PJax Pissed Off Over Memphis Loss

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">EL SEGUNDO - Lakers coach Phil Jackson had sat through too many losses this season to teams with records that look like target demographics (18-54) to let what happened Tuesday against the Memphis Grizzlies pass without comment.

So Jackson brought his players together the morning after the end to their five-game winning streak. Instead of holding practice, Jackson said a few words and sent them home with orders to clear their minds and return today ready to work.

After sweeping aside so many similar losses, Jackson could not do the same with the playoffs only three weeks away. Not after the Lakers built a 15-point lead in the second quarter against the shorthanded Grizzlies and then called it a night.

"I let them know it wasn't OK with me today," Jackson said. "That's not the way we act or the responsibility of being a Laker or being a team that's headed for the playoffs. That's what the other teams that are out of the playoffs are doing.

"This is a playoff drive we're in right now, and we have to step up our competitive level every night if we're going to meet the demands that are needed in a playoff. My problem with them is that when we get a few wins in the course of this year, we've become lackadaisical and haven't kept the same intensity ... and we'll lose games, particularly to teams that have been under .500.

"We just can't take a night off as a basketball team and expect to win any games at this point."

If injuries have been the primary storyline to the Lakers' season, then inexplicable losses might be secondary. The Lakers have dropped two games apiece to New York, Milwaukee, Charlotte, New Orleans, Portland and Memphis.

Jackson said he was disappointed with Tuesday's game on two counts. The first was that the Lakers failed to build on the 15-point lead and let the Grizzlies, who own the NBA's worst record, gain confidence the longer they stayed in the game.

The Lakers did the same thing against Golden State on Sunday, giving back what had been a 19-point lead before rallying in the fourth quarter. It was enough of a pattern that Jackson mentioned "sustaining the effort" multiple times Wednesday.

In addition, the Lakers were unable to pick up for Kobe Bryant, who made just 7 of 26 shots in finishing with 23 points. One problem is that Lamar Odom has been unable to trust his shot since returning from a shoulder injury.

"He's playing great basketball," Jackson said of Odom, who is 0 for 15 from 3-point range in seven games back, "but somebody else has to step in there and play a little bit of the second fiddle on the scoring aspect." </div>

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One of the main reasons we lost was because of Phil? Who the hell draws up a last chance play for William Henry Parker?

 

They should've ran the same play (because it worked to perfection, Smush was WIDE open), but for Luke Walton. He was 3/3 from three that game, and the corner pocket is his money ball.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Mamba Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">They should've ran the same play (because it worked to perfection, Smush was WIDE open), but for Luke Walton. He was 3/3 from three that game, and the corner pocket is his money ball.</div>

I agree, if anyone should have taken the shot other than Kobe, it should have been Luke. He had a nice rhythm throughout the game and he'd work for a better shot, given the fact they Lakers had 6 seconds to get a shot off.

I'm also curious why they decided to shoot a 3 pointer when all they needed was a 2 pointer to tie the game and send it into OT. No one was in serious foul trouble, and the Lakers were at home. Home teams have the edge in OT games.

And to top it all off, Smush doesn't bother to try and foul the Memphis player after Kobe had his shot blocked. I preferred it when Smush was watching from the bench in crunch time.