Lakers vs. Spurs - Game 2 : To Do List

Published by lakers-fan.com on May 23rd, 2008 | Tagged lakers vs spurs

On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Lakers showed that they are not invincible and will have to bring their “A game” on Friday to beat the San Antonio Spurs even with the comfort of being at home. One thing has been prevalent during this year’s playoffs is the home court advantage counts!  The Lakers cannot afford to lose this second game and give The Spurs home court advantage.  Here are some Do’s that The Lakers must have in order to get the win tomorrow:

The Do’s

1. Kobe Needs to be MVP All Game

Kobe Bryant needs to get offensively involved early in the game.  I know it has been Kobe’s strategy to feed and dish to his teammates until the third or fourth quarter, where he then steps up the intensity.  However, with a team like The Spurs, you cannot afford to go down by double digits at any point in the game.  In Game 1, they were almost down too much for even the almighty Kobe to bring them back.  Luckily, The Spurs went 3-21 in the fourth quarter which made it possible for the huge comeback.  Kobe…SHOOT THE BALL and DRIVE TO THE HOOP!

2.  Lock Down Tim Duncan

Tim Duncan had 30 points with 18 rebounds and was scoring at will.  The reason why The Spurs went 3-21 in the fourth quarter is because other players were shooting outside shots.  The Lakers need to keep the ball out of his hands all game.  Between Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol, the Lakers should have no problem with keeping the inside guarded.  If you keep Duncan under 20 points, Lakers get the win.

3.  Lamar… Get in the Game

I don’t know whether it was the time off or a weekend of too much partying, but Lamar Odom did not come to play.  He was only 3-12 with 8 points and on top of that he was getting killed on the boards.  Lamar Odom is one of those key players that really makes this team a championship team.  He had a very good series against the Utah Jazz and needs to do it throughout this series.  Look for Lamar coming up big.

4.  Bench at its Best

The Lakers has been praised all season by the strength and talent of their bench.  However, they have not brought that praise into the Post Season.  Jordan Farmar needs to step it up both on offense and defense.  When Derek Fisher is on the bench, Jordan must be able to stop Tony Parker.  Sasha Vujacic needs to continue to play tough defense on Ginobili and make big threes.  As long as he knows that THIS is his role, and not to shoot every possession, we should see success.

Game 2 will be a big game for the series and if The Lakers can stick with these important Do’s, we should see a Game 2 win at home and a 2-0 start going into to San Antonio.

- Chris Marquis