Kobe Bryant's Game 4: Shot Selection, Defense, and Box Score Errors

Much of the talk after game 4 has been about Kobe Bryant's legacy and whether he was responsible for his team's defeat. Sports Illustrated's Marty Burns gave Bryant a “B” for the game. Perhaps the following can shed some light on his performance.

Box Score Error

Bryant finished the game 6-20 from the floor. The official box score had him 6-19, despite a graphic that read 6-19 before LA's final possession, which then saw Bryant miss a deep jumper. Having re-watched the game, Bryant was indeed 6-20. Someone out there is inflating his career 41.5 percent shooting in the Finals.

Bryant's Offense

My biggest criticism of Bryant's offense has been his inexplicably horrendous shot selection, seemingly fueled by his desire to show the world what he can do. As one Laker fan told me this week, those shots are “his ego.” Bryant has an ability to make shots no one in the world can, but apparently he thinks because he can, he should.

In game 4, Bryant was 3-9 shooting deep jumpers. Such long two-point attempts are the worst shots in basketball; they yield only two points when converted, despite being as difficult as three-pointers.

Speaking of threes, Bryant was 0-2 from downtown, launching two contested – yes, contested – threes early in the shot-clock despite being a career 34% shooter from downtown. Bryant has taken 5.6 threes per game since it became “his” team in 2005, despite his incredible mid-range shooting and ability to drive and score. For those wondering, when Bryant posted up or drove to the basket, he was 3-5 from the floor and added five points from the free throw line.

According to NBA.com's “hotspots” shooting chart, Bryant took 492 two-pointers outside of 15 feet this year, or six per game. His field goal percentage on those shots? A chilly 37.6%. By comparison, he shot 56.2% inside of 15 feet.

Against Boston, this trend has continued. Bryant is shooting 34.2% outside of 15 feet, and 50% inside 15 feet. Two things are different about these Finals though: (1) Bryant is shooting the deeper shot more (43% of his attempts, compared to 29% in the regular season), and (2) Bryant is shooting under 50% right at the rim, presumably because of Boston's interior defensive presence of Garnett, Perkins and even PJ Brown. In the regular season, Bryant shot over 62% at the rim.

(NOTE: In the two regular season games again Boston, Bryant was 4-25 (16%) from outside 15 feet, and 11-21 (52%) inside 15 feet.)

In game 4, Despite dishing out 10 assists, Bryant's offensive performance left much to be desired. It wasn't that he only scored 17 points, but that he took so many poor shots, which are essentially turnovers and give the other four defenders a rest while overlooking the four other Lakers on the court.

Bryant's defense

Like Jeff Van Gundy, I have wondered how, in the name of Scottie Pippen, Bryant was able to make the all-defensive team. While Bryant has immense defensive abilities, he simply fails to ever use them, often guarding the opponent's weakest perimeter scorer, and having little impact on the game defensively. Game 4 was no different, as Bryant had a sub-par defensive performance by any measure.

On the first possession of the game, Bryant left Ray Allen to double Kevin Garnett, even though Garnett didn't have the ball. The bizarre move – why did Kobe bury himself on the baseline when the ball was still with Rondo? - left Allen open, and he streaked down the lane for an easy layup, costing the Lakers two points.

Bryant then switched onto Rajon Rondo, so he could essentially roam off Rondo and double-team at will. But Bryant's on-ball defense on Rondo was horrible. First, Rondo blew by him as Kobe made little effort to stop the penetration, leading to an open Paul Pierce three (a miss). A few minutes later, Rondo advanced the ball all the way to free throw line, with Bryant burying himself in the paint. Rondo made the easy jumper as ABC's Jeff Van Gundy commented on how late and effortless Bryant's defense was.

Later in the game, Bryant played “matador” defense on Rondo, watching him blow right by and doing little to recover, as Rondo scored on an easy runner in the lane. He was able to double team Garnett and steal the ball on one play, although it appeared to be a foul and led to a Doc Rivers technical.

Bryant was no better on Boston's shooters. On the first two plays with Eddie House in the game, Bryant left House, leading to two wide open jumpers. Fortunately for LA, House missed both. Late in the first half, Bryant matched up with Ray Allen, only to roam into the paint despite Radmonovic already rotating for Los Angeles. Allen wound up with the ball and drilled the open three.

Bryant also picked up a defensive three seconds when floating off of Rondo – a good call despite Bryant's usual protests – sulked and didn't run back on defense after Paul Pierce blocked his shot, and again failed to run back on defense after watching Ray Allen steal the ball in front of him. Allen streaked down for a layup in Boston's third quarter run.

Even when Bryant made good defensive rotations, he was essentially useless, either fouling or – I can't believe I'm writing this – getting dunked on by PJ Brown.

In the fourth quarter, Bryant switched on to Pierce to display, in theory, his all-defensive ability. His efforts against Pierce: a dubious offensive foul on Pierce, two open Pierce jumpers (both misses), perfect defense on a jumper that Pierce made, one sequence where he prevented Pierce from driving, and a thoughtless foul 35-feet from the basket in the game's final minute.

Along with that foul, Bryant made another colossal defensive error down the stretch. After switching on to Ray Allen with the Celtics ahead 84-83, Bryant drifted to the free throw while Allen spotted up in the corner. Caught in no man's land, Bryant was unable to recover to Allen, who took Pierce's pass and easily drove the baseline for the game's signature reverse layup.

Extra Notes:

None of Bryant's defensive blunders prevented him from yelling at Lamar Odom after James Posey drilled a key three-pointer late in the game. With 5:30 left, Posey sagged into the lane to stop Ray Allen, who had just blown by Sasha Vujacic (more on him a moment). Despite appearing to be the correct rotation, Bryant immediately turned to Odom, pointed, and yelled something.

I think this is where Bryant apologists miss the difference between aggressive leadership, like Jordan's or Bird's, and Bryant's behavior. Jordan led by example, and held people to his standards. Bryant had been making defensive mistakes all night, yet his inclination was to blame a teammate when he didn't even seem to be at fault.

Pau Gasol made numerous defensive mistakes, including a blatant failure to help on the final play against Ray Allen. But the Laker wearing some sort of Slovenia beret or headband had his defense exposed all night; Sasha Vujacic, as coach's would say, has heavy feet. He is an intense defender, waiving his hands like a madman hailing a cab in Manhattan, but he can't move his feet.

With 42 seconds remaining in the third quarter, Allen blew by Vujacic, who clearly hacked him on the left arm in attempting to recover. (Vujacic quickly protested the call.) On the aforementioned play where Odom left Posey, Ray Allen drove by Vujacic like he was standing still. Of course, Allen repeated the process on Boston's final offensive possession, driving by the helpless Vujacic and scoring a game-clinching layup.

