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A Lakers Blog. Thoughts, reflections, and the odd rant on the Los Angeles Lakers and the NBA (even the Clippers).

Relive The Finals

by


World Champion Los Angeles Lakers.

I am nowhere near close to being tired of typing that, and I am nowhere near close to being done reliving last season. What follows is a video clip from the official Los Angeles Lakers Championship DVD, which gets released Tuesday.

lakers-dvd1

You can pick up the DVD just about anywhere starting Tuesday (and know that the video is much higher quality than what I had to reduce it to for it to fit here, and I’m trying to fix the size and automatic launch).

If you want you copy of the DVD signed by a Laker, you have a couple of chances Tuesday:

Jordan Farmar and Luke Walton, Wal-Mart, 7250 Carson Blvd. Long Beach, CA 90808 (Signing will take place from 11:00 am – 1:00 pm)

Derek Fisher, Best Buy, 740 S. Sepulveda Blvd El Segundo, CA 90245 (Signing will take place from 6:00-7:30 PM)


Reader Interactions

Comments

  6. Andrew says

    Dear America,

    When you refer to a championship winning team from a American basketball association “Word Champions” , it tends to piss off people from other countries. The Lakers are NBA Champions. It’s on the same field as when I hear the words “America, the greatest nation on earth”… I cringe and wonder if Americans understand how arrogant and ignorant that expression is..

  7. the other Stephen says

    HAHAH! apparently, when we lost to the celtics in game six of the finals two seasons ago, kobe was showering by himself in the locker room and ron artest walks in and says, “DUDE, WE’RE NOT GONNA LET THIS HAPPEN TO YOU NO MORE.” HAHAHA. he would do something like that.

  9. Warren Wee Lim says

    I hope its available for international purchase.

    Would be fine to have to relive it over and over again.

  11. Craig W. says

    Warren Wee Lim,
    Glad to see you back – changed your name back, I see.

    On Lamar – patience – and let’s cover this in another post. I want this one just of reliving this great season.

  12. wiseolgoat says

    Andrew – name an international team that would realistically have even remotely close to a shot at knocking off the NBA champion in a 7 game series.

    It’s not arrogant if it’s stating the truth.

  13. Kurt says

    10. Warren, I don’t think it’s going to be an issue: The Lakers upped their offer and people from Odom’s camp are making sounds like they are going to get it done. I hope so, because if the Lakers were to lose him the options of replacements with the Vets Minimum would be a huge drop off.

  15. Shaky says

    “When you refer to a championship winning team from a American basketball association “Word Champions” , it tends to piss off people from other countries. The Lakers are NBA Champions. It’s on the same field as when I hear the words “America, the greatest nation on earth”… I cringe and wonder if Americans understand how arrogant and ignorant that expression is..”

    … you can’t be serious about this, right? Calling them world champions pisses you off? Really?

    If the NBA weren’t filled with top foreign players you could make the “arrogant” argument, I suppose, but this indisputably the highest level of competition.

    Also, pretty sure calling the Lakers world champions isn’t nearly on the same level as saying the USA is #1. They’re worlds apart. I hope that quip doesn’t offend you either.

    You’re on a classy lakers blog, don’t be a PC contrarian.

  17. sT says

    Would a couple of hours early before the signings for either one of those stores be enough? I mean, it seems like these are popular activites now days with the Lakers being ‘NBA’ Champions. Or am I even dreaming that I can get a signed copy at all that day?

  18. Feel says

    Hi!
    I’ve been reading this forum since Pau joined. Yep, you’r right I’m a spaniard.
    I just wanted to ad that the “World champions” is pretty unfortunate. Nowadays probably the only world champions are the USA team, a team that could beat the Lakers either in single match or series.
    Do americans say “the greatest country”? Wow that helps to understand why there are so many anti-americans everywhere-else.
    In soccer the the team that wins the top clubs tournament the European Champions Ligue is still Europe champions, not world champions.
    I know I shouldn’t post about politics but to me as Andrew it was the most remarkable part to eyes.

    Now on the NBA, if the Lakers sign Odom, which of the top noch teams do you think has improved the most? Spurs, Celts, Orlando, Cavs or Lakers?

  20. Daniel says

    There’s no other professional team out there that could even come close to beating the Lakers in a 7 game series. I don’t see anyone raising an eyebrow when people say that any US professional soccer team wouldn’t have a chance in hell against an elite European power house. That’s because it’s the truth. There’s a reason why the great European players aspire to play in the NBA. Because it’s the greatest basketball league in the world, hands down. Hence, your World Champion Los Angeles Lakers.

