Lakers Bench Mob All But Gone

The scrappy and energetic Bench Mob of the Los Angeles Lakers is all but gone.

A couple seasons ago, when the Lakers starters took a rest near the end of quarters, a young group of subs took the court. Sasha Vujacic, Jordan Farmar, Shannon Brown, Luke Walton, Josh Powell, and DJ Mbenga were all counted on to spell the starters and provide a spark of energy on the offense. The bench never lacked the drive but often was too eager for its own good.

For every high-flying Shannon Brown Dunk or Jordan Farmar fast break lay-up or Sasha Vujacic three-ball, there were ill-advised shots, turnovers, and poor shooting. Fans cheered and groaned at the inconsistency of the Lakers bench.

But in the upcoming season, the Lakers bench is no longer the Bench Mob. Of the players in the group, only Vujacic and Walton are under contract. And Luke Walton will likely be playing very limited minutes because of a sever back injury. Brown is still under contract negotiations, and the rest are going to play elsewhere.

The new bench now features veterans Steve Blake, Matt Barnes, Theo Ratliff, plus in all likelihood, rookies Devin Ebanks and Derrick Caracter. The rookies might get limited tick, but the veterans will take a lion's share of the back-up minutes.

This new crew will not be as energetic as the previous bench teams, but will be tougher on the defensive end and hungry to win a championship of their own. We'll see less of the bonehead plays, but we probably will also see less of the hustle and speedy basketball.

So my hats off to the Lakers' Bench Mob. You had your moments in the regular season and playoffs, excited fans during garbage time, and provided a lot of off-court humor.



Photo: Jordan Farmar (1) splits the defense of Boston's Paul Pierce and Michael Finley (40) for a layup during Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Credit: Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times


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Four Keys to a Lakers Win in Game 4

The Los Angeles Lakers are up 2-1 against the Boston Celtics in the 2010 NBA Finals and at this point, nobody is sure how that lead will hold up after Game 4. Both teams have had their hot and cold moments, plus the officiating has been spotty.

If the Lakers are to take a commanding 3-1 series lead, here are four keys that I think are important factors to help them claim Game 4:

• Lamar Odom - Derek Fisher was big in Game 3, but it was the steady play of Lamar Odom that silently buoyed the team in key moments. Prior to that game, Odom was plagued by foul trouble and had limited minutes. If he can stay in the game, Odom will be able to crash the boards and
• Interior defense - Kevin Garnett scoring 25 in Game 3? That was unthinkable at the start of the series, but Pau Gasol struggled to limit Garnett offensively. Rajon Rondo also made a handful of slashes in the lane without much trouble. This puts the onus on the Lakers bigs to put up a tough "D" like the Game 2 loss.
• Bench play - With the exception of the third game, the Lakers bench play resulted in a negative +/- stat. Shannon Brown, Jordan Farmar, and Sasha Vujacic need to produce better whenever they are on the floor, especially with how the fouls are being called in the series. In the second game, Kobe Bryant was hampered with three fouls early and that meant extended minutes for the bench.
• Shot selection - Here's one trend you'll rarely see mentioned: The team that shot better from the field in the first three games won the game. This means that offensive execution and shot selection is vital in the series. Both the Lakers and the Celtics are capable of playing lockdown defense and each must solve the defensive problems presented by their opponent.

No one is sure what type of Game 4 will be, but the Lakers can win it if they will address the factors I've mentioned.


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Lakers Speed Past Suns for Game 2 Win

It's official: the Phoenix Suns left their defense in San Antonio and the Los Angeles Lakers couldn't be happier.

The Lakers scored 124 points en route to a 12-point victory over the Suns. Pau Gasol made minced meat out of Amare Stoudemire's weak defense in the interior and scored a game-high 29 points and grabbed 9 rebounds. Kobe Bryant played the role of facilitator and dished out 13 assists (even finishing with a better assist-turnover ration than Suns playmaker Steve Nash).

The cherry on top of all this?

Lamar Odom had another "lucky" game with a lesser, but significant double-double (17 points, 11 rebounds). I'm sure Amare Stoudemire must be feeling the heat after calling Odom's Western Conference Finals Game 1 brilliance "lucky," especially playing wooden defense against the Lakers' bigs and failing to grab boards himself.

