Odom to the Rescue

As I've written before, this is a ridculously close series--probably the most competitive I've ever covered.

Game five was a great example:  the score was tied at 25 at the end of the first quarter; tied at 56 at the half; and tied again at 76 at the end of the third quarter (only the fourth time in NBA playoff history that has happened).  So what happened to decide it? 

Lamar Odom.

Odom has been criticized so much during this series that he admitted after the game that he had to "stop reading the paper, stop watching TV."  After game four, Mason called him "the invisible man."  But the truth is that he had an excuse--he's been hurt.  He injured his back in round one of the playoffs, and hasn't been the same since.  He appeared on the show last week and refused to admit any of that, but trust me, it's true.

So after playing with a bad back that rendered him ineffective in game four, he played like he discovered the fountain of youth in game five.  19 points, 14 rebounds, four blocked shots and three assists in 32 minutes.  Put simply, if Odom plays like that in game six, there won't be a game seven.

A Lakers win would give LA six days off before the NBA Finals.  That should be all the motivation Odom and the Lakers need.

Comments

[Craig W.]

John - you should know better - Lamar is, and always has been, a tease. He has Lebron James talent, but JR Ryder motivation, most of the time. I heard Colin Coherd say this morning that upbringing often determines a person's work ethic and motivation. Well, it appears Obama's went one way and Odom's went another.

Don't ever game plan around Lamar because you never know which Lamar will show up, but you can bet the motivated Lamar will only appear 20%-40% of the time. I don't expect someone to always bring it - Kobe is a unique case - but there must be some sort of consistency. With front line players, they seem to respond to the pressure of the moment. With role players, they seem to respond to playing at home. With Lamar, ...