With his gold-tinged hair, Ron Artest looked like the second coming of Dennis Rodman. He also played a lot like the seven-time First Team All-Defenseman, holding Kevin Durant to 7-of-24 shooting and six points under his average. He's the poster boy for the Lakers' new mantra.
In earlier days, the Lakers were seen as pretty boys with players like Sasha Vujacic and Derek Fisher playing matador defense with their limited quickness and trying to take charges. Only Kobe Bryant, who is one of a few players in the NBA that gives their all on both sides of the court, and Trevor Ariza, who was always active on D and created turnovers (1.7 steals per game), played fundamental defense.
The Lakers' playoff opener against Oklahoma City really showed the Lakers could win with defense, not just with the post play of Gasol and Odom or a huge scoring game from Kobe. The addition of Ron Artest gave the Lakers a hard-nosed defender who is experienced and isn't afraid to play dirty sometimes (six technical fouls; 32 career disqualifications).
Even though scoring 79 points is reminiscent of a college game, a hardcore Laker fan could see this kind of game coming. Los ...
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Article written by Logan Dalton
Los Angeles Lakers’ Defense Will Bring Another Championship To Tinseltown
April 18th, 2010 by Logan Dalton Leave a reply »
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