The forecast: First place

AK,

Other than disagreeing with how many games the Lakers will win (Mamba, fire up that 65-Win Bandwagon, will you? No way we win fewer games than last year), the ESPN consensus looked pretty reasonable as for relative standings. I do think the Lakers will open up more separation from Houston and New Orleans by winning at least 60 games and hopefully 65. After the Lakers, it will be another dog fight for everybody else in the West. I have to say I agree with the consensus that these will be the 8 teams and their order.

01) Lakers
02) Hornets
03) Rockets
04) Jazz
05) Spurs
06) Suns
07) Mavs
08) Trailblazers

By the way, great job on the video but I also missed it because it wasn’t on its own thread.

Tom

The Trees will come!

Don't care about wins personally...

But I do care about placement and the playoffs.

GO Lakers!

Xodus,

you wrote: It's not that the Celtics played defense and we didn't. Both teams played defense as evidenced by the fact that through 5 games the Celtics were averaging 96.4 ppg on 42% shooting (down from 100 on 47% in the regular season).

The Celtics played some of the best defense the NBA has ever seen and we underrated most of the season. Most people don't realize that they were third all-time since 1970 in defensive efficiency and the ONLY non-Bulls team to have a point differential over 10 points per game.

It's not that they played defense and we didn't. It's that we ran into one of the great regular season teams. Thankfully, the Lakers will be improved next season with Bynum and Ariza and the Celtics likely won't be as good.

my response: The celtics play the majority of their games
against East Coast teams. Last year, it was the
general consensus that the east was far weaker than
the west in general. So ... we held the Celtics to 5%
less then they generated against a weaker conference.

If that is *your* definition of defense ... Ok. It's not mine.

Here's the flip side. The Lakers play in the west. The
general consensus is that the west is much better.
The Celtics knocked 15% off of our score.

Let's not make excuses about the Celtics being one of
the best defensive teams ever. It does *NOT* make a
difference. We got physically and emotionally abused,
on international TV, by a physical aggressive defense.
Failure to understand what happened will lead to the
same result. "Defense wins championships!" They
knew it. They played it. If that is the type of defense we
need in order to win the next 5 years straight, then by
all that is HOLY ... PLAY DEFENSE!

If I have to put my foot in your chest to win then you're
giving Nike free advertisement, because I'm going to put
my foot in your chest or die trying! That is the attitude that
the Celtics had and they won. The Lakers need that
type of attitude to win. Let's stop sugar coating things
and "call a spade a spade."

If the key players can stay healthy, a return trip to the Finals by itself will not be satisfactory. Only a trophy restoring the Lakers to the NBA Championship will satisfy.

Too much pressure on Bynum? Not if he wants and gets that maximum extension. Can Pau Gasol settle for only a a Western Conference title and a silver medal? I sure hope not. Is Lamar Odom going to be more than an expiring contract? Etc. Etc. No need to go through the whole roster. Every player in the rotation has a reason to play Championship calibre ball.

Notice I didn't mention Kobe. No reason to. He'll play to the highest level he can throughout the season and post season.

And how about Phil? That elusive Red-topping ring still has to be the holy grail.

Yes, this 2008-2009 Laker Team must achieve a Redeem Team level of commitment and has all the right reasons to do so. Go Lakers! We fans love a parade.

I am not willing to accept that the Clippers are the Spinal Tap of the Western Conference. (Though I appreciate the analogy, AK.)

I am also not willing to accept a healthy Lakers only winning 55 games next season. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope.

60+ win guaranteed.

Go Clippers!

GO LAKERS!

From Amare:

"I love Terry Porter," Stoudemire says to the camera. "His method. His way of coaching is going to be great for us. You know, he's extremely focused on the defensive end, something that we haven't practiced at all in the previous three years, and now we're definitely practicing and improving on the defensive end."

The Suns are going to be a different team. And with Shaq clogging the middle, that's going to work in their favor. As for offense, the pic' 'n roll with Nash and Amare is going to be lethal. If Shaq sets a high pic' for Nash, wow! Nash would then penetrate and who knows what Amare is going to be able to do with a big guarding Nash after the Shaq pic'.

The Suns are going to be a very very good team.

mike t.

ESPN's prediction basically has the top teams winning fewer games than last year, and the bottom teams winning more games than last year.

