Letting Vlad come off the bench in the first game following Walton's injury puts less pressure on him.

You need a knife to open an oysters mouth
You need a fee to open an attorney's mouth
and sadly,
You need a subpoena to probe Phil Jackson's mind.

Agreed, Ex though Vlad might not get the same looks as he did before playing with the 2nd unit. (Like Derek back in 2003-2004 playing backup PG). Vlad back in 2006-2007 is what I would say though he did have a broken hand back then.

"He's not just going to "simply get over it."

The root of the problem begins with our coaching staff's communication issues with Andrew Bynum and it ends with our coaching staff's communication with Andrew Bynum."

The Root of the problems begins with Andrew. He has a job and his primary job is simple: Rebounding, Blocks, and Defense and bring energy along with so he can execute them 100% and the offense will come.

Now is Bynum executing 75% he is. He has games where he is really solid (Boston Game) and ones where is flat out where is he? (Utah).

His energy is inconsistent with is skill. He has the skill doesn't have the energy. Why? Some bloggers think its because of his knee, some think he is overrated (I don't think it goes that far), some think it's a mental thing about his knee. My guess is that he is not getting the same open looks as last year. True but does that mean not giving effort on the defensive end? He shows he could when he kept fronting Oden and denying the post pass. Other times he looks lost. Maybe not be it but what his play suggest it could be the inconsistent energy with his skill.

If it is because of the mental fear, he should flat out get over it. The coaching staff are not his parents nor are we bloggers (Hobbit). It's up to him to overcome the mental block and bring effort and energy at a *consistent* rate be there for one important game and not at another game which is just as important.

If it is (I doubt it is), then he should stop acting a like a baby and be scared of re-injuring the knee and start becoming like a man and being the active rebounder he was last year.

-blitz

I wonder what the hell Rad Vlad did?

Maybe Phil caught him skateboarding down a steep hill in El Segundo or something like that.

He was probably skateboarding down West Pine Avenue, running through stop signs and then slammed into the side of Phil's Porsche.

"VLADE!"

Ergo, Rad Vlad's one way trip to Phil Jackson's doghouse.

What do we play for? RINGS!!!!

Lakers Today... Lakers Tomorrow... Lakers Forever.

GO LAKERS!

Can someone please verify that LO, KB, AB, and PG have never been on the court together.

I personally can't remember one instance.

And WHY?

Why not at least experiment with this?

lakers_sth,

I guess a crab dribble is a four step travel: Two big steps, one small hesitation half-step, followed by one big step.

Crab dribble.

Lakers Today... Lakers Tomorrow... Lakers Forever.

GO LAKERS!

NEWSFLASH:

Luke Walton to miss at least 2 weeks with an injury that he isn't quite sure of it's origin

http://tinyurl.com/786f2a

CONCLUSION:

God is a Laker fan!!

Pau Gasol, arguably, has played better than Kobe Bryant this year.

Long Live Chick,

I think every Lakers fan would like to see a Fisher-Bryant-Odom-Gasol-Bynum line-up on the court.

In part, because we never have.

Why not give it a try? Seriously.

What do we play for? RINGS!!!!!

Lakers Today... Lakers Tomorrow... Lakers Forever.

GO LAKERS!

Fair enough Jon K though Bynum should get himself out of his mental block not having other people do it for him.

As always though:

Clippers suck today...Clippers will suck tomorrow...Clippers will always suck forever Jon K.

(Al Thorton Goaltending Allen Iverson hehe thanks a bunch I have no love for the Pistons but heck Iverson is on my fantasy team so heck it was sweet, no Pig i meant the one where I paid to play in, that place you would get owned and lose $75)

The saddest part though is pfunk36 is actually gloating that Luke is injured. I don't think anyone really "gloated" when even Kwa-may Brown went down (Mike T. was probably crying). Shows how much pfunk36 is so much like Mike T.

I would willing to bet Jon K's wallet though that pfunk36 you would think Larry Bird isn't a great basketball too huh?

And I disagree Troy,

Pau was played well but not the best out of the Lakers. Who was the one who was setting up Pau during the Celtics game? KB24.

