Posts Tagged ‘Utah Jazz’

Trevor Ariza is quickly becoming the player the Lakers hoped he would become when they traded away Brian Cook and Mo Evans for him last year. He’s showing that he’s not just the defensive stopper that they knew he was, but also a deadly threat from the outside.

With Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol garnering constant double teams and occasion triple teams, Ariza can roam the perimeter and setup for wide open triples. The Utah Jazz are learning the hard way that they shouldn’t leave him to double Kobe and Gasol.

After posting a career playoff high 21 in Game 1 on 8 of 10 shooting (including 3 of 4 from behind the arc), Ariza ended Game 2 with 13 points on 5 of 6 shooting, including another 3-3 performance from downtown. He almost posted a double-double with 9 assists as well.

He’s proving to be what the Lakers missed least season in the playoffs, a defensive minded Guard/Forward with apparently deadly accuracy and toughness. A guy that showed off his skills as a defensive player is now shooting at a ridiculous 81% through 2 games in these playoffs. This is a find that even Mitch Kupchak couldn’t have imagined that he found last year. Ariza was supposed to be a salary dump move, but has turned out to be a key part of the rotation.

After jumping from New York to Orlando, and not finding a home in either city, Ariza has found his calling in the City of Angels. Not to mention that Trevor is only 23 and still has a long career ahead of him… hopefully with the Lakers. Ariza will be the guy to pester guys like Lebron and Pierce, depending on who comes out of the East. Ariza will be the X-Factor in these playoffs.

Share with:

Finally, the Lakers figure out who they play on Sunday. All the talk has been that with Utah mostly healthy, the Lakers wouldn’t want to meet them in the first round. There was a lot of talk that the Lakers might intentionally lose their last game of the season to avoid meeting Utah. There was talk that the Lakers would rather play Dallas on Sunday.

All that talk went away last night when the Lakers handed Utah a 112-125 loss to end the season. Jerry Sloan may have had the best quote of the night, per Yahoo! Sports:

“We didn’t give them much of a battle and knowing that we’re going to have to play them again, it looks pretty bleak,” Utah coach Jerry Sloan said. “Hate to say that, but it’s one of those things.”

I hate hearing coaches saying stuff like that, but it’s music to my ears coming from a Lakers opponent. All the facts about the Lakers being “soft” have finally turned into rumors and misconceptions, especially with big Drew in the middle clogging up the lane, Trevor Ariza manning the wing, and Kobe and Shannon Brown locking down the perimeter.

Little is known about Shannon Brown other than the fact that this kid has amazing athletic ability and is a great (but not lockdown) defender. He’s jumped around between several teams, but seems to have found a home in LA, much like Trevor Ariza did last year. He’s been stellar on defense, and evidenced by his highlight reel blocks, and has been solid on the opposite end of the court. According to Phil Jackson, Brown looks to get more burn in the Playoffs as the Lakers will be facing PGs that are too strong for Jordan Farmar, and too fast for Derek Fisher. Take Ariza and shrink him down, and you have Shannon Brown. He’s the defensive minded PG that the Lakers have been looking for.

These Lakers will prove to be much tougher on the defensive end than last year’s squad. Bynum will be inside manning the painted area and blocking or altering shots. Gasol has incredible length which will be a problem for players like Boozer and Milsap. Ariza will play the passing lanes like he always does. Kobe of course, will be doing his thing. He’ll play his one man zone, and generally leave his guy open for shots but occasionally make an incredible defensive play. Farmar and Fisher may have problems, but Shannon Brown will fill in the gaps.

I don’t think anyone is more excited about this matchup than I am, especially after Deron Williams showed his bonehead side by trying to set a hard screen on Bynum last night and just bouncing off. It’s gonna be like the Showtime days again with Stockton and Malone vs Magic and Kareem. Except this time it’ll be Williams and Boozer against Kobe, Pau, and Bynum… and don’t forget about Odom off the bench. See you Sunday.

Share with: