After Julius Randle’s injury on opening night, writing a game preview seems sort of trivial. But the games will go on and the Lakers, even down their prized rookie and as shorthanded as ever, travel to Phoenix to play their second game in as many nights in an opponent’s home opener. The lack of rest (both physical and mental, considering the Randle injury) and the fact that the Suns are opening their season are two variables that would have made this game challenging already, but when combined with the fact that the Suns are the superior team the Lakers are facing a steep climb.
While the Lakers played the Suns in the preseason, this game will likely not follow that template. For one, that game saw Phoenix rest their starting backcourt in the 2nd half while the Lakers played all their available players until the near end. If you recall, Kobe exited with a couple of minutes left in overtime which promptly saw the Lakers struggle to score and the Suns pull a way to win. It’s arguable the game never should have even gotten to that point, though, as Wes Johnson simply had to sink a couple of free throws in the closing seconds to clinch the win. That didn’t happen, however, and the Lakers fell because of it.
With the Suns having their full lineup at their disposal, the main key of the game will be the Lakers’ team defense and how the manage to fend off the superior athleticism and quickness that the Suns’ backcourt has to offer. Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe will look to push the pace at every opportunity. When one of them leaves the floor, Isaiah Thomas will do the same. With this, the Lakers’ transition defense will be severely tested and the need to get back while defending the paint against straight-line drives while also marking shooters who will run to the three point line is a major key to the game. The Lakers must build a wall with their guards and their big men must hustle back to support or the fast break points will come in bunches.
When the game slows down, the defense will need to be just as sharp. While the departure of Channing Frye will affect the Suns’ spacing based offense, their point guard trio will still look to do damage in the P&R by either splitting hard hedges or stringing out their dribble to draw multiple defenders. Both tactics will lead to open three pointers and quick attacks to the rim by the ball handler, so the second line of defense must be in tune with those at the point of attack if this action is to be slowed down.
Offensively, the Lakers must find a way to be more opportunistic and not always settle for a walk-it-up, methodical approach. I can understand that coach Scott would want to limit possessions and play “smashmouth basketball”, but when you don’t have big men who easily create their own shots and the drag P&R is the action that your best scoring wings seem to be best out of, some tweaking is in order. Jeremy Lin and Kobe need to find the right balance between pushing the pace and settling into the half court offense, especially since getting into a track meet with the Suns isn’t a good idea. But that doesn’t mean walking the ball up every time, nor does it mean isolating Jordan Hill or Carlos Boozer more than you run P&R actions for Lin or look to get Kobe working on the weak side before the help defense can fully get set up.
Losing Randle’s ability to create offense on the second unit will be blow in this game (and every game moving forward), so I hope to see Scott start to tweak his rotations some so the starters (who aren’t a dynamic group anyway) don’t play so many minutes together. It would help all the units if Lin and Kobe could find some stretches in different lineups even if they start the game together. Lin and Davis have a nice chemistry in the P&R, so using them together with Xavier Henry on the back side lurking as a penetrator when the ball is kicked to him could be a nice way to generate some points when Kobe is not on the floor.
All in all, though, the Suns are a heavy favorite in this game and for good reason. If this game ended in a blowout, I would not be surprised. Still, the Lakers must be smart about how they play and disciplined in their execution regardless of what the scoreboard says.
Where you can watch: 7:00pm start time on TWC Sportsnet. Also listen on ESPN Radio 710AM.
KO says
Sad to see injury.
Good news is Lakers will then have 2 1st round drafts yo begin next year!
Concern is 2 broken bones by age 19.
Is this a Greg Odom thing?
Do Lakets get another injury provision like with Nash?
Archon says
Obviously Randle getting hurt sucks but the truth is the Lakers need Kelly’s floor spacing more than they need Randle right now.
Kelly needs to have a great year, and X needs to be healthy and good enough to displace Wes Johnson’s for the Lakers to have any chance.
Hale says
Most of the team looked scared to shoot yesterday plus they’re spacing was terrible during long stretches of the game. After Lin calmed down a bit, he and Boozer looked a bit better in the second half. Clarkson looked all 100% rookie. The only player aside from Kobe who I trusted to get their own shot off was Randle. It’s obvious that the team still hasn’t grasped the offense.
