Lakers Give One to the Raptors

Hedo Turkoglu’s two free throws with 1.2 seconds to play were just enough to allow the Toronto Raptors to edge the Los Angeles Lakers, 106-105 at the Air Canada Centre. A desperation, turnaround, three-point attempt by Kobe at the buzzer fell a couple of inches short as the Lakers fell to 1-2 on their current 8-game road trip. Kobe, one assist shy of a triple-double, (27 points, 16 rebounds, 9 assists, 1 steal) got sufficient help from Pau Gasol (22 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocked shots) and Andrew Bynum (21 points, 9 rebounds, 2 blocked shots). And with Jordan Farmar (17 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal) supplying fire power off the bench, the Lakers appeared on their way to an easy win. Except evidently, no one informed the Raptors of this. The two teams played fairly evenly through three quarters but Toronto could never quite grab the lead. But as the Lakers built up 9- or 10-point cushions, the Raptors would come roaring back as soon as Phil Jackson went to his bench.

Andrea Bargnani (22 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 blocked shot) made big shot after big shot in the deciding 4th quarter. And with Marco Belinelli (15 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal) scoring from the outside, Olympian Chris Bosh (18 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals) providing plenty of ballast, and Jarrett Jack (18 points, 4 rebounds) slashing through the Lakers defense at every opportunity, it was only a matter of time before the Raptors caught, and eventually passed the Lakers. Ron Artest (5 points on 2-8, 3 assists, 1 rebound) and Lamar Odom (4 points on 2-6, 6 rebounds, 1 assist) could not get untracked offensively tonight as both players looked antsy sitting on the bench heading into the final minutes of play. The Raptors made the big plays when they desperately needed them, getting 12-points from Bargnani in the quarter with his three-pointer giving the Raptors their first lead of the game at 93-90. After trading buckets, the Lakers regained control of the game, and after a Farmar jumper, found themselves in the lead, 103-100 with 3:23 to play.

The Lakers offense went haywire down the stretch as the team could not seem to be able to run a play. Passes were a split second late, shots were a tad short, and the players all looked a step slow. Perhaps too much late night fun in New York City could be the cause for the Lakers malaise, as was indicated by Bynum missing the team flight Saturday morning and having to make his way to Toronto on his own. Bynum simply stated that he had overslept. But it was the rest of the Lakers who appeared to be sleep-walking. Missing were any indication of fire or urgency. And as the Raptor took advantage of the poor play of the Lakers, they eventually stole away the game. Bargnani’s three-point play pulled the Raptors to within 105-104. And after the Lakers fumbled away a golden opportunity to close out the game, they had to settle for a 23-ft. attempt by Kobe just to beat the shot clock. Turkoglu’s drive down the lane was his only contribution of the night. He appeared to be bailed out on the play, flinging the ball into air as the officials whistled Gasol for pushing. He calmly drained his two free throws to give them the final margin of victory.

Obviously the win at Madison Square Garden was not an indication of things to come, but rather a continuation of poor play compounded by poor effort. Perhaps a pep talk from President Obama will get the Lakers out of their current funk. If not, this is going to be a long and treacherous East Coast trip.