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"All I want for Christmas is a.... Peja Bobblehead!"
. JRedd
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FRIDAY'S GAME

Jeff

That was sooo much fun. I think my voice is back this morning.

I have a lot of respect for Christie. That injury has to be painful, yet there he was....That guy is a BAD ASS.

Nice solid game by Bibby...Who said he isn't a leader?

Hedo had me worried by his play in the second quarter, but he was pure gold in the second half.

Pollard played like an animal. He matched up with Shaq far more than I anticipated, and while Shaq still outplayed him, it wasn't the extreme mismatch that it usually is.

Peja was just amazing in the 4th quarter. Usually, Fox has him in cuffs and totally shut down by the 4th. Fox couldn't come close to getting Peja.

What is this bitterness by the Lakers? Oh they only lost because they only played 60%? So Shaq didn't exceed his average? So Kobe didn't get his average? Last I checked, the Lakers have two guys averaging big numbers and noone else averaging double digits scoring. You've all covered this ground, but that just shows all you need to know about this team.

I seem to recall some Lakers fans posting here about how we didn't give the Lakers enough credit after the first game (a game where many here felt the Kings didn't play their best). I recall some saying that the Lakers and their fans always give a team credit when they outplay them.....Pure Bunk!

Best moment of the game last night. There were these two Lakers fans sitting next to one of my buddies a couple rows over from us. They had on their brand new Lakers gear (does anyone own a Lakers shirt or hat that doesn't look brand new? And are all Lakers fans required to own a full warm up suit, hat, jersey and shooting shirt?)...Anyway, with about 30 seconds left in the game, Christie drains a couple FTs and I look over and notice there are still two folks sitting next to my buddy, but now they aren't wearing Lakers shirts anymore.....Thats about all you need to know about most Lakers fans.

LAKER GOLD

Sitting at Arco Arena(playoff intensity atmosphere) last night and watching the game, I told the Kings fans in the row of seats in front of me, how I longed for Jason Williams at the point guard position, because I was getting real tired of Mike Bibby killing my team with his timely shot making. The Kings point guard play(point scoring) was never a threat to my team in previous years. My take on this game is Mike Bibby's scoring was the real, real difference. Also, I am glad that the next Lakers - Kings game is not until late March, reason, I would like to enjoy my team's NBA season without dealing with this matchup(Lakers -Kings) until necessary. One question, when Webber comes back how many shot attempts will be lost to other Kings players based on his shot attempts?

JB

Maybe...

It was the Kings defense that beat Phillip's team?
Naw, couldn't be.
Shaq should be the poster boy for the old saying, "It's better to keep your mouth shut...". Well removing doubt for Shaq, one never has to wait long.
Last I checked the Lakers walked onto the court with 5 players for every possesion last night. And since when do they ever get 100% out of all of their guys. They are still a 2 man team with role players. In the 2nd half, it was the Kings defense putting the clamps on Shaq, who was having a monster game, and daring the role players to beat them with contested shots.
I have to admit that Kobe showed real class in his comments after the game. Odd, but maybe the young kid has more class and maturity than the veterans, Phil, Shaq and Fox. Shaq was partly correct about the "expansionism" statement. He just should have used it in reference to his own backside.

MIAMI BEGINS ANOTHER LOSING STREAK

Reno Lady

Well, the Kings won....it wasn't especially pretty, and I got the distinct impression they played just hard enough to beat Miami w/o expending any more energy than that. They didn't feel the need to "crush" them, just win the game.

Chris seemed to be moving well, and didn't favor his ankle the few times he went up for a dunk, layup, or rebound, and he had a couple of great steals. His

shooting was off in the first half but he seemed to get back closer to his old self in the 2nd half. He made all his FTs tonight though. What in the world got into Ellis tonight to push Webber in the back like that? Geez, what a dufus....that ended up costing Miami 4 points. It's obvious Webber needs more practice with the team as far as timing, positions, etc. go; you could tell they were all a little out of snyc tonight even though they were better in the 2nd half. Hedo had a great game off the bench again and the Kings defense proved to be the turning point in the last few minutes of the game, not that the game was that close or anything, just that the Kings stepped up their defense in the final 3 or 4 minutes of the game.

