Report Card: Pau Gasol
We've got a few more of these to go, lest you think we forgot ...
The Lakers were already a very good team (25-11) when Andrew Bynum went down with his season-ending knee injury, ironically enough against the Grizzlies during a game in which Pau Gasol had 21/18/8. Perhaps that was the image Mitch Kupchak had in his head when he swung the Feb. 1 deal that brought the scruffy Spaniard to L.A. Whatever it was, once Gasol was on board, the Lakers went from really good to damn near unbeatable, losing only four more regular-season games (in which Pau played more than three minutes) for the rest of the year. In contrast, when Gasol missed 10 games because of an ankle injury, the Lakers went 5-5. It's hard to imagine a situation in which a player could have more quickly and effectively integrated himself into a new cast, but Gasol and the Lakers were, like Jenny and Forrest Gump, peas and carrots. His passing out of the high post helped supercharge the Lakers attack, and at the same time the Lakers didn't lose any of the chemistry on the high screen and roll that Kobe Bryant and Bynum had developed over the first half of the year.
He averaged 18.8/7.8/3.5, on 59% from the floor, with 1.6 blocks a night in 27 regular-season games. If you're a fan of the fancier metrics, Gasol's true shooting percentage was almost 64%, his effective field goal percentage nearly 59%, assist percentage 17, and PER 24. All are above, at, or just off career highs. Gasol was the perfect complement to Bryant, and even better, his presence seemed to liberate Lamar Odom, who became a very, very bad man once Gasol was on board. All told, the Lakers went from a strong challenger in the Western Conference to the prohibitive favorite to reach the Finals. All while adding a solid personality and increasing the amount of media traffic next to Derek Fisher's locker (spots formerly occupied by Javaris Crittenton and Kwame Brown) by a factor of approximately seven gazillion.
This, to reiterate, was a very good trade.
In the playoffs, Gasol's overall numbers were still strong- 16.9/9.3/4.0, plus nearly two blocks a night. He had strong efforts in the Denver and Utah series, and though he struggled in the Conference Finals and against Boston for the Larry O, there were good moments as well. Against San Antonio, Gasol's scoring and rebounding, especially early in the series, were limited, but on the other hand, he did a very good job defensively against Tim Duncan. And don't forget, the Big Fundamental isn't exactly a slouch guarding the rack, either.
In the Finals, no question Gasol had difficulty enforcing his will, so to speak, but while he couldn't get it going with consistency against Kevin Garnett and the tight Boston D, he again played reasonably strong against Garnett on the other end. My point isn't that he dominated in the series, and certainly he was absolutely atrocious in Game 6, but some of the flak he received through the Finals was, in my estimation, unfair. Gasol would finish with double-doubles in four of the six games, and while there was a lack of consistency in his production, the same could be said for everyone else on the team. Nobody, from Gasol to LO to Kobe to the guys on the bench, was able to generate sustained success through against the Celtics.
That, and the fact that Boston was a better team, helps explain why the Lakers lost.
Playing out of his natural power forward slot eventually began to wear on Gasol as he was asked on a nightly basis to do some things he's not naturally inclined to do. But I was impressed with Gasol's willingness to try (even if unsuccessfully) to body up and get aggressive. It would have been nice to see it happen more often, but when challenged he usually responded, and even through the Boston and San Antonio series where he was quiet offensively, Gasol frequently logged important points and rebounds late, indicating he was working hard to the end.
Game 6 was a nightmare, but don't let it detract from the monumental impact his arrival had on the Lakers, nor the quality of his play on the floor. He's not a perfect player, but he's pretty damn good, and in this system, playing option B or even 1A on some nights, Gasol was able to thrive on a personal level while greasing the wheels for the guys around him.
GRADE: A-
BK
Troll...I mean Troy will beg to differ with your A- grade, BK.
Posted by: utzworld THE BANNER HOLDER | July 11, 2008 at 02:31 PM
Bynum isn't soft. Was Cap soft? Nope. He was thin, but not soft. Oh, and he's the 3rd all time shot blocker.
Posted by: "Pig" Miller | July 11, 2008 at 02:31 PM
Oscar,
Yes in deed. Paz Vega.
ding how in prattville,
Who does Sacha receives moneys from. Peoples republic of Beverly Hills. His Audi automobile car is nice with remote control. How is sushi in chinese fast food buffet? Is sweet in Sour Fiche is of Fish Sticks with Catsup and Lemon? You imitates peoples from country that limit liquid explosion result babies, or liqour store owners that eat kimchi? Or better yet from Borat town? High five.
