If it ain't broke, don't fix it
Along those sentiments and getting one issue quickly out of the way, I talked to someone from the Lakers organization and, contrary to this report from the Las Vegas Sun, Kobe's finger is not broken. It may need a knife session, but it's still in one piece, so those losing sleep over that concern can now go back to losing sleep over the economy.
Moving on...
Sasha Vujacic was the subject of news less sunny. As noted earlier, The Machine's sprained left ankle is being further irritated by an avulsion fracture, which will perhaps sideline him for the rest of preseason and maybe even a few "real deal" games. As one might expect, The Face's face was one of disappointment, but he was able to look at the bigger picture. Missing any 2009 time would sure suck, so it's better to let this injury properly heal up than push it unwisely and risk further damage. Having said that, time off the court is driving Sasha goony bird. Thus, he's shooting (pun halfheartedly intended) for an ASA-F-P return. "It's supposed to be two weeks, but I'm gonna rest seven days and see how the process is going." When informed that Media Relations Director John Black gave us a 10-14 day timeline, Sasha acknowledged the cautionary compromise reached, but that won't stop him from gunning to beat the clock. "I heal fast," insisted The Machine. And like I told him, extra incentive could be found in trying to make Black eat his "diagnosis." Smiled Vujacic, "I will prove John wrong and I think that's one of the biggest motivations that I have."
Sasha's downtime will involve cardio
activities like swimming and biking, working on his set shot and
brooding about the Finals loss to the Celtics, which is sitting no
better in his craw now than in June. Vujacic even claimed that until the Lakers
win a title, he won't wear any green, period. Didn't sound like he
was kidding, either. Could make for a rough St. Patty's Day, but
Slovenia's Favorite Son doesn't fear such holiday obstacles.
There's been a lot of recent comment thread debate about the merits of Jordan Farmar vs. Derek Fisher, in terms of talent, who'll get more minutes, who should be the starter, the finisher, etc. And in a weird bit of synergy, the "When will Jordan eventually start?" topic was bandied about today's practice. For now, Mr. .4 remains the one being announced pre-game by Lawrence Tanter, a plan that appears one of the few constants in Phil Jackson's ever-shifting lineups. Asked what Farmar could do to become a starter, PJ deadpanned, "Grow four inches, but that's hard." But all kidding, Farmar may have only leapfrogged Smush Parker as a starting option during his purple and gold tenure, but that's not due to dissatisfaction on the Zen Master's part.
"He's progressing just fine," reassured Jackson. "What is he, 21-years old? He's doing
great. He just has to be patient and he's going to have opportunities
that are going to come his way." In terms of that progression sited, Jackson seemed most pleased by Farmar's increased comfort with who he is as a player. "He has a much better understanding of his strengths and weaknesses
than he did two years ago. He's able to take coaching better now than
he was before. And that's really important part for Jordan, becauuse
he's a real smart person and sometimes he gets in his own way because
he thinks too much. Sometimes you just have to get the job done and
he's gotten much better at that."
As for Farmar, while he made no bones about wanting to be a starter at some point in his career- as he rightly pointed out, it's "not something to be ashamed of"- he won't complain if his gig remains status quo, because he knows what ingredients he brings to the soup. "For us, right now, our bench is very valuable. For me, being 21 and being the sixth man or a member off the bench who's really integral to a championship caliber team is really special. I embrace that role as much as being a starter." It's also easier playing second string to a teammate when you happen to respect him quite a bit. "Fish is a vet. He's been here before. He's proven himself time and time again, so I have no problem with that role. I want to continue to push and try to improve myself in every way possible, but it's not about that, overall. It's about winning ball games and helping this organization."
Lamar Odom: Download lamar_odom_10.14.08.mp3
Sasha Vujacic: Download SV.mp3
Jordan Farmar: Download jordan_farmar_10.14.08.mp3
Pau Gasol (mostly about the Regal FC Barcelona players in this weekend's game): Download pau_gasol_10.14.08.mp3
Phil Jackson: Download phil_jackson_10.14.08.mp3
AK
Stay Thirsty My Friends,
>>>cut Coby Karl right now, work out a trade involving
>>>Lamar Odom , Farmar and Chris Mihm for Kirk Hinrich
>>>and Chicago's unprotected #1 draft pick this year, sit
>>>back and... enjoy...
If you're a Chicago fan, maybe.
Posted by: Long Time Laker Fan | October 15, 2008 at 12:09 PM
We seriously have to handle our business and get that ring this year.
Posted by: EastCoastJessie | October 15, 2008 at 11:54 AM
The Ring is our have no fear, but I'd still like to see a rematch.
