After a sub-par overall performance from Kobe Bryant on Saturday against the New Orleans Hornets, Bryant exploded for 40 big points (on 16-28 shooting) to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 120-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors last night.
The win was not an easy one by any means, but the Lakers used their activity on both offense and defense to emerge victorious.
The first quarter saw an aggressive and efficient Kobe Bryant take over, as he scored 13 quick points (on 6-11 shooting) to lead the Lakers to a 27-26 advantage. However, Andrew Bynum went down with an ankle injury that would keep him out for the remainder of the game.
The Lakers led 57-54 at halftime on solid play from Bryant (17 points), Ramon Sessions (11 points), and Pau Gasol (eight points, five rebounds, three assists). Steve Blake also chipped in seven points and four assists by halftime.
In the third quarter, the Lakers managed to extend the lead to 13, 89-76. They were led by the same three players, plus Troy Murphy. Bryant had 12 points in the quarter, Gasol had eight, and Sessions added seven. Troy Murphy hit a three pointer in the quarter, but pulled down 10 big rebounds in the period.
The fourth quarter, however, was a battle. True to form, the Lakers let another big lead slip as the Warriors cut the lead to one point with just over six minutes to play. Ramon Sessions subsequently hit a three-pointer to hold the Warriors off, spacing the lead to 100-96.
The Lakers would then go on a run, but the Warriors kept battling and kept the game close. The Warriors came within three points once again as David Lee converted on a three-point-play with 1:59 left in the game to trail just 112-109.
However, Kobe Bryant would have none of it as he fired right back with a three-point basket. But, the Warriors went tit-for-tat as Richard Jefferson dropped in a three of his own, and kept the Warriors within three, 115-112. Metta World Peace would have the last laugh though, as he dropped in a three-pointer to put the Lakers up 117-112 with 1:09 left in the game. Ramon Sessions then hit a jump-shot of his own to seal the 120-112 victory.
The Numbers
Bryant finished the game with 40 points (on 16-28 shooting, 3-3 from three-point land), five assists, and three rebounds. Gasol had 26 points (on 11-17 shooting), 11 rebounds (four offensive), six assists, and three blocks while Ramon Sessions tallied 23 points (on 7-10 shooting, 2-3 from three), nine assists, and three rebounds. Metta World Peace added nine points, five rebounds, and three assists. Andrew Bynum was scoreless in 10 minutes of play, grabbing three rebounds.
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As for the bench, Troy Murphy had 11 rebounds and eight points (2-3 from three) while Josh McRoberts grabbed eight rebounds and scored two points. Steve Blake scored seven points and dished out five assists, and Matt Barnes filled up the stat sheet with five points, four rebounds, three blocks, and two steals.
The Warriors had balanced scoring across the board, led by David Lee, who had 27 points, seven assists, and six rebounds. Klay Thompson scored 18 points and Nate Robinson had 17 points and seven assists. Richard Jefferson added 16 points while Dorell Wright scored 14. Charles Jenkins scored 10 points and dished out six assists, but no other Warrior scored more than four points.
Now, let’s break down the victory.
Next Page: The Breakdown
Here are a few aspects of last night’s 120-112 victory we will analyze:
Efficiency – Led by Bryant, Gasol, and Sessions, the Lakers managed to shoot 53.7 percent from the field. Additionally, hot shooting from Bryant, Sessions, and Murphy resulted in a whopping 52.6 percent efficiency from three-point land. With Andrew Bynum out, the Lakers took more outside shots, and they seemed to go down for them. The question now is if the hot shooting can continue.
Andrew Bynum’s Injury – What does Andrew Bynum’s injury mean exactly? Well, hopefully it is just a minor sprain and Drew will be able to play after missing a game or two. He should definitely take time to make sure he’s as close to 100 percent as possible before returning. In the meantime, everyone will have to step up, and they appeared to do just that last night.
Activity/Murphy/McRoberts – Perhaps one advantage in having Andrew Bynum out is increased activity, particularly from Troy Murphy and Josh McRoberts. Mike Brown recently decided with a four-man rotation in the post, adding McRoberts to the mix. This took minutes away from Murphy, but the two seem to both play well together, and apply active, scrappy defense both in the paint and along the perimeter.
