hey Philly...bout that pick..

start looking for which PFs are projected to be drafted in the 20s...


This is how you build a team..

take notes.

Good grief.

Best laker win in the past three years..

I'm amped !

- Hits the bong -

Lakers got their Cloak On, while the west coast rolls along. (Nate Dogg Voice)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2016/11/05/larry-nance-jr-s-head-caressing-dunk-on-david-west-becomes-instant-internet-classic/

excited to see how that part of his game develops over the season.

he need to bring that dirk fadeaway back

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ-DD9hI3HnWAx2eC96PT-MALKXGc_46IkL3QOuXWzxR-XT1AeJRA

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
<---- 5....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dlgiritpmfo

=======================================

i actually like rooting for these lakers. juli randle perrenial all star

My original prediction was 30-32 wins...now it's upper 30's, possibly even .500, but still expecting 36-38 or so.

Definitely a fun team to watch, and the win last night showed some signs that this isn't even a fluke. Randle deciding to pass to Clarkson instead of letting ego get in the way and forcing up something on Chandler???

..should be interesting to see the type of character/poise this young team develops.

wins are always great, but i need to know that these cats will compete consistently, regardless of their record.


*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

Mozgov did great defensively on Boogie during the stretch where we came back..

and it's great to hear the TNT talking heads giving so much praise to a young team that they spent so much time burying last season..

when does that happen honestly.... a team goes from one year having one of the worst teams in the league with no apparent hope.... to the next season folks gushing over all the interchangeable options our new young coach has...and how bright the future is for this young team..

again.. from one season to the next...

without signing any big name free agents..


you know how that happens??

it happens by drafting guys who don't all play the same position...and making key late 1st and 2nd round picks...

you do that...you look up one day and you have a solid starting line up and bench that can work together......

instead of being left with question marks and needing to trade lottery picks 2 years into their nba career..

Lakers have a solid hand

Like, not even for our 11-12th men (ok maybe them). I'm just content with what we have, and don't wanna chance messing up this chemistry that has already developed.

but let's be honest, would the exact same roster look as good now with Byron or another coach at the helm?

Luke Walton deserves major props for getting everyone to buy into the team first (Randle and Young are the obvious early beneficiaries).

Some have written articles on this already but I don't think it can be overstated... the fact that Walton invites the players to challenge his decisions means they have more investment and agency with the *team's* success. Contrast that with Byron's "my way or the highway" coaching style and it's a completely different environment.

Clarkson and Lou combine for 44...

we made like 16 3s in the game..

D-Lo out there making it look easy...


smh...

the haters are going to have a loooooooooooooong season..

Love the way he's passing the ball, and scoring more efficiently.

Ingram's not even all that productive yet, but he will be. His ability and potential is evident, and this thing will really take off as his game matures.

It's clear this team plays hard and unselfish, and for that Luke deserves a lot of credit. He's got a lot of guys contributing. There will certainly be tough times and we'll see how they respond, but what a great and promising start.

love it.

Oh, I'm soooo fuuuuuuuuuuuurious that the regular season is gonna end after just 12 games. That makes me soooooooo mad!!!
</Marvin_The_Martian_Voice>

Whatever will we do. You wanna talk about sample size yet here you are with a prisoner of the moment cyse lmao.

The fact that you're in a lakers team post talking about re-upping later is a clear indicator of how pressed you are. I'll leave you to the last word bc I don't wanna gummy up our actual team post responding to mad, OKS already has enough of that lol

Now that is a real "process"

>Now that is a real "process"

Too pressed to talk shit to see it though.

The fact that they're thriving is a huge plus because they've been key to several of our wins and keeping us close in losses.

There's nothing worse for a young team like this than sitting around and watching losses pile up. They're helping us win games and that's important to helping these kids grow. Everyone is getting important tick and everyone has had a chance to shine, even amidst the resurgence of those two vets.

We'll see how things shake out over the year, but you're just plain not paying attention if you think the only people developing are Swag and Lou.

Obviously the samples are way different but if the trendline is even close to this early start, it will be a pretty incredible transformation for the team.

There are always one or two who wind up hitting the haymakers and while you never know who those guys are going to be in a given night this team can throw an awful lot of jabs from all direction.

