Lakers prove peerless in the West
January 27th 2009 03:58
The Los Angeles Lakers have turned the tough Western Conference into a territory all their own. The Lakers had just obliterated, their closest pursuers, the San Antonio Spurs to the tune of 99-85 to take a 6-game lead and overwhelmingly dominate the West.
The Lakers had just completed their second 4-game winning streak since January 7th. One of the highlights of those winning runs was their equally impressive 105-88 win against Eastern Conference leader Cleveland Cavaliers.
The only flaws in their last 10 games were back-to-back losses to the same Spurs at the SBC Center and at home to the latest member of the NBA's elite class, the Orlando Magic.
As of the moment, all four elite NBA teams are taking a day off the hardwood and the Lakers are the ones at the top with a 35-8 record, a half game ahead of the Cavs.
Lakers hall of famer head coach Phil Jackson has no apparent concern about his team as of the moment given that they are are full strength especially with Jordan Farmar back in the line-up and seemed never missed a beat contributing 14 points in his first game back.
Jackson simply has no doubt in his mind right now about the Lakers' chances to finish with the league's best record at seasons end now that everything seems to be falling into place here in the second half of the season and peaking at the right time come post-season.
The recent most exciting sign of great things to come for the Lakers is the overpowering show of force of 4th year pro center Andrew Bynum.
Bynum blasted his way into the interior against the Los Angeles Clippers and finished with a career-high 42 points and pulled down 15 boards taking advantage of the Clippers' depleted frontcourt.
The following night, Bynum exerted himself once again top scoring for the Lakers with 23 points and had a game-high 14 rebounds against the also problematic Washington Wizards.
And just recently, in the win against the Spurs, Bynum had another double-double performance with 15 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks giving All-Star Tim Duncan all that he could handle.
With the way Bynum is going, it definitely is an omen that the Lakers will be extremely immovable once the playoffs rolls around the corner. With him and Pau Gasol, the Lakers have an excellent combination of power and finesse at the frontline. Both players figure well in the field goal efficiency rankings and in the rebounding departments. Bynum is also ranked 6th in the league in shot blocks.
This recent positive development in the Laker frontline gives All-Star Kobe Bryant less burden in games knowing that Bynum and Gasol are the ideal options in case he decides to dump it down low for higher percentage shots.
Bryant is third in the league in scoring with a 26.3 ppg output but he also has a modest team-best 5.2 apg showing that he mostly creates for the Laker offensive where their two big men are benefactors. Gasol is the second leading scorer for the Lakers with 17.5 ppg while Bynum is next at 13.7 ppg.
Farmar's return was also cited by coach Jackson as a key factor for the Lakers' further efficiency saying that Farmar's speed and quickness brings in a change of pace from Derek Fisher who specializes more on half-court sets. That fact maximizes the Lakers' versatility and flexibility with their high-powered offensive type line-up.
Currently, the Lakers are the best offensive team in the league with a 107.6 ppg average. They are also tied for 1st place in team rebounding with the Indiana Pacers with 43.9 boards an outing. The Lakers are also top 3 in field goal percentage at 47.7%. Those numbers prove how offense is the main weapon of the Lakers considering how coach Jackson utilizes the talent and versatility of his roster.
Defensively, the Lakers aren't that bad at all but they are certainly close to being an average defensive team. They are 14th in points allowed giving up 98.8 ppg. But the good thing is they are giving their opponents a hard time in getting to that output by forcing the opposition to 44.7% shooting from the field.
The Lakers are the clear-cut best in the Western Conference and are in the thick of things in the battle with the three other elite teams in the league from the Eastern Conference. Does this mean that the rest of the Western teams would be counted out for the Western Conference championshp and a stint in the 2009 Finals? Not quite but it is a really long shot to topple th Lakers from their lofty perch at the moment.
So far, the only teams from the West that had been able to inflict a loss on the Lakers are the Spurs and the New Orleans Hornets. And judging from the results, the Lakers can only be beat if the opposing team overpowers them offensively or just drag the Lakers to a close game and beat them in the closing seconds. The former is definitely easier said than done while the latter is the most possible way to beat the Lakers at this point.
The Hornets needed monster games from Chris Paul (32 points, 15 assists) and David West (40 points, 11 rebounds) to completely outplay the Lakers 116-105 while the Spurs needed to endure a Laker 4th quarter rally, Roger Mason's key 3-point play and Trevor Ariza's travelling violation to survive in their home floor with a 112-111 win.
As the season continues to its homestretch, it will be even more difficult to keep up with the Lakers. This is definitely bad news to the rest of the Western Conference and the rest of the league as well.