Lakers-Celtics Game 4 Thoughts: The Comeback Game

Fortunately, there will be no game 4 analysis of the officiating. I've had just enough discussion about officiating, thank you very much Mr. Jackson (who will no doubt conjure up a ludicrous and illogical excuse for why they lost the game yesterday that doesn't have to do with basketball).

As shocking as the comeback was in game 4, Paul Pierce's incredible defensive effort on Kobe Bryant was no surprise. Pierce has improved his defense exponentially this year, and was deserving of being on the all-defensive team as one of the five best perimeter defenders in the league. He has been better in the post-season, guarding LeBron James for six games better than almost anyone in the last few years, and now helping to shut down Kobe Bryant in the second half. Marc Jackson, calling the game for ABC, even proclaimed that Pierce had surpassed Shane Battier and put forth the best defensive effort ever on Bryant.

Only today was I in a discussion about Pierce's place in history, in which all involved agreed he wasn't even one of the 15 greatest small forwards in NBA history (a deep position, by the way). But after tonight, Pierce's resume looks, well, utterly unbelievable.

It's difficult to believe that most of the great players in NBA history have never exploded for 40-plus points in a critical game 7 (or what used to be game 5). Pierce has. Twice.

In 2002 he torched Philadelphia in the decisive game 5 for 46 points on 8-10 3-point shooting, and easily could have eclipsed 50 if not for garbage time in what turned into a blowout. This year he dueled with LeBron James for 41 points in a memorable game 7.

Defensively, Pierce has now manned up against LeBron James and Kobe Bryant – the two best players in the NBA – and faired better than arguably any defender in the league. He has closed critical games better than both James and Bryant in that period.

Finally, he is now part of two of the greatest comebacks in NBA history, which speaks to his resiliency. Pierce was stabbed, and he didn't miss a beat. Pierce broke his front teeth, and returned in the same game. And when down 21 points against the Nets in 2002, he orchestrated the greatest 4^th quarter comeback in playoff history. Tonight, he scored 14 of his 20 in the second half to lead the greatest Finals comeback in history, from 24 points down.

I told you – utterly unbelievable.

****

Marc Stein also mentioned this is his postgame column on espn.com: “it looks now as though the assist they got from the schedule-makers -- with such a short turnaround between rounds for the Spurs and no more than one day off between games -- was bigger than we knew.”

I've been waiting a week and a half to write that sentence, but for irrational fears of jinxing, refrained from mentioning the glaringly obvious fact that San Antonio was completely rundown and that created an illusion that the Lakers were Showtime again.

On the day before the Finals started, I finally conceded to my father that San Antonio gave me incredible confidence that the Celtics would handle Los Angeles in shockingly impressive fashion. The Spurs, like the Pistons four years ago and Boston this year, present a particular difficult matchup for the Lakers, and Kobe Bryant teams. All those teams have excellent perimeter defenders, and play great team defensive with an interior defensive presence (Duncan, Wallace, Garnett). Bryant can't drive and finish at the rim at will against these teams and starts settling for deep shots. Then his team falls apart.

Against the Lakers, the Spurs lost a controversial game at the buzzer, won in a blowout, and had two huge leads in other games only to collapse. It was as if they were fatigued and injured...perhaps because they were fatigued and injured! Heck, they looked that good against LA while essentially playing without Manu Ginobili, who was so injured he had to provide his health status for the August Olympics after the series ended.

Finally, I watched the opening game of the playoffs that the Spurs played against Phoenix. Low and behold, the Spurs looked like they were moving in fast-forward. The Suns and Hornets series, as well as sleeping on an airplane, had worn them down so much that they were moving at half speed by the end of the Lakers series, exaggerating the Lakers performance.

How this went unnoticed by the media is beyond me. Why did almost every national pundit pick against Boston, despite the obvious aforementioned evidence coupled with two easy Celtics wins over LA in the regular season?

Is Hollywood that convincing?

Lakers-Celtics Game 3 Officiating Analysis: Lakers should thank officials

As expected, game 3 turned out to be horribly lopsided in favor of the Lakers. (Who exactly does appoint Salvatore to officiate this game?) I have not done a full officiating analysis of other games in these playoffs (although a few are floating around on the DVR), but from what I've seen, this was one of the most poorly called games of the year. Not surprisingly, the Lakers were involved in many others... i.e. the entire Utah Jazz series.

I happened to watch the game in a trendy Los Angeles bar, filled with the same delusional people accusing Paul Pierce of faking a knee injury, and the blaming the officiating in game 2 – which was equally bad on both sides, for the record. Amazingly, these people spent much of the game complaining about the officiating. Yes, complaining! After almost every Laker foul, the crowd pulled a Rasheed Wallace and screamed it wasn't a foul, regardless of whether they could even see it clearly or if it was indeed a foul. When a tight-shot replay of Kobe Bryant harassing Paul Pierce was showed, the crowd continued to protest that there was no foul. No wonder everyone out here thought game 2 was poorly officiated – Los Angeles didn't get all the calls.

It will be interesting to see if anyone mentions how poor the refs were in this game, since game 2 is a Picasso of officiating next to game 3. My guess is, no one will say anything because Doc Rivers didn't arrive at the podium mispronouncing names and whining about empty claims.

As usual, I welcome anyone to challenge any play I have analyzed.

Game Summary

Good Calls 86

Bad Calls against LA 6

Bad Calls against BOS 26

Lakers FTs from bad calls 6

Celtics FTs from bad calls 0

% of contested calls missed 27%

1^st Quarter

11:46 Bryant airballs turnaround with Pierce doubling – good no call

11:42 Radmonovic loses ball inside for airball – good no call on Allen's contest

11:19 Perkins finishes at the rim – good no call on contest

10:55 Odom fouls Pierce on rebound – easy call, good call

10:38 Odom drives at Garnett – good no call on contest

10:30 Good no call on Rondo missed layup on break

10:22 Bryant travels catching the ball on the outlet. They never call this travel, and Bryant does it all the time. I will simply note it, but not count it as a bad call because it is rarely called.

10:19 Bryant stripped cleanly in lane by Rondo – good no call

10:18 Questionable foul on Perkins knocking the ball away from Gasol. It looks clean, but impossible to tell from camera angle. Two shots for Gasol (makes 1).

10:12 Questionable call the other way on Radmonovic for riding Pierce – very little contact here. Side out for Celtics.

9:43 Fisher drives and good no call on clean contest

9:27 Bryant spins and scores at rim – good no call on clean contest by Garnett

*Lakers with 4 drives already

9:11 Questionable no call on Gasol as Bryant drives to the basket. Long slow-mo looks like Gasol whacked Garnett's arm, but impossible to confirm without closer replay.

9:03 Odom runs over Pierce on pass and charge not called – bad call

8:19 Bryant drives and clearly dribbles the ball off his himself out of bounds. Ball to LA – bad call.

