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

Around The World (Wide Web): Dwight, The Amnesty Clause, Kobe

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From Elizabeth Benson, Lakers Nation: The Los Angeles Lakers are facing yet another busy offseason this year. The sixteen-time champions will be trying to create a roster that gives them the best chance of hanging their seventeenth championship banner from the rafters of Staples Center. However, they will be doing so by facing a ton of uncertainty this summer, especially in late June through early July, due to some big decisions that will be made by both management and the players themselves. One of those questions is in regards to whether or not the Lakers will use their amnesty clause this year. Per the new collective bargaining agreement, a team can use a one-time amnesty clause on a player, and the salary of that waived player will not count toward the salary cap or luxury tax.

From C.A. Clark, Silver Screen & Roll: It’s no secret that the Los Angeles Lakers will probably need to forge a new path to the next era of franchise dominance. After all, their current roster (one which failed miserably last year) is all but locked in place to take one more shot before being utterly and completely decimated. Barring wholesale changes, the Lakers will probably fail next season as well, and there will be nobody left under contract for any further attempts. This is good thing because, with an aging roster that can’t get the morning paper without pulling a hamstring, few franchises need to press the reset button as much as LA needs to.

From Brett Polakoff, Pro Basketball Talk: If you were going to try to rank all of Kobe Bryant‘s best shots from his amazing 17 years in the NBA, it would be a massive undertaking that would last weeks to get through them all and sort them in order of degree of difficulty, overall meaning, or importance. As recently as this past season, Bryant had a memorable array of them in a single come-from-behind, overtime win over the Raptors — a game I happened to be fortunate enough to witness in person. Bryant’s ultimate legacy will be many things, but making extremely challenging shots in the game’s biggest moments will definitely be near the top of that list. It may be surprising, then, to learn that Bryant himself has a mere pair of free throws in a regular season game ranked as high as any on his own personal career ledger.

From Dave McMenamin, ESPN: Kobe Bryant shuffled into a conference room on the second floor of the Los Angeles Lakers’ practice facility Monday with crutches under his arm and special Nike “Medical Mambas” on his feet and sat down for a near 30-minute interview with ESPNLosAngeles.com. The discussion included a wide range of topics, including Bryant’s thoughts on his rehab, Dwight Howard and Phil Jackson comparing him to Michael Jordan that have already been covered on the site. Here’s the best of the rest:

From Eric Pincus, LA Times: The Lakers are trying to prepare for Dwight Howard’s free-agency decision, whether he chooses to stay with the team long term or leave for another franchise.”It’s the one decision we have to wait on,” said General Manager Mitch  Kupchak in an interview with Mike Trudell of Lakers.com. “Then we will try to have a Plan A, Plan B, Plan C depending on what happens.”The Lakers hope Howard chooses to re-sign for what could be a $118-million, five-year contract. “I think this is the best city to live in with the best fans in the NBA,” said Kupchak.”There are certain things that you remind [Howard] of or talk to him about, and you hope that it plays in your favor.” In the meantime, the Lakers can prepare for the draft on June 27 and free agency on July 1, but there’s only so much to be done until they know Howard’s decision.”It moves quickly, so it’s not like you can go to a Plan B with certainty. There will be 29 other teams looking to improve their teams on July 1,” he said. “We spend a lot of time on those what-ifs, contingency plans.”


Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. AusPhil says

    Interesting to see Dr J essentially say that LA and Boston don’t deal in good faith. Some sour grapes in Philly after the Bynum trade.

  3. R says

    Yeah, how could the Sixers have possibly known ‘Drew’s injury history was a red flag? (eye roll).

  4. scorchee says

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    Thanks guys, like i said, 100%.free (lakers are still open)

  5. Ken says

    Ya ya ya and we stood Kobe , Pau also. We are bad people.

    Bla bla bla.

    Spurs in 6.

  7. harold says

    Rooting for the Heat (best scenario is if both Wade/LeBron folds and Bosh carries the team to championship…)…

    But am oddly satisfied with Heat losing too.