Peoople citing the quality of competition are missing the point because those lower tier teams ARE our competition. If we wind up better than that bottom third of the league in the end we're at least a full season ahead of schedule.

And that's just it: nobody is talking about hoisting a divisional banner this season but we already show signs that we could threaten that 8 seed. We already look better than that bottom third and anyone who actually watches these games will know why many of us aren't ready to label this a fluke even if we're not ready to go all in.

I'll vwait until January for a rock solidn projection but right today we look like an 8 seed is at least possible.

Black with 12 and 9 off the bench....Mozgov was solid..

and D-Russ rained 32 and 8 on em.

This is how you build a team....

stay above .500...

Luke needs to look at the small line ups he runs...giving up too many easy baskets.... Black needs to get some minutes at the end of the game...

but man..Nick.... big time shot.

w/o D-Lo...

The small ball lineups work when you can mitigate the loss in defensive coverage and rebounding with greater offensive output, forcing the opposition to adjust. Tarik doesn't fit that lineup bc of his offensive limitations. Being an undersized 5 doesn't mean you are a fit for small ball.

>The small ball lineups work when you can mitigate the loss in
>defensive coverage and rebounding with greater offensive
>output, forcing the opposition to adjust. Tarik doesn't fit
>that lineup bc of his offensive limitations. Being an
>undersized 5 doesn't mean you are a fit for small ball.

I'm not seeing much limitations in Tarik's offensive game this season...he's going to rack with either hand...he's strong on the offensive boards...he's knocking his freethrows down

Mozgov has more offensive game than some thought.... and I really think we need to utilize him more....but to me Black has better feet ...more quickness defensively.... he can switch on the pick and rolls better...

He does not pass the ball well, always has trouble when he has multiple decisions to make, and does not hit his jumper consistently. Defensively, actually watch Tarik play PnR defense...he consistently backs too far into into the paint and allows wide open elbow jumpers. It's one thing to have more lateral quickness, it's entirely another to actually use it consistently.

I love Tarik but he does not give us the interior defending, paint protection, and offensive versatility of Mosgov. It's not close in terms of overall impact.

Tarik...

Mozgov does not present a more demonstrative threat outside than Black does right now to me...

The problem is that teams are basically taking the rock right into the paint and making plays for super easy baskets...They doing this at critical times...or we're giving up offensive rebounds when we're outsized..

There are times when Mozgov is effective in this area for us...and yes to me we need to use him more in the 2nd half of games....

But Tarik Black is an option defensively to me because of he has more quickness...

a play like this...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zF_mKMOGlFk

to me Mozgov is more likely to commit a foul...or not got all out to block it because he doesn't want to foul...

or a play like this...again.... Mozy makes that play without fouling?? I dunno
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgU0jnMRYMg



in a smaller line up at the end of the game.... you can find a spot for Black to make these type of plays

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWHhbViXSqA

..nothing pretty about 'em, but good teams learn to win in spite of them.

they're not there yet, but on the right path.

i'm still not a big fan of young's, but i'll take that win.


*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

The fact that we've been "in" damn near all of our losses is a great sign and a great opportunity for growth.

*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

http://tinyurl.com/lakerbench

among 5-man lineups with at least 100 total minutes played so far, they currently have the 3rd best point differential per 100 possessions.

prolly not sustainable, but still pretty impressive.

Especially if BI and JC continue to come off the bench. JC is legit, though I've come to terms with the idea that his ceiling isn't too much higher than this. Still, he's got some headroom left and once he gains some savvy he's going to be a huge headache in this role. I say that because his over dribbling tends to generate buckets just as it does turnovers.

But BI, particularly with this experiment at the point? Yeah he's going to continue to develop on both ends. Between that and Lou and Nance's occasional bursts I think we'll hold in the top five through the season.

All in all I'm starting to get comfortable with the idea of hanging around .500 through the season, which is why I'm gonna fall the fuck back lol. I'm sticking to my January timeline though. Come January 15th I'm gonna call it.

>hey Philly...bout that pick..
>
>start looking for which PFs are projected to be drafted in the
>20s...
>
>
>This is how you build a team..
>
>take notes.

