I imagine some laker fans are mortified at the predictions - now we know the lakers won't make it to the Finals!

ESPN has put the hex on LA by doing this. The lakers now have to reverse a trend going back years. I can't remember the last time ESPN picked the winner correctly.

Agreed, Pau did NOT get enough credit for the excellent defense he played throughout all the series of the 2008 playoffs. We were never beaten by the other team's PF or C, even though we faced Boozer, Camby, TD and KG.

Sometimes underrated is good though. Let other teams think he's the soft spot, then we CRUSH them when they try and beat Pau.

"I imagine some laker fans are mortified at the predictions "

I'm mortified that Shaq is playing two more years.

JustaLakerFan,

I don't want to get into yours and AK's argument, but I want to say this. If we were depending on the likes of Mbenga and Newble to swing the Finals in our favor think about how deep into the doo doo we must have been.

Mbenga and Newble! lol

I don't think these predictions come early enough. I say they should do predictions now for the 09-10 season. If anyone manages to get it right then I'll be impressed.

Seriously though, this kind of stuff is just filler. I've harped on this before but sports journalism really has just become a game of "who" can be right about "what" earlier than anyone else.

Last year, nobody knew that Farmar and Bynum would come out of the off-season so much better than they were the previous season. So let's see who really stepped up their work this off-season and comes into camp a level above where they were before. And let's pray everyone stays healthy.

With Camp only a few days away why are so many Laker Fans excited?

The Beast is back along with his buddy Monkey King.

DON'T MISS IT!

BD

"Agreed, Pau did NOT get enough credit for the excellent defense he played throughout all the series of the 2008 playoffs. We were never beaten by the other team's PF or C, even though we faced Boozer, Camby, TD and KG."

Me and Xodus has been saying that all the time hehe.

Heath was a decent player at SDSU (watched a bunch of their games while he was there) but I will be very surprised if he gets a contract this year. He's just not an NBA-quality player. (Unless he has improved a lot the past two years.)

THE LAKERS ARE FAVORED FOR ONE REASON…

A Bigger and Better Andrew Bynum! Make no mistake, Drew is what separates the Lakers from the rest of the NBA, makes them the pre-season favorites to win the NBA championship, and inspires Lakers fans to dream of domination and dynasties stretching into the future.

Sure it would be great if Kobe’s pinky is fine, Pau works out at power forward, Lamar stars at small forward, Ariza morphs into a shutdown defender, Fish has a career year, Jordan jumps his game to the next level, Luke comes back strong, and Sun Yue really is the Monkey King.

But the single make-or-break live-or-die key to next year and the Lakers future dynasties is Andrew Bynum, who at 20 years old has the physical and mental tools to become the dominant center in the NBA in the next year or two while leading the Lakers to NBA championships.

The Lakers showed last year just how good a team they were without Andrew, coming within two wins of the NBA championship. For the first time since the Pau Gasol trade, the Lakers will be able to send their real team out of the court. I for one expect them to be dominant.

If anything, the sports media and even some fans on the blog underestimate the huge impact and synergetic domino effect that Drew’s return will have on this team, both physically as well as mentally. Drew will have other teams fans decrying their teams’ softness, including Boston.

Finally, while I sure wouldn’t count on them, I also wouldn’t necessarily count Luke Walton and Chris Mihm out just yet. It is a sign of the depth of this team that two guys in the last five roster spots are players who once were very valuable contributors. If either of these guys can get fully healthy and return to their top form, the Lakers will have a real bonus.

And while we thinking positively, I also like the fact that the Lakers have two young long and athletic potential strong defenders at the 1 and 3 in Sun Yue and Trevor Ariza, with Ariza being a possible starter if Odom becomes the team’s 6th man, which I think could easily happen.

I also do not agree with the Tony Kukoc comparisons for Sun Yue. Kukoc’s strength was his long range shooting, not his ball handling, passing, or defense – all traits for which Sun Yue is better known than his 3-point shooting prowess. Kukoc was a forward. Sun is a point guard.

I also would not be surprised to see a press release sometime within the next week or so that the Lakers and Andrew Bynum have reached agreement on a 5-year extension for $70-75M to snuff any possibility that Drew will wear any other colors but purple and gold.

The Era of the Beast has begun! Kobe, Drew, and Pau. The Best Big 3 in the NBA.

