If we don't re-sign Odom, I'd trade Bynum for David West and Tyson Chandler.

I've got the PERFECT SOLUTION for the Kobe opt-out situation.

IF Kobe is serious about wanting to stay here and build a long term championship team and IF Dr Buss is serious about rewarding him for it but not risking his own bankbook, how about this:
Kobe opts out and signs for a reduced amount and Dr Buss gives him a small piece of the team, that is a small percentage of Laker profits, or "points" as they say in show biz.

That way if the Lakers DO win a couple more rings and show a huge profit, Kobe will make even MORE than he would with a max deal. And if that doesn't come to pass, he makes less and Dr Buss doesn't lose as much. A true win-win situation, and not unprecedented (see: Magic, or Michael with the Wizards)

Its done all the time in the movie biz - a star that usually makes 10-15 mil per movie will take half that and a piece of the back end profits. In music, producers will often cut or completely give up their upfront fees for a percentage of the album's revenues. Why not the same for the star of the hoops team that plays in Hollywood? Then we can use the cash for Trevor, Lamar, Shannon and whoever else and everybody wins - including the fans!

How about it???

this opt out discussion is like me seriously discussing who needs to apologize and suck up to the other in a fight that you and your wife never had.

has the team indicated to Kobe that they need his help to pay fairly to keep the team together? ever? really? if not, then the money discussion is pointless and is the product of confused minds.

if the team had made the request(publicly), this discussion would still be the worst sort of tongue clucking gossip, but at least some of the points made and arguements put forth might have some merit....

ChicNStu,
Horse burgers are ready!! Who wants cheese?

ex,

>>> Kobe certainly doesn't "owe" the Lakers a smaller contract,
>>> just like the Lakers don't "owe" Kobe a max deal.

>>> But it is reasonable for both of them to give a little when
>>> comes to trying for additional titles.

Right on, ex. Every time I read one of your dead-on comments, I shake my head in wonder at your politics. One thing is for sure, everybody has an opinion when it comes to OPM, other people’s money. This is like a rerun of Drew’s extension. Money still rules the mind of the blog as much as it rules the actions of the players. Too funny.

Tom

{Lakers Secret Agent Jon K. Reporting From Deep Behind Enemy Lines In The Lakers Cave Obscured By A Pile Of Moss Covered Rotting Trees Next To An Abandonded, Rusted Old Steel Mill}

{Mission: SAVE THE LAKERS DYNASTY}

{Operation: PERFECT SOLUTION}

Okay, we've got the workings of a Dynasty in the making here (also known as "a period of Universal harmony").

I've heard some pretty-darned crazy talk coming from some people who are not BK, so I've created "Operation: PERFECT SOLUTION" to resolve the issue.

Here it is:

1. Dr. Buss is going to have to become comfortable making less liquid profit each year and instead trust that a Dynastic period will add increased value to the franchise as a whole.

2. Kobe Bryant is going to have to take a little less money and accept that his value to the team will decrease as he gets older instead of increasing.

3. Lamar Odom is going to have to take a little less money and a little shorter a contract than he might otherwise ideally want.

4. Trevor Ariza is going to have to take a little less money, but get a bit longer contract for greater security.

5. Shannon Brown is going to have to take a little less money and a mid-term contract, but it will be a lot better than what he was expecting when he was riding the bench at Charlotte.

6. Sun Yue has to go. His tiny contract is dead weight, especially with the luxury tax and an extra half million a year could make the difference with one of our three staying or not.

7. Dr. Buss (relative to Kobe's degree of sacrifice) is going to have to make a personal commitment with Kobe (as well as agree other Laker shareholders to agree to compromise with this--sharing the burden) to make Kobe a permenant member of the Lakers, even after his playing career ends, in a similar vein as Magic Johnson is a permenant member (due to his co-ownership) of the Lakers franchise. Essentially, Dr. Buss will be "paying" Kobe in deferred stock not for playing, but for compromise, faith, and a committment to supporting a Dynastic franchise.

Everyone compromises.

Everyone is respected.

Everyone wins.

Perfect Solution and, quite frankly, the only solution that truly works.

What do we play for? RINGS!!!!

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

GO LAKERS!!!!