There's no flop or player reaction that the refs can rely on to call a travel...it would actually take them seeing something with nuance to consistently call travels.

i saw them let wiggins take like 10 steps on a dunk the other day

Glad to see we're addressing this proactively rather than wait and see and trying to "tough it out".

We have the PG depth to handle these upcoming weeks and Calderon looks more than capable of holding the starting spot until DLo gets back.

Part of why I say that is because after a sloppy 1st in which we were terrible on weak-side tagging (non-existent to start the game resulting in Dwight having 11 points in the first 6 mins...and then having multiple people commit resulting in easy cross court passes for wide open set 3's, Maskala in particular) and not using our feet and chest...we responded by only allowing 62 the rest of the game (if you want to be detailed, only 52 in non-garbage time because at 102-84 Coach Bud put in the 5 man trash team including the one and only Ryan Kelly, sans man-bun) with hands down our most consistent, disciplined, and aware team performance of the year...all 5 working together to tag and rotate and then making multiple efforts to run shooters off and close down lanes while cheating off some of Atl's weaker shooters (Sefelosha in particular).

Luke said we didn't play hard AND smart last game...tonight we certainly corrected that with our usual high level of effort complemented by our smartest game yet, a blowout is the result. Great result and more importantly how we got the result, to head into the roadie. Hopefully it kickstarts us defensively.

I'm resolved to wait until mid-January to feel comfortable in making a prediction on being in that 8th seed hunt but I will say they've made it hard not to call them a threat to that spot right today.

The absence of JYJ and DLo has been noticeable and I have to believe we'd have matched up better with GS if we had them on the roster, defensive woes and all I'd say we'd have been much more competitive in those games.

I can't believe I'm saying it out loud but Lou and P look like a headache combination so far. Lou has this smooth, understated way of attacking the rack and getting easy buckets for us while P has proven effective in pick & pop situations.

I feel like we have enough depth at every position with guys who can be a force on either end on any given night that we can win enough games through sheer attrition to make that 8 seed a realistic proposition. The cynic in me says to wait on this but I'm starting to believe that our current record is a true representation of who this team is.

i kind of figured we'd win 25 games and i've revised up to 35. not sure if im ready to revise up to 45 yet.

injuries are something you can't predict. but i think the Lakers will be battling all year, and will end up somewhere between #8-10 in the west.

How was Clarkson, still dribbling the air out of the ball?

nvm

Mosgov shooting a quick 17 footer, followed by Clarkson pounding the ball and putting up a tough shot. Get the ball down 3 and Lou chucks a 3 fading to the side with two defenders on him. And then Randle jacking a contested 3. Just awful.

The turnovers (all fucking game), the transition D giving up wide open 3's, JC pounding the rock yet again, giving up back-breaking offensive boards, and then the shit final possessions you mentioned. I had no doubt Julius was going to miss at least 1 on the final fts, was just hoping he could get 2 so we still had a chance to tie...obviously that didn't happen either. Calderon going down didn't help either bc although Huertas picks up assists, he's a negative everywhere else esp with his lack of spacing, defensive rebounding, or any kind of physicality.

Shitty fucking loss to a team that is completely depleted...and we got beat by being sloppy, out-hustled, and letting Troy Daniels start the game with easy, clean looks and he remained on fire.

He was terrible on this road-trip. Way too pressed to try and make an impact offensively, not picking up shooters in transition...some really poor habits came rearing back bc he's reverting to try and pick up the slack all himself rather than doing it within himself and the system.

I said this numerous times before on here, at some point Luke has to send him a message bc he keeps reverting back to his ISO ball and defensive lapses in concentration.

Best 2-way player all season

dude's feeling on D'Angelo are clearly wrong, but it's obvious how important he is (and of course Nick, both are sorely missed right now)

if you notice when he's holding the ball..either before he dribbles or when he stops....he spreads his feet wide apart....it awkwardly puts him in a position where he's not really in a "triple threat" position....

he's young...he'll learn... but he's got to be more fluid with his movements.. so that he maintains his explosiveness.

https://player.fm/series/open-run-1247046/luke-walton-this-is-your-life

4 games under but went through a brutal 12 game stretch with a plethora of key injuries. The best part about this coaching staff is how level they are, win or lose, and I fully expect the team to recover and continue to work on changing the mindset so we have more consistent results. Luke was definitely perturbed after last night's game, not bc of losing but of how we lost (giving up the easy leak-outs, the sloppy turnovers) and how that speaks to an unfocused mentality...it's that message of mindset that is the key to building this team into a winner.

