Game Debrief: What Went Right And What Went Wrong?

Don't even have to imagine, we did it twice to them in March. Made KD complain and whine and sound completely lost and confused in the post-game.

 

Great win. I’d completely given up but luckily the team hadn’t. Can’t believe we pulled that one off. Team looked like hit a wall and the Rockets were desperate but we still walked away 3-0.

I’ll definitely take it

 

Huuuuuge win!
We totally choked in the second half, but them soft Rockets choked even worse at the end.
KD burner gonna be up all night!

 

Playoff basketball is always like this, it's not as efficient because of the intensity. But it's about grit and tenacity and this team has it in spades.

 

How fun was this game?

 

I remember watching Federer vs Nadal at the Aus Open final live. I had the same nerves tonight, moments like this are universal - this is why you watch sport.

 

WTF

 

Anyone see KD on the bench? Maybe they showed him early or I missed whenever a camera had shots on him?

 

Zen, you left the game chat with a min to go my man haha.

 

I know. 5am man. s*** happens. I'd like to think my leaving contributed

 

I honestly thought everyone played great this game.

Kennard's shot was off. He had the looks but they just didn't go in.

Rui made some vital plays. Still annoyed but how he sucks so bad at rebounding... Can't be averaging 4 rebounds playing 43 minutes per game... Especially against a long and tall team like the Rockets.

LaRavia is still scared offensively... going through the Ben Simmons illness or something... At least he's still playing good defense.

I think these Vando minutes have been huge but the Lakers really have to give up on having him stand there for corner threes... It's not going to work. Kennard is better off taking a contested three than having Vando chuck one up.

I think Hayes is just a better fit for the Lakers in the playoffs. Not a slight against Ayton but Hayes just moves a lot quicker out there.

But man, Smart is truly stepping up big time. I expected him to perform well but he's become the DPOY Marcus Smart of the C Bags. Just elite at every facet of the game right now.

I think these injuries to Luka+Reaves might be a blessing against OKC. Guys are stepping up. They're going to bring that confidence against OKC hopefully. No more relying on Luka to drop 40 for the Lakers to win games... hopefully these other dudes can contribute.

 

I didn't see shots of KD on the bench but I'd pay decent money to see his reaction when Jabari threw it away with 27.8 left, then when Lebron hit that 3 to tie with 13 secs left. I'm not a social media guy, but I wonder what his compulsive dipshittery is saying on his burner accounts. Maybe that's just me. It would add to the emotional grandeur of the game.

 

All them OKC rejects are fake HoFs and MVPs.

 

So. That was interesting. Game 3 in Houston, I mean. Great muthah of all the hoops gods that was insane.

Lakers look "zen" in the 1st Q and put up 39; they're not playing the tight swarming defense though and HOU gets 32. Lakers offense looks really good to start the game and I thought: fercrissakes they're actually going to go up 3-0? I just didn't see it. Even with KD out. I still thought desperado HOU would win a game, at home, they young and amped-up and Udoka's up they azz, etc.

Favorite play in that 1st Q: Laker lineup is Jaxson, Jake, Luke, Marcus, Rui. Sheppard has the ball just over the 8 second line, Jaxson come way out to double him, the ball gets knocked loose into the backcourt, Jaxson dives for it, looks like he'll get tied up for jump ball, but somehow he pries it away near his shin-bone, while sitting on the court, dishes to Luke, who immediately hits Rui camped for a corner 3: swish! Lakers up 29-23 with 3:40 left in the 1st. Had no idea this would later feel like "hours ago" by the end.

Lakers win the 2nd by 24-20. It became a gritty, scrappy, physical game in the 2nd Q. We're up 11 at halftime.

HOU comes out in the 3rd playing great defense, while we look lost: everyone standing around, no one making cuts to crack the zone, some bad shots, some un-crisp passing, some mental mistakes. HOU wins the 3rd by 6, 23-17. Yea, we had 39 in the 1st; 17 in the 3rd. It felt ominous to me.

