Nets-Lakers Preview

By ALAN FERGUSON
Posted Nov 19 2012 2:50PM

While Los Angeles Lakers fans might get their first chance to see new coach Mike D'Antoni on Tuesday night, the Brooklyn Nets will get their first look at a player who almost ended up on their team.

Dwight Howard will try to lead the suddenly high-powered Lakers to a season-high third straight victory while denying the surging Nets their longest win streak in seven seasons.

D'Antoni was expected to appear on the Lakers' bench for the first time Sunday against Houston, but his wife and team trainer Gary Vitti convinced him to wait a few more days to continue recovering from knee replacement surgery.

"Knee replacement is serious stuff," Kobe Bryant said. "We just want him to take his time."

D'Antoni has watched the past two games from the locker room while getting therapy on his knee, and has talked to the team before games and at halftime. Interim coach Bernie Bickerstaff, who will remain an assistant on the new staff, has guided Los Angeles to a 4-1 mark since Mike Brown's firing earlier this month.

The Lakers (5-5) have started to find their stride with D'Antoni's fast-paced style, averaging 116.5 points in their back-to-back wins even while point guard Steve Nash remains out with a small fracture in his leg. The two-time MVP, who ran his new coach's offense while the two were together in Phoenix, is not expected to return until this weekend at the earliest.

The Lakers posted their highest point total of the season in Sunday's 119-108 win against the Rockets, shooting a season-best 54.1 percent and topping 60 points in the first half for the second straight contest.

"The coaching staff is communicating extremely well in terms of things that they want to see us execute," Bryant said. "We're doing a good job reading the defense and moving the ball around. We're shooting pretty well. ... (D'Antoni) just lets us go out there and play."

Howard led the way Sunday with 28 points win after averaging 15.0 over his previous four games, but his next opponent might be highly motivated to keep him in check.

The Nets (6-2) made a major push to acquire the center this summer, but after those talks with Orlando broke down, Brooklyn acquired Joe Johnson from Atlanta and re-signed Brook Lopez and Deron Williams.

Those moves have paid immediate dividends, with the Nets off to their best start since 2002-03. That season ended with the second of back-to-back NBA finals appearances.

The Lakers, who swept the Nets in the 2002 finals, have won eight straight in the series. Brooklyn, though, might have a good chance to end that skid while securing its first six-game win streak since a franchise record-tying 14-game run March 12-April 6, 2006.

The move from New Jersey has seemed to invigorate the long-struggling Nets, who opened a three-game West Coast trip with a 99-90 victory over Sacramento on Sunday. Andray Blatche led the way with a season-high 22 points off the bench on 11-of-12 shooting.

"I'm at a loss for words right now. It's a good feeling to be on a team that has a good chance of winning every game," said Blatche, who spent his previous seven seasons with another long-suffering team, Washington.

Brooklyn won even though Williams and Johnson were a combined 5 of 22 from the field.

"It doesn't have to be Deron and me having a great game for us to win," Johnson said. "We can come at you offensively in a lot of different ways. I'm not worried about (my shot) at this point, it will come."

Howard has shot 67.1 percent in his last seven games against the Nets, averaging 20.0 points. Lopez, a California native, has averaged 26.0 points over his last four meetings with the Lakers, his best mark against any opponent over the past four seasons.

Lakers hold off Nets 95-90, win D'Antoni's debut

By GREG BEACHAM
Posted Nov 21 2012 2:37AM

LOS ANGELES (AP) Although Mike D'Antoni still can't jump, pivot or move on his surgically replaced knee with his usual enthusiasm, he felt plenty strong enough to start work with the Los Angeles Lakers.

D'Antoni also knows it's usually quite comfortable to be Kobe Bryant's coach.

Bryant scored six of his 25 points in the final two minutes, and the Lakers hung on for a 95-90 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night in D'Antoni's sideline debut.

Although D'Antoni is still unsteady after knee surgery earlier this month, he coached Los Angeles to a narrow victory that snapped Brooklyn's five-game winning streak. Eight months after leaving the New York Knicks, he seemed thrilled to be in his rightful place on an NBA bench - and to watch his talented new team do its thing.

"With this team, there's no reason not to win every game," D'Antoni said. "That's our goal. It's not, `Let's get two out of three.' We can win every game we play. ... I feel like we're the best team in the league. We've got the most talent, so they can do what they want. We've just got to keep perfecting things."

D'Antoni clearly isn't at full strength: He hobbled slowly on the sideline on the rare occasions he left his chair during play in the first half. He moved around with more vigor after halftime, protesting foul calls with his usual theatrical vehemence despite a slight limp in his step.

"I was a little peg-legged, but it was good," D'Antoni said with a laugh. "Adrenalin is a great thing. I'm good, (but) jumping is a thing of the past."

Dwight Howard had 23 points and 15 rebounds despite a horrific 7-for-19 performance at the free-throw line for the Lakers, who have won five of six and moved above .500 since firing Mike Brown. Pau Gasol and Metta World Peace scored 17 points apiece. Gasol contributed 11 rebounds and seven assists as the Lakers wrapped up a tumultuous six-game homestand that began with Brown's unexpected firing 11 days ago.

"We're definitely playing with better flow," Gasol said. "We're playing with more confidence, looser out there."

The Lakers went 4-1 under interim coach Bernie Bickerstaff, but D'Antoni finally took over the bench nine days after he was hired. Los Angeles largely couldn't play at his favored tempo, but D'Antoni quickly learned the benefits of coaching Bryant, who took over in the final minutes.

Bryant has played for D'Antoni on various U.S. national teams.

"It's the same as it's always been," Bryant said. "He's always very calm, but he still has an undertone edge to him. He's the same D'Antoni. ... We're just getting more in sync with each other. For the most part, we're doing a pretty good job taking care of the ball."

