Originally Posted by
23ska909red02
CP: exactly what
would it take for you to go all Chicken Little?
I definitely admire how steadfast you are in your replies, but sometimes I think of you as that limbless knight in that Monty Python scene. You know what I'm talking about.
So what would it take for you to be concerned? I have a feeling the answer is something like "When the team is down 0-3 in a playoff series, I'll panic."
And another part of me thinks your response will be "When the team is down 0-3 in a playoff series and there's less than a second left on the clock and we're down more than 3 without the bal, I'll panic."
To me the NBA is a lot "easier" then the other sports. You can generally tell who is going to be there at the end in the NBA. There are very very few surprises. Just look at the last 35 years. The Pistons in 04 is pretty much the one big big surprise I have seen in my lifetime. And a LOT of that was both Malone and Grant being out, and us having to guard Rasheed Wallace with Slava Medvedenko. I mean, damn.
I posted a lot of how I feel about the regular season in the NBA thread, but basically, the regular season means less then nothing to me. ZERO.
If we play great and lose, I'm fine. If we play great and win, same. If we play like crap and lose, then I simply look to how we respond. And so on.
I search for things thoughout an entire season, NOT a game by game basis. The Celtics came to LA and got a hard fought win against us. Big win right? HUGE win right? They lost at home a week later.........to the NETS. So which is the indicator? The answer? Neither. Beating us at the buzzer without Kobe meant nothing to me. Losing to bums at home meant nothing to me. The Celts are veteran stars that know how to play the game. Nobody actually thinks the Nets are better do they? Are the Heat better then us? No right? So why do we flip out over it? We do we panic over losing 2 whole games in a row? First week of March no less. I mean, the Bulls lost games back in the day, and they had 2 of the best to ever play, including maybe THEE best and they still lost. Magic, Kareem, and Worthy, with Riley on the bench lost games they never should have. Some nights you just don't have it. It happens guys. Every year, to every team, even elite teams.
Last year we lost to Houston on our home floor in the playoffs. Many LA fans were gripping. Panicking. We went into Houston and got our game back. Then Houston demolished us in game 4. Then we won by FORTY in game 5. Momentum to us right? Nope. They beat us again in game 6.
Game 3 in Utah, Kobe has one of the worst games of his life, but they we are close at the end of the game, down to the closing seconds. We ALMOST stole a game IN UTAH with Kobe playing a horrible game. The next game? Kobe came out and absolutely went OFF. I damn near felt bad for Utah. He shot lights out.
Denver steals a game in LA last year. We walk in their gym and steal one back. Denver goes nuts and beats us up in game 4, JR Smith walks like a ******, they gas themselves up like no other. We win game 5 anyways, and then BLOW THE DOORS OFF THEM ON THEIR FLOOR IN GAME 6. Message sent. The Lakers showed up.
ORLD we let them shoot a record best in game 3, but still were right there at the end. Damn near stole that game. We almost lost game 4, but our vets showed up and made HUGE plays. And we sealed it all in game 5.
Our team has a TON of talent. And a great coach. But playing for the whole thing in June, is JUST NOT THE SAME as playing Miami in March. Or in Portland in January. Every one of these other teams wants to beat us. They want to hurt us, they ENJOY beating the Lakers. They pound their chests, they talk trash, their fans get huge dreams, when May/June rolls around, where can you find those folks? In the offseason threads, that's where. They all go home quietly while we play on.
This is not new people. Happened like this in the 80's, and it's happened in this decade. If you wanted me too, I could go thru all 17 losses, and you would be stunned at how not so bad they all are. Lost to Dallas without Gasol. Lost to Boston without Kobe. Lost to Miami, but the game was tied in OT with 40 seconds left in the game. Lost to Memphis when Kobe passed on the final shot. Lost to Cleveland when Gasol was under the hoop with the ball and less then 30 seconds and he acted girlish. Lost to Dallas in Dallas on a back to back when Kobe missed a 3 to tie with 30 seconds left. And on and on and on. 17 losses, like literally 3-4 of them have been what I would call "bad" losses. Hell, some of our wins game me more worry, like having to have buzzer beaters to beat the Bucks, or Kings, or the Grizz again. That loss in Dallas on a back to back missing a shot to tie with 30 seconds is almost more impressive then beating the Kings at home at the buzzer. Make sense to anyone else but me?
That's how I look at things. A whole, entire body of work. The whole picture. Prior and previous seasons. History lessons.
Do you guys realize that most nights teams just show up with little to no preparation for a team? In the playoffs, you spend 2 weeks focused on those teams. So if I say you can give Gasol, Odom, Artest, Kobe, Phil and crew time to prepare for the other team, who would you take over that group? Honestly? Does that mean that we'll win the title automatically? No. But does it mean that we'll be alright, and the light WILL COME ON when the playoffs approach and the team can see it's end goal? God damn right it does. At the end of the day, name me the teams with Championship pedigree, with that championship clutchness that know how to handle bad situations, like down 3 with 11 seconds on the road in danger of going to 2-2.
Look at the Celtics when they were in danger of going to 2-2 in game 4 on the road, down 20 in the 3rd quarter. They found their way. The figured the angle and made it happen. Not all teams can do that. Not all coaches can figure out the answers. We have guys that have proven it over and over and over, and yet here we still are, doubting them after a couple losses in March. But yet, STILL the second best record in the NBA. We all actin like they fightin for the 8th spot or somethin.
Look, I'm a Cubs fan, I know what losing looks like. Just trust me.
I wouldn't be surprised if we show up HUGE tomorrow in Orlando. But if we don't get the win, it won't be the end of the world then either. It just means we get a little closer to mid April, and the clock will truly start then.
