Lakers Take Jazz to School. A Textbook Win

Energy Solutions Arena, where the Utah Jazz went 37-4, was the toughest place for a visiting team to win all season long. Well, during the post-season, the Lakers post big numbers. For the second Friday night in a row, Los Angeles marched to Salt Lake City trying to wrap up their conference semi-final duel with Utah. This Friday, however, would bear much more favorable results for Lakers fans.

Once again, the Lakers got support from all angles, with six players scoring in double figures during their 108-105 victory over the Jazz. Derek Fisher locking Deron Williams down for most of the game was the center piece of a strong defensive effort by the Lake Show. Utah was held to a deplorable 38% shooting performance; meanwhile Los Angeles shot 64% from downtown. These numbers tell a better story than the seemingly close final score, which I attribute to the Lakers not playing any defense in the closing minutes as they were so excited to be advancing to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since the Shaq-Malone-Payton experiment.

Pau Gasol added his centerly tithe with 13 rebounds and four blocks, while Odom played a relaxed game—letting his 13 points and 9 rebounds come to him. Sasha Vujacic and his Slovenian sharpshooting added well-timed big shots, twisting the dagger every time Utah tried to fight back.

How’d Kobe do? It was an opportunity to put the nail in the coffin of Karl Malone’s team…do we really have to ask how Kobe did?

Kobe led all scorers with 34 points, and made sure to fill up the stat sheet with 8 rebounds and 6 assists. The Utah Jazz had been trying a system of rotating different defenders at KB24, so as to keep Andrei Kirilenko out foul trouble, but all that did was allow Kobe to score at will. There’s no denying that Kirilenko is a superb defender, but watchin’ him try to stymie Kobe Bryant was like watching Ivan Drago being pummelled by Apollo Creed (the way it should’ve been). Rocky IV references aside, during these playoffs KB24 has been playing like a competitor focused on one thing, and one thing alone: making sure the NBA title rests in L.A. come mid-June. The Jazz may have Energy Solutions, but they had no solution for the big Kobe problem running around on their court.

Now Laker Nation must wait for the outcome of Monday’s contest between New Orleans and San Antonio to see who their next opponent will be. It doesn’t matter to me, but I think we’d have more fun with New Orleans. I’m kinda tired of watching ol' boring Tim Duncan , plus, Robert Horry’s half-fro pisses me off.

Till next time: stay humble, stay hungry.

Lakers - Jazz: Game 5. Back to the Drawing Board

The Lakers and Jazz play a pivotal Game 5 tonight in Los Angeles. I’m not too worried though, since the Lakers have played spotless basketball at home for the past two months. They’ve won 10 games in a row at Staples Center, including two over this Utah team. Further still, the only Lakers game that I attended in the flesh this season was a 123-109 stompin’ of the Jazz in late December, in which Kobe played so viciously that he earned the privilege of resting the entire fourth quarter. I guess what I’m sayin’ is that since the Lakers have been slappin’ Utah around at home since way back in ’07, I have a lot of confidence that our homeownership bubble won’t burst.

I’d be lying to you if I told you that I thought the Jazz were going to walk on the court, play dead, and hand the victory over to Los Angeles; the Lakers have to execute and play within their system in order to win against Utah. They need to play like they have a point guard who’s won some championships; play like they have a coach who’s been to the NBA finals 10 times; play like Odom and Gasol’s versatility make them match-up nightmares; play like they deserve to be the number one seed out West.

Here are some more specific keys to victory:

1. Keeping Derek Fisher out of foul trouble: Fisher is the only Laker that can contain Deron Williams. D-Will has blown games wide open when Fisher has been on the bench.

2. Best Supporting Actors: The L.A. bench needs to step up and drain the shots they get when they’re called upon. In Salt Lake City, Lakers reserves hardly made an impact and were MIA on the stat sheet.

3. Set the Tempo: Hopefully the sour taste of defeat lights a fire under the Lakers and they play with a little excitement. Not even when they crawled their way back into Game 4 were they playing with enthusiasm. Dictate the tone early and stay consistent.

4. Rebound Well: One thing that went right for the Lakers in Utah was that they discovered what boxing out and rebounding is. Eureka! If they continue to limit second-chance points for the Jazz, Game 5 will be easier than arresting an NFL cornerback.

5. Kobe: KB24 just needs to play well in the final 5 minutes of the game. We’re not asking him to build the Sistine Chapel, we just need him to paint the ceiling and whatnot.

And there you have it. How to beat the Jazz in 5 steps. I’m definitely going to CC this post to Phil Jackson for him to disseminate to the rest of the crew. Don’t miss Game 5 tonight at 10 EST!

Although there may be others like it, the outcome of this night will reverberate throughout these walls for millennia.

Stay humble, stay hungry.

Jordan Farmar, Where you at?

The 2008 Playoffs have been a pretty smooth ride for the Los Angeles Lakers. We’ve been scoring well, playing better defense than usual, and most importantly…winning. Everyone seems to be playing their role perfectly. Pau’s been holding it down inside; Lamar’s been slashing and rebounding; Fisher keeps us sane and drills big shots; Vujacic and Radmanovic continue to be the sharpshooters we need them to be; Ronny gives us that energy and hustle; and Kobe puts it down like only he can.

But you know who’s been lost in the party? Jordan Farmar. He’s been getting playing time, but he’s not really doing much when he’s in. I guess he’s stepping back and playing that ‘facilitator’ role. A couple times in the playoffs he’s decided that he was going to run the clock down and take the final shot of the quarter. What part of the game is that? Don’t you remember, Farmar, that’s Kobe’s job…always.

I guess he’s been out of his rhythm since Fisher’s been playing so well and Phil Jackson doesn’t want to take him out.

Well, Jordan Farmar’s my favorite young Laker, and I know he’ll emerge from his pseudo-slump stronger than before. He’s just waiting for the right moment. You know that Robert Horry moment when everything’s on the line and plays need to be made? Look around for Jordan Farmar. He’ll be the one making the fashionably late entrance into the playoffs.