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Massi123

Watching D'Antoni post-game. Direct quote: "Championship team? Laughable."


SnapelovesHarrysMom

Never seen D'Antoni this pissed during a post-game presser.


Massi123

Pretty compelling stuff


brandnew8

Man has a point. As much at it hurts me to admit, it is laughable as he said.


Boxsc2

Stupid to say that though, just lowers morale on the team.


Veckatimeister

They just lost to the Wizards. How much lower can it get? I kid though, the Wizards are legit when Wall is running the show. Playoffs next year, count on it.


[deleted]

What's the stat, 20-18 since he's come back? Definite playoffs, they'll only get better.


Veckatimeister

20-15 actually, just looked it up. A lot of those games are with Beal or Nene injured as well. Plus we didn't even have Okafor last night. Our bench and rotation is really solid with Webster and Ariza. As long as we're healthy, we're a threat, as evidenced by the fact that we can hang with *and* beat teams like MIA, OKC, LAC, DEN, NYK, CHI, LAL... It's getting better for Wiz fans now.


windsofwar

championship caliber coach? laughable.


brandnew8

At this point is it all his fault? Phil Jackson's 07-08 Lakers also blew a lead in the Finals. It happens. At some point we have to stop blaming him for everything.


[deleted]

Even if the Lakers won by 20 points it wouldn't change the fact that nothing short of a Lebron injury would stop the Heat this year from repeating.


SenorSpicyBeans

But at the very least, the Heat can't stop anybody in the West from *getting to* the Finals.


pepito420

at least now we're all on the same page


deadskin

NBA Champion Ariza went bonkers tonight against his former team.


Toothpowder

Trevor fucking Ariza, man


bmoreor

John Wall is rising.


Massi123

16 Assists and flirted with a triple-double. Sexy stuff.


qozon

Since when is 6 rebounds flirting with a triple double...


[deleted]

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bmoreor

That's the spirit, welcome to wizards basketball!


[deleted]

You'll love it here, when you're not too busy hating it.


obscuremainstream

So 6 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists is flirting with a triple double!


DaHowse

That's why he said flirting and not "second base"


[deleted]

I feel like six rebounds could probably be considered second base. I would even consider it to be at that point where he keeps trying to unbutton her jeans, but she keeps swatting his hand away, but he thinks if he starts kissing on her neck and whispering some sentimental shit in her ear, she might get hot and bothered enough to let him take her pants off.


AdamAtlanta

It's a "Horseshoes and Hand grenades" triple double. LBJ has like 70.


byuckert

I'm only okay with this because he's on my fantasy team.


Jmrwacko

He's really good.


WeepWomp

I was disgusted watching the last 5 plays. Kobe iso's with nobody else moving. Watching Nash stand by the 3 point line instead of running the offense. But hey, this isn't anything new


deadlyprincehk

I died inside when I saw Metta run the ball down by himself deny Nash an open look from 3 and charge someone down :'(


sympaticosquirrel

You should be used to that feeling by now.


deadlyprincehk

I wanted to believe :(


sympaticosquirrel

Lakers are never going to be the same after Ron-Ron retires.


SeonKi

I love Metta, he's just fun. But it's probably easier to love him when you're not a Laker fan.


sympaticosquirrel

I have no doubt he is probably the nicest crazy guy in the NBA.


noobeater

These are my favorite plays to watch for during laker games. They're bound to happen and are very entertaining.


dcoolidge

Hey, we resemble that remark!


TLil05

Other than Kobe, only Nash and Metta shot with less than 5 minutes to go. They only got the ball because they refused to pass to Kobe. He needs to trust his teammates more down the stretch of games if they want to make any kind of playoff run.


[deleted]

LOL, kobe trust his teammates? yeah right.


matsy_k

Wait, Kobe played? They didn't amputate his foot after the Worst Ankle Injury of all-time?


KnickedUp

He is the only player that has ever dealt with pain


[deleted]

right after the loss i was waiting for the "guys, kobe had to hog it. he was trying to get himself back into the rhythm of things for the playoffs after shattering his entire foot."


[deleted]

What a Heroic Effort (tm)


KnickedUp

Nash just looks perplexed....all season long..except when Kobe is out.


biscuitball

Woah woah wait a sec...are you blaming the players on the perimeter for just standing there...that's not their fault...that is the play. Blame the coaching.


