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The Official Los Angeles Lakers thread
Now_Im_Not_Banned:
--- Quote from: ING on October 11, 2006, 01:10:30 AM ---
The Lakers played their worst when Bynum was out there...No one could get him the ball & he was turning the ball over and not playing smart defense.
--- End quote ---
From what I heard, even though Bynum didn't pick it up offensively, he was making a difference on the defensive end and still picking up the rebounds (6 in 17 mins)...It's the pre-season, nothing happening other than an injury should concern us. I believe Sasha is the only one playing this game the same as if it were the NBA Finals. LOL.
Now_Im_Not_Banned:
--- Quote from: Baby G on October 11, 2006, 08:16:09 AM ---why wasn't this game even mentioned on nba.com?
--- End quote ---
It's a Laker hater conspiracy... :-\
rik:
How's it going?
Now_Im_Not_Banned:
Evans impersonates Bryant
BY ROSS SILER, Staff Writer
Article Last Updated:10/10/2006 11:09:32 PM PDT
FRESNO - Lakers forward Lamar Odom has taken to calling guard Maurice Evans by the nickname "Herschel Walker" for the simple reason that Evans is built more like an NFL running back than an NBA player.
That might be the case, but Evans did a pretty good Kobe Bryant impersonation in the fourth quarter of the Lakers' exhibition opener Tuesday night.
Evans connected on two 3-pointers and an 18-footer as the Lakers reversed course after giving back most of a 14-point lead and went on to a 94-79 victory over Utah.
He started in place of Bryant, who skipped the trip to continue strengthening his right knee, and scored all 12 of his points in the final quarter.
Evans was acquired from Detroit in a draft-night trade and came with the reputation as a defensive stopper.
But Evans, who can defend three positions, showed the other side of his game Tuesday.
"When I was in college, I was one of the top scorers in the country," said Evans, who averaged 22.6 points his sophomore season at Wichita State. "I had never been known for being a good defender until I got to the NBA."
Evans best sequence might have come after he missed a shot. He kept the rebound alive, tipping it back outside, and drilled a 3-pointer from the corner after he got the ball back from Odom.
Teenage center Andrew Bynum, meanwhile, had his ups and downs in finishing with two points, six rebounds and four turnovers in 17-plus minutes.
Bynum hit a turnaround 12-footer on the baseline in the fourth quarter and blocked a Rafael Araujo shot in the second quarter. But he had the ball plucked from his hands twice by Derek Fisher in the first half.
"You can see that he's still got a long way to go in terms of his strength," assistant coach Kurt Rambis said, "and for a big guy that's 7-feet tall he brings the ball down way too many times."
Now_Im_Not_Banned:
McKie's Roster Spot Uncertain
By Mike Bresnahan, Times Staff Writer
October 11, 2006
FRESNO — Aaron McKie could look around the Lakers locker room and see an 18-year-old, a 19-year old and then, if he held up a mirror, a 34-year-old.
The guard tries to keep things light-hearted as he heads into what would be his 13th season, but he acknowledges he is near the end of his career.
"The fat lady is warming up her pipes," he said.
McKie averaged only 0.5 points in 14 games last season after being sidelined because of a quadriceps tendon injury. He will make $2.5 million this season, although the Lakers might waive him or try to trade him to make room for one of their younger players, forward Devin Green or rookie guard J.R. Pinnock. Waiving McKie would be a tough call, one that would come toward the end of training camp and hinge primarily on one question — youth or experience?
Including McKie, the Lakers have 13 players with guaranteed contracts, two short of the league maximum. The contracts of Ronny Turiaf and Smush Parker become guaranteed if they are still on the roster Nov. 1, a virtual certainty that would put the Lakers at the 15-man capacity and leave the team in a roster crunch if they want to keep Green or Pinnock, who have non-guaranteed contracts.
The Lakers are more familiar with Green, a second-year forward who averaged 0.9 points and five minutes in 27 games last season, but Pinnock has had a decent training camp.
Selected 58th overall by the Dallas Mavericks in June's draft, Pinnock was traded to the Lakers on draft day for a future second-round pick.
"He's picking up the offense," assistant coach Kurt Rambis said. "You feel a lot of confidence when he shoots that the ball's going in."
Pinnock, who averaged 14.5 points last season for George Washington, still has plenty of work to do if he is going to make the team.
"He's going to have to defend some really tough people," Rambis said. "And he's going to have to show us consistent knowledge of the offense."
McKie did not play in Tuesday's exhibition opener against Utah. Green had two points in four minutes and Pinnock went scoreless in five minutes.
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