The media is starting to court Chris Paul for the MVP, who will win the damn thing this year.

Notice how Lebron, the former NBA favored child, was on top of the MVP charts until he started publically hanging out with rappers and made the Vogue cover with the white woman? Disappeared from the radar, didn't he. No further comments needed.

As I predicted earlier, the Memphis and Charolotte losses cost Kobe Bean Bryant his MVP, and this was his best, and last, chance to ever win it. It's a shame they'll give it to such a young man over the veteran Kobe.

But, alas...there's always Denver.

GAME DAY!!! Finally!

Hi LAL Friends - cheers AK/BK, Charles, mamba24, rick F, LakerTom, LTLF, Ladies Man etc.

LET's GO LAKERS!!

What I don't understand is that on the replay the Dirk injury looked REALLY bad, and yet he's only out for a few games, while Gasol's injury didn't look as bad and he missed nine games. Judging by how it looks on TV might not be the most accurate way to look at an injury, but it definitely has some correlation with the severity of the injury. Is it the training staff, like Phil Jackson said jokingly (or maybe not) or is it that our players are more injury prone?

Here's the video of the Gasol injury:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjTT4F05v24&feature=related

Here's the Dirk injury:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbpAh6U91kQ

Good morning Mamba24, good morning Charles, good morning Pig & Toad & all the other Mamba's (welcome to the jungle) and good morning to the rest of this GREAT LAKER NATION!!!!

Mamba24 - I am present and accounted for sir, and waiting on roll call!!! WE NEED IT!!!

It's GAME DAY BABY! I thought the last few days would never end......lol!

Time to BBQ up some Trailgrazers, get our tacos on and dish up a side of troll - LET"S GO!

GO LAKERS!

The BEAN for MVP or NO PEACE!

The reality to me is that the poor decisions and coaching style of PJ is significantly exposed when the top players are not in the game.........I mean realistly watching the lakers shoot 30 and 40 three pointers in the game only confirms the lack of direction from a coach.

Korey,

I once saw Hollinger say on one of his chats that he doesn't have an MVP vote so we won't need to worry about him as long as the Lakers win out.

GAME DAY!!!!!!!!!!

WE ARE THE FREAKIN LA LAKERS THE WINNERS OF 14 SOON TO BE 15 NBA TITLES. OWNERS OF THE BEST WINNING PERCENTAGE IN NBA HISTORY!

I'm going to fight Ric Bucher soon. Anybody want in on that?

Seriously, when will that guy apologize or admit his blatant yellow journalism tactics over the summer? Even if he does support Kobe for MVP, I still think he's an a wipe.

Lakers win going away tonight. Pau will dominate Pryzbilla or Aldridge, even though hobbled.

I like the Lakers.

pslakerfan

Chest bump, you win a a 5 dollar shake! They don't put bourbon in it or nothin'.

Actually, like that Godfather, that film does work as a kind of Rosetta Stone of references for this Laker season:

After the Memphis loss: Naw man, I'm pretty f&^%in' far from OK.

Tonight's game (paraphrase): What now? Lemme tell you what now... I'mo call in a couple of heavy board hittin' ballers to go to work on the Blazers with a double double and a blow torch.

Simi Laker Girl,

Couldn't find you using a myspace search under augie5581.

Whether you're injured or not, when it's time to play, you gotta to defend the Lakers lair. Who is not hurting at this time of the year ~~

Fans are hurting for witnessing scrubby lakers role for three consecutive seasons;

Kobe is hurting and getting old too for carrying this team three consecutive seasons;

Role players are hurting, they wanted to contribute but their athleticism do not pare well with competition, they need support out there;

Therefore, if you can stand, run, shoot, jump, block shots ~~ get off from that lazy chair and HELP!

Laker players are made of muscles and bones with a metal heart not with Gary Vitti's marshmallows.

Simi Laker Girl,

Couldn't find you using a myspace search under augie5581.

Posted by: Rick Friedman

hey rick, don't go chasing waterfalls..

Rick,

The Lakers have always been slow to return from injury (I won't take that as far as to say slow to heal), because this organization has always erred towards a player's overall health and career versus the immediate need to win another championship. This philosophy has come down from the very top. I think Gary Vitti is just an extension of that. He does what his boss says.

However, the Lakers, except for Chris Mihm, have not really ever had players re-injure themselves after returning. The Lakers don't have a history of Mihms and Hills and Mannings, etc. It seems that whatever Vitti does, it is in the player's own physical best interest and it has shown great dividends for them over the years. Buss has NEVER rushed or even hinted at a player coming back early or even "as soon as possible". NEVER.

That may not be in the best interest of us, the fan. But, for the players involved, I think it is both admirable and the most ethical way to treat them.

PJ has been notoriously like that himself with every team he's coached (sometimes frustratingly so). But, no one in management on this team ever puts the team's present ahead of a player's future. That is the way I like it.