8:12 Bryant drives and loses ball going up for dunk – looks like clean call

8:07 Bryant bumps Pierce on offensive rebound with no call – good no call as Pierce more off-balance

8:05 Bryant fouled by Garnett on putback on wrist – good call

7:51 Rondo fouls Bryant on pullup on arm – good call

7:37 Questionable no call against Odom, who bumped Pierce jumping backward (a foul) as Pierce throws it away

7:32 Good foul call on Allen in open court against Bryant

7:19 Rondo drives and is fouled by Odom stepping over – good call and side out again for Boston

6:52 Bryant shot blocked from behind by Rondo – looks clean and like a good no call

**Bryant flails arms and yells in same fashion that has seen him fined

5:18 Garnett fadeway cleanly contested by Gasol – good no call

5:17 Perkins fouled by Radmonovic on a weird foul where he knocks Perkins over by bumping his leg – good call

5:10 Pierce drives and appears to be hit on the arm by Turiaf right after he releases the ball – a questionable no call

4:59 foul on Ray Allen as Kobe elbow him while Allen standing still – another questionable call

**Celtics in penalty, Bryant makes both

4:42 Bryant steals ball from Rondo – looks like good call

4:36 Fisher hits 16-footer

4:01 Bryant clearly travels on upfake – good call

**Bryant complains vociferously

3:09 Bryant drive for 2 points on lefty scoop – good no call on contest

**9 drives already in quarter for Los Angeles

3:28 Garnett clean block on Gasol after Bryant behind-back pass – good no call

2:35 Garnett misses dunk and is challenged by Turiaf – impossible to see if contact

**ABC not showing any replays of the questionable calls against Boston

2:32 Garnett tips own rebound after coming from out of bounds – questionable call

2:29 Posey fouled by Radmonovic on bump – good call

1:58 Pierce drives and seems to be fouled by Vujacic with a big forearm in back causing him to lose balance and balance – no call, bad no call

1:46 Questionable no call on Vujacic as he bumps Pierce on shot after being upfaked. Close play but Vujacic is being very aggressive with Pierce and seems to making lots of borderline contact

1:39 Off the ball Pierce fouls Vujacic on cut with hold – good call

1:09 Bryant misses quick three

1:08 Rebound cleanly volleyballed to Garnett – good no calls as Vujacic moaned

0:42 Physical bump by Turiaf into Brown before missing turnaround – I like the no calls.

0:25 Vujacic misses layup on other end from being off balance and Cassell bothering him – late whistled foul and seems like nothing there at all – bad call, 2 FTs LA

0:03 Powe cleanly blocked from behind by Farmar – good no call

0:01 Vujacic stepped out collecting rebound – good call

1^st Quarter Summary

Good Calls 26

Bad Calls against LA 0

Bad Calls against BOS 4

Lakers FTs from bad calls 2

Celtics Fts from bad calls 0

% of contested calls missed 13%

2^nd Quarter

11:38 Powe fouled on rebound by Odom – technically a good call, but probably cost Powe the layup he would have

10:48 Questionable foul call on Celtics as Bryant throws up off-balance quadruple teamed shot for 2 FTs.

10:29 Vujacic callled for foul bumping Allen – good call (same called not called on Vujacic in 1st)

10:21 Powe called for travel as he lost his balance because Walton grabbed his off arm. Bad call, should have been a foul on Walton, not a travel.

10:08 Walton misses wide open layup on drive

9:44 Farmar scores on great cut and pass – good no call on Brown contest

9:31 Turiaf seems to hit Powe up top and a lot of contact with the body – this looks like a foul and has to be called. Bad no call. Should have been 2 FTs for Powe.

9:28 Good call on out of bounds fighting for ball – goes off Powe

**Powe then relegated to bench despite aggressiveness and lack of calls

9:15 Vujacic hits wide open 3 off of incredible ball movement

8:50 Brown fouls Farmar in the backcourt – easy call, good call

8:07 Turiaf reaches and hits Garnett on foul – hard to see if accurate but Turiaf did reach and put his hand up. I will call this a good call.

7:37 Farmar misses layup and good no call as he jumped into Brown looking for contact, only Brown jumped backwards as well – good no call.

7:30 Note dribbling down court Allen bumped, then smacked, then hand checked by Vujacic. All could technically be fouls, and the hand check was blatantly illegal. Vujacic playing extremely physical defense tonight. I will call this series questionable.

7:06 Bryant drives and good no calls on lefty layup.

6:48 Allen called for offensive foul, but Walton reached for the ball as Allen simply spun. If anything a defensive foul. Really bad call.

6:34 Farmar hits 3 on the wing.

6:23 Great piece of officiating on Brown travel 35 feet away. A very close call, but correct. With this said, Bryant travels should be called.

6:05 Good clean block on Walton layup attempt by Brown – good no call

5:55 Garnett first field goal on alley-oop. He is 1-8.

5:35 Vujacic hits 20-footer.

5:14 50-50 out of bounds call goes to Lakers. Looks like the correct call on replay as Perkins hit it last. Good call.

4:57 Vujacic another 20-footer.

4:41 Pierce shot blocked by Walton. Replay shows Walton might have hit Pierce's arm. Questionable call – hard to see on replay.

4:11 Foul called on Garnett for “pulling” Turiaf. Replay shows Turiaf was clearing out Garnett and went too far (it was a bad pass). Bad call. Should have been a no call.

4:00 Bryant drills an 18-footer

3:42 Questionable no call on Bryant as Pierce air balls 3. Would be ticky tac, but Bryant jumps underneath Pierce as he shoots 3, and there is some contact. I'm not sure if I want this called a foul (Rivers complained for the foul).

3:31 An unbelievable foul call on Rondo as Bryant spins and Rondo spins in the other direction. This was a phantom foul – bad call.

3:25 Foul called on Perkins as Gasol bangs into him. Another terrible call as contact initiated by Perkins and very little was done differently when the foul actually whistled. Bad call.

**10 bad calls against the Celtics so far, 0 against Los Angeles (Gasol missed both FTs)

3:02 Perkins dunks ball and contested by Gasol. I like the no call 0 good call.

2:43 Pierce reaches in and hits Gasol on arm for foul. Good call.

2:20 Bryant loses ball crossing over against Posey. Replay shows Posey missed ball when reaching. Should have been a foul – first bad call against LA in the game.

**Bryant complains and receives technical after first call goes against LA (free throws 20-2 for LA)

2:04 Posey fouled going the lane – looks like there is no contact here. Bad call.

1:53 Fisher misses tough shot at foul line – good contest and no call

1:50 Clean contest for rebound – knocked around to Posey. Good no calls.

1:49 Posey called out of bounds saving ball, but replay shows he was clearly in bounds. Bad call.

1:42 Vujacic hits 18-footer in corner.

1:32 Foul on Fisher off the ball bumping Allen out of bounds. Good call.

0:55 Travel called on Garnett on upfake. Good call.

0:42 Gasol misses wide open lay up and put back. Clean contest by Allen and Perkins, good no calls.