    As far as Americans claiming that their country is the greatest on Earth, that comes from a sense of patriotism and love of country.

  21. Gr8 Scott says

    Can’t wait to get my copy (ordered via NBA.com), but hopefully it will arrive Tuesday, too. How great would it be for us to get Odom signed that day and make the rest of summer truly special?

  22. Feel says

    No professional soccer team has a good shoot at beating an elite European team, but even after that fact, as only teams from Europe play the competition the European champion is only considered Europe champion not World Champion.

    I understand patriotism, even if I don’t agree with it but I shouldn’t exclude rescpect for other countries.

  23. Kurt says

    This is a basketball blog, we are not going to get into a debate about nationalism and what country is “best.” A couple comments have been tweaked. We are not going political on this. Unless you want to talk about what country has the best basketball playing leader (where clearly it is Angela Merkel first and Obama second).

  24. Texas Rob says

    It’s just blind patriotism. Don’t read more into it. By the way, Texas is the best state in best country in the world. OK OK …let it go…

  25. flyE says

    The reason the UEFA Cup winners can’t rightly claim to be “world champions” is that there are equivalent club teams outside Europe, e.g. South America. That simply isn’t the case with the NBA, although a UEFA-style tourney featuring the best club teams from around the world would be pretty entertaining. (Never gonna happen — the Lakers played 105 games last year as it is.)

    The Euroleague MVP is Juan Carlos Navarro, the “Final Four” MVP is Vassilis Spanoulis, and key players from the championship game (Panathinaikos vs. CSKA Moscow) include Sarunas Jasikevicius, Viktor Khryapa, and Trajan Langdon. I think it would be fair to say that we’ve seen enough of these players in the NBA to fairly assess their relative talent levels.

    Thus: Your World Champion Los Angeles Lakers.

    Man that feels good to write. Let’s try that again:

    I look forward to watching the World Champion Los Angeles Lakers defend their World Championship on the World Champion Los Angeles Lakers Basketball Network.

  26. Apricot says

    Yeah, calling our sports champions “world champs” is inaccurate. But it’s an American habit (World Series?!).

    I think it would be really cool if there was a basketball Champions League and it meant something. Part of the problem is that we Americans have not had to think about other countries for a couple of generations, so we font take international competition seriously.

  27. j. d. hastings's Agent says

    22- I don’t think its about patriotism or a lack of respect for other countries. Its primarily a hold over term from the long period of time when the NBA was the only real basketball league in the world (I wonder if it was used during the ABA years…).

    Its persisted because this league has the highest revenues and attracts the best talent from across the globe. The assumption is therefore that the individual teams would be stronger than the talent on any given team from elsewhere in the world.

    Admittedly, without playing an actual “Champions Cup” tournament it may not be completely grounded in game results. It may be a bit solipsistic, but I think it’s a bit much to turn this into a nationalistic political issue.

    Anyways, I think Jerry Colangelo runs Toronto’s team the way he does to stand as a theoretical eruopean team for the rest of the league to measure itself against.

  28. Kaifa says

    Kurt, since my head of state Angela Merkel has a Masters (or rather the German equivalent) in Physics, I think she falls squarely in the “nerd” camp. Obama’s case is not so clear, as Hodgman explores (worth the long watch!):

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yW7OPByRGDY

    So Obama really is the world champion of head of states basketball.

  29. Feel says

    Sorry for coming back to it, I don’t know if it was me, my english or the tweaking but what I meant is:
    “Elite European teams are far better than others(money talks) , but even after that fact, as only teams from Europe play the competition the European champion is only considered Europe champion not World Champion.”

    I understand patriotism, even if I don’t agree with it but this doesn’t-shouldn’t exclude rescpect for other countries.

    I also understand that saying “world champions” is an habit and shouldn’t be taken as an issue but still if you’r not from the States it sounds a bit disrespectful.

    Back to LA, what about Morrison if he keeps performing well during summer league is it something trustful or just that some perform very well for summer L. but not in the NBA?

  31. Zephid says

    Here’s my advice to any non-USA people’s who are offended by the use of “World Champion.”

    Ignore it.

    Americans barely recognize the term, so there’s no need to make a big stink.

