Scribbles In My Notebook From Game 3
- Kobe, after his first basket, backpedaled like, “I’m just getting warmed up.” And right then it looked like he was going to have a good night.
- Was Rafer’s “Skip-to-my-Lou” halfway through the first a double-dribble? Or does Skip still have it? (I thought it was a double-dribble.) But I do like how Rafer is responding. That’s G.
- Did I just say, “That’s G?” WOW!! Gatorade has officially outdone itself.
- On the next Lakers’ possession, Kobe comes down and hits a 3. And Jeff Gundy was just talking about 29 and eight is a bad game only for the special ones. (After Kobe hit the shot this time, he licked his lips as he trotted back down court. He tugged on his shorts. Got down in his defensive stance. You knew it was on!)
- Is it just me or did Bill Van Gundy scream “old school?” Something about the way he said Stan was a great shooter, “Because he didn’t know what a layup was” pushed it over the top. And couldn’t you hear both Jeff and Stan in him? Props to ABC for showing Jeff’s reaction to listening intently to his father gushing – or humiliating- over him.
- Kobe comes down ON THE NEXT POSSESSION and hits the step back in Courtney Lee’s face. You know it’s over!
- Lakers hitting tough shots. Fisher’s at the top of the key. Bynum’s prayer over Howard with just over 4:00 left in the first.
- Kobe hitting pretty shots all night. After missing the acrobatic, back-to-the-basket, over-the-head layup on the next L.A. possession he came back down and took Mickael Pietrus in the post, backed him down, drop-stepped, faked like he was going to shoot the front-of-the-rim 2-footer before finally finger-rolling in the two points. That’s when you knew it was over and Kobe is still the game’s best.
- Where is Lamar Odom? He’s been kind of quiet.
- The very next shot Kobe hit, the baseline, falling-down fadeaway over Dwight Howard and Pietrus with two minutes left, speaks for itself.
- He hits another one, and Jeff Van Gundy tells the basketball world, “There’s nothing you can do about that right there.” And Luke Walton looked around from the bench like, “Am I the only one seeing this?”
- Did Tony Battie foul him on that drive? Doesn’t matter now. This time it’s a shot-clock-winding-down four-point play off an inbounds play.
- As the buzzer sounds I get the feeling he didn’t care about scoring 17 of his team’s final 19 points in the period. Something tells me he was ticked about missing the buzzer beater that would have pushed his team’s lead to six. (31-27 Lakers after the first quarter).
- ORL didn’t have an answer for Kobe, and I’m wondering why Phil Jackson sat him to start the second. What was more impressive about his first period, his dominance, his efficiency or his fundamentals?
- The fan in me is happy to see him back at the scorer’s table just two minutes into the second.
- And when his work had gone undone with five minutes gone by in the period, he rose again.
- My editor calls around halftime. If I could pick up my question would be, “You still think LBJ is the best there is?”
- Pietrus got away with a foul on Gasol then a double-dribble on the other end.
- I’m still waiting on the soft Gasol to show up. (It ain’t happening.)
- Hand down, man down is one of the greatest hoop sayings of all time.
- 75 percent shooting in the first half in the Finals is pretty impressive. (ORL 59, L.A. 54).
- I’ve never seen Magic Johnson so crunk at halftime. He looked like he wanted to get out there and lead the break.
- B-ball in China. That’s G!
- Props to Jeff Van Gundy for calling out B-Shaw for that lavender-looking suit.
- Did Van Gundy’s comment about Howard needing to learn to keep the ball high above his head like Gasol does speak to the difference of fundamentals taught in the American youth basketball system and overseas teachings?
- Courtney Lee didn’t miss that one!
- Two missed FT out of three and then a turnover. But Kobe responds by making the right play and getting Trevor Ariza a wide open 3.
- Skip looks like he is indeed back.
- L.O. still quiet.
- How many times are the Magic going to go for the pump fake?
- How many FT’s is Kobe going to miss?
- Nice spin move, Skip.
- Looking like Magic will win and the difference in Game 3 will be Rafer Alston and Courtney Lee stepping up and L.O. disappearing.
- L.A.’s missed free throws aren’t helping.
- Just when I thought, “Kobe hasn’t done much with the ball in awhile, he must be cold,” he buries a trey.
- Jeff Van Gundy has been riding Howard all night.
- Great game through three quarters. Magic still shooting 65 percent. ORL 81, L.A. 75.
- Big shot Battie. Can he guard Odom?
- Nope.
- Tough shot Turkoglu.
- Pretty put-in Pietrus.
- ORL 87, L.A. 81. 8:46 remaining. Kobe still on the bench.
- Lucky shot Lewis.
- Howard makes it 91-82. Kobe still on bench with eight minutes left.
- Joey Crawford hasn’t had a good game.
- Odom misses another FT. Jordan Farmar turns it over. Pietrus puts it in again. Ariza has the answer.
- 93-88, ORL. 6:17 to play.
- Might be a bad call on Howard’s illegal screen. At least they’ve been consistent in calling it.
- Howard hits two FTs. Pushes lead to five with 5:35 left.
- Fisher answers with a 3. ORL lead is two.
- Fisher almost got embarrassed. Good hustle. Puts Pietrus on the line for two. ORL up four.
- Get big, Turkoglu. Odom makes it 97-95, ORL. Bad foul Gasol. Turkoglu hits two FTs to put Magic up four.
- Big steal Odom.
- KOBE TIME! 3:57 to play.
- On cue……99-97.
- Gasol got pushed. But it was off on him.
- Kobe grabs Rafer miss.
- Clutch FTs by Gasol. 99-99. 2:40 left.
- What a follow by Pietrus.
- Kobe misses 3. Thought it was good when it left his hands. Rafer takes Fisher off dribble. Gets fouled. Makes one. Puts Magic up three.
- Joey Crawford bails out Kobe……Upon further review, Pietrus got him a little. But it’s the playoffs.
- Strong take, Gasol. 102-101, ORL. 1:28 remaining.
- Raw Lew! Clutch! (Who knew?) Might hurt that it’s going to be ruled a two.
- Yep. 104-101.
- No text messages. ORL must have held on and won. Couldn’t have been a fantastic finish.
- Joey C. blows another. Gotta be a jump ball. Good play, Dwight.
- Kobe misses another FT! Makes the second. ORL 104, L.A. 102. Can he make it up? He looks disappointed.
- Last touch ORL. Good play Odom and Gasol……Here we go!
- Kobe turns it over! (Technically Gasol but 24′s fault.) Not his night.
- Pietrus sinks two. ORL 106, L.A. 102.
- There’s my man Bill Van Gundy.
- Kobe dropping F-bombs on the bench. He knows he blew it.
- Crowd chants “Beat L.A.” 28.7 to go.
- Kobe misses 3. Scramble. L.A. ball. Timeout. 16.3 left.
- Ariza inbounds. L.A. can’t get a bucket.
- Kobe settles for the lay-in. 106-104. Only 0.2 left on the clock.
- Phil has the sour face on.
- Raw Lew drains the first at the line. Hits the second.
- 108-104, Final. Congrats, Orlando.
- Lets’ see if I’m right in my Lakers-in-five prediction.
-DM-
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oh, now we’re giving gatorade credit for ‘G’? if anything, dr. dre’s seminal gangsta-rap classic “nothin’ but a g thang” was the first use of the letter ‘G’ in that context in pop-culture. don’t give credit to a corporation and their marketing group…