0:40 Knocked out by Perkins – correct call, good call.

0:33 Gasol misses crazy turnaround, and rebound cleanly contested and handled by Garnett. Good no call on Turiaf poking for it.

0:06 Bryant drives and is fouled by Perkins somehow. This looks like an extremely questionable call – resulting in two FTs from Bryant. Replay looks like Bryant wasn't really touched – hard to see.

0:01 Rondo runs into lane and misses floater. Clean challenge by Bryant – good no call.

2^nd Quarter Summary

Good Calls 19

Bad Calls against LA 2

Bad Calls against BOS 7

Lakers FTs from bad calls 0

Celtics Fts from bad calls 0

% of contested calls missed 21%

1^st Half Summary

Good Calls 45

Bad Calls against LA 2

Bad Calls against BOS 11

Lakers FTs from bad calls 0

Celtics Fts from bad calls 0

% of contested calls missed 22%

3^rd Quarter

11:48 Garnett misses runner – good no call on clean contest by Gasol

11:44 Rondo called for travel – but replay shows he was tripped by Odom before the travel. Bad call.

11:24 Odom loses ball to Perkins- clean play, good no call.

11:01 Bryant travels going down lane on turnover before passing to Odom. Bad no call.

10:58 Odom blocked cleanly by Perkins – good no call.

10:45 Pierce fouled as Radmonovic rides him (feet not set and physically impeding his contact. Pierce loses balance – no call. Bad no call.

10:15 Bryant amazing bank shot flying down lane – no real contests from Celtics.

9:39 Allen gets uncontested layup on cut, assist by Garnett.

9:15 Bryant makes 14 foot shot in lane

8:57 Pierce blows by Bryant and is fouled. Easy call – good call.

8:50 Perkins fouled on entry pass – clearly held by Radmonovic. That was a good call – giving Perkins continuation was a bad call.

8:37 Fisher takes contested 16 footer and misses.

8:28 Allen gets uncontested layup as Odom does not want to foul.

8:15 Perkins clean block on Bryant – good no call.

8:11 Perkins fouls Bryant. Phantom foul as Bryant dribbles away from Perkins and separates from him. Not sure what the call was for – bad call.

8:02 Fisher cuts off House going for loose ball on tip. Questionable no call as Fisher impedes House's progress and essentially boxes him out in open court.

7:57 Odom misses deep 3.

7:54 Bryant fouled by House after grabbing rebound. Good call.

7:45 Ariza hits deep jumper.

7:29 Garnett fouled driving to the basket on missed dunk. Appears to be no contact – bad call.

7:17 Bryant blatantly travels spinning through lane – too many steps to count. Bad no call.

7:02 deep rebound on Pierce shot contested cleanly, bounces to Celtics. Good no calls.

6:27 Fisher misses contested 22-footer.

5:50 Garnett scores with running hook – good no call at rim.

5:33 Gasol stripped cleanly by Pierce – good no call.

4:58 Bryant out of control into a triple team gets a foul call. Pierce was just standing there with his arms straight up, and very little contact. Bad call.

**Pierces discusses call with Crawford for a while, Bryant makes 1

4:24 Odom travels in lane (2 pivot feet, 3 steps) before scoring hook. Bad call – shot should not have counted.

3:56 Ariza misses open 3.

3:39 Perkins hook shot good on Odom – good no calls on contact

3:24 Odom misses 18-footer.

3:23 Rebound tipped cleanly to Posey. Good no calls.

2:59 House hits ball before Farmar passes to Ariza – good no call on clean play.

2:57 Ariza drives lane and scores easy two.

2:15 Odom scores inside off cut – clean challenge by Garnett. Good no call.

2:02 Bryant fouls Allen on 3. Easy call (clearly hit on elbow) – good call.

1:46 Bryant hits amazing spinning shot in lane.

1:26 Garnett clearly changes pivot feet and travels on post spin. Bad no call.

1:07 Brown fouled by Gasol underneath – easy call – good call.

0:34 Brown misses layup as Odom bothers him from behind – good no call.

0:26 Odom challenges Garnett and misses a right-handed layup. Good no call.

0:09 Vujacic falls down as he and House get tangled up. Good no call – more of a flop.

3^rd Quarter Summary

Good Calls 18

Bad Calls against LA 3

Bad Calls against BOS 7

Lakers FTs from bad calls 2

Celtics Fts from bad calls 0

% of contested calls missed 36%

4^th Quarter

11:48 Vujacic starts with a 3 from the wing.

11:21 Odom pushes Powe to come to the ball, and the call is strangely on Powe. Bad call – should have been a no call or offensive.

11:08 Bryant misses contested 18-foot fadeaway. Brown cleanly gets contested rebound. Good no calls.

10:56 Posey bumped by Bryant after offensive rebound – questionable no call.

10:21 Farmar misses open 3.

10:08 Brown fouled by Turiaf. Easy call – good call.

9:44 House reaches against Farmar up top – clean play, good no call.

9:36 Odom runs over Powe and called for offensive foul. Easy call. Good call.

9:28 Walton pulls Powe;s jersey out in the open while Powe has the ball. No call? Ticky tack so I will only register it as questionable.

9:20 Powe hammered by Turiaf. Obvious call – good call.

9:11 Bryant drives and fouled by Posey. Hard to see, but Posey says he fouled him. Good call.

8:56 Pierce called for a charge on Farmar who beat him to speat – good call.

8:49 Vujacic misses open 3.

8:46 Vujacic knocks ball out of bounds – correct call, good call.

**Vujacic complains again – exactly the same as last game when he clearly knocked a ball out.

8:20 Allen fouls Walton on pass. He hit the arm – good call.

8:10 Vujacic hits a 23 foot 2-pointer.

7:59 Posey fouled driving baseline. Obvious call – good call.

7:45 Bryant drives and misses – good no calls on clean contests.

7:41 Posey gets rebound after tipped, tripped by Gasol but incedental. Good no calls.

6:58 Walton stripped cleanly – good no call.

6:54 Bryant hits wide open 3 from top.

6:28 Rondo called for “blocking” foul on Fisher. Replay shows Fisher put head down and either banged Rondo down or Rondo fell down on own accord. Either a no call or a charge. Bad call. Two FTs for Fisher.

6:06 Bryant fouled by Rondo. This was similar to last foul, as Rondo retreated, very little contact, and replay shows Bryant simply loses ball a la game 2 play, flails arms. Bad call. Two more free throws.

5:20 Odom challenges Garnett on baseline and misses again – good no call on contest.

5:17 Gasol tips in rebound – clean rebound, good no calls.

4:42 Odom stripped cleanly on drive. Good no call.

4:37 Pierce bumped into/cut off by Fisher in open court, and no call. Crowd wants a push off because Pierce's left arm end up extended, but Fisher barrelled down court into Pierce and bounced off him falling down. I don't know how this isn't a defensive foul every time. Bad call.

