<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Phoenix or Dallas. Win tonight and it?s the Suns this weekend, lose (and Golden State wins in Portland) and it?s Dallas. I don?t think the Lakers can look at it that way ? after the ugliness of the last month they need to win because they need to build momentum and confidence. The Lakers do not gain some incredible match up advantage facing one of the top two teams over the other, for the Lakers to bother either they are going to have to play much better. And that is what starts tonight. Who plays? After the first half against Seattle, and with the Suns and Nash on the horizon, is there really any question that Farmar starts over Smush? And I might limit Kwame?s minutes a little, but he has got to start as well. The Lakers are not in the Dallas position of resting their stars, this unit needs to play together. What the Lakers face tonight. According to Tom Ziller (he of Sactown Royalty and Fanhouse), you will not see any Brad Miller tonight (not sure Kings fans saw much of him all season). You will see Bibby, Kevin Martin and Ron Artest to start the game. But in the fourth quarter expect to see the King kids ? Quincy Douby, Francisco Garcia, John Salmons. But before you relax, remember that those are some talented kids who play very hard in their limited minutes. Just ask the Clippers.</div> Source: ForumBlueandGold What's at stake tonight is our matchup for the 1st round of the playoffs. It's also going to be interesting to see the PG battle between Farmar and Smush. Is PJax playing mind games with Smush to motivate him for the postseason, or is this a permanant change with Smush falling out of the rotation and into the doghouse? If the Lakers face the Suns, they plan to use Sasha A LOT in the series to pester Steve Nash. In the last game against Phoenix, Sasha did a nice job of hounding Nash and aggravating him into some bad decisions with the ball. However, Sasha has to remain a threat on offense for this to work for the Lakers. He cannot hesistate on his jumper, but at the same time he needs to share the ball and not always settle for the 3 pointer. The Suns will be more than happy with Sasha shooting from the outside than letting the Lakers get points in the paint. Long misses lead to Phoenix fastbreaks and high percentage layups and dunks. Playing against Mike Bibby, will be a nice warmup for the guards tonight. Hopefully they play well and the confidence carries over into the postseason. Bibby does similar things to what Nash does on offense. Bibby likes to run the high pick and roll, to take advantage of mismatches and indecisive defensive rotations. I'd really like to see the Lakers take a commanding lead to allow Kobe and the rest of the starters to sit on the sidelines and refuel for the playoffs. WE ARE READY FOR A WAR LAKER FANS!
I hope Lakers don't half ass this game, Sacramento would like nothing more than to spoil Lakers last game of the season.
Ok thats stupid Dallas has everyone A solid bench and two all stars No one can stop Dallas except the Warrior i think the Warriors will bounce the MAvs in 6 games
<div class="quote_poster">egyptianlaker32 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Ok thats stupid Dallas has everyone A solid bench and two all stars No one can stop Dallas except the Warrior i think the Warriors will bounce the MAvs in 6 games</div> If that happens i will donate a grand to justball
Good, I think it's better for the Warriors to meet the Mavs, since they can actually give them some resistance. If the Lakers meet the Suns, at least they have experience. It will take a lot of good inside play to beat the Suns, as well as finding out a way to slow the game down enough. Can the Lakers do that? I'm doubtfull...
<div class="quote_poster">K8BE24 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">If that happens i will donate a grand to justball</div> You better watch what you say, that can easily happen. Listen, this isn't your normal 1v8 matchup. The Warriors are not CLOSE to the team that was playing in the early-to-mid season. You got the most underrated point guard in the LEAGUE healthy again. I'm talking about Baron Davis. Then you got J Rich. Then you got Al Harrington. Then you got Stephen Jackson. Not to mention other key role players they have too. They got a ridiculous team, especially offensively, and they seem to have the Mavericks number this year. After Lakers vs Suns, Mavs vs Warriors is gonna be my most anticipated series. I wouldn't be surprised at ALL if Warriors upset the Mavs, and I wouldn't be surprised to see the Mavs take it in 6 or 7.
