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Lakers-Rox Game 7: Tempo-Free Boxscore Breakdown

Lakers fans will reminisce about today's Game Seven, to the extent they do so at all, as one might look back on a clogged toilet: an odious chore, conducive to gagging and mild nausea, that one would prefer not to have had to deal with on a pleasant Sunday afternoon. Along the way, if everyone had just paid a little more attention to what they were doing, it would never have come to this, and the plunger could have remained dry under the sink. Congratulations, Pau Gasol - you got to be the plunger.

The Houston Rockets entered this series with only about two-and-a-half ways to score points. One of those ways, and by far the most potent, broke his foot and played only three games. Somehow they MacGyvered their way to two victories sans Yao, but you can only go so far contriving solutions out of duct tape and gum wrappers. Today the Houston "offense" found its natural level, which turns out to be 70 points scored over 48 minutes of play.

For the Lakers, it's on to the Western Conference Finals, starting Tuesday night. Before turning our gaze to the NBA's version of the Final Four, please join me after the jump in taking one last amble through the second-round numbers....

Star-divide

The final 89 possessions of the conference semifinals went a little something like this:

  • Turnover rate: Lakers - 21%, Rockets - 18%.
  • FTA/FGA: Lakers - 0.24, Rockets - 0.18.
  • Free throw shooting: Lakers - 78%, Rockets - 64%.
  • Effective field goal percentage: Lakers - 50%, Rockets - 40%.
  • True shooting percentage: Lakers - 54%, Rockets - 43%.
  • Offensive rebounding rate: Lakers - 32%, Rockets - 14%.
  • Defensive rebounding rate: Lakers - 86%, Rockets - 68%.
  • Points per possession: Lakers - 1.00, Rockets - 0.79.

On offense, the Rockets just couldn't do anything right. They went scoreless in their first nine possessions. They couldn't stop turning the ball over, they couldn't get to the free-throw line and they couldn't rebound their own misses. They couldn't make two-point shots, three-point shots or free throws. Their PPP of 0.79 marks only the third time in the 2009 playoffs that a team has failed to hit at least 0.80 points per possession. It's like an NFL team getting held to just a field goal.

The Lakers' offense, at 1.00 PPP for the game, looks good only on a relative basis. Unlike the Rox, they shot the ball like normal human beings and did some fine work on the boards, but they also posted an unsightly turnover rate of 21%, which ties their playoff high. In the third quarter alone, the two teams combined to commit 14 turnovers, including six consecutively at one point.

It's unlikely that footage from this game will ever be endorsed by Fred McGriff for a Tom Emanski basketball drills video.

And since I can't bear to talk about these horrendo offensive numbers anymore, can anyone tell me why ABC is outfitting Doris Burke in ill-fitting sequined tops from Forever 21?

Doris_medium

Doris, tell your agent to call the ABC wardrobe people post haste. They're doing you no favors.

Ready for some individual player stat-bombs? Of course you are. After the above photo, I don't blame you:

  • Ron Artest, what can I say? It's been a pleasure watching you work. 45% True Shooting on the series, with one shot attempt about every two minutes played. He averaged almost five missed threes per game. Come back anytime, Ron.
  • Kind of quietly, Trevor Ariza had a really strong series. 59% True Shooting, with one shot attempt about every three minutes played. Strangely, though, he's made only 53% of his free throw attempts in the playoffs.
  • Welcome back, Andrew Bynum! 14 points on only eight shooting possessions, with six rebounds, two blocks, one turnover and only two fouls. Look, Andrew, I think we've both said some things we didn't really mean. Let's never fight again.
  • I know the TV guys love to lavish praise on Shane Battier, but when the Rockets offense falls apart, his limitations tend to be a major reason why. In the final three games of the series, he scored 10 points - total - burning 21 shooting possessions in the process, "good" for 27% True Shooting. Somehow I don't think his miked-up, pregame speeches - which seem to me about as inspiring as a law firm values statement - make up for an almost complete absence of offensive contributions.

Here are the final composite numbers for the series:

  • Average possessions per game: 90.
  • Turnover rate: Lakers - 13%, Rockets - 18%.
  • FTA/FGA: Lakers - 0.30, Rockets - 0.28.
  • Free throw shooting: Lakers - 73%, Rockets - 78%.
  • Effective field goal percentage: Lakers - 49%, Rockets - 47%.
  • True shooting percentage: Lakers - 53%, Rockets - 52%.
  • Offensive rebounding rate: Lakers - 30%, Rockets - 28%.
  • Defensive rebounding rate: Lakers - 72%, Rockets - 30%.
  • Points per possession: Lakers - 1.08, Rockets - 1.00.

And the composite numbers for the Lakers across the first two rounds of the playoffs:

  • Average possessions per game: 92.
  • Turnover rate: Lakers - 15%, Opponents - 17%.
  • FTA/FGA: Lakers - 0.33, Opponents - 0.32.
  • Free throw shooting: Lakers - 73%, Opponents - 76%.
  • Effective field goal percentage: Lakers - 51%, Opponents - 47%.
  • True shooting percentage: Lakers - 55%, Opponents - 52%.
  • Offensive rebounding rate: Lakers - 29%, Opponents - 29%.
  • Defensive rebounding rate: Lakers - 71%, Opponents - 71%.
  • Points per possession: Lakers - 1.10, Opponents - 1.01.