The defense didn’t look bad. The players playing the defense looked bad. They were getting lit up on weak side action all game which came from attention gaps and slowness. I’ve never been a Boozer guy but I think getting him to hedge hard and recover is not even remotely in his physical abilities at this stage of his career. Kobe attempted to stay in front of his assignments but 36 year old legs will let you down.
They’re going to need Ryan Kelly out on the floor now that Randle’s out; I don’t recall his anticipated return time. At least that will give them a legitimate outside shooter. Xavier Henry looked so rusty my eyes squeaked while watching him.
Offense of Bledsoe, Thomas, Dragic : Defense of Bryant, Lin, Price is as King Ghidora : Tokyo
Robbo says
The suns own our 1st rd pick for nash thid season but the good news is its top 5:protected so if we are as bad as I believe we are we could actually end up getting a top 5 player this season @ko
Kevin T says
Man, we need to trade for Rondo. C’mon Mitch make it happen. Kobe needs a point guard that can distribute and play defense and not turn the ball over. Rondo is our guy.
mud says
lookin for that first win…
Tokyo is still here. Ghidora had his fun, but got his butt kicked. literally.
KO says
Kobe d is terrible. Look really tired.
KO says
Wes Johnson is by far the worst starter in the league.
Welcome to the Jimmy buss era.
Chearn says
Oops, all the Kobe haters.
Is Hill’s back bothering him that much?
Maybe Lin should come in off the bench, until he adjusts to how opposing teams play the Lakers.
reggyray says
Ed Davis needs to play 30+ minutes for this team.
KO says
Yes Davis needs to play 30 and Boozer 3. Great signing.
lakafan says
Boozer is absolute garbage!! What a waste of $3m. Can’t believe I’m saying this but I rather see sacre out there instead of Carlos Loozer!!
KO says
My gosh is Boozer horrible.
Who ever signed him should be fired.
Tim says
Kobe bowling for dollars, make that Suns.
Anonymous says
Boozer 8 turnovers and a -25
Stupidest front office in Laker history.
Nice job Mitch/Jim
KenOak says
Man, this defense is terrible. I’m officially lowering my expectations after the Randle injury and 2 games. 20 wins would be miraculous unless something more miraculous happens. Oh well. Let’s hope we get to see some records fall and some improvements made over the year.
**edit -> Kobe may lead the league in technicals this year…
Dave says
Hypothetical question. I know the Lakers would never willingly trade Kobe. But, what if Kobe demanded a trade? Would Jim and Jeannie do it?
Ko says
Yea
The two big signing were Lin and Boozer.
Tonight they are a minus 54
Release Boozer and send Johnson to the Z league.
Tim says
Through the first two games the Lakers have had the lead for only .20 seconds, at 3-2 over the Rockets.
R says
Dave – Kobe is untradeable. His contract is Kryptonite.
Jerke says
Lakers get a 1.5 mill injury exception for Randle (he’s on rookie scale so its not a whole lot of money).
Dear Byron – yes 3 pters may not win you the championship (despite what the eye test/common sense/analytics/the spurs may tell you) but they sure as hell win you games to get you into the playoffs. Thru 40 mins – Suns 15-29 from 3/Lakers 3 for 11.
Dave says
R – Look at the Knicks roster.
R says
OK, whatever.
Ko says
Sure trade Kobe and Time Warner ratings go down 50% which cost the Bust family about $20 million in penalties.
Dave says
R- I flew in from Orlando and caught this article at the airport.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/brian-schmitz-blog/os-lakers-should-trade-kobe-20141029-post.html
Kevin T says
If Lin and Boozer at least were replaced early in the 3rd, maybe they could have kept it close but I don’t know it’s like the past couple of years the coaches are not watching the games sitting front row, here I am yelling and losing my voice for a time out early in the 3rd when the game is getting away from them but the coaches are lifeless. I could tell Kobe is dying inside but it seems like he has made a deal with the devil.(Jimmy Buss)
mud says
we’re still waiting on Godzilla because the Tokyo-based military just can’t handle Ghidora.
the Lakers real problem is that they can’t hit an open shot. they do stink, but they can improve on their performance. it’s really a quextion of guys and right now, the team doesn’t look like it has many outside of Kobe, Davis and Price, who isn’t helpful if the other players forget how to shoot. until the game got ragged and out of hand, which was caused by the inability to score, the defense really wasn’t bad.
