This May Not Help a Division Rival
August 29, 2006 | 1:52
pm
But it probably can't hurt, either. Mike Montgomery was struggling big time in Golden State. Nellie is back, but don't worry. It won't make a big enough difference to change our "Know Thy Enemy" entry on the Warriors. Lakers? Still better.
—BK
I think this is a good move for GS. Nelson will probably have a good effect on the team early on and they might start hot out of the gate. If there was a perfect coach for that Warriors team, Nelson would be it, and I wouldn't be surprised to see them lead the league in scoring. However, stopping the other team is just as important and I could probably put up 20 on a Nelson coached team.
LakerTom,
Thanks for the odds. To be honest, those all seem better odds than I thought the Lakers would get.
Posted by: Andrew Z | August 29, 2006 at 02:09 PM
I've got to agree that Golden State won't be much better. But, you've got to think that the Warriors will be a lot more fun to watch with Nellie running the show.
Posted by: Xodus | August 29, 2006 at 02:11 PM
Don Nelson can make the warriors better than the ones of past. Look at how much talent nellie has. AK do u think Baron and J-Rich will lead the warriors to a .500 level season? This is why the Pacific division continues to become one of the toughest divisions. The lakers however have a better coach superstar and fans. The lakers will be second in the division this year. The warrioirs might now be in the same position as the lakers of last year, Rehiring their old hall of fame coach.
-Coffeyville,ks
Posted by: Aaron Patrzykont | August 29, 2006 at 02:13 PM
Farmar's not going to start.
Posted by: exhelodrvr | August 29, 2006 at 02:28 PM
i really can't wait for the season to start, we need some better threads...
Go Lakers
Posted by: TrueLakerFan | August 29, 2006 at 02:31 PM
This move will make the Warriors more "flashy" than they were before, but other than that.... Laker fans should not be worried at all. Nellie's track record shows that he's all about the O and putting on a show, which will be great in Oak town win all those great athelthes. However, there will be NO DEFENSE, so there is nothing to worry about. If they had a guy named Steve Nash running the show, maybe I would be concerned, but until then... just enjoy the highling reels the warriors put up while the rack up the losses. \
- Sameer
Posted by: Sameer | August 29, 2006 at 02:36 PM
I don't know how good is Nell today especially he contracted cancer, he may not be able to finish his contract. I remember when he left the Mavericks they suddenly became the team to beat in the West. Nell did not succeed with the Knicks so I don't know how he will improve the chances of GS.
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | August 29, 2006 at 03:38 PM
There still not going to make the playoff's, there still over talented, there pay roll is insane, sorry to say but chris mullin has to be a candidate for worst gm this summer. I understand all the contracts they have are hard to move but with the talent they have, they were moveable. Anywho, like I care about the warriors, haha...they might get off to a hot start AFTER the first game, which is against US. The likelihood of getting hot after losing to us isnt even that good but im not gonna hate that much, i'll give them a lil' chance.
Posted by: 24Tushort08 | August 29, 2006 at 04:01 PM
Don Nelson, Don Knotts, Don Johnson, it doesnt matter who the coach is Golden State still sucks.
Posted by: LakerKev | August 29, 2006 at 04:35 PM
Nellie will definitely make them a better team, but I still don't see them doing much. GS has the same problem as the Knicks: much talent, but the talent is not put together the right way. Now, if their squad was constructed better they might turn some heads.
Posted by: Weave-Man | August 29, 2006 at 05:37 PM
LakerKev,
You have to be more specific. Is that Don Knotts as "Barney Fife", or Don Knotts as "The Incredible Mr. LImpet"?
Posted by: exhelodrvr | August 29, 2006 at 06:11 PM
I try not to underestimate teams, especially in our division...but all I know of Don Nelson teams is that they don't play any D at all...so that's not exactly going to get them far.
I wonder how much this "big" (if you can call it that) signing has to do with not landing Harrington and trading what I'm assuming is one of the fan's favorite in Fish, as well as their bloated under achieving contracts (though the contracts can really be said about many of the teams in the nba, including us if you really think about it, lest we forget Brian Grant).
Posted by: Faith | August 29, 2006 at 06:28 PM
I think that Nellie has a lot to work w/. He just needs his young guys to mesh and be on the floor. Look at the Wiz when they were called the Washington Warriors because they had ex-Warriors GA, L. Hughes, and Antawn Jamison. I'm a die-hard Lakers fan, but growin up near the Bay, I watched the Warriors. I hated that Run TMC team that gave the Lakers a fit in the Playoffs the year the Lakers lost to the Bulls. But they became the lovable losers to me. I couldn't help but cheer for them, except when they played the Lakers! LOL! I think they have a really good chance to be good. I'm worried that they can leap frog LA. I think they're prob is that they don't have a go to guy. Fortunately for us, the Lakers do in KOBE! I think they'll be much improved but I don't think they can pass LA(barring any injuries). As long as the Lakers focus on D and consistency and beat the teams that they should beat, 50 games isn't out of the question.
