Above the Rim: NBA Finals Recap

With the Lakers 5-game defeat of the Magic in the NBA Finals, some long-standing questions have been answered. Kobe Bryant has won a title without Shaquille O'Neal and Phil Jackson has won the 10th title (passing Red Auerbach) that has eluded him since Shaq left LA.

Kobe was himself in this series, one of the best clutch players in the NBA, on his way to winning Finals MVP. Kobe averaged over 32 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists while hitting an array of shots in the series. There was little to find fault with in Kobe's game as the only real blemish in the series was his 7 turnovers in game 2, which the Lakers overcame to win in overtime.

Derek Fisher appeared to find his game just in time to snatch a victory away from the Magic in game 4 by hitting a three with 4.6 seconds left to send the game into overtime and then another to help the Lakers pull away in overtime. Overall, the Finals were Fisher's best series of the playoffs as he averaged 11 points per game and provided defense and veteran leadership.

The play of Pau Gasol, Trevor Ariza, and Lamar Odom, while not overwhelming, was more than enough support for Kobe to enable the Lakers to dominate this series. Gasol was quietly dominate, shooting at least 50% in every game (60% for the series) while averaging 18 points and 9 rebounds including 3 double-doubles. Ariza didn't shoot very well in the series but provided scoring, rebounding, and defense throughout the series to help the Lakers contain the Magic's potentially explosive offense. Odom scored 13 points per game off the bench and provided 2 double-doubles while getting the bulk of the playing time over Andrew Bynum. So much for the sugar crash that was publicized on ESPN for a week leading up to the series.

Jackson's contribution to the series may be overlooked amid all the storylines about Kobe, Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson's return, and Fisher's jumper. Jackson's defensive strategy contained a Magic team that repeatedly came back from large deficits against the Cavs in the conference finals. The Magic shot over 33.3% from three-point range just once in the series (35.7% in a game 3 win) after shooting over 40% for the majority of the conference finals. This decrease provided the margin of victory in games 2 and 4, and possibly game 5. If Jackson's strategy did not address this aspect of the Magic's offense, this series could have been a 5-game Magic victory.

Also important to the Lakers victory is the job they did defensively on Dwight Howard. While Howard had a double-double in all five games and just missed a triple-double by one block in game 4, the Lakers held him below his scoring average and forced him into numerous turnovers. Howard scored 20 points just once in the series and was held to 12 and 11 in games 1 and 5, respectively. Also, Howard had 7 turnovers in both games 2 and 4 (both close losses), and his missed free throws late in the fourth quarter of game 4 gave Fisher the opportunity to tie the game with his late three-pointer.

Overall, the Magic were not consistent enough to defeat the Lakers. Rafer Alston was invisible in LA before finding his shot in game 3 in Orlando. Rashard Lewis played well in games 2 and 3, but shot below 30% for the rest of the series. Hedo Turkoglu played well, but with the rest of the team being held below their scoring averages, it wasn't enough. Jameer Nelson's return to the court appeared to have more of an emotional impact then anything, and Mickael Pietrus, like Alston, disappeared for two games. For a team like the Magic to win, they need to hit their perimeter shots, and when they go cold, like they did for most of the Finals, they are very beatable. Howard could not overcome the Lakers' bigs and the hot streaks disappeared enabling the Lakers to a relatively easy Finals victory.

Above the Rim: Trade Deadline Effects

The trade deadline came and went without any blockbuster trades. However, despite Shaq remaining in Phoenix with Amar’e Stoudemire, and the Cavs holding onto Wally Szczerbiak’s contract, one team still managed to make a big deal for the playoff run. The Orlando Magic managed to find Jameer Nelson’s replacement by trading for Rafer Alston of the Houston Rockets.