It's the same theme all season thus far but we got away with it early on bc the offense was playing so efficiently. The game changed so quickly once we decided to give the effort defensively and that began nearly immediately after Huertas and TRob were inserted in the 3rd...problem is it was a 18 point hole to dig out of and you have shooters (Barbosa in particular) already in a rhythm and he killed us down the stretch of the game.

We come out playing so lackadaisically defensively and it's absolutely killing us for the entire game. Add in the injuries and some really just shit play from Clarkson, a 5+ losing streak is your result

DLo and Nick both came back tonight (both with minutes restrictions) and it certainly helps a lot with our rotations and certain players not having to overextend themselves (JC and BI in particular). As we have seen all year, we put ourselves into a hole (this time to end the 3rd) with inconsistent defending and silly live ball turnovers and then dig ourselves out...we came back to take the lead and then Jennings hits 2 contested 3's, Lou turns the ball over leading to an and-1 for Lee, and immediately the game is back to 8 with 6 to play and our margin for error becomes razor thin. We get the game back to 4 on a Deng and-1 (who had by far his best game of the year, hopefully it's what he needed to regain confidence in his jumper) but then again, contested jumpers by Jennings and Rose.

In the end, when you give up 70 points to a combination of Rose/Jennings/Porzingis, it's going to be a tough game. Unlike the 3 games prior, I though the rotations were pretty good and we forced a lot of 1v1 play and contested shots...frustrating that NY was able to convert but that's how the game goes sometimes.

These injuries and subsequent losing streak have really dented our playoff hopes (albeit Portland isn't playing all that well either) so now each of these winnable games that we don't win becomes magnified. Regardless, much better style of play tonight and hopefully we can end this streak vs Sac tmrw and pick up some wins against lesser teams.

Kings start the quarter 13 out of 14 while missing 2 starters who were injured during the game. I have no idea where this team's head is at but the incosistency defensively paired with the decision making (turnovers) offensively is killing this season.

It was thoroughly confirmed in my eyes after I got to see him play in our 1st game and his actions during dead balls were embarrassing....and then some of the stuff tonight, all you can do is shake your head. He put Randle in a 1/2 Nelson and threw him to the ground, tried to get into a conversation between Shaw and an official, literally grabbed Lou's hand and pulled it toward his face and then flopped as if he got hit. Of course, McCutchen's always garbage crew doesn't pick up on any of it...Luke got thrown out for the first non-call, double technical on Shaw and Cousins, and then a technical on Lou even AFTER the replay is clear. He's a helluva player but he has some serious maturity problems.

watched the second half on 'pass.

cousins was a bitch nigga last night.

so much so that lou missed both FT's due to putting all his focus into restraining himself instead of the basket.

that 3rd quarter got me so mad. we gotta just start over on the season. 55 games left

1) start doling out minutes based on who play defense.

2) figure out a way to get russell 30 mins nightly (contingent on point 1). this everybody plays mess has ran it's course. lou and swaggy still playing so this might mean clarkson gonna get acquainted with the bench for a bit. which brings me to #3

3) randle and clarkson can get their heads out of their asses and round out their games or go. i have how they've been playing lately. especially clarkson. nigga need to leave kendall jenner alone and live in the gym. his priorities aint right.

4) get in ingram's head and bring some dog out that boy. he is so damn shook of the physicality he can't wait for the games to be over right now.

6 games left on this road trip. might be six more Ls. gonna be in the building for the charlotte game. they play like this i might get kicked out lol.

Where he has to start pulling real minutes from players if they aren't listening...case in point: Clarkson has played the most minutes but has been, BY FAR, the most selfish and defensively inconsistent player. Julius is out there consistently missing rotations and then trying to say it is someone else's fault...that type of shit cannot fly.

I love the fact that Luke and staff actually address things immediately and turn things into teachable moments...but the fact is the player's are not responding to that right now. The 3rd quarters which were our strength (which speaks to players focus after the half-time meeting with coaching feedback and adjustments) have completely done a 180; the lapses in defensive concentration are bad enough but then you compound it with the piss poor decision-making leading to turnovers or bad shots...we are consistently giving up 11-13 point swings, shit is ridiculous.