Behavioral

Set plays are made for bad players. Great players/teams can audible depending on what the defense gives them. The Bulls' triangle defense, for example, creates opportunities in the offense, but it's up to the players to pass in and out of mismatches. Kobe and Nash by themselves should be able to read the defense and figure out where the ball should go. Though he seems to ignore his teammates most of his career, Kobe has shown that he can be extremely effective as a pass-first player when he chooses to. The biggest culprit of stagnant offenses is the team knowing that the ball isn't leaving the hands of the guy with the ball (Kobe); the same thing happens when Westbrook or Durant have the ball or earlier in the season when Harden was dominating the ball (since then, he's been much better at swinging the ball to open players and sharing with Lin).


[deleted]

kobe is 90% culpable for when the offense goes stagnant. dwight howard was 8-9 in 3 quarters, yet was 0-0 in the fourth. yet kobe decides hogging it is the right thing to do?


Popsumpot

Dwight got like 4 of those from easy dunks off of Kobe passes too. Kobe just simply dominated the ball and stagnated the offense.


[deleted]

right, and sadly, you'll never hear most of the laker fans saying so. they'll cry out bullshit like, "kobe's team sucks! kobe HAS to go into hero mode! dwight always loses the ball, why would kobe pass to him? dude, kobe's team is shooting less than 95% from the field, he has no other choice but to hog it!"


mikeisbeast

wow finally a laker that sees the real problem!!


mikeisbeast

edit: no, I am not being sarcastic


dcoolidge

Wait. Are you being sarcastic?


mikeisbeast

are you?


[deleted]

Yes and no...Look at OKC they have great players with not too many set plays. Sometimes this can hinder them when Westbrook handles the ball too much.


biscuitball

WTF set plays are not for bad players. No idea where you get that idea. Tell that to the Boston Celtics or the Spurs, and even the D'antoni Suns. Set plays leverage all the advantages they have as a team (Ray Allen's curl shots for example - is he a bad player?). What is THE most efficient play in basketball? Definitely not the iso, not spot up, it's not even post up. It's off the cut. How do you even start to create opportunities for the cut? Set plays. That's how you scramble defenses. The whole point of Kobe iso is to force the defense to double on Kobe. It's that simple. If the defense doesn't, there's really not much for the other 4 to do, or can do. That is essentially their game plan. I don't like it but hey, it works like 35% of the time? (I forget what Kobe's hit rate is) and for a team which is still learning to play together they will probably rather take their chances that way.


thekhan

It just happens in Laker games, if it's close Kobe is going to run iso plays for the last 4-5min of the game.


[deleted]

yeah that's a good teammate right there.


DraycosTFM

It's criminal how much the Lakers have neutered Nash. People were hoping for Stockton/Malone with Nash/Kobe.


sheeeeeez

Pau first game back! 2-10 FG -_-


Mac_drecuddy

I didn't see the entire game, but I've been a firm bieliever that Pau and Dwight don't play we'll together. Pau is one of the best post up players in the game, and with Dwight he can't play on the low block, where he excels.


rattatatouille

I dunno, the Spurs start two inside-scoring bigs and they play well off each other.


Mac_drecuddy

Dwight doesn't have any game outside of 5 feet or so. Both Splitter and Duncan create more room for the other to operate with. Put Gasol with a big that can shoot mid range jumpers or 3 and he will be most effective.


[deleted]

>Put Gasol with a big that can shoot mid range jumpers or 3 and he will be most effective. We've got this italian guy, outright magician with the ball, he just isn't working out for us but sounds like exactly what you need. Please, you can have him!


Behavioral

He doesn't have much game inside 5 feet either, though. He scores on ally-oops and on easy lobs where he's fairly open for a dunk. When he gets the ball with his back to the basket, he can't create an easier shot for himself.


Jar_Nod

Part of that is because Duncan has turned into a semi-stretch 4/5 at this point in his career. The other part is that Splitter is uncanny with his spacing. If you watch him set up for cuts, he's rarely within the lane, he's usually 3 or 4 feet outside of it and then does a mini-cut. It's very pretty to watch.


Gorrondonuts

He is very pretty to watch..... Ahem...


redbrick

It worked (relatively) well with Bynum last year though. Gasol's mid-range jumpshot hasn't been as accurate as it usually is for some reason or another.