Jay Jay,

Great suggestion. At the end of the day, if ownership is financially unable to bring everyone back, that would be a win-win for everyone, including the fans.

more thoughts, seemingly....

in my feeble little mind, I am wondering what will Mitch turn over for Morrison's expiring contract for and when...

to me the trading of Morrison and his attractive expiring contract is ineviitable this season, the question remaining when and what for...

talk about some more money the team would like to free up, especially for a player who really didn't contribute to the run (other than a practice player or so)...

can the Lakers trade him for a distant future pick ala Anthony Peeler? is this a viable leagal option LTLF (the blog's source of accurate information on such subjects, as well as many others, as it were) ?

I do think Mitch will hold onto Morrison as long as is advantageous....first he needs to see if he can indeed re-sign our FA's without moving Morrison and if that is not successful, Mitch then has Morrison as the foundation of a trade that may bring us a replacement for which ever FA we may lose etc.

LTLF, can Morrison be combined with any of our other players in a trade or can he only be traded by himself etc. ? can he be used in a sign and trade senerio for another team's FA?

if we do lose our FA's, it seems Morrison (and his contract) may be key in yielding us a worthy replacement or two or so...

Mitch has some options and assets that I have faith he will use effectively...

GO LAKERS !!!

chicNstu and ex - i'm already dealing with enough horses, i'll take a turkey burger, swiss, mustard 'n pickles... add chips and a bottomless pepsi.

floyd - i'm with you on all counts. much prefer option A of course but as a backstop, here's some suspects: Sheed, Marion, Turk if he'd take less than what he's looking for, Bird if he wants an actual shot at a ring, Harrington, Testes???? So, want a dog or a burger?

first annual beat a dead horse b-b-q.

Dave M,

yeah I meant trading Morrison for some other team's FA in a sign and trade deal

GO LAKERS !!!

Floyd,

>>> …to me the trading of Morrison and his attractive expiring contract is
>>> inevitable this season, the question remaining when and what for...

The reason teams ultimately desire expiring contracts is to reduce payroll. The reason the Lakers are lucky to have Ammo’s contract is not that they can use it to trade for a better player but that they can use it to cut payroll by letting it expire. That’s why I think the Lakers will NOT trade Ammo but just let his contract expire. That will save the team enough money to pay for all but the first year of Trevor’s contract. That is how you use Ammo to lock Trevor up for several years at no more cost to the team.

The reality the Lakers have to face in order to be able to afford to keep the current team together – or at least the Core 5 players, who are Kobe, Pau, Drew, Lamar, and Trevor – is that they need to make the small smart moves that will add up to substantial savings. That means allowing Morrison’s $5M contract to expire to save $10M in salary and tax. Trading Ammo only means that you have to pay some other player the money. And it means we may start to see our role players leave via free agency versus trade.

If you look at the Lakers salaries in Hoopshype, you will notice a trend over the next few years, which I submit is not coincidence but smart planning by the Lakers front office. Next year, we have Ammo’s $5M expiring contract as well as Fish’s $5M and Farmar’s $2M expiring contracts. The year after we Sasha’s $5M expiring contract. 2 years later we have Luke’s $6M expiring contract. This will give the Lakers an ongoing source of valuable dollars each year to not only keep the team together but also growing.

Mitch Kupchak can finish this summer as an acknowledged master of running an NBA franchise if he can lock up the team’s Core 5 of Kobe, Pau, Drew, Lamar, and Trevor. Ironically, he has one other weapon to help the Lakers payroll dilemma, which is to do what teams do when they want to cut salary: trade viable players for stiffs on other teams with expiring contracts. If push comes to shove, we could trade Farmar, Sasha, or Luke for a terrible player with an expiring contract that we could let run out.

Tom

Kobefan in Cupertino.

>>> So AK/BK...I would disagree with you on who's the money-elephant in the room.
>>> Its NOT Kobe, its Bynum who is not giving 16 million worth through his game!!

What a bunch of malarkey! You are probably one of those fantasy league nuts who is always rooting for some player on the other team every time the Lakers go on defense. Are you the same guy who wanted to trade Drew for Chandler and West earlier today? Drew’s new contract does not start until next year. Let’s see how he plays before you criticize him for not earning his keep. Playing injured, he set the tone in the Finals. Next year, he will become the Lakers best defensive player and second leading scorer.

