Tony McLeod's NBA Basketball fan blog

In a possible preview of the Western Conference Finals the Los Angeles Lakers will host the Houston Rockets tonight. Many experts agree these are the two most talented teams in west. It is early in the season but it will still be a good matchup. The Rockets are 4-2 early in the season but have showed they are for real. The combination of Artest, McGrady, and Yao is a threesome that can match up with anyone elses. Just imagine when they get Shane Battier back. They will be able to score and lock down on defense. The Lakers are 4-0 and beating opponents by over 20 points per game, but those games include playing the Clippers twice. They get their first real test of the season tonight. The Lakers are averaging about 106 points per game and thats only on around 45% shooting as a team. Some of

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One of the things that bothers me most in sports is when superstars switch teams. This especially bugs me when it comes to the NBA, and it happens more and more as the years go on. Think about some of the best players of all time Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Bill Russell to name a few, they never switched teams. You can pretty much count Michael Jordan in that group too, most people do not even count his years in Washington.

Allen Iverson was just traded to Detroit for Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess, and Cheich Samb. Both big names Iverson and Billups have switched teams before. So it is nothing new for either of them. It is just something that has always got on my nerves when superstars switch teams. I am hoping Kobe can finish his career as a Laker, he will be one of the only superstars in recent years to spend all of his time with one team. I could see D Wade staying with Miami his whole career as well. The LeBron James sweepstakes are already in full effect so I would not expect him to stay in Cleveland.

Continue reading "Superstars Being Traded"

Your offense is struggling, you're in a struggle against a team playing their second game in a back to back, what do you do? It's always nice to have Kobe Bryant as an option. Bryant scored 14 of his game high 33 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Lakers to a 104-97 win against the Denver Nuggets. Pau Gasol also had a nice game putting up 16 points and 16 rebounds. The Lakers are now 3-0 early in the season.

Continue reading "That's Just Kobe Being Kobe"

Phenom center Andrew Bynum has reportedly signed an extension for $58 million over the next four years. This should help to keep Kobe Bryant around as well as Bryant can opt out after this season. He knows that having a good center can help him reach that ultimate goal of another championship. Keeping the core of this team together should give them a three to four year run at the title. Signing Bynum to an extension is a big step in the right direction.

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I had the chance to watch a good number of the young rookies play last night. Most impressive on the night was Mario Chalmers who put in 17 points, 8 assists, and 7 rebounds for the Miami Heat. He played a nice all around game. His teammate Michael Beasley was less impressive with nine points on 4-14 shooting. Beasley can score he just needs to work on shot selection. He can score, so he will be a fine NBA player but he is an undersized power forward right now. I say Beasley is 6'7 or 6'8 tops. If O.J. Mayo can work on his shot selection he is going to be dangerous. You can tell he has NBA talent and skills, it is just a matter of learning where and when to pick his spots. The other two on the rookies had good games. Marc Gasol had 12 points and 12 rebounds. Darrell Arthur had 11 points an

Continue reading "Observations on some rookies"

In the second night of a back to back the Lakers again showed how good they can be when everyone is healthy. The Lakers beat the Clippers last night by 38 points 117-79. Kobe Bryant led seven double figure scorers with 16 points as they held the Clippers to 39 percent shooting. The point guard combination of Derek Fisher and Jordan Farmar chipped in 15 points a piece. Andrew Bynum controlled the middle with 12 points, nine rebounds, and three blocks.

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Lakers looked pretty good on opening night defeating Portland. Kobe had good across the board numbers with 23 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists, including a nice scoring streak in the second half. Pau Gasol scored all 15 of his points in the first half.

As expected the Lakers bench played well scoring 34 points. Trevor Ariza led them with 11, Jordan Farmar and Lamar Odom had nine points each. The Lakers depth is going to be a huge factor this season. Two of the last three players off the bench used to be starters, thats Chris Mihm and Luke Walton.

The most impressive thing about the Lakers opening game was their defensive effort. They held the Blazers to 76 points on under 35 percent shooting. Holding such a big lead helped them to rest their starters so they should be ready for tonights back to back. 

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Health, that’s the one thing that can get in the way of the Los Angeles Lakers quest for the NBA championship this season. Coming off last year’s defeat to the hands of the Boston Celtics the Lakers come back reloaded with a healthy Andrew Bynum. There are still a lot of people out there who feel like Kobe Bryant still does not have enough support to win it all.

Bynum being healthy changes this team, more important than on offense Bynum gives them that defensive presence in the middle that was lacking at the end of last season. If he can block shots, rebound, and put in a few offensive boards that contribution alone should be enough. Kobe is going to continue to be the best player in the game and with a versatile big like Pau Gasol contributing for a full year this team is going to be tough to beat.

Continue reading "Lakers Preview"