A pair of previews

Go Lakers!

GO Kobe!

'Championship 09!

Some very specific predictions for this season:

1. The Lakers will dominate the Suns during the regular season. They will not meet in the playoffs, because Phoenix won't make it past the first round.

2. Baron Davis will dunk on Amare Stoudemire. It will be embarrassing. It will be humiliating. And it will be awesome. Sportscenter will replay the highlight approximately 1,342 times.

3. Ron Artest will elbow Raja in the face intentionally. Raja will retaliate, and they will both serve suspensions.

4. Shaq will call out Amare in the press. Amare will respond publicly. This will escalate into an all-out feud before the All-Star break.

5. Matt Barnes will not play 82 regular season games. Shaq will not play 82 regular season games. Amare will not play 82 regular season games. Nash will not play 82 regular season games. Raja will want to play 82 regular season games, but he'll be suspended for his fight with Ron Artest.

The Pacific Division title belongs to a team that is actually on the Pacific. In case anyone has forgotten, Phoenix is a dust bowl. If there was a Desert Division, Phoenix could proudly hang those banners high. Because those would be the only banners to hang.

Go Lake Show!

"The lakers are gambling that bynum can carry the interior D, and without a decent bench in Turiaf's absence, things are riding on unproven and overpaid bench scrubs."

Hate to diss Ronny, that dude was awesome but he wasn't really the "physical" guy nor interior. Got beaten too much when playing center. Our record starting Ronny at center was 7-4 (5-4 when Pau went down). Ronny will be missed but I don't think it will be too much of a big loss game wise (though TV wise no more dancing :*( )

"The lakers will get no more breaks like last season. Their D must improve now that they are no longer the most powerful team in the Pacific. Any more Finals appearances must go thru PHX."

I doubt the Hornets believe that or the Rockets, don't think the Lakers do either.

"He's a good finisher but I'd say he needs a more than just a "little more reliable" improvement.

Trevor's offense has yet to be found. Ever since leaving UCLA after 1 year his skills have not grown on the offensive end. "

I couldn't agree more Butler (one of the few things that I do find myself in agreeing with you). Trevor has yet to prove to be able to score more than 8.9 ppg. Defense wise maybe good, but heck playing 4 on 5 offensively wise isn't too thrilling (at least Bowen could hit the open 3, so odd when he can't even hit his free throws).

-blitz

Nothing has ever gone through Phoenix in the West. 4 of the starting 5 babysat Methuselah at one point or another and tallied precisely one postseason win against a deteriorating Spurs team.

Shaq's on track to put up Chris Mihm in his prime type numbers this season.

Still, it's cute that Butler thinks the Suns are rising. It brings back fond memories of Run TMC being ready to take over the league, only in this case the key components are ancient and decomposing.

TheBlitz sez:

"I doubt the Hornets believe that or the Rockets, don't think the Lakers do either."

The season begins soon and it'll be interesting to see where eveyone stands after 30 games..no matter how good or bad certain teams may seem on paper.

"I couldn't agree more Butler"

Ariza's problem is similar to odom's - they should be better than they are. Lots of players like that out there, though.

The landscape has changed out there, my friends.

While the lakers have lost big man depth, the SUNS have added to theirs. The quote out of voluntary workouts is that Lopez is ripping down the rebounds and pulling off Duncan-style post moves..

"....and without a decent bench in Turiaf's absence..."

because we all know Turiaf was the whole bench

yuk yuk yuk, and the hits keep comin : )

I'm actually pretty excited at the possibility of seein'g lamar anchoring the bench mob. Just a year ago he was suppose to be our 2nd option, now he is our 6th man? my how things change.

Go Lakers

AK/BK

Heres an interview with Mitch Kupchak from Lakers.com. This interview is about Sun Yue and the troubles of bringing him over, his skill level, and how he will fit in with the team. Theres even a little mention of Slava medvendenko in there.

http://tinyurl.com/3lsjbv

Go Lakers

Kevin McHale won back-to-back DPOY awards. Rodman won the award too. That's the type of mindset Odom needs to have if Jackson decides to bring him off the bench. He needs to look at the sixth man role as a way of emphasizing his versatility and worth to the Lakers. As the sixth man of a season long championship contender, Odom could have more impact than he ever has.

