Last night I had the opportunity to watch my first preseason game with our new look Lakers last night against the Golden State Warriors. (Strange but true) And I saw some tremendous positives. Trying to recognize Kobe and Lamar from their bald looks was hard enough, but the players I really like so far is Chris Mihm. His offensive stats may not have been an eyebrow raiser, but this guy is an aggressive player both on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. He also plugged the middle and contributed a clean block, and a put-back slam for two that not only fired himself up, but the Staples Center crowd as well. Brian Cook also brought a huge smile to my face. Yes notmuchgame, I can no longer complain about his "line drive" shooting ability because whatever he has going for him, he knocked down some shots consistently from the perimeter. I'm not sure whether or not Phil Jackson didn't play him much or just because the triangle offense didn't fit Cook's game style, Rudy T's offense is now opening the door for him to make plays and also be a offensive presence both from the inside and the perimeter. My disappointments however, would have to be Lamar Odom. He never found his shooting rhythm all night, and even though he had many open looks to drain shots and build his confidence, nothing fell in his direction unfortunately. Sasha Vujacic is another one mainly on defense. He'd always trail defenders and his speedster opponents in Speedy Claxton and sadly enough Derek Fisher would always destroy him off the dribble which would require other Lakers to jam the middle when they'd drive inside. But some things I like in Sasha is he always pushes the floor and is very energetic. Big difference from last year's team. We are a much younger team, a faster team, and a team that loves to get out and run in the transitional phases. I'll be looking forward to tonight's game against the Clippers.
Let's talk about a couple of things...first off, turnovers. This team has got to make quicker, more effective passes. Even Kobe was having trouble, and I don't wanna put the blame all on him (because the Lakers weren't playing off the ball as well), but you just can't throw that many bad passes in a game. Another thing is defense. You're right, Emo...Vujacic pretty much plays terrible defense. I feel like he's scared of any physical contact, and maybe it's because he weighs 80 lbs...but I don't know. That goes for Brown, Bobbitt and Atkins, also...although Bobbitt tries a little harder than the other two. Lamar Odom...pretty big disappointment so far. I think the Lakers need to post him up instead of allowing him to run the perimeter, because it takes so much away from his game it's ridiculous. We need his rebounds and post play...not him going 0-4 from the arc. I also realize that we aren't playing Walton, Grant, Divac, Rush, Medvedenko, and George. What about Jumaine Jones? I'd like to see him get more playing time...he's impressing me so far. The Lakers have a tough road ahead of them, but once they mesh together, it'll be easier, eventually.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting realdealbneal:</div><div class="quote_post">Let's talk about a couple of things...first off, turnovers. This team has got to make quicker, more effective passes. Even Kobe was having trouble, and I don't wanna put the blame all on him (because the Lakers weren't playing off the ball as well), but you just can't throw that many bad passes in a game.</div> Yeah I didn't get the boxscore for the turnover ratios, but mainly I did see Kobe make some ridiculous plays. Even times when he got double-teammed, he tried to do too much on his own, which of course isn't anything new concerning Kobe, and at times when he could've given it up to a teammate for an open shot, he'd miss out on that opportunity. I myself don't want to put TOO much blame on Kobe, but he caused some significant damage on his part. <div class="quote_poster">Quoting realdealbneal:</div><div class="quote_post">Another thing is defense. You're right, Emo...Vujacic pretty much plays terrible defense. I feel like he's scared of any physical contact, and maybe it's because he weighs 80 lbs...but I don't know. That goes for Brown, Bobbitt and Atkins, also...although Bobbitt tries a little harder than the other two.</div> Vujacic is a stick LOL. I was shocked to see how skinny the man looked on the court. He is a pretty soft guy, doesn't tend to be aggressive at all. If he wants my vote to be the starting PG this year, he has to learn from the basic fundamentals of how to stick with his opposing player and not get beat often like what was witnessed last night. Also his shooting was erratic. Needs adjustments. I still haven't gotten a chance to see Tierre Brown and Tony Bobbitt in action, but I really see Chucky Atkins as an average player. I hate his shooting release. <div class="quote_poster">Quoting realdealbneal:</div><div class="quote_post">I also realize that we aren't playing Walton, Grant, Divac, Rush, Medvedenko, and George. What about Jumaine Jones? I'd like to see him get more playing time...he's impressing me so far.</div> We all know Divac's situation with the ruptured disc in his back, I'm not sure about the situations with Luke Walton, Kareem Rush, Slava, and Devean George. They were all sitting on the bench with street clothes on, so maybe they have some types of injuries they're nursing. Hopefully tonight we can see some improvements against the Clippers.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Emo:</div><div class="quote_post">We all know Divac's situation with the ruptured disc in his back, I'm not sure about the situations with Luke Walton, Kareem Rush, Slava, and Devean George. They were all sitting on the bench with street clothes on, so maybe they have some types of injuries they're nursing. </div> In the thread I made about the preseason, I explained the injuries...I just don't remember them off the top of my head though. Walton's got a sprained left ankle. Slava had a bruised right heel. Rush has a problem with his foot, I believe...and George is recovering from surgery. I think that covers it...but I may be wrong.
Rush back soon? <div class="quote_poster">Quoting realdealbneal:</div><div class="quote_post"> I also realize that we aren't playing Walton, Grant, Divac, Rush, Medvedenko, and George. What about Jumaine Jones? I'd like to see him get more playing time...he's impressing me so far. </div> I hope Rush gets back soon, he could really help, playing with Kobe, if he could put up some j's like he did in the playoffs last year, it would really open up the inside. Remember the Glen Rice days? I think Kobe would be more likely to give the ball to him since he has played with him and he has proved himself.
I think that if Rudy would have taken Sasha out of the game last night and put another PG our chance of winning would have been greater. The kid was giving Speedy a free walk pass to the hoop. Sasha couldn't catch up with Speedy. That shows us that if we put him up agaisnt Parker and other quick guards the kid is going to be eating up.
Sasha needs the experience to develop his skills and what better time to gain experience than during the pre-season games. The Lakers are using the pre-seasons as an experimental period for their new line-up. im sure that when the season starts they're all gonna come together and figure out how to play as a team.