You say we overpaid for Bynum because if we waited a year nobody would have paid him $15M per year because he didn’t perform well enough and the economy sucks. By your reckoning, Andrew would be eligible to be a free agent on July 1st and the Lakers would not even have the right to negotiate with him until then. And of course, he would NOT harbor any ill will towards the Lakers for not giving him the extension. Bottom line, were Andrew Bynum a free agent on July 1, there would still be several teams stepping up to line with big money and the Lakers would likely have lost a franchise player.

Tom

LakerTom,

No, I am NOT the one who wanted to trade Drew for West + Chandler.... I am 200% against it : Chandler is as much as injury prone he is, and we dont need David West as well - we have enough scorers in Kobe and Pau....

Also, when does this "new contract does not start until next year" mean...?? It means it starts with the 2009-2010 season right?? I am too telling the same, we have NOT overpaid Bynum, we are going to overpay Bynum.

Ok, tell me something - Even if he made 15/15/5 in the playoffs, do U tell me that ANY team would give Bynum 15 mil per year, given the elite 2010 summer just a season away?? NO WAY!!

He is going to be the future of the franchise?? IMO, He has to go a long way for that and I see chances for that very little.

Also, what I meant was when everyone is telling Kobe should take a significant paycut, when Drew is going to be overpaid this year!

Floyd,

The only way we cash in or save money with Morrison's contract is to let it expire. This year we have Morrison's 5 million, next year Sasha's. That's 10 million to put toward the team.

As for trading draft picks--they have 0 value (from some CBA website):

"71. How are draft picks handled in trades?
Draft picks (both first and second round) count $0 for salary matching purposes. This is true both before and after the draft, until the player signs a contract. This can make it very difficult to construct a trade that is equitable in both trade value and basketball talent. For example, Vancouver selected Steve Francis with the #2 pick in the 1999 draft, and traded his draft rights to Houston. When the trade was finally engineered, it included three teams (Orlando was also involved), 11 players (including Francis) and two future draft picks.

Once the draft pick signs a contract, his actual salary becomes his trade value."

Yeah, so trading Morrison only works if we want to be the one taking on a longer contract, not saving money. We want that, we let him walk at years end, which I bet will happen. There is no way we re-sign Morrison. That would defeat the purpose of the Vlad trade.

But who knows.

Wes

i just got to the part of the podcast where they discuss the MVPuppets. they asked if Shaq is a Nike guy. he is not. he signed a five year deal (i believe) with a co. in China. and that was 3 years ago (i believe).

Floyd posed an interesting question, what should Mitch do if Lamar and/or Trevor deals fall through. well, first, the easiest is Shannon Brown. probably if he walks, Lakers do nothing.

if trevor leaves, of course Lakers needs a new SF, cuz all we have left is Walton and Ammo. maybe look into signing Turkoglu or Artest comes to mind. although i wouldn't want Artest, as he's too combustable, and shoots too damn much. Turkoglu though, has that kinda of toughness that many of the Lakers lack.

if Lamar leaves, definitely Birdman could fill a huge void, especially defensively and rebounding-wise. or Lakers should try to get Lee from the Knicks, who i always liked. ultimately, Mitch would need to find someone that's talented, has a strong work ethic, and won't mind coming off the bench. so preferably no stars.

here's the list of Free Agents:
http://tinyurl.com/pv2lgp

if you want another PG:
Lindsey Hunter is a free agent. i always liked him.

he's a SG, but might be able to play SF:
Wally Szczerbiak. good 3 point%
Von Wafer. former Laker. 9.7 ppg last season. 39% from 3.
Kyle Korver. good 3%

Devean George, i'd consider bringing back. his Mavs stats weren't impressive, but his best years were clearly with the Lakers. maybe he just needs the triangle offense again.

Grant Hill: maybe he'll take less to win a ring.

Michael Finley: would be a good fit, but lucky getting him to leave spurs.

PF:
Drew Gooden. decent numbers.

but most of those guys are over the hill. not one of those guys i'd take over Lamar and Trevor.

Kobefan in Cupertino (and blitz, who cannot miss a chance to dump on Drew),

Fair enough. We’ll have to see how Drew plays next year to determine whether he will be overpaid or not. Time will also answer if he will be the Next Great Lakers center.

Had Drew not been given an extension, the Lakers would have tendered a qualifying offer to make him a restricted free agent. Because there are only a few teams under the cap, Drew would probably have accepted the offer so that he could play out the year and to be an unrestricted free agent, which would have put the Lakers at risk of losing him.

