I'm getting tired of Chris Webber, don't wanna hear that song no more...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kohs_nlQzpM

I wonder if he's going to hold his press conference in Sacramento like Karl Malone did in Utah.

For that matter, what do you all think Shaq is going to do when he retires? Do you think he'll have a press conference in LA?

C-Webb has been a bust ever since he left Sacramento.

Good thing Mitch knew better.

And now for more interesting news...

A quote from LeBron James about his upcoming magazine cover.

["Everything my name is on is going to be criticized in a good way or bad way," James told the paper. "Who cares what anyone says?"]

WHO CARES!!!

How about the buying public, Mr. "Big-headed" James. This is why people should be wary of this superstar. His self-centeredness will not come off until/unless he has to beg the public after his fall. Just watch... The more they hype this monster, the worse it'll become. But as the saying goes, "the bigger they are, the harder they fall". Let Kobe be your ultimate example, LeBron. It's been five long years since Colorado and he's still paying the price.

And if we are still comparing the two, I don't think he's resilient enough, like Kobe, to bounce back from a devastating mistake. We shall see...

Mbenga >>> C-Webb

good job Mitch!!

AK...

On another subject....who is that gentleman with the silver hair and glasses who sits behind the Laker bench during games?

C-Webb, thanks for the thrilling series during your prime. I'll miss your flat footed shots.

Anyone notice that with the release of "Just Bring it LO", LO has decided to up his game? I think we found his muse.

LTLF,

>>> I look at what the players actually do on the court and
comment on their actual performance.

Thanks for setting the record straight for Korey. He and I had a similar exchange last night about Farmar.

As fans, we all have a tendency to see things through the prism of our perceptions. That's why it is worth the time to inspect the box scores and other stats to get a reality check.

The Bench Mob is entitled to more respect than its members often get. As role players, they're on a much shorter leash than the starters, yet are expected to make the same quality contributions or better.

My money is on big Bench Mob contributions to Win #50 on Wednesday night.

Ajax,

Thanks for posting that Flirts video. I actually saw them live at the Magic Mountain Showcase theater during their 7 1/2 minutes of fame; all the blood rushed out of my brain, so I remember nothing about their show.

Also...thank you Mitch for not listening to some of the people on this blog who wanted C-Webb so badly...i have no idea what some of you wanted in C-Webb...he was going down the tubes since his injuries caught up with him and on the Lakers would have been disaster..good for him to know when to quit, however

I agree with PhxLkrFan that CWebb gave us Laker fans some splendid antagonistic excitement and memorable moments, particularly in the 2002 Western Conference finals. I still recall a dramatic slo-mo replay of C-Webb, after hitting a shot, running down the court growling 'shut up' back at the screaming Laker fans. Lakers vs. Kings 2002 was an incredible playoff series and one that this person here will never forget.

BTW - PSLAKER: Where in PS are you? We might need to coordinate a Laker cheering section during the playoffs at the Beer Hunter in LQ.

Posted by: PsychedLakerGirl | March 25, 2008 at 03:03 PM

Love the Beer Hunter in LQ. Great place to watch a game. I am in Indio now, just moved from LQ. I need to get out and watch with some real fans, you just name the game and I will be there. Also I have tickets so we can go to one also, whatever.

Hornets and Spurs win tough games tonight on the road. Hornets play the Cavs tomorrow night and Boston on Friday night and then Orlando after that so I expect them to slip a little bit. Pacers played the Hornets tough and the Magic just faded down the stretch against the Spurs. It seems that players are getting hurt whenever they play the Spurs. On Sunday it was Dirk, tonight it was Hedo.

As long as the Lakers take of business at home against the Bobcats, Grizzlies and Wizards we should get a little separation from the other teams. We can't afford a letdown the rest of the way. Go Lakers!!!

In his prime C-Webb was one of the best PF in the league. Enjoy retirement.

I miss Andrew, I'm starting to lose my patienceee!

Looking at the remaining games in the schedule for all the top 9 WC teams, the Lakers have the No. 1 seed to lose. The only way Lakers are not ending up as No. 1 is if they don't play at their best versus Portland and Sacramento. We still meet these two teams twice and play our last 2 road games at their arenas. These 2 teams have beaten the Lakers fair and square recently, even though Lakers s/d be favored over them on paper.

The 3rd to the last game vs. NO, and the 2nd to the last game vs. SA will be sudden death caliber March Madness type games bec. winning and losing might determine No. 1 seeding and homecourt advantage in the playoffs. I don't expect Bynum to be a factor in these games although he s/d be back by then.

