Boston's Rajon Rondo, right, and Lakers' Jordan Farmar fight for a loose ball during Game 6 of the NBA Finals at the Staples Center on Tuesday. (CJ Gunther / European Press Agency)Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic prove the Lakers do have something in reserve
By Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times
June 16, 2010 | 12:01 p.m.
The backup guards play a big role in the Lakers' Game 6 romp of the Celtics, fortifying a second unit that has been criticized.
They knew what was at stake.
They knew what was on the line.
And they knew they had not been performing up to par in the NBA Finals.
For Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic, two guards the Lakers count on to come off the bench and be productive, they both knew they had to fill a void.
Both of them did, playing solid in the Lakers' 89-67 victory over the Boston Celtics in Game 6 on Tuesday night at Staples Center.
"It doesn't matter what happened the entire year," Vujacic said. "We're playing for the season right now. We played as a team and we came out knowing that we got to win. We played like champions. We haven't done anything yet. We've got to win one more."
Vujacic scored nine points, his series high, in 14 minutes. He was three for six from the field, two for four from three-point range. He also had one assist and one steal.
Farmar scored four points in 17 minutes. He also had three steals.
"I wanted to take advantage of the situation," Farmar said. "Not knowing how much I was going to play, I just tried to make the most of the opportunities. I tried to get my hands on balls, dive on the floor and do the little things to make a big difference."
Vujacic and Farmar had been a part of a Lakers' second unit that was starting to be questioned about their poor play in the Finals.
But in Game 6, the Lakers' reserves outscored their Boston counterparts, 25-13. It was 24-0 after three quarters.
"We were just as a unit unbeatable tonight," Vujacic said. "We knew we had to play together no matter who was on the floor. We knew that we can't lose the game tonight, and we would not give up."
The Lakers had 13 steals, five by the second unit.
The Lakers threw their bodies on the court for loose balls, the second unit doing it just as much as the starters.
"I think for the most part, everybody was on the floor," Farmar said. "Everybody had a bunch of jump balls and were really getting down and making sure that we were aggressive."
Game 7 is Thursday night.
The Lakers' reserves know they will play a role in the outcome.
"It's nice to be in front of the home crowd," Vujacic said. "They were our sixth player [Tuesday night]. They really give us the energy we needed, and hopefully they are going to be like that in Game 7."
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