We all know defense is not the Suns' forte but Games 1 and 2 were just ridiculous: The Lakers averaged 126 points and shot almost 60% from the field as a team. In both games, all but one member of the Lakers squad scored (Sasha "The Machine" Vujacic failed to score a point).

If the Suns keep the Lakers run amuck on the offensive end, we're one step closer to a Lakers-Celtics Finals again.


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Lakers Bench to The World: Yeah, We're Still Here

Pop quiz: Which of the following statements about the Los Angeles Lakers-Dallas Mavericks game is fictional?

• The leading scorer for the  was somebody who came off the bench.
• Sasha Vujacic shot better behind the three-point arc than the Lakers' starters combined.
• Adam Morrison (yes, Adam Morrison) finished with the same number of points as Pau Gasol, while netting a 100% shooting clip.

If you answered any of the choices, then you're in for a surprise: all of them happened in the Lakers' drubbing of the Mavericks.

I've always been an advocate of inspired play from the Lakers' bench and the game was a beauty. After the starters built a solid lead in the first half, the usually lackadaisical bench protected the lead and even made it bigger. Jordan Farmar, who led the Lakers in scoring for the game, was superb offensively and D.J. Mbenga protected the paint en route to 3 blocks.

If the Lakers' bench played like this every game, there wouldn't be any need for Kobe Bryant heroics in the end game. Of course, a lot of fans won't be happy with that, but give me a dominating Lakers game any day.


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Marketing the 2009 NBA Finals

As a Los Angeles Lakers fan, I'm very happy about the 101-96 Game Two win despite the ugliness of the game.

So ugly to fact that the television ratings for Game Two went down compared to last year. People just tuned out. And who can blame them? In the first quarter, instead of showing a very competitive series, both the Lakers and the Orlando Magic combined for 30 measly points. Both teams shot poorly and even Kobe Bryant restrained in shooting lights out.

But despite the fugliness of that game, I still believe that the 2009 NBA Finals can still be a marketing gem for the NBA. After taking my MBA, I've been more keen on what can be done to capture the people's fancy plus the angles that might find interesting. Here are my suggestions to the league:

• Focus on the shining star - Forget Dwight Howard. Put the spotlight on Kobe Bryant. Kobe has got to be the most polarizing figure in the NBA right now-- there is just no middle ground with him. Either you hate him or you love him. Good thing is that he has been shredding the Orlando defense in the first two games that his superb play merits the attention of the promotions folks at the NBA.
• International flavor - Pau Gasol, Marcin Gortat, Mickael Pietrus, Hedo Turkoglu, and Sasha Vuajacic are getting a great amount of tick in the Finals and they are all Europeans. Throw in the inactive Sun Yue and we have a representative from Asia. I heard in the telecast that Orlando Magic jerseys have spiked in Poland, where Gortat is a citizen of.
• The Redemption Angle - Redemption is one of the oldest, most enduring themes in stories and the 2009 NBA Finals have redemptive qualities on two counts. The first is the Los Angeles Lakers. They were beaten to a pulp in last year's finals and this year could be their comeback (sans the Boston Celtics). The second is Kobe Bryant. This is best chance to win a ring without Shaquille O'Neal and after languishing in NBA playoff limbo since 2004, this is chance to redeem himself.
• The Team of the Decade- If the Lakers this year's championship, I think they would have closed the nomination for the best team of the decade. If the 1960's belong to the Boston Celtics, the 1980's to the Los Angeles Lakers, and the 1990's to the Chicago Bulls, the Lakers have a chance to clinch the decade if they win it all this year. Yes, the San Antonio Spurs may have the better decade regular season winning percentage (.702 versus the Lakers .646), but the Lakers have reached the finals six times in the decade, plus they have the chance to get the team's fourth ring in the same time period (versus three of the Spurs).

So, paging NBA commish David Stern, these ideas may be of help to you. :)

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Lakers Bench Comes Alive in Win

I kinda expected that the Los Angeles Lakers would be going away with a victory over the struggling Sacramento Kings, but not with Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol playing limited time in the forth quarter.

