Lakers vs. Suns (Round 1 Game 1)

Cruci's Corner

In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb

Before all the fatalistic, the world’s coming to an end posts, comments and articles come rolling in, remember that this game isn’t without its positives. Surely, winning is the ultimate positive, especially in the playoffs, but overall the Lakers showed today that they can compete with this team and at the very least pull off one or two wins, making this an interesting series after all.

There have been tons of games this year when the Lakers have run out to a comfortable, sizeable or admirable lead in the first half of games only to give it up in the second half. This to me is yet another sign of a young team that has yet to learn how to close out games with the same energy level and effort they had coming into the game.

Again, the 3rd quarter proved to be the breaking point of this game. There is something about coming out of the halftime break that this team has trouble coping with. Whether it’s that they sink into a relaxation mode, or if they get too comfortable with a lead, or if they run out of that spark that got them a lead in the first place is unknown. The skill level to establish that lead (and particularly in hostile territory) is obviously there but for some unknown reason the Lakers let games slide into mediocrity, often never finding their way out of the hole they dig for themselves.

That is a positive and one of the most frustrating aspects of this team to me in an odd way. Many times this year the Lakers have not been beaten by their opponent as much as they’ve been beaten by their own play. In a roundabout way its good that teams aren’t out and out routing the Lakers (though it happened this season of course, but for the most part it didn’t in losses). It has to show both the team and the fans that this team has some elements it takes to keep in games that sometimes they have no business being in. On the other hand it also shows that this team is lacking a closing mentality. More than the much ballyhooed killer instinct, a team that both knows and has the desire to close out games when they have the chance to is vital. The two go hand in hand to be sure, but with this Laker team they have to develop one before the other.

To that effect sometimes when the Lakers go up by some 8 top 10 point lead in the first quarter or half, I’d almost rather them be behind by a small margin or stay within 2 of their opponents. Now this isn’t some long term solution to the problem of not knowing how to finish off teams, but it seems that this team does better fighting tooth and nail for a game instead of being the aggressor. (Look I know it sounds weird, but you get my point kind of, right?)

Speaking of aggression - that’s one thing from this game that was great to see. In the first half the Lakers listened to scouting reports and obviously put to use their semi-dominance on the inside. Phoenix is built for fast-paced mid-range shooting games, not grind out in the post types of teams. The Lakers finally put Kwame, Andrew and Lamar to use inside where they could be the most effective. When the Lakers established the inside game from post plays and from slashing early on it allowed the mid-range to long range game to ease up. Phoenix’s speed at running around the perimeter and keeping up with the Lakers along the arc was nullified. The Suns were forced to dump down low to help out with defense. From there on Kobe went to work, getting into rhythm and being able to move freely to the spots he needed to be in.

Unfortunately the poise the Lakers showed in the 2nd quarter to the middle of the 3r4d quarter when Phoenix was going on their run seemed to dissipate. The panic the Lakers sink into when teams make runs began to rear its ugly head. The main result of that panic evolved quickly into the L:akers not looking for the post up play, staggered movement and above all they once again became a spectator to Kobe.

Now this is a two way street today. As good a first half as Kobe played, he simply played too much one on one in the entire second half. Sure phoenix stepped their defense up by throwing 2 guys at Kobe or different defensive looks at him from time to time, but above all, Kobe simply tried to do too much by himself.

In this game where his teammates were contributing in the first half, there was little reason for Kobe to sink into this kind of game. It was a bit of a regression from Kobe to take on an offensive load that was being shared effectively before.

On the other side of the coin, the rest of the Lakers played into the Suns’ hands. They also reverted to watching Kobe play. It was a pass and stand offense, where in the first half when it was the pass and move offense that the triangle is meant to be, the Lakers were operating smoothly at all points in the offense.

It’s the eternal Laker struggle of this year. When do you defer to Kobe and when do you look for your shot. Ideally the team should never defer to Kobe as much as they did in the second half. It’s not just a matter of who9 is going to step up top be the second gun behind Kobe, but it’s also who is going to play consistently throughout the entire game to allow Kobe a second option at all. Also, Kobe must still learn to walk that incredibly thin line of when to pass and when to dominate. It seems easy from the couch at home, but it’s not that easy in the crunch time of a game) let alone a playoff game).

Defensively, that first half was an out and out surprise. The Lakers made the Suns a jump shooting team. As much a shooting team as they are, they’re also built on a drive and kick offense that opens up several shots a game. The Lakers did a good job making the Suns run in an arc around the perimeter, eliminating the jab dribbles that so often make the Lakers break down on the perimeter or collapse too heavily into the middle.

Then came the second half where Nash was able to jab dribble, get in along the deep baseline and pull two defenders to him, opening up Amare in the middle on dives and anyone else in the mid-range to have a free and easy shot. It’s the huge, massive, giant advantage of having a point guard that demands defensive attention in deep post spots.

One solution to stopping the amount of jab dribbles and low position Nash gets – don’t collapse from the mid-range. There is no need for guys like Odom, Evans or Kobe to dive down into the paint when Nash has the ball. Every time they do there is a mid-range option open that Nash will most certainly find. Rather, let the bigs force an awkward shot or force a pass out to the far perimeter. Shooting down into the paint to help seal off Nash (who can dribble by most of the Laker team anyway) only to leave a diving Stoudemire or a wide open mid-range shot is foolish endeavor.