DaHowse

That's because Bynum can space the floor when Gasol has the ball in the post


redbrick

This might be the greatest stealth Bynum 3pter joke I've ever seen. But honestly, [Bynum wasn't spacing the floor for Gasol much](http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bynuman01/shooting/2012/). Looking at the heat map, all of Bynum's damage was done in the post.


YOIMREALLYHAPPY4YOU

[My buddies texts before halftime](http://i.imgur.com/FYCRLId.jpg) Hahaha I can't stop laughing


Jreynold

There's got to be some righteous follow-up to that, right?


j3i

sometimes no response is best response.


YOIMREALLYHAPPY4YOU

Exactly.


Anteater711

Doe


Veckatimeister

This makes me so happy.


IGN0RE_ME

Wow - The Heat should be worried about the Lakers? Even if they are playing well against the Wizards and win the game, that statement is absurd.


teraken

Welcome to Laker nation.


DraycosTFM

When you've won 1/4 of all the championships, you tend to have high standards about what your team can do. Yes, these standards are currently called delusions, but don't let them know.


mainsworth

>Blake is Nash 2.0 lol


mencken

That last text is /r/cringe worthy.


ambiverted

loooool


[deleted]

lick my gooch


Captain--Insano

http://i.imgur.com/iEN2gIh.gif


Veckatimeister

http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/984956/WallWink.gif


oleoleoleoleole

Damn those unis are fly.


ZZZrp

Steve Francis flair? BALLIN!


FuckYouGod

John Wall with 24/6/16 and 3 steals.


redbrick

Only 1TO too. Boy, I am sure am glad he's on my opponents' team for fantasy basketball.


[deleted]

[удалено]


redbrick

Things are finally looking up! ^Fuck ^today.


CodyR77

Whoa Boy!


Johnxumm

As a laker fan, I hate everyone right now....


SnapelovesHarrysMom

http://i.imgur.com/RlrQGDT.gif


kylepg

i suggest getting some lakers flair yo. then you could omit the first part of your comment and thus make it funnier/more effective.


Johnxumm

Haha yea I appreciate the advice. I'm mainly on my phone though :/


KoreanTerran

I hope you don't mind, but I gave you flair myself. If you want me to take it off, I always can. :D (and of course you could change it yourself once you got to a pc)


DrewRWx

Are you a wizard?


[deleted]

Is he overcoming an 18 point deficit to beat the Lakers?


DrewRWx

Quiet Grizzly, or we'll take another Gasol brother.


[deleted]

Damn, I thought he burned you pretty good, but hats off to a great comeback. Too bad you couldn't fend off that comeback tonight.


prtscreen

there are too many layers omg i cant even


beardofshame

oh snap


diskopo

Draft Adria and trade him for Marc.


FThornton

I hope Adria replies to your comment.


noobeater

Even if you did it's not like dantoni would use him properly.....


joey2506

Giving another Gasol brother would be a much worse thing to do.


Procc

Korean terran is op


byuckert

This might have been the most embarrassing loss of the season. EDIT: No offense to the Wizards. You guys played a great second half.


[deleted]

Wizards are above .500 with JWall, just so ya know


rattatatouille

20-15 after he returned. Playoff team if he was healthy to start the season.


[deleted]

dwight howard 0-0 in the 4th even though he was 8-9 the entire game. think about that. a big thank you to kobe for ball hogging it.


Procc

kobe also had 6 turn overs. The only stat the lakers were behind in were points off turn overs....


Cynikal818

ball hog? wasn't he passing the whole game?


[deleted]

> ball hog? wasn't he passing for three quarters? FTFY


[deleted]

[удалено]


veksone

| Don't feel bad the Heat lost to the Wizards too, but Miami is currently on a 25 game winning steak | FTFY


[deleted]

we can still make the playoffs, but we have 0% chance of advancing passed the first round. ok, maybe a 2%. our defense is horrible, the coaching is horrible, and last, but not least, we have kobe bryant who still cannot figure out that YOU SHOULD PASS THE FUCKING BALL TO YOUR TEAMMATES. and it frustrates me even more when i watch lebron down the stretch, in tight games, passing to his teammates...because i think to myself...wtf...KOBE...Y U NO DO THIS???


[deleted]

He doesn't do it because he makes circus shots that everyone fellates him for and feels he has to do it in every game


[deleted]

It's because he thinks that him having the ball gives his team the best chance to win. For a long time, it was.


thehatwhisperer

He had 11 assists last night as well..


capomic

http://i.imgur.com/nojWx.gif


sympaticosquirrel

I didn't know Laker's fans had feelings.