Rafer Alston- Alston had been the Rockets starting point guard prior to the trade and was averaging 11.3 points and 5.4 assists per game. Since the 2004-2005 season, Alston has consistently been scoring between 11.3 and 14.2 points per game with 5.3 to 6.8 assists per game. Alston also contributes over 1 steal per game and around 35% shooting from 3-point range which should fit in well with the Magic’s perimeter shooting. In his first two games with the Magic, Alston appeared to be fitting in well. Although he only shot 1 for 9 in the first game for 3 points, he contributed with 8 assists and 3 steals with only 1 turnover off the bench. On Sunday against the Heat, Alston made his first start for the Magic. Alston contributed 12 points on 4 of 9 shooting including 2 of 4 from 3-point range. He also chipped in with 9 assists. Alston has been involved in stretch runs for the playoffs for the past few years with the Rockets and the Heat before that, so he is used to the pressure of a playoff push and shouldn’t experience a fall off. If Alston gets hot from the outside, as he can from time to time, Alston could be a great pickup down the stretch for the Magic.

Phoenix Suns- After holding onto Stoudemire and Shaq with hopes of making a run at the postseason, Stoudemire suffered a detached retina within the first week of the second half of the season and will miss the rest of the year. This may end the Suns playoff push, but it could mean increased fantasy value for other Suns. Coupled with the more offensive style of new coach Alvin Gentry, these players could experience a big boost in their production.

Leandro Barbosa- Barbosa became a starter when Stoudemire went down as Grant Hill and Jason Richardson both bump to a bigger position with Hill playing PF and Richardson playing SF, opening up a spot at SG for Barbosa. In his first start, Barbosa scored 41 points on 16 of 21 shooting, including 5 of 7 on threes. One of the fastest players in the league, Barbosa added 7 rebounds, 7 assists, and 6 steals with only 1 turnover. Against the Celtics on Sunday, the Suns new attack was finally held below 140 points, managing only 108, with Barbosa contributing 18 points on 8 of 15 shooting and 3 steals. On the year Barbosa has averaged 13.6 points while shooting 49.2% from the floor, 38.8% on threes and 89.8% from the free throw line. With the Suns returning to an up tempo offense, look for Barbosa’s speed to result in 15-20 points per game while shooting around 50% and 2-3 steals per game. Barbosa will be a direct beneficiary of the Suns fast break.

Jason Richardson- Richardson was averaging 17.1 points per game this year, 16.3 since he was traded to the Suns. Richardson has also averaged between 4 and 4.5 rebounds per game and 2 to 2.5 assists per game all season. Since coming to Phoenix, Richardson’s decrease in scoring is more due to taking 2.5 less shots per game because his shooting percentage has increased from 44.1% to 48.6% from the floor. Richardson’s long range shooting has decreased a little, but he still has managed to shoot 41.2% from 3-point land. In the first game without Stoudemire, Richardson got 20 shots, hitting 14 including 4 of 5 from three point range, on his way to 34 points. Richardson also contributed with 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. In the next game against the defensive minded Celtics, Richardson was 7 of 12 from the floor for 21 points. He, again, added 2 steals, but his rebounds and assists decreased to 1 and 2, respectively. Look for Richardson’s rebounding to go up slightly for the rest of the season as he plays more SF instead of SG, and his scoring should jump up closer to 20 points per game with more shots and a more up tempo style that should lead to open looks and easy buckets on the fast break.

Grant Hill- Hill has been averaging 10.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.9 assists on the season. While this is the lowest scoring averaging of Hill’s career, like Richardson, Hill is taking the fewest amount of shots per game of his career at only 8.2; his previous career low was 10.2. The 52.4% Hill is shooting from the floor is the highest of Hill’s career, so with an increase in shots with Stoudemire out, Hill should be able to see a considerable jump in points per game. Also, as a SF playing PF, Hill could use his shooting range and intelligence to take advantage of the larger PFs trying to guard him. Hill scored only 6 points in the first game without Stoudemire and then 8 points against the Celtics, but I expect him to adjust to the PF position quickly and increasing his production, especially in the rebounding game. I wouldn’t expect much more than 12 or 13 points per game, but I could see Hill averaging closer to 7 rebounds per game for the rest of the season.