The Official Los Angeles Lakers thread

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Box Score

[Stone Cold is Bout It, Bout It]

Sloppy, ugly 1st half....to many J's and they weren't even running the triangle..

A couple good things did happen...

Ronnie Turiaf is a great defender...his great Defense kept us in the Game.

Smush improve his 3 point shot....He's made 8/10 3 pointers in the pre-season  ....Hopefully he could make a high % of his 3's during the season ...He still can't defend Nash. He had 4 TO's...needs to clean that up

J.Farmar played nash real good..stoled one of his passes, drew an offensive foul, stayed in front of him, and was getting phisycal with him..Nash started crying to the Refs   ....JF overall had a nother good game..he's not turning the ball over..

And so far...D.green>>>Mo.Evens

Only bad thing is Vlad..he had a nother bad game..And the Lakers have a lot of injuries..

[Stone Cold is Bout It, Bout It]

Kobe's New Website

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

And so far...D.green>>>Mo.Evens

Only bad thing is Vlad..he had a nother bad game..And the Lakers have a lot of injuries..

Vlad is a shooter, he's gunna struggle a bit at first until he finds his ryhtym in the tri...He's already a proven player, he's not really being tested or anything. As for Devin Green and Maurice Evans, you're only say Dev is better because you didn't see Game 1 where Maurice Evans had by far the best game either player had in all 3 games. But yea, Maurice Evans did look kinda' shakey out there last night, but I have confidence in his ability and I'm very proud to say that Devin Green is a player who's struggling for a roster spot, cuz if you've watch him play, he doesn't struggle much and that says a lot about our roster...PeACe

[Black_Smoke]

Kobe's New Website

nice,launches on the 31st,looks like the vid there is a TNT add?



"Its the length of one day.
One Half.
One Shotclock.
This number is my promise,
To dominate every moment."
-KB24
 

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Walton: Lakers at elite level
L.A. is hoping to challenge Dallas in West

By Ross Siler
Los Angeles Daily News
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 10.15.2006

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — With the departure of Devean George this summer, Luke Walton is now one of only three holdovers from the Lakers team that lost to Detroit in the 2004 NBA Finals, along with Kobe Bryant and Brian Cook.
Every time Walton, the former Arizona star, has come to training camp, the Lakers have had a different look from the season before.
He was a rookie on the Finals team with four probable future Hall of Famers and thought, "I was going to win a championship just walking in the gym."
The draft-lottery season after the Shaquille O'Neal trade came next, followed by Phil Jackson's return as coach and an agonizing seven-game loss to Phoenix in the first round of the playoffs last spring.
The Lakers have not broadcast their expectations this season — Kwame Brown said it would be a "letdown" not to reach the second round — but Walton thinks the Lakers have as good a chance of advancing to the NBA Finals as any Western Conference team.
"We feel like we're at that level," Walton said. "We don't feel like there's a team out there that's just better than us. We feel like when we're playing at the top of our game we can play and beat anyone else in the league."
The only proof Walton needed came after watching Phoenix lose to Dallas in six games in the conference finals. The Lakers also will bring back at least 11 players from last season's team, which learned to play together in the triangle offense.
"As a team and a unit, you have a lot more confidence in each other," Walton said. "As opposed to last year when so many times the whole season, we were losing close games because we didn't really have that confidence about us. We had it about Kobe, but not about us as a team."
For his part, Walton is hoping to get through October healthy, as opposed to the past two years.
He is wearing compression leggings on the court to keep his hamstrings warm through all the stopping and standing of camp. Walton suffered a strained hamstring in the exhibition opener last season and went on to miss 11 regular-season games.
"My body feels better this training camp than it has since I've been in the league," said Walton, who averaged a career- best 19.3 minutes last season.
His role also has yet to be defined. Walton moved into the starting lineup at the end of last season, but the Lakers signed free-agent forward Vladimir Radmanovic in July, likely sending Walton back to the bench.
"With the way our team is set up," Walton said, "we have so many different versatile players that I'm sure we're going to use different starting lineups."
Walton is comfortable both as a starter and floor leader of the second team. Playing with the starters gives Walton a chance to settle into the game; coming off the bench usually lends itself to team play without the stars on the court.
Retooling the Lakers

The Lakers made two major acquisitions in the offseason, picking up free agent F Vladimir Radmanovic from the Clippers and trading for Pistons G Maurice Evans.

