5 Good Reasons For Lakers' Trouble In Portland (OC Register)

[ABM]

From: OC Register

A portion of #2 was a classic excuse. Advantage defending Kobe? Uh huh.:

2. Nate McMillan.

In keeping with the NBA awards theme, I also decided before the game to cast my vote for Coach of the Year for McMillan, even though Orlando’s Stan Van Gundy is a lock to win it. McMillan has done a wonderful job meshing a lot of young talent, maintaining a defensive emphasis and getting the Trail Blazers to be on an uptick at the right time with the postseason nearing.

But with regard to the Lakers, McMillan has an inherent advantage in helping Roy and his boys defend Bryant, who shot 9 for 24 from the field and settled for too many jumpers down the stretch Friday night. McMillan was an assistant coach for Team USA last summer – all the while watching Bryant very, very closely.

“Nate McMillan knows how to defend Kobe after dealing with him in the summer, so he was going to converge on him and make it very difficult for Kobe to get into those high-quality (shooting) environments,” Lakers acting coach Kurt Rambis said. “Kobe has hit those long shots in the past, but there was a time where I felt that we should have gotten better shots. But I’m not blaming him for any of that.”

 

[handiman]

I can just see everyone lining up for an opportunity to coach Team USA...

 

[BBert]

That is completely absurd. As if no one has any film or scouting reviews of Kobe to know what he likes to do or how to defend him. Everyone knows what (to try) to do. It's a matter of doing it -- and then crossing your fingers and praying he doesn't beat you anyway. Sheeesh....

 

[STOMP]

That is completely absurd. As if no one has any film or scouting reviews of Kobe to know what he likes to do or how to defend him. Everyone knows what (to try) to do. It's a matter of doing it -- and then crossing your fingers and praying he doesn't beat you anyway. Sheeesh....

yeah, I tend to think Batum being a stud wing defender had something to do with Kobe struggling last night. Portland has waves of long wing players and several good shot blockers to contest drives to the hole. All the strategizing in the world won't help if you don't have the talent.

Of course where the game is played makes a big difference too. If that game was in LA I'm sure Blazer players would have been called for a lot of the same stuff they let go last night.

STOMP

 

[ABM]

This part was cool, though...

1. Brandon Roy.

I had already decided to vote for Roy as an All-NBA second-teamer – pretty high praise considering the first-team guards will be Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade and the other second-teamer will be Chris Paul – but Roy cemented his standing with another super-cool game Friday night against the Lakers.

Roy’s ability to find his way into the lane – even with Dobermans Trevor Ariza and Bryant on him – is key to breaking down the Lakers’ defense. The Lakers’ primary goal is not to allow penetration, but Roy finds a way. Roy had 24 points and eight assists Friday night and was up to the task going head-to-head with Bryant down the stretch.

“For me, it was a challenge,” Roy said. “He’s probably the greatest player in the game right now. I just wanted to be aggressive with him. I was just able to make some shots. I had to keep being aggressive offensively. I said to myself, ‘I’ve got nothing to lose,’ and I did the best that I could.”

 

[maxiep]

That was an extremely complimentary article, except for the backhanded slap at our small city status.

 

[MARIS61]

“Nate McMillan knows how to defend Kobe after dealing with him in the summer, so he was going to converge on him and make it very difficult for Kobe to get into those high-quality (shooting) environments,” Lakers acting coach Kurt Rambis said. “Kobe has hit those long shots in the past, but there was a time where I felt that we should have gotten better shots. But I’m not blaming him for any of that.”

When the coach is afraid to chastise a player for being lazy and settling for 3's rather than fight through the defense, the chances of winning diminish greatly.

 

[THE HCP]

Nice read. Much love for BRoy too. I wouldn't go as far as to say Nate knows any more then any other coach on how to stop Kobe, but who cares, he's doing a great job with this squad.

 

[Boob-No-More]

I thought it was a pretty good article. And other than the "Nate advantage" from coaching Kobe on Team USA, I thought it was very accurate. With all the film and scouting reports available, it's not like Nate learned something over the summer that gives the Blazers an edge over everyone else in stopping Kobe.

Most teams know what they need to TRY to do, but "knowing" and "doing" are two very different things. Last night, especially late in the game, the Blazers had the "doing" part down. Kobe still scored 32. So, it's not like the Blazers shut him down. But, they forced him to work for those points and while he scored more than his season average, he also did so much less efficiently than he usually does.

BNM

 

[Erroneous Subterfuge]

So to sum it up, the reason they lose in Portland is our players, coach, and fans...


Gee, thanks captain obvious.