Anyone who regularly checks this site knows what a huge fan I am of the +/- statistic for basketball. In Game 1 this stat was even more telling than usual. The Lakers were +3 in the 6 minutes that Kobe Bryant was not in the game. But Bryant had a game-worst -13 in his 42 minutes of play, adding up to a 10-point Celtics win. So much of the the offense, obviously, revolves around Kobe that when he is off his then L.A. is off their's as well. Although Kobe had 24 points and 6 assists in Game 1, it took him 26 shots to get his points, and he added 4 turnovers to go along with those assists. In other words he was extremely inefficient despite racking up personal statistics. Perfect! Paul Pierce, by contrast, got 22 points on only 10 shots, and not surprisingly The Truth finished +10 in the opener. If the C's defend the pick-and-roll, make Kobe take tough shots, and play physically with him on both ends all night, the Celtics will easily walk away with a 2-0 lead in the series. He may get his individual stats once again, but the best team, not simply the best player, will walk away with the NBA Championship. Game 2 Prediction: More of the same, C's win 98-84. MVP: KG.
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35 comments:
The Lakers talked about how they had a lot of shots that "just didn't go down" in Game 1, but the C's could say the same.
Also, if Sam Cassell goes cold in Game 2 do not leave him in! Doc's use of Cassell has been my #1 point of stress it seems in the rotation.
Also, it was nice to see Leon get some minutes in Game 1. Let's see more of him!
I've always loved the reason we lost is "shots didnt just go down". What that translates to is they were too good on D for us to get easy buckets.
My thinking for Cassell is if he misses 2 in a row take him out, even if he hit a few in a row right before. And if he comes in and takes a terrible shot, put him on the bench and give House the same chance.
For the record, here are the Game 1 +/- reports (before moving on to Game 2 in 30 minutes!)
CELTICS:
R.Allen +11
Pierce +10
Brown +10
Rondo +9
Garnett +8
Posey +3
Powe +2
Cassell +1
Perkins -4
LAKERS:
Radmonovic +1
Farmar -3
Turiaf -3
Gasol -5
Walton -5
Odom -6
Fisher -7
Vujacic -9
Bryant -13
Ticky-tack foul on Perk 9 seconds in...yikes.
Radmonovic had the best +/- for the Lakers in Game 1, on the bench with 2 fouls in less than 2 minutes.
Pierce is being VERY aggressive so far. I love it.
Bob Delaney = Bad ref. This is EXACTLY what my grudge on "Arrogant Officials" was all about...make a bad (or at best questionable) call and then call a tech on the guy who you called it on for not being happy about it. Ridiculous.
Pau Gasol just did exactly what the called an offensive foul on KG for...but of course when it's Perk it's a foul on him.
Nice to have 2 fouls on Kobe in the 1st! Referees are awful in both directions so far.
The announcers complaining about that 2nd foul on Kobe is starting to drive me nuts! They showed the replay, he clearly threw an aggressive elbow at Allen's throat, and yet somehow they are not only saying it was a bad call but that this should lead to rules about fouling out being changed. GIVE ME A BREAK!
I'm glad Breen corrected Van Gundy because he is just plain wrong in almost all of his analysis tonight...which is really too bad because I've enjoyed him up until now.
Our bench just DOMINATED the Lakers bench. Basically just outscored them by 10 to go up by 8 (30-22). If their bench can't contribute and the starters can't stay out of foul trouble this could be a tough night for LA.
On a side note, not that I'm complaining, but why doesn't Gasol get the ball more? He's only taken 3 shots (hit all of them) and last game he only took 11 shots (6-11). Seems like horrible strategy.
I asked for more Leon and so far he has 8 points in 5 minutes. Sweet!
I dont like how we are giving up offense rebounds and I also dont like KG's shot selection
I love Leon Powe's work and I love Pierce's defense and shot selection.
NEED MORE PEOPLE GOING TO THE RIM
KEEP SHOOTING OPEN SHOTS, BIG 3
Huge 3 by Pierce to change momentum...and great to see 'Toine at the game.
The original point of the post was comparing the inefficiency of Kobe to the high efficiency of Pierce.