  8. AusPhil says

    R – Exactly. I told all my friends that Drew had a career year in 2011-12, and that LA were selling high.

  9. Snoopy2006 says

    What a game. Can we bring back the “I love this game!” commercials? That last shot by Parker, coming off his feet … the Spurs’ execution (especially defensively) these last few minutes … this is brilliant.

  10. Chearn says

    Young guards, the importance of keeping that handle alive. Tony Parker! That’s good, unless Stern steps in to rescind the call.

  13. vhanz says

    LBJ pass first mentality is sick in my stomach.

    Crunch time and still passing.

    ~_~

  14. Snoopy2006 says

    I meant – Parker coming off his knees. Most NBA players tend to shoot off their feet.

  17. Busboys4me says

    I was never a big MJ fan because I felt like all that Bird and Magic did to revive the league was somehow just given to MJ. He was great, but any player who was placed on a pedestal and allowed to do anything would also succeed. He was great, but he played an illegal zone type defense. He pushed off on offense, traveled and charged but always got the call.

    I see the same thing in LeBrawn who is the next NBA darling. He turned the ball over in the 4th quarter and they called it a good steal by Leonard. LeBrawn threw the ball directly to the man for God’s sake!!! I wish one of our stat geniuses would show what LeBrawn’s true 4th quarter PER is, the percentage of his turnovers that are made during crunch time. This man is not clutch…..He is a great athlete!! Great until you really need him!!!

  18. Craig W. says

    Busboys4me,
    Thank you for echoing my thoughts on Michael Jordan. It is not that he wasn’t an absolutely fabulous athlete, but he is one among a number of stars – not one who stands above all others.

  19. MannyP says

    Don’t let your love of the Lakers blind you to the skill and greatness of LeBron, like it blinded me in my youth to the greatness of MJ (I still hate that guy to this day). LeBronis not the perfect player – but no one is. The dude is only 29 years old and, like Kobe, he will learn from his mistakes. Now that I am older I appreciate it what is unfolding before us. LeBron will truly be one of the all-time greats, just like Kobe is and MJ was. Just because I like watching LeBron play does not mean I “like” the guy – to be honest, I don’t like anyone who is not wearing a Laker jersey. However, I do enjoy watching him play the game. This guy is awesomely talented.

  20. Craig W. says

    After the firing of George Karl I have been browsing the Denver blogs to see the reaction of the fans. Well, it is a mixed bag, but I thought one article was particularly apt for all fans – Laker fans included. I don’t think we can afford to sit back and watch things go by us, but I do think the absolute frustration with not winning it all every year isn’t healthy. Here is the link and I suggest all Laker fans read it: http://www.roundballminingcompany.com/2013/06/07/what-is-happiness-the-george-karl-status-quo/

  21. rr says

    but I do think the absolute frustration with not winning it all every year isn’t healthy.
    —

    I don’t think your constant, intense concern about what the fans are saying about the FO and the coach is healthy, either.

    Also, I don’t think most people expect to “win it all every year.” People are frustrated now because the team is in bad and uncertain shape.

  22. Darius Soriano says

    I think most fans want to win & at the highest level. However, I also think there are fans who, even if only a vocal minority, think winning it all is the only measure of success and incessantly complain when things don’t work out that way. Further, when moves — be them personel or otherwise — don’t reflect what these fans want, the decision makers are labeled idiots or worse. Finding fault in this approach isn’t a radical thing.

    As for commentary regarding what fans say, I’ve often said that “commenting on the comments” is something that isn’t that productive. However, this is a community of people commenting at this site and sometimes it’s inescapable that there will be disagreements not only about points made, but the tenor and tone of the conversation as well.

  23. rr says

    The Karl firing is a decision that can be looked at either way, which is why I am not surprised Denver fans would have a mixed reaction. Clearly, Karl is a fine NBA coach. But he is also nearing the end of his career, is not a young man, and the Nuggets appear to be stuck in a certain gear under his leadership. I think that is probably more of a roster issue than a coaching one, but I can see wanting a change.