Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Defense was lacking in Lakers' loss to Clippers
They failed to close out on perimeter shooters, defend in transition or figure out what to do about the Clippers' new backcourt during a 114-95 loss Monday night at Staples Center.
The Lakers say they want to be a defense-first team, which was not exactly a term being used to describe them after their exhibition opener.
Excuses abounded afterward.
Kobe Bryant said his team was just beginning to adapt to a new defense. Andrew Bynum said he needed to get in better condition. Coach Mike Brown said it was a lack of effort.
"This has nothing to do with our concepts," Brown said. "We had guys tonight not even contest shots, look at shooters and allow them to shoot what I call H-O-R-S-E shots, the shots you shoot in your backyard growing up when no defense is on you."
The Clippers made 13 of 28 three-point shots and were particularly effective from beyond the arc in the third quarter, when their 18 points on six three-pointers represented one more point than the Lakers scored in the quarter.
The Lakers also neglected to defend in transition, giving up 29 points off 21 turnovers. Bryant said the Clippers' game-changing third quarter, when they outscored the Lakers, 36-17, was largely a function of defensive breakdowns.
"In that stretch of the game we turned the ball over way too much and gave up a lot of easy points in the paint," Bryant said. "We pride ourselves on being a good defensive team. That's our staple, so we have to do a much better job."
Bryant, who scored 22 points mostly on the strength of 12 free throws, declared his wrist, which he appeared to hurt while taking a tumble during the game, and his knee OK.
But Bynum acknowledged being behind in his conditioning.
"After the first six minutes I was heavily winded," he said, "so in practice I'm going to get up and down the court."
The Lakers also appeared incapable of containing Clippers guards Chris Paul and Chauncey Billups, who repeatedly threw alley-oop passes to big men Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan for thunderous dunks.
Bryant said the Lakers were still adjusting to the new defensive schemes being installed by their first-year coach.
"It just takes getting used to," Bryant said. "When you're used to doing things one way, you just have to do repetition and get your muscle memory down so you don't have to think about it; it just kind of becomes habit."
Brown called his team's defensive effort "a step backward" from what it had shown in practice. The Lakers will get a chance to head in a preferred direction when they play the Clippers again Wednesday in their final exhibition game before opening the season Sunday afternoon at Staples Center against the Chicago Bulls.
"We have to play with a sense of urgency because if we float, especially against good teams, we're going to get our behind kicked," Brown said. "We have to be a physical defensive team and play with a sense of urgency on every possession."
Snooki hit with $7 million lawsuit
(CBS) "Jersey Shore" star Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi has some off-screen drama to deal with.
The TV personality has been hit with a $7 million counterclaim in her legal battle with a licensing company.
Pictures: "Jersey Shore"
According to the New York Post, Polizzi partnered with SRG Ventures to launch an array of Snooki-related merchandise last year, but filed suit in October to end her contract with the company, alleging it didn't fulfill its obligation to land her enough money or branding partnerships.
SRG Ventures fired back with the counterclaim against Polizzi and her management team, claiming she sabotaged the deal by negotiating with brands behind the company's back.
A rep for the reality star told the Post, "Ms. Polizzi disputes SRG's version of the facts and looks forward to her day in court."
"Jersey Shore" returns to MTV for its fifth season starting Jan. 5.
'The Dark Knight Rises' Trailer: Burning Questions
What's with Bruce Wayne's cane, and did Catwoman steal Mrs. Wayne's pearls?
If you're able to tear yourself away from the new theatrical trailer for "The Dark Knight Rises," you should be applauded. The two-minute trailer packs so much goodness in that it can be hard to focus on anything else.
Other fans like you have already begun to post detailed trailer analyses and lists of supposed Easter eggs trying to unlock every secret the new preview holds. We have a few questions of our own that need answering, so here is our list of the burning questions from the "Dark Knight Rises" theatrical trailer.
