The Lakers play the Warriors tonight in Oakland. This is, normally, bad news. And while it still is — we will get to that in a moment — let’s start with the good news first so we can all have a nice feeling wash over us before feeling the crushing weight of reality bathe over us like getting the first 2 numbers of the Powerball last night only to see the rest of the numbers be wrong…
As it stands, the Lakers are on a longer winning streak than the Warriors. That would be one to zero. The Lakers beat an undermanned Pelicans team on Tuesday while the Warriors lost last night to the Nuggets in Denver.
Second, and related, the Warriors played a game last night on the road an likely did not arrive into Oakland until late night/early morning today. The Denver airport is not close to the Nuggets arena — another reason, besides the altitude, they have a homecourt advantage is that additional travel time tacked onto flights to get to downtown to team hotels and the arena — so the Dubs could be a little tired. Meanwhile, the Lakers arrived in Oakland on Wednesday and will surely be more rested.
Lastly, the Warriors may continue to rest some players. Last night Draymond Green did not play and it has been reported he may not play again tonight. It has also been reported that Shaun Livingston and Iguodala may be rested at some point soon, too. This may happen as early as tonight, but that is not confirmed. An undermanned Warriors team is still better than the Lakers, but missing Green, especially, turns them from a historically great team to “only” really outstanding. That drop off may seem small, but every peg you drop a team down matters.
Okay, now for the bad news: The Warriors should still win this game going away and the odds are it won’t be close. Kobe Bryant may not play, which likely hurts the team on offense (though likely helps on defense). The Warriors have not lost at home in nearly 40 games and they seem to raise their game a notch — especially down the stretch of any game which is in danger of being a loss — and their crowd usually finds a way to pick them up at the right moments to help turn the tide/boost the Warriors’ play.
Regarding matchups, the Lakers really do not have a single advantage across the entire roster. Add in coaching and the Warriors are simply a notch above in every head to head. For the Lakers to somehow pull out this game, several players will need to play at their ceiling while multiple Warriors will need to play well below their season norms. Anything is possible, of course, but possible is not likely.
That said, I will be at tonight’s game in Oakland as a fan (not covering it as media), so none of above quite matters to me. Well, almost none of it. I would like Kobe to play, even if only for a few minutes since this is his last trip to Oakland. Which leads me to a slight tangent about how this season is playing out, Kobe’s health, and some recent comments from Byron Scott.
Over at Silver Screen & Roll, Harrison Faigen captured the conundrum well:
It’s easy to say that Scott is the head coach, and if he really wanted to he could just bench Kobe. That does not appear to be the reality of the situation though. The Lakers organization, from the top down, seems to have signed off on Bryant essentially getting to dictate when he plays and how much he plays in his 20th season, both due to business reasons and a sense that all of the success that Kobe has brought to the franchise has earned him this right.
That may end up being a decision that leads to Bryant finishing the season due to an injury rather than the long, raucous, and tearful standing ovation he deserves on April 13th at Staples Center when the Lakers wrap up their season and Kobe’s career, but it’s the decision that has been made.
This is who Bryant is. The tenacity that led to him playing through countless injuries earlier in his career is the same stubbornness fueling him to now literally laugh at the idea of sitting out a few games to give him a better chance to finish the season standing.
I pretty much agree with all of the above. I’d add that it’s hard for me to untangle the following thoughts:
- When it’s Kobe’s last season, how do you manage him wanting to play with what might not be in his best long-term health interests?
- How do you separate “long term health” with the fact that this is his last season and “saving him” really means getting him to his final game of the regular season and nothing more.
- How do you balance being bad and knowing that some are watching games solely to see Kobe play one last time with the understanding that playing him can cost him future opportunities to play in front the fans that are only watching to see him?
I wish I had good answers here. I do not, though. As I’ve written before, there is no blueprint on how to manage this particular player, on this (bad) team, in a season we know for certain will be his last. I’d tend to side with Gary Vitti here and sit him down. But, if you scroll up, I also just said I wanted him to play as this might be the last time I see him live in the capacity of a fan.
We all have our self interests here. Kobe, coaches, the front office, ownership, fans. All of us. That will influence how we think this should be handled. While I think it’s easy to see the number one goal as keeping Kobe healthy, I also wonder how much leeway you give the player to say “eff that, I’m playing” when he knows that this is all that’s left. I do not want to overdo an analogy, but it sort of reminds me of an old person whose had health issues, but now at the end of the line decides “I’m eating, drinking, and doing whatever I want” because they know there’s not much time left.
Is it really on someone else to tell Kobe “but this isn’t good for you!”, when 1). he probably knows that and/but 2). we know he probably doesn’t care?
In any event, I’ll be watching tonight. Maybe Kobe plays. If he does, I’ll be giving him a standing ovation and cheering him on.