I hope Christie is ok, his hand was bleeding at the very end but it didn't stop him from making both FTs. And Peja missed 2 FTs in a row tonight!! Hard to believe.

Critic

It was considerate of RA to bring CWebb back for a nearly certain win (on paper, none are certain out on the floor) that is followed by another easy-looking game. That way they can put off by a game or two the comparisons between the Kings .750 record w/o him and whatever they achieve w him. Right now, that's 1.000, but odds are that won't hold up for the rest of the season. There is NO doubt that reporters and tv announcers will keep track of that and look to use it for an "angle" for stories about the Kings. Face it, if you were a beat writer on deadline or an announcer filling dead air prior to games or at half time, you would too. Poor CWebb -- it's REALLY hard to IMPROVE on .750 and if he doesn't folks will do to him what they used to do to Ewing when playing for the Knicks. Even if he plays 20 perfect games, if others let down THEIR efforts and they win "only" say 13 of their second 20 games, he could catch "blame."

On the positive side (for Kings fans) this may be a challenge to CWebb that could produce a great effort to fit into the team pattern that the Kings established in their first 20 games w/o him. If they DO improve on .750, they could likely be talking NBA one-seed -- .750 ends up with about 61 or 62 wins. I don't think the Lakers will win many more than that (tho they obviously MIGHT), so getting above 62 would give the Kings a shot at the NBA one-seed.

Big G

Hedo had a terrific shooting night again. He seems to play with a lot of self confidence now. He also displayed his weaknesses as well. He struggles defending muscular small forwards and quick off guards. Adelman took him out of the game once he lost track of Eddie Jones twice in the 4th quarter. I think he needs to gain a few pounds of upper body muscle to stand his ground with guys like Laphonso Ellis. If he gets stronger he can play some power forward when Adelman goes small in the 4th quarters.

Pondo

Was glad to see CWebb back on the court. Liked the interviews about him being ready to play, glad he got back and wanting to fit into the flow of the team. My question about CWebb working into the team or taking over the game for his own personal gain was answered. He wants to be a part of the team and played that way!
It will be great when CWebb and Bibby start knowing each other better so they can work off of each other. It will not be there every game but it could cause teams to defense against their play. Maybe that would leave Pega, Vlade or Doug C. free to move in a position to pass or score.

Now they need to get ready for the Magic! Will DC be able to shut down or hold TMack in check with the help of the rest of the team?

Kingboy00

Between Petrie and Adelman, the Kings braintrust strikes again. While some of us posters here were debating which of the three amigos (Cleaves, Price, Smith) would find themselves with those mysterious back spasms or even plantar fascitis (which to this day I think has something to do with plants not getting enough water ), it was Funderburke that went on the IL. Talk about throwing a curve. I never saw that one coming. Could it be that his Achilles really is hurting him?? He played so well, I thought for sure he was CWebb's back up. But then again, never ever question the braintrust!!

GO KINGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bonsy

I think Mike Bibby's leadership and ability to keep things running in the triangle will make a HUGE difference when this new line-up gets clicking. Webber made some great passes and everyone was moving. There was even the Vlade-to-Webber-to-Vlade-to-Webber plays where Webber scores. The two best passing big men in the league.

The pick and rolls with Bibby showed signs of being unstoppable and this against a team known for their great defense against the pick and roll. Bibby got the ball to Webber who often was 3-4 feet away from anybody else and open. It was after he missed some of those that Bibby started directing him to "catch and shoot!"

BillandJanet

Hm. I know Vlade needs a bit of a breather, but only taking five shots, getting two or three rebounds, two assists, and never going to the line?

Please tell me Vlade isn't already deferring off his success now that CWebb is back? I hope he just had an 'off' night..

The two of them - Chris and Vlade - should be a tandem! I would imagine that if each matched the other's effort (if not necessarily score line), we may go .800 the rest of the way.

Don't get me wrong, please.. I *LOVE* that Webb is back, and if I was there last night, I'd have been among the loudest in the Standing O he got coming back to the floor last night.

But really, we all know that Vlade is the heart of the team. He's having the season of his career, and I really hope he doesn't decide to leave it on the backburner just because our best player is back.