There are probably over 5000 better beers than Budweiser made in the US. Please, don't impose that swill upon us. A beer made with rice instead of 100 percent barley because rice is cheaper can't be considered a decent beer. The initial taste isn't bad. The lack of aftertaste due to the rice in it is inexcusable.

I'll personally take a Grottenbier from Belgium. It's the best of the 1200+ beers I've tried. Just simply extraordinary.

Zum voll!

Charles,

I like Al Harrington pretty well, but he's too much like Odom, just not as good. He has a better, yet very inconsistent, outside shot. His defense isn't as good, his passing is worse. He's more inconsistent offensively and he plays way smaller than his 6'10" body. His defense is unproven.

As much as Vlad frustrates me, I think with Harrington we lose Vlad's shooting. We also gain another tweener at 3/4 when we've already got one of those in Odom, a decent backup 4 (regular season and home playoff games so far) in Turiaf, Pau starting at 4, Ariza at 3 possibly backing up Odom and Walton at 3.

Harrington is a neat, athletic, talented player, but I'm not sure what he adds to this team. I do think some of his talents have been masked by Nellie's use of him (or lack thereof).

If Harrington's shooting and offense were more consistent (and they might be when he's not playing 4/5) and I felt he could defend the 3 better, I'd gladly pick him up.

Currently, I think it's at best a lateral move.

Charles,

Have you tried Booker's? Now THAT is one hell of a bourbon. Knob Creek and Woodford Reserve aren't so bad either. The single barrel Wild Turkeys and Jack Daniel's are also quite good, though Jack isn't a bourbon.

Be careful though, Booker's is like 117 proof. It's much better as a digestif or as the last 1-2 drinks of an evening. A protective coating of a few beers is most helpful.

Benjamin,

Thanks for the reply and input... Knob Creek is always my 2nd. I am a Kentucky Bourbon kinda guy. I once mixed Dewars and Woodford and my carpet hasn't been the same since.

Booker's I haven't. Unfortunately the Single Barrel's are all junior college trials mixed in with Mexican Beers and Mixers and faulty pick up lines. "Nice shoes wanna fu@*!"

I also like Sangria's and Sake Sangrias. (I used to manage a Salsa Club, forgive me.) Go figure an Asian guy in a Guayabera.

Thanks for the input on Al Harrington. His contract expires in 2009. I figure that might be the benefit added to his athleticism.

Regards,

passionate Lakers fan,

“The Lakers will not beat the Cs with Lamar/Luke/VladRad.
Man, I'm depressed all over again.”

How about Bynum/Pau/Lamar? Andrew Bynum would have made the difference in that series even if we didn’t have Pau Gasol. Before his injury, Drew was probably the single most physical power player in the NBA. Just replay the Making of a Beast YouTube.

I also agree that issue of SI really sucks. I just threw my copy in the trash without even reading. I know you are still really bummed out by the way the Lakers lost in the Finals but the team overachieved with Pau at center and just ran out of gas when they ran into a hot and tougher Boston team. In my mind, the Lakers lost some of the hunger of earlier rounds once they won the West and became the favorite not only to win this year but for many years to come. It’s the problem of coming too far too fast in my mind. Even Kobe seemed to lack the fire of the earlier rounds. Anyway, that’s my take on the loss.

As for Luke and Vlad, it’s going to be hard for either guy to get playing time next year with Lamar and Trevor holding down the small forward position but both will can be very effective in the right matchup. I just hope they will dedicate themselves to making their games better next year. If they do, then they both will be contributors, although with less playing time overall.

Tom

LTLF,

What an absolutely stellar post. Talk about bringing some perspective back to Kobe's legacy. People tend to forget that Jordan also failed... and didn't start winning championships until he was, um, just about the age that Kobe's at now.

Nothing shuts up Gunner like the simple TRUTH. Actually, nothing shuts up Gunner like the Lakers winning. Can't wait to listen to all of his silence next year.

Go Lake Show!

Charles,

I'm not sure what you mean by "a Dark one."

Certain beverages don't require very careful food complement selection. They aren't easily overpowered by any food, but don't have a taste trademark that interferes with the flavors of a meal. Grottenbier is strong, yet mellow enough to fit into that category. Booker's is a little overpowering and I think you'd want to wait for the taste to fade before you took another bite of your food. That's why I'd suggest it a a digestif, after dinner. I think Grottenbier would go fine with sashimi, but I would feel weird eating sashimi or any sushi with something other than sake or Japanese beer.

At this point, I think the web is filled with food pairings for just about every well known beer or wine. Grottenbier would certainly be included. It's probably one of the 50 best known Belgian beers that gourmets tend to go all ga-ga over.