Curiously, this young Laker team seems to play better on the road than at home. When they are expected to win, they fall back on bad habits. It's when they are facing a challenge that they step up. Still, I would hope they have home court advantage vs. SA and NO bec. I have a feeling we'll be meeting this 2 in the 2nd and 3rd round of the WC playoffs.

Worst case, Lakers could split the Portland/Sacramento games and lose to both NO and SA. Which means a 56/26 regular season record and 2nd or 3rd seed in the playoffs but losing home court advantage in the 3rd round if not the 2nd as well. I don't see that happening since the NO and SA games will be home games.

Rick & Laker/KobeFan,
hahahaha... nice try...

The only record set straight for Sasha is that his game is wildly volatile and feast/famine.

All LTLF did was prove that I was right by watching the complete game and seeing that in overtime Sasha took two quick shots that ended up getting us down by 5 early in OT. That's inexcusable.

At the end of regulation, he got ripped point blank by Ellis. Inexcusable.

He ends up making a clutch shot. Great. But his overall game is not good enough. We cant be having these wild swings from role players.

Fine, dont listen to me, listen to Phil Jackson about Sunday's game(I suppose LTLF needs to set him straight too):
""Most of the irritation [Sunday] night was created by Sasha's foray into the court and shooting one-on-three," he said. "If we had 15 guns on the bench, there would have been 15 holes in Sasha at the moment. Sasha can do that somewhere else but not here. I didn't have to say anything to him. They all jumped on him collectively."

Rick,
when you played limited minutes your mistakes should be limited.

Is that easy enough to understand for you?

What do great teams have in common? CONSISTENT ROLE PLAYERS.

Until Farmar, Sasha, et. al get consistent in what they bring each night, the Lakers will struggle to be a great team.

That's bottom line. Argue that all you want, but that's the truth.

GEEZ... PAU STILL OUT... HOPE MBENGA SOMEHOW MORPH INTO A RELIABLE CENTER...

OUR MAIN GUYS ARE BEING WORN OUT!!!

GO CELTS, BEAT THEM FUNS & JOKENETS...

PURPLE 7 GOLD BABY!!!

BULLS EYE!!!!

MVP: Making the Case for Kobe Bryant

By: Preetom Bhattacharya Last Updated: 3/25/08 8:31 AM ET | 3986 times read

Adjust font size:When Kobe Bryant doesn't win the MVP award, the argument against him seems to rehash itself consistently.

He's selfish. He doesn't make his teammates better. He doesn't do this .. or that .. and he DID do that and we didn't like it. Oh, and his team isn't all that good.

No more.

MVP chants have shadowed Bryant all season regardless of venue. Even on Monday night at Oracle Arena against the Warriors, in arguably the most hostile environment in the league, the MVP chant momentarily penetrated the boos as Bryant stepped to the free-throw line.

"He's my vote for MVP," Warriors head coach Don Nelson said. "He's the best of the best and deserves the award more than, I think, anybody else and I hope he gets it. He's a marvelous player, makes everybody else better. There isn't anything that he doesn't do. He's a pretty sensational player."

Bryant's scoring feats in the past, despite their historic nature, weren't enough to win the award because the Lakers simply didn't win enough games.

Outscoring an opponent 62 – 61 in three quarters, despite that being the only time that has happened since 1954 (when the shot clock was introduced), wasn't enough. Plausibly challenging Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game by scoring 81 points wasn't enough either.

Oh, and joining Chamberlain as the only player in NBA history to have four straight 50-point games? Nope, not enough.

Now a half-game up on the New Orleans Hornets to lead the Western Conference, that excuse can be blown out of the water.

For the past two months, the Purple and Gold Show has been right near the top of the better half of the league and Bryant's play remains the main reason why. Leading the team to a 30 – 13 record against Western teams, Bryant and the Lakers have been winning despite injuries to both Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol (and don't forget Trevor Ariza, who gave the team a needed perimeter defender).

The Lakers finished their epic nine-game road trip in February with a stunning 7 – 2 record, the league's best record in nine or more continuous games away from since 1974, when neutral-site games were eliminated.

Many point to a player's supporting cast as either an argument for or against an MVP candidate's viability. At the beginning of the season, did anyone see a Lakers squad that had only added Derek Fisher in the offseason as being as good as they are? Without Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol, should the Lakers have beaten Dallas and Utah in consecutive games last week?

Sure, the Lakers "Bench Mob" and role players have evolved at an exponential pace, and with Gasol, the team went from being surprisingly good to elite.

Sasha Vujacic learned that he can still hit shots after the sun goes down. Jordan Farmar now harnesses his athleticism effectively. Whenever he gets playing time, Ronny Turiaf is a skilled personification of a can of double-shot espresso washed down by one of those gross energy drinks.