Where you can watch: 7:30pm start time on TNT. Also listen on ESPN Radio 710AM Los Angeles.
BigCitySid says
* In the last 10 games the:
– Lakers are: 4-6
– 76ers: 3-7 (now 5 games behind Lakers)
– Nets: 3-7 (only 2.5 games ahead of Lakers)
– T-Wolves: 1-9 (3 games ahead)
– Suns: 1-9 (4 games ahead)
– Pels: 3-7 (4 games ahead)
* Now we here the Laker trainer wants to shut Kobe down for up to two weeks, the coach says “no way” because Kobe won’t allow it. Interesting team dynamic…ignoring professional advice from their long time trainer.
– Big questions, how does Kobe playing or not playing for two weeks (7-8 games) affect the Lakers on and off the court performance and their chances of retaining their top 3 protected draft pick?
– Side note: Celtics have Nets 1st round draft pick this summer…I absolutely HATE the idea of the Celtics having a shot of getting Ben Simmons.
Marques says
I never thought Kobe would finish the season, he’s older, slower and still trying to play hard, even a few games he played hard on defense.
Play as many games as you can, as many minutes as you can. He’s not hurting the team, that will become evident soon enough.
I hope he gets to play in the all star game, everything after that is bonus time.
LKK says
One of the reasons I really enjoy this site is that the moderator does not pretend to know all the answers and for the most part presents all sides of the situation. Darius’ take on the present conundrum that Kobe presents is a great example of the point I’m trying to make. Keep up the good work, sir.
As a side note, it seems as though our Lakers have played the Dubs about 10 times this year. Can’t get away from them!
KevTheBold says
If anyone wonders how Mudiay did against the Warriors last night.
1-7 FG – 2 assists in 16 minutes.
Anonymous says
I’m cringing as well about the Celts coming back in a really big way. That Celtics trade with the nets is starting to look like highway robbery:
__
In the summer of 2013 the Brooklyn Nets pulled off a blockbuster trade with the Boston Celtics to assemble what many people thought would be a championship-level team. The Nets gave up five players, three future first-round draft picks (2014, 2016, 2018), and the right to swap picks with the Celtics in 2017.
In return, they got Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Jason Terry to join what looked like a formidable core of Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, and Brook Lopez.
____
The trade was concluded a week after DHoward left the Lakers for Houston. I remember wondering why the Lakers hadn’t explored fleecing the Nets with an offer of Pau and MWP (who I thought were better than Garnett/Pierce at the time). Certainly would have changed the complexion of our rebuild.
Those Nets picks combined with the Celtics current core, a great young coach and an aggressive FO could put Boston in the Eastern Conference drivers’ seat for the next 10 years. Lebron better get his before the Celts get their thing going.
david h says
So Darius: love your reference and despite all the intangibles; laker’s chances tonite are tantamount to winning last night’s powerball…..well, almost. Speaking of which, Kev, sadly not a filthy rich dad. Oh well. Also loved the remark: “Add in coaching and the Warriors are simply a notch above in every head to head”. Just had to get that in there? understood
If he plays, hoping tonite kobe won’t provide a repeat performance of a torn Achilles tendon; but could be a fitting ending to a glorious career.
Enjoy the COURTSIDE game tonite? Wear a pink carnation so we can recognize you.
Go lakers
LKK says
Another thought on the Kobe situation… In an era where it is en vogue for star players to rest, #24 is probably the last of the breed. He’s paying for it now, but Kobe has always tried to get on the court if at all possible. Maybe fans will get a rebate on the hard earned dollars they spend to see their favorite player perform if said player is “resting” on the night they have tickets. And maybe I’ll see a flying pig on the way home. “Rest” is something the league needs to think about. While I fully understand that players are multi-million dollar commodities and have to be protected, resting healthy players is a slippery slope. Where is the fan served in this? And can holding out key players affect the overall standings and the outcome of games?
Perhaps a ten day period between the end of the regular season and the beginning of the playoffs would allow teams to regroup after a grueling season. The first round of the playoffs has been drawn out to almost 2 weeks in recent years, anyway. If the first round can be shortened by playing games every other day, the current timetable for the Finals being completed in late June won’t be affected that much. Just a thought.
BigCitySid says
* Yeah Kev, for all of us (including myself) who thought Mudiay would be the better choice for our Lakers…it looks like we were not correct.
* Looking forward to seeing what happens when the trainer disagrees with the coach and player pertaining to his ability to perform. Wondering if the team doctor has any say so?
Baylor Fan says
You should get your wish and see Kobe suit up and get on the court. Kobe has made it clear that he will decide when and how much he plays this season. There is no way to tell just how damaged his body is but it has been clear for a few years now that 30 min/game is too much. Enjoy him while you can.
