Walter Tavares is not amused by his detractors
In a certain locker in the Staples Center are taped cut outs of articles. "Lakers reach for big man" screams one headline. Another says "Tavares Too Raw, Too Old To Be A Star". A third asks aloud, "Whither LaVine, Lakers?" All bleed black ink in their suggestion that the Los Angeles Lakers made a major reach in bypassing local UCLA star Zach LaVine, the alleged second coming of Kobe Bryant, for 22 year old Cape Verdean big man Walter Tavares. As you might expect, this locker is Tavares', and he reads the hate print before every home game to remind himself of how many doubters still exist.
You won't find those misgivings in the Lakers' organization. Both publicly and privately, the front office congratulates themselves on selecting the young behemoth, who plays a bruising, dominating post game on both ends of the floor - precisely the type of intimidator that Jestorball loves in its big men. A high percentage shooter with a still developing game who will wear the purple and gold for his entire career if his current bosses have anything to say about it.
And Tavares demonstrated that emphatically in winning Player of the Game on consecutive nights to lead his team to its second win streak of the year, all the more impressive for its back to back nature, and the fact that *both* games were on the road.
Game 1 in Brooklyn, the Lakers are shooting around during warmups, and head coach Isiah Thomas casually walks over to Tavares. "You know what the Nets GM said about you?" Thomas asks. Tavares doesn't know. "He said that DeAndre Jordan is a far superior player to you, and he wanted you and the Sacramento Kings pick for Jordan and something else." Here again, doubt and disrespect. Tavares clenched his jaw, and nodded. He would show these bastards who the real best big was. On the Lakers' second possession, Tavares received the ball from Doug McDermott and soared in the air, slamming a dunk home and posterizing Luis Scola. He turned and glared up at the luxury suites, pointing up at Nets GM onenole03. That's the first, he mouthed.
A brutal, hard-scrabble game followed, featuring a lot of fouls and a ton of trips to the line. It was an intense matchup, with 25 lead changes and 11 ties, with the Nets actually carrying a 2 point lead heading into the final period of play. And in that fourth quarter, Tavares completely took over, guiding the Lakers to a 9 point 4th quarter edge and a 106-99 victory. He finished with 22 points, 10 rebounds, and a steal. Alongside him David West had an awful shooting night (6 of 20), but converted on his free throws for 21 points and 8 rebounds. Carlos Boozer did his usual bench dominance with 18 points and 7 rebounds, and Jeremy Lamb continued his hot shooting hand with 5 of 6 FG conversions for 10 bench points.
The next night, a flight down to Philadelphia. Once again, Tavares felt anything but brotherly love when Thomas told him, "Some guy for the Arizona Republic just wrote you're not even the second best rookie right now. He said you're third, and probably even fourth best. He also said Jabari Parker is the clear-cut #1 best rookie in the class, and was ready to crown his ass with the trophy right now." Tavares glowered at Parker across the court, the top overall pick slightly hobbled by a hamstring injury. Very well. The city of Philadelphia would just see who the best damned rookie in this year's class is.
The first quarter saw Tavares play a little *too* angrily, missing two shots and having the Lakers down 28-26. Then, in the second quarter, he got hot, and so did the Lakers, as the back and forth battle over the first quarter and a half of play drew to an end. The entire rest of the game was all Purple and Gold, as Tavares imposed his will on Nerlens Noel, forcing the second year player to foul out with just 27 minutes of court time. By the time the final whistle blew, it was 108 Los Angeles 96 Philadelphia, and Tavares had a career high 31 points and 10 rebounds on 13 of 15 shooting with a steal. More to the point, it was Tavares' fifth straight game with 10+ points, his 4th double-double in the last 5 games, and his 3rd 20+ point game in the last 8, with a 4th game at 18 points.
"He's getting better as the year goes on," Thomas said. "Walter's really getting more comfortable with the system and being much more aggressive to take advantage of the physical mismatch he presents every game out. And while it's true rookies should get better, I think what you're seeing here is a kid whose really starting to more consistently take it to that next level of play. I'd absolutely vote him Rookie of the Year 1st place, no question."
Aiding Tavares was Carlos Boozer with 17 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals, and Jordan Farmar with his 5th double-double of the season in 12 points and 15 assists to just 3 turnovers.
As for Parker? 5 of 15 for 12 points, 0 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 turnover, as he was clearly bothered the hamstring and Caron Butler's pressure.
Tavares' Class Rankings
Points: 13.7 (4th)
Rebounds: 8 (Tied for 2nd, just 0.2 behind 1st)
Blocks: 1.0 (T-7th)
FG: 55.4 (1st - 2nd best has 47.7)
FT: 70.4 (7th)
Efficiency: 16.3 (1st - 2nd has 14.4, and Tavares' efficiency puts him 47th in the entire league - the only rookie with that distinction)
Double-Doubles: 15 (1st - 2nd has 10)
# of Rookies with 7 Top 10 Rankings: 2 - Tavares and statheads favorite Nick Johnson, who ranks 2nd to Tavares in Efficiency.
# of Rookies with 3 1st place rankings: 1 - Tavares, and he's not far behind from claiming the top spot in rebounds, either.
