Relax on the debris

Relax on the debris



Lakers lost a game last night, a game they fought until last 0.2 second, a game still within their reach until Kobe’s last TO, a game they wanted too much but lost their patience and rhythm. Fairly and squarely, Lakers lost to a better team last night. I may agree that it is not Lakers best performance, but it is definitely not their worst as well. Yes, Bynum is still slow, but he helped defensively; LO was not as powerful as previous two games, but Gasol had been consistently effective and efficient; Fish couldn't keep the pace of a hot, rarely, Alston, but Farmar stood up sometimes; Kobe did blow off the winning opportunity at the end of game, or his 5 missing Fts doomed it earlier, but he was the one who kept Lakers in this game most of the time. Lakers played par last night, which was just not enough to beat a team with 75% shooting percentage in the first half and 63% overall.

Unlike the game 4 and 6 in Rox series, unlike the game 4 in Denver, it is an acceptable lost for Lakers fans. "Acceptable" doesn't mean we don't understand how better the situation would be in 3:0 lead instead of 2:1, it is because Lakers didn't have the mindset that it was an affordable game for them to lose, even it maybe was. They lost mostly because they were too anxious to win; because Kobe suddenly smelt the blood of victory; because they just did not want to wait any longer.

Relax, Lakers, mentally and physically. We all know how close we are right now. Let Lakers be Lakers. Forget about all the expert’s projection, in 5 or in 6 or in 7? We DO NOT care. We, as fans, believe in Alston couldn't shoot 8-12 every night; we believe in you are more experienced than Magic to close out a game; we believe in Kobe wouldn't be faltering in two consecutive games. We believe in, overall, you are the best team now in the league.

Relax, buddy. Step back, take a deep breath. PJ has 48 hours to prove his Zen master nickname one more time. Recommend another movie for you before the game, “the longest day". We've been waiting for 7 years; one more week wouldn't bother us that much.

Just relax, buddy!