Discussion: 3-3 Since Sessions Trade: I Guess the PG was Not the Problem
Posted by: lakeshowsd on Mar 26, 2012 - 07:49 PM
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The Lakers are only 3-3; playing .500 ball since the acquisition of talented and productive young Ramon Sessions and the departure of a fading old Laker "legend" in Derek Fisher (and I use the term 'legend' loosely). It was assumed that once the Lakers got a good, reliable point guard, we would almost instantly become a much better basketball team but so far Sessions' presence hasn't proved to be the difference in the win/loss column.
The point of this thread is not to blame Sessions for the team's uneven play over the last 2 weeks. It's more to discuss some of the problems that are still preventing the Lakers from playing consistently good basketball this month. A 9-5 record in March is okay, but the Lakers can do better and we should discuss why they're not doing better.
In no particular order:
Defense: The Lakers are playing noticeably worse defense in the recent weeks and it's been hard to watch. The Lakers have surrendered 100 or more points in 7 games this month (4 of them losses), while only surrendering 100 points in 6 games in the previous 2 months combined. This is a major problem and the Lakers need to rectify it immediately if they want to maintain their reputation as a high caliber defensive team this season.
Additionally, on the defensive side Andrew Bynum's effort directly effects the Lakers wins and losses in March. In the Lakers 9 March wins, Bynum is averaging 12.8 rebounds per game. In the 5 March Losses, Drew is averaging 8.4 rebounds per game. That's a difference of over 4 rebounds per game in the wins VS losses, which proves just how important Bynum's energy and effort on the boards is to the Lakers defensive efforts. The statistics in this case are undeniable.
Kobe's shooting: Kobe is 130 for 315 (41%) shooting in the month of March, and has shot a combined 37 for 119 (31%) in the Lakers 5 losses in March. On the flip side, Kobe is shooting a combined 93-196 (47%) in the Lakers 9 wins in March. So, you can see the direct correlation between the Lakers wins and losses and Kobe's shooting.
Kobe shooting an average of 31% in our losses this month, and 47% in our wins proves how much we rely on Kobe to be offensively efficient in order to win ball games. The only anomaly was last night's loss to the Grizzlies, which marked the first time this month where Kobe's offensive efficiency (7-15 [46%]) did not hurt the team in a loss. Those kind of games, however, are few and far between, and the statistical evidence still supports the theory that the Lakers often require Kobe to be efficient in order to play winning basketball.
These are just a few of the reasons I thought of for why the Lakers are still losing games despite improving at the point guard position. Ramon Sessions remains a significant upgrade over Derek Fisher but it's evident that the Lakers' problems go much further than Fisher and Blake's underwhelming point guard play. Otherwise, we wouldn't be 3-3 despite Sessions' averages of 14 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists, and 55% shooting as a Laker....
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