Therefore, what they're saying is the bottom teams from last year (Grizzlies, OKC, Clips etc.) are closing the gap?
And the Lakers(Return of Bynum), Hornets(CP3 will get even better), Jazz(D-Will is a stud) win LESS games than last year?

Don't think so...

I would say either 59-23 or 62-20 and top seed in western conference.

Again here's what I would forecast on the West will be all said and done:

1) Los Angeles Lakers
2) New Orleans Hornets
3) Houston Rockets
4) San Antonio Spurs
5) Utah Jazz
6) Phoenix Suns
7) Portland Trailblazers (Stoudewhiner will give Portland trouble)
8) Dallas Mavericks

1st Round
Los Angeles over Dallas 4-1
New Orleans over Portland 4-2
Phoenix Suns over Houston Rockets 4-2
San Antonio over Utah Jazz 4-3

2nd Round
Los Angeles over San Antonio 4-2
New Orleans over Phoenix 4-1

Western Conference Finals:

Los Angeles over New Orleans 4-2

NBA Finals

Los Angeles vs Boston though Detroit, Orlando, and Philadelphia are possible opponents. Dark horse is Cleveland.

-blitz

A random thought though, when PJ retires in the future, I'm hoping Adelman could come and coach.

Charles,

not to defend Mike T. since he really does wish to see the Lakers lose and other teams to beat us because of Kwa-may Brown (I guess that post in the AZ blog was him after all), but simply by posting that doesn't mean what you said though I know what you meant. Shame though Mike T. does bring good points from time to time but I guess he just wants us to fail, I guess it's fair now to lump him with Passionate Faker Fan.

Repost and Reply

Jon K - Laker Tom,

Thanks for your reply.

"There is trouble in the forest
And the creatures all have fled
As the maples scream 'Oppression!'
And the oaks just shake their heads"

Posted by: Charles | August 29, 2008 at 03:46 PM

Charles,

where did you find that quote? Kinda cool in a dark way...

Posted by: humanomaly | August 29, 2008 at 03:56 PM

humanomaly,

They are lyrics from the group "Rush" from their song "The Trees."

Regards,

No forecast but we expect HEART, we're interested of the parade ONLY. A laker team never aims for #2 and justify in the blog that Mr. So& So is injured, that we're almost there but missed the parade by just two games. No such thing with the team that has the winning tradition. If they are not aiming for the parade, then they don't have the right to wear purple and gold.

Laker Tom/Greek Dude,

Thanks for the nice words about the video. Glad you enjoyed them. We're going to try to do them more often, but it required scheduling with techie folk from the Times, meaning there could be occasional conflicts.

AK

Well I think it's bit more realistic? Is it too low or too high you think Greek dude? If either one, what is your prediction? The Lakers will improve over 57 games (remember we had a bit of a losing streak between Drew going down and the Pau trade). Will we lose some games? Yes of course, even the 72-10 bulls lost 10 games lol. But I think 62 is a very good number to aim for, dunno after 65+ wins though, even with such a talented squad.

That was the regular season record btw Greek Dude.

Lakers will go 81-1 this year, losing one game to the Raptors when Kobe is suspended for a game for an "unnatural movement" in the previous game. The fine will later be rescinded when the league realized that the "unnatural movement" was really a 360 dunk.

I've got us at 67 wins next season. I think it's going to be fun times next year.

Charles,

You don't remember his rants after Kwame got traded?

Statements like I have never been a Laker Fan just like to post and get a reaction. This has something to do about getting attention. Viola....Kwame's calves are God's Gift to Mankind. Stuff like that.

But the true colors of MikeT showed up when he was wishing everyday on the blog for Bynum to get hurt.

How pathetic is that?

At 1 point before Kwame got hurt before AB went down he even wanted Kwame to get hurt just to prove his point that Kwame down low is the key to the Lakers because of his great defense. I am not kidding you..
Then Kwame went out and was so pissed that AB was doing so good for 2 weeks he came on here stating he wished AB would get injured. And he did. Then 1st week of Andrew getting injured MikeT couldn't shut up..
He was so proud of himself and then get this... he even thought he had something to do with the injury to Bynum.

Is that wacked or what?

Talk about a strange dude.

Anyway take care Charles and have a great weekend!

