Jim Buss, Phil Jackson & the Dangers of Desperation (03/21/14)

Lakers fans are in a bit of a fix as of late and maybe for good measure. Our captain is injured, our record is among the worst in the league, and our Hall of Fame coach just signed with another team somewhere on the east coast. Perfect time to panic right? Well before we start grabbing our pitchforks and torches allow me to shed some light on the situation. Besides, there’s too much traffic to get to Staples and I’m not sure a pitchfork will fit in my car.

Phil Jackson

Last week former Lakers head coach Phil Jackson signed with the New York Knicks to be the President of Basketball Operations. No, he will not be coaching the Knicks. He is too old for that much work, and frankly he has nothing left to accomplish as a head coach in the NBA (11 titles). Phil wanted an opportunity to run a franchise from the front office and not from behind the bench. Now he finally has an opportunity. So what are his responsibilities? He will be making decisions like coaching hires, setting the training staff, and have near final say on personnel moves. The only person above him in decision making will be the Knicks’ owner James Dolan. He won’t be a GM in the sense that he negotiates contracts and talks to agents, but he will dictate which players he wants or get signed. Will Phil be successful in his new role? Who knows? He’s never had the job before. One saving grace for Knicks fans is he can’t be any worse than what they’ve had. ;)

Jim Buss

Naturally, Laker fans are asking why couldn’t he do that job on the Lakers?? Simple. The job is already filled by owner Jim Buss who is the son of the late Dr. Jerry Buss. (This is where all reading this blog let out a big sigh and say, “Ughhh I hate Jim Buss!!”) But not so fast! How much do we really know about Buss other than what ESPN tries to convince us of? Like his father Jim Buss does not communicate with the media much. A lot of media members are turned off by this and make certain assumptions about him that may or may not be true. The fact is Jim Buss has been involved in the Lakers’ organization since the early 2000s. He has been heavily involved in major decisions that constructed out past two title teams from 2009-2010. He and Mitch had nearly pulled off the steal of the century in acquiring CP3 before the NBA intervened. Don’t forget about acquiring Howard and Nash which were good trades at the time. He can be criticized for his coaching hires, but Dr. Buss was involved in those decisions as well.

Dangers of Desperation

The key for the Lakers franchise and their fans at this juncture is to not rush or panic. The team was well on its way to contending again before unfortunate circumstances happened (CP3 veto, then unprecedented injuries). The decisions were mostly sound. However, now it is time for a complete rebuild. In our case the house has to be completely torn down before it can be renovated.
The worst thing the Lakers could do would be to spend all of their cap space this summer trying to field a championship team. Unless the 0.0005% chance occurs that LeBron signs here, whatever team we put together will likely lose in the 2nd round. There just aren’t enough good players available. Additionally the financial implications of spending big on long term deals this summer will cost us in the future. That means we should keep our draft pick this year and not trade it for a current all-star (Kevin Love). It would be smarter to wait another year and then add someone like Kevin Love to our draft talent. That’s how we can get back to contention, but it may take a few seasons. Patience is key.

Go Lakers!!!

Trade Deadline Completed and Draft Prospects (02/21/14)

Steve Blake Traded

The NBA's trade deadline ended at 12pm PST yesterday. The Lakers were looking to trade for young players, cap relief (saving money), or draft picks. These are the things that they need to start rebuilding the team.  They were willing to part with Pau Gasol, Jordan Hill, Chris Kaman, and Steve Blake.  That doesn't necessarily mean they don't like or want these players themselves, rather that these are players that other teams want from the Lakers.

In the end they were only able to trade Steve Blake for cap relief and a couple young players on expiring contracts. The Lakers received Kent Bazemore and Marshon Brooks from the Warriors. This trade does a few good things for the Lakers and one good thing for Steve Blake:
- Saves the team money
- Gives them a chance to see if these young players can improve like Xavier Henry and Jodie Meeks have already
- Makes us a worse team this season which increases the chances of a better draft pick
- Gives Steve Blake a chance to win this year

It sucks to see Steve Blake go, but the Lakers did the trade in such a way where it was a favor to Steve as well. He'll be a free agent this summer and he was quoted as saying he wouldn't mind returning to the team. Win-win. It's unclear yet whether Bazemore or Brooks will stick with the team. It likely depends on how they play for the remainder of the season.

