Playoff GT: Game 2: PHX vs. LAL

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<font color="orange">The Phoenix Suns (54-28)</font> vs. <font color="purple">The Los Angeles Lakers (45-37)</font>
Phoenix leads the series: 1-0
Wednesday, April 26th, 2006
America West Arena
7:30 PM Pacific; TNT
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<font size="3">Projected Starters</font>

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<font size="1">(S. Nash, R. Bell, T. Thomas, S. Marion, B. Diaw)</font></font></div>

<font size="1">Leading Scorer: Shawn Marion - 21.8 PPG
Leading Rebounder: Shawn Marion - 11.8 RPG
Assist Man: Steve Nash - 10.5
The Bench Man: LeAndro Barbosa (13.1 PPG, 32.8 APG, 2.6 RPG)</font>

<font size="3">Backcourt</font>

<font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/steve_nash.jpg[/imgl]<font color="orange">Steve Nash</font>
PPG: 18.8, RPG: 4.2, APG: 10.5
In game 1, Nash came out of the gates on fire. When the Lakers picked up their defensive game, he struggled. For Nash to be effective, he can't let the Lakers settle in on D. He needs to get out and pass, shoot, and run. If he keeps the Lakers on their toes, wondering what he's going to do next, he can open up some easy buckets for his teammates, and then eventually himself.</font>

<font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/raja_bell.jpg[/imgl]<font color="orange">Raja Bell</font>
PPG: 14.7, RPG: 3.2, APG: 2.6
It wasn't Raja that stopped Kobe in game 1, it was the trap. Can Kobe stay down for 2 games? Maybe. In the playoffs? Hell no. Raja needs to realize that Kobe's going to be assertive right from the start. He needs to be physical with Bryant. He can't worry about fouls, if he can shake Kobe early, he might set him in a funk all game long.</font>

<font size="3">Frontcourt</font>

<font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/tim_thomas.jpg[/imgl]<font color="orange">Tim Thomas</font>
PPG: 10.3, RPG: 4.5, APG: 0.7
Thomas had one hell of a game in the first one. Will he repeat? I think not. Phil Jackson is a smart, smart man. He will figure out how to stop Thomas, and it will cripple the Suns. If it wasn't for Thomas' huge game, they would've lost. In game 2, if Thomas can put in half of what he did in game 1, the Suns should be in could position to contend all game long.</font>

<font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/shawn_marion.jpg[/imgl]<font color="orange">Shawn Marion</font>
PPG: 21.8, RPG: 11.8, APG: 1.8
Marion didn't have a stellar performance some where expecting, but he did enough to have an effect for the Suns. By any means, he was outclassed by Odom all game long. If Lamar can bring that same intensity and viciousness to the boards and get to the hoop like that again in game 2, Marion might want to exert some more energy in stopping him. If Kobe was on, Marion would've been a big factor in the Suns loss. He let Odom get anything he wanted.</font>

<font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/boris_diaw.jpg[/imgl]<font color="orange">Boris Diaw</font>
PPG: 13.3, RPG: 6.9, APG: 6.2
Diaw had a good game, but picked up some early fouls due to his lack of playoff experience. He can't continue doing that, as it will hurt his team. He was switched to defend Kobe Bryant a lot, things shouldn't change in game 2. Diaw needs to be ready for a pissed off Kobe, if he's not, he could get torched all damn game.</font>

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<font size="3">Projected Starters</font>

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<font size="1">(S. Parker, K. Bryant, L. Walton, L. Odom, K. Brown) </font></font></div>

<font size="1">Leading Scorer: Kobe Bryant - 35.4 PPG
Leading Rebounder: Lamar Odom - 9.2 RPG
Assist Man: Lamar Odom - 5.5 APG
The Bench Man: Brian Cook (7.9 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 1.9 APG)</font>

<font size="3">Backcourt</font>

<font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/smush_parker.jpg[/imgl]<font color="purple">Smush Parker</font>
PPG: 11.5, RPG: 3.3, APG: 3.7
Well Smush was aggressive, but he didn't stay aggressive. He missed some wide open shots, and some layups. I expect him to make adjustments to get those in the hoop in game 2. If he does, he'll help propel the Lakers to a victory and send the series, 1-1, back to L.A.</font>


<font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/kobe_bryant.jpg[/imgl]<font color="purple">Kobe Bryant</font>
PPG: 35.4, RPG: 5.3, APG: 4.5
Well I called him the MVP, but he didn't play like it. I do expect him to make the adjustments to be effective, like an MVP. Kobe was seeing traps all game long. In the first half, he tried getting the team involved, and we went into half down 10. In the second half, he didn't change his play, but the Lakers crept back in it. In game two, you can expect him to be pissed. He was hacked, smacked, and shoved but didn't get any foul calls. That might not change, but you can only hold down a man of his caliber for so long. Look for Kobe to torch the Suns in game 2.</font>

<font size="3">Frontcourt</font>


<font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/luke_walton.jpg[/imgl]<font color="purple">Luke Walton</font>
PPG: 5.0, RPG: 3.6, APG: 2.3
Walton tied his career high with 19 points in the first game of the series. Now, he can't disappear in game 2. I'm looking for Luke to have almost the same impact. Maybe 13-16 points, some boards, and a couple of assists. We need him to show up, he played like a champ in game 1, he'll do it again in game 2.</font>