Personally, I love the idea of Lamar Odom coming off the bench in a Manu Ginobili-type role.

This, of course, does not proclude the possibility of The Three Trees (Odom, Gasol, Bynum) playing together. They will. Just in terms of establishing a rhythm of substitutions, I like Trevor Ariza's additional defense on the first team and Lamar Odom's rebounding and ball-handling on the second team.

The beauty of next year's team is going to be flexibility. A lot of different players with different strengths that can play multiple positions. The starting lineup and second string lineup is not as important as the fluidity with which substitutions can be made (and, as a result, the importance of individual players having the flexibility and intuition to be able to play effectively with different combinations of players.)

GO LAKERS!

Why are we talking about the Funs on a Lakers blog?

If you don't want to talk about last (and this) season's Western Conference champs, how about talking about some real competition. See below:

This year's finish:
1.Lakers
2.Hornets
3.Rockets
4.Jazz
5.Spurs
6.Blazers
7.Funs
8.Mavs

If the Mavs implode around J-Kidd's age, Howard's wierdness, and Cuban's bad trades look for the Warriors or Nuggets to steal the 8 spot.

And while I'm weighing in - I don't like Lamar at the 3. His stellar rebounding is too important. We already have THREE 3's in Trevor, Luke, and Vlade plus Kobe needs time there if Sasha is to get more than 6-8 minutes as a backup 2.
Lamar playing 30 minutes as a backup 4 (with Pau getting half of those at the 5) gives us an awesome 4-5 tandem on the court at all times - and well rested for the playoffs!

AK

In the areas where the Lakers needed to improve the most they failed to add anybody. Being more physical, better rebounding and strong perimeter defense are the Lakers weakest links and could very well come back to haunt them.............not in the regular season........but in the playoffs when the games really count.

Also, Ariza's improvements are secondary to the question...........Will Phil Jackson consistently play him???

That's the question.............because Phil Jackson will invariably find an excuse to use Luke Walton........as he did Smush Parker

With Phil Jackson's mental breakdown in last years Finals..........Coaching will be key in the Lakers success. A factor rarely discussed

To BUTLER

Phoenix???

I didn't think the Suns were allowed to compete this NBA season.

Maybe two years ago...they had a chance. But now that's all gone.

Now...you're left with an aging, crippling, and tiring Shaq

Jay Jay,

This year's finish (Jon-Style):

1.Lakers
2.Hornets
3.Jazz
4.Rockets
5.Spurs
6.Blazers
7.Clippers
8.Mavs

GO LAKERS!

pfunk sez:

"In the areas where the Lakers needed to improve the most they failed to add anybody. Being more physical, better rebounding and strong perimeter defense are the Lakers weakest links and could very well come back to haunt them.............not in the regular season........but in the playoffs when the games really count."

It's true - the lakers lacked defensive toughness last season, and if everyone is expecting bynumb to make up for gasal, odum and the SF + PG liabilities on defense, that's some mighty huge expectations for a kid who hasn't played in half a year, and a brand new starting team.

The SUNS on the other hand, have addressed their weaknesses this offseason - two PGs, a reserve 7-foot defensive and rebounding specialist in Robin Lopez, a lengthy swingman who can hit threes and defend in Matt Barnes, and then there's SG and Big 10 Playa of the Year Alando Tucker and 6'9" NBADL Rookie of the Year for 2007 Louis Amundson.

As for SHACK'S conditioning, he has reported to PHX at the target weight the SUNS wanted to see. Here's a short article and video showing what SHACK's looking like right now:

http://tinyurl.com/44vtfu

See it and weep!