Posted by: Charles | July 11, 2008 at 02:37 PM
Mike t is a moron.
Posted by: "Pig" Miller | July 11, 2008 at 02:39 PM
1) Whoever thinks the Suns will give the Lakers trouble next year should be arrested because they are obviously ingested some seriously dangerous hallucinogens.
2) Speaking of Gasol's, David Thorpe has Marc Gasol as the 4th best incoming rookie behind Oden, Beasley, and Rudy Fernandez.
3) It's summertime and the board has turned to rumors of Odom trades. Stunning really.
Posted by: giantsquid | July 11, 2008 at 02:41 PM
miket,
You amaze me. You have stated several times that you are not a Laker Fan that you just like to post and get a response. We all know you like the attention it gives you. You started with the Kwame is the Savior and is the Best Center in the league and now that that piece of garbage has been traded all you can come up with is Gasol is soft and Bynum sucks. That is the best you can do to get the attention you need?
You are one sorry human being Mike. Are you going to wish another injury on Bynum this year like last year?
Mike is there a lower life form than you on this planet earth? I doubt it.
I thought you weren't coming back to the blog you had better things to do? It's clear that whatever you were going to do it just didn't give you enough attention did it?
BD
Posted by: BD | July 11, 2008 at 02:55 PM
"If I'm correct (If I'm right again, as usual)"
Sorry, you think Kwame Brown is a good player, you've lost the "I am right" card for the next 10 years or Kwame gets on an all star team, whic ever comes first.
Posted by: HmrHed | July 11, 2008 at 03:01 PM
BUTLER has 2006 Big 10 Playa of The Year (won it despite Oden in the same conf) ALANDO TUCKA as the best rookie coming in this season.
Add DJ STRAWBERRY, (who can shut down both Jellybean Jr. and LeBrawn, like Paul Pierce did), ROBIN LOPEZ, TYRON LUE and you have an incredibly powerful SUNS team shaping up.
Ga-Shawl was a gift but he is a trojan horse - too soft to bang, too fluffy to control the paint. Atlanta and Cleveland both have tougher men in the paint than the lakers, hence their greater success vs. the Celtics.
No matter though - when SHACK gets through with both ga-shawl and byenumb, those dudes will think Kendrick Perkins and KG were little girls!
Posted by: BUTLER | July 11, 2008 at 03:08 PM
Pig,
That Lew Alcindor kid is pretty skinny, and has weak calves so I don't know if he'll make it.
And no way will his team ever win a title with him in the middle because his defensive philosophy is all wrong.
Posted by: Eric M. | July 11, 2008 at 03:09 PM
The only teams I see Lakers "gutting" it out with in the West are:
Trail Blazers - scary athletic team that beat us twice last year without Oden while we had Gasol .... with Bynum and Oden returning, the Blazers still have an edge.
Hornets - I don't like CP3, but he's a talented young point guard that makes their offense run, when they run those pick n'rolls, and Peja knocks down those 3s, they have beaten us.
Mavericks - judging from the last three games we played against Dallas, we should have beaten them by 10 points or more, but it was always so close. Lakers gotta find a way from prevent Dirk to unleash last minute 3 pointers, plus with Diop back, Dallas has a pretty good match up against the Lakers.
Houston - with Yao back, the Rockets will make a lot of noise, not as much as the Blazers, but the Lakeshow might struggle against the Rockets' defense. We didn't play really well against them last year.
Jazz - I like this young team, especially Deron Williams but I don't see them beating the Lakers too much, they match up well for the Lakers, and we should be able to beat them even more easily with Bynum's return.
Suns - while I don't think the Suns are ever going to win a championship, during the regular season, Amare, Shaq, and Nash are still going to win games and cause some kinda nose in the WC, but they are a done and "old" team. I see them maybe taking 1 game from the Lakers, but with Bynum returning, we should be able to defeat them easy peasy.
Spurs - agh, their alternating championship years might end, but then again, who knows, maybe they'll get lucky again and somehow end up in the finals ... I don't see it happening though ... like the Suns, they'll win maybe one or two from the Lakers, but they're pretty much "done." They'll still of course be "up" there in the regular season, most likely make the playoffs.