Now: got too much to do to recount the 4th, but that jit was lit, as you know. So glad we won the 1st 2 games, because Sengun just wanted the ball every time, back down whoever's trying to guard him, quick turnaround post-move hook shot with soft touch: that's what I thought they'd do the first two games. I mean, DA was playing Sengun pretty well, but I didn't think he was playing him that well. Sengun was just missing. Tonight he was not.

Skip ahead to 5:15 left: Marcus hits a 3 footer. Lakers up 91-89.

Reed Sheppard hits a 3: HOU by 1 with 4:59 left. Take a deep breath, Laker fans. JJ calls a timeout.

Sengun makes a killer block on a Jaxson dunk attempt, Amen gets the board, Rui fouls Amen shooting. He makes the 1st, misses the 2nd: HOU by 2 with 4:31 left.

Jaxson drives for a layup, good contest, misses, Sengun gets it, then a few seconds later makes a shot in the paint. HOU by 4 with 3:47 to go. Starting to feel dicey for us; we can't score. Sheppard commits a foul and JJ takes another timeout, draws up a play, which turned into Lebron trying to score by any means necessary. He misses a 13 footer. HOU is playing killer defense. Jabari gets the rebound. Jabari misses a 27 footer. Dude had been hitting them all game. Not now. Lebron gets the board off the miss. Under 3 mins now, Lakers down 4.

Luke misses yet another 3 point attempt, but Jaxson dunks the tip-in: Lakers down 2 with 2:47 left. Finally got a hoop and it wasn't easy.

Sengun makes a great move in the paint and dunks off a Sheppard dime. HOU back up 4. 2:23 left.

At 2:11, Marcus lobs it perfectly to the Old Man for a massive dunk: HOU by 2. I know it sounds crazy, but lately, Marcus Smart is the MVP on the team.

Jaxson makes a great block on Amen! Luke misses another 3. Man o man...Sengun gets it, Sheppard drives for a layup...Jaxson BLOCKS IT AGAIN!

With 59 secs left, Lebron in the backcourt makes a lazy pass that gets stolen by Jabari. Sengun gets it from Sheppard and does another nice post move and hits a 3-footer: HOU by 4 with 49 secs left and it looks dark for us. JJ timeout.

Lebron makes an even worse pass and Sengun dunks. Now it's effing bleak: HOU by 6 with 40.6 left. Well, we played a tough Game 3, maybe AR is ready in Game 4. Oh well.

This is where it becomes totally insane:

With 36 secs left and Lakers desperate, Lebron misses a 27 footer, Jaxson gets the board, misses the 2-foot tip-in, Tate gets the board for HOU. It's over, right?

Now: just a brief comment: When Sengun picked off that last pass and dunked with 40.6 left, the Monte Carlo thing - I checked - had HOU winning the game at 95% chance. At this point no one bets on the Lakers to come back.

In the backcourt, Marcus picks off a Jabari pass. Marcus is swarmed. He needs to try a 3 because it's Hail Mary time. He gets fouled on the 3-point attempt by Tate. Marcus "Icewaterinveins" Smart makes all 3 FTs: Lakers down 3 with 25.4 left. It looked over; now it looks like there's a sliver of daylight but only a sliver. Udoka timeout.

Sheppard has the ball knocked away, by Lebron James, Luke gets it, he needs a 3 but there's a guy in his jock, he dishes to Lebron at the arc, two guys come at him to contest: Lebron knocks down a game-tying 3 with 13 secs left. This is insane! No way did any of you think that we'd be down 6 with 40.6 left and tie it. If you did think we'd come back and will swear to it, "like" this post and you'll automatically be entered to win a case of Lysol and $6 trillion, tax free, to spend however you choose on the sunny south sea island of "Get The Eff Outta Here."

