Lakers large and in charge

Have you noticed how calm the Lakers have been this postseason? Yes, they have lost four road games and been 2-2 in two different series, plus gave away a few fourth leads the caused spread losses for backers, but not once have Kobe Bryant and the rest of his teammates looked truly flustered and exasperated to the point where they appeared beatable in a series.

Game 1 was perfect example as Los Angeles was methodical in beating Boston. The Lakers were up by five after the first quarter, led by nine and the half and salted the contest away with 34-23 third stanza, building insurmountable 84-64 lead.

Phil Jackson’s club is 9-2 ATS after a playoff win this spring and are under control. After the Lakers ended the series against Phoenix in Game 6, the talk in the desert was the Suns lack of defensive intensity, as the Lake Show has 91 points after three quarters. Who would have ever guessed the defensive-minded Celtics would have permitted 84 points with 12 minutes still left to play?

It was shocking how little resistance Boston put up. Early today if you Googled the term “non-factor”, pictures of Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Kendrick Perkins and Kevin Garnett all appeared. Paul Pierce was the only Celtics player showing any game close to what Celtics would expect, but that was mostly in the final quarter when the outcome was already determined, as they fell to 6-19 ATS versus teams averaging 83 or more shots a game this year.

To borrow a little Dick Vitale speak, the Lakers were ‘windex-men” cleaning the glass, outrebounding Boston by 42-31. With Pau Gasol having eight offensive rebounds, you would have thought he had grown a foot.

When Doc Rivers was asked about the last time he remembered his team being so outclassed on the boards, he responded this way. “I don’t know if I recall one,” he said. “But I know if there was, we lost that game, too. I can guarantee you that.”

You don’t rebound; you don’t win. What’s true during the regular season holds even truer now.
“They killed us on the glass,” he said.

What can Boston do to plot an upset in Game 2? Of course they have to rebound better, which might entail sending more players to the glass on the defensive side and once the ball is secured, immediately find Rondo and let him fire up the jets to beat L.A. down the floor. Rondo has to show better judgment with the ball in his hands.

The Celtics staff has to find ways to rub Pierce off Ron Artest’s “krazy glue” defense. Garnett can’t be dominated by Gasol, he has to work harder for rebounds and make medium range jump shots to pull the big man from Spain away from the bucket.

The Lakers offense is especially fluid at the Staples Center, which suggests Perkins has to be more a factor on the offense end besides setting screens. Though his scoring skills are limited, Perkins has to defeat Andrew Bynum in the post and be fed the ball for dunks or layups. Rivers and his coaches usually make solid adjustments and are 9-1 ATS off a road loss by 10 points or more over the last two seasons.

Oddsmakers have L.A. as a six-point fave with total of 190.5 and they are 8-3 ATS after breaking the century mark. With two days between contests the Lakers are 12-4 UNDER this season. The Celtics will have to be much more assertive and are 22-10 ATS away from home after consecutive games with 19 or less assists. The last five times Boston has allowed 100 or more points, the next contest goes UNDER the number.

This matchup has earlier start time of 8:00 Eastern on ABC and this is an absolute must win for the team in green, as it appears very unlikely they would sweep three at home.

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Suns need to play D-Fence

Arizona has been in the news quite a bit lately and various government agencies have been under attack. In response to this, they have become downright defensive, which is something Suns fans are looking for from their team playing at home trailing the Los Angeles Lakers 2-0.

Phoenix has willing approved 128 and 124 points to the Lakers in the first two supposed conflicts with Los Angeles in the Western Finals, which might be considered passable if this was an old-school ABA contest or an All-Star clash. The problem is that neither is true, and the Lakers have scored more than George Clooney and Brad Pitt in their younger days.
Nothing has worked on the defensive end for the Suns that even coach Alvin Gentry let his guard down after Game 2.

"I'm open for suggestions," Gentry said on his way out of the interview room late Wednesday night.

"Even from the media."

A better place to start is with his players. With all the talk of who is or is not legal in the Grand Canyon state, Gentry has to convince his players that getting up and guarding your man is perfectly legal, but it doesn’t do much good to let the player you are supposed to be guarding to around you like a bull and matador confrontation, in which the outcome is you are gored for another basket.

"Every time we tried to make an adjustment to slow them down," Gentry said, "they go somewhere else."

Phoenix has tried to double Kobe Bryant; he passes to open man, while still scoring enough points himself. The Suns put two players on Pau Gasol on the paint, yet at 7’0 holding the ball over his head looking for open teammate, he looks like an eighth grader playing keep away from a group of first graders. Gasol has found Lamar Odom, Ron Artest and others effortlessly.
Things have gotten so bad for Phoenix even Jordan Farmar (13.5 points per game) and Shannon Brown (10.0 PPG) have looked like they could start for any of lottery teams the way they have scored in this series.

