NBA FINALS "LAKERS vs. PISTONS"

[Matt]

No excuse for this loss.....Pistons could of had 1 hand on the championship

[Jackal]

Quit whining mate, calls were pretty even, some weren't called on LA, some weren't called on Detroit, quit whining. This is the Finals, everything goes.

You're acting as if LA was the only one to get away with fouls, please..spare us the melo-dramatics.

Kobe, Kobe, Kobe, Kobe, why cant he do what he did last night more often? On a constant basis perhaps, his ability to get to the rim is one of his best abilities. (Not mentioning shooting clutch shots.) Amazing this guy is, real amazing. How he does it, I don't know...I'm just glad he does it for LA.

Shaq played another good all around game, his numbers are pretty nice so far.

Malone, battling his injury, did an ok job on defence and was a bit more agressive on offense. He was aware though, making passes etc.

George, yeah. Walton, woah. Nice job kid, he's got the passing skills, that's for sure. He's basketball smart..he might not have many skills to be a superstar, but he's a good role player, at this age already. Nice work getting the ball into Shaq, all the players actually, that was a nice dunk from Walton to Shaq, nice alley oop.

Bryant, wow. Enough said.

Payton, sheesh...is this guy having a hard time or what, he didnt even play in the fourth quarter & OT. That's to his own credit though, he stunk it up out there. He just isnt comfortable with his role, cant blame the man.

Rush was nice off the bench, I like him.

Fisher made some big shots once again, solid job...made some bad decisions too, but those can be overlooked given the series is tied.

funny how lakers fans posted much faster than after game 1

Can't speak for the others, but Kobe4MVP must have just been on the PC whilst watching the game. Myself, I apologise for being late.

The reason I was late for game one was because I couldnt watch it live, you know how parents get. Thus, I was late at posting my thoughts, since I watched the game later than the rest.

This game however, I was there, at 3 till 6 whatever, and I enjoyed every moment of it. Loved it, this is what you call a Finals.

Let's go to Mo-town.

[.]

funny how lakers fans posted much faster than after game 1

Can't speak for the others, but Kobe4MVP must have just been on the PC whilst watching the game. Myself, I apologise for being late.

Well, I admit...The Lakers mean alot to me and I was just pissed after game 1 and I didnt feel like posting, however....I was so exciting tonight that I couldnt sleep so I decided to visit the NLSC.

[Bang]

Luck is part of the game, live with it.
There is no luck, only skill.
Yankees don't have a salary cap...Lakers do.
It's not my fault Orlando lost Shaq.
If plays have changed series, the Kobe 3 just won us a championship.

[Bang]

Mr. Shane,
1.) the guy before me said Pistons in 4. I didn't know it was a joke.
2.)The Spurs dismantled the Lakers game 1 and game 2. Tony Parker played with them, just like Billups did. And the same thing with Spurs annoying and boring D.
3.) Lakers are bad against PGs. What about all that criticism that Billups was not playing to well in East teams? I guess Billups does well against Lakers. Maybe it wasn't luck.
4.) I'm very sure someone said that in some forum, I don't know where. Or it's one of my friends who is a detroit fan. I'm just saying it to dumb fans. In fact the whole post was for dumb fans.
5.) That Shaq and whole lot of bodies was said by someone too. I wasn't talking to the general Detroit fans.
6.) Read above. And someone thought Rasheed would provide most of the offense.
7.) Well Lakers won game 2.

as for why Lakers will win
1.) Lakers always play shitty until they realize that they must step up and adjust. (Read: Walton, Malone taking more shots, Kobe's magical but SKILLFUL 3.)
2.) Playoffs have been turned around by significant plays.
Oh, Detroit wouldn't deny this. Tayshuan anyone?????
3.) Lakers once again adjusted to situations. Phil Jackson is the master at this.
4.) Win 3 away? Well why not. They won 2 away against spurs. I can't guarantee but whatever.
5.) Best Player Wins The Finals. Billups is NOT that. Read my long post about former championships.

Lakers in 5. It still stands.

[hmm]

.

[Stevan]

God damn, I'm not going to read all that. But I must say, it's near impossible to want either team to win this! Naturally you don't want to see the Lakers win, but god damn, the Pistons? No thanks. So I'm thinking "Ok I do feel for Karl and Gary somewhat, let them have their rings...". Then I see Malone disappears from the box score on the first two games? Coincidence? Probably not. Chocker. No wonder Pavel said he was over the NBA, the Finals are "Showerfun" versus "Bad Girls". GO THE REFEREES, WIN IT FOR STERN!!!

Flame away ladies

[Bang]

Shaq will get his, but he'll be tired by game 3 because of all the bodies the Pistons will throw at him. They have B. Wallace, R.Wallace, Campbell, Okur, hell, even Milicic...that's a lot of fouls to give, and I'm guessing they'll use them. I'm guessing he'll probably end up averaging around 22 and 10 for the series, but his free throws will be a problem because he'll go to the line a lot...and the hard fouls will catch up to him, tiring his fat ass a bit, thus throwing off his free throw shot putting. His rebounds are so low because, well, Ben Wallace and Rasheed Wallace and Tayshaun Prince...that's a lot of height for the Lakers to deal with, height they don't have.