2014 Top Draft Prospects

This draft class is touted as being a strong one. That's why the Lakers were trying to get another pick, and also why other teams were reluctant to give them one.  Fortunately we do have our own 1st round pick. And with our record it's likely to end up in the top 3. Below are the 3 players I'd like to see us draft (in order of my favorites) if we get a top 3 pick.

1) Dante Exum

Many of you might not have heard of this guy before, and there's a reason for that ;).  He's a 6'6" guard who's just coming out of high school. His dad played in the NBA, but he was raised in Australia while his dad played professionally there. Does this story sound familiar to you? Replace Australia with Italy and you've got Kobe Bryant's bio.  The background of both athletes are eerily similar. It's even more scary when you realize that Exum has signed Kobe's agent, the Lakers are his favorite team, and Kobe his favorite player.  He was even at the Lakers vs Rockets game of Wednesday since he's in LA working out until the draft.  This kid has got future Laker written all over him!

Strengths:
Basketball IQ, ball handling, passing, gets to the basket, finisher, a will to compete, footwork, leadership

Question marks:
Inferior competition, vertical leap, lack of scouting tape available

Exum has great potential.  He even interviews well. If he ends up here I think the sky is the limit. Kobe will mentor him, and he will be willing to listen.

2) Joel "JoJo" Embiid

Embiid is a 7'1" 19 year old center from Cameroon. He's another Lakers fan as well and Pau is one of his favorite players :).  This kid is quick and agile. Think Andrew Bynum in the '07-'08 season before he ever got hurt. He was running the floor, catching lobs, and blocking shots. These are all things Embiid does. Only he looks like a gazelle doing it rather than a dinosaur with a sprained ankle like Bynum did lol. Embiid has incredible footwork and defensive instincts for such a yound age. He's a little taller than Anthony Davis, and there games are similar. He has better post moves while Davis is better from the perimeter.

If he reaches max potential he really can be the modern Hakeem.

Strengths:
Size & quickness, shot blocking, rebounding, footwork, post moves competitor

Question Marks:
Foul proneness, injury concerns (only because of the stereotype with 7 footers)

3) Andrew Wiggins

He's the guy everyone has probably heard about. He's being touted as the next LeBronze, but you can't really tell from his play at Kansas. That could be due to the system they run there however, which doesn't really allow one player to be dominant on offense.  We can see is extremely athletic and is already a lockdown defender. If his offense flourishes in the NBA, look out! He very well could be a T-Mac or Paul George type of player.

Strengths:
Crazy athleticism, perimeter defense, rebounding, do-it-all player

Question Marks:
Aggression, ball handling, leadership

Wiggins' ceiling is T-Mac level with better defense, and his floor is Igoudala without the ball handling.

I'll save my other prospect for next time and I'll also provide some videos of them in action.

Until the next entry...farewell Steve Blake...and go Lakers!!!

Draft or Free Agency? 01/29/14

Anyone still hoping for the Lakers to make the playoffs this year is going to be very disappointed.

For the rest of us fans that leaves us pondering the question: should the Lakers rebuild through the draft or free agency?

It's been the hot topic this week on ESPN radio and other sports outlets. The Lakers own announcer John Ireland is a strong advocate for building through free agency. He states that historically that's what has won the Lakers championships.  Many fans are arguing to build through the draft since the 2014 draft class is highly regarded.  My answer is simple: do both.

Ireland is inaccurate when he says free agency is what the Lakers have always done. He lists Kareem, Shaq, and Gasol and examples of players they got through free agency/trades. Well what about Magic Johnson, James Worthy, and Kobe Bryant? All drafted by LA. (Kobe was technically traded for, but the Lakers traded for the number 13 pick, they told charlotte to pick Kobe.)

