For 3 and a half quarters, Kobe carried LA.. he was the reason they were in the lead.. up until Durant guarded him, Kobe had his way with the OKC defenders.. that's why the Lakers went to him again and again.. he forced a lot of shots in the end, yes.. but Kobe really wasn't demanding for the ball.. the Lakers just went to him as a force of habit.. and as I said earlier, OKC made great adjustments in the 4th and the Lakers didn't.. they put Durant on Kobe.. Perkins fronted and pushed Bynum out of the paint and Gasol just really had no advantage over Ibaka.. Metta and Blake were relegated to spotting up..
I think Brown should have gone with Sessions late in the 4th instead of sticking with Blake.. Sessions was having a good game.. he was able to penetrate.. and Westbrook was able to freelance on defense because Blake really wasn't much of a threat then.. a pick and roll with Sessions would have been a better option at that point.. a penetration would have been better than an outside shot..
the blame could be on Kobe for forcing his shots in the end.. they wouldn't have been in that position if he shared the ball.. the blame could be on Mike Brown for not anticipating OKC's adjustments.. and it could be on Gasol for not being aggressive.. but it really was OKC that forced them to all that.. they just played better..
but to be honest, I really wished Gasol hadn't made that pass.. I keep watching the video of that play and that was sure 2 points already.. one dribble and Perkins would have committed to him and he could have just lobbed it or wrapped it around Perkins to Bynum.. they've done that so many times in the past.. the game was still in their hands at that point.. and I think that is the reason why Gasol is getting the blame.. in spite of the Lakers bad decisions in the 4th, they still had a chance to salvage the game.. and he threw it away..