Clearing out my inbox:
• Those plans we’ve all been hatching in our head about trading Lamar Odom this off-season just took a big blow with discussion of shoulder surgery. It was going to be a challenge to get value for him before, coming out of surgery on his shooting arm it may be next to impossible.
• If you didn’t get to see the Fox Sports West feed of the Laker game Monday night, you missed something fun. The network celebrated 20 years of broadcasting Lakers basketball by pulling out old clips and interviewing members of the 1985 championship team (taking your attention away from the current Lakers’ defense). That said, my favorite part was pulling out the 1986 Prime Ticket opening and graphics for the broadcast.
• By the way, what were we thinking in the 80s with pastels being the colors of choice?
• Did anyone watch the NBA TV feed of the Lakers/Suns game Monday? I’m curious because NBA technicians put mics on director Penny Marshall, James Denton of “Desperate Housewives,†Kareem Abdul Jabbar and Ice Cube to get their reactions during the game. I’d be curious what they said.
• Joel Meyers said recently his people were talking up Syracuse forward Hakim Warrick as a draft pick. Apparently his people didn’t watch Warrick flounder against Vermont’s double teams in the NCAA tournament (he had 10 turnovers in that game being covered by guys with half his athleticism). He is also a tweener, he not big or strong enough to play the four in the NBA, certainly not the true power forward the Lakers need. I just hope Meyer’s people aren’t Laker people. If Kupchak drafts Warrick in the first round, I’ll jump on the fire Mitch bandwagon.
• Speaking of the draft, NBAdraft.net has a mock draft up that has the Lakers taking North Carolina point guard Raymond Felton with the 10th pick overall. Some of the choices are questionable — they have Martynas Andriuskevicius being drafted second overall but rumor is his stock is dropping — but if the Lakers got Felton I’d be thrilled. He’s the kind of quick point that I think the league is moving toward (and away from the big, slower pg).