Behind Great Shooting and Teamwork, the Magic Defeat the Lakers 108-104 In Game 3
(AP Photo/John Bazemore)
The most impressive aspect of this game was the way the Magic held on for the victory. This was a team win personified. After shooting a Finals record 75% in the first half despite Kobe Bryant looking like he was going to go for 82, the Magic were as professional as they have been this entire playoffs and held on for the most important win in franchise history. The Lakers still lead the best of seven series 2-1.
Orlando shot a Finals record 63% for the game. Must have been home cooking. They had an amazing five players with 18 or more points (Showtime Lakers?). Howard and Lewis led with 21, Alston with a measure of redemption, hit for 20, and Mickael Pietrus and Hedo Turkoglu each hit for 18.
Their worse shooter was Lewis who made 8 of 14 shots. Personally, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a team shoot this good in the playoffs. The only other teams that come to mind are Chuck’s Suns and Webber’s Kings.
Clutch when they had to be.
Of course, no one expected the Magic to shoot the lights out like they did last night. Howard had a huge weight lifted off his shoulders because of the collective contribution of his entire team.
He didn’t need to go 30/20 as I called for. I guess subconsciously I expected the Lakers to go for the kill. I don’t think either of these teams are what you would call great. The Lakers are 14-7 and Orlando is 13-9 in the postseason. That’s not a slight to either team, it just shows the parity of the NBA. The only other two teams who could have crashed the party were the Nuggets and the Rockets right?
I really thought Kobe would go wild in the fourth. Definitely an aberration when Kobe misses 5-10 free throws. As a team, the Lakers shot 16-26 (62%). The Magic won by 4.
Rafer (huge) stepped up big and so did Pietrus. Both performed as MVP’s in different stages of the game to support the great efforts of the big three.
The most telling stat besides shooting was Dwight Howard making 11-16 free throws. He was clutch in this regard. He was 5-6 from the field and his team actually won. I thought he had to get off to open up the floor for the shooters, but hey, who am I?
There was a stretch in the fourth where Magic passing was less to be desired, but after every Los Angeles big bucket, someone on the Magic came right back.
Pietrus’ steal of Beans and Kobe’s subsequent foul late locked it up.
For Los Angeles, Bryant led with 31 but needed 25 shots (17 pts. in the first on 7-10 shooting). He continued finding his teammates and had his third straight game with 8 assists. Dude came out hot, super hot, but cooled off in the second half with 10 points.
Pau Gasol continues to impress and had 23 on 9-11 shooting. Lamar Odom disappeared again. When he wanted to, he played with great confidence. He needs to come back and play a lot more involved if this team is to win any game in Orlando.
It’s funny, but every Lakers advantage was nullified just because Orlando was home? Huh?
The starters combined for 20 rebounds? Huh?
Trevor Ariza led with 7? Huh?
What is this Andrew Bynum enigma?
This was one game, but I figured the Lakers weren’t as good as advertised defensively. How many games have you seen a team lose when they shot 51%?
Both teams played very well, but it’s not often that Kobe was actually a deciding factor in the loss. After getting off with an 8-11 start, he was 3-14 the rest of the way. He was frustrated with his effort and a little winded. Could he have hit the Great Wall of China?
Have you ever seen a game when a team has 29 rebounds total (because of shooting obviously) and actually wins. This had to be one of the most unique games in recent memory.
To the Lakers credit, most teams almost take Game 3 off after going up 2-0. They fought hard and have nothing to hang their heads over.
The one thing I’ve noticed about the Magic is their resiliency. Whenever they seem like they are down and out, they seem to always respond with great performances (Sixers after Howard’s suspension and Celtics after Glen Davis’ game winner).
If it’s gonna take the Magic to shoot this well to win, they are in trouble.
Kobe has now had two straight sub-par (for him) performances. Another aberration.
Rafer Alston set the tone early and earned big minutes in Game 4.
Their bench was the difference. Each team had 13 turnovers, but the Lakers committed theirs in critical moments.
Gasol has to get the ball more for the Lakers and the Magic have to continue to put pressure on the Lakers defensively.
If the Magic lose in Game 4, this performance will be seen as wasted.
Think about it, the Magic shot 62% and still almost lost.
Orlando was expected to win this game.
One game is out of the way. Two more to get.
