[ WE Game Recap ] - Wizards vs. Lakers: Wiz Cool Off in Second Half; Drop 17th of Season

lakers 102 wizards 96
12/14/2012 - Verizon Center, Washington, DC
ESPN Boxscore
NBA.com Game Highlights

 

I don’t know if you can call anybody an MVP on this team but the closest thing to it was Cartier Martin. He was hot during the first half, making five of his seven shots, including 3-4 from 3-point range. He finished with 15 points.  But like the Wizards, Cartier was parallel to the performance of his team going cold in the second half as he shot just 2-9. He was colder than Minnesota during winter. Either way, Cartier was probably due to his defensive assignment having to cover Kobe in relief of Martell Webster. In the end, Cartier finished with 21 points 8 rebounds and 2 steals.

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Jordan Crawford: The man can only do so much for this team, filling more than one role. Not only is he playing the two-guard but he handled point guard duties as well. Crawford had a bad night from the field, shooting a measly 5-17 for just 11 points. He also dished out six dimes and grabbed six rebounds.  It’s clear that Jordan needs help out there. (cough-John-cough-Wall).

Kobe Bryant: Kobe was Kobe all night long.  He didn’t go for 40 but he was doing what he does best: being a savy veteran and getting his points.  At one point he pretended as if Martell fouled him and on the replay although nobody touched him. That was a classic case of the Rick Flair. "Bean" Bryant finished with a team high 30 points. One stat line that stands out is 11-13 from the free throws line. Talk about respect from the refs.   

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The Good

Two things: 1) Cartier Martin in the first half and 2) the defense of Martell Webster.  Martell did what he could against arguably the best player in the NBA in Kobe Bryant. Kobe scored 30 points on 29 shots, clearly having difficulty with his selection. Much respect to Martell for stepping up on the defensive end against a great scorer in Bryant.

Kevin Seraphin played more minutes this time around and ended up with 16 points and eight rebounds. Kevin started off slow, committing a few turnovers including a traveling call but he eventually played sparingly well. He has a baby touch around the basket. He needs to get more playing time. He was getting yelled at by Coach Wittman at the end of the first half but that’s a normal scene these days. 


The Bad

The Bad? Well, how about a loss at home which felt like an away game. The bad is always and will be a Lakers home invasion. It’s truly sickening to see the other team's fans come into the Verizon Center and be louder than the actual home crowd. I know it happens all too often but it has to end sometime. One day, just one day, the Wizards will have more fans than the Lakers/Heat/Knicks/OKC and whomever that comes rolling through here. 

Dishonorable mention: The Wizards starting five combined for 38 points while the Lakers starting five combined for 69 points. #smh. 

The Ugly

The tail of two halves once again. It seems like a theme for this season. They play great in the first half and then have a horrible outing after halftime.

Also, how's 19 turnovers for ugly?

One last ugly would be the Lakers' Jodie Meeks. Meeks scored 24 points, going 4-7 from the 3-point line.  There is always that one random and obscure player on a team that burns the Wizards.  Tonight, it was Jodie Meeks.  Yikes.