On Friday night the Lakers pounded the Jazz in their fourth straight victory, giving them an impressive 19-10 record. The final score was 123-109, making it the Lakers 8th victory in the last 10 games, and it seemed they were ready for the challenge that they got last night. But, the the Celtics came to the Staples Center and showed the Lakers how a championship NBA squad should play.
The rivalry between the two teams had not been talked about much since the days of Magic and Bird. The Celtics have not yet recovered from losing the greatest player they’ll ever see, while the Lakers have rebuilt, peaked, bottomed, and struggled to contend with the best. The star power of the Celtics with Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett, already makes an interesting match as they face Kobe Bryant who has been compared to both Pierce and Garnett for his entire career. He and Allen have exchanged words over the years as one could imagine.
The Celtics put an end to the idea that the Lakers could contend with them in their current state. The Lakers roster is good enough to beat Boston, but the team itself is not experienced or confident enough to win big games. It was not a huge game by any stretch, more of a gage to see what needs improvement. It was a poor shooting effort from Kobe and the the rest of the Lakers. He scored just 22 points going 6 for 25 and 0 for 6 from three point land. The team shot 35% from the field and only three Lakers scored over 10 points.
The Celtics proved to be everything that they said they were. It was their 6th straight win and improves their road record to 12-2, going 4-0 on this trip. Pierce dropped 33 and was the high scorer. Garnett had 22 points and 12 rebounds, Allen had 19 points. The Lakers seemed intimidated from the first quarter. They trailed by 10 and could never catch up. The offense didn’t move the ball well and went to Kobe too much on a cold night of shooting. Defensively, they had little that could stop the big three.
The Lakers will take a break until Friday when they play the Sixers here at Staples Center. Perhaps they can take some practice time and learn to play the slower paced game like that of Boston or San Antonio which continues to dominate them and the rest of the league. The up tempo high scoring game is good against a team like Phoenix, but will not hold up against the heftier lineups with experience. Defense is crucial as we head in to the new year with a seemingly healthier line up. Vujacic, Walton, and Brown all played and show no signs of injury.
Phil Jackson is still tied for seventh on the all time win list with Red Auerbach. The Clippers have lost 6 in a row. They play the worst team in the league tonight at Staples Center, the Minnesota Timber Wolves (4-25). They will either get their 10th win or 20th loss.
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