wiZo:

Thanks for the support.

I am actually surprised that Phil and Tex want Rush back. I agree with you 100%. I much prefer the moves that Mitch made to get Evans and Vlade. And Williams sounds like a more consistent 3-point shooter than Rush.

Everyone, I am not saying that the Lakers should be one of the favorites to win it all next year, but we are one of several teams that could do it and we DO have Kobe Bryant and Phil Jackson, which is a big advantage.

Tom

i dont think that article was fair to kwame. this year, kwame will not have the pressure that he's had all those years. he knows that kobe and lamar are the center pieces of this team. he is a sound defender and he will only get better being the starting center and getting more minutes. he will also benefit from the fact that he will have the advantage of single coverage on offense with vlad adding to the firepower from the outside. quality big men are rare in the league. quality big men who are good defenders are even more rare. dont expect kwame to be an allstar but having him anchor that position for 8.5 mil. i can deal with that. at this point, i like his upside compared to nene, dalembert, chandler and curry.

Laker Tom,

I am giving the Lakers respect. I'm just giving the other teams respect, too.

To be honest, I think the Lakers would have more trouble with the Clips than the Mavs or the Heat. The Clips match up very well with the Lakers and if Mihm hadn't been healthy, you'd be dealing with two tough post threats in Brand (who played his nards off in the postseason) and Kaman. LO is capable of guarding Brand (as he showed in their final game), but you really don't want him doing that for seven games. And the Clips are much deeper. Plus, LO has not historically played well against his old team. Obviously, any team with Kobe (and playing as a unit) has a shot, but these are the guys who'd make me the most nervous.

With Dallas, the Lakers would have to be on their game against them (that postseason team was not the same squad Kobe put up 62 against), but they've also had the Mavs number. The Mavs certainly played well (except during the championship round), and they'd have to be considered the faves. But they were also who I was hoping the Lakers would get in the first round, more than the Suns or Spurs.

As for the Heat, I think their experience would have won out in the end (I mean, if the Lakers could barely handle the pressure of the first series, the championship could have been tough). But then again, if the Lakers were actually there, perhaps none of that even matters. I'll tell you this much. That theoretical series could have made Kwame's name. Unlike Avery Johnson (who I think made a big mistake doubling Shaq too much), I think PJ would have experimented more with playing Shaq in single coverage more (assuming Kwame could just make him work). Had he have pulled it off even reasonably well, legend status.

Again, never said the Lakers couldn't have advanced. I just think you're making it into a little more of a given than it really is.

AK

AK,

Wake up, you have been sleeping on that hour glass, don't you see it's half-full? Hitch on our bandwagon and we'll provide you with blinders just in case you peep and see the glass half-empty. What more do you want the Lakers have Kwame coming around and Farmar starting? We will make them obey, you bet!

Bonzi Wells is still available as an unrestricted free agent.

I would love him in a Lakers uniform. He would make the Lakers a power team - difficult to match. Currently the Lakers don't have any power players other than Kobe. This is why they can stagnate when Kobe is neutralized by the opposing team. Vlade is only part of the solution - he's soft. The Lakers need another power player. Bonzi can give them that power player. Phil can coach Bonzi. Harrington is a good player. But Harrington won't take the Lakers over the top. Bonzi would take the Lakers over the top to contend with the best teams in the league.

Think of the following line up:

Starters: Kobe, Bonzi, Vlade, Lamar, Kwame
Bench Guards: Sasha, Jordan, Smush, Shammond, Maurice
Bench Bigs: Andrew, Ronny, Luke, Chris, Brian

On the bubble: J.R. Pinnock, Aaron McKie, etc.

LakerTom,

I'm loving the optimism! And it's good reading too.

I think the Lakers ended up right where they were supposed to last year. The goal last year was to make the playoffs first, then make some noise in the playoffs. Done Deal.

This year we need to take that next step. We need to win enough games to get homecourt in the first round at least and make some more noise.

Personally, I'd be happy with 50-52 wins. That's a good number for a team without a dominant big in the paint. The Spurs and Dallas will probably be the 60 win teams. And you have to count the Suns for at least 55. 50-52 wins should be enough for homecourt in the west if we can hold off the Clippers and Memphis.

