The Lakers size are overrated

[OsirusCeltics]

having 2 legit 7-footers who are very capable both on defense and offense is pretty good. plus, having Odom off the bench is huge for them because he's as skilled as they come. they're not overrated. they present matchup problems.

the Thunder gave them problems but do you know what play did the Thunder in? Yup, that crucial putback by Gasol. And we were close to winning the championship in game 7 but you know what was the ultimate difference? about a bajillion offensive rebounds. In that 7-game series, whoever won the game was the one who won the boards. their size poses a problem.

i'm sure it's always part of the gameplan to "limit the Lakers' offensive possessions" but that's a lot easier said than done. i'm sure in our case, other teams' gameplan is to "not turn the ball over" because Rondo plays a perfect transition game and our shooters get open a lot on delayed transition, but goshdarnit, doesn't Rondo just mess their gameplan up?

The size had nothing to do with that Gasol tip. Just a great heads up play. It was the Thunder's failure to execute offensively when it mattered. They were so close to win two times on the Lakers home court, but failed cause of inexperience

And for Game 7, it wasn't even about the rebounding. The score was like 83-79, so all of those offensive rebounds hardly  translated into points. It was the Celtics failure to execute on the offensive end. Which is why the Perk trade made us alot better. Up by 13 but couldn't hold the lead. Stagnation killed us, not rebounding

[ballin]

having 2 legit 7-footers who are very capable both on defense and offense is pretty good. plus, having Odom off the bench is huge for them because he's as skilled as they come. they're not overrated. they present matchup problems.

the Thunder gave them problems but do you know what play did the Thunder in? Yup, that crucial putback by Gasol. And we were close to winning the championship in game 7 but you know what was the ultimate difference? about a bajillion offensive rebounds. In that 7-game series, whoever won the game was the one who won the boards. their size poses a problem.

i'm sure it's always part of the gameplan to "limit the Lakers' offensive possessions" but that's a lot easier said than done. i'm sure in our case, other teams' gameplan is to "not turn the ball over" because Rondo plays a perfect transition game and our shooters get open a lot on delayed transition, but goshdarnit, doesn't Rondo just mess their gameplan up?

The size had nothing to do with that Gasol tip. Just a great heads up play. It was the Thunder's failure to execute offensively when it mattered. They were so close to win two times on the Lakers home court, but failed cause of inexperience

And for Game 7, it wasn't even about the rebounding. The score was like 83-79, so all of those offensive rebounds hardly  translated into points. It was the Celtics failure to execute on the offensive end. Which is why the Perk trade made us alot better. Up by 13 but couldn't hold the lead. Stagnation killed us, not rebounding

I don't even know how to respond seriously to a quote claiming that rebounding wasn't the reason we lost Game 7 (unless you're blaming the refs). You can't be serious!! they scored WAY more than 4 points on second chance opportunities, I will promise you that. It was the difference in the game.

[OsirusCeltics]

No, they're not overrated.

What's HUGE is that Bynum and Gasol give them the ability to rotate THREE excellent rebounders and keep at least 1 shot blocker on the court at all times.

Odom and Gasol can generate their own offense while Bynum is really the only player who's dependent on putbacks and such.


End result: they're never losing a game because they got horribly out-rebounded (like we did in game 7 due to a hobbled KG and Glen Davis) or because they have a lineup that's a defensive sieve (any lineup in the NBA without a shotblocker in it is TOAST against halfway decent players).

Comparison to Celtics: When Shaq and KG are resting on the bench this year in the playoffs (I'm assuming JO is done for the year) we're gonna be dead meat. Krstic and Davis are going to get out-rebounded and just flat out attacked, giving up either free throws or and-1's. Enormous tactical mistake by Danny trading a shot blocker for a non shot blocker.

Perk is not that great of a rebounder or a shot blocker. I can't stand people overrating Perk. Playing with KG can make you look like you're special. Kristic to me is a better rebounder. And he also defended Gasol very well in that Thunder-Lakers series.

