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| Kobe Bryant scored 40 points vs. the Clippers |
The Lakers fell to old
demons tonight against the Clippers. Los Angeles was averaging 19 turnovers per
game coming into this contest; they turned the ball over 20 times. Los Angeles
was averaging 60% from the free throw line; they shot 71.4% tonight, courtesy
of legendary Laker Kobe Bryant who finished 10-10 from the line. The Lakers
were coming into this game off of a terrible 3rd quarter meltdown to
the Trailblazers, and were looking to rebound without All-Star point guard
Steve Nash.
The Lakers managed to hang
around for the majority of the game; however it’s been the same old song and
dance for the 2012 Lakers; too many turnovers to a team who has far superior
speed and athleticism, too many missed free throws from everyone (especially
Dwight Howard), not enough defense being played on pick and rolls. The Lakers
once again shot 50% from the floor, but wasted so many opportunities to get
back into this game, mostly from the charity stripe. Steve Blake did an
admirable job filling in for Steve Nash, however the Lakers were forced to go
to 2nd year point guard Darius Morris as the first option at point
guard off of the bench. Morris had an alright game by any standard as he scored
7 points on 3-5 shooting; however the bench play continues to be absolutely wrenched.
The Clippers bench outscored the Lakers
bench 46-16, as the Clippers starters got long enough breathers to come back in
and continue to be as dynamic as possible. No Clipper starter logged in over 33
minutes in tonight’s game as the bench completely dominated the Lakers’ 2nd
unit.
As much as Kobe Bryant would like to think that he can put the team
on his back; he also needs some help from the rest of the starters. Dwight Howard, plagued by foul trouble all game long, only finished with 13 points and 8
rebounds. His 5 blocks in tonight’s game represent an improvement over his 1
block in the last game. Pau Gasol was just not on his offensive game tonight;
he finished with 10 points and 14 rebounds. My last gripe about this game: It
is never OK to have Metta World Peace take more shots than both Howard and
Gasol. World Peace took 10 shots, only made 3 of them as he had another
terrible game plagued by foul trouble (5) and rarely did he make a good
offensive play. And, of course, Kobe Bryant saves this game from being a
complete dud. His ridiculous efficiency continues this season as he shot 14-23
from the field tonight, 10-10 from the charity stripe, and hauled in 6 rebounds
on his way to his 113th 40 point game in his career. Bryant is 35-67
from the field in the Princeton Offense, a ridiculous percentage of 61.4%. If
the Lakers could stop giving the ball away like candy on Halloween, Bryant’s
efforts wouldn’t go to waste every night.
