Warriors Show Little Fight Against Lakers

Powered by Pau Gasol’s 22 points (9-11 from the field) 12 rebounds and 3 blocked shots, the Los Angeles Lakers made quick work out of the Golden State Warriors, 130-97 at Oracle Arena. The run-and-gun Warriors were no match as seven Lakers scored in double figures. Kobe Bryant (20 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals), Ron Artest (19 points, 5 rebounds. 4 assists), Derek Fisher (13 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists) and Andrew Bynum (12 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocked shots) rounded out the onslaught by the starters. And the Bench Mob showed signs of life as well. Shannon Brown along with Jordan Farmar are the first subs off the bench in Phil Jackson’s shortened rotation. Brown (17 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist) did not disappoint the raucous Lakers fans in attendance, throwing down a pair of thunderous dunks that had the arena abuzz. Farmar (10 points, 3 assists, 1 rebound) ran the offense well and had his teammates cheering his play. Lamar Odom (8 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocked shots, 2 steals) had a typical, quiet, LO kind of night, solidifying the core bench players with his leadership and calming influence.

The Warriors were without coach Don Nelson, recovering from a bout of pneumonia, as well as starting center, Andris Biedrins (lower back strain) and guard, Raja Bell (wrist injury). Leading scorer Monta Ellis (18 points on 8-19, 4 rebounds, 5 assists), who was hounded by Kobe all night, and Corey Maggette (17 points, 6 rebounds) led the lackluster Oaktown attack. The Warriors shot only 39.1% from the field and 23.5% from behind the arc. The Lakers punished the diminutive Warriors in the paint, outscoring them 62-38 and beating them on the boards, 49-46. The Lakers accounted for 30 assists, shot 54.3% from the field and committed only 8 turnovers.

While Gasol was cleaning up inside, Artest and Fisher were the recipients of open dishes on the perimeter. And on a night when Kobe (8-20 from the field) had a difficult time finding the bottom of the basket, the balanced attack of the Lakers had the Warriors backpedaling most of the night. New Warrior and former Laker space cadet, Vlade Radmanovich, had a typical Vlade-esque play early in the second period when he tried to secure a defensive rebound by tapping the ball out to a teammate. Unfortunately, he tapped it directly to former teammate Kobe Bryant. The boos rained down but were soon drowned out by the cheers for the visitors. Next up are the 0-16 New Jersey Nets, who found out today that head coach, Lawrence Frank had been fired.