Lakers Run Worst Endgame Offensive Set in History, Lose to Denver

by DexterFishmore on Apr 8, 2010 11:53 PM PDT in Game Recaps

Phil Jackson should've called the timeout. Why he didn't, with the Lakers down two to the Denver Nuggets with 12 seconds to play, I have no idea. If Kobe Bryant had been in the game, that's one thing. In that situation, you know where your shot is coming from. The guys on the floor know their roles. But Kobe sat out tonight - for reasons that, depended on whom you asked, ranged mysteriously from fatigue to swelling in his right knee, though I personally suspect he didn't respond quickly enough to Brian Shaw's Facebook friend request - so the normal endgame playbook was unavailable. You have to call the timeout, to set up a play and to make sure everyone understands what their assignments are. If you don't, you might end up with a farcically inept offensive possession, something with essentially no hope of success.

Like, oh I don't know, an isolation set for Derek Fisher. Let's be clear about this: never at any point this season did I expect to type the words an isolation set for Derek Fisher. That's not an offensive play that should be run by the Lakers under any circumstances. It's not an offensive play that should exist in theory or practice. It's not really an offensive play, period, in that it doesn't offer a more than de minimus expectation of producing any points. It's Derek Fisher. He has trouble scoring when there's no one guarding him and he has four seconds to line up a wide-open jumper. When he has an actual, athletic defender on him, like, say, Carmelo Anthony? And he's forced to create his own shot - I really can't believe I'm typing this - off the dribble? At some point you cross the line from the sport of basketball into science fiction, or avant-garde surrealist theater.

Needless to say, Fisher's shot did not pass through the net for a dramatic, game-winning finish. Carmelo blocked it. Of course he blocked it. The Lakers lost, 96 to 98, and please, let's not speak of moral victories. Yes, the game was closer than expected, but I don't recall any of us complaining about "moral losses" when the Lakers eked out narrow wins over the Grizzlies and Bobcats. The Lakers have now lost five of their last seven games. This was not a meaningless L. They don't have home-court advantage in the West wrapped up, and although they're likely to secure it soon, is it really something they can take for granted? The way they've been playing the last couple of weeks, is there any game left on the schedule they're not capable of losing? I'm beyond fed up with the excuses that are made for this team. They need to start putting wins on the board. Unless they start playing substantially better, they're 100% capable of losing a first-round series.

Beyond the grotesquely incompetent endgame execution, there were two big factors in tonight's loss. One was the lack of efficient offense from anyone except Pau Gasol and Ron Artest. Here's how their production compared to that of their teammates. ("Shot Attempts" in this table includes two-shot trips to the free-throw line.)

Players	Shot Attempts	Points Per Shot Attempt
Gasol and Artest	36	1.33
Everyone Else	61	0.98

For the game the Lakers scored 1.10 points per possession - a strong mark, especially given the absence of Kobe and Andrew Bynum. A lot of the offense, though, resulted from offensive rebounding, as the Lakers took advantage of Kenyon Martin's absence. Better shooting from the Laker guards, who combined for 37 points on atrocious 38% True Shooting, would have secured the win.

On defense the Lakers' problem, as it so often is against Denver, was in finding outside shooters. The Nuggets hit 11 of 25 threes, many coming when Laker defenders wandered away to double the likes of Malik Allen. It's appalling that this is still an issue 78 games into the season.

The Lakers are now 55-23, 3½ games ahead of Denver in the West and tied with Orlando for the NBA's second-best record. They fly to Minneapolis tonight to face the Timberwolves tomorrow, a game in which Phil does not expect Kobe to play. Meanwhile, somewhere in Los Angeles tonight, Jerry Buss sits and wonders, not without justification, how big a pay cut he'll ask Phil to take this offseason.

	Poss.	TO%	FTA/ FGA	FT%	3FGA/FGA	2PT%	3PT%	EFG	TS%	OReb Rate	DReb Rate	PPP
L.A.	87	13	0.40	85	0.26	36	38	41	50	37	79	1.10
Den.	89	11	0.36	68	0.32	43	44	51	54	21	63	1.10

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Issues still the same

We are at the end of the season and we have the same issues that we had since the start of the season:
1. Outside shooting
2. Derek Fisher
3. Running the offense
4. Bad bench
5. Bad rotations/timeout/etc… (I can’t believe Phil is making such mistakes)

I hate to say this but I would be surprised if we win it all this year. There is no freaking switch to turn on. The shooting/fisher/bench is not going to improve overnight. Not to mention people are not scared of the lakers and they have the confidence of beating them in 7 game series.