Instead, we see Luke Walton dishing and scoring, Shannon Brown playing great energy and Sasha Vujacic bringing the house down with a monster jam over two Kings. (That last one is not a joke-- Sasha did slam the ball on the grill of two Kings).

The scoreboard read 122-104, and the Kings did not offer much resistance in the fourth. It's good that the bench mob took care of business because the Lakers will be facing the tough Denver Nuggets in Los Angeles in a potential late playoff match-up two days from now.

With the win, the Lakers gave closed the gap between them and the Cleveland Cavaliers to a half game for the best record in the NBA.

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Lakers Sweep Rockets for the Regular Season

The Los Angeles Lakers notched their 60th win of the season with a victory over the Houston Rockets, 93-81.

Reigning NBA MVP Kobe Bryant played facilitator for most of the game, scoring 20 points efficiently and dishing out 7 assists. Pau Gasol led the team with 23 points.

With the win, the Lakers have swept the Rockets for the regular reason in all of their four meetings of the season and have gained ground on the Cleveland Cavaliers for the best record in the NBA (The Lakers now only trail the Cavs by one game). If the Lakers can get the best record, that will be huge for their title chase.

The growing concern for the Lakers now is the poor play of the bench. Only reserve center DJ Mbenga provided a spark off the bench. Luke Walton, Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic, and Josh Powell all combined for a measly 13 points and shot 18% as a unit. Seeing Luke Walton blow jumpers and Jordan Farmar make defensive lapses really irks me because I've seen these guys play at their best.


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The Lakers' Frontline Issues

Andrew Bynum is down, so who does the Los Angeles Lakers tab to pick up the slack?

Josh Powell.

Seriously.

In the last two games since Bynum went down, Powell has averaged roughly 13 minutes a game, almost the double his PT this season so far. Everyone was expecting Chris Mihm to take on the lion's share of Bynum's minutes.

Actually, the minutes are distributed to Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, Vladimir Radmanovic, Powell and Mihm-- not exactly a front line that will scare teams out of their Nikes.

With the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavalier Coming up, the front court better stup up. Big Time.


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Lakers Defeat Wafer-led Rockets

The Los Angeles Lakers struggled to beat a depleted Houston Rockets team.

How depleted, you ask? No Tracy McGrady and no Ron Artest.

With the absences one Rocket stood taller than Yao Ming-- Von Wafer. Yup, Von Wafer. The same guy the Lakers drafted in 2005, bounced around the league the past few seasons, has found a home in Houston. Wafer scored a career high 23 points in the 105-100 loss to the Lakers.

The Lakers were bailed out by a deep three courtesy of Kobe Bryant with 27 ticks left in the game. The Rockets failed to execute down the stretch and it enabled the Lakers to win its 31st game of the season.

--

The Lakers have been suffering a lot of injuries as of late and Lamar Odom's return in the Houston game was a breather. The Lakers have been without Jordan Farmar, Luke Walton and Sasha Vujacic. Thanks to the Lakers' depth, the team is still winning games with three key players on sickbay and Josh Powell getting extended PT.

Tags: Los Angeles Lakers

Lakers Clobber Warriors

What's the best way to follow up the Los Angeles Lakers' biggest regular season game of 2008? A blow-out win would definitely be one of them.

The Lakers battled the Golden State Warriors in virtual target shooting game and handily won over the latest team to beat the defending champs Boston Celtics. The Lakers won 130-113, a final score that kinda looks like one from the high-scoring 1980's. The 130 points is currently the highest point total for the Lakers this season, with contributions from Kobe Bryant (31 points), Derek Fisher (19 points) and Sasha Vujacic (17 points). All the Lakers who played in the game scored at least two points.

The fourth quarter was virtually garbage time-- heck there was even a Sun Yue sighting towards the end of the game and pine-rider Josh Powell had extended PT in the closing quarter

BTW, this game is the last for the Lakers in 2008.


Tags: Los Angeles Lakers

Lakers now on a 2-Game Losing Streak

The Los Angeles Lakers are now on a two-game losing streak.

