Bucks at Lakers

Giannis can't even get a call against Drummond.

I know this will come as a shock, but a depleted Lakers team is lighting up the Bucks from the 3 point line. They open 5 for 6 from deep and lead 17-11.

The Lakers are now 8 of 12 from the three-point line.

In 5 quarters at the Staples Center, the Bucks have allowed the Clippers and the Lakers to go 27 for 47 from 3.

Giving Diakite these minutes will pay off. He’s starting to figure things out, little by little. Still a little slow, but he’s getting in the right places.

Matthews... lol.

Giannis gets another charge on a play with Wes Matthews. League office getting involved.

2 charges.

How the fuck is that not a flagrant foul???

Lakers not getting the same looks from 3 in the second quarter and now the Bucks up 8 at the half.

ESPN is so ridiculous. They barely mentioned Drummond for years even when he was putting up big numbers in Detroit. Now that he's a Laker, they are teasing segments after the game about how he looks in his first game as a Laker.

Bucks defense really stepping up now.

Giannis takeover in progress...

Bullshit flagrant...

Matthews and Giannis really going at it. Doesn't seem to be a lot of love lost there.

Lead down to 10 as Giannis now has 8 turnovers.

Hey a win!

Lakers didn't have AD but I'll take it 😺

If I’m the Lakers I’m not feeling very comfortable right now.  

As good as LeBron has been that team is not a real threat if both he and AD aren’t healthy heading into the playoffs.  What should be concerning is Utah and Phoenix and the Clippers are playing well and Denver and Portland and Dallas are coming on strong. They are only 1/2 game ahead of Denver and Portland for the 4 seed, and if they end up playing Denver in a 4/5 matchup the Nuggets could take them down in R1.  

In the East, I think the top 3 seeds are set in stone but the Heat are lurking and you want no part of that team in R1.   The Nets seem to be everyone’s darling but they seem to play lazy and disinterested for 80% of the game until the end when the shots start to fall and their talent overwhelms lesser opponents.  That shit won’t work in the postseason especially against teams like Miami and Milwaukee that can defend and hit shots of their own.

Defense played ball last night. Still need to defend the 3 point line more effectively.

@Tschmack posted:

If I’m the Lakers I’m not feeling very comfortable right now.  

As good as LeBron has been that team is not a real threat if both he and AD aren’t healthy heading into the playoffs.  What should be concerning is Utah and Phoenix and the Clippers are playing well and Denver and Portland and Dallas are coming on strong. They are only 1/2 game ahead of Denver and Portland for the 4 seed, and if they end up playing Denver in a 4/5 matchup the Nuggets could take them down in R1.  

In the East, I think the top 3 seeds are set in stone but the Heat are lurking and you want no part of that team in R1.   The Nets seem to be everyone’s darling but they seem to play lazy and disinterested for 80% of the game until the end when the shots start to fall and their talent overwhelms lesser opponents.  That shit won’t work in the postseason especially against teams like Miami and Milwaukee that can defend and hit shots of their own.

The Lakers don't have enough shooting around LeBron and AD. Those two may have to average 70 to keep up with some of those teams out West.

Miami should have been a lot better, but they (and Toronto) had a strategy for the summer of Giannis this year and when he and some of the others extended, it was too late to do much. They really need playoff production from Igoudala (37 years old) and Ariza (35). Jae Crowder made a huge difference for them last year and they let him go for nothing to keep their cap space.

Toronto is the weirdest one. They went from a borderline title threat to one of the worst teams in the league. Ibaka, Gasol, Powell, and T. Davis are gone with relatively little in return. They likely didn't make any moves to keep Ibaka or Gasol because they thought they had a shot at Giannis. Now, they are basically in tank mode, but then decided to keep their best asset in Kyle Lowry at the deadline. Siakam was benched last week and got into a heated argument with Nurse. Masai may be gone soon as well. That's a dumpster fire.