<font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/lamar_odom.jpg[/imgl]<font color="purple">Lamar Odom</font>
PPG: 14.8, RPG: 9.2, APG: 5.5
Odom torched Marion on the boards and in the paint. He put up 21 and 14, I'm not expecting anything short of that in game 2. Odom should be able to control the game flow. He can be the Lakers floor general and let Kobe do the attacking, or he can let Kobe be the general. Either way, I look for Odom to come in and post, drive, and rebound on the way to a Laker victory.</font>

<font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/kwame_brown.jpg[/imgl]<font color="purple">Kwame Brown</font>
PPG: 7.4, RPG: 6.6, APG: 1.0
Why did the Lakers take him out? Stop going away from him? Only Phil knows. He was very effective. He even hit a shot from behind the charity stripe. I think the Lakers know that Kwame is their X factor this series. I look for them to go to Kwame early and often in game 2, let him work. He has all the advantages against the Suns, and he will utilize them.</font>


<font size="3">Lakers Keys to the Game</font><ul>[*]<font color="purple">Establish A Post Presence</font> - When the Lakers were going into the post, they were slowing down the game, cutting into the lead, and scoring efficiently. In game 2, they have to go into the post all game long. To get there, they have to throw better post passes. Their post entries were horrendous in game 1.[*]<font color="purple">Get Kobe More Involved, Earlier</font> - Kobe Bryant came into the first game looking to make it revolve around the Lakers, not him. He never got into his groove because of that. In game 2, the Lakers need to draw up isolations for Kobe.[*]<font color="purple">Same Intensity from Role PLayers</font> - If Smush, Lamar, Kwame, and Walton all show up again with the same tenacity, the Lakers should have a relatively easy time against the Suns next game, plain and simple.[/list]<font size="3">Prediction</font>

Well, every Laker not named Kobe Bryant came out strong, and it hurt them. That right there shows that if ALL the Lakers come out to play, they should win. I think Kobe and the troops do show up, and take it going back to L.A. 1-1.

Lakers: 108, Suns: 101..

 

Sometimes you have to lose a battle to win the war. The Lakers tried a different approach to this game, and it caught everyone of the Suns off guard. The Suns still won this game, but the Lakers outplayed Phoenix for 3 quarters.

The 39 points the Lakers defense gave up in the first quarter came back to haunt them in the end, and also the 35 free throws Phoenix shot was the difference in the game.

The Lakers have to make sure not to get in early foul trouble in Game 2, and do a better job of attacking the rim and drawing contact.

The Lakers don't have to make a lot of adjustments for the next game, they just need the role players to execute better within the Triangle.

The Suns only managed 5 offensive rebounds in this game and shot under 50% from the field. Those are two encouraging numbers for the Lakers being able to win Game 2. They just have to play 48 minutes of hard nosed defense and not relax during any part of the game, because Phoenix offense is always in attack mode.

I see this series going 7 games.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting kobe4life:</div><div class="quote_post">We need to make the free-throw. If Odom didn't missed those key free-throw, we would have won.

I have a feeling, we will be down 0-2 coming home . We played pretty solid Game 1, but the Suns still came out with a victory. We didn't make key shots when the game is on the line. It doesn't matter how well we played, you gotta make those key shots in the end anyway. 10 pts victory or 1 pt victory is the same to me, a "W".</div>

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Zien (Anaheim): After watching the Lakers on Sunday morning, and reading your article, I still don't understand what the Lakers were doing. I'm huge Lakers fan and I don't understand. If Kobe would have been aggressive they would have won, don't you think?

Marc Stein: It's like this. Phil called it "a feel-out game." The translation I was given, with a little help from those who speak Phil: The Zenmeister made the decision going in that the Lakers were going to pound, pound, pound the ball inside no matter how well it worked. Why? Because he wanted to get Kwame and Luke right into the series.

Marc Stein: And it worked. It worked even better than the Lakers imagined, because they stayed in the game even though Kobe was so passive that he screwed up his own game and couldn't turn it on when the game was there to be won in the fourth quarter.

Marc Stein: I've gotten a lot of e-mails since my column that I was "crazy" to say that the Lakers were willing to sacrifice Game 1 to get all their young kids comfortable on the big stage. But it's true. You can believe whatever you want, but if you think that Phil really thinks his best chance to beat Phoenix is for Kobe to go 16 straight possessions without shooting -- as Kobe did in one early stretch -- I can't help you.


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Rob (Los Angeles, CA): I DO believe that Phil was willing to sacrifice game 1 to get everyone comfortable, but will this "sacrificed game" come back to haunt the Lakers if this series goes to 7 games?

Marc Stein: No. Because Phil's point was that the Lakers were never going to have a shot to make this a long series if Kobe went 1-on-5 from the beginning. Now Kobe can take his 30-plus shots in Game 2 -- which is what got the Lakers to 45 wins, remember -- but also get some help from a now ready-to-go supporting cast. </div>

This is from Marc Stein's chatwrap. Hopefully this helps explain the Lakers approach to Game 1 and why they made these changes.

 

With Nash being named the unofficial MVP already, Kobe Bryant is going to be even more motivated to prove his critics wrong, not only tonight, but by taking the Suns out in Round 1 and advancing. Go Lakers!