Denver - poses no threat to us.
Kings - we'll probably drop 1 game to them, cuz Artest loves playing against us and Kevin Martin is a good player and Brad Miller eats babies for fun.
Everybody else in the WC (GSW, Clips, Grizz, etc.) doesn't pose a threat to the Laker's chances for making it on top of the WC or to the finals. Of course that's only going to happen if nobody gets injured on the Lakers!
Predictions on how the WC will shake out hypothetically if nobody on the Lakers get injured:
1. Lakers * this is a toss up between the Lakers/Blazers
2. Blazers *
3. Hornets
4. Rockets
5. Jazz
6. Suns
7. Dallas
8. Spurs - the last three spots are a toss up, it could easily be any of those three duking it out.
Posted by: PeanutButterSpread | July 11, 2008 at 03:12 PM
Pau Gasol demonstrated why he's never been successful in the playoffs. He's weak of heart, mind, and body. He missed countless point blank shots, showed no interest in being rebounder, and did little to nothing to serve as the number 2 guy. Pau doesn't have the intangibles this Laker team needs. He doesn't have the certain something that makes Kobe look over and say, damn, I don't need to carry this team. I finally got a wingman.
Pau Gasol is the perfect example of fools gold; the idea that he should be better than he actually is. What makes it worse is that Pau is a good, yet uneffective player. That makes for the worse kind of frustration, because you look at his numbers and say, gee, his game reads well. But then you Tivo the game and you see countless times that he failed to be productive for the Lakers.
It looks like we're tied into this loser, contract-wise, so I guess there's no use in talking trade. But I stand vindicated when I contemplate the numerous times Pau was criticized by the media and even the Laker coaching staff, including Phil, who rightfully called Pau soft. No doubt about it; everyone knows Pau failed as the number 2 guy, but no one wants to mention it because we just got Pau and we're kind of tied to him. It's the epitome of the white elphant in the room that everyone seems to be trying to ignore. Pau sucks, and I didn't want him to. I wanted him to carry this team over the top. But...
I'm hoping after he fails side by side with Bynum, the Laker management can comfortably say good riddance to this project.
I know Pau is a supreme replacement for Kwame, and people remember this, and this is why those people still favor Pau. But that is no reason to disregard the horrible play he exhibited in the playoffs post Denver. You guys are naive if you think otherwise.
Pau is fools gold and this will play out in due time. Meanwhile, I suppose he'll keep fooling those of you out there who think his game has merits.
With much due respect, BK.
YOU.....ARE..... WRONG.
Final grade, D+.
Now, I shall go back into off-season hibernation...(I think)
Posted by: troy | July 11, 2008 at 03:16 PM
ALTERNATE ODOM FOR ARTEST TRADE…
Here is an interesting Odom for Artest trade option that still gets the Kings a chance to get rid of even more of their bad contract debt to the Lakers but also allows the Lakers to get rid of their long term contract with Luke.
Lakers trade:
-----Lamar Odom - $14.5M salary this year, contract expires this year.
-----Luke Walton - $4.4M salary this year, $22M more over 4 more years.
-----Chris Mihm - $2.5M salary this year, contract expires this year.
Kings trade:
-----Ron Artest - $8.5M salary this year, contract expires this year.
-----Brad Miller - $11.4M salary this year, $12.3M expiring contract next year.
Lakers Advantages:
-----We get Artest who adds toughness and defense and is cheaper than Odom.
-----We get Miller would be a better backup center than Mihm.
-----We don’t get Thomas or Abdur-Rahim, whom we would not want.
-----We get rid of Luke and his contract and reduce the glut at small forward.
-----We open up a roster spot for another player or future trade.
-----We get Bird rights to re-sign Artest to new contract.
-----Payroll for this year decreases by $1.5M – saving $3M in taxes.
-----Payroll overall decreases by $11.2M – saving $22.4M in taxes.
Laker Disadvantages:
-----Payroll for next year would increase by $7.5M – costing $15M in taxes.
-----They get Artest who might be a bad distraction this year.
-----Payroll for this year increases by $1.5M.
-----Payroll overall increases by $11.2M but spread over 5 years.
Kings Advantages:
-----They get Odom who is perfect for their run and gun game.