A quick google search suggested earthy cheeses as a pairing (Camembert, Fontina) and that it would work as a general pairing or as an aperitif (appetizer).

From what I've read (I have only general knowledge), if you stick with standard beers of a region, you can usually pair those beers with the most common cuisine of a region.

Looks like I'm accidentally getting your whole meal planned out here. Start with the Grottenbier and finish with a Booker's.

You know what, guys?

I have this green shirt that I love. One of my favorite shirts, right?

Ever since the Finals. I haven't been able to wear it.

Don't know if I can wear it again.

By the way, what passionate Lakers fan said, “The Lakers will not beat the Cs with Lamar/Luke/VladRad" is just crazy.

A year of maturation with a healthy Treavor Ariza, Chris Mihm, and Andrew Bynum and the signing of Quinton Ross to replace Ira Newble = A Championship.

Pure and Simple.

We'll be better next year. Much.

The Celtics won't.

GO LAKERS!

LTLF,

I too appreciated the historical perspective you provided. Thanks! I feel better after reading it.

Do You See What I See,

You bring up an important point. It will be interesting to see what happens with those other guys.

I think Iverson stays and takes a pay cut unless Denver wants to completely blow up the team. Even then, it might be hard to trade his 22 M contract for something worthwhile to Denver.

I think Atlanta likes Bibby and might want to give that team a chance to succeed. It's still possible they go for a more defensive team overall and better defender at point guard. If that's the case, Bibby might get traded.

Wally world at 13M seems expensive. What do the Cavs do with him? He's never been the same since coming back from his injury. Can he play defense?

J. Kidd? Not sure. I suspect he gets more time to mix with the Mavs. Will he take a pay cut? It doesn't seem the Mavs are teams to blow it up and start over. It seems like Cuban is in the permanently Win Now mindset.

Sheed? He's still got some mileage. The Pistons said they're looking to blow it up so I think he's attractive as a pickup for a contending team. I used to really think he was overrated and too much of a head case. Lately I realized he's a lot better than that. I almost wish we needed a power forward. I really like his man to man D. I think his appeal is different. He's not salary cap fodder like Odom and the rest of this group.

I'm not really sure where this entire group stands just like I don't know where Odom stands.

You do bring up a great point that if we're marketing Odom as salary cap relief, we've got some serious competition. Still, 14M isn't anything to sneeze at. We know Phoenix is always looking to save a buck. Hell, let's get Stoudemire and trade him for Lebronze! If only, huh?

Oh, I didn't see 6-10, Do You See What I See. Nevermind what I said in the last post. Sorry about that.

Has there been any word about the Lakers talking about an offering Odom an extension? Or are they waiting to see what happens with Sasha and Ronny? Or is it too early to offer one? Not to read into it too much, but could the Lakers be holding off so that they're really interested in trading him?

check it....last week kobe couldn't do it without me!

that's the different between last place..

"Kobe, tell me how my a%$ taste?"

I'm a horse, Kobe (punk) ratted me out, that's why I'm getting a divorce.

Once again, "Kobe, tell me how my a%$ taste?"

THE WAY THE BALL BOUNCES…

Anybody else think that the final player selections for Team USA Basketball looked eerily the same as four years ago? The roster looks more like a shoe company all-star team rather than a team put together to work as team. What happened to the talk about putting designed for international play? Too many shoe customers in China?

I mean, Carmello Antony and Dwayne Wade were big reasons we didn’t win last time. This now is looking like their chance for redemption. What happened to defenders and shooters? We have one center in Dwight Howard and only one certified shooter in Michael Redd. But we got a lot of guys who can dunk and sell shoes.

********

And is anybody else bothered that the rest of the world has taken the game we invented and changed the rules so that it is to their advantage and our disadvantage? It’s ironic to think that the rest of the world plays a different game. I mean, do playground basketball courts overseas have trapezoidal lanes drawn on the asphalt? What ever happened to old school and tradition. International rules are almost as bad as WNBA rules.

********

No matter how much I try to leave the Shaq freestyle video behind, the angrier I get over the free pass that most of the media world is giving the Big Nothing. If I hear one more hip-hop street-cred fool of an expert justify Shaq’s tasteless and talentless behavior by claiming Kobe deserved it, I am going to go ballistic.

I sure hope Kobe has enough common sense to just say “No comment” when asked about the incident. You can also bet money that if it were LeBron James that Shaq had slurred in his rap, Commissioner Stern would already have suspended O’Neal. By not reacting, Stern is basically telling Kobe to get screwed. Way to go, Commissioner. You tool.

********

I do have to give Shaq credit for giving all of his detractors and haters the perfect line to use every time he gets dunked on or dissed. You may not hear it on the air from the broadcaster but you know that Drew and Kobe will both be looking for opportunities to ask Shaq how his @ss tastes.