Vladimir Radmanovic
F • 6-10 • 234 • 5th year
2005-06 season: 9.8 ppg,4.6 rpg, 39 percent shooting on threes

Maurice Evans
G • 6-5 • 220 • 3rd year
2005-06 season: 5 ppg, 2 rpg, 14 minutes per game

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Turiaf Heartened by His Progress

By Mike Bresnahan, Times Staff Writer
October 15, 2006

Whenever a reporter approaches with a digital voice recorder in hand, Ronny Turiaf knows that the question is about to be asked.

It could be the lightly phrased, "How are you feeling?" Or the more specific, "How's the condition of your heart?" But it will mean the same to him — a trip back to the most frightening time of his life.

Turiaf had open-heart surgery in July 2005, the thought of which left him in tears at a news conference in which he pledged before his surgery to make it back to the basketball court, but also acknowledged, "I'm scared of dying."

Turiaf underwent the six-hour procedure to repair an enlarged aortic root and was expected to make a full recovery for normal activities, but his future as an NBA player was in doubt.

He is now a reserve forward for the Lakers, a bundle of braids and energy who tries not to linger too long on last year.

"It's so much pain and so much bad thoughts in my head," Turiaf said in his slight French accent. "It was a real, real tough time in my life, to go through what I've been through. It was tough to hang in there on a daily basis. The only time I think about it is when the media asks me about it. Outside of that, I really try to forget about it."

Turiaf, who grew up on the Caribbean island of Martinique and left a small fishing town of 18,000 to attend a basketball academy in Paris, became the 37th pick in the 2005 draft. He quickly went from the ecstasy of signing a two-year contract with the Lakers to the reality of being a 22-year-old who needed repair work on his aorta, the body's largest artery.

The diameter of Turiaf's aorta was 5.6 centimeters, about 50% larger than normal, increasing the possibility of a rupture.

Veterans around the league typically view the exhibition season as a necessary evil, but Turiaf, whose contract doesn't become guaranteed until Nov. 1, is scrapping as if it's the playoffs. He had 15 points on six-for-eight shooting Thursday in the Lakers' 104-101 exhibition victory over Seattle.

"Playing in those preseason games, a lot of those guys take it for granted, but this is my time to showcase my skills, to show my coach and general manager that I want to be here, that I'm going to do whatever it takes to be on the basketball court — play defense, rebound, give energy, try to give assists, try and get some blocked shots and eventually score," Turiaf said. "This is a blessing and I surely don't take it for granted. I see where I came from last year."

Turiaf is virtually assured of having his contract become guaranteed, but he must continue to pay attention to his condition. For at least one more season, he must wear a pad made of foam and plastic to protect his sternum. He also has a medical checkup every three months, a three-hour process in which he undergoes an electrocardiogram and other diagnostic tests.

"Everything you can imagine to make sure I can be on the basketball court," he said.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Radmanovic Slowed by Injury

By Mike Bresnahan, Times Staff Writer
October 16, 2006

LAS VEGAS — The Lakers pelted Vladimir Radmanovic in the first hour of the free-agent negotiating period, sending a full-court phone press with Phil Jackson, Kobe Bryant and Magic Johnson making calls to woo the lanky 6-foot-10 forward with the smooth stroke.

The Lakers got their guy, signing him to a five-year, $31-million contract in August, the shooter they wanted in Jackson's triangle offense.

His defense and rebounding have been surprisingly strong in practice, but his shooting has been off the mark as he battles a hand injury.

Radmanovic holds a Lakers' opponent record with eight three-pointers in a January 2005 game with Seattle, but he has made only four of 20 shots and is averaging five points in three exhibitions.

"I don't really worry about my shot right now," said Radmanovic, who extends his left hand for handshakes because of the soreness of the right hand. "It's stayed pretty bad so I'm not able to take the shot the way I want it. Nothing I can do about it. It's starting to heal, and hopefully it's going to be soon."

Radmanovic has strained ligaments between the pinkie and ring finger of his right hand, an injury he suffered last week when he was swatted while going up for a shot during pregame warmups.

"It was one of the coaches," Radmanovic said. "I won't say who, but his name's Brian Shaw."

In the meantime, he has had to impress Lakers coaches in other ways.

Radmanovic, 25, has career averages of 10.1 points and 38.1% shooting from three-point range, but only 4.6 rebounds, a stat the Lakers hope he improves this season.

"He's a lot better defensive player and rebounder than I think I gave him credit for," assistant coach Kurt Rambis said. "He's much more aggressive defensively. He does a good job rebounding the basketball. He's got a nice nose for the ball rebounding-wise."

Radmanovic, however, has sometimes been caught free-lancing instead of staying within the confines of the triangle offense.

"Right now, he seems to be struggling with trying to play within his basketball instincts and play within the system that we're going to be working under, and there's some conflict there," Rambis said. "But I know he's going to get better. His hand is obviously a problem. I had that injury when I was a player. It's extremely painful. It's something he's going to have to deal with because they're slow-healing injuries."