First it was a stinking loss to the Miami Heat, then it was another nail-biter in Orlando against the Orlando Magic.

The common denominator in both losses? Shots that were almost in that went out.

In the Miami game, Kobe Bryant's jumper in the lane that could have sent the game into overtime went out. Then in the game against the Magic, it was Sasha Vujacic's three-ball at the dying seconds of the game bounced a couple of times before the ball decided it's home was not the hoop.

While both losses were definitely heart-breakers, one has to think how the Lakers are now finding themselves scrapping and scrambling for wins, as opposed to the cakewalks in the fourth quarter last month.My opinion is that the Lakers are relaxing because they were able to see what they are capable of during their dominating November stretch. Knowing they can probably "turn it on" during February and March, the Lakers have simply stopped playing defense and are playing selfishly.

Fist it was the blown leads, now it's the losses. Things are not looking good in La-La Land, considering a rampaging Boston Celtics team would be visiting on Christmas Day.

I'm seeing a Christmas Day massacre.


Tags: Los Angeles Lakers

Photo by Reinhold Matay / Associated Press

So much for LeBron James to the Lakers...

As impossible at it may sound, people were hoping that the Los Angeles Lakers would be clearing cap space to join the bumper crop of free-agents for the 2010 sweepstakes. We're looking at a group of impending free agents that include LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Amare Stoudemire, Paul Pierce, Dirk Nowitzki, Yao Ming, and Tony Parker. Even Lakers Pau Gasol, Kobe Bryant, and Sasha Vujacic will be unrestricted free agents by then. (Thanks to RealGM for this free agent list)

The consensus is that LeBron James is the grand prize of that lot. People are already speculating if he's bolting Cleveland to join a new team as early as this season started. The popular opinion is that Bron will be in New York two years from now.

All the hypothetical talk of LeBron to the New York Knicks may have come closer to being facts as the Knicks traded Jamal Crawford, Zach Randolph and Mardy Collins in two separate deals to free up an estimated $27 million... enough money to make a run at LeBron and perhaps Dwayne Wade. This amount could also have the Knicks make a run at LeBron plus two solid starting rotation players.

While the Lakers can still be players at the 2010 free agent sweepstakes, I'm betting LeBron James won't be going for purple and gold.


Tags: NBA

Cool Machine Video

I found this nice video from Ball Don't Lie, which came originally came from The Lakers Nation. The video is about Sasha "The Machine" Vujacic ran out of juice during the 2008 NBA Finals:



You gotta love this clip, especially with the movie cut scenes. Best line: "When The Machine breaks down, we break down."


Tags: Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers' Fantasy Sleeper for 2008-2009 is...

The Machine!!!

If you're in a deep NBA fantasy league and you need some nice sleeper goodness, look to Los Angeles Lakers gunner Sasha Vujacic to give you a nice source of points, three's, FT% and steals. He may be looking at 20-24 minutes a game, with about 9 points, 1.8 three-balls, a steal, plus he won't hurt you with turnovers.

Thank me if my advice reaps dividends for you. :)


Tags: Lakers

Vujacic Scares Lakers... then Gets Contract

The Machine almost went haywire.



Sasha Vujacic, the Los Angeles Lakers scrappy shooting guard, scared the Lakers by threatening to do a Josh Childress, i.e. playing in Europe for a fatter contract. The Lakers didn't his bluff and immediately gave him a 3-year contract amounting to around $15 million.



Vujacic, or The Machine as fans would call him, was intrumental in the Lakers emergence last season by providing quick offense off the bench and 3-point marksmanship. It could be said that he played the role Phil Jackson designated for Steve Kerr during their run with the Chicago Bulls in the Michael Jordan era. But still Vujacic needs to be more consistent in playing, not just contesting calls with flair.



Losing Ronny Turiaf to the Golden State Warriors was a blow to Lakers fans. Good thing Los Angeles Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak extended an offer to Vujacic, otherwise, it would have been one less reason to see a fun Lakers team next season.