Posted by: MAMBA24 | October 15, 2008 at 12:16 PM
dan the man-
I think he could play both. He would probably need to develop a better outside shot but I just really like his hustle. He reminds me of Ronny how he puts in 110%, even on the Knicks. He is an excellent team player and really goes after the rebounds. He also seems to have a lot of toughness about him that I think could help us against the C's.
Lamar = Laker for Life
GO LAKERS
Posted by: mrbarneydangles | October 15, 2008 at 12:17 PM
Laker4Life
>>>what team other than the Lakers offered Sasha a
>>>contract during his free agency this summer? The
>>>answer - NO ONE. That's because they know Sasha is
>>>not worth $5M per year.
Don't be the turd in the punchbowl. It was nothing like that.
By the time it got around to players at Sasha's level (e.g.
JR Smith, James Jones, etc), there was only one team in the
league (Memphis) who had more than an MLE to offer, and
they're overloaded with guards. And every other team in
the league knew that if they offered an MLE to Sasha, that
the Lakers would match.
When the Lakers win the championship this year, I hope
all you people who keep whining about Luke and Rad and
Sasha and how overpaid they are will recognize that those
guys will all have contributed to the title and will have earned
their pay.
When all you're willing to pay is 1 or 2 million, you end up
with guys like Smush Parker and an aging Aaron McKie
on your roster. I think you'll all agree that Luke and Rad
and Sasha contribute FAR more to the Lakers than those
guys did. And that the TEAM is much better with quality
role players than cancers and non-contributors.
Posted by: Long Time Laker Fan | October 15, 2008 at 12:22 PM
>>>...if you don't believe me, just look back to game 4 when
>>>Ray Allen broke Sasha's ankle to seal the win for the
>>>Celts).
Yes, and we all know that an NBA finals isn't a 7 game series
where two teams full of players play each other, but a single
one-on-one play, so clearly Sasha is completely to blame for
the Lakers getting beat.
So Sasha's 20 points, including 7 clutch points in the 4th
quarter
to help the Lakers COME FROM BEHIND TO WIN game 3 were
irrelevant. And he's such a terrible defender that Ray Allen
only managed to hit 1 of 3 in the 4th, and Sasha managed
to block a layup attempt by Paul Pierce as well.
There were games (and plays) where Sasha did both very
well and very poorly in the finals. If he played like he did
in game 3 in every game, then the Lakers would have won
the series. But if Sasha played that well in all 7 games of
the finals, he'd be signing a contract for 10 million per, not
5 million per.
If you want to a player's performance in a playoff series to
a single play, then it clearly shows that you don't really have
a grasp of what all is going on.
Maybe you should just skip watching the full games and
just watch the highlights on Sports Center, since only
singled out moments are meaningful to you.
Posted by: Long Time Laker Fan | October 15, 2008 at 12:35 PM
Stay Thirsty my friends......If the Lakers deal with the Bulls for Hinrich,then Farmar would be shipped with Odom...
Otherwise.....Fisher,Hinrich,Farmar,and Sun Yue....To many guards...I would like it to be for Marion but once again other players would need to be added to make up for the 17mill that Marion makes...Even dealing with the Knicks would not be easy due to the fact that the Knicks team is full of enough junk and gas to make the hole in the ozone layer twice as big..Lee does not make enough money for a straight swap..
David Lee would be nice but Marion would be really nice with Kobe guarding the perimeter like pitt bulls
Posted by: Thirty2 | October 15, 2008 at 12:38 PM
Too many shots that miss in the dark, Butler, you're giving trolls a bad name.
Posted by: Glenn | October 15, 2008 at 12:40 PM
Charles,
Dude, you're getting confused as to what blog you're on? What's going on?
GO LAKERS!
Posted by: Jon K. | October 15, 2008 at 12:52 PM
Stay Thirsty My Friend
regarding trading Odom...
Funny you should bring it up, ESPN also talks about trading
Lamar today:
http://tinyurl.com/4ok3s6
The teams they mentioned with potential were Miami (for
Shawn Marion), Cleveland, Chicago, New Jersey, New York,
and Orlando.
I'll consider the others later, but let's consider the two you mentioned.
First of all, to trade for Lamar Odom, a team has to throw
in contracts totaling at least $11,238,855 to match his cap
hold of $14,148,596. But they won't really be paying Lamar
that much, only $11,400,000. So any amount over 11.4M
that the Lakers take back will increase their salary and
increase their luxury tax. So basically, they'd want to keep
the numbers as close to that 11.2M number as possible.
1. Lamar for Kirk Hinrich (and whatever else on both sides).
I like Kirk Hinrich. I think he's a better defender than
either Derek or Jordan. But the triangle requires the PG
position to be more of a shooter than a passer, and both
Jordan and Derek are better shooters than Hinrich. Of
course, being surrounded by Kobe and Gasol and Bynum
might help Hinrich's shooting percentage.