And then there's Bynum, who has single-handedly restored faith in the Lakers' scouting and player personnel department.

But the question becomes why all things these have happened at an accelerated pace - and the answer is Kobe Bryant.

This is the year that Bryant has figured out how to consistently balance the art of playmaking with the science of scoring. In the past, the Lakers would seemingly get one Bryant or the other on any given night. The last hurdle he needed to overcome in becoming the most complete player in the league was unswervingly being able to involve his teammates and still get his.

Bryant's stats don't necessarily show this improvement – his 5.3 assists per game aren't the highest total he has had in his career and his shooting percentages haven't skyrocketed or anything like that.

But the proof is in the pudding. Gasol has been able to so easily integrate into a triangle offense that supposedly takes years to learn because Bryant has facilitated his learning. The comfort needed to make the offense second-nature was assisted by Bryant's willingness to set the table for the Spaniard, just as he had been doing for Bynum earlier this year. It isn't hard to be productive when the game is limited to simple put-ins.

He's trusted his teammates not only on the inside but along the arc as well. Vujacic and Fisher have a green light on the perimeter and Bryant is handing them open looks – both are shooting career-high percentages from three-point range as well as the field as a whole. Even "Space Cadet" Vladimir Radmanovic has found a way to contribute.

In between taking over games (see 52 points against Dallas at the beginning of the month and 41 against Phoenix in February), Bryant is using games against lesser teams to help build the confidence of his teammates by conceding to them on offense. By taking a backseat against teams like Miami (21 points on 14 shots with 8 assists) and Seattle (21 points on 13 shots with 10 assists), the Lakers are seeing that they can win games without needing Bryant to score, making everyone else feel that much better about their scoring contributions.

Bryant is doing all this while playing under control on offense himself, considerably reducing ill-advised shots and attempts to break everyone on the opposition down with his dribble. His go-to move from a few seasons ago, splitting the approaching double-team down the middle, has been replaced with smart passes, leading to increased ball movement and team-oriented basketball.

And to top it all off, Bryant is playing better defense and continuing to amass career milestones in scoring. He may not have earned some of the defensive accolades he received the last few years, but an All-Defensive team nod is certainly deserved this time around. Bryant became only the 25th player in league history to surpass the 21,000-point mark earlier this month, the second youngest player to do so.

When one objectively looks at Bryant's body of work beside the success of his team, there doesn't seem to be a better MVP candidate out there. He's playing defense, scoring, passing, and truly leading his Lakers squad.

These are the things he supposedly failed to do consistently in the past, so what's the excuse this time?

There probably isn't one.

Ajax,

Thanks for the Flirts' video. Didn't know the song was happening anywhere lately but on my iPod.

Haved missed the Blog Family lately due to real family priorities. Anyway, I am happy that Lakers gut it out last night of victory, barely and yet it was another W out of the 82 games. LO and Kobe are poofed, Kobe is on auto-pilot while LO could hardly talk during the interview as if he was drunk from exhaustion while John Ireland kept on bugging him with silly questions.

Welcome back JayJay, after a tenous appeal of trading Socks for JO in the past, good it never happened. The same way with Kidd last year. Bynum the beast defies basketball logic and he made the difference why lakers are on rampage this year.

Kudos to the Lakers playing after missing 4 significant players, they managed to stay in the top. We can say anything or everything about the players not named Kobe or LO, but they need our congratulations for holding the fort. Nobody is perfect especially when they are tired playing as a starter or a bench mob and keep up with greyhound warriors of Don Nelson. If the game was track and field, nobody will beat the speedy warriors.

LakerinBC, that was a nice analysis on the remaining game, which Laker will show up. Do they want to be on the top or remain # 3 behind Hornets and Spurs? Home court advantage during the playoffs gives the Lakers the psychological edge if they remain in No. 1, however if they can easily win games as a visitor as proven in the 9 consecutive games followed by the four tough games and with the presence of Pau, Drew and Mihm, definitely we have more manpower to be the favorites during the playoffs whether home games or away games, it doesn't matter.

Kudos to the K-Bros, the blog became a Championship caliber too with updated reporting. It never sleeps and constantly on a bandwagon mode.

Every team is dangerous for the Lakers. It's like every opponent brings their A+ game when they play them. Maybe they're trying out for Hollywood.

Good morning Charles! Toad, Bozz, JustAnotherMambaFan,
PsychedLakerGirl, SemiLakerGirl, EastCoastJessie
GAMMMME DAYYYYYYYYYYYY!