-blitz

well one thing bears truth..no matter what team u supposedly root for..deep down within the inner bowels of your soul...your really a Raiders fan..

Go Raiders

Go Lakers

AK

I was more than conten with the reply phil jax gave you..and I also dont understand why you need to further explain the simplicities of a coach who doesn't wish give out any more info than needed.. I suppose it makes for great bloggin but I've given the Pathagorian more thought than crying about some conspiracy theory around luke...Trevor and Rad. I don't blame you AK..but rest assure that when phil gave you the "None of your buisness" type answer..atleast one blogger (me) didn't give it much thought soon after.

Comedy is easy

Journalism is hard (i suppose)

Lakeraholic,

"AK, I was more than conten with the reply phil jax gave you..and I also dont understand why you need to further explain the simplicities of a coach who doesn't wish give out any more info than needed.. I suppose it makes for great bloggin but I've given the Pathagorian more thought than crying about some conspiracy theory around luke...Trevor and Rad. I don't blame you AK..but rest assure that when phil gave you the "None of your buisness" type answer..atleast one blogger (me) didn't give it much thought soon after.

Comedy is easy Journalism is hard (i suppose)."

I hear ya and I agree that to some degree, Phil really doesn't need to explain anything (like I thought could have been his thought behind the response). It's nice and often clarifying when he does, but the obligation isn't there, at least not in EVERY instance. And believe me when I say, he's hardly the only coach capable of being cryptic.

But most readers found the response curious, so I thought it was only natural to weigh in.

For what it's worth, I've done both comedy and journalism. Comedy is actually harder, in my opinion.

AK

Blitz,

you wrote: You want to complain about my literacy? Try yours. The Lakers scheme does not want to funnel into the paint. When in the paint you get options to pass or shoot. No coach in their minds would want anyone in the paint. The scheme is the the BIG MAN. Obviously you read wrong and since you will most likely cry about "oh but that's what I read" please link the article because you funnel players into the paint, it's good as giving them a score. By funneling into a big man who is willing to step out the penetration stops and most times the penetrator is sealed off by the big man, his primary defender and the de facto 3rd defender of the baseline. No coach wants anyone in the paint.

my response:

Sometime around when we lost to the kings, I posted
the link to the article in the LA times and the direct quote
from Hamelin. Feel free to look for it.

re: penetration. I gave you my definition for the word.
Then I backed it up. boxscore for Lakers/Boston gm. 1
shows Kobe at 9/26 with 6 freethrows. Those stats
are indicative of kobe taking jump shots not going to
the rim. which is what I said. that's why I gave *my*
definition of penetration. You may call it by a different
name. You're basketball education is higher than
mine. Feel better?

re: not posting as much. You're sorta right and sorta
wrong. I've been posting here on a regular bases for a
few years now. I'd like to think that that makes me a non-
troll, but *your* definition is probably different than mine.
I've slowed down posting in recent weeks for a couple
of reasons.

1. I figured out that the Lakers championship rests upon
the shoulders of Bynum and Odom. [ Sad but true. ]
The reasons are:

A. Pau, Kobe, Fish will be solid to spectacular. Also
consistent.
B. Our "rough" spells this season have all involved
games where Bynum got into early foul trouble.
C. b/n Ariza, Kobe & Sasha we have enough defense
at the SF to contend with anyone.
D. b/n Kobe, Fisher & Sasha we have enough defense
& offense to contend with anyone at SG
E. Pau is the best PF we have. He's also the second
biggest offensive threat we have. He's also the
best defensive PF we have. If Bynum plays
reasonably well, Pau gets to play PF and we win.
Bynum, at the C, alters more shots than Pau. He's
bigger. etc.
F. In Lamar *shows up*, Pau can play C and Lamar can
play PF and we're good enough to beat 99% of the
teams. Pau is not as effective against bigger C's.
[ Oddly enough, this ties into my "horror" of mike T
being right. ]

2. The Lakers have the best record in the NBA. They're
beating EVERYONE! Screams about our pg situation
are short-sighted and foolish at this point in the season.
Ripping on various *young* Lakers for having a 2 to 4
game shooting slump doesn't serve any purpose. I've
seen others try to be a voice of reason and it hasn't
worked very well.