4:34 Pierce then spins and clearly hit by Vujacic on left arm on drive, but no call again. Bad call (I will count this is one bad call as it's on same drive).

**Mike Breen calims “they are letting them play right now”

4:19 Odom drives on Garnett and misses dunk – clean contest, good no call.

4:02 Questionable call on Gasol away from ball. He and Garnett tangle, but 4 players involved and Garnett's left arm on Gasol. Probably should be a no call.

3:57 Pierce fouled on head by Gasol 35 feet away, again no call. Bad no call.

3:53 Pierce drives and is fouled on the and-one. All sorts of contact – good call.

3:39 Fisher misses open 3.

3:37 Brown hooks Gasol underneath and is called for foul – good call.

3:26 Bryant absolutely swings at and smacks Garnett trying to get around a screen. Obvious personal foul and maybe more, and not called! Bad call.

3:22 Bryant fouls Pierce on pass – replay clearly shows a foul. Good call.

**Crowd erupts in protest, and Bryant complains vociferously despite obvious hack.

2:52 Brown stuck reaching against Gasol before fling at hoop – not called. Bad no call.

2:25 Vujacic misses deep 3.

1:53 Vujacic hits 3 in corner.

1:44 Pierce hammered by Odom going to basket – no call. Bad no call, should have been 2 FTs for Pierce.

1:39 Good no calls on clean rebound for Lakers.

1:33 Fisher fouled by Brown at other end in almost identical manner that Pierce just was fouled and not called. Good call here.

1:07 Bryant hits 18-footer in Allen's face.

0:38 Bryant 15-footer at foul line on up-fake.

0:22 Moving screen called on Garnett – good call.

0:07 Odom called for offensive foul on Allen – clearing out with arm. Easy call – good call.

0:06 Bryant hacks Pierce on the left arm on the inbounds – not called. Bad no call.

4^th Quarter Summary

Good Calls 23

Bad Calls against LA 1

Bad Calls against BOS 8

Lakers FTs from bad calls 4

Celtics Fts from bad calls 0

% of contested calls missed 28%

1^st Half Summary

Good Calls 45

Bad Calls against LA 2

Bad Calls against BOS 11

Lakers FTs from bad calls 0

Celtics FTs from bad calls 0

% of contested calls missed 22%

2^nd Half Summary

Good Calls 41

Bad Calls against LA 4

Bad Calls against BOS 15

Lakers FTs from bad calls 6

Celtics FTs from bad calls 0

% of contested calls missed 32%

Follow Up: Game 2 Officiating

John Hollinger provided another logical perspective on why the foul shooting attempts were so different in game 2: http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/dailydime?page=dime-080610 . Not surprisingly, Hollinger's breakdown illuminates what we all saw: Boston attacked the basket and Los Angeles settled for a plethora of difficult outside shots.

Furthermore, Phil Jackson and others seem appalled not by any particular calls (although clearly there were about a dozen bad ones both ways), but by the 38-10 free throw discrepancy. But the Celtics offense attacking the Lakers defense is completely independent of the Lakers offense attacking the Celtics defense. There are plenty of games with (1) large free throw discrepancies, (2) an NBA team shooting 38 free throws, (3) an NBA team shooting 10 free throws.

Lakers fans should be familiar with all three concepts:

Game 1 vs. Utah – Lakers shoot 46 free throws, Utah 30.

Game 2 vs. Utah – Lakers shoot 43 free throws, Utah 16.

Game 5 vs. Utah – Lakers shoot 42 free throws, Utah 28.

Game 2 vs. San Antonio – the Spurs shoot just 10 free throws.

Game 3 vs. San Antonio – Lakers shoot 17 free throws.

Game 4 vs. San Antonio – Lakers shoot 18 free throws.

Game 5 vs. San Antonio – Lakers shoot 18 free throws.

Only a few weeks ago in game 2 vs. Utah, Los Angeles was the beneficiary of a 27 free throw attempt advantage. Yet, there was no talk of unfair officiating...it seems Phil Jackson has quite the short-term memory. In fact, Jackson professed that he had never seen anything like it; one wonders what he was watching during game 2 against Utah.

The Lakers only sent San Antonio to the foul line ten times in game 2, so Jackson has also seen that before. Then the Lakers found it hard to reach the charity stripe for the remainder of the series (see above).

Against Boston, as outlined by Hollinger, Los Angeles' shot selection was limited mostly to the outside. As I tracked in my previous post, many of the Laker scores in the lane were not off drives (which create defensive breakdowns and lead to fouls), but from extra passes on cuts off the ball which led to easy layups or dunks. Furthermore, this Boston defense is superior to the Spurs defense, so when coupled with a night of outside shooting (47 jump shots!) it makes sense that instead of 17 or 18 free throw attempts a game, Los Angeles had just 10.

By the way, Leon Powe, who averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds per 36 minutes (one of the most prolific players per minute in the NBA) was the 6^th most frequent free throw shooter per minute, ahead of players like Paul Pierce and Kobe Bryant. For those who watched Powe attack the basket and reap the benefit of Rondo drives and Garnett passes, it's no surprise that Powe spent so much time on the line in the regular season.

Lakers-Celtics Game 2 Officiating Analysis

After so much whining regarding game 2 of the NBA Finals, I was forced to perform a full-game analysis of every contested play and call. I noted questionable calls in the play log, and tracked calls that were clear (whether correctly made or not). I also tracked the Los Angeles “aggression” factor (jump shots versus drives), and just how many free throws LA didn't get and Boston did get from the poor officiating. Of course, this is because the biggest complaint from Los Angeles, led by Phil Jackson, was the 38-10 free throw disparity. Apparently, Phil and the Lakers forgot about game 4 against San Antonio, or game 5 against Utah or games 1 and 2 against Utah, etc.

Below are the results:

Game Summary

Good Calls 83

Bad Calls against LA 11

Bad Calls against BOS 11

Lakers Jumpers 20-47

Lakers drives 18 resulting in 20 points

Lakers drives w/missed fouls 2 (Bryant lob should have been 2 FTs, Fisher shouldn't have had 2,. Gasol should have had 1 from lob, Bryant shouldn't have shot 2 when not in penalty)

Celtics Fts from bad calls 4

% of contested calls missed 21%

This is shocking based on the perception floating around Laker-land. Even I said to someone today I thought the Lakers maybe had 12 calls go in there favor and the Celtics eight. Because of the huge Boston lead, I forgot about a series of questionable calls against Boston later in the game. Also note this completely supports the notion that LA wasn't driving the ball to the basket. They drove the ball successfully in the first quarter without a single bad call, and yet only had 11 drives in the last 3 quarters compared to 38 jump shots!

