets you play 4 on 5 on offense instead of 3 on 5 if you have Perk or Powe in there off the bat. But probably it'll be the same starters as game 5...what do I know?

[MVP16]

I think starting Powe last game was the right decision, but if Perk can't go tonight I would like to see Big Baby get the start. I don't want KG guarding Gasol until maybe the 4th quarter and would rather have him on Odom. The reason I would rather have Big Baby start rather then have PJ start and have Big Baby come off the bench is because it would probably be easier for him to get in the flow playing with the starting unit since he hasn't played in awhile. But having said all that, I hope Perk is ready to go tonight.

[sully00]

MyInsatiableOne

I know what your looking for but if you start Posey you have taken away Doc's primary adjustment. If Ray or Paul pick up two quick fouls now you are looking at bringing in House or Allen in and forced to use Sam behind Rondo. It just breaks down the other rotations.

Having seen how game 5 went and how the Lakers were able to get off the block the last two games. I think Doc has to go with PJ or Davis at the start, though his instincts will probably be to start Posey if not go with Powe again.

I wouldn't have gone with Davis in game 5 but I would in game 6. His style of play combined with the crowd could have the desired impact and if it doesn't work it is much easier to recover from a slow start home though it hasn't been much of a challenge on the road either. It may also force Jackson to go with Turiaf which will allow Doc to use Powe.

[MyInsatiableOne]

^^sully, good points. I always thought, anyway, regardless of what I came up with (like Doc cartes anyway ) that he should start Davis in place of Perk and leave the rest of the starters intact. If Rondo plays a game like he did in game 2, he's all good. Davis has some offense and is also a big body that will ABUSE Gasol in the post. I want to see the bearded turtle whining and asking the ref "No mas!! Mamacita, make the big bad man stop hurting me!"

We need to pound it inside early and often. Drive to the hoop, draw contact, kick it outside for open jumpers....play Celtics basketball and destroy them!!

[sully00]

A couple of things that get missed when people evaluate Davis vs Powe and what each brings.

Leon is the better scorer and overall a better rebounder. At the same time his performance is significantly better with the second unit. This isn't just about going against the other teams backups, though the fact that other teams rarely have a 7ft PF on their bench is a factor, it also allows him to play the 4 spot and be more a focus of the offense as opposed to the last offensive option.

Big Baby brings elements that compliment the first unit better and that is where his success has come. That impacts his rebounding numbers but he is essentially Powe's equal on the offensive glass it is on the defensive glass he leaves a little to be desired. He flat out is a better defender in the post and causes fewer breakdowns in the rotations. While not quite the scorer Leon is he is in another world as a passer and on the first unit we are talking about option #5 offensively. That is a piece we lose without Perk though who allows the team to change sides of the court smoothly with the pass and not the dribble, this is much more choppy with PJ and non exhistent with Powe.

Just think about how many bunnies that PJ has missed becuase he physically can't finish strong anymore. Not the jumpers but the easy feeds in the lane, from Pierce or KG, I think Baby finishes those and/or gets to the line.

It may be a train wreck but it is easily ended, it also gives the Lakers a look they haven't seen yet.

[MyInsatiableOne]

^^Giving them a new wrinkle at this point would be good...and I certainly like Baby's game. Let's see what Doc does...

[captain_cheapseats]

It's awful hard to characterize something as failing when you only try it for 5 minutes. Also, Powe did well on the boards for his extremely brief stint, and given that it was ultimately an inability to keep the Lakers off the boards that cost us the game, arguably Powe should have gotten more of a chance.

R2G, I'm really not sure what you're seeing with the Gasol offensive rebound. I've got the game on Tivo, and that ball was clearly tipped into Gasol's hands from the opposite side of the paint. And in any event, given the countless offensive rebounds given away by Brown and Garnett over the course of the game, I'm not sure it would have been a fair critique even if it had been accurate.

[sully00]

If you have the game on tivo didn't you see the human 5-0 run that Powe turned into for the Lakers? Similar to the 7-0 run he turned into in game 2? I ilke Leon and he has a place in this league and on this team but he can't guard guys 6 inches taller than him.

That said the minute Ronny Turiaf hits the floor Powe should be in.

[captain_cheapseats]

If you have the game on tivo didn't you see the human 5-0 run that Powe turned into for the Lakers? Similar to the 7-0 run he turned into in game 2?

You're putting that all on Powe? Wow......

[Albin]

I wouldn't be playing Big Baby at all in this series. Personally, I think he is the most skilled big man we have after KG, but he's too immature right now. If Glenn had given him more minutes near the end of the year and in the playoffs, sure.. but he waffled and eventually went with Powe in the rotation. That's how it should stay.

Big Baby wouldn't be much more effective than Powe anyway. They both are undersized. Baby was exposed during the Cleveland series - big time. Ilgauskas is bigger than what we are seeing now, but the case can still be made against Gasol and Odom. Both Powe *and* Baby are undersized. There is a reason that both players went in the second round.

It's not critical to our success tonight anyway whether Perk plays or not, or who starts in his stead. Our Big Three can win the game if they are all playing well and we get reasonable play out of the others.

We're discussing a minor point here. We need Pierce, Allen and KG to all play Championship Basketball - if they do.. we win the Championship. I really think it's that simple. Pierce / KG pick and roll cannot be stopped by LA if KG is hitting the jumper, and Allen is shooting well from outside. The Lakers just cannot stop them.

We can stop them, they cannot stop us.