I think Kobe will have the advantage in points, but Hamilton will do roughly the same if not better offensively against Kobe. Why? He did great against against Artest, who is a much better defender than Kobe.

There, you said that Shaq will be limited by the big bodies. So far, nada.
There, you said that Hamilton will do better offensively.

[EGarrett]

I have to admit...when the Pistons won game 1 I cheered..."Go Pistons, prove that the East is worthwhile and beat the evil Lakers"...

When Kobe hit that shot...I cheered..."Yeah Kobe...beat those East pretenders."

So I want both teams to lose also. However, you can say what you want about Kobe...the guy comes through over and over. It's not luck.

[Wall St. Peon]

2.)The Spurs dismantled the Lakers game 1 and game 2. Tony Parker played with them, just like Billups did. And the same thing with Spurs annoying and boring D.

We're not talking about the Spurs, now are we? Different teams, different series....

3.) Lakers are bad against PGs. What about all that criticism that Billups was not playing to well in East teams? I guess Billups does well against Lakers. Maybe it wasn't luck.

The east has better defensive point guards. Baron Davis, Jason Kidd, Marbury to a point, Dwayne Wade...the west has what, Bibby and Payton? Nash? Billups goes up against tougher points...and Billups plays fine against the east: 17ppg and 6apg...

4.) I'm very sure someone said that in some forum, I don't know where. Or it's one of my friends who is a detroit fan. I'm just saying it to dumb fans. In fact the whole post was for dumb fans.

Ah...

5.) That Shaq and whole lot of bodies was said by someone too. I wasn't talking to the general Detroit fans.

I said it...as you found...and I knew I said it. But you said I said that they would stop Shaq...I said he'll average around 22 and 10...he's higher than that so far, but he'll have at least one subpar game to bring his average down, and I was figuring on Kobe having around 25ppg on better shooting than the first game.

6.) Read above. And someone thought Rasheed would provide most of the offense.

I don't think anyone has said anything about Rasheed providing most of the offense...he's the third option behind Billups and Hamilton....

7.) Well Lakers won game 2.

I said the Lakers would win game 1 and the Pistons game 2. *shrug* Either way, it's split. And it's easy to say this in retrospect...

as for why Lakers will win
1.) Lakers always play shitty until they realize that they must step up and adjust. (Read: Walton, Malone taking more shots, Kobe's magical but SKILLFUL 3.)
2.) Playoffs have been turned around by significant plays.
Oh, Detroit wouldn't deny this. Tayshuan anyone?????
3.) Lakers once again adjusted to situations. Phil Jackson is the master at this.
4.) Win 3 away? Well why not. They won 2 away against spurs. I can't guarantee but whatever.
5.) Best Player Wins The Finals. Billups is NOT that. Read my long post about former championships.

These statements are true...but you act like the Lakers blew the Pistons out of the water. You act like Larry Brown is Randy Ayers and he's coaching the Clippers....the best player wins the finals? Not always. Tim Duncan's better than Shaq, and so is KG....Shaq is more dominating, but they're the better players...right now they're watching from home. Why? Because their TEAMS were outplayed by the Lakers...There's already a flaw in your argument...and who said Billups is their best player? Hamilton's on the brink of superstar status, imo...if he can score in the finals.

[Steve04]

Mr. Shane..take it from one who was is here in DC...Hamilton is a #2 option, #2..He needs somebody to close it for him in the 4th.

As for Luke Walton not being a factor..I think you must not have watched the game..I'd like to get ahold of the +/- for when he was and was not on the floor. I think the Lakers take game 3 and the Pistons will take game 4.

It will be interesting to see how the Pistons react when the Lakers go on their first scoring run. You know the Pistons are probably going to start strong to put game 2 out of their minds, but when the Lakers start going on a run is when we will find out if the Pistons have truly recovered.

And to whoever is saying the Ref's were unfair, I know it wasn't you Shane... The Lakers had MORE players in foul trouble than Detroit. More KEY players. Kobe and Shaq had 5 fouls for goodness sakes. Whine about the refs maybe, I thought it was an even flowing game, but they were not slanted towards the Lakers. People get on some Laker fans for finding excuses but it is people like you who go and try to find every excuse possible to back up your crazy conspiracy theories.

And this is the same person who was saying Kobe's shot was lucky..Kobe used skill man, all skill. He juked Hamilton out to get room, gathered his balance, get set and squared and got the perfect release with his follow through and it was all net! Luck whatever, all shots are lucky then.

[Carmo]

KOBE IS A LEGEND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I LOVE THE GUY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Alcoholic]

Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2004 1:54 am Post subject:

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Sit wrote:
By the way, k08e4mvp... I think the NBA Fianals award sort of depends on the fans vote... Thats wat happened in 02 I believe.


I'm pretty sure that the media votes for the Finals MVP, same as the All-Star and Regular Season MVP.

Yeah and theres always gonna be some jerk that doesn't vote for someone for some dumb reason (like that reporter guy that wouldn't vote 4 KG because he didn't give interviews or something ).

