There would be no first game letdown for No. 2 and the LA Lakers.
Despite early foul trouble, Fish scored eight points on 2-4 from the floor and 4-4 from the line as the Lake Show began their NBA title trek with a 113-100 victory over the Utah Jazz on Sunday afternoon at the Staples Center.
“I don’t think our mindset has changed, in terms of what we’re here for and what we’re trying to do. It’s pretty simple to be honest,” D-Fish said after practice on Saturday. “More than last year, I think we understand that we’re in control of it. Regardless of seeding or where you play or how many games it takes, you’re in control of how you play and you perform. We’re continuing to concentrate on what we need to do, respect your opponent obviously, but don’t get too caught up in what everybody else is doing.”
The Lakers made short work of Jazz by taking an early lead and staving off eighth seeded Utah. After picking up two fouls in the first three minutes, No. 2 sat on the bench as the Lakers pulled away early. By the time he checked back in around the eight-minute mark of the second, the lead was 39-26.
GETTING PHYSICAL
Derek quickly asserted himself upon his return to the floor, grabbing a board and later connecting on a high-arching jumper from just inside the ark. After making the basket, Fish hustled down and made his way into the paint where he rebounded a Utah miss, fought off the much larger Paul Milsap, and drew a foul in the process. At the line, he sank two of two. After the play, ABC’s Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy had the following exchange regarding D-Fish.
“Jackson: You have to give Fisher credit, he’s the Denzel Washington of basketball. Great actor.
Van Gundy: He’s a great competitor. He is not afraid of physical contact and you better have guards that are willing to put their body on the line to secure rebounds.”
Fish talked about the physicality of the playoffs with Brian Kamenetzky of the Los Angeles Times:
“I don’t think the game is called differently per se, but I think there’s a tendency to have the natural flow of the game take place and not have- in particular I guess because more people are watching our (meaning the NBA as a whole) games- to not have it be a free throw shooting contest as opposed to a basketball game. But I think the biggest part of it is that things start to slow down in terms of the schedule, so you see guys physically able to do more. They’re playing as hard as they always do, but are able to play harder for longer because they play (every other day, or every two or three) days.
So you’re seeing guys, for the most part, at their best. Guys with ankle injuries are now better, guys that have had sore knees now have four or five days to get prepared to play. So guys are quicker off the ball, they’re stronger in the post. So I think that’s where the higher sense of physical play comes from. It’s not like guys all of a sudden say, “Okay, I’m going to start running faster! I’m going to start jumping higher!” I think it’s a combination of those things.”
With the Lakers firmly in control, No. 2 took a seat at the 3:49 mark of the second and ceded the rest of the half to Shannon Brown.
SECOND VERSE, SAME AS THE FIRST
It was more of the same in the second half for LA, who led by 22 at the half and only briefly let the lead slip below 10 for the rest of the game.
Derek only pulled the trigger on two more shots, his first a fastbreak pull-up, hit the front of the iron and bounded away.
Several possessions later, Fish pushed the ball up the court, off a defensive rebound, to Kobe Bryant, setting up a play for a quick bucket. Bryant set a backscreen and handed off to Fish who drained a fallaway jumper from the left wing, just like they’d drawn it up and it was once again a 15-point game.
Less than a minute and a half later, Fish was active on the defensive glass again, pulling down a board and eventually creating an opportunity for a Trevor Ariza and-one slam at the other end.
Fish drew a foul of his own several minutes later and connected on both free throws for the second time. He strolled to the bench at the 2:12 mark and would not return until the final few minutes of the game when he came back in to help LA close out the win.
FRENZIED CROWD
The home crowd at the Staples Center last night was noticeably more electric now that they playoffs have began. Derek talked about how the atmosphere around the city changes come postseason:
“We recognize that this city and the fans, they have expectations as well,” Derek said last week. “We don’t consciously play with that in mind but we feel it and we see it. Springtime rolls around, the flowers start blooming and the Lakers flags come out. That’s just how it is. If we can get through the first round and take care of our business, the number of flags will grow exponentially from round-to-round. It starts one out of every four cars, to two out of every four, to three, to every car if we make it to the Finals. So hopefully we can have Lakers flags on every car in Southern California.”
NEXT UP
The Lakers will make a move toward defending the home court and taking a commanding two games to none lead in the best of seven series over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday night at the Staples Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PST and all the action can be seen live on TNT.
RELATED STORIES
Lakers Practice Report: 4/16/09 (Lakers.com, April 16, 2009)
http://www.nba.com/lakers/news/090416practicereport.html?rss=true
Utah Jazz vs. Los Angeles Lakers Box Score (ESPN.com, April 19, 2009)
http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=290419013
Derek Fisher on upcoming Utah series (LA Times Lakers Blog/You Tube, April 18, 2009)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4x_qXCz30M
Lakers victory seems familiar (LA Times, April 20, 2009)
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First down, 15 to go (LA Times, April 20, 2009)
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Lakers start off on right note (LA Daily News, April 20, 2009)
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