Always Talkin Sports

Free Throws Kill the Lakers

2009-06-10T18:24:00.000-07:00

First all I can say is wow! I knew that the Magic would shoot better at home. I didnt think that they would set a record for the highest field goal percentage in NBA Finals history. Who shoots 62.5% for a game? Obviously the Magic do. Dwight Howard was more affective than in the first two games. Congrats to the Magic on a big win.

Now with that said, how did the Lakers let this game get away? Maybe a better question is how did the Lakers almost this game when the Magic shot such a high percentage? To me this proves that the Lakers are the better team. If I were the Magic I would be nervous. The Magic played the best that they are capable of playing and they only won by 4. If it wasnt for Lakers missing 10 free throws the Lakers go up 3-0 in the series. If it wasnt for Kobe missing an uncharacteristic 5 free throws, the Lakers go up 3-0. Stan Van Gundy said last night, "The Lakers didnt lose. The Magic won this game." I can see how he would say that but I have to disagree. I think the Lakers lost this game because of free throws and because of poor rotation on defense. So Im saying that the Lakers should have won even though the Magic shot 62.5% for the game.

So the Lakers are the better team...so what. The Lakers wouldnt be the first team to lose a championship series or game to a less talented team. The Patriots lost to the Giants in the Superbowl 2 years ago. The Dodgers beat the steroid driven A's in the 1988 World Series. Though these examples arent from the NBA, they are from professional organizations. The Magic showed that they are still in the series with their performance last night. The Lakers need to take a step back and look at what the Magic did in game 3 so that they can try and slow down their shooters. They did not play the same defense from the first 2 games. Im not trying to take anything away from the Magic, because they played amazing, but the Lakers should have still won that game. There is no way if you are the Lakers that when you are tied with 2 minutes left in the game and have the best closer in the NBA that you should lose. For one of the first times this post season, Kobe looked human.

I think that the Lakers fix their defensive issues and slow down the Magic's shooting enough to win game 4. Kobe wont let a 4th quarter performance like that happen again. I wouldnt be surprised if the Lakers win by double digits. The Lakers fix their free throw problems Thursday night. Lakers go up 3-1 in the series and Kobe plays more of a mediator role for at least the first three quarters of the game. Watch him to be ready to take over in the 4th quarter tomorrow. Last but no least, Kobe DOES NOT MISS A FREE THROW IN GAME 4!

...he better not

Win by an Inch or a Mile

2009-06-08T20:04:00.000-07:00

In the wise words of Vin Diesel from The Fast and the Furious, "It doesnt matter if you win by an inch or a mile. Its still winning." Last night the Lakers couldnt agree more. Like I predicted the game was going to be a lot more competitive. The game came down to a tremendous defensive stop by Hedo Turkoglu to give the Magic one last chance with 0.6 seconds left on the clock. The Magic had a good chance to win the game at the end of regulation but the rookie Courtney Lee couldnt make the difficult lob pass to win the game. This play could end up being the miss of the series. If Lee makes the lay up at the end of the 4th quarter then the Magic steal home court from the Lakers. But sense "if" didnt happen, the Lakers take a commanding 2-0 lead to Orlando.

The Magic did play much better than they did in game 1. The problem, the Lakers are still the better team. Dwight Howard still is having his struggles inside the paint. Superman was held to only 10 field goal attempts. People may argue that he did have a double-double, which is true but at this point I have higher expectations for Dwight. Maybe its the Magic not getting the ball to him enough or maybe its the Lakers defense finally playing with some passion and energy. Whatever it is Superman is not looking so super.

To get away from Dwight for a minute, the Magic are showing what happens when you rely on the 3-point shot. They did much better shooting than in game 1 shooting 42% from the field. But if you look at the box score, close to half of their shots were 3-pointers. They only made 10 of those 30 shots taken from behind the arch which to me shows that they arent getting Dwight the ball nearly enough. More trust needs to be given to Red Cape and less shots taken from 25 feet. he is after all the most dominant big man since Shaq.

Kobe had a decent game but did not play to the level of game 1. Kobe has the supporting cast of Gasol, Fisher, Lamar, and the rest of the role players that make this team nearly unstoppable in this series. A tough mind set and hard play earned the Lakers this win. Yes they almost lost and were forced into OT but they played strong in the overtime to seal the win. Gasol is showing toughness that critics have said he doesnt posses. Lamar played well making 8-9 from the field and had 7 rebounds and 3 steals. When he plays like this, the Lakers are tough to beat.

Finally to all of those Kobe haters out there, stop questioning his character and asking the question "Who is the real Kobe?" Kobe is focused right now. He is a "chap-ass" but would you not want your star player not to be? Michael Jordan was one and so are many other icons in the sport. The bottom line, Kobe is focused and doesnt want to smile and celebrate too early. Once he wins this series, you will see the biggest smile on his face that you have ever seen.

As for Game 3, I have a hard time seeing the Lakers winning this one. As much as I would like to see the Lakers pull out the broom, it most likely wont happen. The Magic will be playing with the desperation of avoiding losing the Finals. Watch them to come out and feed off of the home crowd and watch for them to have a higher 3-point % on their own court. I see the Magic winning 2-3 games at home but the Lakers should steal 1 of the 3 in Orlando and win their 15th Championship in Game 6.

But Laker fans, dont go to the store to get your favorite champagne. Wait to see if Im right. Wait for one more Laker win because the Magic have been dying by the three in LA. At home they will be living by the three.

The Beginning

2009-06-07T14:25:00.001-07:00

I doubt that there will be anyone that will read this blog that doesnt know me but just in case, I will introduce myself. My name is Chris and I am a sports lover. It doesnt matter what sport, most likely I will find something interesting about it. But I will be more specific. I love the major sports here in the US...football, basketball, baseball and so on. Though most people here in the US dont like soccer, I love it.

Though I have my favorite teams I try not to be bias. I am a HUGE Laker fan and since it happens to be the NBA Finals right now, I will most likely be talking about that more than anything else. Speaking of which, Laker fans, it was one game. I can almost guarantee you that the Magic will not shoot 29% from the floor tonight. So Laker fans dont pull out the champagne just yet, this series has just begun. Be ready to watch a game that is competitive to the final buzzer.

This blog to me is all about having fun and talking about something that I have a lot of passion for. Thanks to my girlfriend for talking me into starting this page. God bless you all and have fun watching the game tonight!