  32. Texas Rob says

    Wouldn’t it have been cool to have Bill Walton narrate the Laker DVD? OK, let me put a really bad taste in your mouth… How about maybe… Barkley? I’d stab myself. really, I’d stab myself.

  33. Plan9FOS says

    Feel –

    Of course the U.S. is the best country on earth.
    It’s where the World Champion Los Angeles Lakers are.
    I don’t understand your confusion.

  34. Rob L. says

    The world champions thing stems from when the U.S.A. was the only country actually playing basketball, and baseball for that matter. The title is a vestigial tail, if you will, that has not been changed to meet the new reality. But alas, when the NBA was formed the NBA champion truly was the world champion.

    Andrew, did you know that the NBA Finals was renamed so in 1986? Before that point it was the NBA World Championship Series. That means that the NBA recognized that the world had changed and made a change to reflect that. Does that sound like the action of an “arrogant” people? The “world champions” moniker will probably change soon but for now it is traditional. But a cultural tradition is difficult to change.

    I might add that being ignorant of another country’s history and making bold sweeping statements about said country is something that Americans are often accused of…and it’s something you just did, Andrew.

  35. Rob L. says

    I hope Lamar is signed soon. Count me among the folks who think that he’s irreplaceable on the team. Whatever inconsistencies Lamar may have are more than made up for by being the basketball equivalent of a 5 tool player.

  36. Feel says

    [Plan9FOS –

    Of course the U.S. is the best country on earth.
    It’s where the World Champion Los Angeles Lakers are.
    I don’t understand your confusion.]

    Sorry you’re wrong at every point:
    The best country is the Antartic, no water or food issues, no weapons(not know, but ask Mr.B;), low contamination, no criminality, no noise, clear sky, they don’t even have politics, it’s so much better that it’s not even a country It’s a continent!

    It’s not World Champions it’s Universe Champions!
    And as LA is in the Universe then the Universe is the best not LA!
    Being more discrete the Staples Center is the best place of the Universe! Not LA 😉

    Am I confused?

  37. Plan9FOS says

    Feel –

    ooooh, Universal Champions. I like that.
    So you’ve left the Dark Side.
    Glad I could be of help.

    As odd as it seems, I too miss Bill Walton’s voice:
    THROW IT DOWN, BIG MAN, THROW IT DOWN.

    Are we bored yet?
    When does the preseason start?

  38. j. d. hastings's Agent says

    I’m sorry, guys, but Alpha Centaurans are on average 8 feet tall with 10 foot wingspans and gecko like grips on their fingers. They’d whip us every time.

  39. Rob L. says

    j.d. – While the Alpha Centaurans physical attributes are impressive, they are not undefeatable. They sport the highest number of 3 second calls in the Milky Way and are vulnerable to quick, penetrating point guard play.

  40. Craig W. says

    Kurt, I know you said this blog would be open year round, but things are really getting gnarly and we have just barely started summer. You are going to need regular posts from a number of key people to keep our IQs at a level where something resembling intelligent conversation takes place for most of a thread.

  41. Zephid says

    It’s kind of hard to write about basketball when there’s nothing going on.

    I know Kurt’s going to Summer League, but other than that, what’s there to write about?

  42. chris h says

    LA’s a cool city, saw Boz Scaggs at the Greek last night, warm summer night, outdoors with some cool tunes, not a bad place to live.

    so when does PRE-SEASON START!!!???
    arrrgghh!

    remember, folks, I warned us, the worst drop off is after the Finals and before pre-season. all we got is baseball,
    but at least the Dodgers are tearing it up.
    after the All Star break, it gets better, at least there might be a penant race.

  44. Snoopy2006 says

    goat, Daniel – I’m not so sure. I think those Guangdong Tigers could give the Lakers a run for their money, especially with Smush Parker running the show.

  46. Plan9FOS says

    I miss the Long Beach Summer Pro League.
    It was amazing.
    A basketball ticket I could actually afford!

    Now I’m left with watching puppets on YouTube:
    LeBron, you got any new shoes?
    You missed the finals, so you must have some extra shoes.
    Can we call Kobe?

    LeBron, have you seen my FOUR Championship Rings?
    I seem to have misplaced my FOUR Championship Rings.
    Each represented by these four delicious chocolate-chip cookies.
    You gotta be HUNGRY LeBron.
    I can here my stomach GROWLING!

    Now I’m hungry.
    Oh well.

  47. harold says

    I find the term World Champions to be quite funny too, but just that, funny.