ROLL CALL IN 3 HOURS BE READY

SPECIAL GOOD MORNING CHARLES,
Thanks for having my back yesterday after I left.
I OWE YOU BIG TIME BROTHER, THANKS

________________________________*
WE DON’T NEED NO KG WE
HAVE LO BANDWAGON
*__________ _______________________*
(01) MAMBA24 – Driver & Owner
(02) NEVER – coined the term ODAMN
(03) LAKERSALLDAY – has 23 TV’s all tuned to NBA TV
(04) THE LAKE SHOW – Teaching Lamar to shoot free throws
(05) THEDROPPER – Taught Lamar to be a beast
(06) MARKYTHEARKY – Director of Mirrors and reflections
(07) LAKERHOLIC – Taught Lamar to be a ReboundHolic
(08) SFLAKERGIRL – The reason LO jumps for those rebounds
(09) FLOYD – Made LO go to his right.
(10) JAY JAY – A legend returns and shapes up LO
(11) RICK FRIEDMAN – Made a rap record with LO.
(12) XODUS – LO’s personal DJ
(13) XTRO – Gave LO extra heart
(14) PSYCHEDLAKERGIRL – Director motivation
(15) NEMAIA FALETOGO - Taught LO how to handle the Rock
(16) JUSTANOTHERMAMBAFAN – was drafted 1 position before KG
(17) Lakertruth - shaved the star off of LO's mug to start his hot streak.
(18) MILO RAMBALDI- --Team Prophet.
*___________________________________*
I HATE THE CELTICS BANDWAGON
*___________________________________*
(01) EAST COAST JESSIE – Owner & Driver
(02) FEARLESSWHACKJOB – Co/Driver
(02) MILO RAMBALDI- --Team Prophet.
(03) MAMBA24 – East Coast Jessie’s BodyGuard
(04) LAKERFAZE – Taught KG how to Dunk
(05) TOAD – Once beat Larry Bird in a game of horse
(06) LAKERMAN420 – Told Red Auerbach where to put his cigar
(07) HMRHED – Switched the Celtics green uniforms for
Purple and gold
(08) SIMILAKERGIRL – Reports directly to Jeannie Buss
(09) LAKERLEGACY – Made Red Auerbach bow down to 9Rings
(10) PIG MILLER – sent LARRY Bird back to French lick IND.
(11) JEFF - Was born hating the Celtics.
(12) #4 Not only born hating Celtics but will bequeath the hate to his heirs
(13) MARKYTHEARKY – Director of Mirrors and reflections
(12) JUSTANOTHERMAMBAFAN – Hates them so much would not take Pierce for Kwame Brown
(13) THE_D – Thinks Celtics fans should go to AA meetings
__________________________________________*
LAKERS WIN OUT - STARTING
MAR.24 BANDWAGON
*__________________________________________*
(01) FEARLESS WHACK JOB - Driver & Secret Owner
(02) MAMBA24 - Riding Shotgun
(03) GLENN - Reports directly to 9Rings
(04) FANOFTHEMAMBA – Director of Security
(05) SIMILAKERGIRL – Reports directly to Jeannie Buss
(06) TIM-4-SHOW Director of the Show
(07) MARKYTHEARKY – Director of Mirrors and reflections
(08) MILO RAMBALDI- --Team Prophet.
*_________________________________________*
THE LAKERS 2008 CHAMPIONSHIP BANDWAGON
*_________________________________________*
01 ANDREW Z – Owner
02 EAST COAST JESSIE – Chairman of the Board
03 RICK FRIEDMAN – Driver
04 MAMBA24 – Riding Shotgun
05 KEIFO – Chief of Staff
05 JEFF – Security Chief
06 XODUS - Head Reporter and part time enforcer
07 utzworld - THE BANNER HOLDER - Bearer of the Laker Flag
08 THE OUTLAW – Taught Kobe the crossover dribble
09 KOBESBAD – And that’s good.
10 WHITEMAMBA24 - Route Director
11 TSIRY – Passing out the championship hats
12 AB – Crowd control director
13 LAKERTRUTH - Judge, Jury and Executioner
14 HAPPYDAZE - Director of Morale
15 LAL-FAN - Freakin La Laker Fan
16 TSPHERE – keeper of the Flame
17 STAPLES24 - Helped Kwame Brown pack
18 JUSTANOTHERMAMBAFAN - Just a Super mamba faN
19 LAKERS LEGACY - Keeper of the Flame