This years sports season sucks for me.

by Datuca on Apr 9, 2010 12:18 AM PDT reply actions 1 recs

Yea

I’m not even watching the game tomorrow.. What complete trash this has been.. Just garbage.. It truly makes me feel sick..

by sobersik89 on Apr 9, 2010 1:08 AM PDT reply actions

if lakers and magic tie in the standings

who gets homecourt in finals? bc the season series is ties 1-1 and both won their division.

by hrghori on Apr 9, 2010 2:04 AM PDT reply actions

Us

Because we have a better record against the opposite conference.

"That's a giant sig " - Ben R.

by Saurav A. Das on Apr 9, 2010 2:32 AM PDT up reply actions

Unfortunately, this is not correct.

In the event two or more teams are tied in the standings, a series of tiebreakers are applied to determine which team receives the higher seeding.

    * Two-Team Tiebreaker:
          o 1. Division winner (this criterion is applied regardless of whether the tied teams are in the same division)
          o 2. Better record in head-to-head games
          o 3. Higher winning percentage within division (if teams are in the same division)
          o 4. Higher winning percentage in conference games
          o 5. Higher winning percentage against playoff teams in own conference
          o 6. Higher winning percentage against playoff teams in opposite conference
          o 7. Higher point differential between points scored and points allowed

    * Three-Team Tiebreaker:
          o 1. Division winner (this criterion is applied regardless of whether the tied teams are in the same division)
          o 2. Best head-to-head winning percentage among all teams tied
          o 3. Highest winning percentage within division (if teams are in the same division)
          o 4. Highest winning percentage in conference games
          o 5. Highest winning percentage against playoff teams in own conference
          o 6. Highest point differential between points scored and points allowed

Via ESPN

As you can see, the fourth tiebreaker is what currently places Orlando ahead of the Lakers—highest winning percentage in conference games—as they are currently 35-13 against the Leastern Conference, while the Lakers are 33-15 against the Better Conference. I think you’ve sort of partially confused it with tiebreaker number six—highest winning percentage against playoff teams in opposite conference.

by Darkemans on Apr 9, 2010 7:11 AM PDT up reply actions

reported by freedomblogging

The Lakers’ loss Thursday night left both teams at 55-23. They split the season series, and the Lakers hold the tiebreaker over Orlando by virtue of an obscure NBA rule that goes by the superior record against the opposing conference. The Lakers already lost out on home-court advantage in the NBA Finals if they face Cleveland.

by rballer on Apr 9, 2010 7:14 AM PDT up reply actions

I maintain that this is not correct.

Further proof, from the NBA’s own website:

Playoff tiebreaker reference guide
Two teams (top 5 tiebreakers):
1. Division winner
2. Head-to-head record
3. Record against teams in own division (if teams are in same division)
4. Record against teams in own conference
5. Record against playoff eligible teams in own conference

by Darkemans on Apr 9, 2010 7:21 AM PDT up reply actions

No point trying to argue

We’ve got two different media sources with two different sources of information.

Somebody’s wrong, and it’s not anybody on the blog.

by C.A. Clark on Apr 9, 2010 8:29 AM PDT up reply actions

Kevin Ding's saying he got confirmation from the NBA,

so I’ll take his word on that. The tiebreakers I cited are to break a tie in the seeding, which we know can be determined separately from home court advantage (as in the 4-5 seeds where the 4 seed is a division winner, but the 5 seed has the better won-loss, giving the 5 seed home court). Neither Art Garcia’s piece on NBA.com nor the ESPN playoff matchup page give any indication that home court advantage in the finals is determined differently than playoff seeding. However, I generally trust Kevin Ding, so if he says he confirmed with the NBA that the relevant tiebreaker is the record versus the opposing team’s conference, then that’s enough for me.

by Darkemans on Apr 9, 2010 1:25 PM PDT up reply actions

dude!

those rules are for PLAYOFFS seedings! they are not related to the Finals’ HCA!

by oxymor0n on Apr 9, 2010 11:38 PM PDT up reply actions

In watching the end of the game, and the painful hilarity that ensued

I had to sit back and ponder that maybe, just maybe, Derek Fisher was trying to get back at one Mr. DexterFishmore by doing something soooo left-field as to make our illustrious editor’s head explode.