And one thing people seem to overlook. When Perk is in the game, Bynum or Dwight Howard are able to roam and dominate on weak side defense, which killed us. Perk is an offensive liability and teams took advantage of that. Not to mention, it was easier to double KG in the post or Ray on the perimeter. With Kristic, you have to respect his shot which opens things up for everyone else. And he is a way better passer and post player than Perk

[greenpride32]

Gasol, Bynum, and Odom almost each average a double-double.  They'd probably all be able do it individually if not for the compeition within their own team.  So no their size is not overrated as no other team can match that.

Having said that, I don't think it makes the Lakers the clear cut favorites this year.  The C's are the deeper team this year (assuming they are healthy), and match up better with the LAL bigs this year compared to last.

[OsirusCeltics]

having 2 legit 7-footers who are very capable both on defense and offense is pretty good. plus, having Odom off the bench is huge for them because he's as skilled as they come. they're not overrated. they present matchup problems.

the Thunder gave them problems but do you know what play did the Thunder in? Yup, that crucial putback by Gasol. And we were close to winning the championship in game 7 but you know what was the ultimate difference? about a bajillion offensive rebounds. In that 7-game series, whoever won the game was the one who won the boards. their size poses a problem.

i'm sure it's always part of the gameplan to "limit the Lakers' offensive possessions" but that's a lot easier said than done. i'm sure in our case, other teams' gameplan is to "not turn the ball over" because Rondo plays a perfect transition game and our shooters get open a lot on delayed transition, but goshdarnit, doesn't Rondo just mess their gameplan up?

The size had nothing to do with that Gasol tip. Just a great heads up play. It was the Thunder's failure to execute offensively when it mattered. They were so close to win two times on the Lakers home court, but failed cause of inexperience

And for Game 7, it wasn't even about the rebounding. The score was like 83-79, so all of those offensive rebounds hardly  translated into points. It was the Celtics failure to execute on the offensive end. Which is why the Perk trade made us alot better. Up by 13 but couldn't hold the lead. Stagnation killed us, not rebounding

I don't even know how to respond seriously to a quote claiming that rebounding wasn't the reason we lost Game 7 (unless you're blaming the refs). You can't be serious!! they scored WAY more than 4 points on second chance opportunities, I will promise you that. It was the difference in the game.

Obviously another big would've helped, but it wasn't the deciding factor. Celtics seemed to be doing well when they were up by 13 to start the 4th quarter. It was that the bench was sub-par and forced Doc to play those guys too many minutes which wore them out. They became a jumpshooting team and hardly passed the ball to each other. No offense was created. The Perk trade will eliminate that

[garz]

Yea I think they're overrated. Their length is a huge part of their success but it's gathered them some irrational mystique so they're overrated. If they meet the Celtics again they won't have that size advantage to bail them out this year.

[aporel#18]

The Lakers are overrated? Yes, of course!

The laker big rotation is not overrated. They have two All Star bigs, Gasol and Odom, and a solid starter in Bynum.

Gasol is the most skilled big man in the league, and the best player on that team. MVP of the Finals, only second to Joey Crawford. Only KG and Krstic (and JO if he is healthy) can defend him, but only a 100% KG and a guy named Sheed can shut him down.

Odom is a versatile and uber-talented player, the good thing is that he's not consistent, so we'll be ok in the long run.

Bynum is overrated sometimes, he looks a lot better because he gets lots of easy baskets out of teams double-teaming Gasol. But he's a very good rebounder, and he can score at will over 6'10" players, so we need the O'Neals to match him.

The rest of the Laker team is way overrated, Kobe is a good player but he isn't clutch, he isn't Mike... and they can thank Artest and Fisher for being clutch last june, that was a factor in beating the Celtics. But their big man rotation is what makes the Lakers a solid team.

[kg is king]

Right. The exact reason why LA won two straight championships is overrated...so does that mean championships are overrated? 

[PosImpos]

The Lakers bigs are formidable when they are healthy and being used to their potential.

However, some people act as if the only way a team could possibly beat the Lakers is if they had equal size / length / height.  The notion seems to be that the Lakers are invincible except against some other team that can also trot out three multi-talented seven footers.  That's silly.

[RockinRyA]

No, they're not overrated.

What's HUGE is that Bynum and Gasol give them the ability to rotate THREE excellent rebounders and keep at least 1 shot blocker on the court at all times.

