I love the All-Star Game every year, but I think I've been blinded because the Lakers are usually in first place in the Western Conference when the game rolls around.
That wasn't the case this year: the Lakers are struggling, and they're being accused of not caring again. Kobe Bryant didn't look very good down the stretch, playing while he was sick and other things.
Then he goes and scores 37 points in the All-Star Game. Call me crazy, but you go and stink up the court against the worst team in the NBA, but then you go and win MVP in a game featuring the best players in the league?
I'm beginning to think Kobe might be part of the Lakers' problems as the second half of the season gets under way tomorrow night.
Why can't Kobe go out and score 37 every night? Granted, nobody plays defense in the All-Star Game, but those are still the best players in the league. I think Kobe might be the one with a lack of motivation, and it carried over into his Laker teammates.
I'm worried with the playoffs arriving in a couple of months. I really don't want to see the Lakers bounced out in the first round by like Portland or Utah or somebody like that. With the way LA has been playing I've got no reason to believe they'll win a championship this season.
Something needs to happen, and seeing Kobe shine in the All-Star Game has got me worried about the rest of the regular season. No more flipping switches. I want to see results now, starting with tomorrow night's game against Atlanta. Kobe, go be the All-Star Game MVP against the Hawks tomorrow night.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
NBA 2K11 rocks the house
NBA 2K11 already garnered "greatest sports video game ever" honors from me when I first started playing it due to the Michael Jordan theme, and getting to play as his royal airness.
But the game solidified itself when I won the NBA Finals with the Lakers: your first off-season task as the World Champs is to visit Obama at the White House. So there you are in the White House with video-game Obama. Unbelievable.
It was one of the cooler things I've seen in a video game. Obama is the only president that could pull this off. 2K Sports did a fun thing by taking advantage of having a "cool" president. Kudos to Obama for agreeing to this as well.
But the game solidified itself when I won the NBA Finals with the Lakers: your first off-season task as the World Champs is to visit Obama at the White House. So there you are in the White House with video-game Obama. Unbelievable.
It was one of the cooler things I've seen in a video game. Obama is the only president that could pull this off. 2K Sports did a fun thing by taking advantage of having a "cool" president. Kudos to Obama for agreeing to this as well.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Lakers beat Rockets; still look awful
I've decided it's very difficult for me t effectively blog about the Lakers because of how emotionally invested I am in them. They're my team, so I'm clouded in a lot of ways, but one thing I'm not clouded on is how atrocious the Lakers are on defense.
How do you let Kevin Martin torch you for 30 points? It's unreal. The Rockets also had numerous easy layups, especially down the stretch.
Tonight's game would not have gone to overtime if the Lakers would've just played good defense. The curses of the Celtics game carried over into this game, but at least Kobe was looking for his teammates tonight. He had 11 assists on the game.
There are many things for the Lakers to still fix as we approach All-Star Weekend. The San Antonio Spurs are coming to Staples Center, so this is the Lakers' chance to get off the snide against the elite teams in the NBA. They haven't beaten one yet.
How do you let Kevin Martin torch you for 30 points? It's unreal. The Rockets also had numerous easy layups, especially down the stretch.
Tonight's game would not have gone to overtime if the Lakers would've just played good defense. The curses of the Celtics game carried over into this game, but at least Kobe was looking for his teammates tonight. He had 11 assists on the game.
There are many things for the Lakers to still fix as we approach All-Star Weekend. The San Antonio Spurs are coming to Staples Center, so this is the Lakers' chance to get off the snide against the elite teams in the NBA. They haven't beaten one yet.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Looking ahead will never stop being a curse
Both the Lakers and Celtics lost Friday, which kind of takes some wind of sails for Sunday's NBA Finals rematch.
Occasionally teams will have let downs like the one the Celtics had against the Suns, but the Lakers seem to keep having let downs the whole season. Sometimes I really wonder how much they care. It was the Kings for crying out loud.
I think the main problem I have is that if the Celtics come out and beat the Lakers Sunday I do not want to hear any excuses. I don't want to hear, "The teams we play against care more about these games than we do."
That's not good enough. The Lakers should start caring about those games. Kobe and Gasol should think back to Christmas Day 2008 when it was their turn for a revenge game: a rematch of the Finals. The Celtics were on a hefty winning streak, but it ended on that day.
The Lakers still on the team from 2008 need to look to that game to realize what the Celtics are going through right now. That should be enough to motivate the Lakers to start playing good basketball--and maybe if the team could start knocking down some shots.
Occasionally teams will have let downs like the one the Celtics had against the Suns, but the Lakers seem to keep having let downs the whole season. Sometimes I really wonder how much they care. It was the Kings for crying out loud.
I think the main problem I have is that if the Celtics come out and beat the Lakers Sunday I do not want to hear any excuses. I don't want to hear, "The teams we play against care more about these games than we do."
That's not good enough. The Lakers should start caring about those games. Kobe and Gasol should think back to Christmas Day 2008 when it was their turn for a revenge game: a rematch of the Finals. The Celtics were on a hefty winning streak, but it ended on that day.
The Lakers still on the team from 2008 need to look to that game to realize what the Celtics are going through right now. That should be enough to motivate the Lakers to start playing good basketball--and maybe if the team could start knocking down some shots.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Ji-Ji-Ji-Jimmer
Just a few thoughts on Jimmer Fredette:
1. The guy will score on anybody. San Diego State was the best defensive team BYU has faced this season and Jimmer went off for 43. I'm a BYU fan so my thoughts are going to be biased, but I now believe Jimmer can compete in the NBA. He will be a solid sixth man to come in and get some big shots for whatever team he plays for. Can you imagine him with Gordon, Davis, and Griffin in L.A.? The Clippers would continue to be the most fun bad team to watch. Of course, I think Jimmer would only help the Clippers and make them competitive.