Keep your space between your man and Nash. If Nash goes up for a shot, let your bigs take care of business underneath and get in for the board if you have to. Lamar was doing just this throughout the first 3 quarters. Then suddenly when you saw Kwame getting frustrated with his teammates Odom decided to come in the middle, leaving anyone he was guarding absolutely wide open.

Simply put, let the bigs handle Nash when he’s cornered along the baseline or in the post. The Suns are too fast and too good of shooters to leave open in the mid-range.

Secondly, there’s the other thorn in the Lakers’ side, Barbosa. The guy is definitely fast, but he is a straight line slasher. There is little to no change of direction in Barbosa’s drives. You can watch this game back again today and see that when he’s given a lane, it’s a straight shot to the hoop. This is ideal for the Suns against the Lakers because the Lakers have struggled to simply step in front of an open straight drive all year.

The solution – step into the path of Barbosa. If you’re the help man, take one step into the lane. At the very worst it will put Barbosa onto his heels and force him into a fade away jump shot. Now he can hit those of course, but the odds of hitting fade away after fade away as opposed to constantly letting him get multiple easy layups.

Lastly, in regards to this, if you see someone starting to go off like Barbosa did, do something about it. For the gazillionth time this year the Lakers let as player get into a rhythm without any kind of contest being thrown his way. You have to recognize early on when a player is getting into a groove. If you let offensive players get into a rhythm such as Barbosa did today, but only try to do something about it after they’ve gotten their team back into the game, it’s too late. Early recognition of threats and team communication on defense to contain that threat is absolutely essential.

Player wise, Kwame still needs to be finishing every shot with strength. That is the one major difference between Kwame and Andrew. Andrew has gotten into a good habit of not being cute with the ball underneath. It’s bad enough by itself but if you flirt with cute little layups around the rim with guys like Stoudemire or Marion roaming the paint, you’ll get in trouble quick. Finish everything with urgency and strength.

Also, for everyone in the paint on defense, don’t substitute shoving for playing strong position defense in the post. There were several times today that the Lakers had a stop either done or developing but bailed the Suns out with a useless pushing foul underneath. Size shouldn’t be an issue in this series for the Lakers. They have the length and strength to get position inside without giving the Suns more easy points from the line.

One more gripe on the defensive end. There has to be some kind of defense played in the area between the inside of the arc and the paint. With this quick Suns team you can’t give up as much ground in the mid-range as the Lakers were in the second half. As has been said all year, get in front of drives; stop the ball first before you worry about where the pass may go. You have got to clog the mid-range game and push Phoenix back out to the arc to both get them to shoot lower percentage shots and to give your inside defense time to get position.

Lamar played well today mostly. I loved seeing him take advantage of open lanes the Suns were giving him. Having Lamar dive into the mid-post early ion sets was a huge benefit to the Lakers as well. With his size over Marion and his passing ability having Lamar get into the post early like he was for most of the game was allowing free motion on the perimeter and you would see a lot more dives into the middle. With his step advantage over Marion in the post, Lamar serves a huge purpose playing from that spot.

Luke played a good tough game, getting himself involved on the inside to the point where Phoenix looked surprised to see him in the mix down low. That helps the rest of the offense out immensely too. It was making his man keep up with him, pulling him off the double in the post that Phoenix has to do to keep up with the Laker big men. Luke will have to continue to play that kind of tough-minded utilitarian game if the Lakers are to keep their heads above water in this series.

Smush began the game shading Nash and his man well. The problem was that he was shading immediately in defensive sets. He wasn’t keeping face to face with his man at any point. In turn he was giving them a straight lane into the teeth of the Laker defense and as per usual taking a random swipe at the ball when he was beaten. There’s no shame in calling for help if it’s needed.

Andrew played the game with good patience above all today. He wasn’t forcing up quick, hurried shots. I liked his early position in offensive sets and the fact that he was looking to back Stoudemire down once he got the ball. Strong finishes are always a plus for a big man, and Andrew didn’t disappoint there. It was just his defense that looked sluggish. He was slow to respond to help situations and was often caught flat-footed if his man made any kind of weak to strong movement. Rebounding was good for him, well protected grabs with calm outlet passing helped too. Andrew’s main focus has got to be on keeping his ground in the paint on defense. He, more than anyone else can change virtually every shot Phoenix can throw up in the middle. If he gives up his spot to jump out on a ball fake or cutter, he’s compromising the already thin Laker defense.

Farmar did well keeping track of Nash. There were very few times when Farmar was caught lost on defense. He gave up some space staying in front of Nash, but for the most part he made Nash work for any space he needed on the outside. In the first half that was a huge thing keeping Phoenix from any fluidity they thrive on.

Well, it was a Game 1 loss and that always hurts, but again, it wasn’t a completely negative game today.

The offensive spacing was near perfect for 3 quarters of the game and the Lakers did a great job making Phoenix play an uncharacteristically slow pace in the first half.

So this one’s over, no use to pout about it, that won’t change the result. The Lakers have to move into Game 2 knowing that all they need in Phoenix is a split to take this series back to L.A. on a big upswing. Anything is possible.

Maintain focus, never get into panic mode and keep the game methodical – then Game 2 can become the 1-1 split the Lakers are looking for.

Veteran ClubLakers member crucifido writes nightly player analysis for each game of the Laker season.

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