I always refer back to when both B Scott and Magic went down with Hamstring pulls in the Finals when they could have been the first team since the Celtics to three-peat. I always felt the Magic could have played in some diminished capacity (Scott's injury was WAY worse) if anyone had told him to. You know Magic is a warrior and would have at least given it a try. But, there wasn't anyway Buss was going for that, even though that championship was almost in hand. Everyone is better off for that sacrifice, don't you agree?

We are STILL #1 in our division. I see no need to rush anyone. We have shown an amazing capacity to "tread water" while we work through these injuries. That is all that was asked when these players went down. Plus, we play both of the teams in front of us, and thus are in control of our own destiny. We should take as much time as possible while still maintaining that opportunity to regain the number one slot. We only want the opportunity.

We may win both of those games and be number one, or lose one or two and wind up 2nd-4th. But, at least we would have had the chance, and our final seeding wouldn't be all that bad after all. But, in the meantime we would have avoided the real possibility of bringing in either player too soon and loosing him for a lot longer in the future, if not causing some other sort of damage.

Unlike BK, I will claim that our training staff is the best in basketball. I use the aforementioned as my evidence of such.

--FearlessWhackJob

machiavelly,

I completely agree that PJ may have cost us between 4 and eight games this season. However, those eight games might be the overall reason we win the championship. PJ has always used the regular season as a preamble to the playoffs. He's had to coach a little differently in the second half this season only because the race is so tight and there isn't the same margin of error that there usually is towards the end of seasons. All those teams that we were all just so sure would fade, simply haven't.

If we still end up number one in the conference, what possible difference would those eight games have been? We were never going to get a better record than Boston, so what exactly is your point?

Besides, if we are number one in the conference, that means that we are entering the playoffs on a HUGE roll, having just felled the two other powerhouse teams in the West; we would have just demonstrated the ability to seamlessly integrate both Paul and Bynum back into the rotation together, while also easing them back in from injury; and that we would be demonstrating a new re-emphasis on defense like we saw on both big road trips this season.

If those things happen, what possible other benefit could those dropped games possibly mean? PJ has always been a big picture guy. Sure, he takes risks some of us wouldn't, but he's come out ahead an awful lot in his career.

And, usually, his risks involve trusting his players. Not a bad thing, usually, in my estimation.

--FearlessWhackJob

Rick Friedman,

Add it to the end of Myspace.com. (www.myspace.com/augie5581)

=)

BK and FearlessWhackJob

I think you misunderstood me. The comments you are responding to were cut and pasted from chuck23.

Just for the record (if there is such a thing) I have no problem with Phil's substitution pattern or Ira's lack of playing time.

Rick,

“I'm obviously good with #1 and #2, but I'd rather not play the Warriors. That's been a really tough match-up.”

It’s only a tough matchup when we are missing Andrew and Pau. With our two starting seven-footers back, the Warriors are probably an easier matchup for us than the Nuggets or Mavericks, both of whom have more size. Even most of the local Bay area media fear the Lakers and would prefer the Warriors to face any other team in the first round.

Tom

Chuck 23

>>> I feel like PJ has cost us at least 8 games this season.

I totally agree. No disrespect to the coach's nine rings, but sometimes I simply don't understand what he is thinking.
Phil really doesn't use the bench to his best advantage. Witness how little he's used Mbenga until the last few games.

Posted by: Rick Friedman

you don't understand what he's thinking because he has nine rings and you don't.

Posted by: machiavelly | April 02, 2008 at 09:57 AM

But what has he done lately?
Oh cost us championship chance by losing 3 games in a row to Funs with no adjustments! Could have been known as 10 rings by now.

IF the Lakers are healthy and can incorporate all their returning players and develop some continuity, I definitely feel they can handle any team in the West. Based on what I've seen all season long, the Lakers are the best and most complete team in the West. In fact the only teams I feel that they can't beat in a 7 game series are in the East. Boston or Detroit will represent a formidable challenge for whatever team emerges from the West.

As much as I despise the Celtics and Pistons, I have to give both teams their props. Doc Rivers has done a masterful job of developing his bench. He has waves of energy players to throw at the opposition. Leon Powe, Glenn Davis, Tony Allen, Eddie House are some serious role players. From day 1 this season, Boston has established a defensive identity that is borderline dirty, but thoroughly intense. Detroit and the C's play a physical style that would tough for the Lakers to overcome. Detroit has some fine young players on their bench as well. And unlike previous seasons, Flip Saunders has given them enough playing time to develop confidence, as well as the flexibility to rest his starters.

It remains to be seen if the Lakers have the toughness to sustain a long playoff run, especially with their key bigs returning from injury so late in the regular season. Of course, as a Laker fan, I'll be rooting them on and hoping they make me eat my words.

GO LAKERS!!!!

Justa,
This season has been nothing but "trying something different" with the lineups. By position:
Kwame and Bynum and Turiaf. Fisher and Farmar. Sasha and Walton and Vlad and Ariza. Odom and Turiaf and Vlad. Gasol and Turiaf. The only "constants" have been Kobe and Odom, and they have both played multiple positions in multiple types of lineups.

Big lineups. Small lineups. Three-point shooting lineups.

Do you actually watch the games? Apparently not.