Dref
Posted by: Dref | August 29, 2006 at 08:01 PM
I think if Baron Davis was actually as good as some people think, Golden State would make the playoffs. Of course, I thought they could have last year... but it doesn't matter, because they won't. Baron isn't that good.
Posted by: Michael A | August 29, 2006 at 10:30 PM
This could be a huge year for GS with Nelson. Why didn't they move up Mario Elie? Nellie has been done in by one ailment after another and who knows when the next one will come.
You have to know the talent that is on that team runs right along with LA. I am sure they will be fun to watch and if Nelson and Baron get along watch out- Baron has all the talent in the world- somewhat like Lamar, but when will he actually improve and get better is another story. This guy is an ALL STAR and can take over the game in no time at all, but he just doesn't shoot the ball well and makes bad choices at crucial points of the game. Maybe he will be coachable under Nellie and if he isn't don't worry there is a kid on this team that is about to explode- Monta Ellis! He and a few other great athletes are bound to become a lot better and produce a lot more offense within the running system. Baron may be out of town if Nelson can't get through to him. Biggest mistake that team made was letting Gilbert Arenas - he can get it done!
Well it does make the bottom half of the west a tougher place to be - LA really needed to improve and I hope they have. GS will be much better with Nelson.
Posted by: Peter Maguire | August 30, 2006 at 02:14 AM
Michael A,
I think Baron is good but the problem is that he's very injury prone.
In Kobe we Trust,
Go Lakers
Posted by: Taliq | August 30, 2006 at 07:06 AM
Andrew Z:
I think that it is pretty obvious that the professionals in the gambling industry have a lot more respect for the Lakers than the professionals in the media.
I also think the oddsmakers' predictions regarding the relative chances of each team are generally more accurate and less biased than the media's predictions. After all, they make their money by being right whereas the media makes its money selling papers or attracting readers.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | August 30, 2006 at 02:34 PM
exhelodrvr:
“Farmar's not going to start.”
Really? Do you mean never? Do you mean at the start of this season, any time during the season, anytime during his first two years, or anytime during his career?
Is that because you think Farmar is not ready? Or that Smush is better? Or that Williams is better? Or maybe Sasha?
What if Farmar plays better than Smush during training camp and the preseason? What if Smush gets injured? What if Farmar proves to be the best defender among our point guards? What if the team plays better when Farmar is playing the point?
I never said that Farmar was a sure bet or even the favorite to start. In fact, what I said was that Farmar should be given a chance to show what he can do in camp and preseason and then, if he shows he can handle it, be given the chance to start because I believe that it is in the best interest of the team to get improved play from the point. What about that do you not like?
You have always been pretty reasonable although a little conservative in my opinion.
So is it Farmar you do not like…or is it just me predicting that he has a chance to start and arguing that that would be the best move for the team, provided he was up to it?
I don’t deny that I can be pretty brash with some of my posts but I didn’t expect you to come back like that. Peace, bro.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | August 30, 2006 at 02:54 PM
Peter:
I think you asked the right question: why didn't Mullin move up Mario Ellie. I think the answer is that Mullin knows he has screwed up badly with respect to the players like Arenas that he let go, the dumb contracts he gave out to Murphy, Foyle, Richardson, and Dunleavy and the dumb decision to hire Mike Montgomery.
Mullin is now looking for the best way to keep the fans from totally rebelling. Nellie will get the team off to a fast start, revitalize interest, and give Mullin some time to try and fix his earlier screwups. He will go small and push the ball which means lots of Monta Ellis, Mickael Pietrus, and Ike Diogu. The Warriors will try and bring back the “Run TMC” days of Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond, and himself. The Warriors will be more exciting but will still not play any defense and will still lose.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | August 30, 2006 at 03:08 PM
LakerTom,
Why do you assume that was aimed at you?
Posted by: exhelodrvr | August 30, 2006 at 06:29 PM
exhelodrvr:
Probably because I have been ducking incoming pretty heavily ever since I started talking about Farmar possibly starting. My apologies if you meant it for anybody else. LOL.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | August 30, 2006 at 07:48 PM
Andrew Z:
"I think that it is pretty obvious that the professionals in the gambling industry have a lot more respect for the Lakers than the professionals in the media.:
Let me amend that as follows:
Andrew Z:
I think that it is pretty obvious that the professionals in the gambling industry have a lot more respect for the Lakers than the posters on the Lakers Blog. haha.
tom
Posted by: LakerTom | August 30, 2006 at 07:49 PM
Mullin's getting desparate. He couldn't find anyone to take the ridiculous contracts on his roster, so now change the coach? Nellie bombed in NY, only did better in Dallas because Cuban was paying big $$$ for top talent. Wait till he gets a load of this roster, starting with Baron Davis. Anyone say Brown-Marbury?
Posted by: Jman449 | August 30, 2006 at 09:10 PM
Brown Marbury! True
It might happen and if it does, Mullin will have to send Baron out. This guy can play but he needs discipline, a tutor like Brown. He also is like LO in a lot of ways, no extra effort to become that unreal athlete, a superstar that gets better every year. Mario Elie was burned and may be the next fall guy if the owner doesn't toss Mullin first. I thought they would have been a good team to deal with but the guys they want to deal have the worst $$$ contracts in the league.