Photo by AP
The Lakers had just completed their second 4-game winning streak since January 7th. One of the highlights of those winning runs was their equally impressive 105-88 win against Eastern Conference leader Cleveland Cavaliers.
The only flaws in their last 10 games were back-to-back losses to the same Spurs at the SBC Center and at home to the latest member of the NBA's elite class, the Orlando Magic.
As of the moment, all four elite NBA teams are taking a day off the hardwood and the Lakers are the ones at the top with a 35-8 record, a half game ahead of the Cavs.
Lakers hall of famer head coach Phil Jackson has no apparent concern about his team as of the moment given that they are are full strength especially with Jordan Farmar back in the line-up and seemed never missed a beat contributing 14 points in his first game back.
Jackson simply has no doubt in his mind right now about the Lakers' chances to finish with the league's best record at seasons end now that everything seems to be falling into place here in the second half of the season and peaking at the right time come post-season.
The recent most exciting sign of great things to come for the Lakers is the overpowering show of force of 4th year pro center Andrew Bynum.
Soon enough Andre Bynum will evolve into a beast-like performer in the NBA hardwood
Bynum blasted his way into the interior against the Los Angeles Clippers and finished with a career-high 42 points and pulled down 15 boards taking advantage of the Clippers' depleted frontcourt.
The following night, Bynum exerted himself once again top scoring for the Lakers with 23 points and had a game-high 14 rebounds against the also problematic Washington Wizards.
And just recently, in the win against the Spurs, Bynum had another double-double performance with 15 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks giving All-Star Tim Duncan all that he could handle.
With the way Bynum is going, it definitely is an omen that the Lakers will be extremely immovable once the playoffs rolls around the corner. With him and Pau Gasol, the Lakers have an excellent combination of power and finesse at the frontline. Both players figure well in the field goal efficiency rankings and in the rebounding departments. Bynum is also ranked 6th in the league in shot blocks.
This recent positive development in the Laker frontline gives All-Star Kobe Bryant less burden in games knowing that Bynum and Gasol are the ideal options in case he decides to dump it down low for higher percentage shots.
Bryant is third in the league in scoring with a 26.3 ppg output but he also has a modest team-best 5.2 apg showing that he mostly creates for the Laker offensive where their two big men are benefactors. Gasol is the second leading scorer for the Lakers with 17.5 ppg while Bynum is next at 13.7 ppg.
Farmar's return was also cited by coach Jackson as a key factor for the Lakers' further efficiency saying that Farmar's speed and quickness brings in a change of pace from Derek Fisher who specializes more on half-court sets. That fact maximizes the Lakers' versatility and flexibility with their high-powered offensive type line-up.
Currently, the Lakers are the best offensive team in the league with a 107.6 ppg average. They are also tied for 1st place in team rebounding with the Indiana Pacers with 43.9 boards an outing. The Lakers are also top 3 in field goal percentage at 47.7%. Those numbers prove how offense is the main weapon of the Lakers considering how coach Jackson utilizes the talent and versatility of his roster.
Defensively, the Lakers aren't that bad at all but they are certainly close to being an average defensive team. They are 14th in points allowed giving up 98.8 ppg. But the good thing is they are giving their opponents a hard time in getting to that output by forcing the opposition to 44.7% shooting from the field.
The Lakers are the clear-cut best in the Western Conference and are in the thick of things in the battle with the three other elite teams in the league from the Eastern Conference. Does this mean that the rest of the Western teams would be counted out for the Western Conference championshp and a stint in the 2009 Finals? Not quite but it is a really long shot to topple th Lakers from their lofty perch at the moment.
So far, the only teams from the West that had been able to inflict a loss on the Lakers are the Spurs and the New Orleans Hornets. And judging from the results, the Lakers can only be beat if the opposing team overpowers them offensively or just drag the Lakers to a close game and beat them in the closing seconds. The former is definitely easier said than done while the latter is the most possible way to beat the Lakers at this point.
The Hornets needed monster games from Chris Paul (32 points, 15 assists) and David West (40 points, 11 rebounds) to completely outplay the Lakers 116-105 while the Spurs needed to endure a Laker 4th quarter rally, Roger Mason's key 3-point play and Trevor Ariza's travelling violation to survive in their home floor with a 112-111 win.
As the season continues to its homestretch, it will be even more difficult to keep up with the Lakers. This is definitely bad news to the rest of the Western Conference and the rest of the league as well.
Photo by AP
| 100 |
| Vote |
Add To: 
subscribe to this blog