Idk if the flurry at the end of the first half made them think they could win without getting out of second gear, but even in the first half the offense seemed out of sync to me. Not in control of the pace or of where the ball was going...By far the worst showing of the season.

So yeah, we'll take whatever lotto pick we get from one of the two first rounders you clowns gave up for Steve Nash's corpse...for us losing the invaluable right to pay Michael Carter-Williams.

Maybe we'll use it to draft somebody, maybe we'll package it along with the lotto pick we get from Miami or our own (which also includes a pick swap with Sacramento) to get a an established star guard to put with Embiid and Simmons, that could all depend on how they decide to go in moving Okafor or Noel.

But yeah, it's good to have options, plus a player or two better than anyone on your roster.

By all means tell me more though, so I can lolololol all the way to the tank bank like this was a first place Rams post later. Peace.

Let's see how things play out.

I mean, it's not like Philly has turned any heads at any point at all this year.

that day isn't today though.

>that day isn't today though.

I'll be the first to say that the good start certainly inflated my expectations but the reality remains....this is still a very young rebuilding team that is playing like one: huge swings in play which have been compounded by injuries. Digging out of adversity by continuing to stick together, trust in the process, and play with effort regardless of result are the types of things that build and create a team identity.

Anything over 30 wins, and I'm very happy with this season. If we double last years total (34+ wins), I'll be ecstatic.

..to earth. lol.


*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

We'll see if they can dig themselves out of this rut to any degree.

I'd even push it back to end of Jan considering we essentially lost 3 weeks to this rash of injuries (2 for the actual recovery, although Tarik still isn't back, and 1 for the ongoing re-acclimation).

As a sidenote that you may appreciate...the way the medical staff has handled the injuries gives me a lot of confidence compared to prior years. We're addressing things proactively, not relying on imaging if it isn't indicated, and being conservative with injuries that have historically been treated far too nonchalantly (case in point: Tarik not returning to play after an ankle sprain until all his pain and swelling are gone whereas last year DLo came back the next game after a far more severe sprain...and was lauded by Byron for doing so, good grief).

In fact, I still will wait until then. Just walking by and nodding my head, tis all ^_^

I had to fight the urge to get too excited, in fact I still have that urge given the rash of injuries that coincides with this slide, but I do agree that we need a little more time to properly assess their current identity

I actually have faith Ingram have a chance to grow into his own eventually, but his growing pains was obvious as the Lake show leaned on him. D'Angelo is ascending tho.

But I thought with some increasing confidence and positive feedback, we could have an outside chance at 40 wins

question from TT's, in that my question was whether they'd be in the mix for the playoffs and not whether they'd be in the playoffs.

I think it's still a valid question given that it took a massive slide for the boobirds to come out the woodwork. the Laker Hate Brigade and Philly heads have been remarkably silent outside of Bshelly's early jab. People won't admit it but this team did plenty to make that 8th seed worth discussing.

The fact that this slide came during a rash of injuries plus JC hitting a perfectly predictable slump leads me to believe they didn't "come back down to Earth" so much as they simply didn't overcome a stiff dose of adversity.

The reason I'm not tripping on the team- or JC's- slump is rooted in my earlier evaluation. Our success has been predicated on being something of a hydra, having so many heads that they ultimately overwhelmed teams. We'd pepper a team with jabs and a couple of guys would show up for the winning haymakers.

Lou has been our great constant while P, JC, D LO, and JYJ would create some variation of the winning combo. With two of those four out for an extended period that means JC and JYJ had to hit those punches every night. Neither is quite ready for that and BI isn't at that point just yet. I'd be more comfortable saying this downturn is more in line with our true self had it come with everyone healthy. I think the laughter at the idea of snagging that 8 seed is nothing but opportunism right now.

to put together a scouting report on us

Im glad Brook is a dude who takes shit like that in stride

1/14 to end the 2nd quarter, 3 points in the final 6 minutes of the 4th..and I reiterate, great looks. Nets trying to hand us the game and even then we can't take it...and Lou had an off game as well so he couldn't bail us out. The team is in a complete tailspin right now and outside of Lou, no player has yet to step up.

