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Dr. Jack: Lakers are too dominant
ESPN.com
Sixers vs. Lakers
 Hall of Fame coach Dr. Jack Ramsay provides analysis for ESPN on SportsCenter and NBA Today. Here he breaks down the playoffs for ESPN.com. Also a former color analyst for the Heat, Ramsay's impressive résumé includes making the playoffs in 16 of his 20 seasons as coach and winning an NBA title with Portland in 1977.
Throughout the 2001 playoffs, Dr. Jack will break down each series from the backcourts to intangibles. Look for his analysis all the way through to the NBA Finals.
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BACKCOURT
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EDGE
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Derek Fisher will start off defending Allen Iverson. Fisher is tough, quick
and determined. He's perhaps the NBA's best in drawing charges. He'll try to
force Iverson to drive to his left into the basket area where Shaq will look
to block his path. He'll also encourage A.I. to shoot the long-range jumper
under pressure. The entire Laker team will hustle back on defense to keep
Iverson's one-man fast breaks to a minimum.
Iverson will also defend Fisher and will stay close enough to Fisher to
prevent him from knocking down the open 3-pointers.
Kobe and Aaron McKie, both good defenders, will match up at shooting guard. Kobe will presssure McKie like he did Terry Porter in the San Antonio series,
since McKie does a lot of the ball-handling for Philly. Kobe will also stay
home with Aaron off the ball to prevent him from getting open looks from the
perimeter. McKie told me he will try to keep Kobe in front of him on his drives and
force him to shoot jumpers under pressure. Both know each other's moves well.
They've played against each other in summer ball in Philadelphia since Kobe
was a high schooler. Brian Shaw (Lakers) and Eric Snow (Sixers) are the most used backcourt
reserves. Both are good defenders and are fully capable of playing tough D against both point and off guards.
Great matchups, but a slight edge to the Lakers. |
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FRONTCOURT
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EDGE
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Horace Grant vs. Tyrone Hill will be an interesting matchup. While neither Grant nor Hill are especially strong in the post up game, both are good defenders. They are the role players for their respective teams: tough rebound, good defense, score-when-you-need-them-type of guys. Jumaine Jones will play the veteran Rick Fox tough. Then there's the money matchup: Shaquille O'Neal vs. Dikembe Mutombo. Mutombo is an excellent defender, but Shaq will be too strong and powerful for him. |
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BENCH
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EDGE
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| Phil Jackson typically doesn't go very deep. Shaw, Robert Horry and Tyronn Lue are usually the only guys called upon for quality short minutes. Mark Madsen comes in sometimes to bang around, and Greg Foster might be ready to make a contribution in this series.
The Sixers, like San Antonio, have a lot of players. Eric Snow is Larry Brown's No. 1 guy off the bench. Otherwise, Brown gets great production from not exactly household names like Todd MacCulloch, Kevin Ollie, and Raja Bell.
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Even
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INTANGIBLES
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EDGE
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| Ten days off is a long time -- too long. The Lakers long layoff will affect them most in Game 1, and it will be surprising if they can play at their highest level after that much time off. It might leave the door open just enough for the Sixers to stick their foot in. Of course, the 76ers come into this with an everything to gain, nothing to lose, attitude. They are thrilled to be in the finals, and they know nobody is picking them to win. They will be able to play free and easy, which could be a big factor in the 76ers favor. But there is a bigger factor for the Lakers. They could not only win back-to-back championships, they could do something that has never been done in the NBA playoffs before: run the table. That motivation is why the intangibles favor the Lakers, if only by a shade. |
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PREDICTION
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| Philly won't go quietly, but against the Spurs -- a very good team in their own right -- the Lakers dominated. The Lakers are playing better right now than any NBA team I've ever seen. Ever. Lakers in five. |
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