Empty the Bench

Los Angeles Lakers: 57-25, 1st seed
Utah Jazz: 54-28, 4th seed
Head-to-Head: Los Angeles won 3-1

Prelude

Phil Jackson and Jerry Sloan have seen each other once or twice in the past and Sloan has to be getting sick of Jackson always having the best player on the court. This time it will be Kobe Bryant playing the role of Michael Jordan and the duo of Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer emulating John Stockton and Karl Malone. Jackson’s teams have all the rings but that doesn’t mean Sloan’s teams haven’t come out to compete. Their coaching styles are completely different, with Jackson being the hands-off Zen master and Sloan constantly pacing the sidelines and screaming while attempting to control every aspect of the game. Jackson has had the horses but over the last 15 years nobody consistently executes like Sloan’s Jazz.

Despite obvious personnel and style differences these are two of the most efficient and prolific offenses in the NBA. Utah had the second-best team field-goal percentage at 49.7% and the Lake Show was just behind at third-best with 47.6%. Los Angeles likes to run a bit more though and ended with the fourth-most points per game at 108.6 — Utah was just behind there with 106.2, the fifth-most. Both teams were also in the top four in assists. Suffice it to say these teams can puts points on the board with ease.

The difference in this series could be defense, something neither team excelled at in the regular season. If either team steps up and plays a great defensive series they’ll be in the driver’s seat. Don’t hold your breath. Their team defense stats were in the middle of the pack and neither was able to hold the other under 95 points in any of their four meetings this season. What it should ultimately come down to is the Lakers having both home-court advantage and the best basketball player on the planet. Utah had the best record in the league in front of the Salt Lake City faithful but struggled on the road and it’s going to be a tall order to steal a game at Staples Center. I expect the Jazz to play extremely physical with the finesse Lakers and try to wear Kobe and friends down while Los Angeles presses their transition game and lets Bryant close out games as only he can. It will be a more even matchup than most anticipate and it’s going to be a hell of a show.

ETB breaks down the Lakers-Jazz series and rolls out our predictions after the jump…

Backcourt

Fresh off the announcement of his first MVP award, Kobe Bryant is proving he’s no Dirk Nowitzki. After earning the award in the regular season he did nothing to change people’s minds in the first-round rout of the Denver Nuggets. Bryant was clutch, exploding in the fourth quarter and putting the team on his back for prolonged stretches at both ends. He finished the series averaging a playoffs-best 33.5 points to go with 6.3 assists, 5.3 boards, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocks on 50% FGs. That’s not too far off his averages of 29.8 points, 5 assists, 5.5 boards and 2 steals on 56.3% FGs against the Utah Jazz in the regular season. I feel confident predicting he will have another massive series. Kobe has always been Kobe, but what’s different about this year is that he has options. If Utah doesn’t throw bodies at him he can still go off for 45. But when the Jazz double, triple and trap Kobe, he can simply keep the ball moving and let Lamar Odom, Pau Gasol and the wide assortment of role players do their job. Bryant can conserve his energy and wait for the fourth quarter to unleash his Mamba strike.

The impossible task of slowing Kobe down will fall on the whole team, but namely second-year guard Ronnie Brewer, the lanky Andrei Kirilenko and the physical Matt Harpring. Brewer lacks polish on offense, but he’s athletic, a plus defender and a good finisher. He quietly contributes every game and finds holes in the defense which allows him to shoot a solid percentage from the field, though he will find the going tough against Bryant. He did manage 14.8 points and 1.3 steals a game against LA this season, so they do need to keep an eye on him. The Jazz need Brewer to be a double-digit scorer and pesky distraction on defense. In late-game situations expect AK-47 to harrass Kobe on the perimeter.

Deron Williams and the Jazz offense were out of sorts after the first two wins in the Rockets series and they need to get back on track. That could be easier said than done as he faces off against a teammate from last season in Derek Fisher. In terms of size, athleticism and skill Fisher will be outmatched, but he knows the Jazz and Williams well. It showed up in the four regular-season games as he held Williams to just 6.5 assists per game and forced him into 4.8 turnovers, the worst assist/turnover ratio Deron posted against anybody. Williams is one of the top point guards in the league, though, and he’s developing a reputation as a tough player and a clutch performer. He needs to keep this team in games and get Boozer, Brewer and Okur’s confidence back.

