The Official Los Angeles Lakers thread

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Keep it real, fool. Clippers owns the Lakers.

^^This guy is a hardcore Laker fan...LMFAO!

It's a fact. I don't support them, like you do. But i gotta admit they are better than us. Actually any people from all around the world can see it but you and Lakers Run L.A. & Dubcc.com Sports Section

Clippers are better than us. From the past season.

You're a douche-bag for actually believing that...Lakers will easily be a better team than the Clippers by all-star break. I don't see you as a fan, and this time you can't buy yourself out of it with excuses...

[TeeRaySix9Teen]

DISS ^^  I PREDICT IN 5 DAYS IT'LL BE DOWN TO 0 

that would mean the Lakers AND the CLips would be playing 4 games in the next 5 days? Hmm...genius.

[TeeRaySix9Teen]

btw, the same as with my comments on the Lakers bad start....wait at least 10 more games before you guys start jockin the Clips good start lol. I think they were 9-6 last year after 15 games....they ended the season with less then 40 wins.

[Stone Cold is Bout It, Bout It]

DISS ^^  I PREDICT IN 5 DAYS IT'LL BE DOWN TO 0 

that would mean the Lakers AND the CLips would be playing 4 games in the next 5 days? Hmm...genius.

   shut the fuck up!!
 

[Stone Cold is Bout It, Bout It]

I was talking about PLANT's Karma going down to "0" in 5 days

[acbaylove]

Lakers Stumble Again
By Eric Pincus
for HOOPSWORLD.com
Nov 21, 2005, 18:27    

The weekend ended in disappointment for Los Angeles Lakers fans as the Lakers turned what looked like a nice win at home into a late game fiasco.  The 96-93 loss to the Chicago Bulls was the team's fifth loss in six games.

One would hope that things improve as the team's understanding of the triangle offense evolves.  In the meantime, Kwame Brown is hurt (hamstring).  Devean George is sore (ankle).  Luke Walton still hasn't played a game (hip, hamstring, etc).  Chris Mihm recently had an MRI (ankle).

Bottom line . . . a team with minimal depth, struggling through injuries while trying to learn a complicated new system on the fly.

The schedule doesn't exactly let up either with eight of the next 12 games on the road including three sets of back to backs.

Perhaps the pre-season prediction of 41 wins was a little high?

If They Are Really This Bad, What's Next?
Laker management express high hopes for this Laker squad built around Lamar Odom as the triangle initiator and Kobe Bryant as the primary scorer in the wing.  Smush Parker was a defensive upgrade for the team at the point while the tandem of big men (Chris Mihm and Kwame Brown) were thought to be capable of big minutes with respectable numbers.

Well Bryant is clearly the primary scorer but Odom has struggled in his role so much that triangle architect Tex Winter recommended he be removed from the job.

Mihm and Brown have had to fight through foul trouble and inconsistency.

After a brilliant start, Parker's offensive output has leveled to the point that there are very few scoring options on the floor though his defense has been adequate.

The Lakers have publicly avowed that the 2007 plan when the team will have enough cap room to go shopping for a top level player is the priority.

Should this Laker team continue to flounder, do they stick to the plan or find a way to staunch the bleeding by the trade deadline?

Other than Bryant, the most attractive trade asset the Lakers have is Lamar Odom.  Though he has struggled, he is still very highly regarded. around the league.  After losing to the Lakers, Coach Larry Brown noted that he considers Odom to be one of the best players in the NBA.

The Lakers are rumored to be listening to offers, though not aggressively looking to make a move at this time.

One option could be sending Odom away for an ending contract and draft picks (Penny Hardaway, Tim Thomas, etc), but the Lakers would still be over the cap next season.  A simple salary dump does not seem likely or even reasonable.

Another possibility might be chasing after a player of near equal value.  Players like Ron Artest, Peja Stojakovic or Carlos Boozer (if ever healthy) have their strengths and weaknesses.  Though none of the above is necessarily likely, the Lakers might look to find a player they feel might be more complimentary to Bryant.

With all the Kevin Garnett rumors circulating recently, never mind in this column back in October, Odom could be a part of a package the Lakers offer to the Wolves should Garnett truly be put on the block.  It's certainly not likely that Minnesota would gift wrap the former league MVP, but the Lakers may very well wait to make sure before giving up any trade assets for a lesser player.