-----They get Artest who might be a bad distraction this year.
-----They can start Hawes and use Mihm to back him up. Miller was on way out anyway.
-----They get Luke Walton, who would be a valuable role player and glue guy.
-----Payroll for next year would decrease by $7.5M, helping their cap situation.
-----They get Bird rights to re-sign Odom to a new contract.
Kings Disadvantages:
-----Payroll for this year increases by $1.5M.
-----Payroll overall increases by $11.2M but spread over 5 years
Our Roster would be better balanced and look like this:
C: Bynum Miller Mbenga
PF: Gasol Garbo Turiaf
SF: Artest Ariza Radmanovic
SG: Bryant Vujacic Karl
PG: Fisher Farmar Sun
I still think that this is a good deal that benefits both teams. Anybody agree or disagree.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | July 11, 2008 at 03:22 PM
I have a friend who calls me in the morning and is perfectly rational, but once the mid-afternoon arrives, his phone calls and behavior become more and more unhinged. I'm not sure if the President of the Kwame Brown ManCrush Club is my friend or not, but he sure does remind me a lot of him.
Advice for Killing Trolls #764: The more sophisticated trolls will often lure you into their trap by making seemingly intelligent and well-though arguments, only to revert to their primary Modus Operandi once you've been lulled into complacency. Never forget the prime driving force behind any troll is to forment chaos and destruction within a cohesive unit - ignore them even more intensely when they're in their phony 'rational phase', and the troll will quickly revert to their more easily recognized 'crazy phase'.
Posted by: Tully Moxness | July 11, 2008 at 03:23 PM
Rocky,
Thanks for the props. Couldn't agree more with your comments. Drew will make Pau better much as Pau made Lamar better. Good dominoes.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | July 11, 2008 at 03:27 PM
Peanut Butter Spread,
Blazers are indeed scary but not yet proven on the road. They are young team composed of NCAA stars who are not approaching their sophomore years in NBA. I still say Spurs, Mavericks, Hornets, Suns and Jazz. If Yao Ming can play, include also the 21 consecutive games winner, Rockets. In order to jell in NBA, you have to prove two things during the season, all your players are intact w/o any injury, can dominate at home and dominate on the road. Once you pass that test, you are seeded in the playoffs, this time you can beat the best teams in the West on 7 games and finally the Finals. Coach Nate McMillan, has he ever competed in the Finals all his NBA life? Lastly, Oden....first, he was injured for one year; second, he hasn't played a single NBA game; third, there are so many 7 footers in NBA more physical than what he faced in NCAA tournament. So by January, we will know if Blazers are real or Blazers are young team for another lottery year.
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | July 11, 2008 at 03:28 PM
"Ga-Shawl was a gift but he is a trojan horse - too soft to bang, too fluffy to control the paint....
...but embarrased SHACK on his first game with us by going 13-19 for 29 points. I'm scrrred!"
Posted by: utzworld THE BANNER HOLDER | July 11, 2008 at 03:30 PM
Laker Tom -
I am truly impressed with how you articulate your thoughts. Thank you so much for sharing!
:-)
Posted by: Caliphilosopher | July 11, 2008 at 03:31 PM
Edwin,
Drew doesn’t need to check with the Lakers doctors. The Loose Cannons are just what they say they are. Drew got a complete go from his doctor who last operated on him and is probably on his way to Atlanta to work with his personal trainer right now. Like Mitch said, the injury will not prevent a contract from being signed. The Lakers will get a great look at Drew in camp and exhibition games to make sure he is fine before inking the big extension.
Tom
Posted by: LakerTom | July 11, 2008 at 03:32 PM
Don't be swayed with Mike T. intriguing comments. That is his style like to describe a spanish marshmallow and Bynum as the thief who shipped the sacred calves. As time goes by, we learned to read between the lines, dilineate things that are garbage and pick up some good points. He usually connect after some time of deep analysis. Good thing, there is no more J. Journal to read with one conclusion: Kwame is great and Jackson is a bastard. Haha!
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | July 11, 2008 at 03:35 PM
Mike t is a moron.
Posted by: "Pig" Miller | July 11, 2008 at 02:39 PM
_________________________________________
LOL!
I don't think Mike T. is a moron. I just think he has ADD problem, he just can't pay close attention to reality, instead he focus on his stupidity.