A well officiated contest will have a 90% of better accuracy rate on contested plays (yes, I have performed such analyses before). This game finished at 79% (by this count), and thus the complaint about the game, as a whole, being poorly officiated, is obviously justified. Crawford and Delaney aren't exactly brilliant referees.

Attached below is the play log with my complete analysis. I welcome any challenge of any particular play I have analyzed.

Tracking every contestable play and call in Game 2 of the NBA Finals

11:51 BAD call on “moving screen” on Perkins – Fisher falls over running into his screen

11:34 Laker deep jumper miss

11:29 Could have a foul on Fisher bumping Allen before Allen forces a bad pass turnover

11:22 Bryant misses outside pullup

11:19 Bryant drives into lane, tripled team and kicks it out (no contact at all)

11:12 Odom gets an easy dunk (no contact?)

10:21 Odom misses fadeway 20-footer

10:20 Bryant gets offensive rebound and BLOWS absolutely wide open layup (no contact), then points at ref!

10:11 Pierce attacks Radmo off dribble – Radmo hit with ticky tac call (bad call)

10:06 Pierce HACKED by Radmo reach – good call

9:49 Bryant drives and scores off window – no contact

9:31 Fisher hits pullup 20-footer in transition

9:00 Odom misses running layup, mostly because he stumbles and doesn't get good lift – NO contact

8:44 Pierce goes to basket with SOME contact and no foul called on miss layup (questionable but ok)

8:29 Gasol drives on Garnett and scores on goaltending

8:18 Pierce drive, scores and fouled on big body contact by Odom (good call) AND hit by Ariza

8:03 Gasol left hook deep in paint goes – COULD be offensive as Gasol clears out Perkins with left hand

7:25 Bryant drives baseline and throws the ball away (should have bounced to Gasol)

6:53 Gasol spins baseline and dunks on Garnett – not even close to foul here

6:35 Garnett sets a screen on Bryant by beating him to the spot (close) – Bryant runs into screen and foul called on Garnett – also technical

6:20 Ariza misses an open 20-footer and Odom tips it in

5:54 Garnett hits a 16-footer open

5:32 Bryant catches at 3, upfakes, drives and dribbles to baseline where he misses contested fadeaway short – no contact again – TWO teammates were wide open

4:48 Gasol loses track of shot clock, 24-second violation as Walton doesn't shoot

4:16 Walton seals Pierce and gets an easy layup – no contact

3:59 Pierce hacked by Fisher on a pass at FT line – good call

3:51 Allen hits open 3 in corner – Kobe lost him, why is Kobe guarding Allen?

3:45 Allen called for touch/phantom foul as Kobe goes to post up – bad call

3:28 Gasol runs into Perkins arm with 3 on shot clock – technically a good call

3:18 Fisher hits an open jumper

3:04 Bryant holds/bumps Allen off ball and called for a foul – good call (Why is he chasing Allen?)

-Bryant complains and Allen makes one of two

2:46 Fisher misses 20 footer short and flails arms - absolutely no contact

2:23 Fisher misses open 21 footer on wing

2:08 PJ Brown hooks Fisher in lane uncalled on turnover – inconsequential missed call (Walton got ball)

1:59 (makeup call?) Bryant called for elbowing Allen – ticky tac call

-Kobe leaves game 2 minutes prematurely with fouls

1:28 Odom drives line and misses running hook – no contact

1:03 Garnett hits fading 20 footer as buzzer of shot clock to put Celtics up 20-19

0:44 Rondo called for reach – hard to see if accurate call (ball moved in natural slapped motion)

0:37 Odom absolutely runs over Powe – easy offensive foul call – good call

0:17 Powe hit on baseline by Odom – Odom feet not set, in circle, and jumps into Powe's arm – good call

0:04 Farmar hits a 3 22-20 after quarter – 3-2 Lakers w/Kobe on bench

1^st Quarter Summary

Good Calls 15

Bad Calls against LA 2

Bad Calls against BOS 2

Laker Jumpers 2-9

Lakers drives 7 resulting in 8 points

Lakers drives w/missed fouls 0

Celtics FTs from bad calls 0

% of these calls missed 21%

2^nd Quarter

**Lakers start with 5 subs – why?

11:49 Lakers start with wild lob to rim for Farmer! - Broken up by Posey, no call – good no call

11:28 Cassell knocks ball away from Ariza in backcourt – questionable call – can't tell if he fouled him (like Rondo call from first quarter)

11:21 Powe hacked by Vujacic down low (how did that matchup happen?) - good call 2 shots for Powe

**After these two shots the FT attempts are 7-1 in favor of Boston. The Celtics are shooting SEVEN times as many free throws, yet as you can see it has nothing to do with the officiating

11:08 Vujacic misses 20-footer off curl

11:06 Ariza crashes class, tips ball – clean both on both teams, good no call

10:52 PJ Brown hits open 17-footer

10:43 PJ Brown called for ticky-tac foul on entry – slow mow shows he doesn't make arm contact – bad call

10:36 Posey steals ball on pass from Walton

10:32 Powe runs floor and is fouled by Turiaf on clean block (fouled w/body). I don't like these down low "body" calls – bad call and Powe gets 2 Fts (Mike Breen argues it's a foul)

10:22 Vujacic with a legit shuffle before dribble travel – good call

10:07 Powe absolutely abuses Walton and gets hacked – Why is Walton guarding Powe!? Good call

9:57 Farmar drives and gets held up by Cassell – no call – bad call

9:46 Pierce hits wide open 3 – 10-0 run to start period w/5 subs and Kobe on normal rest for LA

9:23 Bryant hits contested 16-footer on wing

9:10 Offensive foul called on Pierce battling for position – questionable and ticky-tacky

8:50 Bryant fakes at elbow and loses ball out of bounds on his own accord – good no call

-Bryant looks to refs again despite the fact that he just lost it!

**9 turnovers for LA at this point which seems to also have nothing to do with refs

8:33 Posey hits a wide open three – where is the defense? Doubling Paul Pierce

8:18 Odom awkward floater in lane way off – easy no call – good no call

8:12 Odom gets pass from Radmo and scores with hook – not much contact, another good no call

7:44 Powe scores down low and hacked – good foul call on Odom

7:34 Bryant turnaround from elbow rolls in

7:06 Bryant makes contested 21-footer on Powe – hard shot

6:40 Garnett slapped by Fisher on drive – 2 shots – looked like a good call in slow mow on the arm

-Bryant complaining to officials about something

6:33 Crazy alley-oop to Gasol good – Garnett fouled him on arm and no call – bad no call

6:11 Powe called for foul in backcourt on Odom – good call

5:59 Bryant misses contested 17-footer

5:50 Perkins fouled by Gasol on and-one – easy call – good call

5:33 Bryant misses 3 contested by Garnett

5:29 Odom tips in rebound – looks like a clean play – good call

4:56 Bryant posts and misses fadeaway from 14 feet

**3 straight misses on quick, contested shots

4:54 Rebound by Garnett after volleyballed – clean play again, good no call

4:42 Perkins called for loose ball foul going for rebound – bad call, he just simply has position