“Well, what can you say?" Gentry said. "We are just having a hard time. We can't slow them down. I thought we played well offensively, but every time we tried to make an adjustment to slow them down, they go somewhere else.

“And, you know, you do a great job on Kobe, and I thought we did. Then they go to Pau and we double-team Pau and there's Lamar, and we get it out of Lamar's hand and Jordan Farmar makes shots. And there's a reason they're the world champs. There's a good reason they're the world champs."

The Suns return home where they are 36-10, 28-16-2 ATS and have to find answers quickly. Maybe its wear Amare Stoudemire glasses that are far-sighted so they have to get closer to guard the players in purple.

What Phoenix has to do more than anything is play team defense. It’s obvious the Suns are not very sound doubling players on continual basis; instead each player has to make it his responsibility to guard his own man. If Kobe scores 50 or even 60 so be it, you guard your man and box-out on the boards.

Make the Lakers uncomfortable, they’ve played like a bunch of guys having a having a good time walking along Santa Monica beach. Throw live snakes on the floor before the game to get their attention, prove you mean business and make them understand from the start this isn’t going to be a vacation in the desert.

"You saw what the Thunder (Oklahoma City) did," Jared Dudley said. "That's our mindset."

Oddsmakers have Phoenix as 1.5-point favorites and has to take advantage of the crowd and make shots to make L.A. unsettled. They are 1-8 ATS in road games when their opponents make 39 to 45 percent of their three-pointers. The Suns have to make the Lakers pay for their limited defensive pressure and are 24-7 ATS vs. defensive teams forcing 14 or less turnovers a game the second half of this season.

Those doing sports betting presently anticipate there is almost no ceiling on the total that has sky-rocketed to 219 and Steve Nash’s pals need a lower scoring contest and they are 20-10 UNDER after allowing 100 points or more three straight games. Kobe and company have the ability to shift gears and are 7-0 UNDER on the road after covering the spread in two or more consecutive times.

TNT has what is basically a do-or-die tilt for the Suns at 8:30 Eastern and they are 15-5 ATS at Planet Orange having lost two of their last three games.

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NBA Western Conference Finals Preview

(1) L.A. Lakers vs. (3) Phoenix

Talking to a number of various wise guy bettors living in Las Vegas, one conclusion was evident before the playoffs started, yes the Los Angeles Lakers looked vulnerable but were still the safest bet to win another title and the Phoenix Suns were the best long shot among the top four seeds from either conference to become the upset champions of the NBA.

Both those assessments have proven correct, however one will be kicked to the curb with the West Finals at hand. Here is a look at what each team has to do to reach the The Finals.

One aspect that is often forgotten in the NBA playoffs is how very good teams can pick up momentum. The Lakers closed the regular season 4-7 SU and ATS and were like Whitney Houston’s recent concert tour, very unimpressive. More than one sports fan believed Oklahoma City had a fair shot to upset Los Angeles in the first round and after they suffered 21-point loss to the Thunder to tie the series at two, that belief no longer seemed so far-fetched.

However, since then, L.A. has gotten serious about basketball again and has won six straight, covering five times and now another championship ring is in sight.

I apologize in advance, but there is not getting around it (literally), the size of the Lakers’ changes how teams can attack them. With Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom, it just doesn’t leave much room in the middle, which helps takes away the one inside player the Suns have in Amare Stoudemire.

L.A. guards and wing players can be super aggressive defensively, knowing what they have behind them. Ron Artest is not the defender he was a few years ago, but what he’s lost in quickness he makes up for in smarts and he will try to attach himself at the hip of Jason Richardson or Jared Dudley when he enters the game.

Phoenix has picked up a reputation as being good defensive team, while they are not as lame as when Mike D’Antoni was coach; they are far from good, mostly just average. With the talk of Grant Hill being a defensive demon, that’s all Kobe Bryant needs for a personal challenge.

Remember last year when Denver had all those high effort guys coming off the bench and they actually gave Phil Jackson’s team trouble at first, yet after Game 3 had little impact, that’s what the Lakers do as the series wears on, systematically they take away your strengths and even Derek Fisher becomes more useful knocking down shots. There is a reason why the Lake Show is 5-1 and 4-2 ATS against the Suns at Staples the past three years, they are bigger and better and hard to beat four times.

Since Steve Nash has arrived in the desert with his injury-plagued career in the balance, all he has done is transform Phoenix into the most entertaining team in the NBA and a outfit that has been among the better groups out West. Be that as it may, the window of opportunity is closing and the sense is the entire club and organization knows it.

That creates the first chance for the Suns, desperation, hardly something the Lakers ever feel and when they do, usually nothing good comes from it. (Game 6 Lakers at Boston two years ago comes to mind) Phoenix has to be able to leave all on the floor each night, no Game 1 or Game 4’s against Portland “we just weren’t focused” nights. You only get once chance to beat a champion and if you let it slip, look in the mirror.