Tags: Lakers

Lakers Hang On for Game 5 Win

The Los Angeles Lakers staved off another comeback by the Boston Celticsto survive Game 5 of the 2008 NBA Finals.

The final score was 103-98, but at one point during the game, the Lakers were up by 19 points. Again, the Lakers have demonstrated that they have a difficult time holding on to leads. When you think about it, had the Lakers maintained their 24 point lead in Game 4, the Lakers should be up 3-2 in the series instead of the Celtics.

It's always good to avoid elimination at the hand of the Celtics, but the Lakers have not convinced the whole basketball world that they are the rightful champions with the way they have played in the Finals. They got outplayed in the clutch in Game 1, they missed on a comeback of their own in Game 2, and fumbled leads in Games 4 and 5. In order to force a historic Game 7 in Boston, some points must be met:

1. Lakers not named Kobe Bryant must step up - It's pretty clear that the Celtics are letting the other Lakers beat them. It was Sasha Vujacic in Game 3 and Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom in Game 5. Gasol and Odom must exceed whatever they have done in the Staples Center to give the Lakers a fighting chance.
2. Check Paul Pierce - Game 3 was the game Paul Pierce managed to score only 6 points and the Lakers won. Go figure.
3. Defense Please - As much as I'd like the Lakers play an elegant game, defending the basket has brought them tremendous success so far. And this interior defense relies so much on Gasol and Odom. I do hope the win has galvanized the defense.

The win in Game 5 was very nice. The series is far from over. We will see a Game 7 with a good performance from the Lakers in Game 6 in Boston.


Tags: Lakers

Kobe Bryant and Sasha Vujacic Lift Lakers over Celtics

The Los Angeles Lakers finally won a game in the 2008 NBA Finals over long-time rival Boston Celtics. In a very defense-oriented game, only two Lakers scored over 20 points in the 87-81 win.

Kobe Bryant and Sasha Vjuacic.

Yes, that Sasha Vujacic. Not Pau Gasol; not Lamar Odom and definitely not Derek Fisher. It's "The Machine", baby!

Bryant scored a game high 36 points and Vujacic scored 20, with key three-pointers down the stretch. While everyone else in the Lakers roster s(t)unk, the two Lakers made a series out of the Finals that everyone dreamed of. Being down 2-0 after the Boston games, the Finals was fast becoming a nightmare for Lakers fans. But thanks to "The Black Mamba" and "The Machine," there's hope to a 6-game series for the Lakers.

I pointed out in my last blog post that the Lakers needed to do three things, and based on Game 3's outcome, they succeeded in doing those three to a certain extent:

1. The Lakers got to the line - 34 free throw attempts ain't pretty bad (Boston had 22 free throw attempts).
2. The Lakers played out of character - I kinda wanted the Lakers to stick to what worked for them, but they went toe-to-toe with the Celtics with their gritty brand of basketball.
3. The Lakers had a sense of urgency - Yes, I thought the Lakers were out of it in the third when the Celtics mounted a comeback, but they didn't take things for granted in the fourth. The last two minutes was not exactly pretty basketball, but the Lakers had enough to win it.

What should the Lakers do in Game 4 to tie the series? Here's my take:

1. The Bench Mob must show up - Thanks to Vujacic, the Bench Mob was represented but contributions from Jordan Farmar and Luke Walton is needed to win confortably over the Celtics.
2. Use the 3's Wisely - With good long-range shooting, the spacing on the floor for the Lakers improve dramatically. Fisher, Vujacic and Vladimir Radmanovic should not shoot in bulk but should look for good looks often.
3. Defend! - Yeah, this sounds much of a cliche, but the Lakers succeeded in giving the Celtics a hard time shooting the ball in Game 3.We should see more contested shots, but also avoid making useless fouls.
   

Those three points should ensure a 2-2 series by the time Game 5 begins.


Tags: Lakers

Lakers One Win Away from Western Conference Finals

The Los Angeles Lakers are one win away from going to the Western Conference Finals after beating the Utah Jazz in Game 5, 111-104.

