The Official Los Angeles Lakers thread

[Teddy Roosevelt]

It's all speculative. I was never fully convinced he wanted to come to the Lakers anymore than any other player wishes they could. Dwight has remained classy and not made is potential free agency front page news.

[LooN3y]

Mike Brown's Playbook

[MUHFUKKA]

Mike Brown's Playbook

hahaha

[Bch]

^^ LOL

did yall see this http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=6609008

Dwight Howard: Orlando is first choice
Dwight Howard is not planning on following Shaquille O'Neal's lead and bolting the Orlando Magic via fee agency.

Or so Howard is saying a year before the he hits the open market following next season. The center is is under contract with the Magic through the 2012-13 season, but can terminate the deal a year early.

O'Neal, looking to take his talents to Hollywood, left the Magic for the Los Angeles Lakers after the 1995-96 season.

"I'm not trying to run behind nobody like Shaq or be behind somebody else," Howard told the Orlando Sentinel Monday.

"I want to start my own path and I want people to follow my path and not just follow somebody else's path. I want to have my own path, and I want to start that here in Orlando. But I can't do it alone. Not only do I need the right teammates, but I need the city behind me. That's the only way it's going to get done. We can change this small city that we have -- this small market that we have -- and we can make it a big market."

In order to make that leap it appears the Magic would have to re-tool its roster to appease Howard. Following its first-round playoff ouster by the Atlanta Hawks, the Magic brass would have to give the All-NBA center a stronger supposting cast to make the club a bigger threat to win a championship.

A deeper run in the playoffs would perhaps give Howard even more reason to stay put in Orlando.

"As of right now, I'm a part of the Orlando Magic and I plan to be here," Howard told the newspaper.

"And I want the Magic to do whatever they can to make sure that we can get our city behind us. That's the only thing that I want to happen: just to have the city behind me and the support of our fans. I never said I was leaving. I never, ever thought about leaving. That's basically where my head is right now. I never said anything to them (the Magic) about what my plans were because that's not what I'm focused on right now."


--- maybe he was hammered when he said this, and somewhere in an island out in the bahamas luke walton is working on his jab step - spin move- reverse 360 dunk

[.:DaYg0sTyLz:.]

^^ LOL

did yall see this http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=6609008

Dwight Howard: Orlando is first choice
Dwight Howard is not planning on following Shaquille O'Neal's lead and bolting the Orlando Magic via fee agency.

Or so Howard is saying a year before the he hits the open market following next season. The center is is under contract with the Magic through the 2012-13 season, but can terminate the deal a year early.

O'Neal, looking to take his talents to Hollywood, left the Magic for the Los Angeles Lakers after the 1995-96 season.

"I'm not trying to run behind nobody like Shaq or be behind somebody else," Howard told the Orlando Sentinel Monday.

"I want to start my own path and I want people to follow my path and not just follow somebody else's path. I want to have my own path, and I want to start that here in Orlando. But I can't do it alone. Not only do I need the right teammates, but I need the city behind me. That's the only way it's going to get done. We can change this small city that we have -- this small market that we have -- and we can make it a big market."

In order to make that leap it appears the Magic would have to re-tool its roster to appease Howard. Following its first-round playoff ouster by the Atlanta Hawks, the Magic brass would have to give the All-NBA center a stronger supposting cast to make the club a bigger threat to win a championship.

A deeper run in the playoffs would perhaps give Howard even more reason to stay put in Orlando.

"As of right now, I'm a part of the Orlando Magic and I plan to be here," Howard told the newspaper.

"And I want the Magic to do whatever they can to make sure that we can get our city behind us. That's the only thing that I want to happen: just to have the city behind me and the support of our fans. I never said I was leaving. I never, ever thought about leaving. That's basically where my head is right now. I never said anything to them (the Magic) about what my plans were because that's not what I'm focused on right now."


--- maybe he was hammered when he said this, and somewhere in an island out in the bahamas luke walton is working on his jab step - spin move- reverse 360 dunk

They say his second choice is now the Mavs actually.