Posted by: GameFaceON | July 11, 2008 at 03:44 PM
LakerTom,
I'm not sure how the Kings feel about Miller, so it's a little hard for me to say.
Because Luke had such a bad season and may have overperformed the season before, I think the Kings have to give up on Miller before they can make the trade.
That line-up is wonderful for us. I'd only think about the trade to make sure my excitement at what I thought I was seeing was legitimate.
Posted by: Benjamin | July 11, 2008 at 03:47 PM
Only a guy that hates White players like Mike T could conclude that the Jazz are soft.
Are you kidding me?
Posted by: Benjamin | July 11, 2008 at 03:48 PM
"With much due respect, BK.
YOU.....ARE..... WRONG.
Final grade, D+."
Yep...I knew it!
Posted by: utzworld THE BANNER HOLDER | July 11, 2008 at 03:49 PM
troy,
>>>Pau Gasol demonstrated why he's never been
>>>successful in the playoffs. He's weak of heart, mind,
>>>and body. He missed countless point blank shots,
>>>showed no interest in being rebounder, and did little
>>>to nothing to serve as the number 2 guy.
Maybe you should have actually watched this years' finals
instead of replays of old Memphis first round losses.
Pau shot 53% from the floor against Boston (as compared to
Kevin Garnett's 49%, for instance) and got 10.2 rebounds
per game (second only to Garnett in that category.
Yes, he did get pushed around a bit both on offense and
defense. And in the games where Kendrick Perkins, the
Celtics big banger was out, Odom and Gasol were doing more
pushing around than getting pushed. With Bynum back,
it'll even the scales (both figuratively and literally).
Posted by: Long Time Laker Fan | July 11, 2008 at 04:00 PM
Laker fans say Pau Gasol is weak
During the Finals, sportwriters dumped Pau, he was overpowered and soft.
It is not Pau Gasol, all Lakers are soft including the torn pinky of Kobe.
I say THANK YOU Pau Gasol, if you did not join the Lakers, Lakers will not be a playoff contender and would not beat the Jazz and the Spurs and possibly, we would be with the Suns for the 7th game of the first round playoff berth.
Pau Gasol was the anchor man of Kobe and Pau's presence improved LO's driving to the hoop and won a lot of road games which surely lost them if Kwame was still in the line up. Viva Pau, Viva Catalan but Horray for USA in the Olympics!
Finally, without you Pau Gasol Kobe will opt out his Laker contract at the end of '09 season.
When Pau Gasol learns the tricks of hook shots, pivot moves from the great one, Kareem....move over, Showtime is back with Kobe, Drew & Pau... I will reserve the last one, will it be Artest or Odom?
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | July 11, 2008 at 04:04 PM
Kwame recently tried out with the Bucks for the 3rd string backup to Gadzuric. Enough said.
MH
Posted by: michael h | July 11, 2008 at 04:08 PM
Oh yeah,
I totally forgot about Miller's drug suspension.
If they trade for Odom, they have to get rid of Miller too. They don't want those guys getting high before games together, not that there's any proof either one is currently getting high while games are played.
Posted by: Benjamin | July 11, 2008 at 04:09 PM
Laker Tom,
I love that trade. I am unable to comment on the numbers, whether or not it works or not is doable or whatever. Hell I don't even care! Cuzt anybody who takes the time that you did to figure that all out, must know WTF he's talking about, so I give you your props!!
Posted by: lakersrydeordie | July 11, 2008 at 04:10 PM
troy,
giving Pau a D+ is just completely unreasonable and probably the most incompetent assessment a person can make about a player's impact on a team.
Pau's play made the Lakers a championship contending team. You can't give players who help a team to the top of a conference a D+. Especially a player like Pau whose arrival made the Lakers #1 in their division and #1 in WC for the first time since 2004. I don't care if you say he's soft or if he disappeared in the playoffs (which he didn't), but the grades are given on overall impact of a player on a team and Pau's impact on the Lakers WAS BIG.
Edwin,
True, but even the Jazz, who were great at home and lost some key road games, did pretty well in the playoffs and had a pretty good record. To me, the Blazers played well against the Lakers last year. So the Lakers have to be very wary of them and not treat them or any team lightly.
I agree about the Spurs, Rockets, Mavericks, Hornets, Suns and Jazz being playoff contenders. But I really do see the Blazers in that mix as well. Maybe OKC, Denver, and Kings might make some noise but yeah, those are my "to look for" next season teams.