Off the bench Utah doesn’t have anything to speak of in the backcourt, which will hurt. The Lakers have competent backups in Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic. Farmar is a decent scorer who can run the break and hit the outside jumper when he’s on. Vujacic can be a deadly shooter outside who plays underrated defense (hey, at least he tries). When Vujacic comes into games and knocks down the open three the Lakers extend their leads and become very difficult to beat.

Frontcourt

Carlos Boozer had a terrible series against Houston, averaging just 16 points on 42.9% FGs. He needs to get back over 20 points a game at 50-55% FGs for Utah to keep up with Los Angeles. He’s a bruiser who plays well around the basket and has developed a nice mid-range game though, and I think his poor play had a lot to do with the swarming Houston defense. He shot 58% against the Lakers this season and should recover.

Even so, it will be hard to keep up with Pau Gasol, who was stellar for the Los Angeles in the first round with 22.3 points, 9 boards, 5 assists and 2.8 blocks a game on 58.2% FGs. Again, that performance also had a lot to do with the atrocious Denver defense. It’s going to be the first time Utah sees Gasol in a Lakers uniform and if they lost three of four without him in there it’s tough to imagine how Utah can win four of seven with Gasol. Neither of these guys is a great man defender and they should be punching and counter-punching on offense all series.

Lamar Odom and Andrei Kirilenko will be another interesting matchup with each trying to prove they’re the NBA’s best Swiss Army Knife. Kirilenko does his damage with great man and help defense while nailing open jumpers and finishing on Deron Williams’ good looks. In the regular season AK-47 did a little of everything against the Lakers with 14.5 points, 5.5 boards, 4.3 assists, 2.5 steals and 1.3 blocks on good shooting percentages. The Jazz will need him to do all of that and play Kobe extremely tough in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, Lamar Odom has been no stranger to versatile contribution this season, averaging 14.2 points, 10.6 boards (seventh in the NBA), 3.6 assists, 1 steal and 1 block on 52.5% FGs. These guys can do it all and it’s going to be a contest of which can adapt to the game and situation and do more of what their team needs that night.

The other starters up front are Mehmet Okur and Vladimir Radmanovic. And while Okur is technically the center and Radmanovic the small forward, they will play similar roles on offense. These are Euros and they both want to drift to the perimeter and wait for open jumpers to come to them. Memo is by far the better rebounder though, and he should give the Jazz an edge on the glass.

After a forgettable regular season Luke Walton has been LA’s first man off the bench in the postseason and responded well. He had an excellent first round with 14 points, 5 boards and 3.8 assists on 71% FGs. He won’t keep up that shooting, but the solid offensive production is what Los Angeles was expecting when they inked him to the contract extension. Utah will counter with Kyle Korver, one of their few good outside shooters (the Jazz averaged just 5 made threes a game this season). He’s capable of heating up and hitting big shots, so when he’s in the game the Lakers will have to keep Korver on their radar.

The other factors up front are hustle men Ronny Turiaf and Paul Millsap. Turiaf is a strong defender and one of the most active players in the league around the basket. He will be asked to come in and give good minutes against Boozer and cancel out some of the Jazz’s advantage in physicality and rebounding. Millsap is also a strong boards man off the bench who will struggle to guard any of the Lakers versatile forwards, but will out-hustle most of them and keep possessions alive.

Wild Card

These are two stellar starting lineups, but if the Lakers bench plays like they have all season it’s going to make things difficult for Utah. Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic, Luke Walton and Ronny Turiaf can all come in off the bench and provide a scoring and energy boost. They pack a potent offensive punch when the starters are resting, one Utah will be hard-pressed to match. The Jazz have Kyle Korver, Matt Harpring, Paul Millsap and little else. Once the Utah guards get fatigued or in foul trouble there’s not much they can do — and both of those things will happen while they try to guard a determined and inspired Kobe.

Predictions

Andrew: Los Angeles Lakers in six.
Brian: Los Angeles Lakers in seven.

More 2008 NBA Playoff Previews: Round 2

- Los Angeles Lakers vs. Utah Jazz

- Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers

- Detroit Pistons vs. Orlando Magic

- New Orleans Hornets vs. San Antonio Spurs

Tags: Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz, Kobe Bryant, Deron Williams, Pau Gasol, Carlos Boozer