Kevin T says
Lin- drible,drible,drible lose the ball
Boozer-scared to go inside, shoot jumpers all night, lose the ball
at least with Kobe he gets a pretty good shot and he went inside tonight as well
Starting line up should be: Kobe,Davis,Hill,Price,Wesley or Ellington
Oldtimer says
0-2 with 80 more agonizing games to play. It would be a great idea if Jim Buss sacrifices his position by quitting now instead of waiting for three more years.
Archon says
You can see why Scott didn’t want to start Lin with Kobe when he doesn’t have the ball in his hands he’s a passive ball watcher.
Also this team needs Kelly and Nick Young back in the worst way, if anything just to soak up the “not helping the team” minutes of Boozer and Wes Johnson
BigCitySid says
Pau Gasol looked pretty good tonight.
bryan S. says
Dear Old Kobe is a ball stopping shameless gunner who kills team play. Lin looked disheartened out there, literally stomping his feet to try to get a screen set at the top of the key. Boozer is awful. Buyout Kobe and let him join Fish and Phil. Byron belongs to another time.
rr says
bryan S. October 29, 2014 at 10:19 pm
Dear Old Kobe is a ball stopping shameless gunner who kills team play. Lin looked disheartened out there, literally stomping his feet to try to get a screen set at the top of the key. Boozer is awful. Buyout Kobe and let him join Fish and Phil. Byron belongs to another time.
—
I wonder if this is the “real” bryan s. or a guy trolling him. If the former, that was a pretty quick reversal.
bryan S. says
rr: I love Kobe but not as much as I hate ball stopping, selfish, gunning. That’s nothing new. I’ve referred to Kobe as a ball stopper many times. I shared my dismay when we “won” the Boozer sweepstakes. Nothing new man. Right now the team is just terrible to watch.
Justin says
Wow! We may not win a game this year against a team with a winning record.
rr says
bryan S. September 17, 2014 at 5:19 pm
Boozer: I don’t see the point in having him on this team.
Here’s a few reasons why the Lakers want him: skilled veteran big man on a relatively cheap 1 year deal. Brings depth to the bigs, excellent teammate, professional demeanor, will be very good in the pick and roll with Lin, could help mentor Randle and other young players, should play well with Kobe in the two man game, motivated to play well for his next contract, will help create competition for minutes.
No one gets excited about adding a declining Boozer. But he has value to this team.
Jerke says
Kobe remarking in postgame that his frustrations on court are showing due to being blown out in two games – next up is the Clips. Its gonna be 3 in a row almost for sure.
Terri says
Regarding the Orlando Sentinel piece suggesting Kobe to the Knicks – I saw their game tonight. The Knicks looked just as bad as the Lakers.
We can only hope that with a high draft pick, a healthy Randle and a key FA signing that Kobe’s final season, next year, will be one that he deserves. This season looks lost already.
5D2 says
Why does Jim Buss have to be involved with personnel decisions? Isn’t Mitch competent enough? Being a good owner should just sit back and let the professionals do their work. Jim on the other hand, so be the guy who hands out with other owners, agents, scouts…. Do those behind-the -scene work!!!
NBA robbed Lakers CP3, which caused this whole chain events of losing DH, bad trade for Steve Nash….. I cut off my Time Warner package to show my protest. Tarnishing the Lakers will cause more harm to the whole NBA. When Lakers were winning, the other owners were collecting fat checks from the revenue sharing. Then they got rich, so they gang up on the buss kids to rob the Lakers. All these teams are just lining to beat the shit of Lakers and insult Kobe. I can’t bear myself to watch this.
JBN74SB says
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. 0-13 to start the season. Those of you who don’t know hoops and thought team might be close to .500, brace yourselves. It’s going to get much worse.
Jacob says
This team is realistically playing for the number one pick. As a fan, that’s not the most enticing move but as a franchise its the best move one could make. Since there will be no reform of the lottery, this plays in our favor because we play in the rugged west. Its a sad position to put Kobe in, but it is a necessary move. He was given that lifetime achievement contract for a reason, so don’t feel sorry for him too much. These dark days won’t last for too much longer, Julius Randle and another lottery pick will entice at least one major free agent to sign in the major LA market in the future. We just have to hold out hope
agree says
My pick up teams have better offensive movement and schemes that the Lakers have shown thus far. How about they just keep it simple and run lots of Pick n’ Rolls. If Kobe and Lin are going to share the court a bunch, how about they do some pick n’ rolls also, in addition to having Ed Davis replace Boozer. It’s not just that the Lakers have an upward Hill to climb against more talented teams that also have continuity of key players–but they aren’t even playing in a manner that talented teams would do well.