But for this season and next season, the Lakers have two
point guards under contract that combined make half of
what Hinrich makes, and perform almost as well. If it were
possible to trade off Fisher's 4.6 million and keep Farmar
as Hinrich's backup, then maybe the salary wouldn't be
a big hindrance.
And if the Lakers give up Lamar, then they absolutely
need to get a big back. Powell and Mihm are okay, but
I'd have serious doubts about the Lakers front court if those
were the primary backups. So let's say the Lakers talk
Chicago into giving up Joachim Noah or Tyrus Thomas in
the deal. That makes the salary issues in LA even worse.
Unless Chicago were willing to take on one of the Lakers'
MLEish long term contracts (Luke or Rad) to offset some
salary, I can't see a Lamar for Hinrich trade working.
If I was trying to trade Lamar to Chicago, I'd be fishing for
Joachim Noah or Tyrus Thomas and expiring contracts. A
good solid backup in the front court with the potential to
become a starter some time in the future.
2. Lamar for AK47 -
This is an even bigger salary nightmare. It works as a
straight up trade, and they Lakers would get an excellent
wing defender.
But AK is a bit of a headcase, while Lamar is generally a
very good team player.
And more importantly, AK makes WAY more than Lamar
and his salary will keep going up. If the Lakers made this
trade, then they'd currently have over 81 million in contracts
for next season... BEFORE re-signing Bynum (and Ariza
and/or Mihm). You'd be looking at over 100 million in
salary and another 20 million in luxury tax. At that point
the team would likely be losing money.
In looking at the salary numbers, I think it's pretty unlikely
that the Lakers would trade Lamar this season.
Posted by: Long Time Laker Fan | October 15, 2008 at 01:16 PM
Glenn sez:
"Too many shots that miss in the dark, Butler, you're giving trolls a bad name."
Just reporting the facts Glenn. If truth is out of style, I'm guilty.
Can't wait for the reg season to start. Preseason is a bunch of baloney and cheese!
Posted by: BUTLER | October 15, 2008 at 01:17 PM
If you guys actually believe Farmar is the starting PG in the future then you are not going to put him in a trade, your feelings simply won't allow it. I like both guys, Farmar and Odom but, I don't believe Farmar is big or strong enough to hold up over 82 games as a starter, especially for a team trying to win the championship. He's an excellent backup, no doubt, but there's more pressure and you can't have "bad games" as a starter, that's what Derek Fisher brought last year - consistency, not star power. Kirk Hinrich starting with Fisher backing him up would be a VAST improvement at PG.
Odom, again, I like the guy... WHERE do you want to play him? He wants to be a starter, I think he quieted down because his agent told him to. It's not too farfetched to think Lamar has a trade request in, he went from "I want to be a starter" to accepting his backup role in ONE DAY. Do you really believe he changed his mind in one day? So, if he is going to be traded, what do you propose to get back for him?
Chicago is a mess, they could use a PF and C, see Odom and Mihm. They have Derek Rose so Hinrich is supposed to move to SG? Yeah, let's see how long that lasts... 5,4,3,2... Farmar could get a lot of minutes there, Ben Gordon will probably be moved as well.
UtaR. Sloan wants Kirilenko to come off the bench? and Boozers contract is coming up and NOBODY trusts that guy after what he pulled on Cleveland. Trade Kirilenko to us for Lamar, put him at PF and trade Boozer somewhere else. Bada Bing Bada Boom! However, since they are in our conference... we probably won't do this...
Miami. The Matrix? probably not, too many scorers with that lineup.
"there's interest in Odom in quite a few cities, including Cleveland, Chicago, New Jersey, New York and Orlando."
so... you're either talking high draft picks or what? We now have a trading history with Orlando. Does Phil salivate over J.J. Redick? would Phil put him in as a PG?
Posted by: Stay Thirsty My Friends | October 15, 2008 at 01:21 PM
Charles,
Dude, you're getting confused as to what blog you're on? What's going on?
GO LAKERS!
Posted by: Jon K. | October 15, 2008 at 12:52 PM
Jon K,
Howdy man? I'm on multiple tabs on Firefox and always input at the bottom of the page from Microsoft word. I was in a hurry!
Hope you are good brotha man!
Charles
Posted by: Charles | October 15, 2008 at 01:23 PM
magicman,
The Machine needs one thing...
DIT DA JOW!
Hopefully Sun Yue is soaking his foot in it as we speak.
GO LAKERS!
Posted by: Jon K. | October 15, 2008 at 01:27 PM
Lamar Odom
Vladimir Radmanovic
for
Vince Carter
Stromile Swift
What do you guys think? I think it'd be attractive for both sides if Dr. Buss was willing to shell out that much money.
Posted by: puddle | October 15, 2008 at 01:45 PM
LTLF,
Dropping the knowledge like you always do.
