Lakers blow 24 point lead to Celtics, ouch!
NBA Obsessed takes you into the hit and run game of NBA Basketball.
Paul Pierce, with a lot of help, put the clamps on Kobe Bryant
Image details: NBA Finals Game 4: Boston Celtics v Los Angeles Lakers served by picapp.com
The Lakers are done. They had a 24 point lead in the second quarter over the Boston Celtics.
Even in the 3rd quarter the Celtics were down 20 points.
Then the Lakers stopped scoring.
What was it? It was Celtic defense and Paul Pierce scoring.
It didn’t help that Kobe was being locked down by Pierce. Kobe just could not get his jumper going at all. Every time Kobe drove to the middle of the floor, he was met with a welcoming committee from Boston and most of the time had to pass off to an outside shooter. That is fine, but then the Celtics would recover fast enough to cover the outside shooter as well.
Sam Posey made a couple of clutch 3 pointers late in the game and had 18 points. It seems that there is a new Boston bench star in every game.
Kevin Garnett had a very quiet 16 points and 11 boards. Paul Pierce was very dynamic especially late in the game with 20 points in spite of missing all 3 of his 3 pointers.
Kendrick Perkins left the game with a strained shoulder. We will have to wait and see how bad that is. Paul Pierce tweaked his ankle late in the game, but continued to play.
The Lakers wasted a brilliant game by Lamar Odom, who had 19 points on 8 for 11 shooting and 10 boards.
At one point in the third quarter, they flashed a graphic saying the Lakers had missed 9 shots in a row.
Where do the Lakers go from here? Game 5 is in LA and then the last two games are in Boston. No team has ever come back from a 3 -1 deficit. It is hard to imagine the Lakers winning the next 3 games with 2 of them in Boston.
It will be interesting to see the two team’s mindset for game 5.
As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.
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POSTED IN: Boston Celtics, Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers, NBA Basketball, Pau Gasol, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen
9 opinions for Lakers blow 24 point lead to Celtics, ouch!
languager
Jun 13, 2008 at 5:15 am
i’m so sorry for the lakers, although i must be frustrated over their irresponsibility in letting the celts win despite the big lead in most of the game. but as jackson said, the series is not over. they must take each game as separate occasion. let not do they approach the remaining games as the next three. i pray.
Fabio
Jun 13, 2008 at 6:15 am
James….. SAM Posey? Why not “Wally Posey”? It sounds better…..
Pissed-off Laker Fan
Jun 14, 2008 at 7:00 pm
Considering the 2-3-2 schedule, I was hoping for a split in Boston. Apart from that I knew the Lakers would tough it out in Game 3. But their problem comes when they like to admire themselves while they are almost winning. Almost is the key word. They have the ability, but they lack the discipline.
I agree broken-heartedly, they blew the lead and the series. I repeatedly saw them “NOT REBOUNDING” in the 3rd quarter, like they assumed the shots would drop. WTF??
When the little guys on the other team start to come down with rebounds, then you know the forwards are just watching. And what’s with the open lane uncontested layups by the Celtics? WTF? At least foul them and make them work for the shot while stopping the clock!!!
Do the Lakers want to win, or just place some bets against themselves for fast cash? You guys in LA just want a new car from a side-bet? In Game 2 it looked like both teams were trying HARD to lose the game. I can watch Japanese women on Ninja Warrior on G4 play harder to win for crying out loud.
I dont care if the Lakers lose Game 5 at home. They aren’t going to get lucky against the Boston Celtics. The Celts aren’t going to lay down and die. They’ll whip your butt in LA if you let them. They deserve to win after Thursday night. They’ve got 4 guys hurt and still came back. How? Rebound, defense, rebound, defense, rebound.
LA could have had a break with the series 2-2. They stopped to daydream about beating Boston. In their daydream they woke up losers. They’re like the Rams and Chargers dreaming of winning by getting lucky. In the end, a focused team can beat them with fundamentals.
It is very hard to watch a team lose Game 4 because they have a mood swing. Hey Lakers!! You gonna show up? You are embarrassing yourselves!! I know people in wheelchairs that play harder and want to win more than you do!!!
If you can’t ‘run and gun’ for the people that paid for those seats then sit down and let the 2nd/3rd stringers get out there and play!!!
yohc
Jun 15, 2008 at 10:09 am
Kobe Must Be must be aggressive all quarter… the lakers must limit the points of the bench of the celtics benchwarmers!!!!!! Phill Jackson dont take fisher out in the game for a long time… The Lakers can still WIN The Championship if they Fight and Dont give Up!!!!!!!! KOBE must Assert his WILL to WIN to his TEAMates!
yohc
Jun 15, 2008 at 10:10 am
Pul Pierce ?!?!?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Editors note: My Mom reads these blogs. Must keep them clean.
wait a minute, this isn’t you is it, Mom?
Pissed-off Laker Fan
Jun 15, 2008 at 10:15 pm
Game 5….again….I can’t believe it…Lakers what are you thinking!!! (3rd Quarter 11:15pm)
I see nobody rebounding…..too many bad 3-point shots…..bad passes…..turnovers……
I think the Lakers want to lose. They have the lead and they want to lose it again. Maybe they all have attractive therapists they will see in the morning to talk about it.
james
Jun 17, 2008 at 8:36 pm
P O, man, relax. Your Lakers play a finesse game. Get used to it. They stand a good chance with no Perkins.
Pissed-off Laker Fan
Jun 17, 2008 at 9:43 pm
James,
half time Game 6……yo, man, are the Lakers relaxed enough? Yo, yo, yo, man….this relaxed thing (9 turnovers) is working good for the Celtics. 58-35.
Thanks for giving us the new strategy for playing good Laker basketball.
Celtics want it. They don’t look relaxed. They look determined to win.
james
Jun 18, 2008 at 8:22 pm
You got me, PO. The Lakers need Bynum, because they are wasting Kobe. He can’t beat the Celtics all by themselves
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