Tom

THE LAKERS ARE FAVORED FOR ONE REASON…

I mean you’re adding the third best center in the entire NBA to a team that came within two wins of the NBA championship and only 12 of the 25 writers pick the Lakers to win the title?

Just like politics says about the general population, this confirms that half of the those writers who cover the Lakers are either stupid or unwilling to pick a team with Kobe Bryant on it.

If these idiots even read the blog, they would have realized that we aren’t adding the third best center in the NBA to the team, we are filling every weakness on the team by the move. And Drew may well be the best center in the NBA what with Yao’s health issues and Howard’s poor play throughout the Olympics.

Adding Drew to the Lakers is like giving a gun to one of two evenly matched knife fighters. Sorry Celtics. Game over! Match done! No Contest! The Era of the Beast has begun.

Contract extension news is imminent! Get business out of the way so we can play ball.

Tom

it would be nice depending on how well sun yue plays for him to make the lakers roster for size imagin the startin five like this if they play phoenix
1.sun yue 6-9
2.kobe bryant 6-6
3.lamar odom 6-10
4.pau gosal 7-0
5.andrew bynum 7-0
phoenix cant match this five

Jon K,

I tend to agree with your post in the last thread -- 55 is too light for the Lakers this year. I really believe they will push 63.

Laker Tom,

Toni Kukoc was an all around player. Sure he scored better than Sun at the moment but he was also a good passer as well. Defense if Sun pans out Toni will not have an edge on though. Toni averaged 4.5 assists when he was teamed up with Scottie Pippen. You are correct though Toni was a forward (6'11) while Sun is more point guard though Sun has the versatility to play Point, Shooting, Small Forward and even if needed possibly Power Forward though that should be used in extreme emergency while Toni was basically a poor man's Pippen for the Bulls and could play all 5 positions.

The idea of my comparisons of Sun Wukong Yue to Toni Kukoc and the agreement by Long Time Laker Fan is simple. Sun can play multiple positions and is very versatile just like Toni. Sure he may not have Toni's long range shooting but that can change as even Yao noticed a good improvement in his jumper. The 2nd thing I added to the Toni Kukoc comparison is Eric Snow defense. Eric Snow was a Larry Brown type point guard: run the offense and defend. Because Snow was able to guard shooting guards as well, he was able to play along Allen Iverson and run the point allowing Iverson to score instead of running the offense, during the 2001 finals it was he who guarded Kobe despite him being a point guard. Sun when he develops in time could probably defend point guards, shooting guards, and maybe some small forwards and if necessary athletic power forwards. Hence the comparison:

Toni Kukoc offense (in terms of passing/playmaking and running the offense and possibly the jumper as well) and Eric Snow defense.

-blitz

Well, well...

Now we know why KB24 decided to pass on the surgery and the 12 weeks of downtime.

He has seen Bynum's workouts and scrimmaging. He knows something that the lay public does not. This season is all about legacy-cement:

73 wins
73 wins
73 wins
73 wins

And a 6th Finals appearance. 4th Ring. Finals MVP? All that, a Gold Medal, and a bag of chips, too?

the Bryant-Jordan debate gets very serious after this season...

Respectfully,
HIGH CHEESE

blitz,

We’re going to have to agree to disagree on the whole Tony Kukoc thing. Our disagreement starts with a fundamental difference of opinion as to the kind of player Sun Yue has a chance to become, both offensively and defensively.

>>>>>You are correct though Toni was a forward (6'11) while Sun is more point guard
>>>>>though Sun has the versatility to play Point, Shooting, Small Forward and even if
>>>>>needed possibly Power Forward though that should be used in extreme emergency
>>>>>while Toni was basically a poor man's Pippen for the Bulls and could play all
>>>>>5 positions.

I know there are some scouting reports out there comparing Sun Yue to a smaller version of Lamar Odom and an eventual small forward rather than point guard in the league, but I don’t buy that point of view at all with respect to Sun Yue’s game or potential position. That may be what happens with him if he doesn’t cut it as a point guard but I don’t see that happening.

What is enticing about Sun on offense is his 6-9 size and length combined with excellent speed and quickness and point-guard quality ball handling and passing skills. While he most likely won’t be a superstar, a 6-9 point guard with excellent ball handling and passing skills and the ability to post up smaller guards playing for the Lakers will remind fans of Magic Johnson.