For a different approach to building a team around young players, here is an interesting article on the Trailblazers.
Their approach is pretty close to what Renato was suggesting would work for the Lakers.
Fern says
The Lakers being 4-6 the last ten games is a sign of improvement, not a catastrophe like some people here make it out to be, Bass is doing what he was supposed to when he was brought in, Lou is scoring (somehow) DAR is catching up to NBA speed and Julius i have to agree with BS assessment ” he is playing well, not shooting well” that can be improved. I hope this team keeps improving not for wins this season but for future ones.
Anonymous says
Count me in with the crowd that would like to see the Lakers get competitive before the end of the decade. Which is why I’d like to see the team try to keep this pick by finishing with a record that gives them the best chance at retaining it.
My logic is simple: to have a chance at a top pick in the future would mean that the Lakers would have to be really bad going forward. I want the team to make progress not regress. So, with this season already lost, why not try to get the pick as well. Yes, it’s true that if we lose the pick this year we’d get to keep it next season. But, the team should be better (we hope) next year, so the pick won’t be as good (guessing back of the top ten).
Just so you all know, I would never condone Byron and the players tanking. However, if the FO traded some of the ‘win now’ vets I’d be OK with that. To that point, I am surprised that Bass and Williams haven’t been moved yet. These players aren’t part of the future and their play is artificially inflating the Lakers record. There are a number of teams in the East jockeying for playoff position — you’d think that there would be some interest.
I wonder if the issue is that our FO doesn’t want to trade them? Maybe Jim/Mitch need as many wins as possible this year?
D. Peterson says
Darius,
I live in Denver. For a private bus to get from the airport to the Pepsi center takes about 25 minutes, give or take depending on traffic (which is never really that bad here compared to LA). It’s an easier commute than from LAX to Staples. I would never consider it a factor beyond that faced for most road games.
matt says
The 2 weakest teams are playing right now on tnt, spurs vs cavs, cavs lineup king lames, love, j.r.smith, t.thompson, and Kyrie Irving, so much for the cba making it fair for the rest of the league
Anonymous says
The 2 weakest teams are playing right now on tnt, spurs vs
—
WTF?
Mid-Wilshire says
Tarik Black is in the game.
Wonders never cease.
KO says
Who is this. Tarik Black guy?
Mid-Wilshire says
KO,
You remember Tarik Black, don’t you?
He played for us last year. But he’s been in Siberia the last 2 months. Apparently, he’s been smuggled back into the country.
KenOak says
Our young guys are playing pretty well tonight. Keeping the game tight. Where are all the Russell haters because the kid is really really good.
Mid-Wilshire says
The Lakers’ current line up in the 2nd quarter: Clarkson, Russell, Randle, Brown, and Black.
Not one of these has more than 1 1/2 years of experience. Not one is over 24. This is truly a young group. And, so far, they’re holding their own.
Mid-Wilshire says
In 9:21, Tarik Black in the first half has 6 points and 5 rebounds. Not bad for a “role player” who’s been playing in the D League for over a month.
rr says
ESPN’s NBA page a has a video up of West talking to Marc Stein about Kobe. West gets teary a couple of times.
matt says
These anouncers are terrible
matt says
Interesting conversation with Jerry west about the kobe draft pick
matt says
Reggie miller made fun of nick youngs hairdo
Renato Afonso says
That Jerry West video is great. His body of work shows the great judge of talent he is and his speech reflects how much he loves the Lakers. The reasons for his departure have been discussed here quite recently, but one has to wonder how would the Lakers be if he was still on board as a senior advisor or something.
If only Kerr could get healthy before the end of the season so that we could bring Luke as coach and hire West as a senior advisor while Jim steps away from basketball operations… A man can dream, right?
LKK says
rr….
Thanks for the info about the ESPN interview with Jerry West. Great stuff!!
Fern says
I know this is alll conjecture at this point but Luke seems like the man for the job moving foward. But let’s see what happens in the summer…
Anonymous says
GS will never let Walton leave until Kerr proves he is healthy. They would want Luke as their coach if Kerr is not well. Luke may find himself the highest paid #1 assistant coach on the league until this sorts itself out.
Anonymous says
I think Nance is a rotation guy and not a starter. As a starter he’s averaging 7.7 pts and 6.3 rebs. He’s a nice complementary player but he doesn’t have the upside to be a star. Randle has star potential and as we can see from the standings the Lakers need stars to move the win needle. Randle should be starting now.
Just a weird year. I don’t understand the FO’s offseason moves (Hibbert/Bass/Williams). They are all clearly win now players and the Lakers were never in that category. Plus, it made more sense to not start the kids (Randle/Russell) then move them into the starting lineup after they earned it as opposed to starting them then sitting them. Just a weird year.