The truth is there's no advantage to limiting yourself to only using one method to build a team. Especially with the new collective bargaining agreement. The Lakers can't build a team by collecting a bunch of stars anymore. The most that teams can afford before they have to fill the roster with role players is two. That is why players on rookie pay scale contracts who can make an impact are so valuable. They perform well but they're cheap and allow you put good players around them. How do you get those players? By drafting them. It's essentially the only way since no team will trade them because of their value.

Here are the steps the Lakers can take to get back into contention:

-Get a top 5 draft pick (then develop them)
-Sign a top free agent next offseason when K love is available. Unless for some miracle they get a shot at LeBronze then you take that. Pass on Melo because he costs too much. At $17M and under then sign him.
-Have a cohesive plan and direction for the organization. Everyone from the front office, to the coaching staff, to the players need to be on the same page. They need to have an identity. We can't have players not buying into the system or coaches throwing players under the bus. We need chemistry AND talent to win another championship.

Next I'll be covering the top 7 or so draft picks. The draft is always a crapshoot, but there sure are some intriguing players!! Until next time. GO LAKERS!!!

State of the Lakes (01/12/14)

Currently the Lakers record stands at 14-22. They're about 6 games back of making of the playoffs, and their best players continue to be injured.  It would be a pretty safe bet to assume they won't make the playoffs.  The team was certainly good enough to do so if they could have stayed healthy. Unfortunately, as we all know too well, they haven't been able to do that these past two seasons. I know it's not what Lakers fans want to hear, but you can't win every year. We need to start from the bottom and climb the mountain top once more.

At this point there it's less relevant to discuss the team's play on the court as it is their moves as a franchise moving forward.

The benefit of not making the playoffs means the Lakers will get a better draft pick. Even better still is that the draft next year has some really good young players in it. The Lakers should be able to get a nice prospect on an affordable contract. Then they'll have some cap space to sign other quality players to fill out the roster.

I look for the Lakers to put 1 or 2 star names around Kobe in his final two years. Maybe Carmelo Anthony, although I'm not a big fan, if the money is right then that might be a good move. A more likely possibility is Minnesota's Kevin Love. He's always wanted to be a Laker (his dad was in the 70s) and he'll be a free agent in 2015. As long as the Lakers put the right defensive players around them, they just might build another Championship contender within a year or two.

State of the Lakes (12/21/13)

The latest news in Laker land is that Kobe Bryant is again out of action. This time it was a fracture to his left knee (same leg as the Achilles). A timetable of 6 weeks has been given for the fracture to heal. Then he'll need to rehab and recondition himself. In reality he'll probably be back on the court in 8-10 weeks. Many are urging him to sit out the year, but that just isn't in his personality. He should take his time though.

LAL 97 - OKC 122
LAL 88 - CHA 85
LAL 100 - ATL 114
LAL 96 - MEM 92
LAL 104 - MIN 91

During Bryant's time back the Lakers went 2-3. He was adjusting to playing again, and the team was adjusting to playing with him. Additionally the team lost all of it's point guards to injury. Naturally there was a bit of an iffy period where the team was learning a new style of play. They were coming along slowly with a ton of turnovers, and their 3pt % dropped.

Now with Kobe out again the team can go back to their run and gun play style. That's not to say they'll be better without Kobe, but there will be no major adjustment period. They absolutely need him and their point guards back at full strength to make any noise this year. For now though it's fun to watch the young guys get up and down the court with reckless abandon. See highlights of last night's game for an example.

The Lakers also signed a 22 year old pg named Kendall Marshall. He has room to grow, but he's really just a low risk signing to fill in the gap till our other point guards are healthy.

Strengths: Courtvision, Floor general, size (6'4.5")
Cons: Shooting, Athleticism, Defense

Basically anything that he contributes is a plus. It shoould be fun to watch and see if Mitch Kupchak has discovered another diamond in the rough.

The Lakers will play the Warriors on the road tonight. If they can contain 2 out of 3 of Klay Thompson, Steph Curry, and David Lee then they'll have a good shot at winning the game.