You just can’t stand and watch a player iso constantly, or skip pass the ball to a mediocre big guy to shoot 15 footers.
May as well just run clear out Iso’s for Kobe each game let him shoot 40% of the teams shots in less than 30mins per game. Then let Lin & Ed Davis run endless amounts of pick n rolls. Sit Boozer on the bench as a one year amnesty rental Cheerleader. Someone please set a bloody off ball screen!! This anti-analytics offense just makes me ill. So this “smash mouth” defense is looking like its going to give up about 110-115 pts a game. Kobe can lead the team in shots taken per game, and the Lakers can lead the league in fewest 3 pointers made and attempted, and in fewest Assists. Oh well, as long as they can prevent those long 3 point misses and “slow the pace” down. Despite all of this I’m still optimistic about the Laker’s winning, I think the stars will align and they will win 1 game out of their first 10. 1-10 and an offense that shows the worst offensive schemes in the Nba (or ymca pick up basketball for that matter) will just make free agents drool to come to the laker’s so they can ISO up 20 shots a game and make 20million. I’m thinking a six pack is a requirement to watch an entire Laker’s game at least until Young returns.
Agree says
Ed Davis, has been the Laker’s best all around player thus far. This guy needs 32mins a game and a starters role on this team right quick. I say this b/c he is going to opt out next year and get paid. IF we treat him well, hopefully he will want to sign a contract to be a laker for 4 years and we get him locked up for his prime. I still don’t see why we can’t drop him to the PF spot, he clearly has the mobility for it–the dude is very athletic.
I would say thus far the only silver linings for this team are Davis, and that Kobe appears truly healthy. But if Kobe is shootings 25 shots a game with a team that only puts up 85 shots a game, they are going to really struggle to sniff at 27wins. Westbrook went off in an epic fashion last night and they got the loss, this is a team game. I can’t stand watching endless ISO’s, even if at this point it seems a better offense than um what–letting boozer or hill jack up contested 15 footers?!
bleedpurplegold says
It is really laughable how some of u guys try to blame Kobe for this loss cause he was One of only 2 silver linings in this one. he still can create for him and others like only a selected few can, so no reason to talk about a trade or buyout. The other one was Ed playing a complete game of basketball, which l didn’t expect out of him when we singed him.
The reason We are are losing is our D as well as sloppy play by some guys on 0… Im looking at you, Mister Boozer… at some point I thought he will break the franchise record for TO’s in a game.
I agree with Kevin’s starting lineup 100%, especially about Davis, who is able to make plays on both ends. price looks solid so far, so why not start him and use Lines a scoring punch of the bench. can’t get any worse anyways!!!
Hope Randle gets well soon, cause the only thing we can do at this point is to tank and develop our young talent! GO LAKERS!
Oldtimer says
I also don’t agree in blaming all to Kobe. We all knew his motivations, he wants to win every game unfortunately most of his teammates were blowing up his assists that turned into TO. I think there are only three guys that were effective last night Kobe, Ed Davis, Ellington. Price helped in moving the ball but they were all pathetic in defending the perimeter and post penetration. If you can’t defend those two aspects in basketball, then you’d lose any game. How are you going to attack this Lakers malaise? Get a legitimate Center who will help in rebounds and follow ups. Get a shooter PG who will decongest the shaded area. Right now, opponents are crowding the post and our small PF can’t compete. There is a glaring problem with Kobe, his D is now tentative maybe effects of the injury.
Why did I propose JB to quit? In any corporate entity when you sense downfall, there has to be changes in the top to shift perceptions from the market, personnel and jumpstart the Corporate vision. Many of us have commented that Lakers moves during off season were pathetic. Bazemore, Kaman, Meeks should have been re-signed than chasing Lin and Boozer. Add Stephenson, Ariza and Thomas or Bledsoe that is the true rebuild. Jimbo and Mitch went for penny pinching mode after not signing Melo and Lebron. In their avoidance of the repeater tax, they will be losing the markets interest which is more than the luxury tax. Lakers have been making awful decisions in the last three years, they keep on saying rebuilding, in reality it is destruction of what was formerly working.