Hey Laker Blog, this is Jamie Sweet killin' it in the Bahamas. No matter where I am, I have to check in here occaissionally to get my Laker fix. Let's see...Butler making outrageous statements about the Lakers and Suns...CHECK. Great blogmanship by AK/BK...CHECK. So, Odom coming off the bench...I don't see it. Not unless we start off with a bad record and he seems distracted, which I doubt will happen because he, like Ariza, is in a contract year. Honestly, bloggers, he's going to have his best year and might even put up good enough numbers to make the All-Star team. The coaching staff will give the tri-towers a minimum of 20 games to see how it fleshes out. Ariza would not only have to significantly improve his outside shooting, but his free throws as well. A slasher MUST shoot 78%+, or he's just going to get creamed going to the hole. That was actually my biggest complaint with Kobe in the Finals, he settled for jumpers instead of taking it to the hole. Dwayne Wade proved that champions can be won with free-throws. The Lakers didn't get to the line or put enough pressure on the Celtic bigs. If, after the first 20 games, we are hovering around the .500 mark, look for PJ to make a MAJOR line up change. This could also involve AB 17 coming off the bench as well, where he was highly effective at destroying an opposing teams second unit single-handedly, along with Farmar and Vujacic to help open up the middle.

pfunk36...where do you get the PJ coaching breakdown? I think people on this blog think that a coach has some magical ability to get a player to do something he is incapable of doing. Like staying out of foul trouble or hitting an open J. I really am mystified sometimes by most comments pertaining to coaching. Is it Phil's fault that Farmar can't guard the pick 'n' roll to save his life? Is it Phil's fault that Kobe goes into savior mode and makes bad decisions going one on three? Would you bench Kobe and tell him, hey pal, play some team ball, when his team is shooting less than 30% from the floor combined? I think not. regarding Smush Parker and Luke Walton, those were the guys Mitch signed and paid, they are on the team so you might as well get used to seeing them get into the game occaisionally. As I recall, in fact, Phil BENCHED Smush at the end oif his last season and into the playoffs and how did Smush respond? He played even worse showing that, perhaps, helping a player find his confidence by showing trust CAN be helpful. Try to make sense with your posts regarding coaching, a coach can prepare his players and doesn't have much impact on games as far as on-the-court play is concerned. they do not make shots in .4 of a second, nor do they box out or turn the ball over.

Finally, in regards to Luke. He is a cornerstone to the Laker mentality and plays better in all areas than most of our bench plays in one. Vujacic is a shooter, but I would cringe if Phil decided that he would also become a play maker. Farmar is a play maker, but he can't rebound, post up, or shoot very well, consistently. He's also erratic from the line. Vladrad...space cadet, nuff said. Luke gives the staff a player who not only rebounds, can shoot about 42%, is steady from the line, but the man can pass the rock. He keeps the offense moving, which makes the whole team better. Having all scorers on the floor is a horrible recipe for disaster. Look at Phoenix, Denver, and Golden State. How far have those teams ever made it into the Playoffs in recent memory. Excluding Phoenix which had the help of the best play-maker in basketball, those teams haven't gotten close enough to the Finals to even sniff a ring. Do not underestimate the power of the Luke, he will shock and amaze you this year. Luke is my boy!

Peace out Laker blog, I'll return on Monday of next week, until then...GO LAKERS!!!!!!!

Pfunk36,

"AK, In the areas where the Lakers needed to improve the most they failed to add anybody. Being more physical, better rebounding and strong perimeter defense are the Lakers weakest links and could very well come back to haunt them......not in the regular season........but in the playoffs when the games really count."

The return of a healthy Trevor Ariza and Andrew Bynum addresses all three issues you cited. Ariza improves the perimeter D. Bynum adds one of the best rebounders in the league. And aside from Bynum's physical presence, him being at center allows Gasol and LO to respectively move to PF and SF, putting both less likely to find themselves in match ups where size is given up. In the case of Odom, he'll typically be bigger than the guy guarding him.

"Also, Ariza's improvements are secondary to the question...........Will Phil Jackson consistently play him???
That's the question.............because Phil Jackson will invariably find an excuse to use Luke Walton..."

We've been through this before and again, the way you're presenting this (PJ reluctant to play Ariza) simply isn't accurate. Go back and read his actual game logs. Ariza started for a small spell and even when PJ reinserted Walton into the starting lineup, he still found minutes for Ariza. During the playoffs, Ariza didn't get much run because he wasn't healthy, which was obvious by how largely ineffective and lost he looked out there.