4:22 Gasol fouled by Pierce on and-one – good call

**Just second Laker drive of quarter!

4:05 Fisher knocks ball out of bounds – good no call

3:57 Garnett gets on rebound on missed fadeaway

*no refs here, simply hustle

3:49 Garnett misses shot in traffic at rim – looks like no contact – good call

3:33 Odom misses foul line pull up

3:22 Pierce hits a 3 from the parking lot

3:10 Rondo steals ball from behind on Gasol – looks like a foul and no call – bad no call

**Allen hits 3 and Celtics 6-9 from downtown!

2:42 Fisher misses contested 3

2:07 Radmonovic hits tough three – Bryant dribbled to foul line only to be double teamed and pass out – no contact at all

1:53 Bryant runs through Pierce screen – easy call, good call

*2 more FTs for Celtics on a good call

1:37 Gasol in post gets hook over PJ Brown – clean play, good no call

1:17 Pierce up fakes and scores on Radmonovic from elbow – good no call on bump

1:03 Rondo clean block on Radmonovic jumper – good call

0:50 Gasol misses jump hook – good no call

0:24 Rondo drives and fouled by Fisher clearly on arm – good call

0:02 Fisher drives and has ball knocked away clean – good no call

-Gasol misses hook on clean play again

*Half ends with Gasol under basket – then he starts complaining to refs (not sure about what)

2^nd Quarter Summary

Good Calls 24

Bad Calls against LA 4

Bad Calls against BOS 2

Laker Jumpers 4-11

Lakers drives 3 resulting in 3 points

Lakers drives w/missed fouls 1 (Gasol alley-oop also should have been and-one)

Celtics FTs from bad calls 2

% of contested calls missed 20%

1^st Half Summary

Good Calls 39

Bad Calls against LA 6

Bad Calls against BOS 4

Lakers Jumpers 6-20

Lakers drives 10 resulting in 11 points

Lakers drives w/missed fouls 1

Celtics Fts from bad calls 2

% of contested calls missed 20%

3^rd Quarter

11:38 Gasol misses jump hook deep in lane – easy no call

11:14 Perkins offensive rebound – clean play – good call

10:36 Fisher misses open 3 (Bryant was cutoff by double team and passed out)

10:26 Perkins hacked underneath – easy call, good call

*Porous defense by LA

10:09 Odom swishes open 17-footer

9:37 Bryant misses tough 18-footer

*The Lakers have now gone to the basket three times in ~15 minutes

9:17 Perkins hustles down a miss for another offensive rebound

**Nothing to do with officiating

8:59 Bryant scores on spin (drive!) and is called for technical – absolutely no contact – good no call

8:40 Allen fouls Bryant in open court – good call

8:29 Odom misses dunk underneath on good cut – looks totally clean on slow mow, good call

8:20 Pierce hits a 3 (the lead is 16 without a single bad call in the quarter) and Perkins called underneath for push on Gasol – great call

8:10 Radmonovic hits hi-arcing 3

7:57 Rondo blows by Fisher and dishes to PJ Brown for open jumper

*Nothing to do with refs again - Lakers not stopping penetration

7:49 Rondo pokes ball away from Radmonovic from behind – questionable call as he either gets all ball or moves the arm so the ball flies away – impossible to tell

7:48 Gasol picks up loose ball and swoops in to miss lefty layup – no contact from challenge by Brown or Garnett, good no call

7:33 A questionable call the other way as Rondo is called for a ticky-tac foul on bryan 30 feet away – replay shows Bryant hooked Rondo though while Rondo reached

7:27 Radmonovic bricks 3 with Pierce in his face on quick shot

7:13 Garnett goes right by Gasol and fouled by Odom- questionable call – hard to see if Odom hits arm

6:59 Bryant hits crazy bank shot running across lane

6:28 Rondo clobbered on drive to the basket – good call

6:15 Questionable touch foul on Ray Allen 16 feet away on Kobe hesitation – puts Lakers in penalty

** 2 Laker free throws from a questionable call!

5:54 Rondo called for hook offensive foul going around Radmonovic – bad call (easily less of a hook than the previous Kobe play)

5:42 Great dive cut by Gasol for open dunk – no one near by to even contest

5:26 Garnett gets offensive rebound – good no call as there was no contact

5:25 Garnett scores on rebound – great no call as Odom flopped (if any call would be defensive as Odom tried to set feet in lane)

5:04 Bryant 16 foot jumper rolls in

4:30 Gasol hits open foul line jumper

**Lakers 5-8 on jumpers in the quarter and winning the quarter at this point by 3

4:14 Odom nice rebound in traffic on Pierce miss – clean play, good call

4:04 Odom drives, double teamed and ball almost stolen (knocked out) by Allen

**3^rd drive of the period

3:54 Radmonovic takes contested 20-footer and misses

3:20 Radmonovic pass blocked cleanly by Garnett for steal – easy no call, good call

3:00 Pierce with a layup on cut – no one around for LA

2:43 Bryant airballs fadeaway double teamed! Easy no call – not even close to being touched, good call

**Kobe complains to ref again!

2:30 Brown another easy layup – challenged but good no call

**21 assists on 24 makes for Celtics – nothing to do with refs

2:15 Bryant misses contested 3 pointer

2:05 Farmar misses wild shot surrounded by 3 Celtics – avoid contact on play, good no call

2:02 Odom goes over the back of Brown for rebound – bad no call on over the back

1:53 Walton misses open 17-footer

**Bryant complains and flails arms at refs again!

1:44 Allen makes another 3 (18 point lead) 77-59

**Nothing to do with refs

1:27 Bryant drives and alley-oop to Gasol is too hi, bad pass

1:20 Powe alley-oop makes it 79-59

**Lakers shooting 44%, 3-9 from 3 with just 12 assists thus far

1:07 Odom drives and runs over Brown – easy charge call, good call

0:40 Walton throws it away, Celtics break out leads to open Powe dunk

0:23 Vujacic hits 18 footer after little push off – good no call on that contact (would have been ticky-tacky offensive foul)

0:02 Powe dunk there was actually contact by Farmar on the arm – questionable no call in favor of LA

3^rd Quarter Summary

Good Calls 19

Bad Calls against LA 0

Bad Calls against BOS 2

Lakers Jumpers 6-13

Lakers drives 5 resulting in 2 points

Lakers drives w/missed fouls 0

Celtics Fts from bad calls 0

% of contested calls missed 9%

11:35 Farmar hits an open 3 on the wing

11:11 Powe drives right at Walton and scores easily – why is Walton still guarding Powe!? There was a reach by Walton before Powe dribbles that was not called. Bad call. Good no call at the rim

10:57 Powe called for reach on entry pass to Walton. Good call

10:50 Bryant nice alley-oop to Turiaf – no Celtics around to contest

10:30 Vujacic knocks ball out against Allen dribble – stays with Celtics, correct call as Vujacic hands can be seen on slow mo poking it away.