T. Rogers says
There are 80 games left on the schedule. Most nights will look just like this. I don’t know what some where expecting from Kobe. If he is healthy he is taking the lion share of the team’s shots. That is especially true with this roster. And most nights it will be in a losing effort. This is what rebuilding looks like. And like Jacob I don’t feel sorry for Kobe. I don’t mean that maliciously. But he had to know that this was coming when he signed his extension.
We have another back to back coming with the Clips on Friday and Warriors on Saturday. So this party is only getting started. Still I’ll be watching to see some improvement, any improvement.
dxmanners says
Couldn’t agree more, Kobe knew this was coming. Be careful what you wish for I suppose.
J. Lin should get more than 5 shots.
Makes me long for the days of Chris Kaman in the middle.
PurpleBlood says
for pete´s sake, Randal out for the season…
___
any imporvement is about as good as it seems it´s gonna get…oy vey
___
Go Lakers
BigCitySid says
Just in case some of you missed this piece.Harden & Ariza visited Randall in the hospital.
http://network.yardbarker.com/nba/article_external/harden_ariza_visit_julius_randle_in_the_hospital/17596088?linksrc=story_sport_nba_module_head_17596088
Agree says
Sadly the clippers and the warriors are two teams if healthy–I see us having ZERO chance of winning the next two games no matter how we play. The Rockets and Suns were two of my “hopeful upset wins”.
Lin needs to shoot some 3’s and outside jumpers, unless he’s got a PnR opportunity. Someone else needs to try to spread out the other teams defense. I don’t understand why Boozer isn’t sitting the bench and Hill/Davis aren’t starting together at this point. Two of our most athletic players Johnson/Henry are currently M.I.A’s despite playing. I would love to see Kelly start at the 4 instead of Boozer–and he can shoot 3’s. Does anyone here think that Boozer should be getting this much playing time, even with Randle hurt??
T. Rogers says
Lin needs the ball in his hands to be effective. He also needs to be in an offense where he can make quick decisions with the ball. The longer he dribbles the more of a turnover risk he is. Lin was at his best in New York because he had the ball in his hands and was allowed to run down court, quickly look for a teammate and pass, or take a quick shot in transition.
Like Harden, Kobe is a ball dominant guard. And it is no surprise that Lin kind of disappears with Kobe on the floor. At least in Houston he had the freedom to run down the floor and catch and shoot threes in transition. This offense doesn’t even give him that.
I do think Lin can make some adjustments. It’s just going to take time. I focused on Lin here because, with Young out, Lin is the only hope. The rest of those guys are probably playing at their peaks right now.
david h says
hey darius; so far in this young season, the highlight of game one was the laker uniforms and from last night’s rag tag mismatch; the san francisco giants are baseball’s champions as I was regrettably turned off by current day laker basketball as we know it and probable for the next six months..so like most train wrecks, will be difficult to watch with both eyes open.
for me, the highlight of this year’s laker season will be to visit and read your posts here on forum blue and gold. cautiously optimistic flew out the window.
Go lakers
Calvin Chang says
Lakers need to waive Sacre and pick up Hasheem Thabeet for minimum. If you’re going to have a stiff, might as well have a 7-ft 3 stiff instead of 6-11.
All Thabeet has to do is try to be like Roy Hibbert and go for blocks and rebounds. That’s a pretty low bar.
Vasheed says
I think a lot of players are either being over criticized or too much is being expected. I’m at a point I have to question the F.O. more then anything else. We have Scott the coach steadfast sticking to a no 3’s policy although the team is getting blown out on a near nightly basis. I can’t remember the last season the Lakers were healthy. The comments I read about other GM’s concerns about Randle’s foot it seems troubling the Lakers did not find it concerning. From roster composition that composes of a plethora of PF’s but only 1 true center in Sacre. The nuances of this player or that player doing this or that just seems moot. This is a team in need of scouting, medical staff, and coaching.