Todd says
If only Kerr could get healthy before the end of the season so that we could bring Luke as coach and hire West as a senior advisor while Jim steps away from basketball operations… A man can dream, right?
__
Amen, brother.
Anonymous says
The Minnesota Timberwolves, who have as nice of a collection of young players as any team in the league are struggling. They have lost 8 games in a row and sit in the 14th seed in the West.
Their top three players are:
Wiggins, 2nd year averaging 20.8 pts a game
Towns, Rookie, averaging 15.7 pts and 9.4 rebs a game
LaVine, 2nd year averaging 12.4 pts a game.
(Lots of other youngsters contributing: Muhammad, Dieng, Rubio — only 25)
Some say that Boston getting the top pick, and Ben Simmons, would be awful. But at least they are in the other conference. If the Lakers want to eventually get out of the West, a Wolves team that adds Simmons, could make that difficult.
Mid-Wilshire says
I’d like to see more of the following lineup:
Tarik Black — Center
Julius Randle — PF
Larry Nance, Jr. — SF
D’Angleo Russell — PG
Jordan Clarkson — SG
Even if some of these players are destined to be role players (namely, Black and Nance), we might as well give them a chance to gel and learn how to play together. They might be doing that for years to come.
The season is half-way over. The time for them to start building chemistry is now.
A year from now, we’ll be glad we did so.
Anonymous says
Lakers shot 4-24 from 3Pt range. We need a lights out shooting small forward. Of the core only Russell looks to be a great long distance shooter. Clarkson is well below average for a SG. Randle and Nance are not good at all.
lil pau says
Incredibly few comments here about the excellent play from our kids last night, particularly Russell who had a number of passes that reminded me of Magic. I’m no fan of Scott, but I have to give him a lot of credit for the kids’ development and also, amidst all the hand-wringing about the Princeton, how there seems to be a great deal of freedom within the offense for improvisation. At one point, DAR had made 3 or so incredible no-look passes and then Randle brought the ball up on the next possession and threw an incredible no-look pass and everyone cracked up. It was as loose – and as good – as I’ve seen the Lakers play in a couple of years and absolutely felt like it could be a taste of very good things to come. And Black looked like a beast in the first half, easily the best big on the floor.
BigCitySid says
-@ Anonymous, my issue with the Celtics even having a shot at Ben Simmons is:
* they are the team I dislike the most in the NBA, going back to the sixties, when I 1st became a Laker fan and they always beat our team in the Finals.
* I can’t stomach the increased probability of the Celtics winning their 18 title before our Lakers getting their 17th…and if they were to land Simmons with the team and picks they current have, they’d be a lot closer to their goal (especially in the East) than the Lakers would be to theirs.
* So, lets go Nets.
Shaun says
DAR has grown on me and i think putting him in the 2nd unit helped give him that hunger that we see now … wasn’t there at first .. i think he realized this is now a career .. some his drop passes in the pnr were really nice
Nance could very well develop into a draymond type player or blake light … has a good all around game
randle needs to further develop his game – face up 1on1 drives are not working for him … he needs to be more dangerous from the triple threat position
all of them need time to develop …just like minnesota .. even better core yet they still suck
Anonymous says
Regarding the Celtics — you have to consider them the front runner to get Boogie Cousins. If after the Lottery draft order is set and Boston doesn’t get the first pick, I think they’ll trade the pick (going to be top 5) + next year’s pick + stuff to get Cousins. I don’t think the Celts trade the pick if they know its Simmons — he’s too good to pass up. Bottom line is that the Celt’s will be knocking on the championship door before the Lakers in any event.
Sacramento needs to rebuild in a bad way. They’d get Celtic/Nets top 5 pick this year, the Celtic/Net’s pick next year and some young talent from Boston.
KO says
Lil Pau funny but I saw a bad game from DAR. 2 for 10 from three? Curry he is not. Out of position on D and often lossng his man completly on screens.
Yes he is improving but last night was not a good example. IMO
Anonymous says
You do know that Cousins is a knucklehead – a top 5 talent, but a knucklehead.
KevTheBold says
Thanks Sid !
Regarding the game: The first half of the game was competitive against the champs !
Once they learn to keep up the pressure and keep the mistakes down, we will have something there.
I was impressed with Randle’s growth last night, I do believe he’s finding himself again.
DAR had some impressive passes, and always looks calm and in control, however took too many shots for my taste, and his defense could still use some effort.
For rookies however, I see great potential in both.
I wonder if the front office is planning on some trades before the deadline?
Mid-Wilshire says
KO,
Don’t forget: D’Angelo Russell is 19. At the age of 19, even Curry wasn’t Curry.
KevTheBold says
Right on point, as usual Mid !
stats says
“And Black looked like a beast in the first half, easily the best big on the floor.” Preach. I hope we get to see more! I was loving our under-24 squad.