Does that change the fact that Walton- Denver series aside- didn't play well in the postseason, either? No. But again, if you actually look at the game logs, you'll see Walton's minutes steadily decreasing each round, even WITHOUT Ariza in the picture. Luke didn't play 15 minutes in any game against Boston and barely stepped on the court during game 4. As the postseason progressed, Kobe might have spent more time at the 3 than anybody.

As I've maintained throughout the offseason, I think the coaching staff- Phil included- likes Ariza and what he brings. Assuming he's back to health, unless Walton seriously improves from last season (and conquers his own health issues), I see Ariza taking a lot of Luke's minutes. Same song, second verse with Vlad.

AK

BUTLER,

>>>While the lakers have lost big man depth, the SUNS
>>>have added to theirs.

Oh? Have they hired someone other than Amare?

I mean, Matt Barnes is a nice role player, but I'd hardly
call him "depth". And Robin Lopez will be about as good
as the last "lesser of two twin brother centers" to come out
of Stanford.

The rest of your alleged depth is The Big 50 and Big Can't Grant.

You know, that 300 pound guy who will play about 50
games for you and hit about 50% of his free throws.
Shaqille O'Neal is The Big 50. And oddly, last season
Shaq's Field Goal % and Free Throw % BOTH went
down for the playoffs. They used to go up.

And then there's Big Can't Grant.

They call Robert Horry Big Shot Rob because he always
seems to hit the big shots when they count in playoff
series, so he's been a contributer to a LOT of
championship teams.

And then there's Grant Hill... the bizarro world Robert Horry.
He had a great season, his best in years. And then against
San Antonio, it was a total of 5-for-11 shooting and injured
for 2 games. He Can't play as well in the playoffs as he
does during the regular season. He Can't stay healthy.
He Can't make it out of the first round.

He's Big Can't Grant.

Good luck with that lot.

Actually, I think the best course for Phoenix would be to
trade Shaq for Stephon Marbury and Grant Hill for a
future second round draft pick and start the rebuilding
process right now. That way they may still be able to get
in a couple of other good players before Amare's over the
hill.

Long Time -

Your assesment of Grant Hill was correct for last season - he strained a groin prior to the playoffs and it cost the Marion-less SUNS on the perimeter. No Grant Hill meant no one could defend Tony Parker.

Injuries will happen, what can you say? At least the trouble wasn't with his infamous ankles, which the SUNS training staff kept healthy all season long - Grant started more games in a row than he had in his 8 years at Orlando. He'll be back.

Yet the SUNS recognized the dangers of having only one man who could guard the likes of Tony Parker and did something about it. They added Barnes for depth at SF, then added two extremely quick PGs, one of whom, Goran Dragic, has already shown an ability to lock up Tony parker in the Euroleague.

Add Alando Tucker at SG, and Robin Lopez as a defensive-minded 7-footer, and the SUNS have shored up the reserves for the possibility of Grant becoming hurt again. It's impressive the strides Kerr has made with this team, but it's all been done rather quietly..

BREAKING NEWS FLASH
Posted by the Associated Press, Sept. 22, 4 min. ago

LAKERS' BYNUM STRAINS STOMACH MUSCLE

El Segundo, CA -- The Lakers' emerging young center, Andrew Bynum, has reportedly strained an abdominal muscle. Team physicians report the following:

"The interview was going just fine. Suddenly, a strange looking fellow claiming to be a reporter asked Andrew if he 'feared going up against Robin Lopez.' Bynum immediately doubled over with uncontrollable laughter. This burst of guffawing grew more pronounced when the same reporter stood up and began yelling, 'Fear the next Tim Duncan' over and over. The man was removed by security, but the damage had already been done."

Bynum's condition is listed as stable. The team expects a full abdominal recovery within 1-2 days. When asked about the incident, Bynum told reporters, "The only thing I fear about Robin is that crazy afro."

###

I don't get all the doubt concerning Ariza. He just turned 23. He's proven himself immensely in limited minutes. He was traded to the Lakers partway through last season (does anyone remember this anymore?) and then was injured the last few months. He's hardly had any time to truly gel with the team. And yet in among SF in the league in 07-08 he ranked...