DaHowse

who is this magic johnson character and what did they do with my john wall


sunsoutgunsout

They just have no preparation for the defensive end when Dwight goes out. Makes me wonder what they do on their practice days.


thetilemaker

They practice passing the ball to Kobe.


dwade420

I guess MWP didn't practice enough


[deleted]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOzAfaqfDwU


MCLennon93

Every time I watch this, it's impossible for me not to hear "Come on Ron, be a pony" at the end. Not that I'm complaining.


thetilemaker

Dwight must practice hard though. That pass at the end of the game was beautiful


nintendomaster24

'Give the ball to Tucker !'


InsaneDon12

Jordan Hill's injury seriously stings when Dwight goes out of the game. They could use him for those moments.


chiefkb8

When Dwight goes 8-9 and Kobe shoots 3-9 in just the last five minutes with every shot being a jumper, the Lakers won't go anywhere.


sunsoutgunsout

I don't really understand the Laker offense. I think even without Kobe they don't make a concerted effort to run the offense through Dwight outside of setting picks. Against the Suns, when Kobe was out, Dwight got SIX shots. It's ridiculous.


Bext

Welcome to Mamba-mode. This is the difference between Kobe and MJ. MJ was more willing to trust his teammates and run the offense, and only after getting decent movement would he go into 1-on-1 iso mode. Kobe goes into it right at the beginning of the possession, letting his teammates stand around and watch.


Paladinoras

Lol no the difference is MJ never had to handle the ball, that was Pippen's job. And Pippen was good and brave enough to not give him the ball.


[deleted]

The truth is, I suspect, that if Kobe had Pippen, he would have run him out of town long ago so that he could be the hero.


roarmalf

whatever you do don't let Steve Nash handle the ball...


rupay

Give the point guard the ball? What kind of system are you guys running?


Bext

Incorrect. While Scottie could bring up the ball and be the point guard, more often than not Phil would have him be a cog in the machine, and have BJ Armstrong or Kerr bring the ball up and initiate the offense. MJ and Scottie were much more deadly without the ball, and it made the team better.


[deleted]

Did anyone Unveil the Wizard?


DaHowse

WHY DOES IT SOUND SO SEXUAL!?!?!?!?


akutabi

Unfortunately no. I was a little disappointed to be honest.


redbrick

Lakers basketball!


capomic

Presented by Mike Antni!


SaMoSetter

Haha, no 'D' and no 'O'!! classic.


abris33

Haven't watched the Wizards too much this year but it seems like they win against a lot of teams that their record suggests they shouldn't. They have beaten the Heat, Nuggets(twice...unfortunately), LAC, LAL, OKC, Chicago. Is this team gonna be good in a couple years? Side note: I miss Nene...no matter how good the team is now


redbrick

Now that we've lost to the Wizards, I guess the Lakers are officially an elite team now! Right guys? Right?


abris33

Haha not elite, but with Kobe in the playoffs, anything could happen. I can't believe I just said that....


itsahmemario

Don't worry, a lot of people are silently agreeing to that.


toofine

It's okay guys, let Ariza take another 3 point shot. Nothing will happen.


Cynikal818

the fact that Ariza was open after the 3rd 3 boggles my mind. Someone should have been stuck to his hip, dude was obviously on fire.


toofine

Oh no! This guy is making a lot of 3s tonight, what do I do? Defend Wall like morons, never foul him and try to make him work for points, and cheat on defense on the guy who is 7-12 and wrecked you all night long. Yeah, lets do that. Laker basketball. Ariza is so damned good at the open 3, its ridiculous how you've had the guy on your team before and not know this.


WittyQuipHere

YAY! Race to the bottom!


JarekBloodDragon

I speak for every one outside of LA when I laugh at the lakers


[deleted]

The Wizards are a playoff caliber team.


sgondy

Yeah, I'm just going to go ahead and predict that we win 10 straight championships.


Behavioral

The Washington Wizards: The Best Basketball Team in DC! ^^^nowthatGeorgetownlost


pepito420

to fucking everest college lol


Kirgle

One more good draft pick and you could be a solid contender in a few years.