1. Spurs-Tim Duncan is a champion
2. Dallas-Deep team will win a lot of games
3. Suns-Nash, Marion, Diaw, Stoudamire, Barbosa, Thomas, etc.
4. Lakers-Up and coming; Kwame needs to be a force to make it happen
5. Clippers-It's going to be real tough holding down Brand
6. Memphis-Jerry West is the best
7. who cares
8. who cares

it's nice to see kobe getting fired up for the next season. GO LAKERS!!!

http://www.latimes.com/sports/basketball/nba/lakers/la-sp-adande6aug06,1,56658.column?page=1&coll=la-headlines-sports-nba-lakers

LakerTom - I have to agree with you on not being soooo upset that Kobe nor Lamar are playing USA Basketball. I honestly, haven't really been as interested in the games either to be quite honest. Besides, the possibility of a freak injury is always there. Nor do I believe it's a selfish/unpatriotic attitude. Fact is, they are LAKERS and to me, while, it is indeed an honor to represent your country, to me, they are obligated to play for the Lakers. So why jeopardize that? The guys are focused on the upcoming season as a team -- albeit Lamar's decision to pull out of the tryouts were more so personal. Everything happens for a reason and maybe it'll come together for us considering everything Kobe, Kwame and Lamar have gone through personally and what the team endured as a whole.

I see them not playing USA ball as a positive..

GO LAKERS !

The Wolf,

Wolf, you're analytical and could read what was really at stake. MJ & Collins were so disappointed in Kwame, then the next coach, Ex- Laker Jordan didn't play him during their playoffs cuz of an apparent feud with Gilbert Areans. He was practically a waste with the Wizzards when the Lakers bailed him out as though he was a prize possession. Thinking that PJ could turn around any kind of player, they gambled on him. Lakers could have just traded Atkins with Profit and could have acquired Artest for Butler or any big C available at that time. In '06, Kwame would surely be in the market and Lakers could have gotten him with several players or for less amount w/o necessarily offering a mid-level star.

Fearless,

Yes, you're exactly right this blog became a forum for arguments. For that matter, anybody who wish to log in the Lakers Blog, you're either prepared to argue or to agree with the bandwagon.

Laker Tom,

When you broke down each potential match up, you didn't even acknowledge any troubles the Lakers might have against those teams, said that the matchups all favored the Lakers and laid out how the Lakers would end up winning. That sounds to me like someone pretty much expecting a win. If I took you too literally, my bad.

AK

Shady,

I don't think that if Kwame doesn't turn out to be "great", the trade should be considered a bad trade. When we acually traded for him he was "bad" Kwame. Now he is "alright" Kwame. If he could turn into "good" kwame, I'll think of the trade as fair, not bad. At the time, almost every player on our team was between 6-7 - 6-8. We were in serious need for a big. Caron is the man and is capable of crazy nights (30 points here, 20 rebounds there) but so is a "good" Kwame. To trade a "good" Caron Butler for a "great" Kwame Brown would be considered a blockbuster trade by Kupchak standards. I have respect for Kupchak only because a- he's a former laker and b- West was his mentor. But throughout the years, he's brought in players of serious question. But the one memory that sticks out in my mind the most about Kupchak is the day that Kobe made his laker/clipper announcement. I don't know if it was just me, but he just did not look right. Sure that was a tough week, but the man looked half-dead! I just remember being so joyed that Kobe was staying and her Mitch was lookin like somebody just stomped his cat.

dan

As far as Lamar goes, I think we will see a new man this year. His comfort level in the triangle increased big time in the playoffs and he was really rounding out by the end of the reg. season. His production was more consistan and Kobe is starting to trust him more and more - Worth the Money

Bynum is still young and we just gotta give him time. Jackson and Kareem will be able to mold him into a good big man. I keep watching for more of the sky hook to surface -WtM

Kwame, well I hope he comes along, with the accusations behind him now, I think he will start to grow again, it affected him more than he acknowledged in the playoffs - WtM

Smush, I have great hopes as well - WtM

Slava needs help, Sasha can be better still but I like where his game is going and we gotta - Not WtM

Mihm - I like him but am ready to move on, spotty play has killed it for me. We still need a good power forward - NWtM

Ronny will come on stonger - WtM

Luke, great passer an on court vision - WtM

Famar looks good so far - WtM

McKie, Johnson, VonW, Green etc. only time will tell.