    Just way too ‘american;’ then again, the US isn’t the only nation in the Americas either…

    Anyway, was fun watching the WBC and the Olympics where the US didn’t even come close to winning, but still claiming to have the “world champions” of baseball.

    I’m not quite sure if you can claim that the Lakers, in a 7 game series, cannot be defeated by Team Spain or Team Argentina under international rules, when you know that Team Spain has actually pushed Team USA a bit.

    Anyway, i don’t think anyone should be ‘offended,’ just ‘amused.’

  49. j. d. hastings's Agent says

    The fact that the “world championship” label is drawing controversy at all is actually a good sign. It means that the sport is growing globally and not only are more NBA players from overseas, but their leagues are also becoming more competetive (as seen by the Childress signing and even the speculation of Lebron playing overseas over last summer).

    In fact, David Stern, who has been the architect of much of this shift, has proclaimed that he’d like to have teams in Europe at some point in the future (though without the concord fleet I don’t see how that’s tenable).

    The fact is I think we all want to see the best basketball that is available to be seen. The more pride people across the world take in the game, the more athletes will devote themselves to it, the better the competition we’ll see.

    The fact that the world’s most prominent league is currently centered in North America is really more of a logistics issue than anything else. If that was solved, I’m sure the term “world champ” would become more apt.

  50. Daniel says

    @47

    Team Argentina and Team Spain don’t play in any professional league, like the NBA. They only compete in international competition. I, and a couple others, were making the point that there is no international team, as currently constituted, that could beat the World Champion Los Angeles Lakers in a 7 game series. This is mainly due to the fact that most of the great foreign talents are playing in the best league in the world, the NBA.

  51. kaveh says

    Dear Andrew,

    I totally understand the “America is arrogant” card that foreigners play every chance they get. Typically, I agree with this sentiment. That’s only because typically it is used in regards to foreign policy (America has the right to pre-emptively strike other nations at will, etc).

    However, when we are talking about certain areas, especially in sports, then I think it is warranted to say world champions. Why? In sports such as Basketball or Football, it is the exact same thing. The NBA/NFL is so far ahead of any other leagues, that you would have to regard them as world championships and nothing less. All the great players from around the world come to play basketball in the NBA anyways, so it’s not like it’s only an American thing. All the greatest basketball players from around the world are playing in the NBA. The third best player on the court of the finals series was from Spain, possibly the SECOND best!

    There is no doubt in my mind that NBA champs = world champs.

  53. harold says

    50. Daniel:

    I don’t disagree with the fact that there probably isn’t a professional franchise outside the NBA that can beat LA in a 7 game series.

    However, the reasoning is all wrong.

    1, just because the NBA is the league fielding probalby the best 30 professional clubs in the world does not entitle them to use the term ‘world’ champions, because the competition was not open to other clubs to begin with. It’s a technicality, but if entry itself is not ‘world,’ certainly the result isn’t either.

    2, there are many reasons behind the NBA being the best league in the world, but the main facet is money, not talent. That is why the Bundesliga fell and the Premier league rose; in a capitalist world, fielding the best team or league often comes down to money.

    3, talent, of course, has a lot to do with how the NBA accumulated such money in the first place, but that was mostly done on domestic talent, and it still is mostly done on domestic talent. We have one non-american starter, and I think the league average is about 1 international starter per, if that. The NBA ‘draining’ international talent has very little to do with why it’s the best.

  54. Warren Wee Lim says

    I hear from a friend who works at Staples that AMMO is bombing the SUmmer league. Any truth to this? Said he played 2 games scoring 20+ each.

  55. weak sauce says

    Not only do we have the Angels and Dodgers representing our vested interest in baseball, we have soccer! LA Galaxy! Whoo!

  57. T. S. says

    Is there ANY chance that a nice person here would like to help an European Lakerhead and would get me a Derek Fisher signed copy of the DVD and send it to Germany? Unfortunately the Man won’t come to us overseas. You have no clue how much I’d appreciate… I can pay via PayPal etc… Please hit me up on lakeshow85@gmail.com if you can help :). Thanks

  58. Kareem says

    Guys, hate to rain on everyone’s World Championship gatorade parade; but what about the Monstars?

  59. Kurt says

    40. The gang has some stuff planned, but with a Laker roster that will have just one change (sure, a big one, but just one) and a few months, we’re just going to run into some odd discussions now and again, but we’ll try to keep things moving.