>>>>>The 2nd thing I added to the Toni Kukoc comparison is Eric Snow defense.
>>>>>Eric Snow was a Larry Brown type point guard: run the offense and defend.
>>>>>Because Snow was able to guard shooting guards as well, he was able to play
>>>>>along Allen Iverson and run the point allowing Iverson to score instead of running
>>>>>the offense, during the 2001 finals it was he who guarded Kobe despite him being a
>>>>>point guard. Sun when he develops in time could probably defend point guards,
>>>>>shooting guards, and maybe some small forwards and if necessary athletic power
>>>>>forwards.

I would love it if Sun Yue turned out to be as good a defensive player as Snow was in his prime but they are totally different players who bring different tools to work defensively. That is why I don’t buy your comparison. Snow was a tough, in your face, small but strong defender at the guard. His game was to get in your jersey and stay there.

That is not what is exciting about Sun Yue defensively. Sun’s edges are his height and length and shot blocking ability, which will allow him to play off the point guards he defends giving him a better chance to keep them from penetrating. He can also recover better than smaller players and block shots from behind when he is beaten, an edge similar to extremely quick players who can save a play be reaching behind. He can be the Lakers Michael Cooper.

The best example I can come up with right now of what I see Sun Yue becoming defensively is the way that James Posey guarded Kobe in the Finals, using his height, length, and quickness to allow him to sag off Kobe and keep him from penetrating. Add in the fact, that his size makes him a poor candidate to be posted up on and that is the defensive potential that I see in Sun Yue. I see Sun Yue as the potential solution to better defense at the 1. That is where I think he will earn his playing time. And that is why his shooting is of secondary concern.

We’ll just have to agree to disagree on Sun Yue. Either way, we both see some excellent potential at both ends of the court, which is good. You see a little Kukoc and a little Snow while I see a little Magic and a little Cooper. LOL. In the end, we’d take either one.

Tom

Start the bandwagons!!!

********
73 Win Bandwagon
********

Why else would Kobe put off surgery, if not to go after the regular season record?

Yeah, I know I'm rationalizing after being shocked that Kobe wasn't getting surgery, but whaddaywant? I'm a fan, not an analyst!

Jamie Sweet,

>>>Shaq is retiring in exactly 735 days.

Well, specifically what Shaq said was that his "basketball
career will be over in 735 days."

And while that's technically true, he could also have truthfully
said, "My basketball career will be over in 1743 days." or
"5382" days. When something is over one day, it's also over
the day after that.

If he wanted to be more accurate, what Shaq should have
said would be more like "My basketball career will be over
in 546 days."

That's in the ballpark of time when the first round will end in
2010. After that, Shaq's career is all over but for the
paperwork.

I agree with LakerTom that Bynum is the key to our success. Bynum, Bynum, Bynum. Kobe and Gasol are veterans who's contributions are known quantities (when healthy, blah, blah). Everyone else fits into the quality role player category, and of course depth is important, but with 5 men on the court, this is a game where great players win games. We need Bynum to be great, and I think he can and will be, but we just have to wait and see.

There will be no problem with front court chemistry. Has everyone missed the whole Phil Jackson, triangle offense thing we've had in the NBA for the past twenty years? If having three huge, multi-talented guys on a team were a problem, which it's not, he'd work it out.

Huston is a legitimate threat. They have three superstar caliber players and a great bench. And Adelman can certainly coach his way out of a paper bag - his teams were a true rival for the Shaq and Kobe dynasty and we shouldn't forget how close we came to loosing to them. They have a lot of issues (chemistry, managing to learn a complex offense while keeping a defensive mindset which is mostly leftover from a previous coaching regime, the health of Yao, basketball related focus of TMac, the non-basketball related focus of Ron Ron, etc.), certainly more than we do, but they could be dynamite this year and we need to prepare ourselves for a crazy, epic and great (and likely unofficial true championship - not that Boston, New Orleans and others are not worthy, but on paper/in a perfect world, this could be the real blockbuster) series with them in the playoffs.

If both teams are healthy, focused and coached up, I feel we would win such a series because Kobe is more experienced and more of a killer than T-Mac. But that's about all I can see in our favor. In a couple of years, Bynum may become significantly better than Yao (a lot to ask, but my fingers are crossed), but even with the improvement I confidently expect him to show this season, I think a healthy Yao and a good team defensive effort will give him a lot of problems. Gasol and "good" Ron Ron don't match up and comparing their contributions is a bit of apples and oranges. The roll players are both very good and come in quantity. Really, it's very close.