It reminded me of watching MLS after watching Champions League.

Turnovers
Missed FTs
Missed Open shots
Fouls
Ball bobbling
bad shot selection
terrible defense

In the 3rd when Lakers went on a 10-0 run to take the lead, I told LA2Philly that it was the worst 10-0 run Ive ever seen. The Lakers were playing bad and somehow ran off 10 straight cause Brooklyn couldnt hold onto the ball and was playing like dogshit.

What won the Nets that game is they outplayed and outhustled the Lakers

No team is going to let you win a game, especially when they know you are on a long losing streak and ripe for the picking...this is a league where you get kicked while you are down and it's on us as a staff and players to realize the amount of constant focus and effort it takes to win, especially on the road. Shooting 60% from the line last night for a top 5 FT shooting team speaks for itself when it comes to taking a casual approach to the game....downward swings don't just "get better", you have to dig yourself out; right now, we certainly haven't shown the focus and determination to do that and multiple key contributors (Randle and JC in particular) continue to revert to poor habits (terrible shot selection, forcing drives, playing with their head down, not playing with defensive awareness or communicating) under adversity....that's certainly part of the process for behavior and habit change but at some point enough is enough and Luke needs to pull them out of the game.

Hopefully we can kick this losing streak tmrw night in Philly and get the team mentality and confidence back on track because this streak is exponentially exposing a lack of belief in the development and skills that some of the guys had over the summer and pre-season.

Won't be a gimmie by anyshot for either of us, so I'm crossing my fingers our bigs can stay outta foul trouble (read: Embiid is able to push towards his 28 minutes cap with flying colors). I'm afraid our perimeter D against your outside shooting could kill us tho if you guys get that going.

5 pt deficit with a little over 3 mins left...Nick deep rimmed a 3, Lebron hit a pull-up 3 which started a 7-0 run to essentially end the game.

Julius had a great first half, BI with his best overall game (flirting w the triple double), and in the 2nd half Nick and JC kept us in the game w some great shooting...however, we didn't have an answer for the Cavs ball movement and Lou had an off-night. We pretty much needed a close to perfect night for the W and weren't able to pull it off late.

Was happy to see the team rest DLo and Tarik on the b2b. Much better effort and commitment tonight overall, hopefully it continues into Charlotte.

The capacity to defend and share the ball offensively is there...we've seen it in spurts but the concentration is all over the place. Luke needs to start pulling players who are reverting in-game and falling back into bad habits (Lou defensively, Clarkson offensively)...he's done it with BI, DLo, and Randle but clearly they aren't the only culprits here.

It's on Luke and the staff to guide the team mentally...the concepts are there but stretches like this are where guidance and mentorship are highlighted in the development of a young team.

Defensive focus wanes, start losing the effort plays, and stop moving the ball offensively. The 2nd half tonight, particularly, the 3rd quarter was just atrocious. It's obviously frustrating when you have a team that has the capacity to be halfway decent and continues to blow games...it comes with the territory with young teams but the context of the losses (losing 19 points leads, giving up leads to bad teams, etc) just compounds everything.

if we're having our customary 3Q collapse vs THE MAVS then we might actually fuck around and get that top 3 lotto

i can't imagine Minny and Miami staying worse than us all year so that just leaves Phoenix and Dallas.

the 2018 draft looks pretty good maybe, that could be the year they get someone good and by then these wack ass mozgov and deng deals will be wrapping up, too

Some really good looks as well but we stayed in the game defensively which was a great sign and you'd think at some point the offense would get going...never happened and then Portland started hitting some shots to build a lead into the 4th...bench unit with a terrible start to the 4th and the offense just reverted to isos; game over.

Just a complete dude offensive half in the 2nd but I did like our defensive effort to keep us in it...but you can't go an entire half with that kind of shooting and expect to stay in the game. The FT shooting summed up the night..14/27 for a very good FT shooting team. On a very positive note, Ingram continued with his positive shooting and the fluidity of his stroke is finally getting back to normal as his confidence is returning.

The open three where all 5 guys ran back in transition but Moz of all people as the C is the only one who makes the effort to get out to the 3 point line. That was just one play but both of them made so many lazy mistakes last night...a lot of work to do for their mental game to catch up with their physical skills.

