It pains me as a Lakers' fan to see another victory slip out of their grasp due to poor effort and laziness on the defensive glass. The Spurs had placed the win neatly into their laps, gift-wrapped and everything, with 22 seconds to go. The Lakers, however, refused to grab hold of it before the opportunity was so unexpectedly snatched away from them.
With a matchup at home against the Spurs, who hold the best record in the league, the stars could not have aligned any straighter for the Lakers to quiet the critics and prove that they still belonged at the top of the NBA food chain. So much has been said in the past couple of weeks about the Lakers and how they don't look like a two-time defending NBA championship team, and a win against the Spurs would have made the perfect case in proving otherwise. Unfortunately, the Lakers inability to consistently play up to their potential was the kiss of death on Thursday night.
Things played out like any regular Lakers' game. They showed signs of dominance on and off in the first half, going into the locker room with the score knotted at 42 points apiece. They continued to keep the Spurs at bay during the third quarter, not allowing the game to get away from them and playing with somewhat of a sense of urgency.
And then the fourth quarter came… The game was put on the line and the Lakers choked as the Spurs put the pedal to the metal. With only 22 seconds left, the Lakers had a one-point lead and needed one defensive stop to seal the deal. The Spurs took the inbounds, and two shots, one offensive rebound and one ball knocked out of bounds by the Lakers later, the Spurs had just under six seconds to find the bottom of the net.
The inbounds pass ensued, and then the heave from Tim Duncan(notes) clanked off of the rim and up into the arm. And with one well-timed tip of the ball from veteran Antonio McDyess(notes), the ball fell fatefully into the hoop right as time expired. After review, the film would show that McDyess tipped the ball with .1 seconds left on the clock, handing the Spurs a miraculous victory that left my jaw unhinged for a few minutes.
The Lakers failed to properly box out on three consecutive shots, allowing the Spurs to continue to throw up prayers. The third time was a charm, as McDyess swooped in and stole the win right out from the under the Lakers' noses. The looming scent of sweet victory swayed the Lakers defenders from sticking to their assignments, and the buzzer sounded with the Spurs ahead, 89-88.
One positive that did come out of this game, however, was that Ron Artest(notes) seemed to finally break the spell he's been under. For the first time in weeks, he made a noticeable impact and helped keep the Lakers in the game up to the very last moment. He contributed 13 points, five rebounds and two steals.
Many will argue that even though the game was close until the very end, the Spurs won, and that's all it takes to prove that the Lakers are on the fast track to NBA mediocrity. However, I must make it clear that the Lakers displayed dominance throughout the majority of the game. If it wasn't for their ineptitude and failure to play hard until the clock hit zero, the game would have ended with the Lakers on top.
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