Posted by: PeanutButterSpread | July 11, 2008 at 04:12 PM
LakerTom,
Lakers trade:
-----Lamar Odom
-----Luke Walton
-----Chris Mihm
Kings trade:
-----Ron Artest
-----Brad Miller
----------------
While I like this trade in theory, I doubt the Kings would buy
into it. If you're trying to dump salary, you don't take a big
contract (like Luke's) back. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, there's
more money remaining on Luke's contract than on
Miller's.
And what's more, Miller is the Kings starting center, their
4th leading scorer, and plays the 3rd most minutes on the
team. So he's actually EARNING the 11 million he's being
paid, as opposed to Thomas and Abdur-Rahim who have
been too injured (Abdur-Rahim) or ineffective (Thomas)
to get into the rotation. Thus, trading Thomas or Abdur-Rahim
would be considered a salary dump. Trading Miller would
be considered trading a quality player. If you really want
that deal to work, you'd have to make it something like
Odom + Mihm + Ariza + Farmar for Artest + Miller, but
that would be much more damaging as you'd be trading
off two of the core players (Odom & Farmar) that took the Lakers
to the finals last season, as well as a player the Lakers have
future hopes for (Ariza).
Much as I know a lot of people here hate Luke and would
love to dump him off at any opportunity, you've got to consider
that if you think he's not worth his money, then the GMs for
opposing teams probably think the same thing.
Here's my advice if you want to make a trade involving Luke.
First match up the salaries. Then check the PER's of the
player or players coming back vs Luke's PER.
For example:
Lamar's 2008 PER - 16.94
Luke's 2008 PER - 12.37
Chris Mihm's 2008 PER - 7.73
Brad Miller's 2008 PER - 16.82
Ron Artest's 2008 PER - 18.89
Kenny Thomas' 2008 PER - 2.59
Shareef Abdur-Rahim's 2008 PER - 5.48
So for a player like Mihm, who's just an expiring contract
in the deal, you can ignore his low PER. But if the team
is expected to take on Luke Walton for 5 more years, why
would they give up a much more productive player?
Thomas for Walton? maybe
Abdur-Rahim for Walton? maybe
Miller for Walton? no
Posted by: Long Time Laker Fan | July 11, 2008 at 04:18 PM
I still say, give Lamar a chance before trading for Artest. I want to see the lineup of Lamar, Drew, Pau and Kobe on the floor. Until then, NO MORE TRADE RUMORS PLEASE.
Posted by: PeanutButterSpread | July 11, 2008 at 04:26 PM
Benjamin ,
What's wrong with you? Don't you know Jerry Sloan is a total Teddy Bear!
Posted by: Charles | July 11, 2008 at 04:29 PM
Re: Jerry West
It's odd that there isn't a blog reaction (not a peep) to Jerry's comments about Bynum and Gasol playing together.
Posted by: giantsquid | July 11, 2008 at 04:35 PM
LakerTom,
You do not have the benefit of listening to Steve Hartman, Vic daBrick and Mychal Thmpson out there in Bay Area. However, try to download here the top 10 winners and losers of Steve Hartman when he said that the LAKER DOCTORS HAVE NOT CLEARED BYNUM TO PLAY. HE IS NOT EVEN CLEARED TO RUN. It means his clearing of spurs on his knee is not yet completely healed, that's the participation of Lakers doctors there, they provide the clearance. All the while, I thought these doctors are linked to his diagnosis, analysis and rehab period of Drew, now it appear that there are two sets of doctors, Drew's doctors and Lakers doctors. I never imagined that this injury would turn into so many twists and complications. When Big Game James had a injury, they put a pin on his foot, it was not celebrated, as complicated and as sensationalized as this. Please listen to the podcast of the Loose Cannons today, here is the website:
http://allaccess.am570radio.com/loosecannons
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | July 11, 2008 at 04:38 PM
Jerry Buss will not love any increase in the payroll. lol The reason they are moving Odom is to avoid the 14M. If there will be an increase of payroll as a result of Artest acquisition, Jerry Buss will nix it from the bud. You are again targetting the 90M mark.