[BLUNTTYMECC]

Mike Brown's Playbook

LOL

[Teddy Roosevelt]

Lakers/Wolves Not Seeing Eye-to-Eye?

The Los Angeles Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves may have perceptual differences that could get in the way of a major trade.

As detailed on Friday (Pincus: Pau Gasol For Kevin Love?), the Wolves have interest in acquiring Pau Gasol in an effort to give incoming Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio the greatest possibility to succeed in the NBA.

It should be emphasized and then reemphasized that Wolves General Manager David Kahn needs Rubio to be a win for the Wolves. To date the team hasn't improved under Kahn's reign and with the lengthy courtship of Rubio (who was drafted in 2009 but spent the last couple of seasons overseas), Minnesota needs this one to pay dividends quickly.

The Wolves may find it difficult to attract high-level free agents and Gasol is still one of the top big men in the league. The difference, however, between the Wolves and Lakers, is what it would or should take for Minnesota to get Gasol.

The Lakers have no plans to break up their core, believing they can still contend as is.  Equally, there's concern for the future with players like Kobe Bryant, Derek Fisher, Lamar Odom, Matt Barnes, Steve Blake and Gasol all over 30.

Sources say the opportunity to swap an All-Star forward for a much younger All-Star forward, the #2 pick in 2012 to either address the team's backcourt needs (or pick up an athletic kid like Derrick Williams) and filler that could include Darko Milicic to back up Andrew Bynum . . . would appeal to the Lakers even if that meant Gasol.

Whether Gasol, the proven player, is a better fit than Love isn't really the debate. It's about getting younger and deeper while maintaining the opportunity to win more championships throughout the Kobe Bryant era.

Of course that's the Lakers' side of affairs.

The Wolves would like Gasol.  Do they need Gasol over other options that may come up?  Not if the price is too high.

Bear in mind Minnesota is one of the most active teams the league, shopping their #2 pick on many fronts.

From conversations with Star Tribune reporter Jerry Zgoda via Twitter, Kahn has been banking on the new (yet to be written) Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) forcing teams like the Lakers to drastically reduce salary.

"Trades aren't always talent for talent," said Zgoda on Twitter (with some minor syntax adjustments by HOOPSWORLD for clarity's sake).  "They're about money and the cap, especially with the new CBA coming.  It's more about absorbing Gasol's $60 million contract."

That's why a Gasol for the #2 pick and filler (just about anyone but Wesley Johnson, Rubio and Love) may feel like a believable offer to the Wolves.

And from a Lakers' perspective, players like Jonny Flynn, Michael Beasley, Anthony Randolph, Anthony Tolliver, Luke Ridnour, Milicic, etc. might provide the Lakers the kind of youth and depth they currently lack.

While Kahn has struggled to turn the Wolves into a winner, the team's biggest bright spot was the play of Love. If he's correct on the financial implications of the new CBA, why should he forfeit his best player?

Of course, what's to come in labor negotiations is unclear and one the Lakers certainly won't act on until locked in stone.

Additionally, the league is slowly backing away from a hard cap. One NBA executive told HOOPSWORLD that owners realize that if they want a hard cap, it's going to cost a season. That's partially why the owners recently backed off their position of non-guaranteed contracts in negotiations with the players.

Eventually a deal will be reached with the true focus for the league on distribution of Basketball Related Income (BRI).  They want a bigger piece of the pie, which is currently at 57% going to the players off the gross.

The owners want a bigger cut but they also want that off the net, which would dramatically reshape the economic picture - likely at the concession of a hard cap, salary rollbacks and the aforementioned non-guaranteed contracts.

Regardless, with revenue sharing expected to increase the Lakers are one of the teams expected to bear a greater financial burden moving forward.

"Either way, if they significantly reduce their player costs and make things more equitable for small market teams, that's going to impact teams with huge payrolls, isn't it," said Zgoda.  "That's what Kahn has been betting on."

If the league does adapt a hard cap, then perhaps L.A. will have to cost-cut, but if it's just about money, don't expect the Lakers to let the evolving financial landscape impact their roster.