As a team, zero connectivity or selflessness until that 4th quarter unit who just went out and played basic basketball...playing with common purpose: to get stops and get the best look possible offensively.

Behavior and culture change is inherently non-linear but that extent of unfocused play isn't acceptable.

i am not one of these guys who was out to judge bryon scott for having to coach "effort" to a bunch of losers while kobe shot bricks until his arms fell off. but no scott was not the guy long term and walton may or may not be. i would say overall they are a better team this year, although they had nowhere to go but up

but no scott was not the
>guy long term and walton may or may not be. i would say
>overall they are a better team this year, although they had
>nowhere to go but up

Okay, so why is there one standard for one guy and another
standard for the other?

So why we talking about "talent" under Luke?


----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

None of us.

Not one.

Not once.

lol

they were all over brown and d'antoni's asses. even talk radio was pretty cool with scott. i didn't see people here calling for his head or partying off his firing. his contract was set up to get phased out this year or next. it happened. wasn't a huge shock and while he was here he got a lot of respect since people remember him as a player and he carried out the mission with dignity. it was unfortunate that any pro coach was in the position he was in but obviously it was the best option he had and he was paid very fairly for it. i suspect another opportunity will present itself. you can feel free to make a case that it should be a prime job, but that case can't start with some shit from 2002.

>hey Philly...bout that pick..
>
>start looking for which PFs are projected to be drafted in the
>20s...
>
>
>This is how you build a team..
>
>take notes.


LOLOLOLOLOL

----------------------------
Same as it ever was!

looking at guys in the 20s? fuck i am concerned that we might not even get the pick at the rate they are sucking. on pace for 26-ish wins but at the rate they have gone since that 10-10 start it's probably more like 20-22.

Luckily it's an inconsequential decision because they have the same author.

and something to be hopeful for.

dude dropped off the grid like jack reacher.

Mild in quotes bc that's pretty murky language, I'm assuming that's a grade 1 sprain (less than 25% tear). I knew it was mcl related when I saw the mechanism...just thankful it wasn't anything worse bc it was a pretty awkward fall, luckily just his own body weight.

Tough year for him with now two injuries and likely over 20 games missed, hard to establish a rhythm and chemistry, which is of particular importance for what Luke has asked him to do in being a primary play-maker and bc currently his mental consistency and confidence aren't there yet.

Rehab, get back, and finish the season out strong.

.

>Tough year for him with now two injuries and likely over 20
>games missed, hard to establish a rhythm and chemistry, which
>is of particular importance for what Luke has asked him to do
>in being a primary play-maker and bc currently his mental
>consistency and confidence aren't there yet.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!

The game with the Mavericks marked the 11th anniversary of Bryant’s career-best 81-point explosion against the Toronto Raptors in 2006. The Lakers scored eight points fewer on Sunday than Bryant did that day, all while taking 25 more shots from the floor.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Philly might just fuck around and make them 'offs AND have two top 10 picks (LAK, SAC).

Not letting you do that dumb shit again...a season post should be about discussion.

of course you are going to have that with a very young team but it is Luke's job to be able to level out some of that variance...I understand he is a player's coach and lets guys sink or swim and teaches lessons that way but clearly the message is being lost or not resonating. The team should mentally be farther ahead of where it is, the identity of the team is so far tipped toward the offensive side of the ball that any stretch of missed shots has a significant affect on defensive focus. Something needs to change with his message or minutes because there has not been enough improvement in terms of consistency.

>of course you are going to have that with a very young team
>but it is Luke's job to be able to level out some of that
>variance...I understand he is a player's coach and lets guys
>sink or swim and teaches lessons that way but clearly the
>message is being lost or not resonating. The team should
>mentally be farther ahead of where it is, the identity of the
>team is so far tipped toward the offensive side of the ball
>that any stretch of missed shots has a significant affect on
>defensive focus. Something needs to change with his message
>or minutes because there has not been enough improvement in
>terms of consistency.

Aka Selection attention 101, pointless to engage

I have no issue with Warren.

Fuck you talking about?


----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

>hey Philly...bout that pick..

You might yet keep that pick.

