Grizzlies Top Lakers in SPL Opener

Andrew Bynum made his eagerly anticipated Summer Pro League debut on Friday night to a sold-out crowd at the Pyramid in Long Beach.

The fans packed in to see Bynum and the Lakers’ two other draft picks, Ronny Turiaf and Von Wafer, suit up to take on rookie Hakim Warrick and the Memphis Grizzlies. In fact, the stands building was so loaded with spectators that 500 people reportedly were turned away at the door.

Not bad for a league that apparently had not had a capacity crowd in some time.

The Lakers fell behind by as many as 15 points during the game, but would come back and cut the deficit to four late in the 3rd quarter. Yet missed free-throws and an inability to get stops down the stretch hurt the Lakers on opening night, as they fell to the Memphis Grizzlies 85-93.

The Team

As one might expect, the Lakers’ offense was inconsistent and often possessions were stained with poor shot selection. This, most likely, was due in part to the team learning a new offense within a short period of time. The Lakers’ spacing was decent, but the ball movement and rotation simply was not there. As a result, they wound up shooting a dismal 37% on the night, as they clearly were out of sync. Poor passing was the case here– just 27 made field goals off of 12 assists.

Defensively the Lakers did just a marginal job. At times, they had great rotation and one-on-one coverage. At other times, the Lakers’ backcourt failed to deny penetration and failed to get physical with the Grizzlies. This led to foul trouble with Turiaf and Bynum throughout the game. Although this dilemma was partly created by the two rookies’ adjustments to controlling their body in an NBA setting, the Grizzlies’ moves toward the basket put the Lakers’ big men in vulnerable situations.

The Lakers did a poor job of crashing the glass, allowing the Grizzlies win the rebounding battle by a margin of nine boards. Often the Lakers would forget to box out or mis-time their approaches to the ball. Their fundamentals clearly were left at home on this night.

What the Lakers did do well was get to the line and draw fouls. What they didn’t do well is convert on these opportunities when needed. The Lakers shot 41 free throws, but hit only 31 of them. This would be decent, if it were not for the fact that this was their main source of offense at times. In fact, much of their third quarter run was fueled by free-throw shooting. Coupled with their inability to make them down the stretch, they were not able to close the gap in the second half enough to take the lead.

The three-point shooting couldn’t get any worse either. The Lakers took thirteen shots from beyond the arc and didn’t make one. They will need to improve on their range in the next game if they hope to be a more versatile threat.

The Players

Starting Lineup
PG Sasha Vujacic
SG Tony Bobbitt
SF Carlos Powell
PF Marcus Douthit
C Andrew Bynum

Breakdown

Andrew Bynum
As other reports have indicated, he still is raw, but you truly can see the potential within him. Bynum finished with close to a double-double, racking up 12 points and 9 rebounds on 5/8 shooting.

Of course there will be an adjustment period for the 17 year old prodigy of New Jersey. “Coming out of high school, the speed is 100 times [faster],�? Bynum remarked after the game, “I’m getting used to it, I’m getting in better shape. I thought I did a pretty good job of running up and down the court.�?

“It’s different being up against somebody my size all the time. I definitely have to get used to that, but that just comes with lifting weights and getting stronger.�?

And it seems his plans on bulking up are well-targeted. It truly would do wonders for him and enable Bynum to bang down low in the post. After dropping 270 lbs., it’s evident that Bynum has slimmed down. However, he had little muscle definition and could work on bulking up, particularly focusing on solidifying his arms and legs.

It’s difficult to tell whether conditioning was a problem for him during the game. He saw 30 minutes of action against the Grizzlies, but sat on the bench for extended periods of time. At the same time, Bynum found himself in early foul trouble in the first half, which limited his playing time as well.

However, he often put himself in a situation to pick up fouls. Bynum’s defense is decent at this point, but he needs to learn how to control his body and make plays on defense instead of dishing out fouls. Once again, this is part of his adjustment to the NBA’s level of play. Still, Bynum would lead the team with 2 blocked shots. His most impressive defensive play came early in the game, as he leaped out into the passing lane to steal the ball around the arc. Bynum would receive it in the post on the other end, delivering a perfect bounce pass to Sasha Vujacic, who was running the baseline. Sasha kicked it out and the Lakers swung the ball to Tony Bobbitt at the top of the key. His missed trey seemed to have spoiled a fantastic effort by Bynum, but Andrew climbed up high to pull a rebound down. Bynum came back down and laid it in with two hands, sending the Pyramid crowd into a frenzy.

His passing and court awareness on offense are at a high level for someone who only had never played an NBA-sponsored game before. Bynum has the potential to play pick & roll/pop, as he has a relatively firm idea of when to cut to the basket. In addition, his ability to make plays in the post was a true benefit to his team; unfortunately the Lakers had great difficulty of getting it to him there. Often passes would be out of control and when they would get to him, he would not be in ideal position to score or create. Other times it almost seemed as if they were ignoring him down low. One fan cried out, “Feed the big dog!�? His request was denied time and time again.

When’s the last time you heard that?

I asked Andrew if we could expect to see more of him in the post, as his post game did not receive much attention from his teammates.

“You can. We had trouble getting me the ball,�? Bynum admitted, “They were fronting me, and being a high school player just learning the triangle I wasn’t sure of how to position myself to get the ball. But once I get the ball you will see more of my post game.�?

His offensive work was not what many anticipated on this night. While Bynum shot at a high percentage, his game needs polishing. For a kid expressing his desire to “bring back the skyhook,�? Bynum has some hours to put in on his schedule. Many of his opportunities were present as a result of his size.