Mid-Wilshire says
This Lakers team has a very small margin of error. In order for them to be competitive, they need the following every night:
* Kobe must be on top of his game which includes not just scoring but passing for 5-6 assists per night and getting his teammates involved;
* Jeremy Lin must be on top of his game and must average 15 ppg and 7-8 apg EVERY night; he must be more assertive, must get to the basket more effectively, and must open things up for the other players; last night he had 6 pts., 2 rebounds and 1 assist; obviously, that won’t do the job;
* Carlos Boozer must be in good form every night as well; he must average close to a double-double (15 / 9); he can not have a line similar to the one he had last night (4 pts., 4 rebounds, 8 turnovers); that sort of performance will doom this team from the outset;
* Nick Young must get healthy; the team really misses him; the 2nd unit is leaderless and lacks direction and energy (unless Ellington gets hot which is something we can’t count on);
* Xavier Henry must get healthy, get back in shape, and return to last year’s form;
* Byron has got to be willing to play Ed Davis big minutes; he may have to start him against Blake Griffin; Boozer’s feelings will not be hurt; in fact, I like the idea of Jordan Hill and Ed Davis playing side-by-side;
* the team must improve its perimeter defense; the Lakers are getting killed from the 3-pt. line; this never happens to the Spurs; but it does to the Lakers; they’re entirely too flat-footed; if they defend the 3-pt line more effectively, this would help in a big way.
Aaron says
The seasons is going and will continue to go exactly as the FO expects it. Kobe, Boozer, and Lin playing the worst defense in the league while playing extremely inefficient offense. And those were the best players on the team behind Randle who probably was going to be the best player on the team. They were only planning on playing Julius a few minutes a game anyways… But the injury gods helped them out. This looks like the perfect rebuilding year. I think we can take the sixers. It’s a two team race. I had us at 25 wins this year. Without Randle (our best player) I think it will now be 22.
Anonymous says
My sense is that Kobe is a very demanding teammate. The other Lakers, on the floor with him, are intimidated by him. Kobe confuses his teammates because he takes so many shots – a lot of them off of isolations relatively early in the clock when there’s still time for plays to develop or make additional passes. Becasue of this other Lakers are reluctant to shoot. or don’t look for thier shots – they only look to pass the ball to Kobe and move out of the way.
To me this is a recipe for disaster as opponents will simply key on Kobe and make it more difficult for him to score. Kobe may still get his but his effectiveness will go way down. It would have been far better for Byron to force the Lakers to spread the shots around early in the season, in an effort to develop some semblance of team play. That effort would not have changed the outcome of the games (talent trumps all and the Lakers are short of talent). However, I think sharing the ball/scoring would have helped the team learn to trust each other and we may have developed a more balanced approach.
As it is now the Lakers, other than Kobe, do not seem confident on the floor.
Kevin T says
Aaron, what you smoking. Kobe is still our best player and Randle could have been our best player if the injury did not happen next year with 1 year of NBA basketball. I do agree on the tanking part because Coach Scott is not putting our best combination of players on the floor together. But whatever, either way it’s going to be a long year. I am having a hard time sleeping at nights just after 2 games. Sheesh
Calvin Chang says
Lakers problem all about bad spacing. Booz n Hill clog the lane on offense making it hard for Kobe to get deep position for jumpshot in the midpost.
Also with Booz n Hill clogging the lane around 15ft elbow, Lin can’t penetrate and create. No space to operate.
Need a stretch big to shoot 3s and spread the defense (Ryan Kelly? Heck, someone like Steve Novak). Need a rim protector. Gamble on Hasheem Thabeet. Cant teach 7-3.
With stretch big drawing defense, Kobe has more space to get deeper position in the post. 14ft fadeaways more accurate and easier than 18 ft fadeaways.
Calvin Chang says
Imagine if you have a stretch big, a 3pt shooting wing, Jeremy, Kobe, and a big like Ed Davis, Hill, or Thabeet: In a half-court set, put Kobe in mid-post on the elbow. Defense is spread, so Kobe has more room to attack and pull up for a closer jump shot. If the big helps, drop or lob pass to Thabeet or Ed Davis for dunk. If other defenders help, kick out to 3pt shooter or Jeremy to penetrate when defense is scrambling.
On defense, at least Thabeet is a rim-protector with his height.
Calvin Chang says
All good playoff teams have great spacing on offense. Think Blazers, Mavs, Spurs, Lebron’s team, Houston, Clippers, etc. They all have corner 3pt shooter specialists to spread the defense and allow guards to dribble-penetrate.