I love how you two take an unexpected injury that was not related to his earlier injury and then use his partial performance during the regular season and injury hindered effort in the playoffs to proclaim he is not going to be worth his salary next year. Then you claim that because of his injured performance, which you both predicted which was why you did not give him an extension, he will not earn anywhere near the money he got.

I am guessing Kobefan is just sounding off to defend his man Kobe, which I understand. Bur blitz, you disappoint me again. You just can’t resist a chance to attack Drew or Jordan or Sasha or whatever Laker your godly powers of observation has identified as the next target for your never satisfied lust to dump on the current generation of Lakers and NBA players who can never life up to the accomplishments of favorite old timers.

Go play with your Duncan and MJ dolls and let the rest of us enjoy this championship.

Tom

I think the talk about Bynum's contract comes with the luxury of hindsight (his injury, his play upon returning, etc.). At the time the contract was being negotiated, there was much handwringing about the numbers but there was also the very pressing reality that he was regaining his previous form and that there was a window on getting an extension done. Yes, he gets a hefty raise and yes, it impacts our ability to field the team we want. However, the choice to sign him to the extension wasn't a bad one at the time. Injuries are just a part of the game.

The draft sales and the lack of trade or signing buzz in our camp probably speaks to an internal confidence, that Odom, Ariza and Brown will come back, and that we'll chip away at the hefty budget. My initial thoughts were that Morrison's expiring K would be dealt, but I think that Tom and others have more forward thinking - see how he plays this year, let it expire if he doesn't pan out and save the money and combined tax.

humananomaly,

All I have to say is, "PROVE ME WRONG, SUN YUE! PROVE ME WRONG!"

What do we play for? RINGS!!!!

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

GO LAKERS!!!

leonard....

with Cleveland Crabaliers picking up the Big Exoskeleton they will need all the outside shooters they can get/retain, so Wally's chances of staying went up, plus he's $13 million coming off the books next summer, keep up....

Wait a minute. I literally had to stop the spoon full of yellow curry (mussaman) Thai food in mid stride, with mouth wide open and saliva dripping like some slobbering mutt to rush back to my laptop because I realized Rubio hadn't been traded to the Nicks yet. But when it does happen...the Bynum trade is on!

Wes

Floyd,

>>>can the Lakers trade him for a distant future pick ala
>>> Anthony Peeler? is this a viable leagal option LTLF

Only if that team has enough cap space to absorb his contract
without sending anyone back. Or if they had a large enough
trade exception. I think Golden State has one. Not sure who
else.

The problem is, you have to find a team that's willing to gamble
5 million dollars on a guy just because he was really good in
college, though he has yet to show it in the NBA. Of course,
the Lakers did just that when they traded for Kwame Brown,
so it's not completely out of the question.

So what team in the league would really like to add a small
forward whose upside is rapidly dwindling? Not sure.

One other possibility would be if Phoenix was interested.
They could trade Pavlovic for him, and Pav's contract is only
partially guaranteed.

>>>I do think Mitch will hold onto Morrison as long as is
>>>advantageous....first he needs to see if he can indeed
>>>re-sign our FA's without moving Morrison and if that is
>>>not successful, Mitch then has Morrison as the
>>>foundation of a trade that may bring us a replacement
>>>for which ever FA we may lose etc.

And that is a shrewd analysis. Morrison's greatest value is
that he is technically an expiring contract - there are two more
years on his contract, but the second year is a qualifying offer,
so the team could just waive him.

Assuming LeBron, Wade, and Bosh don't re-sign with their
own teams this summer, there might be more teams trying to
free up cap space either now or at the trade deadline. To them,
Morrison looks like 5 million coming off the cap in summer of 2010,
so the Lakers might be able to get a better player with a longer
contract. And that's also a reason to keep MBenga, Powell,
and even Sun Yue on the payroll. That would be four expring
contracts that could be combined in 16 different ways to make
a trade value of anywhere from 600K to just under 10 million.

>>>LTLF, can Morrison be combined with any of our other
>>>players in a trade or can he only be traded by himself
>>>etc. ? can he be used in a sign and trade senerio for
>>>another team's FA?

Any combination you please. sign & trade is trickier as the
signed and traded player is base year compensated, but yes,
Morrison could be included in that kind of deal as well.

Another possibility is that the Lakers could inform Morrison
that they don't plan to play him at all this season and ask him
if he'd like a buy out so that he could go sign with another team.
If he'd take 4 million instead of 5, then the Lakers would save
2 million and Morrison could make more money (and more PT)
with even a veteran's minimum contract elsewhere.