Odom and Gasol can generate their own offense while Bynum is really the only player who's dependent on putbacks and such.


End result: they're never losing a game because they got horribly out-rebounded (like we did in game 7 due to a hobbled KG and Glen Davis) or because they have a lineup that's a defensive sieve (any lineup in the NBA without a shotblocker in it is TOAST against halfway decent players).

Comparison to Celtics: When Shaq and KG are resting on the bench this year in the playoffs (I'm assuming JO is done for the year) we're gonna be dead meat. Krstic and Davis are going to get out-rebounded and just flat out attacked, giving up either free throws or and-1's. Enormous tactical mistake by Danny trading a shot blocker for a non shot blocker.

traded a shot blocker? who, semih? If you watched Perk this year that is one glaring aspect of his game that is missing. Now he may get back his lift, but i doubt it will be this year. His positional and post defense are still as good as ever, but his lateral movement and lift is noticeably weaker.

[droponov]

No, they're not overrated.

What's HUGE is that Bynum and Gasol give them the ability to rotate THREE excellent rebounders and keep at least 1 shot blocker on the court at all times.

Odom and Gasol can generate their own offense while Bynum is really the only player who's dependent on putbacks and such.


End result: they're never losing a game because they got horribly out-rebounded (like we did in game 7 due to a hobbled KG and Glen Davis) or because they have a lineup that's a defensive sieve (any lineup in the NBA without a shotblocker in it is TOAST against halfway decent players).

Comparison to Celtics: When Shaq and KG are resting on the bench this year in the playoffs (I'm assuming JO is done for the year) we're gonna be dead meat. Krstic and Davis are going to get out-rebounded and just flat out attacked, giving up either free throws or and-1's. Enormous tactical mistake by Danny trading a shot blocker for a non shot blocker.

Perk is not that great of a rebounder or a shot blocker. I can't stand people overrating Perk. Playing with KG can make you look like you're special. Kristic to me is a better rebounder. And he also defended Gasol very well in that Thunder-Lakers series.

What?

[droponov]

They are rated just fine. They are formidable and gives us trouble (although i believe gasol can be handled by a 100% KG). What I'm more fearful against them is a hot and motivated Odom. I don't know how Green fares against Odom but I hope he can handle him, because we don't have anyone who can really guard Odom.(unlike in 2008 where Posey shut him down)

Big Baby has done pretty well versus Odom. Much better than Green.

[lon3lytoaster]

No, they're not overrated.

What's HUGE is that Bynum and Gasol give them the ability to rotate THREE excellent rebounders and keep at least 1 shot blocker on the court at all times.

Odom and Gasol can generate their own offense while Bynum is really the only player who's dependent on putbacks and such.


End result: they're never losing a game because they got horribly out-rebounded (like we did in game 7 due to a hobbled KG and Glen Davis) or because they have a lineup that's a defensive sieve (any lineup in the NBA without a shotblocker in it is TOAST against halfway decent players).

Comparison to Celtics: When Shaq and KG are resting on the bench this year in the playoffs (I'm assuming JO is done for the year) we're gonna be dead meat. Krstic and Davis are going to get out-rebounded and just flat out attacked, giving up either free throws or and-1's. Enormous tactical mistake by Danny trading a shot blocker for a non shot blocker.

Perk is not that great of a rebounder or a shot blocker. I can't stand people overrating Perk. Playing with KG can make you look like you're special. Kristic to me is a better rebounder. And he also defended Gasol very well in that Thunder-Lakers series.

What?

Yea.. What? I'm not gonna lie, I'm pretty high on Krstic right now but there's no way he's better on the boards than Perkins.

[Greenbean]

They are properly rated. They are big and active on both ends. 3 great rebounders.

That isnt what has my attention right now though.

The renewed intensity from Kobe and Artest lately has me once again thinking that LA is the team to beat out West.

[NervousPervis]

Please stop including Green in the list of capable 4's that can defend Gasol or Odom... Green is a 3. When Baby is healthy, Green will never see the 4 spot, barring very specific situational matchups... Green is a scorer and plays the 2 (with great size and post up ability) more than the 4.