Udoka timeout. Lakers have a foul to give and Rui gives it, with 11.3 left. HOU's man to win the game is Sengun, trying to work down to a decent shot, but the Lakers D is great, his shot misses, Lebron gets the board with 1.2 left. JJ timeout. Lebron gets a decent look at a game-winning 3 as the buzzer sounds: very close to going in but it didn't: OT.

In OT, Marcus hits a 3, Rui hits 1 of 2 FTs, Sengun makes an 11 footer, heavily defended, in the paint, that hit the back of the rim and bounced up high and went in. Marcus makes 2 FTs to put us up 4 with 52 secs left. Jabari misses a 3, Marcus gets the board, with Amen on him, fouling him, Marcus's elbow comes up and grazes Amen's eyelashes, then a second and a half later Amen goes Hollywood and acts like he got punched in the face. The non-Zach Zarba ref bought this BS and called a T on Marcus, who was laffing at how ridiculous it was. Reed Sheppard's technical FT proves the immortal 'Sheed Wallace Law: ball don't lie. He missed.

Marcus calmly hits both FTs: Lakers by 6 with 35 secs left. Udoka takes a timeout. Now Stan Van Gundy is not counting the Rockets out, because he had counted the Lakers out earlier. As pretty much everyone did. But Sheppard misses a 27 footer, Sengun gets the board, dishes back out to Sheppard, the 3 is contested well, but it goes in. Lakers by 3 with 28 secs left. Eason deliberately fouls Marcus, who hits one of two: Lakers by 4: the almighty two-possession game with 24 secs left.

Sengun misses a 25 foot 3. Not sure that was their shot. 9 secs left, Lakers ball. JJ timeout. Inbounds knocked away. 7.4 left. JJ timeout again. We're up 4 with 7.4 left and we have the ball and this has been one of those weird epic games. And I mean that in a good way, because no way should we even be in overtime after being down 6 with 40 secs left and HOU ball.

Lakers can't get a clean inbounds. Gotta work on that. Sheppard comes up with it. Udoka timeout with 6 secs left. If somehow Jabari Smith hits a 3 and they call a foul on it, there is no goodness in the world. Eason misses a 27 footer, we get the board, and are up 3-0 going into Sunday with the chance to SWEEEEEP!

 

Some of you folks should be ashamed for the way you bailed out and gave up .

" We're going back to LA tied 2-2!!" It ain't over til it's over baby!!

 

I want OKC

 

Up 3-0 on the Rockets

Who would have thought?

Team victory and with the fight they have shown they could go a lot further

So proud of this team

But it's not over yet

Need to close this out and not rest

Smart willed us to win

Smart 21 pts 4 reb 10 ast 5 stl 2 blk

LK 14 pts 6 reb 6 ast

Hayes 12 pts 4 reb 1 stl 2 blk

Rui 22 pts 4 reb 2ast 1 stl

 

As soon as Ime saw that our shooting traveled and shutting off Luke's water didn't matter cause Rui had an elite 1st Q, he knew they were in trouble.

 

Saying “playoff Marcus smart” like Catalina wine mixer.



he and lebron sort of dragged everyone to that win. hayes played pretty well but still had his struggles, and i actually don't think anyone else played that well, tbh.

when kennard missed that wide open three to take back the lead with like minute to go, i was like...well, sometimes it isn't your night. then houston kinda choked, and we took advantage.

we went too much with lebron out top as the game wore on, and he wasn't able to punish sengun in full iso. i think he can fix that (not sure he believed they'd dare, but they did, and it worked).

defensively, we have to dig at sengun. he plays with the ball way too much, and he'll give it up if you dig in. without durant there, you're not super scared of kick outs, and we let him get way too comfortable on way too many possessions.

we also have to stop with the unforced turnovers. houston's athleticism and aggression (and the refs seeming to want this to be a bit of a brawl) means you're going to get forced into some turnovers. but you can't just throw it away.