I mean, seriously, did Fish do that to get back at you Dex? I don’t know.

I’m beyond fed up with the excuses that are made for this team.

Yeah, I agree here 100% in regards to excuses. Early in the season it was the “on/off switch”, then “Artest doesn’t know the offense”, then it became, “Pau’s Hamstring”, or “Kobe’s finger”, we got a little “Pau’s not getting touches”, or “their shooters were on fire from outside”, maybe, “we didn’t have insert millionaire tall guy’s name here” and finally, “they’re waiting for the post-season”.

How about, lack of chemistry, no outside shooting, strange substitutions, weak interior defense, and lack of motivation?

Oh yeah, we’re still second best in the league. Jaded much?

I’m scared we won’t make it out of the West, and if we run into Lebron or Dwight, we’re going to get pasted. That being said, as a fan, I believe… man, I believe.

Gimme more intangibles please…

For me its the consistent inconsistency that concerns me - PAGFL

by 99bc99 on Apr 9, 2010 2:14 AM PDT reply actions

At least Cleveland lost today, as well

"That's a giant sig " - Ben R.

by Saurav A. Das on Apr 9, 2010 2:32 AM PDT reply actions

thats not solace to me

we should only care about lakers wins/losses or losses by other teams that effect HCA. Dont get me wrong i hate Cleveland (beat white sox in 11th inning last night which is forever known as fail day II) but them losing to the bulls was only equivalent to going to a circus which most cavs games are like anyways. i woke up angry but i feel better that the lakers put the fear of god in the nuggets someone tell me that we had a lead in the 4th qtr????

YOU CAN PUT IT ON THE BOARD YES!
www.reverbnation.com/czheckproductions
www.mybeatshop.com/czheckproductions

by Czheck on Apr 9, 2010 3:30 AM PDT up reply actions

we were leading by three with like 2 minutes to go

Then a Pau turnover, before him epically failing to close out Melo at the three-point line in transition, tied the game.

Derek Fisher then actually made two clutch moves to draw the foul, resulting in four free throws to keep it close, but we really had no chance after the tie, our late-game execution without Kobe being as unused as it is.

We can’t rely on Pau in the clutch, that’s well known. What I don’t like is that the ball only went to Odom ONCE in the last few minutes, and he actually made a strong move to the basket before Melo was called for a foul before the shot. Also, Artest has been able to carry a team offensively before, and he wasn’t even in the game till three minutes left, and basically never touched the ball from then on out.

What’s interesting is that I don’t recall Phil calling one time out in those waning minutes, not ONE,

"That's a giant sig " - Ben R.

by Saurav A. Das on Apr 9, 2010 4:15 AM PDT up reply actions

wtf

thats even worse than i thought. we had a lead we should have won BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

YOU CAN PUT IT ON THE BOARD YES!
www.reverbnation.com/czheckproductions
www.mybeatshop.com/czheckproductions

by Czheck on Apr 9, 2010 2:27 PM PDT up reply actions

WTF Willy Wonka/Miss Cleo

I called a psychic hotline and the woman said that the lakers will look to be close to defeat but pull out a victory (told her i was a nuggets fan)
money well spent IMO the tarot cards dont lie

by Czheck on Apr 8, 2010 2:11 PM PDT (noon central time 9 hours before game)

i fell asleep right before halftime,threw my cellphone (still dont know where it is) I had a dream that the lakers defied all odds and took it to overtime then lost by 15 (look what actually happened) In my dream i never came back to SS&R (sorry to disappoint you by coming back) im going back to sleep even more pissed now that we didnt win wtf

i should have known better one of my fav quotes is

Julian:Do you believe in psychics? i was told im going to die in 5 days.
Ricky: Are you serious? thats not good when did this happen.
Julian:I called them up the other night
Ricky:A phone psychic,thats not a psychic thats $5.99 a min,a phone psychic told you where going to die and you believed them? A real psychic you believe but a phone psychic?