What's with the cane? The trailer doesn't come right out and say it, but it doesn't take much scrutinizing to see that Bruce Wayne walks with a cane in two scenes. Early in the trailer, you can see Bruce and his cane reflected in the cloche and from the side as he passes the camera. He also appears to be favoring one side during the masquerade scenes with Selina Kyle and Miranda Tate. It's hard to imagine Nolan choosing to feature Bane as the main villain and neglecting to make reference to the act he's most famous for, breaking Batman's back. The cane could signal some manifestation of the moment from "Knightfall."
Are there two Robin references in the trailer? The blogosphere blew up Monday with theories that the stadium scene features two references to the Boy Wonder, thus confirming his presence in the movie, but both have been sufficiently debunked. Whether you noticed the first depended on whether you follow the NFL. When fans saw that the player who outruns the earthquake was named "Ward," they had either two reactions: "Oh hey, that's Hines Ward, wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers," or "I have no idea who Hines Ward is, so that's a reference to Robin's status as Batman's ward!"
The other reference was most likely the work of a crafty background actor. Among the fans in the stadium, one person held up a large "R" that spelled out the team name "Rogues." Eagle-eyed viewers noticed that the "R" resembles the stylized one used for the Robin logo, but as Empire pointed out, most of the 10,000 extras for that scene brought their own props to set.
Did Catwoman steal Mrs. Wayne's pearls? Reddit user "mpty" noticed something interesting while rewatching "Batman Begins." The pearls Selina Kyle dons in the trailer resemble the set Thomas Wayne shows young Bruce in the original movie. This could be the first we see of Catwoman's famous hobby, burglary. So much of her portrayal in the trailer focuses on her advocacy for the 99 percent. This may be the first hint at the other side of Ms. Kyle.
Is there a flashback to "Batman Begins"-era Bruce Wayne? Christian Bale speaks his only line in the trailer while wearing clothes and sporting a beard that haven't been around since his early days as a world traveler. He looks very similar to how he did during his training with the League of Shadows. We know the last film in the trilogy doubles back to cover some territory from the first movie; perhaps we're seeing that here.
Steelers' loss to 49ers painful for Ben Roethlisberger, viewers
"What is Ben Roethlisberger doing out there?"
At what point during the Pittsburgh Steelers' 20-3 loss to the San Francisco 49ers on "Monday Night Football" did you first ask yourself that question? When he came limping out of the tunnel on his sprained left ankle before the game?
After every hit he took, thinking this could be the last time we see him on the field this season? Every time he came up hopping on one foot after simply throwing the ball?
Following one of his two first-quarter interceptions? Or early in the fourth quarter when he forgot one of his legs was completely useless and tried one of his typical scrambles, only to end up sacked and stripped of the ball?
Once the Steelers were down by three scores with nine minutes left in the game? Under six minutes left? The two-minute warning?
The Steelers had a lot riding on the game -- the chance to take sole possession of first place in the AFC and the first-round bye and home-field advantage that come with it. And, of course, you have to admire Big Ben's toughness and willingness to give it a shot through all that pain.
"I'll go out and play at five percent. I don't care," said Roethlisberger, who completed 25 of 44 passes for 330 yards with three interceptions. "I told Coach that. I said, 'You make the call. You’re the head coach. I'm going to give you everything I've got no matter what [the decision] is.'"
But the Steelers came into the game already knowing they had clinched a playoff spot. At some point Coach Mike Tomlin or anyone on the Pittsburgh sideline with some sense might have realized there was more to be risked than gained by having the franchise quarterback out there under those circumstances.
At the news conference after the game, Tomlin defended his decision to start Roethlisberger and said he never considered pulling him early in the game because he didn't think the quarterback was getting "knocked around."
But, surprisingly, no one asked him why such an important player who was clearly in great pain remained in the game when it was clearly out of reach.
"He was healthy enough to play," Tomlin said. "We always like what Ben provides us, not only from his quality of play, but his leadership. This guy is a tremendous competitor. We appreciate his efforts; obviously we fell short tonight."
