After a comeback win against the Charlotte Bobcats which “irritated” Kobe Bryant, the Lakers fell to the Miami Heat 107-97 to end their Grammy road trip with a record of 4-3. This road trip was considered a make or break stretch for this Lakers team. While the team has not been broken, they are pretty well bent.
In ESPNLA’s Dave McMenamin’s recent coverage of the Lakers, forward Metta World Peace spoke his mind on how the 4-3 record is good for most teams but not acceptable for the Lakers.
“Going 4-3 on a seven-game road trip is successful for losers,” Metta World Peace said.
World Peace is exactly right. This Lakers team had high expectations upon entering this road trip and ended it the same way it began, by losing.
“[A 4-3 record is] successful for people who think of us as a losing team. It’s successful for losing minds, not successful for winning minds.”
McMenamin hit the nail on the head, saying:
“If [World Peace] did anywhere near as good a job shooting the ball as he did at being honest — he’s just 22-for-82 in his past seven games (26.8 percent) — maybe they go 5-2 or 6-1.”
Metta’s shooting woes are a good reason why the team struggles in the paint. His inconsistency makes the defense play more towards the lane, where they almost dare him to make a perimeter jumper. If Metta connected on more outside shots, it would open up more driving lanes for Steve Nash, the new playmaker in Kobe and give Dwight Howard more space to operate.
---- Check out this wallpaper of Metta World Peace having The World in his hands! ----
Regardless of how bad the Grammy road trip was at times, it was a success as far as displaying that when the Lakers make shots, they are tough to deal with. If only they made more to begin the game as they do when they are down, then the team would not be struggling to make .500 and would be in the playoff mix.