Coach Alvin Gentry is credited for making Phoenix a more complete squad than past versions, with greater attention to detail on both ends of the floor. Steve Nash should be able to run circles around Derek Fisher, but his key is drawing the defense to him to make the assist and frustrate the Lakers big men.

Coach Jackson will try to prevent dibble penetration by Nash and make him more a shooter than facilitator, Nash has to defeat this defense by using the screen and role continually with Stoudemire. If successful, this forces other defenders to get involved and the NBA’s best outside shooting team will find itself with many more open looks.

Phoenix can’t let the Lakers play volleyball on the offensive glass; they have to at least be within five boards at all times once the second half starts.

Gentry’s bench has been a difference maker, which is why this desert squad is 22-4 and 19-6-1 ATS since Mar. 14. With how ineffective the L.A. bench is, they need to outscore them nightly by 15 or more points, which place the Suns in far more advantageous spot and could mean heavier minutes for Lakers regulars, this might matter later in the series.

It goes without saying Phoenix has to run, but as they proved against San Antonio, it’s not about running and dunking for layups, it is about beating the Lakers defense back and making the extra pass to find the three-point shooter who is open to bury the shot and wear down the big guys in gold and purple late in games.

Jackson pulled out his clichéd “zen master” card saying Nash carry’s the ball (and Michael Jordan did what in Chicago when Phil was there), but he picked the wrong guy in Nash.

"It's news to me. I'm fortunate. I don't know if I've been called for a carry yet,'' he said after the Suns practiced Saturday, then he added straight-faced: "I've never heard anyone accuse me of carrying it. I mean, the best coach in the league Greg Popovich (of San Antonio) didn't have a problem with it last week.''(Nice subtle rip on the Zen-ster)

As is said in boxing, “contrasting styles make fights”. That will be the case out West, with the Lakers trying to control tempo and have their size be a difference maker, while Phoenix wants to play fast, hit 3’s and make enough defensive stops to matter.

(In my best NBA analyst voice and following all spoken clichés) At the end of the day, the Lakers having a long break before the series, another lengthy break before heading to Arizona, (I'm surprised California government officials are letting the Lakers play in Zona, since Sherrif Joe will want to see Gasol's papers) gives them rest and ample time to make adjustments, which makes them awfully difficult to beat unless the opponent plays great defense.

3Daily Winners Pick- L.A. Lakers (-350) in seven over Phoenix (+290)

Jazz vs. Lakers Series Preview

The NBA playoff scheduling often times borders on the ridiculous as Los Angeles and Utah won Game 6 matchups in their respective series and start the next round less than 48 hours later, while Phoenix and San Antonio completed their first round series the day prior and don’t play until a day later. However it’s not like the Lakers and Jazz aren’t familiar with one another with four regular season contests and meeting in the playoffs the last two years. For individual games, the home team is 18-8-1 ATS when these two get together.

(1) L.A. Lakers vs. (5) Utah

The Lakers were shown to have various weaknesses by Oklahoma City who was less than a second away from pushing Los Angeles to a seventh game, but Pau Gasol was in the right place at the right time and the defending NBA champions moved forward. Can offensive-minded Utah finish what the Thunder couldn’t?

Phil Jackson’s squad played four games to find out they needed to play like a team. This meant getting everyone involved in the offense and for Kobe Bryant to be patient with his teammates even when they were doing the team a disservice.

Russell Westbrook drove the Lakers crazy and Deron Williams can to the same, just in a different manner. Williams does not have Westbrook’s quickness, making it somewhat easier for Lakers big guys to rotate quicker on penetration. Look for coach Jackson to throw the kitchen sink at Williams, with Derek Fisher, Shannon Brown, Jordan Farmar and Kobe Bryant all taking turns to see what works in controlling him. If all else fails even Ron Artest could be looking in Deron’s eyes.

Gasol has the length to bother Carlos Boozer, who scored 12 points or less in three of their four matchups. This would be a huge negative for the Jazz who needs another big time scorer to keep pace with Williams.

Lamar Odom and Ron Artest have to bring more to the dance against Utah. Odom is your ultimate space cadet, playing only when he’s in the mood. Artest could be a bigger factor offensively since he doesn’t have a player of Kevin Durant’s scoring ability to worry about and though CJ Miles can have outbursts, he’s not in Durant’s area code.

Utah lost three of four to the Lakers this season and has been ousted from the postseason by L.A. the last two years. Since March 14 of last season, the Jazz have 2-8 SU and ATS record against the Lakers, with the average loss being by 14.2 per game. What can Utah do to turn the tide?

Williams needs to have similar numbers as what he had against Denver (25.8 points and 11.3 assists). This won’t be easy since the Lakers are much better defensively. That means rookie Wesley Matthews has to become an X-factor. He has to total 15 or more points per game, forcing the Lakers to use Bryant to guard him.

