The Lakers-Nuggets game was a great game to watch, and with each team having a lot of players who can operate in the post you had a lot of post up opportunities.  This forced both teams to defend players posting up a good chunk of the game, and both teams did a very good job of it.

The first example comes from J.R. Smith when Kobe Bryant tries to post him in transition:

As Lamar Odom brings the ball up, Kobe takes J.R. Smith right into the middle of the lane, sealing him in the paint, and then calling for the ball.

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The Phoenix Suns were down 8 with three minutes left.  They made a bunch of big plays to get themselves back into the game, only to give it away.  First let’s look at how they got back in it.

After an Antonio McDyess jumper to extend the lead to 8, the Suns took a timeout.  Now with three minutes left, 8 points is a pretty big lead, so on offense, you want to get the best quick shot you can.  That is exactly what the Suns do out of this timeout:

The first thing to notice is that Steve Nash lets the ball bounce all the way to half-court without touching it.  Even with 3 minutes left, every second is important, and Steve Nash understands this.

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