Discussion: Effort will prevail
Posted by: JonathanDavid_24 on Apr 07, 2009 - 11:07 AM
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The Lakers regular season is nearing a close soon, in the blink of an eye the playoffs will be upon us. Kobe Bryant hasn't particularly outdone himself this season to the point where he truly deserves the NBA Season MVP-repeat in the eyes of a majority of voters. This however is of no concern of Kobe, nor should even his most die-hard fans. The truth be told, LeBron has had a phenomenal season, his team is eye to eye record wise with the Lakers, and his team currently boasts an incredible 37-1 record at home. The best part is that the Lakers were the only team to walk out of Cleveland with a victory over LeBron & Co. In fact, going back to recall that game, Lamar Odom was spectacular, the Cavs had no answer for him. Truth be told, this is how it would be if the Lakers played the Cavs in the Finals this June.
Kobe would have many options such as taking over the game himself, differing to his teammates, a combo of the two, etc.
The one option that I at the top of my list but I'm afraid to declare worthy of using in the Finals if the Lakers make it this postseason
(knocks on wood). Lamar Odom has the ability to beat the Cavs with the help of Kobe & Co. If Odom can repeat his performance from earlier this season in Cleveland, the Lakers will me impossible to beat if they matched up against the Cavs. Odom can take his man off the dribble any time he wants, and can either finish around the rim, draw fouls, or dish to an open teammate. Mind you, I know Kobe can do this too, but the difference is that the Cavs expect this from him. Odom on the other hand, if he is able to do this as well, it would improve the Lakers immensely. LeBron must guard Kobe at all times if the Cavs want to have any chance of even slowing down Kobe. That leaves Odom free to roam around and take his man off the dribble and score at will. I saw an energized Odom in Cleveland, he was a monster on the boards, he scored at will....and the best part is that this was against a Cavs team at full-strength...
The Lakers on the other hand were lacking a HUGE difference-maker in Andrew Bynum.
Kobe was very ill that day too, the fade-away shot Kobe made in LeBron's face, that insanely high-arching shot was the dagger that helped us pull away with the win, and not just a small win, but a double-digit win. This must have told LeBron something, like...his team is in trouble if they meet the Lakers in the Finals... The Lakers with a healthy Kobe & Co....well that will be more than LeBron can handle.
But for argument's sake, LeBron & Co are very talented, probably the 3rd deepest team in the league...The Lakers being first & either the Magic or Celtics being 2nd deepest. Therefore the Lakers won't dare overlook anyone, not even the Thunder, Kobe has repeatedly stated his only goal and main focus this season is the championship. Everyone knows that the Lakers season has an unofficial motto...
"Win the Championship or this season was a total bust" Also, the Lakers offseason should be rather interesting, the free agents the Lakers can pick up if they offer players such as Odom, etc....would be pretty darn talented....but I personally believe Odom is one of the Lakers who keeps this team together and losing him would change this team in a way that we couldn't recover from.....The loss of Ronnie has already been forgotten and Josh Powell has done a decent job as his replacement...but Odom, he is irreplaceable......he is far too talented, has so much potential..it's sad to see him not live up to what he can do on a nightly basis...but maybe we're being too greedy since Odom has a very tough life outside of the NBA....his newborn died, that must have been something that he now lives with in agony, and it doesn't help that he has so much pressure to perform well with that on his mind......Kobe while on the trial years ago, was mentally tough on a level that I thought was unmatched....but that is not so, Odom lost a child, that is something that I believe is much tougher to swallow and stay sane and happy with in your life....I personally couldn't do it, it's too energy-draining....but Odom is such a warrior and he plays on, even though he can do so much more than he already has shown us, sometimes I just wish we'd cut him some slack.. But like most LTB fans, when he plays poorly on a consistent basis, I don't excuse that whatsoever, I demand that he be taken out of the game or that he differ to someone else more capable such as Kobe or Gasol...heck even Fish!!! lol
Ariza is the key guy this season, his defense, steals, blocks, offense, have really brought this team's talent level up a notch or two, I'm so thankful to God that he came back and showed us what we were missing last June....he has been nothing short of amazing.
The Lakers Mob Bench....or as some fans dubbed them recently
"Strench Bench" which I found to be hilarious.....but then it got old.....
we criticize our bench so much that it's like we're a broken record; sure we want our bench to be as good as last year, even better sure, but it's not happening for the time being....I can't say I'm pleased with their effort....I even joked about it earlier this season and said that maybe the entire bench is tanking it this season till playoffs....boy wouldn't that be something, the bench all of a sudden being the incredible tough force we envisioned at the beginning of the season. Sasha needs to cut his hair, it's blocking his view to the basket, or messing up his brain or something, his shot has been flat all season.....that injury he came back from shouldn't have taken his shot away completely like it seems at the moment......
Farmar is selfish and wants to be like Kobe, that's what many say, but I think he just isn't ready to start, and Phil probably treats him as if he should be starting, and that pressure could be too much for him to handle.....put simpler, Farmar is a choke-artist.....and a turnover machine....but he can improve....I wish sooner rather than later....the playoffs are almost here and we can't have any of his b.s in a critical playoff game....whether it's home or away.
All in all, I think the Lakers as a team need to put just a bit more effort into their daily/nightly performances, and that should get us over the hump this year.....If all goes well, Bynum should be back before the season ends, and maybe he'll show us a glimmer of what he'll be able to do come playoffs......(knocks on wood) The Championship-road looks gruesome, but if Kobe has anything to do with it, he'll use every amount of will-power left in his mind, soul, and body.....lets all hope & pray that things go our way this year, because last season is one that we all want to forget...it was so painful...ughh...just thinking about it is terrible....but that's good, because it showed us our weaknesses as a team, and this year, well gladly things are going much better.
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