Paul Millsap was outstanding off the bench (17.3 PPG) against the Nuggets and similar contributions will be required. Utah forward Andrei Kirilenko could be available for Game 2 in this Western semifinal, however most reports have the first contest in Salt Lake City as more realistic estimate.

The Jazz could cover a good number of spreads in this series if Los Angeles is disinterested, but have to get over the mental part of defeating the Lakers in attempting to win games. Utah is 2-8 ATS playoff games as an underdog of 5.0-10.5, but the Lake Show is just as miserable at home with recent 4-10-1 ATS mark at the Staples Center.

If the Lakers learned one thing from playing Oklahoma City, it was they could play possession by possession in slower paced contests and still survive. Utah’s style is more to their liking and they already have the confidence to knock them off and will do so.

3Daily Winners Pick- L.A. Lakers (-400) in five over Utah (+300)

Denver Nuggets are better team

The title of this article won’t be real popular in L.A., but who cares, as Joe Friday of Dragnet used to say, “Just the facts”. After watching four games between Denver and the Los Angeles Lakers, the truth is in, the Nuggets are better team. That’s doesn’t mean they will win the NBA title, what the heck, it doesn’t even mean they will win this series against the Lake Show, it just means my adjusted 20-15 laser vision can see who the better team is after 16 quarters of professional basketball in the Western Conference Finals.

Denver has more players interested in playing hard than Los Angeles, which is fairly remarkable, since the supposed vision of the Lakers was to make up for losing in last year’s finals to Boston. All season, television talking heads spoke about the new Lakers toughness and the resolve they had, which is a whole lot easier to do against the Clippers, as opposed to mixing it up with Denver.

I’m wondering if the NBA should give up this all-access in game coverage, as NBA coaches are no longer coming off as wizards of the hardwood. It started last year really, when Doc Rivers didn’t so much coach his team, he more implored them to victory. This has followed up with George Karl, telling his team to “stay focused” or “keep playing hard”, not exactly how one pictures Red Auerbach in the huddle talking to his team. With this style of coaching, the only thing missing is pom-poms and “let’s go team”.

Maybe that is how coaches need to talk to their teams, since Phil Jackson has the greatest collection ever of unmotivated players expected to win a NBA title. In watching a portion of Spike Lee’s ESPN thing -John & Kate plus 8 - Kobe style, Bryant talked about the diversity of language spoken by the Lakers. This makes more sense than ever, since communication for motivation purposes is surely lacking for a team that has lost six postseason games by almost 10 points per game.

Maybe Jackson should lower himself to this primitive-method of coaching, since his players are too nonchalant, plus they are less athletic and less talented than their Denver counterparts.
L.A. has not lost two in a row in the playoffs, winning six times by 15 PPG, making bettors pleased with six matching covers.

We’ve all heard how complex the triangle offense is, but is it me or has Kobe given up on teammates, when Lakers need points? The number of assists Bryant has to have in the fourth quarter should be able to be counted on one hand. Besides if the triangle offense is so difficult to understand and execute properly, is Jackson really helping matters playing three different point guards, or does desperation force his hand?

If Derek Fisher didn’t have championship jewelry, retiring right now would be suitable option. Shannon Brown and Jordan Farmar, no wonder Kobe is keeping the ball for a team that is 2-8 ATS after being burned for 100 or more points.

Denver’s frontcourt is SO much more active than the Lakers it’s ludicrous. Mark Cuban might have been right about Kenyon Martin being thug, but he’s outplayed Lamar Odom by a mile. Nene has played exceptional position defense on Pau Gasol, whose every touch has been as mechanical as Yao Ming, flustering the Spaniard. If the Denver does win NBA title, Chris “Birdman” Anderson, will be the most requested person on talk show circuit, with people wanting to hear his story of overcoming himself. Phil Jackson would love to look down the bench to find a high effort guy.

The Nuggets have covered like 49 of last 50 games, OK, 21 of last 26, including last six pressure-packed road tilts. Denver, despite playing so well is still volatile. J.R. Smith is loose cannon, as is Martin. Dahntay Jones is not above some chicanery and Denver shot selection can alter games towards the negative.

I checked DiamondSportsbook.com and they opened the Lakers as six-point favorites and Jackson coached teams on the left coast are 15-5 against the spread when series is tied up. Even with the Game 2 loss, L.A. has covered 11 of last 14 at Staples Center against the Nuggies, though I forget, this is different Denver team (wish I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard that since playoffs began).

The Nuggets are 13-5 ATS after scoring 105 or more points and have covered the number is seven of last eight times with one day’s rest.

I’ll probably make a small wager on Denver, because they are the better team and if they really want to prove it, they win Game 5 setting up clincher at Pepsi Center Friday.

Penned by Red Wydley.