At What Point Did the Lakers Quit?

I probably wrote 25 articles declaring that the Lakers quit trying with seven minutes to go in the fourth quarter of the 12/30/2007 game at Staples. No one ever challenged me.

I just figured that no one was reading my blog.

But everyone agreed the Lakers quit trying in game 6 of the NBA Finals, or, as I like to say, the Celtics beat them into submission and choked the spirit out of their sphincter.

Below Bob Ryan tries to pinpoint the moment Big Chief Triangle and his troops cried uncle.

LEX PREVIOUSLY WROTE:

Third quarter. Score is 67-41. Vlads hits a three. Lead down to 23. Lakers still have a little bounce in their step. But Rondo takes the in bounds pass, goes coast-to-coast, is fouled by Kobe, the basket goes in and one. Rondo drains the freebie. 70-64. Lead back up to 26. Fisher hits an 11-footer to cut the lead to 24. Celtics miss two shots on their next possession. Lakers get the ball with a chance to reduce the lead to 21 points. Almost seven minutes left to play in the third quarter. Rondo strips Odom, again drives coast-to-coast, only this time hits a wide open Ray Allen in the corner who drills a three-pointer right in front of the Zen Mistress. Four of the five Lakers on the floor look visibly dejected, shoulders slumped and heads down. Celtics score six more points in a row to push the lead over 30. Lead never falls below 25 again.

Game over.

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GRAMPA CELTIC WROTE:

There is no question that the Lakers disgraced themselves and the game of basketball by putting a 42-cent stamp on the affair and heading to the post office at some point in Game 6. The only debate is just when they decided to do so. Some think it was as early as the 38-29 juncture in the second quarter. That's when James Posey and Eddie House hit those back-to-back threes. Is it possible?

I thought they were still at least partially in it mentally at the half. After all, they had chopped a 24-point deficit in the fourth quarter of Game 2 to two in just 7:22. All right, they didn't show much life in the third quarter. The closest they got it was 23 (67-44), which is when Rondo came up with that acrobatic 3-point play, and then it was O-V-E-R.

But how about demonstrating some pride? How about not leaving Ray Allen open enough to recite the Gettysburg Address, set his feet, count to 10 and fire on those three threes he hit within 1:52 in the fourth? I expected Phil Jackson to call a timeout at that point and say, "Look, guys, we're going to lose, but you're not going to embarrass yourselves, me, the organization and the NBA by playing like pigs." Instead, he sat there to watch things get worse and worse, until it finally peaked at 43 (129-86).

The Celtics should have won by 25, but there was no reason for them to have won by 39, other than the LA surrender. Now I've been told that Big Chief Triangle did air them out at halftime. But whether he did or didn't, the general impression I got from the second half was that he had washed his hands of them. I do feel he came into the Finals with a contempt for the Celtics and a sense of entitlement. Sitting on that high chair (he has serious back and hip problems) is symbolic, as well as practical. He doth gazeth down on the rest of the NBA as if he were occupying a throne. He is more the Emperor of Laker basketball, rather than coach of the team. Did Doc "out-coach" him? I don't believe in that stuff. Doc did what was best for his team, and it obviously worked out very well. But the Lakers got no real emotional support that I could see from their coach.