The problem is that no one is making an offer at him, so it’s not like he’s juggling 20 different offers from different cities. Secondly, I don’t think you can compare what I make to what LO makes, were talking millions here.

I’m not trying to say I dislike LO because I truly hope that he comes back. The fact of the matter is that I know many people who are avid Laker fans who have a problem with him taking his sweet time. You are right, it is a business and he needs to weigh his options and etc, but at the end of the day he needs to ask himself where his loyalties lie. (I don’t even care about the Celtics they are nonexistant to me, lol. )

I don’t even care if he takes until next week to sign, it just would be nice to know that he is working hard to make a deal with the Lakers. The problem is that it is so up in the air that fans like me don’t know what to think. Especially being around the Laker organization, I understand that their a franchise that has a lot of pride and is not scared to ship players out if they feel their client is not appreciating them. Therefore, that makes me a little nervous and I hope Lamar and his agent realize that as well. I hope he comes back, it wouldn’t be the same without him I was just really upset (calm now) in #80 post haha.

As for loyalty, want to talk to Leon Powe about that? He didn’t get a qualifying offer even though he played and rehabbed his guts out.

Athletes only get a certain window to make as much money as possible. We may not like it as fans, but it is a business. LO is 30, this is his last chance at a big payday. Next contract at 33-34, he’ll be lucky to get 5 mill a year. LO and his agent have handled themselves professionally the whole time and you don’t hear public gripping or posturing. It’s as simple as he has one figure and Lakers have another. It’s simple negotiations. Hopefully it will be settled. But as long as it’s handled professionally, I have no issues with it, since he is a free agent.

Regarding the sums he’s making, I always hate when people talk about how they should be grateful for the huge amounts. Sure it’s silly money, but it is a business and he’s got a right to get as much as possible while balancing other factors. He’s shown by action and words that he’s been grateful for his situation but that doesn’t mean he can’t make sure he’s got the best possible offer.

What if you had to take a 20% cut? There would be 3rd world immigrants out there who would say, be grateful for what you have. Every situation is relative.

If LO takes his time looking around and comes to the conclusion this is the best offer, he’s more likely to be happy and content with the lower offer. Rather than harbor feelings that the Lakers took advantage of him.

We have lost Ariza, and replaced him with Artest using our MLE. In other words, we have nothing left to pursue other players with, certainly not those of LO’s caliber. A player that is quite familiar with the triangle, to boot.

Also, having lost a starter hurts, and we can ill afford to lose yet another semi-starter especially when we aren’t sure what we’ll get from Bynum and how injury-free he’ll be. So that increases his leverage a bit too.

Now, Utah is going to match, because they really have no other option, which leaves Portland with little else to go after – Odom, being one of them since Marion has been snagged by Dallas. So waiting doesn’t hurt Odom here, either.

In addition, Odom probably also knows that the FO thinks Artest would be easier to handle with LO in the fold, so the Artest signing must have given him some confidence too.

So I can see where LO’s hardball reasoning is coming from. Even if it is just between the Lakers and LO, LO still has some leverage. Don’t think that will be enough to command 10mil, but it’s worth waiting things out.

Not that I am a fan of this, but at least it’s not unreasonable.

“It’s business, you know what I’m saying,” said Odom on Monday. “It takes a little bit of the fun out of the game, but it’s part of it.”

Asked whether he felt at all unloved or unappreciated by the Lakers, Odom paused and said, “Ummm, it’s just the way it is. It’ll pay off.”

He did however acknowledge a bit of disappointment the negotiations haven’t gone as well as he’d hoped.

“It’s crazy because if you think about my career and playing basketball and somebody trying to do all the things to help a team win a championship, I felt like I’ve done that you know,” he said. “But it’ll pay off. It’ll pay off.”

What the crap?

LO “That’s how negotiations r. Sometimes ur right on the same page and sometiems ur way off, that’s just part of it.”

Odom said he’s still “hopeful” he’ll be back with the Lakers.

Odom: “It’s business. It takes a little bit of the fun out of the game, but it’s part of it.