Better offers:
Odom = Artest + 2 second rd draft picks '09 & '10 + cash
or
Odom = Artest + 1st rd draft pick '09 + cash
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | July 11, 2008 at 04:46 PM
Aloha long Time
Great points on Pau, I might add that Duncan a 50% shooter for the season shot only 42% against Pau.
I would just like to know who these Pau critics think they could get? Duncan and KG are both 1st ballot hall of famers that arent going anywhere. How many Power Forwards out there could have even played center? I mean Carlos Boozer? Pau destroyed him in the playoffs. David West? To small. Who do they want? Amazing.
MH
Posted by: michael h | July 11, 2008 at 04:47 PM
giantsquid,
I was quietly concerned about that statement that was shown on Fox Sports net with Jerry West on the mic.
But then again some of his thoughts on Drew Gooden as a versatile guy that can play the SF, PF and Center position may have been a bit of a stretch.
In my opinion, AB and PG offensively will be ok. It depends on the defensively philosophy of the Coaching Stuff in utility of the Trees.
Posted by: Charles | July 11, 2008 at 04:55 PM
Wow....ONLY 4 losses with him playing his share of minutes???
I'll take that SOFT anyday!!!
I can't wait until next year. We are going to make these other elite teams QUESTION their abilities.
I can already see DUNCAN with arms out and his head sideways looking for pity from the refs.
You need to ask the LAKERS for pity Timmy.
Lakers = TEAM OF THE 2000's!!!
janaya
Posted by: janaya | July 11, 2008 at 04:58 PM
Getting ready to watch the summer league game. Even though I'm pretty sure no one (maybe one) from the team will actually make the Lakers. It will just feel good to watch some "Laker" basketball. I'm telling you. James White is a beast.
Lamar = Laker for Life
GO LAKERS
Posted by: mrbarneydangles | July 11, 2008 at 04:58 PM
I hate this period of the season.
"The Blogmunity Season of 12,000 Crazy Trade Scenarios."
Urgh.
GO LAKERS!
Posted by: Jon K. | July 11, 2008 at 05:05 PM
giantsquid,
>>>It's odd that there isn't a blog reaction (not a peep) to
>>>Jerry's comments about Bynum and Gasol playing
>>>together.
excellent point.
I consider Jerry West a much better judge of talent than some
other people (say Rick Fox for example), so it concerns me a little
that he thinks that Bynum & Gasol won't work well together.
We know that Odom & Bynum work well together. Maybe
we should be talking about trading Gasol for Artest instead
of Odom.
(...he said, lighting the fuse on the powder keg)
Posted by: Long Time Laker Fan | July 11, 2008 at 05:07 PM
Lakers vs Detroit Summer League
is on NBA TV
Directv 601
Posted by: Fatty | July 11, 2008 at 05:14 PM
Lakers vs. Piston
Summer Pro league being played at this time on NBA Channel
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | July 11, 2008 at 05:15 PM
Long Time Laker Fan
I agree with you trading Gasol for Artest (and other parts of course) would make more sense if we're really interested in defense and toughness.
Posted by: giantsquid | July 11, 2008 at 05:21 PM
Look at the picture of Gasol at the top of this post. Nobody questions that he just dunked the ball. Now replace Gasol with Kwame Brown, and leave everything else the same. Everybody who sees it is thinking "I can't believe he dropped another pass right underneath the basket!!" Now ask yourself, who is soft?
Posted by: exhelodrvr | July 11, 2008 at 05:38 PM
Long time Laker Fan,
You proved my point about Pau being Fools Gold. As I said, he's a good player who's uneffective, and this confuses everyone but the most intuitive, analytical fans.
As I mentioned during the playoffs, I'm not a cheerleader fan. I'm an analytical fan. Some confuse this for being a troll. However, a troll's main purpose is to annoy. My main purpose is to study.
The reason why Boston and Miami won was that they had older, EFFECTIVE players. Not necessary good players, but effective. To win championships, you need EFFECTIVE players.
Look at the Blazer and Kings teams of the late 90's. Look at the Suns as of recent, or the Mavs 2 years ago. These are all example of good teams that didn't have EFFECTIVE players.
Here's another example of what I'm saying. Consider Smush Parker.
Smush was actually a pretty good player when you think about it. He had a decent perimeter game, he could drive well, usually finish well, and he ran the offense. However, he wasn't an EFFECTIVE player. Now, you can blame Phil for not using him correctly (same for Pau), or you can blame the player for not making the necessary adjustments (again, same for Pau). Bottom line, neither Smush nor Pau helped the Lakers win when they needed contribution.