I love the whole "one rebound away from the finals/championship" rationale. AK said it best when he said they were one rebound away from the second round, PERIOD.

Too many people here let their dedication to the team and optimism cloud their better judgement. This is an improving Laker team, and they had a good season last year, but it would take one of the greatest streaks of luck for us to win a title this year. I think a more reasonable goal would be to improve on last year's finish and get past the first round. If they do that I will consider the season a success.

AK, I like your team breakdowns. And I agree that the Clips matchup well with the Lakers. The reason I share Tom's optimism tho is that its been a while since Ive felt that there is no real dominant scary team out there. Usually, its the Spurs. I think they are still the favorites...but in years past they were clearly the best team. I know Duncan and Manu were banged up last year...but then again, they arent getting any younger or better and overall, its a pretty old team. I think we matchup well with the Heat and Dallas. Shaq gets worse every year. Ditto on your Dallas and Clips comments. But one reason I give us the edge over the clips is simply Kobe. They really have noone on the level of Kobe, who can take over a series. As good as Brand is, he isnt on that level. If anyone scares me its the Suns actually. We had a big advantage inside against them...but they'll have Amare and Kurt back this year. If Tmac is healthy I expect the Rockets to make a decent run at it, but again, nothing to be scared about.

Shady,
I agree with you in a sense that Butler is "better" than Kwame. But in a sense, most G/Fs are better than bigs. Theres just more Gs and Fs and you have to be that much more skilled to be successful in the league. I guess my argument would then be, even tho Butler is better...Kwame is more valuable. Its hard to come by 6'11 260lb athletic freaks. So even if Kwame is "worse" he is arguably a top 10 C in the league....whereas with Butler, its hard to even put him in the top 15 SFs. And although Kwames play wasnt "GREAT"...to me, it was great. Really, we wouldve been significantly worse without him last year (in the second half). Yeah, he did dissapear in the playoffs...but I really think he will be a very valuable piece in future playoffs.

lakersrydeordie,

I agree with both you and Tom, but I think you might be suprised how fun it is to watch the USA team right now. They are playing very unselfish basketball with some strong d. I know that the games are on during random times of thae day, but you should check it out. The best games are yet to come!

dan

Dan

They almost lost. What is fun about watching that?
All this show is that the best players are still not on the court for the USA.

They are missing
KOBE
SHAQ
DUNCAN
GARNETT
BILLUPS

hey AK

what happened to know thy enemy?? (the portland goldenstate and minnesota post only got 50 comments)

haha apparently the bloggers would rather debate possibilities and intangible ifs an maybe trades rather than look at the other teams and compare them, brutally if neccesary, to our lakers.

still i think you should consider analyzing the next tire of teams in the western confrence

but in light of the trade talks concerning AH i have one question for the blog (assuming we get AH )

unless the lakers go like this
1LO
2Kobe
3VR
4-AH
5-Kwame

either VR or AH is gonna have to come off the bench. as a sixth man type player (probably around 20-30min a game)

would VR or AH be better coming off the bench?

should we (gasp) consider LO coming off the bench to play the 1/3/4? (for 30-40min a game?

i personally dont think that AH is a must player. . if we get him he would be a nice pickup and a valuable trade asset but i dont think not getting him is such a horrible thing either

think about it, the vast majority of consistant contributors to this blog believe (among other things) that this is a 55+ win season. now it seems to me that 55+ wins in the West is pretty close to the top.

im lacking a strong conclusive point. . .oh well

AK i still think its a good idea

sorry to ramble

I love this oppotimism on this blog about our lakers. LAKER TOM said it best why we should not believe this lakers can't compete against any team in the league. It's okay to be passive about the lakers of the past two years, but no way should we be about this new laker team. I can finally say this is the first time Kobe really has a team and he won't disappoint, nither will phil and maybe during the season we make a trade to even send us over the top even more. As true laker followers we have to believe in our team first, we have to show them we care, we have to show them we expect them to compete to the fullest every night. if we don't show them first, then they have no reason to step on the floor and play against Wades' team, Lebrons team, Dirks' team, Nash team or Duncan's team. And we have a general in Kobe that we know can lead the way for this team to compete harder than any team in the league.