[Andrew]

Even if he plays, it seems like the Mailman might not be 100% effective the rest of the way: Malone hurts knee again, status for series unclear

[HowAreYao?]

I heard on ESPN radio just now that Karl Malone's son and wife were crying in the locker room last night, leading you to believe that he will not be able to keep playing in this series (what else would they be crying about after a big win?). Also I heard Gary Payton basically came right out and said "I suck" and apparently turned down Phil Jackson's request for him to go in during the 4th quarter last night, instead deferring to Derek Fisher.

So one Lakers star sounds like he CAN'T play, and another sounds like he doesn't WANT to play. Doesn't sound like good news for the Lake Show.

Good news for me though lol. Go Pistons!

[Wall St. Peon]

Actually, I didn't see the game...I had Benji give me a recap after I got home from work, and that's what I was basing it on since he's generally pretty good...he said Walton had 7 in the first half and didn't do anything...didn't mention the assists or the perfect shooting, though. My bad on that one...

Yeah, I don't know how many times I saw that jumpshot of Kobe's today...but it was perfect form. His elevation alone is amazing....I've never seen that much height on a jumpshot. I don't think Prince would have affected that shot too much if he had been in Hamilton's position...beautiful shot.

I give the Pistons 2/3 at home...either the first two or last two...I don't think they'll go every other.

[Wall St. Peon]

Oh, and Karl Malone will play....he doesn't have anything to save his knee for, and from what I've heard, he'll play in the series till he hurts the team by being on the floor...hell, Malone at 10% is still 100 times better than Medvedenko or Cook...

[Prototype]

I am disappointed in Larry Brown and the Pistons in game 2. They had a 6 point lead with 45 seconds left. That last play was terrible. Pistons should've doubled on Kobe definitely. Try to make him do something else. Besides, with around 3 seconds if he were to be doubled, he wouldn't have gotten a good look and if he were to pass it, it would be too late. He would have to force the shot. At least have Tayshaun Prince guard him if it was one-on-one. Rip gives away too much height advantage. If I was to coach that play, I would have Ben Wallace and Tayshaun Prince double. If Kobe did have time to pass the ball, I rather have Shaq get a dunk. But if it were to go to Shaq, I'd foul him hard and send him to the line. On the court other than Kobe were Shaq, Malone, Walton, and Rush. Although Rush and Walton can pose a threat at the 3, I'd rather have them shoot it. Kobe would be doubled, while have one man guard Walton and Rush each, and one in the paint for Shaq. But I'd have to go with the foul towards the end of the clock right before someone would shoot. Pistons would still be up by one and with possession and all, they'd be sent to the line and probably hit the 2 free throws because it would be inbounded to either Rip or Billups. You can't forget that Lakers didn't have anymore time outs, so they'd have to go with full court. Phil Jackson was practically handing the Pistons the game, but they blew it and gave up in OT.

[Fresh8]

Well...any predictions for the next gae...tomorrow?!

In Motown- will the LAkers be put to sleep by their tunes?

Kobe Bryant has to work for his points..in game 2 he somehow had Rip guarding him at the end... but in the next few games I would expect to see Prince staying on him. Damn Prince, his 7 foot arm span is really long and Kobe will need to find a way to get past him.

Is Karl Malone out or what? And is Payton gonna play? These are the two biggest questions. At least Karl keeps trying... Payton should take a note out of Lil' Walton's book!

And D Fish is injured... that means that there arent many guys who will step up on defence against Chauncey Billups. Someone needs to stop him. I will be laughing if Billups goes cold like Parker did for the Spurs but I think that will be a little harder!

My prediction for Game 3: Lakers win and Kobe scores 30

[Matt]

hey Stevan don't hate you stooge. Pistons kick ass!!

I think Pistons will win this one

[.]

Detroit has 1 of the loudest arenas in the NBA, which will only make it harder for the Lakers.

Kobe really should play like he did in the closing minutes in the 4th and during the whole OT, just use youre dribble to get inside...please. He did that dring the Lakers comeback stretch and no one was able to stop him, hell....he even dunked on both Rasheed and Ben Wallace, I dont know why he wants to shoot over someone who has a 7ft wingspan, dont force shots, he is a good shooter but Imo a better driver, also..when he goes inside he draws attention which makes it easier for his teammates, now that I think of it...he did drive to the basket on in the first minute of the game, but he recieved a offensive foul because Ben Wallace was flopping, so maybe he didnt want to get more offensive fouls and get in early foul trouble.

Anyway, I think Detroit will get 1 at their homecourt, it may be tomorrow but well see.

[Arcane]

so sad so many kobe fans who get wood everytime he hits the court

[.]

Ehm, without him the Lakers would lose, and no team has ever won the NBA championship while being down 0-2 and losing their first 2 games at home, how can you NOT be excited about that shot? If the Lakers win the championship, this was 1 of the biggest shots in NBA history.

[Bang]

I'm sorry if my comments sounded a bit exaggerated. (Ok, fine very exaggerated.) I'm just a hardcore fan - -;; and bias wins over 99% of the time.

[Steve04]

I think it's kind of ironic that the Lakers big two FA signee's are almost non-factors so far..So much for Shaq the GM.