The Los Angeles Lakers remain in Orlando for the all important Game Four of the NBA Finals. Los Angeles is looking to bounce back from their loss in Game Three. Despite what you might hear or read somewhere else.
This isn’t the time to panic; when you look at the loss there are several things you have to keep in mind. The Magic found their shooting touch at home and set an NBA record for shooting in an NBA Finals game but the Lakers lost by a total of four points and were in position to win the game.
The Lakers shot 51% from the field which isn’t bad but only 35% from behind the arc. The worst thing about game three was that the Lakers shot 62% from the free throw line. Had the Lakers made them, Los Angeles would’ve won the game by six points.
Kobe Bryant is the best closer in the game although he made some miscalculations and failed to close out game three; it proves that he’s human. Trust me; there will not be a reoccurrence in game four.
The Lakers need to approach Game Four as a must-win game. The defense has to improve and the intensity needs to be turned up a notch.
The Lakers front line has to be more aggressive Gasol, Bynum and Odom combined to take down 9 rebounds this has to change. The Lakers front line needs to be much more aggressive on both ends of the court and attack the basket offensively.
Pau Gasol scored 23 points he has to have more than 11 shots. Getting the ball to him more needs to be one of the main adjustments for the Lakers.
Lamar Odom is still the x-factor for the Lakers and he needs to be much more active and aggressive. He didn’t have one of his best games and cannot play 32 minutes and finish the game with a total of two rebounds.
Orlando was able to get out in transition in game three: Los Angeles needs to get back in transition, control the tempo, rebound, stop the dribble penetration and rotate out to three point shooters. This is a team that you cannot allow to shoot wide open three pointers.
The Lakers play well after a loss and I expect them to play and win this game to take a stranglehold on this series. Orlando will not shoot an NBA-record 63% again. The Lakers need to challenge every shot and limit Orlando to one shot per possession. Look for the Lakers to make the defensive adjustments and execute down the stretch with Kobe Bryant closing out the game in the fourth quarter.
Tip-off: 6:00 PM PST
Television -
- Los Angeles: ABC
- Orlando: ABC
Radio -
- Los Angeles: AM570 KLAC (Spero Dedes & Mychal Thompson)
- Orlando: Newstalk AM 580 WDBO (Dennis Newman & Richie Adubato)
Injuries -
Lakers:
- None to report.
Magic:
- None to report
Recent Comments