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Comments

Display:

Lakers did a great job

Pau and Bynum set the tone, Kobe shared the ball. I like the Lakers chances if they continue to play this way and guess what they still have home court advantage so I can’t wait to see what problems Denver can bring and I want to see if the Lakers respond well to take game 1.

by BrittneyM on May 17, 2009 9:06 PM PDT reply actions  

“Teams tend to take the personality of their coach,” Lamar Odom said. “And I think we have.”

by intuitive on May 17, 2009 9:35 PM PDT reply actions  

No time off

as a fan, I appreciate how the games are fairly regular, but I’m sure the players would have liked some time off, especially Fisher.

Nice to see Sasha not play like total crap in the 4th quarter. I’d gotten to the point where i really did not want to see the guy on the court.

speaking of Fisher, does anyone know how JJ Barera did against Billups? if he even did half decent against Billups, I’d like for Farmar to get more minutes against the Nuggets, as Jason Kidd wasn’t that hot against Billups in the games i managed to see and Fisher is of a similar mold/age.

by Jonny Somers-Harris on May 17, 2009 9:38 PM PDT reply actions  

I didn’t feel the earthquake. I was in the car driving when it happened so I didn’t feel a thing

by intuitive on May 17, 2009 9:47 PM PDT up reply actions  

You can really tell from the hanging lights in your house though...

"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal

by timbo on May 18, 2009 8:02 AM PDT up reply actions  

.......................... that and when the overpass falls on your head.

"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal

by timbo on May 18, 2009 8:03 AM PDT up reply actions  

Or as Lamar said

it was the Rockets blasting off out of here

by Sideout11 on May 17, 2009 11:34 PM PDT up reply actions  

haha laker fans are the worst

you all turned on your team to boo them during the national anthem…. wow

by montadaboss on May 17, 2009 9:51 PM PDT reply actions  

rockets red glare

actually thats what the crowd was booing during the anthem, not the team

by kumquatsrus on May 17, 2009 9:56 PM PDT up reply actions  

really?

I didn’t even hear it, then again I was in my car rushing to the local Buffalo Wing Spot / Bar so I missed the anthem.

That’s pretty funny though.

by jasonmicron on May 18, 2009 4:18 PM PDT up reply actions  

grabbing at straws here, and im surprised you didn’t realize why they were booing.

by intuitive on May 17, 2009 10:43 PM PDT up reply actions  

fail

2009 LA Kings Hockey: thanks to Joe Sakic's snowblower, WE'RE BETTER THAN THE AV'S!!!!

by DodgerBlueBalls on May 18, 2009 3:10 PM PDT up reply actions  

can anyone comment on kobe’s performance tonight. i sat down to watch the game, but had so many things to do that i really didn’t watch it. i saw glimpses of it. anyhow, looking at the box score, kobe seemed to have had a quiet, if not bad game. was he simply a defensive presence today more so than the other games in the series or what? i just thought that since this was the deciding game, that he’d score a bunch of points. seems to have shot poorly. interesting, i am just thinking what someone said about his not showing up for games in which our season is on the line. that person mentioned the phoenix series of a few years ago; the utah jazz game of a decade ago(airballs); game 6 of last finals; the finals in 04 against the pistons. just made me think…

by chaucer on May 17, 2009 9:52 PM PDT reply actions  

Well when he did have the ball he was driving all the time getting into the paint which had all the defenders shading over to him. This was a big reason why Gasol and Bynum were open for so many boards. He was active on the defensive end, but I think he was more about the “team” tonight. As long as they were succeeding I think he just kind of sat back and let all the other guys have their turn if that makes any sense

this article kind of summarizes what Kobe did

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playoffs/2009/columns/story?columnist=adande_ja&page=lakersrocketsg7-090517

by intuitive on May 17, 2009 10:45 PM PDT up reply actions  

in any event

i could care less about kobe’s performance today simply because we won. that’s all that matters to me. i personally, prefer for our two big men, gasol and bynum, have good/great games while kobe has decent numbers. i think that improves our chances of winning. i saw a few blocks that bynum and gasol had. that was the key. defense, especially in the middle. phil should have put bynum back out there and let him score his twenty points so that it could boost his confidence.

by chaucer on May 17, 2009 9:55 PM PDT reply actions  

clogged toilet

nice analogy.

let’s hope we flush the nuggets easily.

Go Titans!

by Pinoy Titan on May 18, 2009 12:00 AM PDT reply actions  

Sometimes nuggets float...

"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal

by timbo on May 18, 2009 8:04 AM PDT up reply actions  

Yeah, they just swirl, and swirl and never go down.