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There is no question the Lakers are a better team with Bynum in the middle, but if the reserve big men can play the way they did last night, the Lakers should be fine for a game or two. Additionally, both players can use the extended minutes to get into a rhythm. The type of third quarter Murphy had in the sense of grabbing 10 rebounds will be desperately needed in order to hold off opponents while Bynum is out.
Rebounds – Despite the injury to Bynum, the Lakers out-rebounded the Warriors 50-29. It was a team effort as only three players had eight rebounds or more. If Bynum has to sit out a few games, rebounding will have to get done by committee. The good news is that the Lakers appear more than capable of this.
Kobe Bryant – Did anyone think Kobe would have a bad game after a 3-21 outing the day before? If someone did, they must not know the Black Mamba. As he put it:
“It’s always interesting to me to hear people talk after a game like that, that I’m done and stuff like that…the amount of idiots that live out here after sixteen years is just baffling to me…people just get dumber over the years I guess.”
Bryant may have more bad games this season than usual, but it can be expected for a 16-year veteran who has more than 50,000 minutes on his legs. What can be counted on, however, is his defiance and resiliency. Bryant put up 40 points on an efficient 16-28 shooting and was 3-3 from three-point land. One thing we never have to worry about is Kobe’s preparation, so it was only a matter of time before his shots would start falling.
Ramon Sessions – Ramon Sessions is the fourth-best player on this team, and now with one less option in the post, he must look for his shot a bit more and be more aggressive. The spacing should improve for the Lakers as well, and allow Sessions more room to operate in the lane. He did just that in last night’s victory as he was aggressive with his shot and attacked the basket on a number of occasions as well. Now is the time for Sessions to increase his role on the team even more.
Pau Gasol – With Bynum likely out for at least a game or two, Pau Gasol will have to slide over to the center position; something he is accustomed to doing with the Lakers. Gasol has stated in the past that playing the center position is actually easier to play than his natural position of power forward. Without Bynum next to him, he’ll have more room to operate down low. He’ll get a bit more touches, which will allow the offense to run through him; which is typically a good thing for his teammates as well.
Pau has recently stepped up his level of play and appears to be rounding into playoff form. In that sense, the timing couldn’t be better; Gasol will be forced to step up his aggressiveness and activity even more. Gasol knew when to assert himself last night, but also led his team in assists with six.
The hope is that Bynum will come back healthy and Gasol will maintain his aggressiveness.
Next Page: Role Players
Role Players – Metta World Peace, Matt Barnes, and Steve Blake each did their part in last night’s victory and must play in a similar fashion going forward. Neither had big games as they have had in the past, but they each showed flashes of what they do best and contributed just enough to help the Lakers win.
In the previous meeting between the Lakers and Warriors last Tuesday, World Peace and Barnes combined for 29 points, 15 rebounds (six offensive), and six assists in similar minutes (64 total minutes on Tuesday compared with 60 minutes last night). Last night, they combined for just 14 points and nine rebounds, but that’s just fine. Other players stepped up, and the activity level of Matt Barnes will never show up in the stat sheet. Both players’ defensive presence will rarely show up either, although Barnes had three blocks and two steals.
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As long as each player maintains his respective focus in the game and contributes when/where it’s needed, that’s all you can ask of a role player. World Peace ended up hitting one of the biggest shots of the game last night, and Barnes had several defensive plays to alter the game.
As for Steve Blake, he may be one player that needs to provide stats off the bench. He hit one three-point shot and dished out five assists en route to seven points in 15 minutes. When Blake is on the floor, he must be aggressive, and the four free-throws he earned showed a bit of that last night. For a few games after the Lakers acquired Ramon Sessions, Blake wasn’t putting up much numbers in terms of points or assists.
With Derek Fisher gone, he will have to be confident in his outside shot as he was for a short stretch this season, or at least be aggressive and make plays for his teammates, which he also did for a short stretch before the trade. Last night he showed a good combination of both, even though he played in limited minutes.
With the possibility that Andrew Bynum will be out for a few games, the Lakers must share the responsibility and put together team wins.
Last night was a solid start.