Fisher's a Punk

What is it with the Lakers and their late-game thuggery when they are being humiliated on national television? First, we had Lamar Odom and his infamous tackle of Ray Allen. Yesterday we have Derek Fisher deciding to get physical with Mo Williams in the final minutes of another Laker drubbing, barreling into Mo with a cross-check worthy of Terry O'Reilly. Speaking of the Lakers' starting "point guard" ("point guard" in quotes for obvious reasons), here are a few ruminations worth reading:

The Los Angeles Lakers’ 102-87 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers was an embarrassing defeat that revealed all of LA’s major flaws; many of them were the same flaws that doomed their quest to win a championship in 2007-2008. Derek Fisher—3-8FG, 1-4 3FG, 0 assists, 3 TO, 7 points—looked ready for the glue factory. -The Lakers spent more time complaining to the refs than rotating on defense. -The Lakers' interior rotations were soft or non-existent. It appeared as if Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum were scared of Shaquille O’Neal’s and LeBron James’ boulder-crushing strength.

-That Bynum was lost and confused on defense—offering no resistance on off-ball screens, late in his help assignments, gambling and missing entry passes—is simply par for the course for the mistake-prone youngster. However, Gasol played defense like a timid rookie, a characteristic not seen since the Lakers’ humbling Finals defeat to the Celtics two postseasons ago.

-Bynum (2-5 FG, 4 points and Gasol 4-11 FG, 11 points) were visibly bothered by the Cavs’ size and length upfront. Without the overall length advantage the Lakers normally have, Bynum and Gasol were pushed around under the hoop, and Gasol couldn’t find the range on his jumper. -The Lakers’ scrambling defense was picked apart by Cleveland’s snappy pass work, well-timed cuts attacking the middle of the paint, and skip passes across the paint. The Cavs never stopped passing, but the Lakers often stopped playing defense.

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