Crucifido’s Corner: Lakers vs. Kings (Game 76 4/6/08)

Revenge in Sacramento

The Kings took the last one in painful fashion in L.A.. Now the Lakers go up to Sacramento after their impressive team victory against the Mavericks to even the score and gain a game on the Suns.

And they did just that with some strong team play - - again.

Picking up right where he left off, Lamar was instantly aggressive getting to the middle. His dives into the paint with and without the ball were assertive and well timed. His timing on his interior passes in particular was right on the mark. It started in the Dallas game with some real nice wrap around dishes and inside passes to Pau for easy passes and on the first break of the game the same strong passing was there yet again. Lamar’s offense has become very strong since the addition of Pau. A couple real strong drives into the lane tonight show just how much Odom’s game and mindset have changed.

He’s made himself become the force that he should be.

Odom’s defense on Artest was strong and physical. From the beginning of the game, Lamar did well in not letting Artest get any kind of easy position on the block.

The real player of the game though was Vladi. It was a much livelier game from Radmanovic (understatement of the night). Starting on the defensive end, he was dug in more. His body was crouched down and his eyes were focused on his assignment instead of being too far off his man as with Dallas. Even more important Vladi hit his first shot from 3. Being the rhythm shooter he is, hitting that first shot can have a big impact on the rest of his game. Vladi works from offense first as a spark to his game. A testament to that was the tough 3-point shot he drained at the end of the 1st quarter.

That shooting rhythm definitely fired up the rest of his game. His hands on defense were unusually quick. His spacing on defense is what got him as involved as he was. He used the space between his man and the ball to his advantage. He wasn’t leaning one way or the other; rather he kept on the balls of his feet ready to move with his man on a cut or to a slow pass.

He was active underneath the boards too. On both the offensive and defensive ends, he was moving well from the outside of the key into the deep paint for the tap or to create space for others underneath. It was just a stellar game from Vladi. He truly looked like he wanted to perform better than he did in Dallas and that determination showed.

Soft finishes by Pau were getting swiped or too easily challenged tonight. When he had the ball underneath he would’ve been far better served finishing with strength instead of laying it in. What Gasol did real well tonight though was not getting caught up in what wasn’t working offensively. His shots were soft inside so he stepped out to the mid-range. Once that shot went away you saw Pau start diving into the middle to act as a passing pivot and then running the floor when he had the chance with the speed of the guard. Having a player that has the versatility and mental capability to change his game according to what will work is a rare commodity.

Like Stu said in this game though, Gasol has got to start getting the re-post pass with better position. The reason he has to kick it back out is because of his over-high position. When that ball goes out, he has to take a couple steps deeper to get a better look.

For the time Newble was in the game he played some really physical defense. When he had Artest to guard he was particularly strong in his footing. That’s where his strength comes from, his lower body. He does a good job of holding position without fouling. The problem with Newble is that offensively, he isn’t accustomed to where he needs to be at all.

Quietly, Kobe put up the numbers yet again. The big factor in Kobe’s game tonight was the control he played with. His creativity with the ball was at a high tonight, often getting out of double teams only to find a clear shot or making a drive and kick pass to Vladi, Derek or anyone that got to their spot. Defensively he was in the same scramble mode he has been in the last 2 games. He was pretty much everywhere, on his man, covering guys losing their man and getting underneath to make space for Radmanovic or Lamar to grab the board.

There was one instance of great transition defense from Radmanovic and Farmar in the 2nd quarter. They both hustled back and stopped the ball first instead of anticipating a pass. That kind of aware transition defense is going to be needed against more than just the Kings.

Things like having Artest with 3 fouls in the 2nd period are key to games. At that point with 4 minutes left, you’d like to see the Lakers take the ball right into him, forcing him to either play soft defense or pick up his 4th foul before the half.

I also would like to see the Lakers exploit the hot hand a bit more than they did tonight. They had Radmanovic getting on a roll, but in the midst of that they stopped running plays for the drive and kick for a good 6 minutes of the 1st half. They have to make sure to drain guys that are in rhythm like Vladi was. That can’t go to waste in playoff situations.

That scorching start to the 3rd quarter was fantastic to see. The fluidity within the offense was suddenly in gear. Even better there was a team effort to get to guys on the perimeter. Only a couple shots even got off from the perimeter at all. The shots were being chased in from the 3-point line and right into the teeth of the Laker D. Second half starts like that go a long way to establishing the game to your pace.

The 4th quarter though had the bench giving up a sizeable lead. The bench has got to know, and they do, that the offense runs from working the ball around, using the inside out game and moving off the ball. Early shots in the clock and shooting those off of one pass into the offense won’t do anything but give up the lead like they did. That focus they have in the meat of a tight game has to transfer to a comfortable lead kind of game too. It’s vital in the playoffs that the bench stays with the offense and doesn’t use a lead as an excuse to start a freewheeling style. Control and concentration is the name of the game at all times.

Organized hustle defense was the order of the day. Last time they played the Kings they allowed 72 points in the 1st half. At 2.39 left in the game the Kings were sitting on 88. That should tell you that the defensive focus (after the 1st quarter) came back. The ragtag defense of the 1st quarter gave way to a team that was far more communicative on the perimeter. The recovery on drives was right where it had to be too.

When it was over, the Lakers cleaned up the tiny mess in the 4th and took advantage of the loss by Phoenix. With a 2 game lead in the Pacific, the Lakers can’t relax. They have to go into Portland where they haven’t been too` successful and pull out another win to gain ground on the Spurs, Hornets and Suns, but more than that to get the team running on all cylinders come playoff time.