Thanks for keeping the blog (semi) sane.
Go Lake Show!
Posted by: The Outlaw | October 15, 2008 at 01:48 PM
puddle, the problem with the SF slot is that we don't need much scoring from there anymore. Strangely, Radmanovic, IF he becomes the player Phil thought he was getting 2 years ago is a pretty good fit as he is an outside threat and can provide serviceable defense and... he doesn't mind not shooting for quarters at a time... who would've thought? I was ready to trade the guy after last season but he came back dedicated this year.
Ariza is also a good fit there as he is more of a "dirty work" type guy allowing Kobe, Bynum and Gasol to get their shots without complaining. Walton is a Jackson favorite and he's another guy that has no problem fitting in. If he's healthy, he could be better than Radmanovic so we'll see.
That group with Kobe should be able to fill the SF slot. PF looks filled with Gasol and Josh Powell and Walton can put in minutes there along with Radmanovic.
Center is interesting since we have Bynum and Gasol so even if we trade Mihm, Mbenga could give us 10 minutes before he fouls out.
That leaves PG. So either the Lakers decide to sit with what they have or maybe hedge for the future. Fisher is not going to be traded, the whole reason he signed here - supposedly... was so he could be near his child's treatment center so that would be a bad faith move on our part. That leaves Farmar. Is he a starter or more of a permanent backup? He's not very tall... and Phil likes tall guards so... also, isn't his contract coming up? Do the Lakers want to invest $5-6m/season in him with Fisher also under contract?
Posted by: Stay Thirsty My Friends | October 15, 2008 at 02:14 PM
puddle,
Not terrible. Carter & Kobe could play the wing positions, you
dump off Rad's contract and get Stro, who expires.
The problem is, even with Stromile Swift's expiring deal,
you've added 10 million in salary for each of the next 3
years and taken away the Laker's best 3-point shooter.
Without Rad or Lamar & with Carter, the Lakers would be
at about 74 million before adding Bynum or anyone else
for next season. For 2010/2011, they'd be over 70 million
for just Kobe, Gasol, Sasha, Luke, and Carter. Add Bynum's
12 to that and it's 82. Then add in any money to re-sign
Farmar &/or Ariza, and you'd still have to add 5 or 6 more
players. The total salary would be over 100 million, putting
it at around 125 million with luxury tax.
When looking for Lamar trades, you should try to focus on
deals where at least half of the salary coming back expires
after this season.
Posted by: Long Time Laker Fan | October 15, 2008 at 02:14 PM
Puddle....Vince Carter has a shocking contract...Around 60mill
Posted by: Thirty2 | October 15, 2008 at 02:16 PM
Estimado Laker4Life:
Let me concurr with The Outlaw, Sasha is a good defender. He'll work passionately to stick with his defensive assignment, and he will be out on the court when the game is being decided. I think this second observation means, at the very least, that PJ does not see Sasha as a defensive liability when the game is on the line. Give him a chance, watch him fight through screens. Any young player, any Laker player, can star in a video low-light against the Celts.
Con respeto,
JuanU
Posted by: JuanU | October 15, 2008 at 05:22 PM
THE SHORTER EDITED VERSION
concerning our ultra-long winded bloggers
SHORTEN UP AND BE HEARD
LENGTHEN UP AND BE IGNORED
YOU EVER NOTICE
#################################
The Lakers have to be looking to trade Lamar Odum. Why would you not even try the "3 Tower" experiment. Point guard, sixth man, everything but starting SF. the Lakers are just setting him up for the inevitable.
I can see why LO would be upset. This could really hurts his value.
Posted by: YOU EVER NOTICE | October 14, 2008 at 07:42 PM
=========================
STFU and scroll, if you don't like long discussions. Like Obama when a punk trows out a lot you need to respond to a lot.
Posted by: JustaLakerFan | October 17, 2008 at 07:40 PM
MESSAGE TO MITCH - you should have kept Turiaf and let Sasha go. The proof is in the pudding - what team other than the Lakers offered Sasha a contract during his free agency this summer? The answer - NO ONE. That's because they know Sasha is not worth $5M per year. This is deja vu all over again - remember how Mitch offered lucrative multiyear contracts to Luke Walton and Vlad Rad after no other teams pursued them during free agency? Maybe Mitch will learn his lesson after a third time...
Posted by: Laker4Life | October 15, 2008 at 08:36 AM
==============
Not completely true. Sasha did not receive any serious offers from NBA teams but Euro teams wanted him. As for Luke and Rad no other teams pursued them because they were off the market as soon as they became FA's.
Luke resigned and not given time to test market (probably because PJ wanted him). Radman was called as soon as FA openned by PJ and Kobe and signed up without him testing the market.
Posted by: JustaLakerFan | October 17, 2008 at 08:35 PM