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March 4, 2008 The FORCE is in Balance The Lakers are Number 1 and all is right with Laker Nation
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Good Morning CHARLES – Good Morning MOM KAMENETZKY - Good Morning LAKER NATION!
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Today we salute a former fierce rival and rival Blogger. No Boos Now - The Sacramento Kings and Sonny
Belfast. Sonny here’s to you. You were always fair in your criticism towards The Lakers and never kicked
us when we were down. So now that the Lakers are on the rise and The Kings are on the Rebuild we salute
you both, The team that once was the Lakers fiercest rivals and The Blogger who was and always
Will be a fierce but fair critic. May your team once again – After tonight of course LOL – be on the rise.
And may The Lakers and Kings once again have a rivalry for the ages. Sonny and Sacramento the world
and the Lakers are a better place and Team for your being and so here’s to the both of you.
HIP HIP SONNY! HIP HIP SONNY!
NOW YOU FREAKIN LA LAKERS GO OUT AND DESTROY THE KINGS TONIGHT
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NO MVP NO PEACE……NO MVP NO PEACE……..NO MVP NO PEACE…….NO MVP NO PEACE
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KOBE BRYANT: KIDD TESTED, MOTHER APPROVED @ LAKER LEGACY
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To match last season's 42-40 record, the Lakers would have to lose all 22 of their remaining games.
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AND NOW INTRODUCING THE BENCHMOB :
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AT FORWARD NUMBER 3 TREVOR ARIZA
AT GUARD NUMBER 5 JORDAN FARMAR
AT CENTER NUMBER 28 DIDIER ILUNGA-MBENGA
AT GUARD NUMBER 11 COBY KARL
AT FORWARD THE MAD RAD NUMBER 10 VALDAMIR RADMANOVIC
AT FORWARD - THE ENRGIZER BUNNY AND TAZMANIAN DEVIL – NUMBER 21 RONNY TURIAF
AT GUARD – THE MACHINE NUMBER 18 SASHA VUJACIC
AT FORWARD – THE LITTLE FUNDAMENTAL – NUMBER 4 LUKE WALTON
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AND NOW YOUR STARTING LINEUP FOR THE 14 TIME WORLD CHAMPION LA LAKERS:
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At center number 17 ANDREW BYNUMMMMMMMMM
At forward number 16 PAU GASOLLLLLLLLL
At forward number 7 LAMAR ODOMMMMMMMMMM
At guard number 2 DEREK FISHERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
At guard number 24 KOOOBEEEEE BRYYYANTTTTTT
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ROLLLLLLLLL CALLLLLLLLLLLLL :
(1) FAITH, (2) BOB, MIKE T. TALIQ, EDWIN GUECO, KEIFO, WOLF, CLEON, VMAN
LAKERLEGACY, CHARLES, JESTERGURU, KIWI, ELLE, NEMIA FALETOGO, SBPIMP
COMPTONS_FINEST, TIM-4-SHOW, LAKERTOM, RICK FRIEDMAN, THA_ SHOW
JON KAVULIC, WEAVE MAN, SIXONEZERO, FEARLESSWHACKJOB, DICE8UP,
JCOOL, WOW, THE_D. FKILLAH, GENERIC_ONE, Complex BROTHA, HOBBITMAGE
