Lakers (40-21) at Celtics (45-18) Game #64 3/8/25

[moiso]

Appreciate this Celtics team. They are really, really good.

When focused & healthy, no one is beating this team this season.

This is my feeling also. Once the playoffs get here and they get locked in they will be the team we expect. I think the Cs are stealing days of rest for KP with this "sickness" because they goal is to have him in the playoffs.

I don't like the blown big leads but other than Cleveland, they respond and get the win.

I think you are right about Porzingis.  If you aren't they are either hiding an actual injury or he's the wimpiest guy on the planet.

[Vermont Green]

Appreciate this Celtics team. They are really, really good.

When focused & healthy, no one is beating this team this season.

This is my feeling also. Once the playoffs get here and they get locked in they will be the team we expect. I think the Cs are stealing days of rest for KP with this "sickness" because they goal is to have him in the playoffs.

I don't like the blown big leads but other than Cleveland, they respond and get the win.

I think you are right about Porzingis.  If you aren't they are either hiding an actual injury or he's the wimpiest guy on the planet.

On Porzingis, he has played 32 games so far.  Assuming we have a run to the finals, the playoffs might be 24 or so games.  You hope he plays all of the playoff games.  That would be 56 or so games.  His limit the last several seasons has been around 60-65 games, before he breaks down.  There are 18 remaining regular season games.  He may not play more than 10 or so of the remaining games.  This is load management for Porzingis.  He wants to play.  The issue is not his competitiveness.  The issue is his historical durabiliity.  If you play him too much, he will break down.

[liam]

Did LeBron get a flopping fine for throwing his head back and faking a strike to his face?


https://www.yahoo.com/sports/article/lakers-player-grades-l-gets-044738331.html

[Phantom255x]

Did LeBron get a flopping fine for throwing his head back and faking a strike to his face?

Do they even hand out flopping fines? I see flops all the time and nothing happens anyways.

But I do find it funny that Lebron looked like he got shot in the face with that reaction from a sniper, and then a few minutes later he leaves with a "groin strain". I mean idk... felt to me like he just wanted to leave early and not deal with post-game stuff. I'll be more convinced if he comes back and plays this week.

[liam]

Did LeBron get a flopping fine for throwing his head back and faking a strike to his face?

Do they even hand out flopping fines? I see flops all the time and nothing happens anyways.

But I do find it funny that Lebron looked like he got shot in the face with that reaction from a sniper, and then a few minutes later he leaves with a "groin strain". I mean idk... felt to me like he just wanted to leave early and not deal with post-game stuff. I'll be more convinced if he comes back and plays this week.

I thought they gave one to Josh Hart for that flop against us in a game earlier this year....

[Phantom255x]

Did LeBron get a flopping fine for throwing his head back and faking a strike to his face?

Do they even hand out flopping fines? I see flops all the time and nothing happens anyways.

But I do find it funny that Lebron looked like he got shot in the face with that reaction from a sniper, and then a few minutes later he leaves with a "groin strain". I mean idk... felt to me like he just wanted to leave early and not deal with post-game stuff. I'll be more convinced if he comes back and plays this week.

I thought they gave one to Josh Hart for that flop against us in a game earlier this year....

Oh yeah lol that was egregious. But I mean... has there been any around the league since then? I've noticed last year and this year, it seems after Christmas the league suddenly doesn't care about who flops unless it's really obvious like Hart 

I feel like SGA, Brunson, etc. flop so much and nothing ever really happens to them.

[Redz]

One nagging quibble that I just can?t seem to ever 100% get past is that Tatum gets ?tight? when the game gets tight against a good opponent.  He pulled up short on a bunch of shots when the Lakers made their move in the 4th.  He hit a couple of daggers at the end, but that wasn?t Brown had hit a couple of big ones to get the lead back to some level of safety. 

I love the guy and he does so much to help the team be great, but even in a night when he scores 40 and got a near triple double, I still find myself wanting him to do more when the chips are down.

They won a championship, so as a fan I?m totally happy as long as they?re winning and giving us their all.  I want what I said above for him, not me. 

A guess he?ll be done either way huh.

[Finkelskyhook]

Did LeBron get a flopping fine for throwing his head back and faking a strike to his face?


https://www.yahoo.com/sports/article/lakers-player-grades-l-gets-044738331.html

No...But the flopping theatrics probably caused his injury.

[Vermont Green]

Horford plus the starters as a line up were +10 in this game in 23 minutes.  The difference in the game.  Add in the 8 minutes that Pritchard was with this unit in place of Holiday at +7 and that is +17 in 31 minutes for Horford with starters or near starters.

On the season, Horford plus other starters as a unit is +96 in 242 minutes.  Porzingis in for Horford with the other starters is -13 in 307 minutes.  Al won't get any votes for 6MotY because he started too many games but he is a real key.  The other line up to add to this for context is Kornet with the other 4 starters, +19 in 68 minutes.

Porzingis when playing with at least 1 non-starter is +86 in 619 Minutes.  Porzingis with the starters has not been a good line up over a pretty large sample size.  Even Kornet with the starters has been better, at least per +/-.  It is strange how this is adding up.

I had suggested it earlier that maybe Porzingis needs to come off the bench.  Right about the time I suggested this, Porzingis and the started began playing better (+17 for Porzingis with starters in 10 games in January).  But in 5 games in Feb, -12.  Then came the illness.  So continue to try and shoehorn him back in with the starters or bring him back off the bench?

[jpotter33]

One nagging quibble that I just can?t seem to ever 100% get past is that Tatum gets ?tight? when the game gets tight against a good opponent.  He pulled up short on a bunch of shots when the Lakers made their move in the 4th.  He hit a couple of daggers at the end, but that wasn?t Brown had hit a couple of big ones to get the lead back to some level of safety. 

I love the guy and he does so much to help the team be great, but even in a night when he scores 40 and got a near triple double, I still find myself wanting him to do more when the chips are down.

They won a championship, so as a fan I?m totally happy as long as they?re winning and giving us their all.  I want what I said above for him, not me. 

A guess he?ll be done either way huh.

I think some of that was fatigue down the stretch, as he played 46 minutes.

[scaryjerry]

lol @ this Fakers team. There is no way on God?s green earth that this roster makes it through 3 rounds of playoffs in the west and gets to the finals. Zero chance. They aren?t that good. Not a threat at all. In fact, there?s a high chance they lose in the first round epically the they face the warriors. I?ll take gs in that series. Barkley is so right & fools like nick wright are so wrong. I don?t worry about this team for a second.

They were missing 2 starters and LeBron in the 4th? Seems a bit extreme?Luka carried a worse mavs team to the finals, anything can happen.
That said the lakers are irrelevant to me, we have a tough road to get through in the east before any team in the west is relevant.

I do not see this Lakers team surviving the west with two guys that carry them being subject to injury in Luka and LeBron. They aren't going to get out of the west.

Don?t really see it either man but certainly didn?t see the mavs getting there last year.
Wouldn?t be the worst thing if they did, Celtics seem to own Luka.

[Phantom255x]

Porzingis doubtful tomorrow. Did this guy really get hit with the Bubonic Plague? 

(Really really hope he plays against OKC Wednesday)

[Donoghus]

Porzingis doubtful tomorrow. Did this guy really get hit with the Bubonic Plague? 

(Really really hope he plays against OKC Wednesday)

There's no point in playing him tonight to begin with.

[mobilija]

I?m really looking forward to this upcoming era of the Brown Celtics vs Luka Lakers. I hope it lasts awhile. I would love at least 5 years, 10 would be better, of Green dominance.