20 THA SHOW - Just keeping us real
21 ANDO – Superstar in the making
22 JESTERGURU – Waiting for Driving Assignment
23 NIK KANNAN – Blog Team Trainer
24 BZAR – Kicked Smush Parker off the team
25 DOC4daLakeShow – Blog Doctor
26 HAPPY GILMORE - Team Motivation Officer
27 TRIO – 3 Laker Fans in 1
28 FIRE32 Burning with Laker Pride
29 LAKER NORTH – In charge Of all things North
30 JUSTALAKERFAN - Director of Fan Protocol
31 JUSTANOTHERMAMBAFAN – Director of all Blog Mambas
32 BROWNMAMBA – Asst. Director of all Blog Mambas
33 DK - Reports directly to Jerry Buss
(34) LAKERSRYDEORDIE – Enforcer
(35) MARKYTHEARKY – Director of Mirrors and reflections
(36) PSYCHEDLAKERGIRL – Director of Motivation
(37) SIMILAKERGIRL – Reports directly to Jeannie Buss
(38) MILO RAMBALDI- --Team Prophet.
*_____________________________*
55 WIN BANDWAGON MEMBERS:
*_____________________________*
(01) LAKERTOM______________(31) ISSANG
(02) MAMBA24_______________(32) WHITE_MAMBA24 _
(03) LONG_TIME_LAKER_FAN__(33) PURPLE&GOLDDEREK
(04) JUNO___________________(34) THIRTY
(05) GENERIC_ONE___________(35) BLACK_MAMBA24
(06) HOBBITMAGE____________(36) JUSTIN
(07) MARTY__________________37) VIOLATER
(08) DAVID WHANG___________(38) SHAQ_FAN
(09) ROKY___________________(39) ISSANG
(10) KEIFO___________________(40) WHITE MAMBA24
(11) VIOLATER________________(41) LAKALOV
(12) DICE8UP_________________(42) EASTCOASTJESSIE
(13) HUBBIT__________________(43) Q WUOR
(14) BD______________________(44) LAKERAHOLI
(15) JONNIN IN JAPAN__________(45) TSIRY
(16) ALEXINHO17______________(46) DREW
(17) TWOODY_________________(47) Nestro’s Bistro
(18) KIWI_____________________(48) BLAZE1B
(19) FEARLESS WHACK JOB_____(49) BZAR
(20) DAN DAN THE LAKER FAN___(50) CHRIS
(21) LAKERSRYDORDIE________(51) OUTSIDERGUA
(22) GIANT SQUID_____________(52) HOUSTON_LAKER
(23) TALIQ___________________(53) JEFF
(24) SLO GAL_________________(54) JOE_DUB
(25) DEREK__________________(55) CBUCK
(26) NIK KANNAN_____________(56) utzworld THE BANNER HOLDER
(27) BOB____________________(57) THE_CAT
(28) FAITH___________________58) CHUCKY.L.OHNIO
(29) LAKER_LOVER___________(59) RIPSYCHEDLAKER
(30) COMPLEX_BROTHA_______(60) RICK FRIEDMAN
(61) LAKERSRYDORDIE _________(62) GIANT SQUID
(63) JUSTANOTHERMAMBAFAN___(64) LAKERSRYDEORDIE
(65) HMRHED__________________(66) MARKYTHEARKY
(67) MILO RAMBALDI- --Team Prophet.
__________________________________________*
DAVID STERN IF KOBE BRYANT DOES NOT
WIN THE MVP THEN JAIL 2 U BANDWAGON
*_____________________________*
(1) NIK KANNAN –Owner & Driver_(20) EASTCOASTJESSIE
(2) CBUCK____________________(21) MAMBA24
(3) VIOLATER_________________(22) WHITEMAMBA24
(4) OUTSIDERGUA_____________(23) BLACKMAMBA24
(5) LAKERTRUTH ______________(24) TIM-4-SHOW
(6) ALEXINH017________________(25) CHUCK.L.OHNIO
(7) DREREK___________________(26) TSIRY
(8) SHAQFAN__________________(27) JUSTANOTHERMAMBAFAN
(9) JANAYA____________________(28) PSYCHEDLAKERGIRL
(10) JON K_____________________(29) SBPIMP
(11) IVI8KRS___________________(30) JEFF
(12) JOE DUBB_________________(31) JESTER GURU
(13) FEARLESS WHACK JOB______(32) DOC4daLakeShow
(14) TSPHERE__________________(33) HMRHED
(15) ANDO_____________________(34) RICK FRIEDMAN
(16) HAPPY GILMORE____________(35) KEIFO
(17) CHRIS H.___________________(36) MILO RAMBALDI- --Team Prophet.
(18) DREW PAU KOBE____________(37)
(19) LAKERLARRY_______________(38)