As a team, Lakers are winning it on the rebound
LONNIE WHITE'S TRANSITION GAME
Throughout the lineup, they're outworking and outperforming San Antonio on the boards. As Game 4 showed, even Tim Duncan's strong play isn't enough for the Spurs.
There's a basketball axiom that claims "rebounding wins championships."
For the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs, that statement has proved to be true in this year's Western Conference finals against the Lakers, who have consistently dominated Coach Gregg Popovich's aging Spurs team on the backboards.
Except for Tim Duncan's steady rebounding, the Spurs have been outworked by the Lakers at retrieving missed shots. That was evident in the Lakers' 93-91 victory over San Antonio on Tuesday, which gave them a commanding 3-1 lead heading into tonight's Game 5 of the best-of-seven series.
Despite Duncan's game-high 17 boards, the Lakers out-rebounded the Spurs, 46-37, with Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant each grabbing 10. And thanks to the Lakers' overall edge in rebounding, they were able to control the basketball for crucial stretches of Game 4, especially in the fourth quarter.
So, how are the Lakers' getting this done?
Good question, especially when Duncan is averaging 14.8 rebounds per game, the second highest total in the postseason.
Although the Lakers lack a monster rebounder, they have a group of hard-working big men willing to bang bodies underneath the basket.
In four playoff games against the Spurs, Lamar Odom is averaging a team-high 10 rebounds per game, followed by Gasol, who is averaging nearly eight, while Bryant and Vladimir Radmanovic each are grabbing nearly six.
Reserves Luke Walton and Ronny Turiaf are also averaging six more rebounds per game off the bench.
Coach Phil Jackson and his staff have done a stellar job of getting the Lakers to rebound together as a team. Every time a shot goes up, the Lakers' are boxing out San Antonio players around the basket to grab the rebound themselves or open up an opportunity for a teammate.
And with the height and long arms of players like Gasol, Odom, Radmanovic and even Turiaf, the Lakers have built a high wall near the rim on missed shots, which has prevented smaller San Antonio players from getting cheap rebounds.
That's how, in Game 4, the Lakers grabbed 11 offensive rebounds in the first half for 20 second-chance points.
Since the Spurs are a perimeter team and normally run their offense through Duncan in the post, their secondary rebounders must be on the move to make plays.
But Bryant, Fisher and Radmanovic have been mobile enough to help the Lakers get those rebounds.