********

Chris Mannix’s mock draft was interesting, although the Lakers get screwed as usual, getting overrated Kevin Durant and losing Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum, and Pau Gasol. Why keep the order of teams drafting the same when everybody loses all of their players? It’s like what would happen if Al Gore actually became the NBA Commissioner. Too fantasy league for me although the Lakers did have the most players drafted.

And as was immediately pointed out, many of the selections bordered on ridiculous, such as LeBron before Kobe or Oden before Bynum. It was good to see Mannix at least was smart enough to include Drew at 17th but no general manager would still have his job if they were to select Dwayne Wade, Amare Stoudemire, Chris Bosh, Carmelo Anthony, Dirk Nowitzki, or Tony Parker before Andrew Bynum. Read the writing on the wall.

********

After the dust has settled, I think our young Lakers team just ran out of gas in the Finals after over-achieving with Pau Gasol at center and with Andrew Bynum injured. Once the Lakers won the West and were crowned as a future dynasty, the Lakers basically lost the hunger that they had as the underdog and just ran into a team that was hotter and hungrier than they were without Andrew Bynum. But if Drew had played (even without Pau), the Lakers would have won the series and be the champions, as they will prove next year.

Andrew Bynum ends parity in the NBA in 2009. The Era of the Beast begins.

Tom

HoustonLaker,

The Canadian Baller article was awsome. Thank you for the reads...

Shaq is an A$$....can't wait to see how it ends in Phoenix......can't wait.....

BTW.....is it fall yet????

Shout out to the OG Bloggers.....going on 3 or is it 4 years now.....wow....when did you guys start this???

peace -

janaya

janaya

I heard that the Clippers are going to trade away Elton Brand. That would not only be a shame, but the stupidest thing they could do.

GO LAKERS!

Laker Tom
"How about Bynum/Pau/Lamar? Andrew Bynum would have made the difference in that series even if we didn’t have Pau Gasol. Before his injury, Drew was probably the single most physical power player in the NBA. Just replay the Making of a Beast YouTube."

As much as I like your optimism, what evidence do you have that Andrew w/o Pau would handle the Celtics? We lost both games rather handily with Bynum w/o Gasol. Andrew was definitely coming on but we don't KNOW if he would have made all the difference vs. the Celtics. This is a young up and coming player, not a proven All-Star.

passionate Laker fan,

>>>How do you blow a 24 point lead in game 4?
>>>...
>>>PS: remember when Luke stated-after losing to Phoenix in 5 games-"let's win
>>>some championships?"
>>>Lamar/Luke/Vladimir=soft.

Nice job. You really show that you know what you're talking about here. So you blame
Luke for losing the 24 point lead in game 4. Is that right?

Maybe it would be nice if you actually watched the game and knew what happened.

When Luke left the game with 8:12 left in the 2nd quarter, the Lakers led by 21 points.
And Luke DID NOT PLAY AGAIN IN THE GAME.

So Luke was really soft giving up those 21 points FROM THE BENCH.

I get the point. You're a Luke hater, and aside from the Denver series, Luke didn't give
the fans many reasons to be a Luke FAN this season. But to pin any of the losses by
the Lakers on one player (or 3 players) just displays ignorance. The whole TEAM lost
that 24 point lead over the course of 2 and a half quarters.

I'll point out to you that in game 2 the Celtics gave up all but 2 points of a 24 point lead
over the course of 7 1/2 minutes of the fourth quarter! Seriously, with 7:54 left in the
game, the Celtics led 95-71, and with 38 seconds left, the score was 104-102. If Fish
doesn't foul Pierce with 22 seconds left, the Lakers could have gone down to the other
end of the court and won the game.

Yes, the Lakers didn't manage to finish the job, but the point is that the Celtics blew a
huge lead as well, and in a much shorter period of time. And note that it's not that Boston
put the bottom of the bench in. The Lakers made a 22 point comeback in 7 minutes
against Garnett, Pierce, Allen, Posey, and Rondo.

Does that make the Celtics "soft"? No. What it means is that a team got a huge lead
and started playing to try to protect a lead rather than continuing to attack aggressively
on offense.

So if you want to call teams soft, then yes both the Lakers and the Celtics were soft at
times. But to pin it on 1 or 2 or 3 players (especially players who weren't on the floor
when the alleged "softness" happened) is ludicrous.

One of he rumors on hoopshype is that Miami is looking for a backup center and might
pursue Kwame Brown.

I would find it totally amusing if the Heat made it back to the finals next season (and lost
to the Lakers of course) with Kwame Brown as their starting center. Then Kwame could do
a rap about Shaq.