**Vujacic argues it was off Allen's knee when it wasn't even close to knees.

10:24 Rondo travels slightly after slipping. Some say this is inconsequential b/c close travels aren't called – I thought it was obvious enough to be called. Bad call. (Rebound went to right to Brown uncontested).

10:09 Rondo drives and lays off for Powe who is hammered by Vujavic. Obvious foul, good call.

10:06 Rondo dives after almost getting charge on Farmar – not enough contact, great no call.

10:04 Walton fouled by Powe – very questionable call as slight body contact on up fake.

9:55 Bryant alley-oop to open Turiaf on drive – no contest

9:28 Farmar hits wing 3

9:10 Garnett miss bounces right to Powe who had already turned to run back on defense. No contest from LA. Bryant then hacks Powe on arm for easy foul call. Good call.

8:43 Vujacic misses 22-footer, Garnett alone for rebound.

**At this point no one for ABC is talking about free throw margin, and they haven't even posted it. I couldn't tell you what it is, nor did I notice watching the game in real-time.

8:41 Bryant knocks rebound out of Garnett's hands. No foul called, ball to Celtics – right call.

8:35 Powe dribbles length of court for uncontested dunk.

**Again, this and Celtics shooting 8-12 from 3 have nothing to do with refs.

8:20 Bryant misses 17-foot pull up.

8:18 Rebound clean and knocked out by Radmonovic – good call.

8:02 Pierce fouled by Kobe with chicken wing at 3 point line uncalled – bad no call.

**95-71

7:39 Bryant hits 18-footer at top of key on catch-and-shoot

7:27 Rondo drives again and lays off for Powe who is hacked by Radmonovic – good call

7:22 Bryant drives and is held up by Posey at top of key. Good call.

7:22 Bryant shoots free throws – this is an error. The foul was CLEARLY on the floor, way out near the top many dribbles before Bryant goes “into the act.” This was a two foul shot error in favor of LA.

7:02 Powe misses jump hook – clearly no contact, good call.

6:53 Bryant left arm hit by Pierce on alley-oop attempt. Bad no call – should have been 2 FTs.

6:38 Pierce called for travel up-faking Fisher. Close play but acceptable call as Pierce slides pivot while Fisher landing on him. Bang-bang, good call.

6:20 Radmonovic hits 3 after Bryant drives and kicks.

**Just the second Laker drive of the quarter

5:56 Fisher fouled by Powe on drive. This is a terrible call, as Powe has 100% ball with both hands and rips it away – should have been a jump, or just a steal and play on. Bad call. Shouldn't have been 2 FTs for Fisher.

5:40 Pierce drives and is smacked on the elbow by Gasol. Fould called – good call.

5:22 Radmonovic misses 3 from top

5:21 Gasol rebound cleanly in lane – good no call over back.

5:18 Vujacic hits open 3

5:07 Gasol reaches and slows up Rondo just like Perkins in first half. Questionable no call.

4:55 Garnett miss literally bounces right to Ray Allen for offensive rebound – no contest.

4:52 Allen sweeps in for layup – good no call as there was no contact.

4:32 Fisher hits open 3

**Lakers 6-9 on outside shooting in quarter thus far – winning quarter

3:55 Radmonovic misses 3 – Pierce tips rebound to Garnett cleanly. Good no call.

3:48 Posey fouled clearly by Radmonovic on sideline. Easy call, good call.

**Lakers not even in penalty

3:38 Posey hits open 3 from corner

*102-86 Celtics

3:24 Questionable no call on Allen guarding Bryant in post – slight contact, I don't ever want that called a foul though.

3:21 Radmonovic clean offensive rebound and score – clean play, good no calls.

2:58 Posey misses 3 – Garnett bumped off rebound, clean contest, good no calls.

2:53 Bryant hits pull up 3.

2:34 Bryant bumps Rondo up top (same way he was underneath – no call)...questionable, but then bad foul called as Rondo drives – hard to see who it would be on. Bad call. 2 Boston FTs (both misses)

2:19 Bryant hits running drive at rim. Good no calls on contest.

2:02 Pierce drives on Bryant and scores – good no call.

1:50 Bryant drives and scores going to basket – his off hand is grabbed by Pierce – should have been an and-one free throw, bad call.

1:34 Questionable no call on steal by Fisher. Bryant has both arms around Pierce and Fisher bumps him and might get arm before he cleanly slaps the ball away. Three replay angles show it was probably correct no-call.

1:27 Vujacic hits open 3 on turnover.

1:03 Radmonovic steals and goes in for dunk with major 3 steps travel in open court. This must be called – bad call.

0:38 Another questionable ticky-tac call as Pierce called for fouled Bryant at start of drive. OK call but not always called – similar to Laker contact on Rondo and Pierce in previous 4^th quarter possessions.

0:22 Pierce fouled by Fisher on drive – reached in (as Fisher said “caught in the cookie jar”). Replay confirms clearly a foul – good call.

0:16 Vujacic 3 cleanly blocked by Pierce after it left his hand. Good no foul call.

0:13 Posey fouled on rebound – crashed into by Fisher. Easy call, good call.

0:01 Fisher misses 3.

0:00 Good call as Pierce knocks rebound out of bounds to LA.

4^th Quarter Summary

Good Calls 25

Bad Calls against LA 5

Bad Calls against BOS 5

Lakers Jumpers 8-14

Lakers drives 3 resulting in 7 points

Lakers drives w/missed fouls 1 (Bryant lob should have been 2 FTs, Fisher shouldn't have had 2)

Celtics Fts from bad calls 2

% of contested calls missed 29%

2^nd Half Summary

Good Calls 44

Bad Calls against LA 5

Bad Calls against BOS 7

Lakers Jumpers 14-27

Lakers drives 8 resulting in 9 points

Lakers drives w/missed fouls 1 (Bryant lob should have been 2 FTs, Fisher shouldn't have had 2)

Celtics Fts from bad calls 2

% of contested calls missed 21%

1^st Half Summary

Good Calls 39

Bad Calls against LA 6

Bad Calls against BOS 4

Lakers Jumpers 6-20

Lakers drives 10 resulting in 11 points

Lakers drives w/missed fouls 1

Celtics Fts from bad calls 2

% of contested calls missed 20%

Game Summary

Good Calls 83

Bad Calls against LA 11

Bad Calls against BOS 11

Lakers Jumpers 20-47

Lakers drives 18 resulting in 20 points

Lakers drives w/missed fouls 2 (Bryant lob should have been 2 FTs, Fisher shouldn't have had 2,. Gasol should have had 1 from lob. Bryant should not have had 2 when not in penalty.)

Celtics Fts from bad calls 4

% of contested calls missed 21%