Kardashian Christmas card: Kim is alone, Rob stands tall
The Kardashian Christmas card is out and in it, well, Kim Kardashian stands alone. So does Rob Kardashian, of course, but with his confident new "Dancing With the Stars" posture, that's nothing but a good thing.
The Kardashian/Jenner family Christmas card for 2011, released Monday, was shot once again by Nick Saglimbeni and, like so many other holiday greetings -- say, "Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked" -- also comes in a 3D version.
"There's nothing I love more than getting everyone together for the Christmas card shoot!" Kourtney Kardashian wrote on her blog. "I love everyone's matching bow ties!"
The cast of characters includes, from left, Rob Kardashian, Kendall Jenner, Kylie Jenner, Bruce Jenner and Kris Jenner, Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom, Kim Kardashian, and wee little Mason Disick with his parents, Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick.
One fun year-over-year note: Check out Rob's demeanor in last year's card, where he's hiding himself in the middle of his larger-than-life family, and compare that to the shot above. What a difference a No. 2 finish in "Dancing With the Stars" makes, indeed. Rob also recently posted a picture of their Christmas tree, "before presents."
Meanwhile, back to Kim, boldly standing alone in the wake of her short-lived marriage to Kris Humphries.
"Maybe our mistakes r what make our fate,wout them what would shape our lives? Perhaps if we never veered off course we wouldn't b who we are," Kim said on Twitter, shortly after announcing the arrival of the card. We wonder, was she referring to her pending divorce, or to the Kris-and-Kim Christmas card photos that wound up in the photographer's trash bin?
Either way, the Kardashian card might not exactly scream "Jingle Bells," but that's hardly what we expect from the reality-TV clan this time of year.
Jon Bon Jovi dead? This Internet hoax just won't die
Jon Bon Jovi dead? No. Jon Bon Jovi is not dead. But that little tidbit of truth doesn't seem to matter. The false rumors about Bon Jovi's untimely demise gripped the country on Tuesday -- well, that and the Kardashian Christmas card -- so you might as well brush up on the details.
Bon Jovi is the latest celebrity victim of an Internet death hoax. It all started with a website called Daily News Blog International, which posted a story Monday claiming that the New Jersey rocker was dead. From there, the rumor spread like wildfire, pinging around the blogosphere and every social media network known to mankind.
Despite repeated attempts by Bon Jovi himself to put the rumors to rest, "Jon Bon Jovi dead" continued to be on fire among Google searches on Tuesday morning.
Perhaps the real news in this non-news story is that Bon Jovi might have a second career as a comedian if he decides to give up his day job.
Bon Jovi poked repeated fun at the rumor at a concert Monday night in New Jersey, referring to it several times and pretending to take frantic phone calls from friends who'd heard the news, the Star-Ledger reported.
Bon Jovi also responded to the rumor on Twitter and Facebook. On his Facbook page, he posted a picture of himself in front of a Christmas tree, holding a handmade sign that read: "Heaven looks a lot like New Jersey" and included Monday's date and the time. (Brace yourselves for the next rumor about how the sign was Photoshopped and that Bon Jovi really is dead, and it's all a conspiracy.)
Adding to the intrigue: It appeared that the fake report that Bon Jovi had died was copied in part from a 2009 Los Angeles Times story that announced the death of Michael Jackson. The Times noted on Monday that it was looking into the matter but emphasized that the newspaper was not involved in the false report.
Death hoaxes and bum rumors are nothing new. (Remember Mark Twain's quip about reports of his death being greatly exaggerated?) But new technology means these rumors ping around the globe, lightning-quick, thanks to Internet users' desire to both know everything and share everything instantly.
Bon Jovi is in good company. Other celebrity death hoax victims include Will Smith, Lady Gaga, Eddie Murphy, Justin Bieber, Jackie Chan, Johnny Depp and Mick Jagger.