Lakertom,

Wow, who put a burr in your saddle this morning? Heh. We must be getting closer to the era of The Beast as your dark side is coming through.

It's eerily similar, yep. However... this time we've got Kobe. And Melo, Wade and Lebronze all have much more experience. I agree that we need another shooter and at least one strong defender other than Kobe. Why Shane Battier (with his great college experience at Duke with the same coach as Team USA) wasn't included is beyond me. He can spot up shoot, he can defend. He played well last time. What more do you want?

I'm annoyed with the world changing the rules of OUR game. However, one part isn't as bad as it seems. The any zone defense allowed in the international game is the same as we have in college. The lame trapezoidal lane, changed 3 point line, no basket interference (once the ball hits the rim) and other impurities bug me big time too. How this could happen is beyond me. How'd we lose control of the rules at the international stage?

One thing that I think is a real issue is NBA star power. I think the officiating is better in the international game (Greece vs. Serbia notwithstanding) and as such Lebronze/Wade didn't know how to handle the fair instead of star treatment officiating in 06. Worth considering.

Interesting thought on the Shaq freestyle. I hadn't thought about the NBA/commish reaction. I think the NBA probably thinks rivalries between players help keep the NBA divisive and therefore competitive, fun, and profitable.

As for Al Gore, pre-2000 election defeat I don't know about him. After the defeat, he stuck to his beliefs and was one of the only public voices against a corrupt, fear-mongering administration. I can't imagine someone with that sort of righteous action (even if only from his own ethical perspective) being a bad leader, even of the NBA. Your comment was vague though so I don't really know how you meant it.

I like AB17 too. I hope your optimism is predictive.

Hey Ladies,

You Fakers are history, made history and now are trying to re-write history.

hahaahahh

Ya know why the C's won? Teamwork!

None of this "I (Kobeef) can get off at anytime".

The C's can get off at anytime, that's why we came back from 24 down (made history), blew you Fakers out by 40 (made you Fakers history) and destroyed this "Kobe is Jordan" crappy comparision (you all trying to re-write history).

You girls enjoy your bikering while I watch Game 4 and Game 6 again and again with a big-o-smilely.

"Anything's possible" K Garnett after HISTORIC 40-point beatdown of the Kobe and Gang Fakers.

Benjamin,
"was one of the only public voices against a corrupt, fear-mongering administration"

That's right, he has been pretty critical of the Clintons!

rdlee ,

“As much as I like your optimism, what evidence do you have that Andrew w/o Pau would handle the Celtics? We lost both games rather handily with Bynum w/o Gasol. Andrew was definitely coming on but we don't KNOW if he would have made all the difference vs. the Celtics. This is a young up and coming player, not a proven All-Star.”

Come on, rd. How can I have any evidence? It’s just my opinion based on how Drew was playing the month before he got injured. Truthfully, the two games I missed this year were the Celtics games where Drew apparently did not play well but both games were before Drew really started coming into his own. Unless we get some form of time machine to take Drew from this year back to last year, we will never know. That’s why Mike T. still believes we would have won if hadn’t traded Kwame.

As an aside, while Drew is not a proven All-Star, he was selected ahead of all but 16 current NBA players on Chris Mattix’s mock draft that is the subject of this thread. In fact, Drew was selected before Tracy McGrady, David West, Carlos Boozer, Brandon Roy, Manu Ginobli, Steve Nash, and Rick Hamilton – all of whom have been all-stars.

Again, it is just my opinion but Andrew Bynum is probably the #3 center in the league today behind Yao Ming and Dwight Howard. If you don’t believe that, then try and make a list of the centers who you think are better right now. I guarantee you the Lakers will not trade for any of the guys on your list. We are entering the Era of the Beast.

Tom

Lakertom's a nerd.

Big time nerd.

haahhaahhah

C's win! C's win!

I can't wait until next year when you all scratch your "big" azz and wonder why you can't beat the C's.

ahahhaaha

Oh Young Bynum is a joke. Let see what the kid can do before you NERDs annoint him as the best center in the league.

Pathetic.

Hey Lady (FakerTom)

The "media" is on board with Shaq cuz Kobeer was WRONG for ratting out a teammate.

Don't you non-fat, soybean latte Angelinos have any pride, kissing Kobeef's "big" azz like you do.

Kobe ratted out a teammate!

That's the worse offense in any profession.

LadyTom is a tattle-tale in real life. Ya one of those who reports to HR evertime someome makes a joke however innocent.

Pathetic!

LakerTom

The Era of the Beast.

I can't wail until October

You guys do know what the chant is going to be when when Kobe goes to a visiting arena.l

Kobe, tell me how my a@@ taste?

That line is kinda of funny.