Will LA move Odom?  At this point it's too early to tell . . . but if the team continues to lose regularly, it's something to watch very closely.

The Bottom Line
This has not been the start the Lakers had hoped for, but the season is early and they may still find success.  The Western Conference is not nearly as deep as it used to be.

As it is, with just a 4-6 record, the Lakers are one game behind the Seattle SuperSonics for the eighth seed in the West.

Then again, they're just one game ahead of the bottom dwelling Houston Rockets who were predicted to be a top four seed in many pre-season rankings.

It's just too early to tell how good or bad the Lakers are through ten games, but the signs thus far are not pretty.

Trading Lamar Odom is by no means a given.  Certainly small moves would be considered before giving up on such a talented player.  Unless the Wolves come calling, there isn't likely to be any rush to get a deal done.

Here it is. A few months later, but here it is.

[7even]

Bird won't give Artest away for Odom, hands down. Peja is realistic. Might suck for the Lakers though, as he's pretty much just a scorer and Kobe wants to have a lot of points 

[acbaylove]

Peja? No, thanx. He performs better when his team has a great front-court duo of players who can take some pressure off him. Let's say that having Peja with Brown and Mihm as our front-court line is pointless. One thing is for sure: if Odom keeps shooting from 3pts without using his size as an advantage over his defender, then i'd rather see Peja making them shots. Boozer? I don't know, i've never liked him somehow. No. Artest? Yeah, he could be a good fit, but it won't happen anyway, like you said. I'd rather keep Odom than trading him for a wack player or for a player we don't need. Odom for Artest sound good to me. We'll waste all the rarely-used talent Odom has, but we will be more competitive now. And we will just miss a center (we could wait for Bynum to develope into a superstar) to be a very good team. I don't know. Without thinking about it the whole day i say NO to Peja and Boozer and MAYBE to Artest.

[Doggystylin]

Goin to the game tonight vs Seattle, damn it would suck to pay to see your team lose so hopefully they can pull off a thanksgiving miracle, lol

[h cottie is bac-tive?]

Pacers wont let Artest get away...he's an All-Star

Peja won't be effective unless you have someone strong downlow..he's a phenomenal 3 point shooter

They need someone strong to be aggressive in the paint..not to mention a stronger bench to give Kobe a rest without blowin the lead

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Bird won't give Artest away for Odom, hands down. Peja is realistic. Might suck for the Lakers though, as he's pretty much just a scorer and Kobe wants to have a lot of points 

I'd hang myself if the Lakers traded Odom for Peja...They could get so much more than just a shooter.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Goin to the game tonight vs Seattle, damn it would suck to pay to see your team lose so hopefully they can pull off a thanksgiving miracle, lol

Where are your seats and how'd you get the tickets? I was gunna go...

[TeeRaySix9Teen]

Bird won't give Artest away for Odom, hands down. Peja is realistic. Might suck for the Lakers though, as he's pretty much just a scorer and Kobe wants to have a lot of points 

I'd hang myself if the Lakers traded Odom for Peja...They could get so much more than just a shooter.

im not a big Odom fan, he's just too soft. But i dont see Peja making some huge impact, without you guys having a strong low post presence.

[Doggystylin]

Lakers WON, what an amazing game, every single player tore it up, Smush had that craaazzy dunk, the crowd went nuts after that, and then Kobe finally woke up in the 2nd half and took the torch from Odom who was lightin it up in the first half, very dope game and you gotta love the laker girls, lol, oh that announcer chick is even better than the laker girls, damn shes hot, NIK, the seats werent that great they were in 301 row 3 but even up there the view isnt as bad as you would think, it was the only reasonable shit i could find on ebay in time

we also saw this guy get hit by a car on his bike, cause the light turned green and the guy started crossing so i braked and then the car in the next lane braked but the 3rd lane didnt see him comin so BAM lmao, he didnt get hurt bad though, he got up,  it was funny though, it was on figueroa right by USC


oh yeah Kwame was out like an hour before the game practicing his 3-point shot with coach brian shaw, i was like wtf, he was airballing them all too, lmao

[Stone Cold is Bout It, Bout It]

Smush had that craaazzy dunk, the crowd went nuts after that,

I'll have that video up in 1 hour

oh yeah Kwame was out like an hour before the game practicing his 3-point shot with coach brian shaw, i was like wtf, he was airballing them all too, lmao