utzworld THE BANNER HOLDER, EXHELODRVR, JANAYA, LAKERTRUTH, BOZZ, TP
Mamba24Fan4Life, FanofMamba, WhiteMamba24 HMRHED, VI LAKERFAN, FLOYD
TellITLikeItIs PSLAKERLOVER, EASTCOASTJESSIE, The DROPPER, WESJOENIXON
BlackMamba24, AfroJoe, Peace, DAVID WHANG, ELLE, J.J., 805LAKERLOVER, DOC
JEFFGROTKE,KOBESBAD,CHUCK23, LAKERS4REALZ, SEAD94, GINO, ANGRYLAKER
idiot, LAKERDAWG, YOU EVER NOTICE?, PSYCHEDLAKERGIRL, MOB WAGONEER
AdamKiley, LakersryDeordie, The CAT, TSIRY, Darkhangelsk, GUY, JUSTIN, CHRIS H
TheLakeShow, BAYWOOD, CaliKing, Thirty2, DaxMDD, ^The OUTLAW, TSPHERE
CBUCK, GDChild, ZEN, DION, Centralk, FATTY, Greek Dude, Staples24, FRANKY J.K.
TWOODY, Ajax, MITCHELL, BZAR, PJ_DOUBTER, Occupant-Cell-186, hmmmm,, DC
NEVER, LakaLover, Bynumite, LakerDogerDieHardInUpStateNY, Chucky.L.Ohnio, GABE
Sead94, LeftField, JOREMA, Korey, Xtro, MCGarnagle, Gugy, Laker4Life, LAKERFAZE
BLKTHGHT06, WondahBap, WhatsthesoundofKwameClapping? JANDRO, PIG MILLER
PhxLkrFAN, Pince Akrasian, TexasLaker, EagleBoy, JR., KOBES T., KOBE ROCKS
Purple & Gold, t_Sensei, Tully Moxness, ZAKEE, David Peterson, LAKERHOLIIC
CYRUS(Ventrilquist), Swettual, Andrew Z, LAL Fan, Brandon C., SMOOTH D: Ame Williams
Kinglakernidas, HUBBIT, BronxLakerFan, RespectMyAuthorith, Hariyahu, LakerLass
Laker_Sth, KobeFromManilas, Ray Ray, StrangerintheNight, BONEZ, SarcoCop, Caesar
Bobby, MIGUELINHO, MAN, HYP117, TUKLAW, CDUB0512, AMAZING HAPPENS
MrBarneyDangles, BENJAMIN, MJCMAN32, PFUNK36, SOCALIFE, DICE8UP, ThaDreamer
Michael J, Michael H, Michael A., ALEXINH017, VIOLATER, KIKOS_DAD, Marty
LAKERGURL, LEELO, CriticalBeatDown, BLAZE1BX, SIMONE, Paul Lee, MAXXIMO
Tajluck, , BerkleyLaker,CRAIG, B4Hoops, RYAN, CALIPHILOSOPHER, HeWhoHoops
JUSTANOTHER MAMBAFAN, 40YEARFAN, HAPPYDAZE, DREWPAULKOBE, SAMLL
JR, Dascilla, tellitlikeitis, Nik Kannan, Sean P. HollywoodJack, Rico Tico, NestrossBistro,
SocalSpider,AA LOS, LAKOBER, SLO GAL, Linda Pineda, TaosHum, ALLANSY8
ChiTownLaker, RealityCheckTime, CORNER J., WiZo, MagicShaq, HugoBoss, RDLEE,
RealityBites, LakerLarry, Jay Jay, LakerLifer, Tripgame3, Houstion Laker, Todd Battles, ,
JoninJAPAN(INCANADA), LT Laker Fan, Mainor, East Nyboer, Long Live Chick,
JEFF, Andy B. SwanWorld, Purple&Gold_4EVA, Benny Blanca, HAL9000, THE
Tim in Sydney, LakerBake, JMan, AnyOneMouse, 10milliondollarZen, SHIVA, Troy,
PHIL JACKSON, , Sun Yue, Ronny Turiaf, V. RADMANOVIC, Jordan Farmar, LUKE WALTON,
ANDREW BYNUM, COBY KARL, Trevor Ariza, Chris MihmJ, Sasha Vujacic, TEX WINTER
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ALL TOGETHER NOW:
WE ARE THE FREAKIN LA LAKERS THE WINNERS OF 14 NBA TITLES
THE TEAM WITH THE BEST WINNING PERCENTAGE IN NBA HISTORY
THE HOME OF WILT, KAREEM, GEORGE MIKAN, SHAQ, MAGIC, KOBE,
ELGIN BAYLOR, THE LOGO(JERRY WEST), PAT RILEY, JAMES WORTHY,
COACHED BY THE 9 TIME TITLE WINNER PHIL (9RINGS) JACKSON
AND NO ONE WILL EVER DIVIDE OR CONQUER US

