(1) Lakers Vs. (3) Suns

[Andrew]

He obviously got under Dragic's skin, though it probably should've just been a tech on Dragic. Perhaps the referees saw something before that and called the double tech to get both players to settle down.

Incredibly, it looks like we're going to have a close finish.

[koberulz]

Incredibly, it looks like we're going to have a close finish.

No thanks to Artest...

[Andrew]

Still the Lakers' game to lose, though Artest bailed out the Suns with those two attempts.

[Andrew]

Ridiculous shot by Richardson to tie the game. 3.5 seconds left though, just enough time for Kobe's gamewinner.

[NovU]

WOW! What A 3 POINTER to TIE THE GAME! Artest an IDIOT fuck! Nash a HERO so far. 3.8 seconds to go.

[Oznogrd]

i hate ron artest.

Thats all

[Andrew]

And Artest is the hero off Kobe's miss, not unlike Gasol in Game 6 of the Thunder series.

[NovU]

Hahaha. Eating my own word sucks, but that was awesome. Turned out to be a great game too.

[IcemanOutlaw]

richardson's reaction : priceless

kobe will clutch this one....but artest win the game

[koberulz]

Hahaha. Eating my own word sucks

The fact that he happened to hit the game-winner doesn't make him any less of a fucking moron. 'Just have to focus through the people saying "Don't shoot"'? How about, instead, NOT SHOOTING? Dickhead.

Yet again, Kobe comes up an assist shy of his first playoff triple double.

[Andrew]

Agreed. If that shot by Kobe comes off the rim and time expires, perhaps the Suns prevail in the overtime and Artest never makes up for those two bad attempts in the final minute. He came up with the big shot there, but his shot selection has still been suspect.

[Lamrock]

Best game of the season by far. Freaked out when J-Rich hit that three. Plus you had the comeback and Nash playing like Kobe. Last 3.5 seconds fucking sucked though. Once again, the villains won and now we just have to hope the Suns don't crumble, but instead use this as motivation. They have proven themselves to be the Lakers' equals in this series.

[Rip32]

I'm extremely glad I only saw from Artest's first bad shot to his game winning shot

That was an exciting end for sure. We haven't seen many buzzer beaters this post season (Pierce, Gasol, Artest?) and those are def my favorite moment in a game. I almost thought Phoenix had total control after Gasol bricked that dunk.

More exciting: Artest's put-back or the 3-Point barrage before it?

Another thing I noticed in the 1:45 I actually saw was Kobe's stats. Some people call him a numbers guy who keeps track of his statistical achievements, but he's been on the verge of that triple-double for this entire series, yet he still hasn't notched it. I don't really agree with that idea that he's a stat counter, but I just thought that was an interesting thought.

[Andrew]

It turned out to be a much closer game than I would've expected even halfway through the fourth quarter. If the Suns can take Game 6, they've got a legitimate shot in Game 7 but they can't afford to play catchup as they did in Game 5. Still too many careless turnovers, bad shots and bad possessions in general. With the hot start and Kobe on the bench with those two early fouls, they had a pretty good opportunity to build a commanding lead which they ultimately squandered.

[Rip32]

It turned out to be a much closer game than I would've expected even halfway through the fourth quarter. If the Suns can take Game 6, they've got a legitimate shot in Game 7 but they can't afford to play catchup as they did in Game 5. Still too many careless turnovers, bad shots and bad possessions in general. With the hot start and Kobe on the bench with those two early fouls, they had a pretty good opportunity to build a commanding lead which they ultimately squandered.

Yeah, it seemed like the Suns bench didn't show up as big this game as they did last. Expected, I know, but they're going to need balance to win game six and Dragic/Barbosa can't go and hide like they did tonight.

[Andrew]

They came alive in the second half but they were definitely absent in the first, contributing to that big second quarter deficit.

[NovU]

It turned out to be a much closer game than I would've expected even halfway through the fourth quarter.

Same here. Untill the final few minutes,I actually thought the LAL were going to hold the Suns under 100 for the first time in the series.

[Andrew]

They were close, if not for Richardson banking in that long three they'd have achieved it. I thought it was going to be one where I was turning it off halfway through the fourth though, glad I stuck around...even if the result wasn't exactly what I was hoping for.

[Fresh8]

I was recording the game cause I had a lecture and had to pick up my aunt from the airport. Got home a bit earlier than expected and asked my girlfriend if I should watch it live... I'm glad I made the decision to watch it and tuned in just as the fourth quarter was starting... for some reason, I never felt like the Lakers were going to lose this one. Even my girlfriend (who doesn't like sport too much) was getting into it with a few minutes left.

A very entertaining Game 5 for sure!

And glad that Ron Artest got that putback to redeem himself for that terrible terrible shot with 22 seconds left on the shotclock with a minute left in the game. If the Lakers win it all, Gasol and Artest both had game winners!

Since some of you mentioned it, Kobe is averaging some pretty good numbers for this series... like 9 assists a game. He stills scoring 30+ points for the series against Utah and Phoenix and also grabbing his share of boards. Not bad at all. I just wish he'd get a triple double!

[NovU]

Let's not forget Steve Nash's awesome performance. Without him, the game could have been far from interesting. Great player with the biggest heart for the game.

On the other hand, Bynum was yet bit disappointing once again. He was hardly a factor I thought, especially for a guy his size and salary. Of course, he isn't 100%, but still, how long should the fans wait for him to play one full season without seeing him hampared by injuries. I am inclined to like the idea of him landing in Toronto for Bosh more and more. Not that I'm a fan of LAL, but who doesn't want to see a fun experiment. Bosh/Gasol twin tower sounds much better than Bynum/Gasol for some reasons.

[Fresh8]

Steve Nash was brilliant. I must admit that.

As for Bynum, I will just have to be patient. Sucks to see him get hurt all the time. Kudos to him for continuing with the postseason campaign despite being hurt. I don't have many gripes about him right now except for his Game 3 performance.

Speaking of Gasol, I love how he tried to have that massive dunk with about 20 seconds left in the game.

[Andrew]

I think Bynum's been unlucky more than anything, I seem to recall at least one of his knee injuries came after an accidental collision and a bad landing. We like to label players as "injury prone" - and some players do certainly seem to have trouble staying healthy throughout a season - but the nature of basketball brings a fairly high risk of injury, particularly joints like the knees and ankles. The timing has once again been unkind to Bynum, the mishap in the Jazz series leaving him limping the rest of the way.

[hova-]

Why the hell is Nash only shooting 22% from downtown against the Lakers? I think the series is pretty much over, the Lakers will finally win @Phoenix and play the Magic in the Finals.

[Modifly]

All I can say is.. F You Artest. Imagine how fun this would be if the Suns were up 3-2 and were heading back to Phoenix!

[buzzy]

Kobe just wanted that tenth assist, that 'airball' was a pass to Ron.