2. San Diego State is still legit. That game was close until the final five minutes when BYU suddenly pulled away. The Aztecs went through a stretch of like eight minutes with only two field goals but still managed to keep BYU close. The Aztecs play great and they'll probably beat BYU in San Diego next month.
3. As far as player of the year goes for Fredette, I can see it. He's a stud, and he's doing some amazing things. The race this year has a very Reddick/Morrison feel to it when those two went at it a few years ago.
I can see both of these teams playing each other a third time in the Mountain West Tournament. This is going to be a great finish to the season.
1. The guy will score on anybody. San Diego State was the best defensive team BYU has faced this season and Jimmer went off for 43. I'm a BYU fan so my thoughts are going to be biased, but I now believe Jimmer can compete in the NBA. He will be a solid sixth man to come in and get some big shots for whatever team he plays for. Can you imagine him with Gordon, Davis, and Griffin in L.A.? The Clippers would continue to be the most fun bad team to watch. Of course, I think Jimmer would only help the Clippers and make them competitive.
2. San Diego State is still legit. That game was close until the final five minutes when BYU suddenly pulled away. The Aztecs went through a stretch of like eight minutes with only two field goals but still managed to keep BYU close. The Aztecs play great and they'll probably beat BYU in San Diego next month.
3. As far as player of the year goes for Fredette, I can see it. He's a stud, and he's doing some amazing things. The race this year has a very Reddick/Morrison feel to it when those two went at it a few years ago.
I can see both of these teams playing each other a third time in the Mountain West Tournament. This is going to be a great finish to the season.
Beating the weak still important
The one thing I can take out of the Lakers/Jazz game on Tuesday is that it's important for the Lakers to pound on the weak teams.
The Jazz are not playing good basketball right now, and the Lakers took advantage of their lack of play. The Lakers have been winning lately, but they haven't looked great doing it. The game against the Jazz last night was the first time the Lakers have looked good winning in a while, at least since they played Cleveland.
I had a feeling Derrick Fisher would step up early on and hit a couple of shots. He really helped get the ball rolling for the Lakers dominate early. Lamar Odom was also a key factor during the game. He's continually been a player the Jazz have not been able to deal with the last three years. Phil Jackson also deserves a lot of credit for getting Kobe out of the game early on and letting the bench take over.
As for disappointments, I hand the sombrero to Pau Gasol. He did some good things only because the Jazz struggle against him. Other than that I think he was kind of lackadasical throughout the game. Also, Shannon Brown was almost removed from being my desktop picture for missing that wide-open dunk, but I forgive him. Brown is still my favorite Laker right now.
The Jazz are not playing good basketball right now, and the Lakers took advantage of their lack of play. The Lakers have been winning lately, but they haven't looked great doing it. The game against the Jazz last night was the first time the Lakers have looked good winning in a while, at least since they played Cleveland.
I had a feeling Derrick Fisher would step up early on and hit a couple of shots. He really helped get the ball rolling for the Lakers dominate early. Lamar Odom was also a key factor during the game. He's continually been a player the Jazz have not been able to deal with the last three years. Phil Jackson also deserves a lot of credit for getting Kobe out of the game early on and letting the bench take over.
As for disappointments, I hand the sombrero to Pau Gasol. He did some good things only because the Jazz struggle against him. Other than that I think he was kind of lackadasical throughout the game. Also, Shannon Brown was almost removed from being my desktop picture for missing that wide-open dunk, but I forgive him. Brown is still my favorite Laker right now.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Lakers getting it
I'd like to personally thank Carmelo Anthony for creating such chaos in Denver. This allowed the Lakers to beat a playoff team, and finally learn some patience on the offensive end.
Kobe is aging nicely into this "crafty veteran" role of his. The three pump fakes on J.R. Smith leading to a fould was testament to that. I think the Lakers finally calmed down a little bit and just played basketball.
When they played the Mavericks on Wednesday there was no patience on offense, mainly because the team had to play keep-up since Jason Kidd decided to knock down like 54 3-pointers or something like that.
The tide changed against the Nuggets. When the Lakers got down in the first half and Kobe was playing distributor they didn't panic. It was just a matter of playing basketball, and eventually Kobe was able to take over in the third quarter with 14 points.
Also to be noted from Friday's game, Kobe got extensive rest in the second quarter and the Laker bench kept the game close and even had the lead for a little bit.
It was a great overall performance, and I hope the Lakers continue to implement a similar strategy every game. If a third championship is what the Lakers want then this is how they're going to have to get it.
Kobe is aging nicely into this "crafty veteran" role of his. The three pump fakes on J.R. Smith leading to a fould was testament to that. I think the Lakers finally calmed down a little bit and just played basketball.
When they played the Mavericks on Wednesday there was no patience on offense, mainly because the team had to play keep-up since Jason Kidd decided to knock down like 54 3-pointers or something like that.
The tide changed against the Nuggets. When the Lakers got down in the first half and Kobe was playing distributor they didn't panic. It was just a matter of playing basketball, and eventually Kobe was able to take over in the third quarter with 14 points.
Also to be noted from Friday's game, Kobe got extensive rest in the second quarter and the Laker bench kept the game close and even had the lead for a little bit.
It was a great overall performance, and I hope the Lakers continue to implement a similar strategy every game. If a third championship is what the Lakers want then this is how they're going to have to get it.
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