Lakers Fail to Close Out Nuggets in Game 5

OK, fine. I was wrong.

I predicted a 4-1 series win for the Los Angeles Lakers, but JaVale Mcgee and Andre Miller of the Denver Nuggets had a different idea of how the first reound series would go.

A furious fourth quarter rally and Kobe Bryant's 43 points weren't enough to lift the Lakers in their fifth game against Nuggets, losing 102-99 in Los Angeles.

McGee and Miller punished the Lakers inside with drives and dunks in the fourth quarter, even pushing the Nuggets' lead to 15 in the 8-minute mark. As I watched the game, I was really frustrated how the Lakers failed to get key stops, particualrly preventing Miller from going to the hoop, in the final quarter. Miller scored 10 of his 24 points in that stretch.

And get me going about Andrew Bynum's statement about "easy" close-out games:

"Close-out games are actually kind of easy," Bynum said. "Teams tend to fold if you come out and play hard in the beginning, so we want to come out and establish an early lead and protect it."

Sheesh.


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Dagger 3's Sink Nuggets in Game 4

The Los Angeles Lakers bounced back from a terrible playoff loss to win Game 4 with the help from a couple of key three-pointers in the final minute.

Laker point guards Steve Blake and Ramon Sessions both hit dagger three's that eventually made the difference in the tightly contested Game 4. That game saw several lead changes throughout and neither team controlled till the final stretch.

Apart from the point guard duo, the Lakers also got quality minutes from power forward Jordan Hill, who got double-double (12 points, 11 rebounds) off the bench.

The Lakers' bench picked up some its scoring after finishing 26 points for the game. This is a big improvement since the subs averaged 13 points in the previous three games.

Game 5 will swing back to Los Angeles where the Lakers will look to advanced to the Western Conference Semi-Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder.


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Lakers Fail in Game 3 against Nuggets

Argh, I knew it.

I had an inkling that the Los Angeles Lakers would drop Game 3 of their first-round NBA playoff match-up against the Denver Nuggets.

The Lakers were vulnerable in Denver in the regular season and I was somewhat anticipating some sort of struggle in the series swing to the Mile High City. I've even blogged about what the Lakers should do to win Game 3, but things didn't pan out-- the Lakers lost 99-84.

Let me revisit those three keys I mentioned:

• Avoid the speed trap - Honestly, I think the game was lost in the first quarter. The Lakers gave up 30 points to their 14 points and let the Nuggets run like madmen. By the time second quarter rolled in, the Lakers found themselves in a 41-17 hole and were never able to catch up.
• Take care of the ball - You know who took care of the ball? The Denver Nuggets. They only had 5 turnovers for the game and forced the Lakers to 15 turnovers.
• Bynum bash - Andrew Bynum finished with 18 points, but in the critical first half, he had ZERO. 'Nuff said.

I wasn't expecting a sweep, but I do expect the Lakers to learn from this game and win Games 4 and 5.


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Keys to a Lakers Win on Game 3

After pretty good performances in Games 1 and 2, the Los Angeles Lakers are looking to go up 3-0 against the Denver Nuggets in their first round playoff series.

If the Lakers are to put the Nugs on the brink, here are some points I think are needed to make that happen:

• Avoid the speed trap - It's no secret: the Nuggets are at their best when they run with the ball and give everyone a chance to score in transition. Nuggets point guard Ty Lawson is starting to play better and slash through the Lakers' defense. The Lakers must put the brakes on Lawson (and the whole Denver team, for that matter) by playing more grind-it-out hoops.
• Take care of the ball - What feeds the Denver fast attack? Turnovers. The Lakers were extra sloppy with the ball against the Nuggets and if they can avoid turning the ball over, this will limit the Nuggets' opportunities in running.
• Bynum bash - In the regular season, the Lakers leading scorer against the Nuggets was Andrew Bynum. It's crucial to keep the big guy involved in the offense and keep him committed to playing heavy D.

The Lakers are up 2-0 and if they can keep focus and not get too relaxed, Game 3 will be a cinch.


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Andrew Bynum Swats Nuggets in Game 1

The BIG story for Game 1 for the Los Angeles Lakers' win against the Denver Nuggets was Andrew Bynum.

Bynum recorded a rare triple double: 10 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 blocks. It was the last statistic that really made the difference for the team. Bynum altered plenty of shots (I read in ESPN that Bynum affected around 20+ shots in the game) and was a factor in slowing down the fast-paced Denver offense.

Think about it for a moment: the Nuggets close to 48% field goal percentage in the regular season and in Game 1, they only shot 35%. The main reason for that would be Bynum's affected shot attempts (whether blocked or made the shooter alter his shot).

If the Bynum keeps this up, this is going to be a short series.


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