In order for the Lakers to win another championship, we need EFFECTIVE players, like Ron Harper and Rick Fox use to be for us. Like James Posey was for Celts. Right now, we have a lot of GOOD players (like Pau), but no effective players.
Posted by: troy | July 11, 2008 at 05:50 PM
1stQ Piston 20 vs. Lakers 15
Leading scorers: Rodney Stuckey for Detroit and Coby Karl for the Lakers. Joe Crawford has not shown any flair, he's another short-shortie with T/O's so far. IMO Coby Karl is better than Luke Walton, at par with Farmar.
Posted by: Edwin Gueco | July 11, 2008 at 05:52 PM
Peanut Butter,
I would give Pau a B- for the regular season, and an F for the playoffs (the REAL season).
That averages out to a D+.
Look , I don't care what you do in the regular season. If you can't perform in the championships, you are deemed ineffective and useless.
Posted by: troy | July 11, 2008 at 05:53 PM
If only the Palms' Brothers will make the deal...
Artest is a rare talent - that being a player with abilities that most closely match the cross-roads of the competitor's compass.
Okay, I'm not crazy (yet...) Let me explain.
North-South-East-West, right? Two continuums, set at right angles to one another. For basketball, think of strength vs speed, and skill-set vs mind-set. Height or length are not included - these are independant variables that don't change and that everyone can agree on in every circumstance (excepting VERY young players that continue to grow during the season, like H.S. level).
Still sounds crazy...examples are in order.
Shaq occupies one extreme - strength. His teammate - Barbosa - is at the other extreme, speed. Neither of them have great balance on the other axis - Shaq has a weak skill-set, Barbosa a lesser mind-set, so while both are "good," neither by himself is a game-breaker, and each must now be considered "complimentary."
Now, considering the two principal talents that may or may not be exchanged for one another:
Lamar Odom is very well balanced between strength and speed - almost ideally so for a basketball player. But on the other side of the continuum, Lamar is heavily weighted toward skill-set. He has tremendous basketball skills, but lacks the mental approach that enables him to impose his will against determined opposition. Now, for arguments' sake, imagine a player on the opposite extreme - a determined mind-set, but lesser skills, and names like Ruben Patterson and Clarence Weatherspoon come to mind - dudes that will take it to the hole repeatedly, and get their shots blocked again and again, but who refuse to learn from it and keep trying the same things. Imagine if Lamar attacked the rim with Ruben Patterson's mind-set - he would average 40pts a game and be MVP every year. But that's not him, and that's not his fault.
Artest is also extremely well balanced between strength and speed. What seperates him from Lamar is that, crazy as it sounds when talking about a crazy man, Artest has much better balance between his skill-set and his mind-set. Lamar represents a "problem" for his opponents to "figure out." Once they do this - assuming they have the physical ability - they can take him out of his game.
Artest is different: if you're faster than me, I'm stronger than you; if you're stronger than me, I'm faster than you, and (this is the key point!) THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT.
Now, I'm not saying that Artest is a transcendant player - one that can simultaneously occupy the extreme on all four measures at the same time - there has only been a few of those in recorded history.
But Artest is, at present, the closest thing to a perfect balance of the four opposing spectra since Charles Barkley.
While I'm blathering about this...Just like you can combine north and west, and call it northwest...
If you overweight speed with skill-set, you get FINESSE.
If you overweight strength with mind-set, you get POWER.
And if you have decent speed and strength, but no skill-set or mind-set whatsoever, you get KWAME BROWN.
Respectfully,
HIGH CHEESE
Posted by: HIGH CHEESE | July 11, 2008 at 05:53 PM
Vlad and Gasol for Miller, Artest and a 2nd round draft choice
(note: I personally don't think any trade, including this one, that isn't an outright gift should be made. geez, the Lakers went to game 6 of the NBA championship without Bynum, probably their 2nd best player, or Ariza, a key reserve. All this trade talk is crazy. The team has great chemistry now and will probably be the favorite to win the championship this coming season. Why take a chance on making a trade that could blow up in our faces (and don't tell me that is improbable if Artest is part of the deal).
Posted by: giantsquid | July 11, 2008 at 05:56 PM