The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Lakers fans everywhere are celebrating their Summer moves that have brought them Steve Nash and Dwight Howard. But will they be able to unseat the Miami Heat as NBA Champs?
Here are 10 reasons why they won't.
1. The Oklahoma City Thunder
I don't think the Lakers will be able to get past OKC. Look at the match-ups. Howard and Gasol can be kept in check by Perkins and Ibaka. Durant will torch MWP or whoever else has the burden of trying to guard him. Kobe will score, but he'll have to work for it matching up with Sefolosha and Harden. And does anyone want to rely on Steve Nash to guard Russell Westbrook? I'd put good money on a Thunder vs. Heat rematch.
2. Teams are not made overnight.
When Miami signed their big 3, everyone thought they had the best team "on paper." But it takes a while for players to learn to play together. It will be no different for the Lakers.
3. Kobe and Nash are not a good combination.
Steve Nash is at his best when he has the ball in his hand and runs the pick-and-roll. Does anyone think Kobe Bryant is just going to wait around on the wing while Nash runs the show? Mark my words. Kobe will be the primary ballhandler, and Nash will be relegated to the role of a spot-up shooter. While Nash can be effective in that role, that's not what made him a 2 time MVP.
4. Age matters.
With the exception of Howard, all of the Lakers best 6 players (including Antawn Jamison) are North of 32 years of age. If you don't think that matters, look at what happened to the Spurs in each of the last two years in the playoffs.
5. Howard's foul shooting.
When the Lakers had Shaq, his foul shooting issues didn't hurt them because they were so much better than any team in the league. This Lakers team, on the other hand, can't afford to rely on a 50% foul shooter in crunch time.
6. The bench.
The Lakers bench, apart from Jamison, is made up primarily of journeymen. Compare that to a Heat bench that has Udonis Haslem, Ray Allen, Rashard Lewis and Mike Miller.
7. Three point shooting.
The Lakers three point options are limited. Kobe is inconsistent. So is MWP. The bench does not have any prolific shooters. Nash is their only consistent option.
8. Foul Trouble.
The Heat are very good at getting opposing big men in foul trouble. With Steve Nash offering little resistance to quicker players like Mario Chalmers and Norris Cole (not to mention the big 3 attacking the basket), Howard could find himself sitting through a lot of a Heat/Lakers series.
9. Dwyane Wade.
Wade fought through injuries throughout the playoffs last year, and still put up very solid numbers. At the same time, because he was not 100%, some people seem to have forgotten just how good he is. When healthy - and Wade should be healthy this year after sitting out the Olympics to have a clean-up procedure on his knee - Wade is one of the top 5 players in the game.
10. LeBron James
He's the best player on the planet. Those are not my words, those came from Coach K. Now that he has the monkey off his back, look out.
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
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Originally Posted by
r8rh8rmike
Feeling threatened??:D
Nope.
In fact, if I find myself in a place with a sports book between now and November, I'd probably put good money on a Heat/Thunder rematch.
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
AvengerRam
Nope.
In fact, if I find myself in a place with a sports book between now and November, I'd probably put good money on a Heat/Thunder rematch.
You're in a better place than me. I'm a Clippers fan and have nothing but disdain for the Lakers these days, and I'm feeling threatened. The new look Lakers could be dominating.
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
C: D.Jordan vs. D.Howard (edge: Lakers - but not a horrible matchup)
PF: B.Griffin vs. P.Gasol (edge: Clippers - apart from foul shooting)
SF: C.Butler vs. R.Artest (edge: Clippers - if Butler can stay healthy)
SG: J.Crawford vs. K.Bryant (edge: Lakers - but Kobe won't shut down Crawford)
PG: C.Paul vs. S.Nash (edge: Clippers - big edge, at this point).
Hmmm.....
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
AvengerRam
C: D.Jordan vs. D.Howard (edge: Lakers - but not a horrible matchup)
PF: B.Griffin vs. P.Gasol (edge: Clippers - apart from foul shooting)
SF: C.Butler vs. R.Artest (edge: Clippers - if Butler can stay healthy)
SG: J.Crawford vs. K.Bryant (edge: Lakers - but Kobe won't shut down Crawford)
PG: C.Paul vs. S.Nash (edge: Clippers - big edge, at this point).
Hmmm.....
I would LOVE for your analysis to translate to the court, and last season the two teams were close, but the Lakers had the edge and I think that edge just got a bit wider. Hopefully the young Clippers players will take a step forward and Sterling will pry his wallet open to add another solid FA, but I'm still concerned. Time will tell.
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
We'll see. The Clippers have a year of playing together under their belt. Don't underestimate the impact of that factor.
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
r8rh8rmike
The new look Lakers could be dominating.
What does their bench look like again? :D
EDIT: I'll give the edge to the Heat over the Lakers because they already have established team chemistry and they beat the Thunder because they had a good gameplan on stopping those perimeter shots. I was hoping the Thunder would address their issues near the post but I see we're going to have to keep playing by the 3 point margin
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
fliptalianstallion
How does their bench look like again? :D
I don't understand the question.:D
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
r8rh8rmike
I don't understand the question.:D
Other than their "Elite" starting 5, what else do they have on the depth chart? Steve Blake is flashy but inconsistent, Ebanks may be an upgrade over Barnes but not by a huge margin, Jodie Meeks showed promises but we'll see how he pans out in Mike Brown's system. Complete teams win championships.
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
fliptalianstallion
Other than their "Elite" starting 5, what else do they have on the depth chart? Steve Blake is flashy but inconsistent, Ebanks may be an upgrade over Barnes but not by a huge margin, Jodie Meeks showed promises but we'll see how he pans out in Mike Brown's system. Complete teams win championships.
I see you changed it, but I was referring in a joking way to the phrasing of your question.:D
As far as the Lakers bench, we'll just have to wait and see, but I don't think their depth is any worse than most NBA teams.
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
r8rh8rmike
I see you changed it, but I was referring in a joking way to the phrasing of your question.:D
It's difficult to identify sarcasm when typing it. :D
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
WOW! The new look Lakers are getting alot of attention....and rightly so.
Re: The New Lakers, and 10 Reasons they won't beat the Heat.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
AvengerRam
2. Teams are not made overnight.
When Miami signed their big 3, everyone thought they had the best team "on paper." But it takes a while for players to learn to play together. It will be no different for the Lakers.
Didn't the Celtics win 66 games and the championship their first season with the Big 3? I don't think you can combat that with a team who choked away a championship to a worse team the first year and then won it all their second year. Most of the Lakers team is still in tact, so in theory it would take even less time for them to adjust.
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3. Kobe and Nash are not a good combination.
Westbrook and Durant aren't a good combination. Wade and Lebron aren't a good combination.
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7. Three point shooting.
Kobe has always been heavily guarded. Nash will likely get him more open looks than he's ever had in his career. Meeks will light it up if left open. Jamison's three will have to be respected. Goudelock and Duhon both shot around 40% from three last year. The only question with them is if they will be able to do well enough in other areas to be able to get on the court.
