Shannon Brown Flushes Birdman
May 28th, 2009 at 9:02 amBy Chris
The “other” Lakers potentially saved the team’s collective bacon last night with an inspired performance, led by folks like Lamar Odom and Shannon Brown, who both took turns victimizing Chris “Birdman” Andersen. Brown’s dunk was probably a little more significant because of the run the Lakers went on shortly thereafter — 11-0 to start the fourth quarter — and for the way it ignited the Staples Center “faithful.” Brown’s effectiveness wasn’t limited to game-changing breakaway dunks either. The well-traveled guard also hit a huge shot for LA while the shot clock was expiring and played great defense on Chauncey Billups.
When you look at Brown’s stat sheet and see his six point output, you might think “that’s not that impressive,” but when you consider two things: The Lakers bench production before last night’s game (not much) and the final margin (nine points), you see his contributions were much needed.
As for the Bird of Denver, after a nice block on Lamar Odom to end the first, Anderson got yacked twice for his troubles. While Birdman finished with eight rebounds and four blocks, his two total points left something to be desired. Granted, he’s not called on to score in bunches, but when his team is missing shots late in the third and in the fourth quarters, opportunities for garbage buckets are present.
You just have to go get them.
Moving forward, when the rest of Kobe’s merry men play like they did last night, the Lakers are the toughest out in the playoffs. The thing is, Game 5 was the first game in the Denver series where the LA bench played so well. The question is, was their great play a new playoff trend or a one-game aberration?
- You Might Also Enjoy:
- Lamar Odom Gets Birdman, Too
- Nene: Great At Home (Denver Nuggets)
- Shaq Debuts, Suns Lose
May 28th, 2009 at 10:39 pm
not that big of a deal. 3 on 1 and he got a decent dunk. not enough of a deal to dedicate 2 posts to the lakers “posterizing” anderson. I’m not a fan of either team but it seems like you’re the only blogger to really capatalize on this. I like your blog but this doesn’t seem like this needed any attention.
May 29th, 2009 at 8:13 am
Wasn’t trying to rub it in on Bird… more like a segue.
But both plays had an impact on the game. Brown’s started a run (and woke the LA crowd up — no small feat) and if I’m not mistaken, Odom’s helped stem one.