Brook Lopez scored 23 points and Deron Williams had 22 for the Nets, who missed five of their last six shots in their ninth consecutive loss to the Lakers.

"It was definitely frustrating," Williams said. "We were right there and we battled the whole game. We had control of the game at one point, but we didn't make shots down the stretch. We had plenty of chances to tie it. We were getting the stops we needed, and put them on the free throw line a couple of times, but we just didn't make enough plays down the stretch and we didn't convert."

After taking a narrow lead through three quarters, the Lakers missed their first seven shots in the fourth and fell behind mostly due to their All-Star center's incompetence at the line. Brooklyn deliberately fouled Howard in the fourth quarter, when he went 3 for 10.

Los Angeles still took the lead on Gasol's free throw with 2:37 to play, and Bryant hit a running hook shot after Joe Johnson airballed a jumper moments later. Johnson cut the lead to one point on a fast-break layup with 36 seconds left, but Bryant hit four free throws in the final 17.1 seconds while Williams missed a potential tying 3-pointer with 4 seconds left.

Johnson scored 14 points for the Nets, who finish their three-game California road trip at Golden State on Wednesday night.

"I thought Deron did a great job of quarterbacking the team and getting it to our pace," Nets coach Avery Johnson said. "We wish we could have had a few more shots fall in the fourth quarter, but our team laid it all out on the floor. They showed a lot of heart, something that we didn't see early in the season - especially in a road game at Miami."

NOTES: The Nets haven't won six straight games or been more than five games over .500 since 2006. .. Before the game, D'Antoni said Steve Blake and Steve Nash will miss at least four more games, which means they won't play on the Lakers' three-game road trip over the next four days starting in Sacramento on Wednesday night. The Lakers' next home game is against Indiana on Nov. 27. ... The Lakers have won their last five road meetings with the Nets, last losing in New Jersey on March 17, 2006. They'll visit Barclays Center on Feb. 5.

Notebook: Lakers 95, Nets 90

Dan Arritt, for NBA.com
Posted Wed Nov 21, 2012 2:54 AM - Updated Wed Nov 21, 2012 2:54 AM

THE FACTS: The Lakers showed new coach Mike D'Antoni they can still win a low-scoring game if needed. D'Antoni, in his first game on the bench for L.A., watched Kobe Bryant shoot 6-for-6 from the free-throw line in the final 17 seconds to hold off the Nets 95-90 at Staples Center.

QUOTABLE: "First of all, it was great to be out there and great to be with the guys. That's what you coach for. "

-- D'Antoni

THE STAT: Despite a drop off in scoring from the previous two games, the Lakers still received solid offensive performances from their best scorers. Two days after securing the 18th triple-double of his career, Bryant had another well-balanced game, finishing with 25 points, four rebounds and five assists. Dwight Howard pitched in 23 points and 15 rebounds and Pau Gasol and Metta World Peace contributed 10 points apiece. Gasol came close to a triple-double, also totaling 11 rebounds and a team-high seven assists.

TURNING POINT: The Nets led by six points with just over five minutes remaining but missed seven of their next eight field-goal attempts, allowing the Lakers to chip away and retake the lead on a free throw by Gasol with 2:36 left. The first four free throws by Bryant in the final seconds extended the lead to three each time. After Brooklyn point guard Deron Williams missed a long 3-pointer with one second on the clock, Bryant sealed the win with his final two free throws.

HOT: Bryant made his first five shots, each from 17 feet out or further, helping the Lakers win the opening quarter, 29-23. He finished 8-for-15 from the floor, the eighth time this season he has shot 50 percent or better. Nets center Brook Lopez had the hot hand for the visitors, converting 11 of 18 shots for a team-high 23 points.

NOT: Other teams will likely copy Brooklyn's blueprint and begin fouling Howard intentionally. The Nets used that tactic in the fourth quarter and it nearly paid off as he shot 3-for-10 from the line in the fourth and 7-for-19 overall.

GOOD MOVE: Bryant committed his second foul with 6:07 left in the opening quarter and it appeared D'Antoni wanted to take him out. Bryant held up a finger, as if asking for one more chance, and D'Antoni obliged, sending Chris Duhon in for Darius Morris instead. Bryant then responded by making four consecutive baskets to end the quarter. ... D'Antoni also shortened his bench in the second half, keeping Antawn Jamison on the bench and letting World Peace play most of the way.

BAD MOVE: D'Antoni said after the game that he's going to play his stars a bunch and he did. That might work for players like Bryant, World Peace and Gasol, but he should probably be more protective of Howard, who is coming back from offseason back surgery. Instead, he played Howard a season-high 41 minutes, a bit much considering the Lakers have three road games in the next four nights.

QUOTABLE II: "They make a lot of money. They're going to earn every cent of it."

-- D'Antoni on playing his top players heavy minutes

NOTABLE: The Lakers have won five of six and are above .500 for the first time this season. ... The Nets have lost nine straight against the Lakers. ... The Nets had their five-game winning streak ended. ... Lakers point guards Steve Nash (lower leg fracture) and Steve Blake (lower abdominal strain) will not play on the upcoming road trip, D'Antoni announced before the game.

UP NEXT: For the Lakers, Wednesday @ Sacramento, Friday @ Memphis, Saturday @ Dallas. For the Nets, Wednesday @ Golden State, Friday vs. L.A. Clippers, Sunday vs. Portland.

• Nets: Shengelia, Taylor
• Lakers: Blake, Nash

• Nets: --
• Lakers: --

• Lead Changes: 12
• Times Tied: 16

• Arena: Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
• Officials: #71 Rodney Mott, #56 Mark Ayotte, #26 Pat Fraher
• Attendance: 18997
• Duration: 2:20