Your telling me if sasha goes 3-7 from 3pt range instead of 2-7 we win the game? i missed a epic 2nd half i guess. The nuggets should be ashamed of themselves they must suck. Just someone please tell me that kobes ok

YOU CAN PUT IT ON THE BOARD YES!
www.reverbnation.com/czheckproductions
www.mybeatshop.com/czheckproductions

by Czheck on Apr 9, 2010 3:19 AM PDT reply actions

Maybe I'm in denial but am I the only one who believes that PHil's

decision not to call a timeout was merely his way of giving them a chance at a learning experience that could present itself in the post season. Not sure if anyone noticed but after the time ran out Fisher and Artest were talking at mid-court and Artest was clarifying where he F’d up. Knowing Phil is that such a far fetched idea that with the West pretty much locked up that he used that moment to see how this team reacted just in case they ever had to react in such a situation in case they came accross a game in the post season where there wasn’t a time out. Sure they could have tied or won the game but I think that learning experience was more valuable than a win. Besides I can’t be mad at phil. We trusted him this far. Whats the point in bashing or questioning him now.

"If you want to find the dumbest guy in the room just find the first guy to tell you how smart he is." - JG

by PURPLE AND GOLD FOR LIFE on Apr 9, 2010 6:37 AM PDT reply actions

Let's face it, Phil is weird

It most likely is Phil giving them a chance at a learning experience. I was watching the game at a buddy’s house and the Lakers had just scored on back to back trips with getting a stop so Denver calls a timeout. I turn to my friend and say “If that was Phil, you know what he would have done? NOTHING.”

Cuz that’s just Zen crazy Phil. Personally, I love him. And if anyone can motivate them for the playoffs, I believe it’s Phil. And maybe the players aren’t the only ones who are lacking motivation in the regular season. I mean, Phil has been to the finals 12 times, won 10 of them. You think maybe he brings out the big guns for just the playoffs? I kinda do.

Well let me welcome everybody to the wild wild west. A state that's untouchable like Elliot Ness.

by pharoah on Apr 9, 2010 7:22 AM PDT up reply actions

It seems to be Phil's way,

but in this situation I have to agree with Dex. I trust Phil, but unfortunately he trusted Fisher to set up the play and it failed. Even veterans need a reminder of fundamental, common sense play and a timeout would have helped. Artest had the hot hand tonight, heck even Machine was having more success than Fisher.
The Lakers aren’t in the same position Cleveland is and need any home court advantage they can get. The thought of a revenge Finals with the Magic holding home court is a bit worrisome.

by Joshua S on Apr 9, 2010 7:25 AM PDT up reply actions

HUMMM..well i do hear ya BUT

While i trust Phil’s judgement…he also FRUSTRATES the hell out of me…his teaching methods..and so called learning experiences can be helpful dwn the road BUT many times I like to simply see it played out in a" more prepared way">>meaning call a time out..give them direction with the BEST play to give themselves a chance to possibly win the game.<<<that to me is smart and should be done a little more often…but hey !!..i’m just a fan that knows and loves the game…after all i certainly don’t have 10 rings. Nonetheless..the ZEN kills me at times MAN….lol

" Kobe’s mentality is unparalleled and his love for the game transcends all"
By: eLreiEc

by Octavious d on Apr 9, 2010 8:40 AM PDT up reply actions

So many people, fans included, spend too much time second guessing Phil.

Is he infallible? Of course not. His style makes him unique, it works and no one has a record of success to match. It’s part of his mystique and I personally love it as a fan. Trying to conform his approach to any other, is frustrating-if you choose to waste time on it.
This team is going to finish with 57 or 58 wins potentially and given the injuries, shooting woes and inconsistency of this season I’d say that’s pretty awesome. Do you guys really think any other organization is looking at the Lakers as weak, unprepared and washed up? NO WAY! No team wants to face L.A. until they have to.

by Joshua S on Apr 9, 2010 9:48 AM PDT up reply actions

YEA WELL YOU HEARD....?

what Greg Pop said….He does not want to see the Lakers and no team really does<<<he was being honest about it. I can respect that

" Kobe’s mentality is unparalleled and his love for the game transcends all"
By: eLreiEc

by Octavious d on Apr 9, 2010 10:10 AM PDT up reply actions

btw.. AND POP said that aft they beat us last...