    55. Warren you heard right, Ammo has 46 points in two games and is shooting over 50%. I’ll get my first look at him tonight (vs. the Clips in Blake Griffin’s first game) and post a report. It well could be a good sign, although tearing up Summer League is no indication that he will play well come October.

  61. chris h says

    how come nobody is upset at WORLD Series?
    technically it’s just USA teams playing for the WORLD series crown.

    on a Laker note, this from the Times today –
    http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-spw-lakersdvd13-2009jul13,0,2059213.story

    about the DVD release and the VIP screening tonight and LO will be there. I think this is a very positive sign that he’ll be signed with the Lakers today. (remember, he did not join the team on the late night talk show circuit) I mean, the latest I read, the Lakers have upped their offer to “north of $8M/year” which shows – 1) they are trying and not holding firm to one offer, and 2) we know that $8M is pretty good compared to the other offers this off season, poor economy hitting even the NBA.

    let’s hope today is our day to see LO come back.

  62. Jim says

    I’m sure people do get angry about the “World Series” but it shouldn’t garner the anger. The reason it is called the World Series is that it was originally sponsored by the News of the World. So they called it the News of the World Series. Well, they droppped the first part and called it the World Series. Originally, the series was called the United States Baseball championship.

  63. luubi says

    #62: I think Lamar didn’t join the talk show circuit b/c he was out partying. Remember, LO is a decent looking guy who’s a social butterfly and is well received 🙂 No doubt it also helps to play for the WORLD CHAMPION L.A. LAKERS.

    Is there some place on the net I can watch the Lakers summer league? I’m going thru serious withdrawal.

  64. Travis says

    Kurt-

    I know free agency isn’t nearly over, but it would be cool to see some analysis that break down who the challengers are and why they may challenge the Lakers next season. I’m curious to see what Laker fans think about the Shawn Marion trade. Same with VC and Brandon Bass going to Orlando.

    I didn’t see Orlando making any moves besides the VC trade, but Bass is an interesting acquisition for them. This could help them match up against the Lakers defensively, as they plan to start Bass at the 4.

    Also, whats the deal with Cleveland? I don’t think a Shaq trade plus a higher-than-midlevel extension for Varejao was a good idea. Jumping the shark for Lebron?

    Baseball is boring.

  66. j.d. Hastings says

    Harold mentioned the World Series earlier, comparing it against the WBC, though that gets to the issue. All the talent comes to the US MLB to play because, again as Harold pointed out, the money. As I said before, the fact that these leagues are centralized in the US has way more to do with travel expenses (and where they started) than patriotism. Despite the “national” in the NBA, I think we need to separate these leagues from the countries they’re located in at some point. I know David Stern has made that a priority.

    Also don’t the champion MLB teams travel to Japan to play their best teams? They don’t take it that seriously, but it’s there. Not sure if they’ve ever lost…

  67. barry g says

    are summer league games only available thru some sort of league pass or pay per view, or can we catch them somewhere on the web? i can’t believe i’m missing out on ammo’s mvp performances right now…

  68. Kurt says

    Barry G. You have to pay $15 to stream the Summer League games this year. I would have a hard time arguing that is $15 well spent for just Ammo.

  69. chibi says

    Do you guys think the signing bonus the Blazers tacked on to their offer sheet for Millsap made LA reconsider their negotiations with Odom?

    Say Odom is offered $24M/3yrs + signing bonus. With a signing bonus, he’d cost close to $10M per year.

    It seemed like LA was content with a wait-and-see approach. I don’t think that’s the case anymore.

  70. Ryan O. says

    Totally off topic, but does anyone know what happened to Dex’s blog? I tried visiting it today and it appears to be gone. Did ESPN shut him down for all the Bill Simmons bashing? (I’m only half kidding about that.)

    Reed?

  71. Travis says

    Nice as it is to see Ammo playing well and working hard, he has probably less chance of getting any PT next year with Artest coming in. It’s too bad he’s not a SG because our backups for Kobe are….the machine, and that’s it.

    Welp, hopefully this amps up his trade value a bit.

  73. Bill Bridges says

    Orlando now looks like a contender.

    Hedo/Lee/Battie for Carter/Anderson/Bass

    To me is a wash. If they lost Gortat, they take a step back vs. the cavs and Celtics.

    Still surprising that they go deep into luxury tax land.

    Back to Dampland for the Mavs.

