Los Angeles Lakers Rosters, Statistics, Records, News, and More!
Posts tagged guard
Lakers Bench Leads Victory Against Bulls
11.24.10
Kobe Bryant goes up for shot against Bulls.
Shannon Brown says he always wants to play well against the city he grew up in, Chicago. On Tuesday night, he did just that, scoring 21 points off the bench, leading the Lakers to a tough 98-91 win over the Chicago Bulls at Staples Center.
In a game that was close throughout, Brown provided the spark off the bench, scoring 15 of his team-high 21 points in the second quarter, leaving the Lakers clinging to a 51-49 lead at the break.
Lamar Odom had a strong game, scoring 21 points and grabbing eight rebounds, and Kobe Bryant added 20 and a team-high five assists as the Lakers won their fifth straight. Pau Gasol had a tough time, but did have a double-double with 12 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocked shots.
The Bulls were led by All-Star guard Derrick Rose, who tormented Laker guards all night, getting to the rim seemingly at well en route to a game-high 30 points, to go along with eight assists, and five rebounds. Joakim Noah made life difficult under the rim for Pau Gasol all game long, scoring 19 points and grabbing 16 rebounds. Former USC star Taj Gibson added 16 points and 12 rebounds.
With the Lakers falling behind 75-74 early in the fourth quarter, it was the bench that took over the game, not the starters. Shannon Brown, Matt Barnes, and Steve Blake all hit three pointers (Blake hit two) during a stretch where the Lakers turned a one-point deficit into a 12-point lead at 95-83. The Bulls got as close as six with two minutes left, but Pau Gasol’s tip-in off a Bryant miss with a little over a minute to go sealed the game for the Lakers, and pushed their record to 13-2.
For the game, the Lakers’ bench outscored the Bulls’ bench 39-10, highlighted by Brown’s 21 points. Matt Barnes added 10 points, five rebounds, three assists, and a blocked shot.
The Lakers’ defense continues to get back to form, holding the Bulls to 39.5% from the field and 4-20 (20%) from the 3-point line. The Lakers have held their last four opponents under 100 points, and have been dominate on the defensive end since the second half of the game in Milwaukee last Tuesday. It was also only the second time in 15 games they did not score 100 points.
The Lakers’ next game is Friday night in Utah, as they face the new-look Jazz for the first time this season. The Jazz recently came off a very impressive road trip that included several huge come-from-behind wins, highlighted by back-to-back victories in Miami and Orlando.
Lakers Stay Undefeated, Down Rockets!
11.09.08
The Los Angeles continued their perfect start to the 2008-09 season, raylling from 16 down to defeat the Houston Rockets handily 111-82, running their record to 5-0.
It didn’t start out as a thing of beauty though, as the Lakers struggled through most of the first half. They trailed by as many as 16 early in the second quarter before the second unit made a run, keyed by Trevor Ariza and Jordan Farmar, who scored 16 off the bench.
The Lakers finally took the lead near the end of the half and led 50-48 at the break. Kobe Bryant took over early in the second half, and wound up finishing with 23 points, and two spectacular blocks on Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady. Pau Gasol had his best game of the season, scoring 20 points, grabbing 15 rebounds, and blocking three shots.
The Rockets’ “Big 3″ of Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming, and Ron Artest managed only 23 points combined, and shot a putrid 9-33 (27.2%) from the field. McGrady made only 1-11 shots from the floor, a 3-pointer early in the first half. The highlight of the night for the Rockets were the 20 points off the bench from second year guard Aaron Brooks, who hit 8-15 shots, including 3-6 from the arc.
The Lakers now go out on a tough two-game trip this week, playing at Dallas on Tuesday, and then in New Orleans Wednesday as part of a back-to-back. They return home on Friday to host to the Detroit Pistons and their newly-acquired superstar Allen Iverson.
This is the Lakers first 5-0 start since 2003-04.
Lakers Win Barn-Burner in San Antonio, 120-117
11.06.03
It took two overtimes, a Tim Duncan injury, and some clutch performances from Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant for the Lakers to finally win a game at the SBC Center.
The Lakers had dropped all five of their games at the Spurs’ new arena, and needed to dig out of a 9-point 4th quarter hole to force overtime and eventually get the win, 120-117.
Despite missing league MVP Tim Duncan, and staring point guard Tony Parker, the world champs gave the Lakers all they could handle before finally succumbing in the second overtime. They hit only three of their last 19 shots.
Bryant led all scorers with 37 points, and O’Neal dominated the paint, scoring 35 points, grabbing 20 rebounds, and blocking four shots. He also hit the game-winning free throws. O’Neal entered the game shooting only 32% of the line on the young season before hitting 11-of-16 against the Spurs.
Karl Malone, who struggled with his shot all night and eventually fouled out, did manage to score 15 points and grab 19 rebounds. Gary Payton added 16 points and Derek Fisher scored 11 off the bench.
The Spurs were led by Manu Ginobili, who scored a career-high 33 points to go along with 12 rebounds.
The Lakers win moves them to 5-0 on the season, and their next game is tommorrow night in New Orleans, against a Hornets team playing very well at 4-1.
Link: LakerStats.com Box Score
Link: NBA.com Recap
It’s Official, The Mailman Delivers in LA
07.10.03
ESPN is reporting that Karl Malone today verbally agreed to join the Lakers this upcoming season, just days after Gary Payton made the same commitment.
Malone will play for a mere $1.5 million, nearly $18 million less than he made last season as a member of the Utah Jazz. While he could of have signed for more money in San Antonio or even Sacramento, the “Mailman” was lured to Los Angeles by the desire to win a championship, and the chance to play along side Gary Payton, Kobe Bryant, and Shaquille O’Neal.
The Lakers starting lineup, on paper, could be the most formidable in league history, with four potential Hall of Famers.
Payton and Malone’s agreement to play for very little money for a run at a championship is proof positive that for some players do play to win first.
With these two signings, the Lakers have addressed their two biggest weaknesses from last season, a power forward who can shoot the jumper and rebound in Malone, and a point guard with the stellar offensive and defensive skills of Gary Payton. And they did it all for just over $6 million.
News Link: ESPN – “Malone makes move, heads to Lakers”
“The Glove” Fits in Lakerland
07.08.03
In the aftermath of Kobe Bryant‘s legal woes, the Lakers have something to celebrate, as All-Star guard Gary Payton has verbally agreed to take $4.9 million to play with the team next season.
Payton’s commitment ends days of speculation that he would get a sign-and-trade offer with Milwaukee, and play for the Portland Trail Blazers, or even sign with the Miami Heat. In the end however, Payton’s desire to win a championship as a Laker was the deciding factor, according to his agent Aaron Goodwin.
Also according to published reports, Payton may end up signing a multi-year deal with the team.
Payton’s verbal agreement may be a signal that future Hall of Fame free agent forward Karl Malone is close to agreeing to play for the Lakers next season as well. Stay tuned!
News Link: ESPN – “Payton to ‘follow dream’ with Lakers”
News Link: ESPN – “Payton signing may mean another L.A. final”
Recent Chatter