

VERSUS

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TV: TNT
RADIO: ESPN 710AM
TIME: 6:00PM
ARENA: STAPLES CENTER, LOS ANGELES,CA.
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BYNUM | GASOL | ARTEST | BRYANT | FISHER |






LOPEZ | STOUDEMIRE | HILL | RICHARDSON | NASH |
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SERIES ANALYSIS
So the series is now tied at 2. The Suns have countered the Lakers size by not guarding them man to man, they've resulted to playing zone. The media and stupid unintelligent fans here on RGM really think a zone is givng the Lakers problem.
The Lakers have shot a good percentage to still win the games. They've lost them due to mental mistakes.....dumb fouls, not boxing out, poor defensive rebounding, bad shot selection, Jordan Farmar, ineffective play from the bigs........yes all of them.
Back to this zone crap, the Lakers are still getting great looks. Problem is when the Lakers struggle it's because the don't run all the counters in the Triangle. Truth be told the Lakers can soften this so called vaunted Suns zone by running cutters in the Triangle like they're suppose to. Pau and Drew have to gain stronger and deeper interior position and finish strong with the ball.
KEYS TO WINNING GAME 5
Rebounding - The Lakers got punished on the boards in Game 4, no excuse for that. Our bigs didn't even try to fight for position or box out effectively. Winning the boards is always to key to neutralizing the Suns.
Defense - The Lakers failed to close out on the Suns, 3 straight 3's in the 4th quarter turned the game in a quick instant. The Laker system is to deny penetration and to a degree they've denied Steve Nash room to roam. Closing out is simple, but it's got to be done off crisp rotations and no missed assignments. And they must stop fouling, this is the reason the Suns have shot more free throws at home.
Tempo - Too many times in this series that the Lakers are jump starting the Suns pace. Game 4 started out with the Lakers keeping the game in the high 80's to low 90's, this is where the Jordan factor comes to play. He has to do a better job of realizing what was established and keep in flow. Him and Shannon have to resist taking bad shots, and we can't get deep in the shot clock.
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TIME TO WIN...............PERIOD