Byron Scott’s Smashmouth style is for 80’s and 90’s basketball. But there’s no Kareem to dump the ball in the post to. So it won’t work.
Anonymous says
T Rogers: “There are 80 games left on the schedule. Most nights will look just like this. ” Indeed, and while the comments on this board, and what I hear in general, is very negative, I still do not think people are grasping how bad this is. I think this will result in a role reversal, where the people who were skeptical all along will accept the year for what it is, while the pre-season optimists will start lashing out at Byron, Kobe, and others saying – if they just tweaked what they are doing, we could win way more games. They can’t.
We just need to accept our current state and root for whatever aspects of the Lakers we can enjoy. As everyone knows – in my case – that is Kobe. Others are rooting for a high draft pick. However, if you are out there waiting for Byron to design an some new innovative offense, or for Kobe to become Magic in his prime, or for this roster to somehow meld into the NBA version of the Athletics in Moneyball, then you are in for a long season.
Laughing Cow says
How much money is being provided in Proposition 1 on Tuesday’s ballot for the Lakers? The Lakers are going through a drought and are one of the biggest reclamation projects in California!
Anonymous says
I know the season is only two games old. However, we can see how the Lakers have performed against a lower seed playoff team (Houston) and a team that didn’t make the playoffs last year (Phoenix). There is nothing the Lakers can do in-season to improve enough to truly be competitive. They have little talent to trade and they can’t trade a future draft pick until the 2019 draft. The team, even with Kobe may struggle to win as many games as last season.
Let’s be honest the Lakers will be awful this year and barring divine intervention they will miss the playoffs again next year. So my honest question is this: Is Kobe willing to give up the remaining two years of his career to play for a team that is 5 years away from being relevant?
If you read the ESPN Chad Ford article today you know there are a select group of teams that would be open to acquiring Kobe. Does the situation get bad enough where Kobe asks out and the Lakers agree to move him?
Prior to this moment, never in my wildest dreams could I envision the Lakers moving Kobe. However, by January, with a healthy Young back on the floor and ample time to work out the kinks, the Lakers are still struggling to this degree then I could see it happening.
Chris J says
Close, oh so close… and Randle is now the franchise’s “best player?” This is more ridiculous and less amusing than a bad Jim Carrey flick.
Chris J October 29, 2014 at 9:32 pm
I’m awaiting the post that claims the Randle injury was all a fake, and part of “the plan” by management to secretly tank this season…
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Aaron October 30, 2014 at 10:19 am
The seasons is going and will continue to go exactly as the FO expects it. … But the injury gods helped them out. This looks like the perfect rebuilding year. I think we can take the sixers. It’s a two team race. I had us at 25 wins this year. Without Randle (our best player) I think it will now be 22.
Kevin T says
I believe the Buss family should try to sell the team to the Chinese doctor who is a minority owner for their own sake, reason being all this billionaire owners are against the Lakers and the Buss family and they try to hurt them any way possible and once the new billionaire owner comes in the Lakers would be on a level playing field again. The other billionaires got together and cried foul about the Chris Paul trade and got their way, they changed the CBA to specifically harm a team like the Lakers. The new CBA damaged and hurt the Lakers more than anything because all the Lakers contracts and also the Lakers in general were set up according to the old CBA and it takes time to clean all those contracts out and start over. Obviously the Buss family is rich but they are not billionaire rich. Either they need to sell complete control or they need to become minority owners.
Robert says
The post at 11:26 AM was me.
Anon at 12:12: The time to have done something like that was when KB was a FA and before we gave him the whopper 2 year extension. Some of the most avid KB fans on this very board brought that up then and were against the extension : ) That said – it would be extremely difficult now even if both the Lakers and KB agreed to do it. The other team would either have to be way under the cap, or they would have to send us back 1/2 of their roster to balance out the salaries. I believe we have at least 162 more games of this left. Which is a good thing.
5D2: “Why does Jim Buss have to be involved with personnel decisions?” That my friend is a question I have been asking for a over 3 years.
dxmanners says
Re: Calvin Chang, nothing against Sacre, but he must be the shortest 7 footer in the league, plays like he’s 6’8″. I floated the Thabeet idea last week, he must be a headcase, no one has picked him up as far as I know. I’d rather see him in the middle for 20 minutes a game than J. Hill (he can play the 4), and Sacre. He could get some blocks and maybe end the layup line for a moment.