BD

BD,

No one has tangled as many times as I have with Mike who is a hopeless case but the funniest day on the blog had to be the day that he claimed his 60-Win Bandwagon trumped the 55-Win Bandwagon and every other bandwagon with lower numbers than 60. Mike claimed he would win over everybody if the Lakers won 60 or less games. It was just the most hilarious series of posts ever on the blog. When AK and BK put together the best of the blog, Mike’s 1-man 60-Win Bandwagon had to take the day. It was proof positive that Mike was not the sharpest tool in the shed despite whatever he thinks.

Tom

LakerTom,

I know I'm starting to sound like you here (lol), but I think we've got a chance to be one of the best teams ever next season. We're absolutely loaded right, health permitting. I think it's going to be really fun.

Rocky,

"Shaq is an idiot. Deep down, he wishes he were still a Laker."

True. He does wish he was still a Laker and the Lakers were "his" team. Watch. Our success next year will grate on him. It will drive him nuts. Watch for him to engage in increasingly bizarre behavior as we take control of the Western Conference.

GO LAKERS!

Charles,

"Michael C. Teniente

Are you no longer a Laker fan?"

I'm still a fan but you have to analyze the other teams to determine where the Lakers stand.

I think that the Shaq/Amare frontline can deal with the Bynum/Gasol line.

You have to realize that all those points Bynum was scoring last year, 13 pts. were based on broken defensive plays by the teams the Lakers were playing. Then in the 2nd half those team made adjustments to slow Bynum down. This happened time after time after time. And then when a true defensive team came along Bynum was stopped altogether. Only the Celtics and Spurs actually stopped the Lakers when Bynum was still healthy.

Now the Suns, it seems to me, are going to come with a whole different approach next season. That approach we aren't going to be able to evaluate until we see how well their defensive philosophy works. But if it's anything near what Boston did this past season with the likes of Perkins in the middle...that spells trouble for the Lakers.

There is something you need to keep you eyes on with the Lakers next season. When the season starts check out the Lakers philosophy of ball. If they play with a defensive philosophy and it works...they could be very dangerous. But if they play a defensive philosophy and the stuggle then there's trouble. They would have trouble with a defensive philosophy because their middle won't, in theory, be able to handle the pressure that is coming to the lane.

Now if the Lakers go with a defensive philosophy and struggle for the reasons I just mentioned, then this is what you want to watch for: The Lakers will all of sudden abandon their defensive philosophy and go back to trying to "outscore" teams. If you see that then you know the Lakers aren't going to win it all because that type of ball won't win a championship this season.

So, in summary:
1. Lakers start out with a defensive philosophy.
2. If they struggle with that type of play then they switch back to what they did this past season.

You know the results if that happens.

Again, I evaluate the other teams to determine how well the Lakers will do. NO WAY IN HELL DO THE LAKERS GET OUT OF THE WC IF GASOL IS THEIR STARTING CENTER.

And if Bynum can't hold the middle for THE WHOLE SEASON save your money and bet against the Lakers in the WCF or Finals. They get that far because they can score.

Teams who I think can beat the Lakers next season. Boston, Detroit and, if they play defense, Phoenix. Any solid defensive team who can score decently will beat the Lakers if Bynum can't hold the middle for the whole season.

Charles, I hope that answers your question about me being a Lakers fan. Being a fan doesn't mean to stand by when they do dumb things and say: GO LAKERS!

Being a fan, a basketball fan in general, is about looking at the other teams as well and seeing what they're doing and how that matches against the Lakers personal and philosophy.

mike t.

I really do think this team can be one of the best of all time. I don't re-call any other team in NBA history that's had two extremely talented centers to go along with the best player in the game, not to mention a VERY talented 4th option in Odom. There is so much potential to this team, its absolutely ridiculous. As long as everyone can get along (which I think they will) this team should easily win at least 65 wins and "cruise" to the NBA Finals. What happens there, I don't know, but we should win.

All in all, this is about excited as a Laker fan can be going in to a season.

Lamar = Laker for Life

GO LAKERS

Charles,

I posted on the Grizzles blog and that's it. I wanted Kwame to get a job.

No Pistons, no Suns posts.

mike t.

ENOUGH!!!!

The Lakers will kill the Suns.

*Shaq has lost his athleticism and he's too slow these days.

*Nash cannot deal with Fisher's strength.

*Gasol is a better basketball player, and he's stronger than Amare. Yes, stronger.

*Raja "Taco" Bell?? Please.

*Terry Porter was a good player and will be a good coach, but we're talking about Phil Jackson here.

Yes, the Lakers can!

This Laker team is no gimmick.