By Kevin Ding, The Orange County Register/MCT Posted April 20, 2011
LOS ANGELES _ Credit Chris Paul, who was a maestro all game but particularly brilliant with his grand finale.
Kudos to New Orleans’ no-name bench, which enjoyed three guys outplaying likely NBA Sixth Man of the Year Lamar Odom.
But criticize the Lakers, too, for letting the Hornets own the playoff opener Sunday at Staples Center, 109-100.
“We were the ones responsible for that to happen,” Lakers forward Pau Gasol said. “We have to own up to that.”
Gasol acknowledged his subpar outing of eight points on 2-of-9 shooting against clever mixed coverages by New Orleans. He was singled out after the game by All-Star teammate Kobe Bryant for not bringing enough.
“It’s one and two; it’s me and him,” said Bryant, who had 34 points on 13-of-26 shooting.
Bryant added he had “no doubt” that Gasol would be spurred by the failure to deliver a better Game 2 on Wednesday night. And plenty of Lakers would be wise to start that game with better focus, something Odom said usually has come after letdowns.
“For our team, it’s good to be humbled, get a swift kick in the butt,” Odom said. “That’s just the personalities, the makeup of this team. We’re cocky.”
Bryant said the Lakers strayed regularly from the game plan to contain Paul, who had 33 points, 14 assists, seven rebounds, four steals and two turnovers. The Hornets had just three turnovers for the game after no team committed fewer than five against the Lakers all season.
Lakers coach Phil Jackson said his big men need to provide better support for the guards against Paul’s pick-and-rolls.
Paul had 17 points in the fourth quarter, when Gasol had two points and Bryant shot 3 for 9 from the field without a free-throw attempt. The Lakers bench, particularly Matt Barnes, started the fourth quarter poorly after the Hornets’ lead was just 73-72 after the third.
So Jackson’s self-described “last stand” in coaching started with the Lakers being ambushed by a team Hornets coach Monty Williams described as “strong and courageous.” Jackson is 48-0 in playoff series when his teamwins Game 1.
Asked if he was stunned to be the one to take the first punch of the first round, Jackson had a one-word answer: “Yes.”
