I swear, if the equipment doesn’t show up today to hook up my cable modem in the new house, I may kill someone. Dial-up is making me Jack Nicholson in “The Shining†crazy and angry. Sorry for those of you out there using dial-up, but high speed, once you have it you just can’t go back — sort of like cell phones. There may be other popular analogies, but I have no first-hand experience with those.
Anyway, a few Laker thoughts for a Monday:
• Eric Pincus at Hoopsworld talked to Mitch Kupchak this week and, basically, the Laker roster you see now appears to be what you’ll see on opening night in Denver.
“I think as far as the nucleus of the team, I think we’re done. I don’t anticipate that we look to sign another free agent.
Pincus is suggesting there may be a trade for a backup center, but don’t expect big changes (despite the pining for Eddie Curry or Earl Watson).
• What that leaves the Lakers is a starting five that is pretty strong and the kind of flexible lineup that should work well in the triangle — McKie, Kobe, Odom, Kwame, Mihm. But if the Lakers are really going to do much those guys are going to have to play starting minutes like last season’s Phoenix Suns — the drop off to the bench talent is steep.
Luke Walton can play some minutes at the two or three, as can Jumaine Jones and Devean George. But right now your backup points guards are Sasha and Smush, and the backups at the 4/5 are Cook, Slava and maybe Vlade. Possibly there can be a rotation that has Mihm sit first and Kwame go to the five, with Cook playing some 4, but that is a potential defensive disaster inside. (In that scenario, Mihm would come in for Kwame, then Kwame eventually re-enters for Cook, but I really don’t like the combos outside of Kwame/Mihm.)
• Who watched the MTV Video Music Awards last night? Neither did I. But I may try to catch the “red carpet†portion of the show during the unending reruns just to see Snoop Dogg roll up in a low-rider decked out in Laker colors, and wearing a hat signed by Laker greats.
• One quick note on the Aaron McKie signing — his entire career McKie has worn the number 8, but that’s not happening in Los Angeles. McKie will wear 2 instead.