Kobe Bryant did score the most points for the Lakers but four other Lakers took more shots than him. Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, Sasha Vujacic, and Vladimir Radmanovic all took more than Kobe's ten field goal attempts. Kobe did make 13 out of 17 free throws to lead all players in the game.

What the Lakers did right for Game 5 departed from their two losses in Game 3 and Game 4. First, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom carried most of the offensive load when the Jazz defenders focused on Bryant and they did it with much success. Second, Vladimir Radmanovic decided to show up, hitting three 3-pointers and helping the Lakers have better spacing in the floor.

While the Lakers did take the win, there were still some issued they have to contend with in order to close the series in Game 6 in Salt Lake City. The most crucial is still the disappearance of the "Bench Mob," the Lakers' second unit. Jordan Farmar, Luke Walton, Ronnie Turiaf and Vujacic have played very poorly in this series. Among the four, they contributed 13 points, 6 rebounds, zero assists and 3 of 17 shooting. Another issue is the over-reliance on the jum shots. Recall what went right in Game 1-- good looks from crisp passing and good execution.

The Lakers also have to stop the Utah Jazz. Deron Williams is the new point guard to terrorize the Lakers in the playoffs, following the footsteps of Allen Iverson, Mike Bibby and Tony Parker. It also seems the Utah Jazz are wearing the Lakers from their physical play and firm screens from pick and rolls.

A Laker win in Game 6 would mean a step closer to the NBA's Dream Final-- The Los Angeles Lakers versus the Boston Celtics.


Tags: Lakers

Lakers Lose for the First Time in the 2008 Playoffs

So much for sweeping the Utah Jazz.

The Los Angeles Lakers lost Game 3 of their Western Conference Semi-finals off an improved play from Jazz forward Carlos Boozer and poor play of the Lakers supporting cast. The game was relatively close and the Lakers had the chance to catch up in the last few minutes of the game, but Boozer came up big in the clutch for the Jazz.

Newly-minted MVP Kobe Bryant still put up MVP numbers (34 points on 50% shooting, 6 rebounds, 7 assists) but he missed all his 3 point shots. No other member of the Lakers scored more than 15 points. Lakers starters like Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and Vladimir Radmanovic were rendered ineffective. Key subs Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic combined for 0 points and 5 missed 3-point attempts.

The Lakers offense was practically a jump-shooting show as the they hoisted more 3-point attempts in Game 3 than Games 1 & 2 combined. They also weren't passing much, a crucial factor for the Lakers' triangle offense.

But you have to hand it to the Utah Jazz-- they really came to play. Carlos Boozer finally showed up with a monster 27 point-20 rebound game and Memo Okur was shooting the lights out. The Jazz are really formidable at their home court and the game was proof to that. But the Jazz may have adapted the good old strategy of letting one player from the other team beat them and shutting down the rest of the team-- something Jazz coach Jerry may have utilized against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in the 1990's.

The Lakers played better team basketball in Games 1 & 2, and they must continue doing that in Game 4. Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom have their jobs cut out for them as their Jazz counterparts have stepped up. And Kobe Bryant must again show his MVP mettle by making the Lakers better, unless they want go return to Los Angeles with the series knotted at 2-2.

Tags: Lakers

"MVP!" Chants for Kobe in Lakers Win over Jazz

In what has become a common event in Los Angeles Lakers games, Kobe Bryant received "MVP! MVP!" chants more and more. Game 1 against the Utah Jazz continued the trend.

Good thing Kobe did not did not disappoint, he led the Lakers to a 109-98 win over the Jazz for a 1-0 lead in their best of seven series. Look at this MVP-calible line: 38 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 21 free throws made and 50% shooting from the field. Looks like crowd knew what they were chanting for.

Did Kobe make his team mates better in the game? Absolutely. Pau Gasol was superb (18 points, 10 rebounds) and Lamar Odom was clutch by making a late layup and one.Even Sasha Vujacic played a very solid game off the bench with 15 points and a perfect 2 of 2 from beyond the 3-point line.

The series is the first time the two teams meet in the playoffs since the Jazz swept the Lakers in the 1998 Western Conference Finals. The year before that in 1997, Kobe had his infamous "airball" series against the Jazz.


Tags: Lakers