" Kobe’s mentality is unparalleled and his love for the game transcends all"
By: eLreiEc

by Octavious d on Apr 9, 2010 10:12 AM PDT up reply actions

the magic

not for sure,but didnt we loose both games to orlando this yr?

by the fantasy king on Apr 9, 2010 6:38 AM PDT reply actions

no

we beat them in LA and they beat us in Orlando

by hrghori on Apr 9, 2010 10:37 AM PDT up reply actions

lose i ment

by the fantasy king on Apr 9, 2010 6:38 AM PDT reply actions

On the last play, it wasn't supposed to be an isolaton set for Fisher, but a pick and roll with Odom.

I didn’t see the game, but after watching the highlights, I agree with Darius from Forum Blue & Gold:

With 12.7 seconds left and Phil deciding against a time out, Fisher dribbled the ball up court, ran a P&R with Odom, forced Denver to switch, but then couldn’t get the ball into Odom in the post on Billups. Instead, with only a second remaining, Fisher fired up a desperation three that got blocked by ‘Melo. Ball game.

In my opinion, it was still an epic fail on Fisher’s part. Once he recognized that he wouldn’t be able to get the ball to Odom (being a savvy veteran and all), he should have passed it to Artest who just got behind the three point line to Fisher’s left and was quite open. Ron would definitely have had a better chance to score than Fish with Carmelo all over him.

by michal0501 on Apr 9, 2010 6:45 AM PDT reply actions

100% agree

did he honestly think he was gonna get a legitimate shot off with melo in his grill? artest didnt really have anyone on him

"Just by the aura of D.J. Mbenga being there, the shot missed."

by shaqfor3 on Apr 9, 2010 7:10 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions

Upon watching the play again, Darius is pretty much on point

Although I’m flummoxed as to how Odom allowed Billups to play such effective ball denial on him off the pick-and-roll. That said, Fisher should have passed to Artest the moment he released to the top of the key instead of pounding the ball away for the last couple seconds. It’s a pretty typical set that we run and Fisher simply made every wrong read possible.

To secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.

by Ben R on Apr 9, 2010 8:20 AM PDT up reply actions

Even if Fish realized he was trapped and passed it, Artest would have had to make a deep three.

by Joshua S on Apr 9, 2010 1:15 PM PDT up reply actions

still, better than a blocked shot ><

and artest was on fire that night

by oxymor0n on Apr 9, 2010 11:40 PM PDT up reply actions

Let's be honest

Deep down We ALL knew Fisher was gonna have the ball in his hands and more likely than not take the last shot….For ANY other guard on our Roster a pick n roll is a good play but Fisher isnt any other guard…He has to be the only PG i know of that cant run a pick n roll. The Lakers got in theory 2 favorable matchups at the end of the game. Billups on Odom and Melo 1 on 1 with a guard. It just so happened that guard was Fisher and well he doesnt do anything halfway competent on the court…..I wonder if the Front Office watched the Bulls-Cavs game thinking how much they screwed us all over by not getting a pg lol I hate to say it but If Phil coming back and Fisher coming back go hand in hand then we better start contacting future head coaches now and be ready to have someone signed at the end of the season

L.A.----Where playing Like the Sparks is tolerated by a Hall of Fame coach.....

by EmmCeee on Apr 9, 2010 9:20 AM PDT reply actions

Fisher should have seen the match ups in play and got the ball to Artest or Vujacic.

by Joshua S on Apr 9, 2010 9:58 AM PDT up reply actions

The fact that his dribble drive and kick is nonexistent

Makes what we can do without Kobe severely limited…Personally i would have had Odom handle the ball with Fisher, Sasha and Ron set up behind the arc for the Kickout. I could have lived with the results of whatever Odom decided to do with ball, be it a pull up 3 which melo wouldnt have blocked or a drive and kick or drive and at least an attempt at a shot. His decision making is far superior to Fish imo….It just shows another reason Farmar should be starting instead of Fish….