Moooo!!!!

Mamba24-

A request from HQ, if you don't mind: On the roll call, can you keep an eye on the ---------------- portion of the post, and try not to let them run off the page? It messes with the formatting for non-IE users if we don't pick it up and fix it.

Thanks! Keep up the good work.

BK

MAMBA24
Can you please put me in the ROLL CALL and the KOBE FOR MVP and LAKERS FOR CHAMPS wagon? Thanks!

GO LAKERS!!!

Yo Mamba24,

Thanks for adding me to tthe greatest roll call on earth! Mad props son. I predict a thorough @zz whuppin tonight on the boys from the north. 120-95 baby! It's game night, whoo!

I'VE GOT A FEVER...

AND THE ONLY PRESCRIPTION...

IS TO BEAT SACRAMENTO TONIGHT!!!

BTW, this is not a gimme game. Like Portland, Sacramento
is MUCH more dangerous on their home court. I'm sure the
Lakers can win it, but it would be nice to get more of a
contribution from a couple of guards other than Kobe.

Go Lakers!

BK,
"A request from HQ, if you don't mind: On the roll call, can you keep an eye on the ---------------- portion of the post, and try not to let them run off the page? It messes with the formatting for non-IE users if we don't pick it up and fix it.

YOUR WISH IS MY COMMAND MY LORD. LOL
Sorry BK I'll take care of it. Sorry!

Mamba and Vman,

Chest pound baby!!!

Mamba24,

The blog is isn't the same without you dawg. Huge difference!!!!

Thanks for your kind remarks Mamba24.

Sonnybelfast

Good Morning Mamba24, Charles and all Laker Nation!!!

The shooting comes back tonight, a big game from LO and Fish, Kobe rests in the 4th as a thank you for Sunday, all is restored to order in the Universe!!!!

Dirk...what a punk. Looked like "sweep the leg" from KK...

SAY IT LOUD AND SAY IT PROUD!!!

KOBE FOR MVP!!!
KOBE FOR MVP!!!
KOBE FOR MVP!!!

AK/BK-

Awwwwwwwww I wanted BK for the sac game.

FINE, guess I'll have to live with AK.

BUT, if the Lakers lose, BK gets to travel from now on. And watch the enitrety of the Blog nation rail against AK for causing the Lakers to lose, cause y'all know we gotta blame SOMEONE.

its Sac, I wonder if booster boy is going to have any new digs for the King fans or arena.

Ferrell and his Cowbell reminded me:

Lakers, it's our year, baby!

Don't Fear the Leap Year... (cue guitar, cue high hat, cue cowbell)

ROMYR: “Did you hear? Kobe destroyed the periodic table, because he
only recognizes the element of surprise.”
OUTSTANDING ROMY R!
Posted by: Romy R. | March 04, 2008 at 09:24 AM

ANDO:: Can you please put me in the ROLL CALL and the
KOBE FOR MVP and LAKERS FOR CHAMPS wagon? Thanks!”
Ando you are being inserted as you read this

BOZZ: “Thanks for adding me to tthe greatest roll call on earth! Mad props son.
I predict a thorough @zz whuppin tonight on the boys from the north. 120-95 baby! “
My pleasure BOZZ. Thankl you and keep up that enthusiasm I think it’s contagious

VMAN: “The answer, for all of you scoring at home is, Kobe MVP with a bullet...”
Good morning VMAN! As they say LOCK AND LOAD! LOL!

GOOD MORNING, everyone!

OMG - is there anything better than being a LAKER fan on GAME DAY???!!!!

GO LAKERS!!!

CHARLES VMAN You started it off and now the whole
Blog then caught that entusiasm. WHOOOOOOO !

SONNY BELFAST:"Thanks for your kind remarks Mamba24."

My pleasure Sonny, I'll tell the Mamba not to be to
hard on your team tonight. LOL!

DREW PAU KOBE: "SAY IT LOUD AND SAY IT PROUD!!!
KOBE FOR MVP!!! KOBE FOR MVP!!! KOBE FOR MVP!!!

You already said it DREW PAU KOBE but it sound so nice
I have to say it twice:
KOBE FOR MVP!!! KOBE FOR MVP!!! KOBE FOR MVP!!!

