Kobe Too Much for Orlando

The Magic kept tempo with the Lakers for about twelve minutes, and then the Kobe show began. Mr. Bryant began drilling shots left and right and Pietrus may have been better off wearing Kobe's shoes. Superman was benched early with two fouls and Kobe took advantage and brought his Lakers to a 53-43 lead. The Lakers never turned back, or Kobe never turned back. Dwight Howard was pretty much silent for the remainder of the game and the Lakers were cruising. One highlight for the Magic was the play of Jameer Nelson. He played the entire second quarter had six points and four assists for the game. I thought bringing him in could be a mistake and could possible mess up the team's chemistry, but at this point in the game, the Magic didn't have any chemistry. The Lakers continued to dominate and they went on to win 100-75.

Kobe led all scorers with 40 points, eight boards, and eight assists. Leading the Magic Dwight Howard with 12 points and 15 boards. Pietrus led the Magic with scoring with 14 points and have a difficult time slowing down Kobe. Pau Gasol added 16 points and eight rebounds.

The difference in this game? The Magic have to guard five players, not one. The Lakers don't have one player they have to go to, they have a variety of players that can knock down shots. The other difference? Six shots. Six shots taken by Dwight Howard. As the dominant force on the Magic, he needs to take more shots. He did have a fairly decent night from the line, but if he can hit shots, get layups and dunks, the Magic are going to get swept. Maybe it was nerves, or maybe it just wasn't his night, but either way at least put up more than six shots. It wasn't just Dwight, Turkoglu and Lewis combined for only 21 points. If I were Stan Van Gundy, I might start Jameer Nelson next game. Rafer has been a terrific addition to the Magic, but he only had six points and one assist last night. He has been a decent scorer, but when Jameer has a better game than you, having not played since February, maybe it's time to give him a spot on the bench.

Keys for Game Two for the Magic
Give Dwight some space. He needs to get the ball low in the post, but spacing out gives him an opportunity to score, or and opportunity to dish it.

When the shots aren't falling, drive. The Magic are a good shooting team, but it's not going to be your night every night. When three's aren't falling, you need to drive and get to the line.

Contain the other four players. Your aren't going to stop Kobe. And after last night's game, you probably can't even slow him down, but Kobe can't score 100 points (hopefully). If D12 gets in foul trouble, Gortat is going to need help, preferably from Rashard Lewis. Pau Gasol is a finesse player and he gets doubled he will have no choice but to dish it out. If the Magic can have a decent night scoring, and they contain the other four players of the Lakers, they have a chance to go to Orlando with the series tied. However, if they lose in another blowout, they series will probably be over.