Who wants this more?
| LOS ANGELES LAKERS | ||||||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS |
| Trevor Ariza, SF | 42 | 5-13 | 2-7 | 1-2 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | -1 | 13 |
| Pau Gasol, FC | 40 | 9-11 | 0-0 | 5-6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | +1 | 23 |
| Andrew Bynum, C | 23 | 2-6 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | -3 | 4 |
| Kobe Bryant, SG | 40 | 11-25 | 4-9 | 5-10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 | -3 | 31 |
| Derek Fisher, PG | 32 | 4-9 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -5 | 9 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS |
| Lamar Odom, PF | 32 | 4-6 | 0-0 | 3-5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | -6 | 11 |
| Jordan Farmar, PG | 16 | 4-6 | 1-3 | 2-2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 11 |
| D.J. Mbenga, C | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sasha Vujacic, SG | 3 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Luke Walton, SF | 11 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | -4 | 2 |
| Josh Powell, FC | DNP COACH’S DECISION | |||||||||||||
| Shannon Brown, SG | DNP COACH’S DECISION | |||||||||||||
| TOTALS | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | ||
| 40-78 | 8-23 | 16-26 | 11 | 16 | 27 | 16 | 6 | 3 | 13 | 25 | 104 | |||
| 51.3% | 34.8% | 61.5% | Team TO (pts off): 13 (16) | |||||||||||
| +/- denotes team’s net points while the player is on the court. | ||||||||||||||
| ORLANDO MAGIC | ||||||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS |
| Hedo Turkoglu, SF | 42 | 7-12 | 1-3 | 3-4 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | +2 | 18 |
| Rashard Lewis, PF | 41 | 8-14 | 3-6 | 2-2 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | +5 | 21 |
| Dwight Howard, C | 43 | 5-6 | 0-0 | 11-16 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | +5 | 21 |
| Courtney Lee, SG | 20 | 2-4 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | +3 | 4 |
| Rafer Alston, PG | 37 | 8-12 | 1-1 | 3-4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 20 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS |
| Mickael Pietrus, SG | 31 | 7-11 | 0-3 | 4-4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 3 | +3 | 18 |
| Tony Battie, C | 9 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | -1 | 4 |
| Jameer Nelson, PG | 11 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +4 | 2 |
| Marcin Gortat, C | 5 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 |
| Adonal Foyle, C | DNP COACH’S DECISION | |||||||||||||
| Anthony Johnson, PG | DNP COACH’S DECISION | |||||||||||||
| J.J. Redick, SG | DNP COACH’S DECISION | |||||||||||||
| TOTALS | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | ||
| 40-64 | 5-14 | 23-30 | 5 | 24 | 29 | 23 | 7 | 3 | 13 | 21 | 108 | |||
| 62.5% | 35.7% | 76.7% | Team TO (pts off): 13 (16) | |||||||||||
| +/- denotes team’s net points while the player is on the court. | ||||||||||||||
Flagrant Fouls: None
Technical Fouls: PLAYERS: None – TEAMS (def3sec): None – COACHES: None
Officials: Joe Crawford , Derrick Stafford , Mark Wunderlich
Attendance: 17,461
Time of Game: 02:51
I don’t mean to be Mr. Negativity, but Courtney Lee presence on the court is the weak link in this Magic-Lakers series. Courtney Lee is one of the big reasons Orlando is currently down in this series.
Orlando doesn’t have a Bruce Bowen-type bench player to guard Kobe, so the Magic will likely play more Russian Roulette by putting Lee out on the floor–especially earlier in the game…
Courtney did make one impact play with a baseline dunk, but Kobe and Luke Walton’s eyes light up when Lee comes into the game–EVERY TIME. The Magic shot a Finals’ record 75 percent from the field and 62 percent for the game, and the only reason the game was relatively close– the shooting of Kobe Bryant (who had 20+ points at halftime)–courtesy of Lee’s being the primary Kobe stopper. I really felt Kobe was trying to take over that game with Courtney in the game much like Game 1…. the difference was Orlando’s improved shooting. The Magic covered for Lee and it worked out for Game 3…
And it seemed Kobe spent a lot of energy trying to exploit that match-up, and then Michael Pietrus was able to take a toll on him in the second half. Did you see Kobe at the press conference? He looked REALLY TIRED… I mean worn out..