Anywho, the west will be insane again this year. The "improved" east with Brand, a relocated Jermaine O’Neal, healthy DWade and a Cleveland team that keeps trying to convince itself it will be better still doesn't compare. They need to re-seed the playoffs to eliminate conference seeding, even if it means fudging things to make long travel issues workable, and start the playoffs as soon as we have a reasonable number of healthy teams playing well.

OK, I don't actually mean that about the playoffs. But it's a nice thought.

We are the favorites on paper to win it all, and there is no pre-season favorite curse, that's absurd. What there is, is a full season of pro-basketball and a long brutal playoffs that make anything possible. Personally, I can't wait.

GO LAKERS!

It should be another interesting season.The lakers are a logical pick and have a chance to be really really good - like 70 win good if it all comes together and Bynum puts his money where his mouth is...but even if he's merely a solid contributor this team can stil be great...youngsters will develop,they can build on the playoff experience and thye still have the scariest player in the game.Theres always a chance last season was a bit of an aberation and things wont click in quite the same way but its more likely they are good,really good.

The Celtics could easily lose their edge - these guys were on a mission under pressure last season - can they keep up the intensity? My guess is probably not and if they were in the west they'd be cooked but they are still so much better than the rest of the east that they will stumble into the finals...then anything can happen.Think '95 rockets

The cavs and pistons - we are going to see more of the same basically...2nd round exit ,maybe the conference finals but they are not contending

The hornets could get there I expect to see them in the conference finals with the lakers - they'll be the real deal but the lakers should be too much for them in a playoff series - we've kind of got the jump on this team...but if they get the top seed they could definitely make the finals

The spurs....are done.I picked them to win it all last year and although the still seem like they could have a chance this team needs a trade.Did you read the interviews after they were eliminated? they were talking like it was a regular season game..way too casual,no tears no defiant promises of redemption.They've been boring the basketball world for close to a decade and now they are bored of themselves.Something needs to happen here.I'd trade Ginobli personally while he's at the top of his game (when he's not hurt that is)

Houston are tempting but Yoa and Mcgrady have been hurt every year - its annual thing.This is not a team that can win unless they get homecourt advantage and they'll be too hampered by injuries to do that.

The east will feature some interesting bubble teams that ultimately won't have enough to get to the finals...

and the west will probably come down to whos got the top seed in the playoffs...unless of course the lakers take a jump into the next stratosphere...

Karyanr,
I love KB24 as much as anyone else, but It's highly unlikely that even if all of that happens, he'll be compared with MJ. Jordan just has too many individual accomplishments that seperate him from Kobe, the 5 mvp's, being undefeated in the championship round, etc. We just need to let Kobe be Kobe, and at the end of the day he could very well be in that stratosphere of the top 5 in NBA history, but Mike he is not, and there's nothing wrong with that.

Our Second Unit is very strong! Our First unit will have the benefit of a full summer camp and a full season.. the defensive mentality has been exposed as weak during the finals and would therefore be the focus of the whole team...

I can't wait till season starts..

Go lakers!

And by the way.. I haven't had the time to embrace KL back...

Welcome back KL... I like your new version of yourself better.

AK / BK Do you know of a reason why are the Lakers signing all of these guards ? By the last count they had 7or 8 Guards. Are they going to make a trade ?

Here's a videod of Drew's last game before his injury.

http://tinyurl.com/0

We have a lot to look forward to this summer.

karyanr,

>>>>>Now we know why KB24 decided to pass on the surgery and the 12
>>>>>weeks of downtime.

>>>>>He has seen Bynum's workouts and scrimmaging. He knows something
>>>>>that the lay public does not. This season is all about legacy-cement:

>>>>>73 wins
>>>>>73 wins
>>>>>73 wins
>>>>>73 wins

>>>>>And a 6th Finals appearance. 4th Ring. Finals MVP?
>>>>>All that, a Gold Medal, and a bag of chips, too?

You may be onto something there, High Cheese. A bigger and better Bynum is going to be scary fun to watch. Look for that contract extension next week. Just a hunch.

Tom

Xodus,

Link does not work, Karl. Thanks.

Tom