#18 in PER (1 ahead of Kevin Durant and 28 spots ahead of James Posey)
#12 in Rebound Rate (Just behind LeBron, tied with Carmelo and 3 spots ahead of James Posey)
#29 in Turnover Rate (5 spots ahead of James Posey)
#11 in Assist Ratio (right in between Caron Butler and Andre Iguodala, and 4 spots ahead of James Posey)
#17 in True Shooting Percentage (12 behind James Posey, and tied with LeBron James)
#5 in Steals/48 Min (1 spot ahead of Caron Butler and 30 spots ahead of James Posey)
#11 in Steal/TO ratio (9 ahead of James Posey)

All this while ranking #50 in Usage Rate (Usage Rate is the number of possessions a player uses per 40 minutes) and #59 in Min/G.

For all the people who were clamoring for James Posey, Ariza is 8 1/2 years younger than James Posey and is a much better all around player already. Granted, he can't shoot the 3 like Posey does and Posey has proven to be a more physical defender, but did you really want the Lakers (a team already with major luxury tax issues) to shell out $6.5 million/year for a guy who is on the wrong side of 30 and is worse than a younger, cheaper player we already have in every area of the game except two?

Basically, the stats show that Trevor rarely gets the chance to play extended minutes and even when he does, he rarely has the ball in his hands. Despite this, he remains not only one of the most effective bench players in the league, he's better than a lot of starting small forwards for other teams.

He needs to improve his FT shooting, his outside shooting, his ball handling and his grasp of the nuances of team defense. But at 23 years old, he has PLENTY of time to do this and I sure hope we get to watch him do it in a Lakers uniform.

World Championships

Celtics.... 17
Lakers,,., 14
Clippers.....0
Suns..........0

Butler till your team wins something get your pajamas on get in your room and shut up and don't come out till you grow up. There are other ways to get attention then playing the idiot or fool card. As Ramsey says on Hells Kitchen show a little respect for yourself.

When you read a Butler post now you know why they say girls mature faster than boys.

BD

Puddle,

All those stats except for the steals are kind of misleading. Like you said, Trevor has missed tons of time from that foot injury. Most of those stats only recorded December (November he didn't play much), and 1/2 of January which isn't exactly a solid case to use as a statistic. If that was most of the season then the stat wouldn't be as misleading. Trevor could have had good games and he could have had bad games in the times he was injured and those numbers would without a doubt be different.

I would consider: Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony, Richard Jefferson, Caron Butler, Tayshaun Prince, Shane Battier (atm), Bruce Bowen, Paul Pierce, Luol Deng, Josh Smith, Mavin Williams, Hedo Torkuglu, AK47, Peja Stojakovic, Corey Maggette, Josh Howard, Rudy Gay, and Ron Artest to be all better than Trevor Ariza. (Those guys are starters on their teams).

Trevor is a great player and useful for rotation minutes. At the time being though he needs to show he's more than just a rotation player. He's not a true starter yet.

I want him to succeed as a Laker don't get me wrong.

-blitz

BD delivering a smack down on BUTLER. Hells yeah.

I couldn't agree with puddle more on Ariza, give him a full year with the Lakers and I think we'll see him get better and better. He could also be an effective 2 if Kobe gets hurt. Sasha would start in that eventuallity and Ariza would be first of the bench. I'm not hoping for Kobe to get hurt, but with his mangled hand dangling at his side, it could happen.

I am being a lil dramatic at the end of that last paragraph, but it could happen. Of all the SF that we have, he is the only one that could play the 2.

AK, I though you were right on in your response to pfunk36, I find it a little strange the way people get down on our pretty amazing coaching staff. I didn't see any of that kind of criticism during the playoffs. I chalk it up to off-season boredom plus finals frustration and I think we'll have tons to chat about during the regular season, but I think hanging the finals loss on PJ is a little over the top, and I'm not talking about Sly Stallone's arm wrestling epic, either.

Does anyone think that if Josh Powell or Jelani McCoy actually make the team they'll be there to drop a hard foul or two on opposing bigs or lil guys getting into the lane? That style of coaching has never endeared itself to PJ (thankfully, because I find it distasteful, except when I see it happen to our guys and want to see an eye for an eye, if you will). Would we go with Coby Karl as the 15th guy? I think he'd be better off in the D-league for one more year.