An article to show how Ray broke down the Lakers defense and burn them for 24 points.
L.A. Times: So this was the player the Celtics were supposedly trading.
Guard Ray Allen had often been the subject of trade rumors as the deadline approached. And the reasons were fairly obvious. Though he’s part of the Big Three, including forward Kevin Garnett and guard Paul Pierce, Allen has shot a career-low 33.3% this season.
Yet, despite having a two of 10 effort Jan. 31 against the Lakers, he scored a team-high 24 points on 10 of 15 shooting in the Lakers’ 87-86 loss Thursday to the Celtics. And after a look through the game footage, Derek Fisher’scontention that Allen’s performance stemmed between Allen being a good shooter and team defensive breakdowns is pretty accurate.
“Obviously he’s a great shooter. Sometimes they’re not going to be really anything you can do to maybe keep him from having the type of night he had tonight,” said Fisher, who largely struggled defending Allen. “But there were a few times where we didn’t defensively react the way we needed to, which allowed him in particular a couple transition threes and he got a dunk in transition. Those are points you cant give him. If he makes a shot with a hand in his face, you have to give him credit for being Ray Allen. There are some times when he was wide open and those are the breakdowns we can’t have in a game like that.”
Although Fisher isn’t absolved from some blame for those lapes, the film shows that the problem wasn’t squarely solely on him and Shannon Brown. Though they often trailed Allen’s efficient cutting from screens, rarely did the rest of the team help adjust its defensive strategy. Below is a breakdown on all of Allen’s shot attempts.
Continue reading ‘Ray Allen exploits Lakers’ defensive lapses’
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