State of the Lakes (12/13/13)

You know what word I hate to write? Injuries. Along with "got hurt", "had to sit out", and "when he gets back". After last season, I'm just really tired of typing them and I know you're tired of reading it. -_-

We'll talk about the games played first and then get into the injuries. *sigh*

LAL 106 - SAC 100
LAL 94 - POR 106
LAL 108 - PHO 114

With Kobe back the Lakers are essentially starting their offense from square 1 again. He missed all of training camp, and there are tons of guys on the team he's never played with before. Additionally he's still getting used to just playing basketball again period for the first time in 8 months.  The good news is physically he looks well. He looked really rusty in his first game back, but the second game gave him much confidence and he's returning to the player we know and love.

On a related note, all three of the Lakers point guards are out with major injuries. Normally this would be bad, but Kobe could perform some of the duties. This time it's really bad because Kobe isn't himself yet and he'll be asked to be pg as well. It's a tough task. To make matters worse the Lakers are unable to sign a player to a 10 day contract until January. They definitely don't want to sign some bench player to just fill a hole, and then be stuck with his contract later.

They may be in fact forced to do that if things get really bad. But for now look for them to stand pat and until things get more desperate. Some of the names they're looking at are familiar: Duhon, Morris, and Barbosa. No world beaters there.

It's not looking good for the next month or so. Point guards are crucial to a team's success. That is especially true in D'Antoni's offense.  We have 0 of them. So hang tight and enjoy the ride as much as possible lol.

The Lakers play OKC on the road tonight at 5pm.

State of the Lakes (12/3/13)

Welcome to the new format! I hope you enjoy it since I won’t have time to do posts for every game anymore.  The plan is to bring you the latest Lakers news and analysis on a weekly basis.  Since it’ll only be once a week I’ll add more speculation and rumors then I usually do to keep it interesting.

Games since last update:

LAL 100 – SAC 88

LAL 111 – WAS 116

LAL 99 – BKN 94

LAL 106 – DET 102

LAL 108 – POR 114

Overall the Lakers are back to .500 basketball with a record of 9-9.   After Jordan Hill had his breakout week, Jordan Farmar and Wesley Johnson took a turn.  Swaggy P also showed up with some nice production off of the bench in the last few games.  This Lakers team has established an identity finally.  They don’t really have a rim protector so they try to pressure the ball with their athletic 2nd unit.  They’ll break whenever they can, and they generate open looks from 3 by good ball and player movement.  They are in the top 3 in the NBA in 3 point makes and attempts.  The team was definitely on an upswing, winning 5 of their last 7 games, however the immediate future is starting to look grim with the recent rash of injuries they’ve suffered.

Injuries:

Kobe – Still out; some speculation suggests this Friday for a return. Sometime closer to Christmas is probably more likely

Nash – Supposed to return to practice today to see how his body feels; some fans are hoping for his retirement to get his salary off the books. I think he may be done, but will try to give it a go all season long.

Farmar – Suffered a tear in his hamstring in Sunday’s game. Should be out at least 1 month.  It’s horrible timing as he was playing really well and the team needs him desperately.

Blake – Hyper-extended right elbow. He’s been able to play through it since last week. Hopefully these 4 days off will make it more tolerable

Pau – Mild ankle sprain. His body has been taking a beating.  The Lakers need him healthy since he does so many things on the court.

Kaman - Bad back which has caused him to miss the last several games.

Hill - Another ankle sprain victim like Gasol. He hasn't had the same energy lately in games so this is likely bothering him.

What’s next?:

The Lakers might look into signing another point guard given the injuries to the only 3 they have on the roster.  A trade is also always a possibility albeit it is less likely. 

Also, there was a lot of chatter about Kobe’s new contract that was signed last week.  People had pipe dreams of signing LeBron and Melo at the max with Kobe taking a big pay cut.  Well LeBron was never coming and Melo is not worth the max in my opinion.  Here’s what it basically means; the Lakers see Kobe as one of their max slots and they may not be eyeing the 2014 free agent class. They could very well be targeting Love in 2015 and Durant in 2016 along with several other players.  Stay patient Laker fans…