Radmanovic will get plenty of game time to work on his offense. He is expected to start for the Lakers, a key part of his choice to leave behind an identical contract offer last August from the Clippers. Radmanovic wanted more playing time, and the Clippers couldn't guarantee it with Corey Maggette in the fold.

-

Smush Parker made five of six three-pointers and had 18 points but the Lakers lost to Phoenix, 99-91, in an exhibition Sunday.

Shammond Williams and Luke Walton each had 12 points for the Lakers.

Bryant made the three-day trip with the team but did not play Sunday and is not expected to play Tuesday.

Chris Mihm (ankle), Kwame Brown (shoulder) and Sasha Vujacic (foot) did not play Sunday.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Radmanovic, Shammond Williams learning, nursing injuries
The newcomers struggle with the triangle offense as the Lakers lose to the Suns, 99-91.

By KEVIN DING
The Orange County Register

LAS VEGAS – It's not going to be the story this season, but it's still going to be a story.

So even though most of the Lakers know the triangle offense now, not all of them do. And two of those who don't are the ones assigned to upgrade the team's perimeter shooting - and nursing potentially long-term nagging injuries.

Vladimir Radmanovic has a strained ligament in his right (shooting) hand, an injury he described as "swelling and spreading bones." Shammond Williams came to the Lakers with pre-existing cartilage damage in his abdominal area, and it continues to bother him to the point that he was wincing on the court Sunday night after making a layup.

Williams still managed a 5-for-5 shooting outing in the Lakers' 99-91 exhibition loss to the Phoenix Suns. Williams had shot 2 of 7 from the field in the first two exhibitions.

"He has been overly concerned about running the offense," Lakers acting head coach Kurt Rambis said before the game. "I think he has passed up shots."

Williams responded well to the criticism by making great use of the basic pinch-post position on the weak side of the triangle and firing away. However, his abdominal injury remains a concern: Williams got treatment for so long after the game that he was just entering the locker room when other players had already exited.

Radmanovic's exhibition shooting slump reached stunning proportions with an 0-for-4 start - dropping him to 3 for 19 from the field (15.8 percent) - before he hit a half-hook shot in the final minutes.

Besides the hand injury that probably will linger into the regular season, Radmanovic's learning curve in the triangle has slowed, with Rambis saying there is a "conflict" between the old and the new.

"He seems to be struggling playing within his basketball instincts and within the system of basketball we use," Rambis said.

Assistant coach Brian Shaw, trying to give Radmanovic some tough defense in warmups before the exhibition opener Tuesday, hacked down between the fourth and fifth fingers on Radmanovic's right hand.

"I don't really worry about my shot right now," Radmanovic said. "It's taped pretty bad, so I'm not able to take the shot the way you want it."

Rambis said he had a similar injury in his playing days and added: "It's something he's going to have to deal with for a long time, because it's a slow-healing injury."

JACKSON COMING?

Lakers coach Phil Jackson previously threw out Friday night as a potential return date from his hip surgery, and based on Jackson's attendance at every recent practice and Rambis' observations, it might well be soon after the team returns from Las Vegas late Tuesday night.

"Each time he has been in, you can see he's getting more animated," Rambis said. "He's healthier, he's moving better, and he's taking more and more control of practice in barking out orders."

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Williams trying to find his niche

BY ROSS SILER, Staff Writer
Article Last Updated:10/15/2006 10:35:24 PM PDT

LAS VEGAS - The difference for Lakers guard Shammond Williams between his first and second week in the triangle offense - between his first and second week back in the NBA — was apparent at the start of the second quarter Sunday.

Where he might have passed up taking his own shot in the Lakers first two exhibition games, Williams pulled up without hesitation and connected on back-to-back 3-pointers in the Lakers 99-91 loss to the Phoenix Suns.

Williams finished with 12points and made all five shots he took after a little prodding from the Lakers coaches to look more for his own shot instead of having tunnel vision while trying to run the triangle.

That s the easiest thing to do for anybody, Williams said about shooting. But distributing the basketball and making sure your teammates get involved, that s a little harder.

I just took my shots within the offense. That s what they want me to do, I ll do that.

Lakers assistant coach Kurt Rambis said: We know he s a shooter, and we know he can knock down shots. Once he gets comfortable, he s going to start playing some really good ball for us.

Williams spent two seasons playing in Europe before coming back to the NBA with the

Lakers. He defined his role overseas as being a playmaker.

But the Lakers will be counting on Williams to be a dangerous outside shooter coming off the bench. And Williams said he had a talk recently with forward Lamar Odom about finding his niche in the offense.