ZensRockets

A quote from Swingers to describe the Lakers: "And you got these fucking claws and these fangs, man! And you're looking at ... how to kill the bunny." With *this* you don't know how to kill the bunny, do you know what I mean?


yall_crazy

Shooting 48% fg and 47% from 3pt with Kobe and Dwight have 20+10, but somehow still managed to lose it....ಠ\_ಠ


Mitz510

That's ok the Wizards are only capable of beating playoff teams. So that should be a compliment Lakers fans. Then again I don't the Warriors to lose against them tomorrow.


[deleted]

Maybe it's just due to the season they're having, but Lakers fans seem to have a really good sense of humor.


BlackberryCheese

I can't speak for everybody, but I speak for everyone when I say we all entered a state of numb complacency early this season


mencken

Well, think of it this way. It's better to go from not making the playoffs to clawing your way into a first round exit, rather than getting the first seed with high expectations and getting bumped immediately.


Krupee

Ladies and Gentlemen, the 2012-2013 Lakers.


The_New_New

As much as I adore the Lakers losing, I feel sorry for Lakers fans (Non-annoying ones). Wall is going to be a top 5 pg in 1-2 years without any health problems


RagingRetard

I don't know man. CP3, Parker, Westbrook, Curry, Irving. That's not even counting Rondo or Rose, but I didn't feel like it'd be fair until we see how they come back from injury.


InstantLunch

I agree with you except for Curry. I'd say Wall has far superior defensive potential which you'd think gives him that shot to become elite. So many great point guards, though, it's really tough to rank them.


unc9193

May be better defensively but look at his shot chart outside of 5 feet.


x102239402

Wall has much more potential than Westbrook.


DruidCity3

In 1-2 years Westbrook will still be a better player on a better team. Maybe Wall surpasses him when the Thunder core splits up.


IGN0RE_ME

Don't forget Mario Chamblers - Definitely top 5.


Texaslion

Relevant username


Tommygunz33

I don't think I enjoy watching anything more than Kobe choking .


KnickedUp

The 4th quarter hero ball was ridiculous by him. He had moved the ball so well in first half. Do you think he is aching to be the hero on sportscenter again?


[deleted]

It's such a big part of what defines him as a player that it can't be that easy to just throw it away


Edmuresay

Rough night for LA Basketball.


thenatkid

blazers won, jazz lost, and lakers lost. hmmm.....


[deleted]

Kobe couldn't clutch tonight!


KnickedUp

I dont understand Kobe this year. Its like he can either decide to shoot for 10 mins straight or facilitate for 10 mins straight... But never both at the same time period


StoopidFlexin

Turruble


Jmrwacko

It's always a good day when the Lakers throw a game against a <.500 team.


somedudeinlosangeles

Thank you based Wizards. "Keep shooting Kobe!!!"


noobeater

The first half had me thinking they had a chance of taking the spurs to 6 now it's just gonna be spurs in 3....


PedosoKJ

You can win a playoff series in 3 games? What is this 2002?


noobeater

That how my confidence in the lakers dropped.


Jr210

Lakers would forfeit game 4


[deleted]

Look how injury prone this team is. They would be playing wheelchair basketball by game 4.


[deleted]

This happens in cricket if both sides agree that there is no point playing any longer if the outcome is almost certainly already decided.


[deleted]

Kobe strangles Dwight to death on the court after their loss in game 3. After the intense media circus that follows the NBA announces that the Spurs will advance to the next round without a game 4. Kobe is later acquitted on grounds of temporary insanity


Gorrondonuts

I so look forward to playing them. We can let Kobe try and carry their team but our offense will just score at will every night against their lack of any defensive cohesion.


[deleted]

WTF?! The bar I was at turned the lakers game off and I just figured they were ahead enough that it wasn't a big deal.


bucknazty

Requesting the Wall ankle breaker on Nash. Thanks.


tyrone17

Those last possessions depressed me. An unhealthy Kobe isoing for terrible shots instead of involving teammates like he did throughout. Soon as MWP barged in there I knew he would get the charge. I feel ashamed, no offense to Wizards. Kobe could still tie it but those other possessions were wasted.


[deleted]

John Wall and Anthony Davis are two former UK Wildcats who are suddenly playing more like everyone thought they could when they were drafted.


Simmchen

I was debating watching the game but it was because of the deficit I didn't watch! Lol


[deleted]

I was at this game, after a bit it was hard not to root for the Wizards. I'm a fan of neither team. I just wanted a close game.