This carried over to Bynum’s rebounding as well. His activity on the boards was sporadic at times, although he finished with those nine rebounds. He must improve on his fundamentals in this area– boxing out, timing his jump, and his awareness overall.

A solid debut from Bynum, as all Laker fans are hoping to see more of him throughout the coming weeks.

Welcome to the NBA, Andrew.

Ronny Turiaf
If there was an award for intensity, we wouldn’t have to watch an SPL game to know that Turiaf is the clear-cut winner.

His reputation from Gonzaga carried over, and the fans roared in appreciation whenever he would enter or exit the game.

Unfortunately, Turiaf only saw 25 minutes of action on this night, finishing with 10 points and 3 boards. As with Bynum, this was primarily due to being in foul trouble for the majority of the game.

It is evident that Turiaf’s post game needs work as well. He shot 2/9 and threw up some wild attempts throughout the game. The one possession I was impressed with was when Turiaf used his body and power down low to give him room for an unchallenged shot. He must do more of this as his offense in the paint develops.
Yet offense is not Turiaf’s specialty. He plays solid man-to-man defense and never gives up on contesting a shot. In fact, I can’t recall Ronny giving Memphis an open look all night when he was in control. He was simply a brick wall on defense, as players were unable to back him down. The fact that he wants to add 15 more pounds of muscle is scary and it will help him immensely at the NBA level.

When asked about the impression he’s made on Phil Jackson, Turiaf hoped that his renowned intensity was evident.

“I’m just happy that he saw me playing hard,�? Turiaf said, “At least I was playing hard and I was trying to pick my teammates up and do the right thing.�?

The future looks bright for Turiaf, as early impressions indicate he was the perfect selection for the Lakers at #37 in the draft.

Von Wafer
Von is soon to become a fan favorite as well.

In warm-ups, Wafer and Smush Parker treated the crowd to a dazzling display of windmill dunks, preparing them for what turned out to be an exciting game at times.

I asked Von if we could see more of this high-flying action as he runs the break throughout the season.

“No doubt,�? Wafer assured, “I just couldn’t get any opportunities. I was trying to. Hopefully though, I can show these guys a few things.�?

Although Wafer did not showcase his aerial arsenal, he gave his team some solid shooting. Wafer finished the game shooting 4/12 from the floor, after going 3/6 in the first half. While this is not the best shooting percentage for an NBA game, some of his misses came during the final minutes, as the Lakers were forced into desperate shot attempts, trying to make up an insurmountable deficit. Additionally, Wafer admitted he was quite nervous before the game.

“I wasn’t really on today shooting the ball,�? Wafer expressed in disappointment, “I could have shot the ball a lot better. I was nervous, but hopefully things will get better. I just got nauseous.�?

Wafer played off the ball very well, running cross-court at times to free himself from his defender and knock down shots in a catch and shoot situation.

I would expect Von Wafer to step up next game and provide some much-needed help on offense for the Lakers.

Sasha Vujacic
He did not show the crowd much all game. Mentally, it seemed Sasha was not into the game. Early in the contest he got into it a bit with Hakim Warrick, but played innocent to the referees. Laker SPL head coach Kurt Rambis pulled him aside and most likely told him to calm down.

Sasha finished with just 2 points and 3 steals on just 3 shot attempts.

However, it seems that his defensive play has improved since last season slightly. This was in part due to him bulking up 10-12 pounds over the off-season.

I caught up with Sasha after the game to ask him on how this has affected his game.

“I feel better,�? Sasha noted, “I am able to play better defense and everything. Today just went how it went and I am looking forward to the next game.�?

Hopefully Vujacic shows more in his next outing and showcases his improved defense even further.

Marcus Douthit
After being drafted in the second round by the Lakers a year ago, Marcus Douthit spent the year playing overseas.

In this one game, he showed no true improvement, finishing with 8 points and 6 rebounds in 17 minutes of play. I would expect to see him get more playing time next game.

Smush Parker
Parker exceeded expectations in his Laker debut, scoring 10 points on 4/8 shooting.

He has a nice drive & dish game, using his quickness and athleticism to create opportunities. At times he will trap himself by picking up his dribble too early, but he is a decent playmaker.

The most outstanding quality of Parker is his jumping ability. In addition to the mini dunk contest he and Wafer had in warm-ups, Parker excited the crowd with a steal and a breakaway reverse dunk in the 2nd quarter.

More exciting things can be anticipated from Smush Paker.

Devon Green
Without question, Green was the most unaware Laker on both ends of the floor. His mental mistakes were large and costly at times.

In one possession in the first half, he dropped an accurate, 5-foot chest pass out of bounds.

In another instance, Von Wafer had to direct him to the other side of the floor, as he had forgot to cover his man and was lost in the defensive scheme.

His defenders can creep up on him at times and create unnecessary defensive pressure due to his lack of awareness.

He would finish with 11 points, but seven of them came from the free throw line and he did not make much of an impact in this game.

Carlos Powell
Powell led the Lakers with 14 points and shot decently from the floor, finishing at 6/14.

He proved to be an adequate defender and can drive to the basket and score. His 14 points came quietly throughout the game, but he made his impact nevertheless.

The rest of the Lakers either did not make an impact on the game and/or did not receive enough playing time to make a valuable assessment.

The Lakers now will take on the Dallas Mavericks Saturday night at 3 PM in Long Beach.

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