Plus, we have talent. Smush was a steal and still is a steal. Smush speed is set at ten all the time, all he needs to do is slow down and be patient especially when he is on defense. He has the body and quickness but his quickness his working to his disadvantage on defense.
We all know that Vlad can decide a game when he gets hot, just ask the lakers, you can almost ask the suns, even denver will tell you the same thing.
Kwame we all know needs work but we see the potential in his talent, Kwame just needs to believe in himself, once he does he will be a beast.
We know everything starts and end with lamar and kobe on the floor. And we should not expect nothing but greatness from those two, they've made us believe in them.
Finally we have Phil, till today i'm puzzled how well his strategy worked against the suns, all that shows is that the lakers will be ready to compete because Phil is a master game planner and he also made us believe. For us to do some damage this year we all have to believe. I know i believe, do you believe?

GO LAKERS!!!!

wiZo -

I just checked the blog and saw that you said that anyone who'd want Rush back isn't a true fan. That's stupid. I'm one of the ones who mentioned Rush and I've been coming to Laker games since the FIRST Kareem was playing. Get over yourself. Differing opions is what makes a blog - otherwise there wouldn't be a point.

Dave M.

Rocky,

On second thought, you were right. If the Lakers finish with the 4th-best record, they will face the Northwest winner with homecourt advantage. I forgot that the Clips last year were seeded 6th but had home court against the Nuggets.

AK:

Jeez, AK. Give me a break. I was talking about the overall matchups of the teams, not individual players. Why do you have a problem with admitting that the Lakers "might" have won it all if they had beaten the Suns? Is it your secret love affair with the loser "Clippers" and their racist owner Donald Sterling?

We split the season series with the Clippers 2-2, but won the last game when both teams were fighting for playoff position. I never said that that indicated we were going to "roll over" the Clippers. But can you tell me that winning that last game didn't indicate that we damn well "could" have beaten the Clippers?

We beat the Mavs 3 out of 4 times and the Mavs DO have a problem with superstar scoring guards. I never said we would roll over them. But doesn't the fact that we beat them 3 out of 4 indicate that we "could" damn well have beaten them in the playoffs?

And as for the Heat, we split the series with them, which doesn't say that we would roll over them. But doesn't the fact that we beat them the last time we played them indicate that we "could" have beaten them in the Finals?

The issue is that there is NO real dominant team at this point of parity in the NBA and the point I was making is that a few lucky bounces -- like the Heat and the Mavs got -- is all that several teams -- including the Lakers -- would have needed to go all the way.

And NO, I wouldn't expect Kobe, Phil, and Mitch to all state that we "could" be playing for a championship this year if they did NOT believe it. They never said anything like that the last two years because they didn't believe it. I think they said it this year because they DO believe we can compete for a championship, even though YOU obviously don't.

And don't come back at me saying that means that they are "sure" we are going to win it all. Nobody is saying that. All they're saying is that we have as good a chance as any other team to win it all. In some areas we are still weak but in other areas we are very strong. If our team continues to improve as it it did at the end of last year, our young players grow up fast, we avoid serious injuries, and get a few lucky breaks, we could win the NBA championship this year. Yes, there are probably another 5 or 6 teams that could say the same thing, but at least we have made it into this group, even if we won't be the favorite. And you can bet your sweet a$$ that the Clippers won't be in that group.

Tom

James Katt:

I agree with you that Bonzi would be great on the Lakers. He was my original free agent choice. The problem now is that you would have to do a sign and trade deal with the Queens to get him, which they would never do with the Lakers unless we gave them too much. But you are right, he would be every opposing coach's nightmare matchup if he were in purple and gold.

Tom

wow LakerTom hot words from a usually cool individual

i personally dont think you can be a real laker fan without being an honest laker critic

Rocky:

Thanks for the props. I think your playoff scenario looked pretty realistic. With 55 wins, however, the Lakers might sneak up a spot. A lot will depend on which teams avoid major injuries, but we will defintely finish ahead of the Clippers and put them back in their normal place -- below us.

Tom

Andrew Z,

I just don't understand your attitude at all. What are you saying? Are you conceding that the Spurs, Suns, or Mav's are better that the Lakers? I think that the Lakers can match up with any team in the west period. Just look at the difference in the team from last year. We were actually contempating starting Mckie at point, and Kwame at power forward. Right now we have talent-depth-and experience to make a run at winning the west.

Ken