Good Morning bloggers!

I found some good reading from the AZ Central. More proof that the Suns are done. IT IS SHAQS WAY OR THE HIGHWAY IS WHAT I SEE......BUT YOU DECIDE.

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Suns point guard Steve Nash always has subscribed to the idea that there is no reward in basketball without risk.

He could tolerate his turnovers in that regard, especially as a perennial assists leader. But his turnover rate has been the worst of his career for a month. He has averaged 4.8 in the past 16 games, a trend preceding the Shaquille O'Neal trade.

Coach Mike D'Antoni said Nash is "trying a little bit too hard" and "he's trying to be fine-tuned."

"Maybe," Nash said. "It's hard. We've changed everything we're doing. We played a way that was me trying to make plays for everyone, and now it's not the same thing when we're running pick-and-rolls with Shaq. We have to just learn to adjust and it'll take time, but I'm not really pressing. I'm probably going to make a lot of mistakes until we figure this out, but that's the job I have and it's not an easy one."

Does Nash still believe his risk-reward theory in light of the turnovers translating to easy points for Suns foes?

"In the old system, yeah," Nash said. "In this system you have to change a little bit, but it's going to take time for us to be more familiar. It's going to take time. That's the only way I can articulate it without confusing the issue."

D'Antoni said he feels that the team's turnover issues are a big part of the defensive woes. Phoenix has given up 113.6 points per game in the past four contests, including Philadelphia scoring 24 more than its season average Saturday.

"We're not a lock-down, grind-it-out team, and we never will be," he said, adding that he believes the Suns can hold teams to 100 points if they are not so careless on offense.

"Sometimes, you get a violin that's really tuned and you keep tightening the strings. Pretty soon, the strings bust. We've got to loosen up a little bit as people and as a team and get back to trying to beat people and not trying (not) to lose."

The Suns are caught in a midseason training camp, trying to find cohesion at both ends. When the Lakers picked up Pau Gasol and Dallas added Jason Kidd, their transitions were smoother because systems did not need an overhaul.

"It's nice when you get Pau Gasol dropped in your lap," Nash said. "They could sit Pau down, and they're the same team.

"We probably need to get some swagger and confidence back and some belief. . . . Once we see a little daylight, a little joy and success at both ends of the floor, we'll start to build our confidence and belief."

That swagger might come from Amaré Stoudemire, who apologized for not setting the tone with more energy at the start of Saturday's loss.

"A lot of fans have jumped off the bandwagon, but the parade is going to come back here soon," Stoudemire said.
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1. Did I miss the FIRST PARADE STAT????
2. Nash; " We have CHANGED EVERYTHING we are doing" - Looks like SHAQ is conforming to their system.
3. "It's nice when you get Pau Gasol dropped in your lap," Nash said. - We at the Laker Blog Agree Nash. We Agree.

Go Lakers!

Janaya

Shout out to Mamba24 and the K Bro's.

As far as I'm concerned, the only way to win consistently in the NBA is to have several selfless players who are willing to do things even when the spotlight's on somebody else

Interesting quote from 9 rings. Funny thing is many bloggers on here give ALL the credit for any laker success the last 2 season to Kobe, but undervalue the efforts of his teammates.

Hey Mamba24- are you the same Laker Larry that used to call in to the lakers post game show?

Vlad, welcome back....

Beware of A & M i.e. Artest and Miller

If we win this game, it is just a small battle but if we lose it, then it will be another headache on the blog. Pleeeeaze win it convincingly.

We will win against the Kings 2x, we will win against the Clippers on Friday, the Raftors on Sunday. These are gimme games, don't lose it.

Janaya,

Thanks for the post.

Stat is way ahead of himself. Now we see the difference between views of Championship Banners, and Division Champions. Most unaccustomed players and fans of the Non-Championship team(s) show their Delusions of Grandeur.

I can't believe how greedy some of these NBA players are.
Ironically, it's happening for the same franchise that let
Latrell "I need to feed my family." Sprewell go rather than
way overpay him.