This is my *smallie* pt. of view.

IF AND ONLY IF Lamar & Bynum play well, the Lakers
will win the championship this year. [ barring injuries. ]
It's $$ in the bank. I only wish there were some way
to make a bet with those caveats.

If Bynum plays well, the Lakers will STILL WIN THE
CHAMPIONSHIP! That $$ is still in the bank. Earning
a paltry interest, I'm sorry to say.

If Bynum does not play well, the Lakers will go to the
finals. They may lose because we will be depending
on the famous Mr. Inconsistent. [ note: this is true
because PJ has a 3 man rotation at C/PF, but
then you know this. Stats are your late night reading
material. ]

With those being my core beliefs on this Lakers season,
do you see a reason for me to post a lot anymore?

re: smallie. Come on sport. You can do better than that.
Dig deep. Crack open a dictionary. Better yet, get
medieval and go for the Thesarus. You can be more
creative with your insults. The whole blog is waiting to
see your insult creativity. John Hollinger is waiting to
create some stats for you. Go blitz! Go! BTW, how are
dancer and vixen doing? Sorry. Did I get you confused
with a cold weather food source?

With feet like his Dad's best we get rid of him as quickly as we can. This guy will be collecting disability checks for the rest of his life.

The handwriting is on the wall with Walton.

NY/Stephon talking buy-out maybe the Lakers should think along those lines. Then he can go play for his favorite team the Celtics along w/Stephon.

Everybody's happy!

BD

For what it's worth, I've done both comedy and journalism. Comedy is actually harder, in my opinion.
AK
Posted by: kambrothers | January 05, 2009 at 05:27 PM

awww neck naw!!! You did comedy too?

lol..I can see you getting Gonged from Late night at the appolo..then sadly turning to BK saying "oh well..theres always journalism"!!!!

haha that's so funny it practically writes itself....

ex,

>>>>>Last night's game answered anything,

Yes, it didn’t.

Tom

Lakeraholic,

Actually, I never did stand up (that would be terrifying). I worked for years, however, in an improv troupe where we'd act out and parody movies. We ultimately ended up much more of a critical success than financial (although we did do a couple of studio showcases and had a small deal that went absolutely nowhere), but it was a lot of fun.

That time also helped me quite a bit with this job. Successful improv requires you to be listening carefully at all times and remain aware of how scenes are develop (as opposed to how you anticipated their build ahead of time). It also teaches you to seek an objective, but maintain a willingness to work with what's in front of you to get it, as opposed to trying to force what obviously isn't working. Interviewing, in my opinion, requires a similar mindset, and I try to incorporate that into my approach.

AK

See Hobbit loves to protect the little boys away from the big bad blitz anyways:

"I posted the link to the article in the LA times and the direct quote from Hamelin. Feel free to look for it".

1) Link it or too lazy? 2) Try this one

"So, instead of doing things where it allows us to load up and keep them to the sideline and baseline, they're trying to bring a lot more action to the middle of the floor and trying to do a lot of stuff in transition where we can't get bodies set and people in the position that we want them to be in."

Note the part hat says "sideline and baseline". They don't mean "paint". Derek Fisher confirmed that.

http://tinyurl.com/5pzjwk

"penetration. I gave you my definition for the word."

Yeah and that's why tons of fans are so wrong when they keep bagging on Kobe about shooting jumpers. The Celtics are always will make the shots close to the paint. That's why Kobe went for jumpers albiet he is letting the offense come to him even more to be more efficient. Part of the reason Michael Jordan succeeded was that he followed the offense and only penetrated when he could instead of doing it 80% of the time. Otherwise he wouldn't have gotten by the Bad Boy Pistons. Obviously you think penetration is easy and if they clog the lane Kobe will get followed. Try Game 2 of the Finals when he did kept penetrating but there was no fouls.

re: B) Three games where Bynum's foul troubles really cost us. Otherwise the other 2 games (Detroit and Indiana) Bynum wasn't in much foul trouble and we still lost. The fact is simply have to step up when your center gets into foul trouble. That's what happened in Memphis for the rally and the New Orleans game.

