Thursday, January 12, 2006
Kobe vs. LeBron - Year 3
Starting late tonight (for those on EST), the soon to be nicknamed athlete from Akron takes on the man whose been dropped from more sponors than Kate Moss. This should be a great matchup as both athletes have been on a scoring parade recently. Could be one for the ages..
Here is a nice preview of the game from USA Today because freakin ESPiN requires an Insider account. I mean do you guys really need another revenue stream. Come on...let us read these guys for free..you make enough money from the ads on your page. And now ESPiN mobile phones..shoot me now. Ok sorry about that little rant, but here is a little blurb from the Bron vs Kobe article:
TNT analyst Kenny Smith says the differences between Bryant and James far outweigh whatever similarities they might have. Where the 6-8, 240-pound James overwhelms opponents with his size and strength as well as skill, Bryant at 6-7, 210, has more speed, quickness and finesse, Smith says.
Also, here is a little article (through TrueHoop) from Slate.com about The LeBrons from an advertising perspective (I guess?). The person writing really doesn't get the idea that you don't have to promote something in all your commercials, but still it's worth a quick read especially if you want to relive LeBron's commercial history.
Otherwise that..Go Cavs!
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7 comments:
Aw man, that loss hurts. But as Jordan once said, the true champions are immune to failure. I guarentee you that LeBron will make a game winning shot later this season, if not this road trip.
I sure hope he does. Nobody else on this team could hit that shot right now. I am getting concerned with Coach Brown's decision making. For instance, in the 2nd Luke was playing well and Sasha had come in missed 2 shots, 1 TO and a foul. So what does Brown do... he takes Luke out. Maybe fatigue was a part of if, but go with the hot man, which is why Luke got time in the 4th (which was great to see). I am sure we'll see more of Luke tonight against a fast/up 'n' down Suns team. My other beef with Brown was the plays he drew up. At the end of the game with 8 sec left we had the ball on the side baseline, passed to LBJ, he turned was fouled and got to the line (forget he is shooting horribly from the line of late). Good play call coach! So Drew gets the RB (he had a great game), we call timeout and draw up another play from the exact same location a before. This time LBJ sets a screen (instead of using his massive frame and overpower Kobe downlow), gets the ball above the 3-line, drives half way and fades back on his shot. Bad call coach. Yeah LBJ should have the ball in his hand, but he was to far away from the basket and if you let LBJ get the ball that high you must enforce the point he MUST get deep in the lane and take the shot or dish. Coach has to do a better job in those two situations... player rotations and play calling. He's a rookie Head Coach so I'm OK with it, but not really... we need to win those types of games.
Tko9er, I have to disagree with you. First, I think Coach Brown is trying to find a spark with the bench bunch. Luke and Sasha are competing for those minutes, and neither one did much in the second quarter. Luke got hot in the fourth, but as far as the second goes they did very little.
At the end of the game, I think the play calls were great. Down 2, you are looking for either a layup or a three. Letting your best player have the ball in the post is a great idea- especially when he is such a good passer. He also has the power advantage on Kobe. Sure, LBJ hasn't been hitting his FTs, but you can't worry about that.
The second play call was also good. With 4.2, you probably are going to give the ball back- if you do, very little time. So now, you want the power guys in to get a closer look. A three or a two are worth the same now too. So you can't post LBJ up- now they will for sure double him and make someone else do it. Using LBJ to screen someone else is a great way to get him the ball. He got it, got to the FT line, and had a good look. I bet you he makes that shot 50% of the time. What more do you want in an end of game situation?
The reason we lost tonight were: (1) poor FT shooting (LBJ has gone cold!) and (2) stupid turnovers off of token pressure. That's it. Not coaching. Not shooting. Nothing else.
Paullev, I have to disagree with you as well (if for no other reason than we always do). Yeah Luke and Sasha are competing for minutes, but the lineup in the game without LBJ on the court shoudl include Luke over Sasha not matter what. It's like the Lakers always having Walton out there handlin the ball when Kobe is on the bench. Luke is a better passer and gets the offense moving. Sasha has better handles, but he looks so lost on the court and does not help the offensive flow. You could see Sasha try to find his shot, but he settled for J and not drives to the lane, where he is really good at getting to the rack.
As for the play calling, I said the first time LBJ got the ball on the block was a great call. The second time would have been good as well. Even so, LBJ could have gotten the ball on the block or near it, turned and shot his awesome J or he could have drawn Kobe outside and driven the lane froma different angle. I understand your point of getting him the ball where the D can't double team him as easily, but then you must make sure you get deeper in the paint or at least get fouled. Sure LBJ hits that shot 50% of the time, but when it counts he is O-fer. He is going to get the call if he attacks the glass. Our teams settles for way to many jumpers and does not attack the glass.
Ok, its your opinion that Luke is better. Fine, and its a good one. But there is no factual basis for that opinion. Its not like Luke has put up way better numbers or something. You need to play what you have to see it.
As far as call 2 goes, no way are the Lakers going to let LBJ get the ball on the block again. Saying that he goes 0-fer when it counts tells me you have no confidence in the King. I do- he will make the shot soon. Very soon. And then you will have to repent and kiss the ring!
The first problem is that we have not been in the position enough for Lebron to get comfortable shooting the game winner. In time he will hit that shot. He just needs more experience and confidence. It will come. After we get to the playoffs this year and are eliminated in the first or second round he will want it more. Eventually he needs to bring the killer instinct that Kobe has and Jordan had to his game. However, he is going to have to fail before he realizes what he needs to do. Also, did you notice how much better he played yesterday on the defensive side of the ball, where is that every game?
Bri911- your analysis is right on. As far as the D, LBJ only plays that when he wants to. Eventually, he will learn that he needs to play it all the time. When he does, watch out.
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