My favorite teams are the Blazers and any team that is playing the Lakers.

by OCBlazerFan1 on May 18, 2009 9:27 AM PDT up reply actions  

Just like in one of the Fan shots Scola was compared to Brand Kobe did it as well, but with Sasha.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXI_ImjNR1k

by intuitive on May 18, 2009 12:08 AM PDT reply actions  

hehehe

Good one.

"This is not a game for boys. This is a game for men." - Phil Jackson

by Gils_Keloids on May 18, 2009 9:36 AM PDT up reply actions  

I Love Ludden’s work

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=AiFf4tKinEUv5HnsYQbVnlw5nYcB?slug=jy-rocketslakers051709&prov=yhoo&type=lgns


That lesson means nothing if the Lakers don’t carry it over to the Western Conference finals, where the rested and rugged Denver Nuggets are now waiting. There’s also no guarantee they will; these Lakers handle adversity far better than they do prosperity. Given another night to gloat over their most recent victory, they could show up Tuesday feeling just as full of themselves as ever.

by intuitive on May 18, 2009 12:24 AM PDT reply actions  

you laker fans make me sick. first off yeah yall won the series ok but if we had a big man the series wouldnt have made it back to la for a game 7 the rockets wouldve won it in 6 anyway, as a die hard rockets fan going to rockets games are great. the one thing that annoys me are when fans cheer during the national anthem when they say “rockets red glare” its not a concert its for our country that gives us the freedom and right to play, watch, cheer and support basketball. why would anyone boo the national anthem just cause it says rockets grow up and know when its basketball youre booing and when you are booing the country. as a 2 year iraq war veteran that is a slap in the face and i think for that i will forever hate the lakers and theyre fans that boo the national anthem over a basketball game.

by sam l on May 18, 2009 7:38 AM PDT reply actions   1 recs

You get sick easily. Try sparking a reefer, that might lessen the nausea...
the one thing that annoys me are when fans cheer during the national anthem when they say "rockets red glare" its not a concert its for our country that gives us the freedom and right to play, watch, cheer and support basketball.

Turnabout it fair play, I reckon.

first off yeah yall won the series ok but if we had a big man the series wouldnt have made it back to la for a game 7 the rockets wouldve won it in 6 anyway

Actually, Houston choked the series away in Game 3, at home… WITH a “big man.” Remember???

You think Yao would have erased the Game 5 blowout, is that what you’re arguing?

Seriously?!?!?!?

HAW HAW HAW!!!!!!

"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal

by timbo on May 18, 2009 8:07 AM PDT up reply actions  

drink a beer man, you’ll feel a lot better.

by chaucer on May 18, 2009 8:24 AM PDT up reply actions  

A. With Yao we would have won in 6, not you.
B. If the anthem said Lakers red glare, you would boo and you know it.
C. Thanks for your 2 years of service. Really.

"Don't I know you from somewhere"?. "Nah, that ain't me, I'm from Buffalo" - Axel Foley

by pslakerfan on May 18, 2009 10:57 AM PDT up reply actions  

D. All of the above

"This is not a game for boys. This is a game for men." - Phil Jackson

by Gils_Keloids on May 18, 2009 2:52 PM PDT up reply actions  

So you're saying the Rockets

are a big piece of poop with way too much toilet paper?

:-)

My favorite teams are the Blazers and any team that is playing the Lakers.

by OCBlazerFan1 on May 18, 2009 9:28 AM PDT reply actions  

Who was the Man?

The biggest difference in Sunday’s game was the lack of a go-to-guy on the Rockets. No one stood up big for them in the biggest game of their season. Sure, McGrady or Yao would’ve helped, but when they needed a bucket really bad, there was no one around. Not Scola, not Brooks, not Artest, not Battier, no one.

by dEDGE on May 18, 2009 10:31 AM PDT reply actions  

Are you really referring to the Rockets as a piece of sh*t?

If you are then I say you’re a classless asshole. If not, well fine then. Good luck with the Nuggets. I hope they mop the floor with you.

by UHoustonFan on May 18, 2009 1:08 PM PDT reply actions  

Unfortunate analogy

but I like the Monty Python Holy Grail – Black Knight comparison, though

"This is not a game for boys. This is a game for men." - Phil Jackson

by Gils_Keloids on May 18, 2009 2:53 PM PDT up reply actions  

Yea...

The analogy is in pretty poor taste.

Rockets = shit clogging the Lakers’ toilet? Give me a break. Weaksauce.

by jasonmicron on May 18, 2009 4:21 PM PDT up reply actions  

I don't think it was intentional - It was only looked at from the perspective of something hard to get rid of

Not that the Rockets were dirty or foul or anything like that.

It’s just that most things you want to get rid of that keep insistently coming back are usually negative (cockroaches, STDs, trolls …).

It’s hard to make a positive analogy in that sense.

"This is not a game for boys. This is a game for men." - Phil Jackson

by Gils_Keloids on May 18, 2009 4:28 PM PDT up reply actions  

I don't think it was intentional

"This is not a game for boys. This is a game for men." - Phil Jackson

by Gils_Keloids on May 18, 2009 4:25 PM PDT reply actions  

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