C) Lebron James. I understand you have not heard about how well he is doing?

D) Dwyane Wade enough said.

E) No problem there but isn't that always the point?

"Pau is not as effective against bigger C's."

Did anyone tell you that Pau is more Power Forward than Center? Had we even had a decent backup center there would have been a better chance to win the finals (no Ronny doesn't count). Or do you remember Pau dunking on the "physical" Oden or how he held his own against Shaq and yes Dwight Howard (it was Jameer Nelson that helped the Magic back into that game). Pau playing center is fine, simply have to have other players step up.

"They're beating EVERYONE!"

Please. Detroit?? Cleveland yet?? We still have to see about Charlotte though it's most likely wins. Miami?? Orlando?? Still have to go to San Antonio as well not to mention winning at Boston which I personally think is the biggest key to winning a title at all. Otherwise have to win every game to ensure home court advantage.

My advice: Try to lower down the passions. It's perfectly fine to bleed purple and gold but have to also think more realistically no?

"With those being my core beliefs on this Lakers season,
do you see a reason for me to post a lot anymore?"

No unless I criticize against Jordan (without his weak defense and allowing Trevor to guard against point guards when Fish isn't, is helping a ton. Imagine what Steve Blake would have done to Farmar) and calling Trevor overrated. Plus you love it whenver Trevor is playing well and say haha and when he doesn't play well you hide in your hole. See what I mean? You act like if the young Lakers will be All-Stars and they do not deserve criticisms. No one is above the game and that includes Kobe. Oh wait besides Kobe and Pau you seem to say that everyone else besides Lamar Odom deserves no criticism. Yup according to Hobbitmage Jordan Farmar is John Stockton Sasha is Mitch Richmond Trevor Ariza is Scottie Pippen and Andrew Bynum is David Robinson because they are young since they work hard they will be like them. Not. Hey that was a good joke hope you did laugh as well.

No I won't go to insults. That's Mike T's thing.

-blitz

Break out some of the vintage improv video clips AK. That would be fun.

Wes

blitz,

You wrote: He keeps thinking "defense wins championships" and ignores ball movement, passing, and other fundamentals that is key to defeating a defense that is good as the Celtics.

my response: hmm ... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ignore
ball movement, passing and other offensive
fundamentals. Can you name me one team that
has played in the NBA finals, in the last 20 years,
who did not exhibit the afore mentioned offensive
fundamentals on the way to the championship round?

Lakers loss to the Pistons was because of what?
Lakers loss to the Celtics was because of what?
Can you name a recent NBA championship that
wasn't a good defensive team? [outside of miami ]
How was the Mavs defense against Wade in the
finals?
What did Phil say the Lakers need to work on?
What did Kobe say the Lakers need to work on?

http://tinyurl.com/7njwr4

Interesting snippets from the article:

Since the big Y2K disappointment (yeah, worldwide chaos through technological calamity would have been sweet), stellar defensive teams have been absconding with the O'Brien Trophy at an alarming rate. Just last season, the Boston Celtics embraced the jam-the-lane philosophy of new defensive coordinator (and minor celebrity) Tom Thibodeau en route to their first NBA championship in quite awhile.

[ How is Kobe penetrating if Boston is jamming the lane? ]

No, even though coach Doc Rivers had his team work at what passes for a reasonable tempo, his team was at the top in defensive efficiency. They flexed their knees and prevented dribble penetration, they attacked ball screens, they closed-out on shooters with a vigorous sense of urgency (in relative terms) and provided help-side support.

So, if playing exemplary defense worked for Boston — as it has for the San Antonio Spurs, Detroit Pistons and last decade's Chicago Bulls — why in the NBA world do so few teams make that commitment?

Now before you attempt to drag some statistical paradigm into this rant and insist that — by the numbers — NBA teams really do dig in and play D, just find your remote and sit down. After that deep breath, locate an NBA game on one station and a high-level college game occurring at the same time on another channel.

Watch the NBA game for about five minutes, then jump over to the college game for five. Go back and watch the professionals again, then switch back to the student-athletes.

