| 23 December 2008
Dec 22nd - Los Angeles Lakers (21-5) at Memphis Grizzlies (9-17)
LA are coming off two consecutive losses for the first time this season. Heading into Memphis's FedEx Forum, Phil Jackson's crew will be eager to get a win under their belt before they head back to the Staples Center for their Christmas Day clash against the raging Boston Celtics.
So... an easy win?
Not so fast. Whilst Memphis are coming off their own two game losing streak, they are still a much better team at home than they are on the road. In their Forum, they're 7-7, whilst on the road they're a deplorable 2-10. And if you could choose when you were to play the Lakers, surely now would be that time. The Lakers have only lost 3 games in their last ten, but most times they've looked vulnerable. They're having difficulty implementing their hybrid offense - the trap is often too slow to get to position - leaving a man open for the opposition. This is something that needs to be rectified, and desparately.
Missing Jordan Farmar hurts too - it forces Phil into more minutes for Fisher, and if he's not on his game, the team have very few options at the point. Still, it may make for some interesting, creative line-ups... and if one thing's for sure, Phil Jackson needs to shake this team up somewhat.
So can the Memphis team take advantage of this?Led by OJ Mayo, at times the Grizzlies look not too shabby... but yes, at other times they look... well... very shabby indeed.
It will be also interesting to see what kind of welcome Pau Gasol gets - as this is his first trip back to Memphis since they traded him to LA for, well... at the time - just about nothing. Included in that trade tho', was Pau's brother Marc Gasol - who has turned out to be pretty handy himself. If anyone tells you he's as good as Pau tho', they'd want to be kidding. Whilst the younger Gasol is more physically imposing, it's Gasol older that has the better skillset. This game will be the first time that the Gasol brothers have met on the court in the NBA.
So... the game. Given the circumstances, the smart money's on LA. But it was against Miami too.
The Lakers by 11.