LakerTom is on again, you sure know basketball and from your summary of Farmar, I will be expecting a lot. He is a good choice and at that position a player whom I was impressed with through the tournament last year. I can only hope he exceeds everyones expectations and has a huge year. The guy has no fear and it would be a wonderful thing to see him take off and lead the Lakers in Jason Kidd fashion. Is he as tough as Monta Ellis?
The Baron Davis - Montgomery thing was going to explode and that poor guy just did not get the respect he was used to from Stanford kids who actually listen and learn. Sad day for Monty, too bad, but he should get back in to college, that is way better suited for his style. The pro level is tough and so many players do not listen, no sacrifice for the team with guys like, Gary Payton, Marbury, DMiles, Baron, SFrancis, they make the game harder than it has to be, the coaches today don't have it easy. The players have way less fundamentally sound skills and it takes years to make them understand it and hopefully work on it. Lamar, still is a lefty and only a lefty- how can that be - how easy is that to make another guy guard you? Insane!
I will be at a lot of Warrior games this year and they might squeeze into the playoffs, just maybe -no predictions... no bets...But I do see the play of Monta, Ike, Pietrus and Cabarkaba excelling under Nelson. Baron, he is his own worst enemy, dude could be the bomb but he needs to make it happen. Good luck to the Warriors and Nelson. Hope Nellie learned a little from watching his old team D-up this year!
Posted by: Peter Maguire | August 31, 2006 at 02:12 AM
LakerTom,
Not exactly. They are going to make some serious cash on delusional Laker fans who think getting 16-1 on a team getting to the Conference Finals are great odds since last year we were "one rebound away". Give me 30-1 and I'd put down a hundy.
Posted by: Andrew Z | August 31, 2006 at 08:42 AM
LakerTom,
"I think that it is pretty obvious that the professionals in the gambling industry have a lot more respect for the Lakers than the posters on the Lakers Blog. haha."
The professionals in the gambling industry set the odds based on how they think people will bet, not on what they think the actual outcome of the event will be. They want the money on either side of the odds to be as close to equal as they can get it. That is why the odds quite frequently change leading up to a game, even when there has been no change with either team. If you were to put down $5M on Farmar winning ROY this morning, I guarantee that the odds on him would shift noticeably by tonight.
Posted by: exhelodrvr | August 31, 2006 at 09:20 AM
Exhelodrvr,
Farmar is synonymous to LakerTom. That's why? As AZ said in another thread, he sees dead people, perhaps he convinces also dead people that Farmar should start. lol!
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | August 31, 2006 at 10:19 AM
exhelodrvr:
I know what you are saying. Teams like the Lakers and Yankees always have a lot of fan money bet on their team regardless of odds, which often makes the prevailing odds lower than is really justified. I would agree that is why 16 to 1 seems to be lower odds than the Lakers deserve based on their record.
I have read several articles dealing with this phenomenon over the years and the other factor often cited is the championship history and mistique that gives these storied franchises an advantage over their smaller market competitors. It is a variation of the influence that being the favorite has on betting odds.
What is funny, however, is that the fans who are posting on this blog do NOT exhibit that type of "homerism." Or maybe I should say that many of the dominant posters such as yourself and Andrew Z. do NOT exhibit the typical 'homerism' tendency to want to bet on their team regardless of the odds. In other words, justified or not, most of the Laker fans putting money down are more optimistic than the "realist" wing of the blog.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | August 31, 2006 at 05:12 PM
exhelodrvr:
Actually, I will ask Chick what he thinks about those 16 to 1 odds next time he calls.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | August 31, 2006 at 05:13 PM
LakerTom,
I actually had my sister-in-law put $20 on the Lakers to win it all when she was in Vegas last week, so I'm not completely innocent in my lack of "homerism". I'd hate for them to win it all and not have money on it, know what I'm saying?
Posted by: Andrew Z | September 01, 2006 at 08:51 AM
Andrew Z:
I'm amazed but happy to hear that you put up the $20. You are absolutely right that it would be a tragedy of minor proportions for the Lakers to win it all and not have any money on it.
I just put $30 on the Lakers to win it all with an online gambling site. At 33 to 1, that would give me close to $1,000 to celebrate the occasion.
Unfortunately, I didn't think putting another $30 on Farmar to win ROY was worth the same gamble when it came time to click OK on the betting slip.
Now if I were AK and BK and were making the big bucks...haha.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | September 01, 2006 at 12:30 PM
LakerTom,
Although Farmar might be talented, when was the last time a ROY was on a playoff team? Usually they don't get the minutes, especially towards the end of the season (which voters remember the most) to make any kind of impact.
I think you were wise to save your money on that one.
Posted by: Andrew Z | September 01, 2006 at 01:31 PM
Peter,
Golden States's problems appear to start at the top. They are clueless. They dont have management that knows what they are doing. They struggle to find the right coaches. They overpay for medocre players. Too many bad decisions made by an incompetent organization. Not mush else to say.
Posted by: LakerAl | September 07, 2006 at 10:25 PM