Now Antoine Walker is whining to any member of the press
who will talk to him that Minnesota are mean and evil
because they wouldn't pay him his 9 million salary for next
season and let him leave to go play for a playoff contender.

First of all, he's playing like crap. He might be the most
overpaid player in the league. Theo Ratliff's Expiring
Contract plays better than Toine. And Minnesota did
give him a buyout offer, so if he really really wanted
to leave the great white north and go play for a playoff
team, he could have given up the extra cash and gone
for it.

Of course, Minnesota has already screwed their salary
cap with their buyouts of Juwan Howard and Troy Hudson,
so even if Toine had forgone all remaining salary it would
only have gotten Minnesota barely under the salary cap this summer.

Since he didn't take the buyout, it's clear that the money
is much more important to him than playing for a competitive
team, so he needs to shut his fat yap and try to EARN some
of that salary.

Sam Cassell is the same story with the Clippers. He
somehow thinks the Clippers OWED him the rest of his
salary and to let him go play for another team. I used
to like Sam, but this move taints him as far as I'm concerned.
He should have either given up the extra cash to go to
the Celtics or he should have shown loyalty to the fans
and the team that was paying him and he should have
played out the season.

It's no wonder that all the teams are over the salary cap
and most of them are pushing the luxury tax limit. The
players think that they're ENTITLED to every dollar of
their contracts, whether they play or not. And they also
think they're ENTITLED to leave a bad team for a good
team any time they want. So teams end up paying
millions and millions of dollars for non-players.

Last Summer Kobe showed that he believed in the latter
entitlement, but at least Kobe's threat was that he
would opt out of his contract, thus saying he was willing
to give up some of the money to play for a better team.

I know the players union would never agree to this, but
the next time they renegotiate the CBA, they should add
a rule that players can't leave one team for another in
the middle of a season unless they forego at least 3/4 of
the remaining salary on their contract. They could call
it the "You can't have your cake and eat it too" clause,
or the Cake Clause for short.

I know some players would hate it because they would
actually have to choose between the big cash and playing for a contender, but if it got more teams under
the salary cap, then it would be a good thing. The losing
team would at least free up some cap space, so they wouldn't
lose twice for being kind enough to let a good player go.
That salary would end up going to other players who
might be willing to play for the less prominent team.

Mamba24 -
Chest Pound Baby!

Laker Lover -

"Funny thing is many bloggers on here give ALL the credit for any laker success the last 2 season to Kobe, but undervalue the efforts of his teammates."

I don't think we undervalue. It's simple:

players that contributed selflessly over the last 2 seasons = still on the Lakers
players that did not contribute selflessly = GONE

Except for the Luke haters (they've been awfully quiet lately), we appreciate the players who give their all.

I SAID IT ONCE, I'LL SAY IT AGAIN

KOBE FOR MVP!!!
KOBE FOR MVP!!!
KOBE FOR MVP!!!

Sonny, win or lose, alot of the guys here are probably gonna come at ya pretty hard. Have a thick skin, we do value your perspective.

I think this is gonna be a tough game, kinda like the ones against Portland. Tough because it will be physical and the Kings will have no trade rumors hanging over their heads, and they are pretty much injury free now. Although the Kings lost Bibby, who always came to play against the Lakers, I think they are finally starting to get all of the players on the floor and put it together. I wouldn't let their win percentage fool you.

In particular, I think Brad Miller will test Pau pretty well. It'll be finesse vs. physical tonight. Miller can shoot the 15 footer as well as Pau too. Ron Artest can be physical with Kobe, but he has done well against him in the past.

Hopefully our "bench mob" for lack of a better name, can show us again why they are one of the top ones in the league. Either way, they've gotta keep shooting, shrugging off the misses, and keep their motions consistent, like that excellent Craig Hodges article said.

Sort of off topic, but does anyone miss when the Kings ran that Princeton offense? With 2 great post passers? Everyone thinks the Suns offense is great, but man, that team of the early 2000s was one of the best passing TEAMS I've seen. I emphasize teams because the passes came from all players, not just Steve Nash, etc. I'm not a fan of the team, but I am a fan of that offense. it was fun to watch.