  77. Brian says

    I don’t get the uproar about “World Champions”. As others have pointed out, the NBA has all of the best teams and all of the best players, and to argue otherwise is just being obstinate.

    I could see the argument if, say, the MLS Cup winner was proclaiming itself the “World Champion”, but that’s obviously not the case here. No other league in the world comes close to the NBA in terms of talent or competitiveness. It’s like the UEFA times ten, all by itself.

    As for the NBA champ versus top national teams – besides the fact that you’re making an apples and oranges comparison – I wouldn’t be surprised if the Lakers beat Team Spain pretty handily. Part of the problem American teams have with international competition is that, for the most part the players don’t play together year-round. They didn’t grow up playing together, and they don’t play together except for a few a weeks during the summer. Compare that with the other national teams, many of whom have players who have been playing together for a decade. The Americans are obviously more talented, but due to the lack of experience playing together are not as sharp. That lack of cohesion and sharpness would be not be an issue with the NBA champion.

  78. Jacqueline says

    seems like the Odom negotiations have taken a back step once again.

    go on ocregister.com

    ugh, im getting tired of Odom’s crap. Be a man and accept your dam paycheck, you’re not signing up to play for the dam Clippers. Seriously, if you don’t want to be on this team than leave. Were the freakn champions, it shouldn’t take you 2 dam weeks to make up your mind. These players don’t appreciate a good thing when they see it. It is pathetic, so many people would kill to be in his position right now and instead he’s acting like a big baby. There is no loyalty in sports anymore, and people are only after money. If you can’t live off 8 million dollars a year there is something wrong with you. Put down the weed and stop partying every other week and you’ll save a few G’s.

  79. Scot says

    From LA Times Sports Twitter. Mitch on Lamar negotiations: “not as hopeful as I was on Friday” because he and Lamar’s agent aren’t “on the same page.”

    Disappointing news. But hopefully just a negotiating tactic.

  80. harold says

    I don’t mind Lamar taking all the time in the world as long as he signs…

    and I don’t mind him taking every penny as long as he produces next season.

  81. Shaky says

    Yeah not going to panic on the Odom news. Besides, unless Utah matches on Millsap (and then Portland doesn’t execute the backup plan for Hinrich) there’s no free agent money above the MLE.

    Sign and trade? We’ll see I guess, but not sure who’s going to want to take a $10m hit for Odom.

  82. Kurt says

    I think the Lakers (and Mitch) are frustrated. They upped their offer (I heard here at SL it is now $8.5 mil, not sure how many years) and they expected that would be the end of it, deal done. But here it is Monday night and no deal, so they are frustrated. And a little negotiation through the media doesn’t hurt, sometimes, let Lamar know you are not thrilled.

  83. Jacqueline says

    I agree Kurt. It seems like Lamar is trying to play with the Lakers so to say, and I think it is proven that Jerry Buss will not take any of that. We upped our offer by 1.5 million, I think that should be good enough for him.

  84. Jacqueline says

    interesting stuff via twitter.

    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.

  85. Buttas says

    Just don’t understand what LO’s deal is. There is no market out there outside of us paying top dollar for him. If Portland wanted him they would have went after him. In fact that goes for anyone at this point.

    What the crap?

  86. Mike Penberthy says

    It’s been reported on Yahoo i think yesterday that LO’s agent wants a sign and trade, which doesn’t make sense. If no teams are willing to offer him his $10 mil, why does he think somebody will be willing to give up the money PLUS a player?

  87. Gr8dunk says

    Lamar Odom’s negotiations with the Lakers took a bad turn on Monday.

    “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.”

  88. harold says

    I think LO is playing things right at this moment.

    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.

  89. J says

    Jacqueline, I completely disagree with the notion you expressed in #80. LO has every right to take his time and explore every option out there. If he’s going to reconcile himself to taking a 20% paycut then he’s got a right to make sure it’s the best situation for him. Especially if there’s no mounting pressure to sign by a certain date.

    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.

  91. Jacqueline says

    J

    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.

  92. Jacqueline says

    btw I would like to apologize to Lamar about my comments in #80. I didn’t mean it I was just frustrated because I thought he wanted to really leave LA. LAMAR I LOVE YOUU! come back!

  93. Bob French says

    Man! I just hate that video starting up on its own when I visit the site. I am not coming back as long at that intrudes on my room/office/etc. Let ME decide whether I want a voice blasting out of my computer…