Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
Quote:
Lakers can't handle Parker's play
The lack of a ballhandling guard proves costly against the Suns.
8:55 PM PDT, April 22, 2007
PHOENIX — Smushed again.
The Lakers had a Suns-splashed chance to steal a game Sunday, steal momentum, save a season, and what happened?
Smushed again.
The Lakers stormed into the 2007 playoffs Sunday like April was January, reclaiming their heads, their legs, their heart.
Forty-eight minutes later, they staggered away unable to find their guards.
It is unfair, certainly, to blame their 95-87 opening-game playoff loss to the Phoenix Suns on a guy who didn't play long enough to dampen his headband.
Yet it is impossible to ignore that the collapse of Smush Parker's season again led to the pile of smoking rubble around him.
The Lakers blew a dozen-point lead because they didn't have a ballhandling guard.
Kobe Bryant was forced to exhaust himself in the first half because they didn't have a ballhandling guard.
Lamar Odom's double-double was wasted because they didn't have a ballhandling guard.
That guard should have been Parker, but apparently now will never be Parker, and where does that leave the Lakers?
With a postseason beginning that felt like an ending.
"It was a good playoff experience, and nobody can take that experience away from me," Parker said afterward.
Who would want to?...
..Leandro Barbosa strolled past midcourt virtually unguarded by Parker and threw in a long three-point shot at the buzzer to close the gap to three.
"I thought they would be closer to me," Barbosa said. "I was surprised."
On the Lakers' first possession of the fourth quarter, Parker threw the ball away.
Moments later, Barbosa beat Parker on a half-court drive for a three-point play, tying the game.
On the Suns' next possession, Barbosa beat Parker for another layup, giving the Suns a lead they never lost.
"Barbosa did a great job for them with penetrating," Bryant said. "We couldn't keep him in front of us."
Parker was immediately sent to the bench and didn't play again, his playing time totaling all of 10 minutes, his scoring totaling zero, his stock further plummeting.
"In the second half, their guard play outmatched ours," Coach Phil Jackson said.
That, not Bryant's one-for-10 fourth quarter, cost them the win.....
Re: Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
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Originally Posted by lakerfreak
Of course it's parker's fault.
What makes me mad about Kobe is his criticizing Shaq but will never criticize a total lost mother fukcing cause like smush your mom parker.
Thats a little different. With Shaq, the criticisms were going both ways. What possible good would come out of Kobe publicly criticizing Smush? It won't help his play IMO.
Re: Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
It's really easy to use Smush as the scapegoat. And of course he was a part of the problem.. as he always is. But I wouldn't say Smush caused us to lose todays game. Other players weren't rotating well on defense either. From Kwame arguing with Farmar at one point, to our offense going stagnant, to Kobe trying to go balls out. We lost as a team today, and we can't blame that on Smush.
Re: Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
I think it's true. Farmar played great. I wish we could see Shammond more.
Also, if we need offense, how about unleashing Radmanovic? He could've hit some of those shots that Evans missed.
I mea, he was brought in to shoot...well..duuh.
Re: Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
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Originally Posted by CristianoVirtuos
I think it's true. Farmar played great. I wish we could see Shammond more.
Also, if we need offense, how about unleashing Radmanovic? He could've hit some of those shots that Evans missed.
I mea, he was brought in to shoot...well..duuh.
Evans had a few good looks at the three ball but clanked it. Radman woulda helped I bet. Better than Cook too
Re: Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
Its like the analyst said on sky here in the uk, they needed to take smush off the floor and put the group of players that got them to that winning point back on to close out the game and get the win but they didn't.
The way I see it from here on in the lakers are totaly screwed and the suns are going to walk all over and probably straight to the title, so if you are a laker fan you can kiss the title goodbye.
Re: Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
Quote:
Originally Posted by millionaire19
The way I see it from here on in the lakers are totaly screwed and the suns are going to walk all over and probably straight to the title, so if you are a laker fan you can kiss the title goodbye.
BTW I am a laker fan.
Some Laker fan you are
They played great the first half, Farmar was playing good D (I think this needs to be said :) ), and we were leading at half-time, unfortunately, I couldn't watch the second half, but if we would've kept that up, we would've won... :)
Last edited by laker4life : 04-23-2007 at 10:30 AM.
Re: Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
Quote:
Originally Posted by millionaire19
Its like the analyst said on sky here in the uk, they needed to take smush off the floor and put the group of players that got them to that winning point back on to close out the game and get the win but they didn't.
The way I see it from here on in the lakers are totaly screwed and the suns are going to walk all over and probably straight to the title, so if you are a laker fan you can kiss the title goodbye.
BTW I am a laker fan.
WOW!!! You have a lot of faith in your team:rollingeyes:
Re: Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
when Barbosa comes in, put in Shammond...maybe, just maybe, he can slow down the Blur.
VRad was brought in for these games...when Kobe gets doubled down the stretch, he was supposed to feel comfortable swinging the ball around to VRad for the J.
Unfortunately, VRad is is not in the swing of things (so to speak).
Re: Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
Why not McKie? Is he hurt again?
I wish that Smush would learn to foul hard... there were SEVERAL opportunities where Smush could have administered a hard foul (not flagrant) on Barboza, but instead he took girlish swipes at Barboza, with at least one being an AND1 for Barboza.
Smush is not the only reason the Lakers lost this game, but he is a good example of why the Lakers are not over achieving.
Re: Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
yes smush was burned by barbosa but to blame the loss on one player is a cheap way out of what is and was a total team colapse in the 4th quarter... blaming smush
A. doesn't address the true problem in that there is nobody on this team that can or will step up when kobe is out of sync and ...
B. kinda a slight on a player that was heralded when he stole the ball to defeat the mavs or made those shots earlier in the season....
i do not like smush, i have been a critic of his many times and applauded his efforts when he did come through, but to blame him for this one loss is not looking at the true heart of the problem, just a small piece of it
Article blaming a certain "10 mins" for game 1's loss