MORE BY ERIC PINCUS

Pincus: Pau Gasol For Kevin Love?: The Minnesota Timberwolves may want to bring in Pau Gasol to mentor fellow ...
Pincus: Clippers Intend to Keep DeAndre: The L.A. Clippers expect to retain restricted free agent DeAndre Jordan. ...
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View Eric Pincus Archive
The team recently brokered a deal with Time Warner Cable that may bring in as much as $150 million a year, starting with the 2012/13 season. Even if 10% or even 20% of that went to subsidize other teams, the Lakers are looking at a dramatic increase in revenue.

That's the perceptual gap between the Wolves and Lakers.

If Minnesota is counting on the Los Angeles moving Gasol for the #2 pick without Love simply to save money, that's an errant line of reasoning.

If the Lakers expect the Wolves to give up Love with the #2 pick, that too appears to be a dead end for Minnesota.

Can compromise be reached for Love without a pick and salary filler?

Not if Kahn believes the Lakers will be forced at some point to trim salary, at least not before the CBA is ratified and thus long after Thursday's NBA Draft.

Wolves Can't Trade #2 and #20
Because the Wolves dealt their 2012 pick unprotected to the Los Angeles Clippers for Marko Jaric (a gross simplification of what transpired but ultimately the case), Minnesota can't trade both of their picks in the coming draft.

Because of the Stepien Rule, the Wolves can't trade future first-round picks in successive years.

They don't have to have their own pick but they can't have "no picks" in both years.

If the Wolves trade the #2 pick, they need the #20 to abide by the rules.

If they trade the #20, they need the #2.

There are a few ways around this.  Minnesota can add on a third first-round pick for this Thursday or acquire one in next year's draft.

They can also agree to a trade that isn't officially consummated until after the draft is complete.

Clippers Wouldn't Have Beasley
Reports have the Los Angeles Clippers and Wolves having had discussions involving Michael Beasley to L.A.

While it may be true that the Wolves initiated conversations, the Clippers have no interest in Beasley. The Clipper mantra under Vice President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey has been "character and culture."

L.A. wants nothing to do with players with any sort of negative attitude and/or reputation.

To be fair, Beasley had a career-reviving season in Minnesota but historically he's struggled including a stretch in rehab back in 2009. If the Clippers are rushing to judgment on Michael (maybe, maybe not), that's well within their rights.

L.A. is a team actively looking to acquire a cornerstone piece to put alongside Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon. They'd like a top-level small forward and they have rightfully been linked to Andre Iguodala, although it remains to be seen what the Philadelphia 76ers do before July.

The Clippers are in a unique position in that they have a competitive team (after last year's Baron Davis-led 1-13 start), cap room, a movable piece in Chris Kaman and the Minnesota pick next year in a much, much deeper draft.

Whatever was said or reported, even if leaked by well-placed sources outside of Los Angeles, the Clippers put the kibosh on Beasley a long time again and have held to that.

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=20184

[theremedy360]

^ I really have no idea what to make of the Gasol thing. On one hand he was a huge part of their two championships, then last year his little bro made him look like Jerome James. It will definitely be interesting to see what happens.

[LooN3y]

love is too much about stats, and it showed from last season where he HAD to get that double double even if it costs the game.

im sure kobe would check him if he does come, but thats not laker material i dont want love, and we dont need another power forward jacking up 3's.

[7even]

Kobe has been in Germany for a very modern (one could say experimental) operation on his right knee.

[Sccit]

^yea...it's just a transfusion of blood from one area of the body into the knee, to help aid the healing process. kobe says he's determined 2 prove the doubters wrong and 2 shit in  the face of those sayin he's "done"..

[The_Ripper]

LMFAO @ Mike Brown as new coach of the lakers 

[LooN3y]

LMFAO @ Mike Brown as new coach of the lakers 

welcome to last month

[Sccit]

^LOL...even last month, that was old news.

[7even]

It's still really funny tho