| 11 June 2009
Los Angeles Lakers 99, Orlando Magic 91
This game just felt like niether team really wanted to win it.
The Magic built up a big lead early in the game taking advantage of the Lakers constantly over-playing the pick and roll. They shot 52% in the first half and had the entire front line of the Lakers in foul trouble from early in the first quarter. They were setting the tempo and keeping Kobe Bryant's help from stepping up. It looked like they carried over their strong performance from game three into game four and were on their way to forcing at least a sixth game.
They must have bought into that hype because they looked like an entirely different team in the second half and not in a good way. Their offense was inept turning the ball over five times in the quarter and settling for a lot of tough outside shots. The Lakers, being the veteran club that they are, had no choice but to capitalize with an 18-5 run over the first six minutes of the second half to take the lead for the first time since 8:53 remaining in the first. The guy that made it happen for Los Angeles in the third was Trevor Ariza whose quick hands led to turnovers and fast breaks. Ariza became a one-man wrecking crew on offense scoring 13 points in the third and carrying the Lakers on his back throughout the quarter on both ends.
But the Lakers were determined to let Orlando right back into it in the fourth quarter. If Kobe Bryant is the best closer in the game, he certainly wasn't playing the part tonight. He looked more like Byung-Hyun Kim than Mariano Rivera. He was 2 for 7 in the fourth and had moments when he had absolutely no intention of passing the ball. There were plays down the stretch when Bryant would jack up a three nowhere near the flow of the offense and could easily have set up teammates for easy, open looks. A player should want to take the big shots in games. It's the mark of a good, confident player. The great ones use their reputation to suck in the defense and get better looks for the offense.
Bryant did show flashes of that brilliance during the last minute of the game. His pass to Pau Gasol in the lane with 31 seconds left in the game was sheer brilliance. It was recognition of the defense collapsing on him and the awareness to find his teammate for an easy bucket. He showed that same recognition and understanding of what to do in the big moment on the next play at the defensive end. The Lakers' defense on the screen and roll allowing Dwight Howard a wide open lane to the basket and an undetered passing lane to get the ball to him was about as poorly as a team could have defended that play. Bryant saw the play developing and was able to commit as good a foul as a player can commit. These are the moments that really crystalize why Kobe has a love him or hate him relationship with the fans. He sees all the angles and has the awareness and talent to make anything happen on the court, but he would just rather be the man and thinks giving up the ball in the waning moments is a sign of weakness. It's not, and we just want to see him accept that.
Howard had the ability to ice the game by making only one of the two free throws with 11 seconds left on the clock (familiar territory, right Magic fans?), but he couldn't and left the door cracked open just enough for the Lakers to tie it up. We all knew what would happen next: three-pointer from Derek Fisher to tie it up. Apparently no one told Jameer Nelson who sluffed off Fisher giving him a far-too-open look at the game-tying three. No foul before he could get the shot off. No hand in his face until it was too late. Nelson must have missed the last three Lakers' title runs. Any fan of the Kings, Spurs, Blazers, Nets, etc. could have told you he was going to hit that shot if left open.
From that point the game was heading to overtime and the Lakers had the momentum. Neither offense looked crisp in OT scoring a combined 8 points in the first four minutes of the period. There was a questionable play that cemented the game for the Lakers which I'm sure the conspiracy nuts will be screaming about until they're blue in the face. Bryant drew a double team and hit Nelson in the face with his elbow as he was turning to find the open man. I say it was a good no call (and I'm sure there are others that disagree), but Nelson hit the deck and it left Fisher wide open for the final dagger three.
Why the Lakers Won This Game
The Lakers won this game because they made Rashard Lewis and Rafer Alston ineffective. They also rode their role players. Ariza was a huge spark on both ends and kept them in the game with second-chance opportunities, huge makes and his ability to not only match but far exceed any production from Lewis. The Lakers also leaned heavily on Derek Fisher in this game. It's obvious that Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant trust Fisher, and he stepped up huge in this game with two very big shots and physicality that was sorely missed in game three.
Why the Magic Lost This Game
The Magic lost this game because they were their own worst enemy. They constantly made poor decisions that led to turnovers. They allowed the Lakers to turn those poor passes/decisions into easy points. The Magic were successful in getting the Lakers bigs into foul trouble (There was a D.J. Mbenga sighting for four minutes), but they didn't capitalize on their constant trips to the foul line. Howard had those two big misses at the end of the game, but those free throws would have been moot if not for his other six misses at the line or Hedo Turkoglu's five missed free throws. Teams that shoot this poorly from the line and turn the ball over this often are just asking to lose close games.
Heading Into Game Five
The Magic missed a golden opportunity to take game two in LA, and now this second missed opportunity to even the series puts them at the breaking point. There are a few positives for the Magic namely the fact that they still can manufacture easy buckets when they are running the pick and roll right. They also probably should expect Rashard Lewis to play as poorly as he did in game four. Those two factors (along with the Lakers' ability to get comfortable) make this seem like a game the Magic can win. They've been to the brink of an elimination game before and have pulled through. Hopefully they can carry that over to this bigger stage and force a game six.
Prediction: Magic click on offense and send it back to LA
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