On Steve Nash’s first missed
game since an MRI revealed a small fracture in his leg, the Los Angeles Lakers
put it all together in what was an incredibly synchronized performance from
just about everybody on the team. The Princeton Offense was run perfectly by
Steve Blake, as he finished with 6 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds. The
starters shot a terrific 58.1% from the floor, with Howard completely
dominating Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond to the tune of 28 points, seven
rebounds and three blocks. Of the 32 baskets from the starting unit, 20 of them
were assisted on, the majority coming from Kobe Bryant and his stellar 15 point,
8 assist, 7 rebound night. Steve Blake harassed opposing point guard Brandon
Knight into 5 turnovers.
Metta World Peace looked
somewhat confused in between his flashes of brilliance tonight; he had two
turnovers and looked somewhat lost to start the game, but he rebounded and
finished with a stellar 7-11 shooting from the floor and 18 total points, more
proof that every single thing was going right for Los Angeles tonight. The
Lakers, for the first time in the season, had less turnovers than their
opponents, and while the final margin is very slim (17 T.O. for Detroit, 15 for
LAL), the starters completely out played, out hustled, and out smarted their
opponents tonight. It helps, of course, when the whole Laker team shoots 51% from
the floor (thank you, Princeton Offense!). It also helps to have nearly double
the points scored in the paint than the opponent (34 for Det, 56 for L.A.) Los
Angeles finally played up their ability, and gave Howard the Shaquille O’Neal
treatment for tonight, making him the No. 1 option offensively despite having
Kobe Bryant on the same team. Howard, of course, delivered tonight, being extremely
efficient offensively, hitting 12-14 shots from the floor, and staying out of
foul trouble, which is something he had failed to do in the first three games.
Overall, Los Angeles completely dominated Detroit from tip off by playing
smart, selfless basketball, playing excellent defense, and limiting the
turnovers when the game really mattered. This is the Lakers we all expected in
game one, and if they can play as smart as tonight, the rest of the league has
some long nights of scouting ahead of them.