If you didn't notice the disparate intensity in the defense, you probably found a women's college game.

[ I love the quote about finding a women's college game. ]

On the NBA game (unless it's Boston or Cleveland), perimeter on-ball defenders are in full retreat instead of moving side to side (hello, Steve Nash) or just standing up. Cutters are trailed through the lane and close-outs are performed with mediocre gusto.

[ Steve Nash ... I remember him. ball movement. passing.
solid offensive fundamentals. ]

With ball screens remaining popular, more teams are attempting to blitz the ballhandler in Celtic fashion, hoping the trap prevents the passer from even seeing an outlet for a diagonal skip.

[ So does the offensive fundamental of ball movement
win over the trap which prevents the passer from
seeing an outlet for a diagonal skip? ]

The Cs are great on cheating over, rotating early and taking away that immediate pass.

[ Crap. taking away that immediate pass affects ball
movement/passing doesn't it? ]

That's one reason why Mike D'Antoni's offense could — in the hands of great players — win a championship, but his inability to trust more than seven players prohibits him from deploying the kind of defense a seven-seconds-or-less style requires. If D'Antoni would be hired by a major college program and allowed to recruit the players that fit his system, he'd probably add pressure defense to his offensive genius with Final Fours arriving in short order.

[ No! You're telling me that if D'Antoni would have
deployed a defense he could have won
a championship with "7 secs or less"? All he was
missing was .... D-D-Defense? ]

However, you should read the article. Then you can
tell me if I mis-read what he said. The article's name:

"Championships begin and end with defense"

Help me out here. I'm looking for:" ball movement, passing, and other fundamentals " pave the
way to a championship in the title:

"Championships begin and end with defense"

In case you missed it earlier, the link is:

http://tinyurl.com/7njwr4

I like not having trolls...and us having a spirited discussion with each other.

At least this way, we talk about things that actually has something to do with the team, and could possibly help lol.

GO Lakers! Go Lakerville!

Laker Tom,

"Proclaiming that his injury has nothing to do with Drew’s current performance seems naïve since that was the major event that has precipitated the problem."

Laker Tom I like you alot make no mistake. That being said if Drew was averaging 6 and 6, then I too would agree the knee might be problematic. But he's averaging the same amount of points but not rebounds. So there is nothing really to be said is "wrong" about the knee otherwise he wouldn't have had good games. I don't know what's wrong probably the Lord above only knows what is wrong. But since he doesn't give an answer at times the best answer is from Bynum himself. He says nothing is wrong about his knee and unless he says otherwise I have to go by his word.

"He does not jump as high or as quickly and he does not handle low passes well that he used to convert."

It's all mental Laker Tom, Kwa-may Brown had the body to dominate. The problem was with his mind. True being high expectations may have crushed his spirit but was him letting those expectations crush him. Similar situation to Bynum. His agent (doing no evil) kept demanding a max contract when Bynum had only 1/2 season of doing anything well and with a raw offensive game. Now he has $13 million which is similar to Pau's contract and simply he's not playing like it. Sure he has his positive things he brings to the Lakers but it's still a toss up in the air (at least to me) to see if Bynum can truly be the franchise player that Kobe is. Kobe had accomplished so much more (and Del Harris was keeping him on the bench) than Bynum had in his rookie year. Can Drew overcome it and be a better player. That answer is emphatically yes and he should not let any injury, no matter how serious (as long as it isn't career ending) mentally hold him to do the right things.

Ben Wallace proved that you don't need to be offensive strong to win championships as he proved in Detroit and Camby if he was much bigger would have been the same except with more offense than Wallace. In the finals we were outmuscled but really? The biggest thing Drew could have used is 1) Stronger post defense and 2) Better rebounding as he proved against the Celtics on Christmas. Remember none of the Bulls championship teams ever had a "physical inside big man". Rodman was great on defense but not an inside guy. Longley was a role player who was a good passer but not an inside guy. Horace Grant was solid and an All Star but never really one to really pound it inside. When I watched him last year he was more active I agree but simply because Kobe was looking for him more. Like I keep saying Drew hasn't responded as well to the 3rd option as Lamar had. He did OK when 2nd option but is too passive as a 3rd. And you don't need a "physical" thing from Bynum, as I showed in my transcript both Pau and Kobe dominated the Celtics despite being labelled as "soft". Did they need to be more physical in defense and getting rebounds? Yes Bynum helped that problem. Did they needed to be more physical to get inside the Vaunted Celtics defense? No. Kobe and Pau played smart basketball, used the triangle offense, and dominated the Celtics with mostly jumpers. The offense is designed with greater emphasis on passing/cutting and the best way to defeat zones (with passing). Zones are designed for two things 1) Stop penetration and 2) Limit big men and it was specifically to contain Shaq back in early 2000's. To defeat a team defense is passing, don't have to be physical on the offensive end.