L.A.----Where playing Like the Sparks is tolerated by a Hall of Fame coach.....

by EmmCeee on Apr 9, 2010 10:05 AM PDT up reply actions

So many people, fans included, spend too much time second guessing Phil.

by Joshua S on Apr 9, 2010 9:49 AM PDT reply actions

Im not so sure there are any teams that are "fearing" facing the Lakers right now

Why should they? There are 5 teams with 50 or more wins in the West and we are only 3-4 games ahead of them…We havent destroyed anybody this year to make them feel like we cant be beat. Quite Honestly teams should feel like we are ripe for the pickings imo

L.A.----Where playing Like the Sparks is tolerated by a Hall of Fame coach.....

by EmmCeee on Apr 9, 2010 10:11 AM PDT up reply actions

BELIEVE ME

If you asked all 7 West playoff contenders, To pick the team on the West that they would rather not face??<<<<TRUST ME most wld say Los Angeles. No matter how well they have played us in the regular season…most of them knw ALL TOO WELL..What playoff time means to the Lakers…in a 7—SEVEN game series.

" Kobe’s mentality is unparalleled and his love for the game transcends all"
By: eLreiEc

by Octavious d on Apr 9, 2010 10:18 AM PDT up reply actions

Of course they would say that

Teams dont want to give the Lakers any Bulletin Board material….The only thing teams might fear is the Laker “mystique” but based purely on the Lakers play of late,there shouldnt be a team out there that would fear playing us

L.A.----Where playing Like the Sparks is tolerated by a Hall of Fame coach.....

by EmmCeee on Apr 9, 2010 10:44 AM PDT up reply actions

yea..i guess i just dont think they are looking so much..

At our recent play…I think most of them knw it will be tough to take us dwn in a playoff series…but YES ..our recent play doesnt leave MUCH AT ALL to be desired thats for DAMN SURE !!

" Kobe’s mentality is unparalleled and his love for the game transcends all"
By: eLreiEc

by Octavious d on Apr 9, 2010 11:08 AM PDT up reply actions

Oops. Sorry for the double post.

by Joshua S on Apr 9, 2010 9:50 AM PDT reply actions

one thing i did see that made me feel kinda good

was in a spot up role Sasha can hit the open 3. He had some bad shots and i will hafta look back and see how many of those came at or near the end of the shot clock. As Far as Hitting the open shot he was doing it last night and one would hafta think with Kobe and Bynum in the game he gets those shots he will hit them in the playoffs

L.A.----Where playing Like the Sparks is tolerated by a Hall of Fame coach.....

by EmmCeee on Apr 9, 2010 10:14 AM PDT reply actions

i really honestly think

that i can play the pg better than Fisher…and im not even joking about that

by hrghori on Apr 9, 2010 10:41 AM PDT reply actions

j.d.hastings

During one of the breaks where they mic the coaches they had Phil telling the team that their entire defensive philosophy was to crowd the paint and rotate to shooters as a secondary concern, so every time they were late rotating I just figured that was why. This is also why they haven’t changed so late into the season. This is apparently their strategy. Let teams shoot the 3.

Anyways, great analysis. However, saying “If the guards shot better the Lakers would have won” is like saying “If I pack of nomadic wildebeests stormed the court and gored 90% of the Denver squad the Lakers would have won” or “If the Nets were better they’d have won more games…”

by j_d_hastings on Apr 9, 2010 10:43 AM PDT reply actions

No one fears the Lakers

Certainly other teams don’t want to meet them first round or even second round. The Lakers are a huge question mark to every team. No one knows whether a championship Laker team or a good Laker team will show up for the playoffs. Even the Laker fans don’t know. Most teams would rather let other teams knock the Lakers out of the playoffs than do it themselves. Just ask Denver or Dallas. They believe they can beat the Lakers. Maybe even San Antonio, Utah, or Phoenix do as well. And who knows OKC and Portland are young enough teams that they may not know any better than to believe they can beat any team. So who does that leave? No one. Lakers have lost any psychological edge they may have had. Except now other teams are just wondering who will show up in the playoffs. It is like planning a birthday party for a schizophrenic. Who do you invite? What activities should you have?

by bifftime on Apr 11, 2010 7:46 AM PDT reply actions