I haven't blogged in a while, but I felt that after tonight's Lakers game, I really should say something. The Lakers ended the season on a real good run, winning 11 of their last 14 games, and winning their last 5 in pretty decisive fashion. They finished with 45 wins, 11 better than last year, far above most people's expectations, and back in the playoffs after missing them last year. So the Lakers were looking good, but they still went into the playoffs as the 7th (out of 8) seeded team in the West and are currently matched up against the 2nd seeded Pacific Division champs, the Phoenix Suns. Phoenix features last year's MVP award winner, Steve Nash, who reportedly will win it again this year as well, despite the fact that he's never even been to the NBA Finals. Nevertheless, going into the playoffs, the Lakers had not beaten the Suns with Nash on the floor since Shaq left LA two years ago, so it's not exactly a dream matchup for the Lakers. However, a surprising number of people, including national media, picked the Lakers as the most likely surprise upset in the first round, if there was going to be one. The main reasons for that are Kobe Bryant and Phil Jackson, who simply know how to win in the postseason.
Ok, now that I've brought the situation up to speed, the Lakers entered Game 1 with a good game plan, but clearly were a little shaky, what with most of the team having little to no playoff experience, and facing the league's most explosive offense and best shooting team. LA figured to exploit their size advantage and use Kwame Brown and Lamar Odom to post up and score down low. In Game 1 LA got into a big hole in the first half, down 14, before climbing back to take the lead, briefly, in the 4th quarter. With the game going down the wire, the usually clutch Kobe Bryant missed a number of key shots and the Lakers ended up losing. Kobe took a lot of heat for not trying to score enough, but the Lakers played Phoenix much better than they had all year (with Nash in the game), so even in the loss there were signs of encouragement. Those signs would prove to not just be wisps of hope.
Tonight the Lakers came out and won Game 2 in Phoenix, evening the series at one game apiece, and they did it by dictating the pace of the game and by playing smart, efficient basketball. Fueled by a 19-0 run in the first half, the Lakers grabbed the lead for good late in the first quarter and stayed in control for most of the game. Phoenix cut it as close as three points in the second half, and stayed within about 7-8 points of the Lakers for most of the 4th quarter, but the Lakers played well down the stretch and pulled out the upset win that has to have Phoenix a little worried with the series going to LA for the next two games. As the game was winding down, there was one play in particular which was a huge highlight, which I have provided a video link to, below:
After the game, Charles Barkley on TNT summed things up perfectly by saying that the Lakers have a great gameplan, but that they need to continue to play focused basketball they way they have in the first two games if they want to win. Really, the Lakers can't afford to make many mistakes at all, because the Suns are so dangerous on offense. But Phil Jackson is a fantastic coach who has the team well-prepared for these games, and with Kobe Bryant the Lakers have the world's best player out there helping out. Because of this, I think the Lakers have a fighting chance of pulling the huge upset and possibly facing the cross-town rival Clippers in the second round.