You have to find out what your team needs from you, Williams said. Even though you maybe do a lot of things, your team needs you to do certain things.

The Lakers have four ball- handling guards competing for minutes, and all four have had strong performances in the preseason. Smush Parker, last season s starter, led the Lakers with 18 points Sunday and made five 3-pointers.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Painful Struggle for Shammond

12:14 AM PDT on Monday, October 16, 2006
By BRODERICK TURNER
The Press-Enterprise
 
LAS VEGAS - He's back in the NBA after a two-year absence and wants to prove he can stick around.

But the problem for Shammond Williams is an injury that won't go away and is hindering his progress.

Williams said he has a stress fracture in his pelvis that has limited him during training camp. It kept him from working out until a week before camp began. He said he has lateral movement on defense but can't move forward well on offense.

He first suffered the injury while playing in Spain last season.

"I thought I would be cleared by now," said Williams, who signed a one-year, $1.7 million contract. "I'm not. My explosiveness is not there."

Williams played with six NBA teams in six years before playing in Russia during the 20004-05 season. He is trying to get readjusted to the NBA after spending two years overseas.

"It's a different game," he said. "The NBA game is a lot quicker. I've got to get my timing again."

Before Sunday night's exhibition against the Phoenix Suns at the Thomas & Mack Center, assistant coach Kurt Rambis wanted Williams to shoot more.

Williams did just that, scoring 12 points on 5-for-5 shooting, including 2 for 2 on three-pointers, in a 99-91 loss. Smush Parker led the Lakers with 18 points while Shawn Marion and Raja Bell led the Suns with 16 each.

At 6-foot-1, Williams had always been perceived as a shooting guard in a point guard's body. He went to Europe and worked on his passing.

The Lakers just don't want him to be too focused on passing.

"We want him to be more aggressive, to shoot the basketball more than he's been," Rambis said. "I think he's been overly concerned about running the offense and I think he's passed up shots that he would normally take."

T's for Yelling at Refs

The NBA has instituted a zero-tolerance rule regarding players and coaches yelling at officials. Late in the second quarter Rambis found out the referees are willing to enforce it even during the exhibition season when he was given a technical by Joe Crawford, who is known to have a short fuse.

Rambis was upset when Steve Nash passed to Amare Stoudemire but appeared to have touched the ground first for traveling. It wasn't called, and Stoudemire dunked.

Parker also was given a technical by Crawford.

[d-nice]

Smush gets a consistent 3 point shot= problems for the rest of the league. You really do not have a point guard his size in the west, so along with his quickness of the dribble, if he can shoot at a good percentage, it's going to cause alot of problems. It will also draw the defense out giving Kobe more driving lane to the basket.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Bell tired of talking about Lakers series

By Jerry Brown, Tribune
October 15, 2006

Raja Bell is asked about it every day. In fact, it’s a good day when he’s only asked once. Raja Bell and Kobe Bryant. The playoffs. The war of words. The clothesline. The suspension.

“It’s unbelievable. I literally get asked constantly,” Bell said. “I’ll meet people, we’ll start talking basketball and it takes about 10 seconds for it to come up.

“It’s beyond old. It’s really old. I’m starting to let people know it’s not a topic I want to revisit.”

Bell and Bryant meet up for the first time since the Suns won an epic, seven-game playoff series with the Lakers — with Bell’s takedown the signature snapshot — tonight in Las Vegas. Both players will be in the lineup, but the game will be more about sharpening skills than renewing a rivalry. And Bell, for one, hopes it’s a dead issue.

“I’m moving past it,” he said. “I don’t want something like that to define my career. If I look back at that as a bright spot, even though we won, I’ll be disappointed. I want to help my team win a championship, not be the reason they don’t. I was fortunate my guys went out and won without me.”

But while the Suns were able to overcome a one-game suspension, beating Dallas with Bell out and then hobbled by a calf injury proved too much. Steve Nash has said he feels Phoenix could have won the series with a healthy Bell and Bell sheepishly concurs.

“No matter who (was injured), we were so low on healthy bodies that losing one more guy really made a difference,” he said. “We won the first game, and we led at halftime in all the others. We needed everybody.

“That team with myself and Kurt healthy . . . I would take my chances. That’s what has me so pumped about this year. We have more bullets.”
 

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Smush gets a consistent 3 point shot= problems for the rest of the league. You really do not have a point guard his size in the west, so along with his quickness of the dribble, if he can shoot at a good percentage, it's going to cause alot of problems. It will also draw the defense out giving Kobe more driving lane to the basket.

Yup...Can't wait to see Smush's progression this year.

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