Reason #42 why you're not an NBA Coach/Phil Jackson is really good

After game 1, lots and lots of people were in a huff about the Lakers seemingly changing their gameplan from the regular season, from having Kobe carry the load to spreading the ball out and having a more balanced attack. ESPN even asked their experts 8 questions that were basically different ways of asking if they agreed with the Lakers Game 1 gameplan. The answers were like a Seinfeld episode: "Why would they do that? They can't change the gameplan in the playoffs? What are they thinking?" They even asked whether Kobe was just trying to prove a point or if he was actually trying to win the game. As if Kobe will just throw the game to prove a point.

One game later, all of that seems to be erased. Kobe still wasn't his usual gunning self in Game 2, but he played an excellent game, and once again the Lakers had a great gameplan, as they defeated the Suns 99-93.

Early on, they pounded the ball inside and then got back and played defense. Kwame Brown only had 12 points, but he was very effective in the first quarter. Lamar Odom was big again, scoring 21. Devean George was solid off the bench. The Lakers did a great job at contesting the 3-ball, and it showed in the boxscore. The Lakers were 9/16 from beyond the stripe, the Suns were 9-27.

The biggest thing I think through 2 games is how much Lamar Odom has really dominated Shawn Marion. In game 2, Odom scored 21 points, grabbed 7 rebounds, and had 5 assists. Marion scored 13 points and had 9 rebounds, but he had no assists and he shot 5/15 from the field. This was huge.

I think LA would be wise to let Nash do his thing scoring wise and try to keep everyone else out of it. Nash had 29 last night, but because the other guys weren't getting a lot of looks, they didn't have good balance. The highest scoring team in the NBA had 42 at the half, and only 93 at the end of the game. As Free Darko said, it's times to realize that these Lakers aren't just a one-trick pony, but they're really solid all around. And I think a lot of credit for this has to go to the Zen Master, who is using his magic once again.