1st Half:
Kobe; 9 pts on 10 shots. 2 assists and 3 turnovers
Pierce; 16 pts on 8 shots. 5 assists and 1 turnover.
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PJ Brown (+15) is +/- leader of the first half. All 9 Celtics that have gotten in the game are +.
very satisfied with the play in the 1st half.
Powe 9 FT attempts in under 7 minutes. Kobe 1 in just under 18 minutes and Kobe's attempt was onthe technical.
+/- stat of the half, Kobe and Pau have lakers best with 0, everyone else is in the negative.
The lowset for the Celts is Rondo and Perkins with +1
Not thrilled the lead has fallen under 10. The C's need an answer for Gasol. He's the silent assasin on their team.
Total D-Bag move by Odom right there, answered with a 3 from Ray and a score by Leon....C's by 20!
SWEET REVENGE FOR PJ!
Unless the Lakers can break the record the Celtics set for largest come back in NBA playoff history, the Lakers can just pack it up now and head back to L.A.
I wasn't feeling well all day and now i'm feeling ptretty good.
After 3....
C's up by 22.
KG with double-double (11 & 11)
Pierce with 23 & 7 assists.
Ray with 15 pts.
Rondo with 11 assists, 6 rebounds and only 1 turnover.
PJ Brown = 6 pts (3-3) +19
Leon - 12 pts, 3-3, 9 fta
Perk - 7 pts (2-2 & 3-3), 3 offensive rebounds.
Posey - Big 3 pointer, +9
Cassell - +11 in 6 minutes.
Nice when everyone can contribute!!
I love Leon Powe and Sean Casey for different reasons for reasons I love Mike Vrabel and P.J Axelsson
why i like Mirabelli, Olerud and J.T Snow throw in Scott Wedman and Connor Henry
Are you staying anonymous because that list is so random and makes no sense? What do they have in common?
What is going on in this game? Did Doc want to wait for them to take the lead before calling a timeout? This is absolutely ridiculous that the Lakers even have an outside chance of pulling this off. YUCK.
CLUTCH! Well done by Pierce to hit both of those. I am still in a state of shock that this got so close and stiil shocked Doc didn't take a TO that whole time.
I am just so pleased that this game won't be remembered as "Radmadavic steals the ball"
Pierce seals it. Off to LA
A few things that have been driving me crazy in this series:
The excessive use of the Larry O'Brien trophy....especially giant versions of it. What the hell? Is the NBA trying to make this thing as iconic as the Stanley Cup? It's a nice trophy, don't shove it down out throats.
The goofy Boston fans behind the announcers/interviewers. Is the camera a giant magnet for every ugly/embarrassing Boston fan? "Hi Mom! Check out my lime green Under Armor shirt on my fat gut!"
The lack of replays on close/controversial plays. Plenty of replays on nice plays, but anything that is even borderline controversial is never shown. A few seconds later you can hear the crowd moan and you know the jumbotron showed the play, but you don't get a chance to see the replay at home.
The 3-2-2 format. I have never liked 3 games in a row for the away team. I think it is a big advantage for the away team. It should be always 2-2-2-1.
Final +/- for Game 2.....
Celtics
--------
Brown +20
Cassell +11
Pierce +7
Powe +6
Perkins +5
Allen +2
Rondo -5
Posey -7
Garnett -9
Lakers
-------
Fisher +10
Radmonovic +9
Bryant +8
Gasol +4
Vujacic +2
Ariza -6
Turiaf -12
Odom -13
Farmar -16
Walton -16
Joe, I hear what you are saying about the fans...but if you've seen the highlights from the 80's games it doesn't look like things have changed much (I'm sad to say)
I guess when i said said Perk would play a big role in the series i was right..but not how i meant, i figured he be a monster on the glass, instead by sitting on the bench alot we're seeing alot of Brown and Powe.. And and i cant say thats a bad thing.
Pirece still the MVP!!
Powe was like nba jams style
surprisingly great insight by Curt Schilling about game 2
http://38pitches.com/2008/06/09/manny-jd-papi-lester-and-the-nba-finals/
Lamar Odom is a moron:
http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/extras/celtics_blog/2008/06/bad_omen_for_od.html
http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/extras/celtics_blog/2008/06/bad_omen_for_od.html
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