And after an apparent (heart to heart) talk from Orlando GM Otis Smith and Stan Van Gundy with the temperamental Rafer Alston, it seemed ‘Skip to my Lou’ got the reassurance that he was the man..and Jameer will take a ‘back-seat’…
>>>>>”Stan and I have a great relationship,” Alston said of Magic coach Stan Van Gundy. “He’s trying to coach and win games. Never once did I take it personal.”
Before the game, as always sipping on his pregame cup of coffee, Alston vowed to mix up his game. “That’s what I do best,” he said, “instead of standing out by the three-point line like I’m (Boston Celtics guard) Ray Allen or somebody.”
With tongue in cheek, Van Gundy called himself a motivational genius for getting Alston back on track. “I said, ‘Play your game,’ ” Van Gundy said. “It took me two days to come up with it.”>>>>>
Rafer Alston – 37 minutes…
Jameer Nelson- 11 minutes…
During the (ABC) on-court interviews and (ESPN) post-interviews Skip to My Lou seemed much happier with the ‘revised’ application of playing time, and he definitely made an impact early in the game…
>>>>>…”The one thing I’ve noticed about the Magic is their resiliency. Whenever they seem like they are down and out, they seem to always respond with great performances (Sixers after Howard’s suspension and Celtics after Glen Davis’ game winner).
If it’s gonna take the Magic to shoot this well to win, they are in trouble…..”
The Lakers had a chance to step on the Magic, and sweep the series, but it could be a total role reversal and a wave of momentum may push the Magic into a sweep of their own… in six games… ESPN/ABC all but courted Kobe and the superior ‘size’ of the Lakers, much like Lebron when he hit that last second shot…
I believe we wll see a more relaxed Dwight Howard for the rest of the series, a more focused, productive Hedu and the X-factors are Michael Pietrus and Rashard Lewis providing timely, impact jumpers …
In Los Angeles, Orlando may have been overwhelmed (star-strucked) by the Hollywood stars(Jack, Denzel) and were ‘witnessing’ just like in the Cavs series (for a little while)… now maybe the Magic can duplicate what the Miami heat did three years ago…
One of the referees from last night’s game is named Wunderlich. There has to be a connection. Right?
———————
This series is going to be about adjustments. From the standpoint of an effective rotation, Van Gundy worked Phil Jackson over last night. Phil Jackson never honored the fact that Rafer was hot. If he had, he could have shut his water off with Shannon Brown. That option is ALWAYS there. He choose not to use it — perhaps because he wanted Fisher on the court after his stellar performance in Game 2.
Kobe is not going to win this series with his scoring. This should have been obvious after Game 2. The Magic have used Hedo, Pietrus and others to body him up on his drives to the rim and he’s unable to elevate over Dwight Howard to finish at the rim. LeBron could do it because he is bigger and stronger — but LBJ doesn’t shoot from the perimeter as well as Kobe. Kobe is going to have to continue to find Gasol and Odom if the Lakers are going to win this series. He’s exhausted though and if Patrick and I can see it, I am SURE the Magic can see it.
Game 2: 10-22
Game 3: 11-25
This is starting to look like a trend.
With that said, the Lakers did well on the offensive glass last night — if for no other reason than there were so few rebounds to be had because everything went in. Orlando can’t shoot that well 3 more times in this series. Can they? They have to find another way to win.
For all that Orlando did well last night, the game boiled down to uncharacteristically poor free throw shooting. To me, that’s a function of fatigue. I suspect that the Lakers may get their legs and actually have a scorching hot shooting game of their own. If I’m Orlando, I’m still worried — and for a day, I’m glad that Stan Van Gundy outcoached Phil Jackson for one game.
Tom Izzo was probably bouncing off the walls at home wondering when Phil would put his guy Shannon in the game. Never happened.
Mizzo:
The Magic were good last night. However, they scored all of 108 points. Not so long ago, there was a team that routinely dropped 130 or 140 and most of those points were scored on layups, dunks and sky hooks. Remember?
http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/LAL/1987_games.html
One final thought on this game…
ORL had 23 assists and the Lakers had 3 blocks. LAL is usually close to double digits in blocks — but not last night. The ball movement that you talked about was impeccable as was the dribble penetration by Alston, Hedo, Petrius and the like. Even Rashard put it on the floor and knocked down a floater or two.
Fun stuff all around.