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Sonics +4
After loosing the Bulls on Sunday the Lakers has a record of 4 wins and 6 losses. Nothing too impressive, though some may even think this result is a bit better than expected. The main problem the Lakers have had is finding a big man to complement Bryant. Its even bigger factor now as Kwame Brown, Devean George and Slava Medvedenko are all out. Also Chris Mihm is hampered by ankle and heel problems, which means the Lakers are missing some scoring, rebounding and some depth that would ease the scoring pressure on Bryant.
The Sonics, meanwhile, are off to an 5-6 start which is a poor result but keep in mind that most of those losses came during the six game road trip and against solid teams like Memphis, Cleveland, Washington and New Jersey. Seattle continually has problems with consistency. One game they could be on top of the world, and the next they could be the worst thing that ever happened. Defense, though, should be of greater concern to the Sonics. They've given up 105.2 points per game and are allowing opponents to shoot 49.2 percent. They are, however, on their way to improve that.
Ray Allen is fired up right now, and he always tends to perform well against Bryant and the Lakers. We think both Ray and Kobe will bring it tonight... but the game will probably be decided by who gets the best effort from its supporting cast. Against the injury-riddled Lakers the Sonics simply must stay aggressive around the basket and use their edge on the class. If so, they will have a chance. Medium (-) stakes.
read other analyses from www.nbatip.com
After loosing the Bulls on Sunday the Lakers has a record of 4 wins and 6 losses. Nothing too impressive, though some may even think this result is a bit better than expected. The main problem the Lakers have had is finding a big man to complement Bryant. Its even bigger factor now as Kwame Brown, Devean George and Slava Medvedenko are all out. Also Chris Mihm is hampered by ankle and heel problems, which means the Lakers are missing some scoring, rebounding and some depth that would ease the scoring pressure on Bryant.
The Sonics, meanwhile, are off to an 5-6 start which is a poor result but keep in mind that most of those losses came during the six game road trip and against solid teams like Memphis, Cleveland, Washington and New Jersey. Seattle continually has problems with consistency. One game they could be on top of the world, and the next they could be the worst thing that ever happened. Defense, though, should be of greater concern to the Sonics. They've given up 105.2 points per game and are allowing opponents to shoot 49.2 percent. They are, however, on their way to improve that.
Ray Allen is fired up right now, and he always tends to perform well against Bryant and the Lakers. We think both Ray and Kobe will bring it tonight... but the game will probably be decided by who gets the best effort from its supporting cast. Against the injury-riddled Lakers the Sonics simply must stay aggressive around the basket and use their edge on the class. If so, they will have a chance. Medium (-) stakes.
read other analyses from www.nbatip.com