Sorry Tom but the only beast truly is Kobe Bryant. Sure he already has a nickname but the way he is, no other player on the Laker team describes him. I want Bynum to succeed but he isn't looking like the franchise player. Maybe a very good one close to C-Webb. But banging around the legends like Hakeem, Shaq, and even Moses Malone? Don't count on it. I personally don't have Dwight in that neighborhood even with the way Dwight Howard has been playing. Why should I put Bynum in that area at the time being? If he improves his play then I'll always willing to admit I was wrong and give him credit but he should be doing much more to show he's the "franchise player".

Sorry Tom also but when you have Kobe Bryant and especially Pau Gasol AND 6 other players who would also want to score it's hard to give Bynum enough touches.

My opinion on that.

-blitz

Laker Tom is right on - come playoff time The Beast will needed to get rings.

In honor of Luke's injury I re-watched the Celtic game (saved on TIVO). Luke is slow and not real athletic. His shot comes and goes. He is as good a defender as his tools allow - pretty good team defender, vulnerable 1-on1.

So what is he good at? Anyone who still has that game, watch his focus on spacing on offense. He is always in the right place. Sometimes good spacing is a matter of a step or 2 - in postition to recieve a pass, but far enough away that a player doubling on Kobe or Pau can't back to him in time. Spreading the floor in the corner or at the top of the key to provide balance for transitiion defense. Constantly moving, a step left or right or in or out to keep the spacing right.

I think it has helped Kobe emerge from his funk, Luke makes sure the floor is spaced right and Kobe has room to operate, doubling is tougher. If Luke can hit a few shots (big if) he can make the whole Laker offense more efficient.

Phil values such things. That is why Luke gets starts. and I would guess why Space Cadet Radmonovic is in the dog house.

Luke does the little things Rick Fox did, although he is less effective on D, and less likely to go off irrationally, a nice attribute Pretty Boy Fox brought to the floor.

Trevor would do well to watch Luke. If learns from Luke and brings his athleticism as well he could be a monster for the Lakers.

Eric,

>>>>>Dude is like the most stubborn person around. I guess that is why him
>>>>>and Hobbit go at it for weeks. But the idea that somehow playing with a sore
>>>>>knee once in High school gives him the balls to tell AB to "Man Up" is truly
>>>>>laughable.

Funny, how we could never agree on anything about politics but seem to agree with everything about the Lakers. LOL. The great blitz is a blogger extraordinaire whom I love but just needs to tone down his rhetoric and realize his opinions are not fact. In fact, didn’t you say almost the same thing to me before? LOL. But blitz is cool and a good sport. He just needs to be smacked down a notch or two when he goes overboard. And thankfully, he has come to the right place to receive his just punishment. LOL.

>>>>>On a side note....Don't you love the little 12-14 foot jumpshot AB is hitting?
>>>>>I don't want him to shoot too many, but it will make him much harder to guard
>>>>>once he gets straightened out.

I am hoping ex is right and we may see the Beast before the end of the year. Were Drew playing at a beastly level, I bet you would see a huge drop in the complaints about the team and other players on the blog. Of course, Mrs. LakerTom says it will be worse. The Lakers are so good that the trolls have all run away to hide. Where was Mike T. after the Boston game? Anyway, Mrs. LT says we will devour our own young without trolls to attack and she might be right. Especially if blitz keeps trying to “Zakee” young Drew. JK, blitz.

As always, JMNSHBO!

Tom