Another possibility is that Morrison could play up to the potential
he displayed in college. If that happens, then the Lakers may
be looking for something more in a trade for him. If he suddenly
was outplaying Luke and taking Luke's minutes as the backup
SF and was scroing 10 points a game and averaging 40% on
3-pointers, then his trade value would go through the roof.
Then maybe he's worth a late lottery pick in a trade, or something
like that.

Unfortuntaely, I don't think that's likely to happen. It would be
nice if it did, but if it doesn't, Morrison isn't complete dead weight.
He's the all-purpose trade chip.

>>>if trevor leaves, of course Lakers needs a new SF, cuz
>>>all we have left is Walton and Ammo. maybe look into
>>>signing Turkoglu or Artest comes to min

I like both of those ideas. I think Turkey Lurkey is expecting to
get MAJOR bank, though. He wants a contract for 10 million
per for 5 years, according to his agent.

Artest is looking to get paid as well. Remember, last summer
he could have opted out and gone to ANY TEAM IN THE LEAGUE
for only a million less than he was making. If he had been willing
to work for MLE money for a season, he could have come to the
Lakers and won a ring. But he chose more money over the best
chance of winning a title. (see how that works).

The only way I could see EITHER Turkoglu or Artest signing
with the Lakers is if they gambled and held out too long and all
the free cash dried up. Once all the teams with deep pockets
have spent it, then the MLE is the most you can make.

So if it came to that situation and those guys had a choice of
taking slightly over the MLE from their own team, or taking the
MLE from the Lakers, they might do it to spite Orlando or Houston
for not offering the big bucks in the first place. It's unlikely, but
at least possible.

I was not a big fan of the Bynum contract when they did it, because of his injury history, but it certainly was not a ridiculous move. If he plays an entire season like he played the month before he got hurt, it will look like a bargain. And to blame his contract for the current situation is really silly.

>>>I think the talk about Bynum's contract comes with the
>>>luxury of hindsight.

As several of us argued last summer, that's not the case.

Bynum's record showed some potential that he could one day
be an all-star caliber player. But it also showed some potential
that he could be injury prone and could spend more time injured
than playing. And as of last summer, his stats had never been
all-star level for more than a few games.

A starting 7 footer with some game does get you a big paycheck,
but not as big as they gave him. I think Bynum's agent won.
He had a big staredown with Mitch and went out of his way
to publicize that he thought Bynum was worth the max, and
Mitch blinked (probably as Jimmy Buss feigned poking him in
the eyes).

As I said last summer, I would have offered Bynum less guaranteed
money with incentives that could bring it up to the big bucks
contract. Several other teams offered contracts like that last
summer and they were accepted.

If Bynum had accepted that contract, then he'd only be making
slightly less this season. He'd have missed the statistical incentives
since he missed much of the season, but he would have gotten the
playoff bonuses. And if he eventually plays up to the level his
agent was hyping, then he would have earned MORE money
than his current contract.

And if Bynum had rejected that contract, then right now he
would be a restricted free agent who showed flashes of brilliance
at times, but who missed half of each of the last two seasons
with injuries. He would get offers, but they wouldn't be as large
as what he's being paid now.

To be fair, there was a possibility that Bynum could have been
insulted by the offer, averaged 20 & 10, made the all-star team,
been finals MVP, and was now forcing his way off of the Lakers
for insulting him with a less than max offer. In bizarro world.

Floyd,

Using Morrison's expiring contract is a great idea, but remember, it takes 2 to make a deal (sometimes 3).....No one is going to give the Lakers a player of LO or Trevor unless their season is done, and it is for a player who they would lose for nothing...it would be awfullly hard and it will become harder come deadline time to pull a deal. Don't worry about it, Mitch will secure Kobe, LO, TA and SB at reasonable rates. after that he needs to fill out the roster, and that will even hurt, even if Jon K's plan to not pick up the option on Sun Yue goes over. Every player Mitch signs to fill the roster, their salary, think double....Sun may go play in China next year anyways...I think he deserves a look at, when he is healthy Then he can come back, he could be Laker property depending on how it is handled. Then Mitch would be scouring for players,...(thumpa,thumpa,thumpa)....is that the Smushcalade I hear ? Wow, all is saved