The starters without DLo are sincerely terrible...27 points TOTAL last night, 15 of them from Nick. The starting rotation with DLo/Nick/Luol/Randle/Moz is +7 per 100 possessions on the year, you take DLo out and there's nearly a 27 point drop (-20 per 100 possessions)...I knew it was bad but good lord. Luke has to change this unit if we want to give ourselves a chance in this next week or so while DLo recovers.

As for the team itself...at this point, I'd be ecstatic with 25 wins and the #2 odds in the lottery which is what we're projecting at if the current trends hold. +8 wins, continue to allow these guys to develop (on that note, Zubac is certainly showing some real growth in recent games) and actually learn from their mistakes, and the shot at another top player, I'm ok with that.

Last note...cats need to relax about DLo, Julius, and Ingram. These are the 3 players who are being challenged to do the most, often outside of their comfort zones, so it's no coincidence they have had the most ups and downs of all players on the team. Growth/learning is a non-linear process and that variance becomes even more skewed depending on how many new inputs/stresses you're putting into the system. I'd much rather have them develop excellent habits and refine new skill-sets now rather than allow them to play how they are comfortable and then try and break down those habits later. It's certainly a slower process but it's more conducive to maximum development, and I'm very happy this coaching staff understands that (as Luke has iterated prior to the season and during the season...this season is about teaching these guys how to play, success is a by-product of that).

I've said it before but my main issue with him is that the playmaking ability that sold me on him has not been a prominent part of his game.

*disclaimer for the knee-jerks among us*

“Nervous” is not “selling.

I’m not “selling” on him but his passing was what he was sold on. He’s still young and in his second year, his numbers are fine, etc and it’s probably going to be 2-3 years before we really know who’s who in that draft so it’s not like I think we’d have greener grass with someone else.

The injuries are also frustrating.

Frankly I’m going to be nervous about all these kids until we see some consistency, and yes that includes injuries.

He has really worked on his conditioning, worked on his game without a peep in the d-league, and it's showing...we saw flashes in summer league of his skill-set and it's starting to translate over. Bigs, in the current era, tend to develop a little quicker than perimeter players because they aren't asked to play outside their comfort zones and we are seeing that with Zubac as well...protect the paint, navigate PnR defensively, be the roll and space man offensively. Him and Nance have paired really well together, I sincerely think we got another huge 2nd round steal.

http://www.nba.com/article/2017/01/30/morning-tip-qa-mitch-kupchak-los-angeles-lakers

It's just gonna go from a late lottery pick to an unprotected one for next year.

weeeeeeeee(?)

Kept playing our game and we had a chance down the stretch...Wall put the game away with a couple contested jumpers, tip my cap to him.

Distributed scoring across the board, DLo with another assist double-double, albeit it with far too many turnovers (still figuring out his balance between attacking and distributing)...which was the general theme for the game.

We are at last year's win total with 2.5 months left to go. My goal would be around 25 wins and a top 3 odds pick.

>We are at last year's win total with 2.5 months left to go.

They were TRYING to not field their best team

They BETTER do better than

My
>goal would be around 25 wins and a top 3 odds pick.

Nice way to be fucking FAIR

You wasn't saying SHIT about Luke before

Gross



----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

Now, we all know how much salt to take with these "rumors".

That said?

Sorry Mitch.

It's been real. Much love.
Good luck. So long. Farewell.
Wish you the best in future endeavors.
Hopefully you'll get a cushy gig with the team without the stress.

If Jerry is on the table?
Get it done, Ervin.

I don't know much about Ryan though and the rumor reads that he's the guy Jerry would "groom" for GM.

Not sure about that but I believe in Jerry.

http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2017/2/7/14541694/la-lakers-rumors-jerry-west-intrigued-return-los-angeles-jim-buss-mitch-kupchak-ryan-west

Mitch is already grooming Ryan to be the next GM, I'd wager that if Jerry comes back it's going to be an advisory role similar to his role with the Warriors. I don't think he can nor wants the full-time grind of an actual in-house position, particularly with his recent health troubles (had a fall that hospitalized him last week I believe).

The rope he's given the bench compared to the starters all year has been disproportionate but tonight was just ridiculous. He let the bench unit allow the lead to slip from 19 to 7 over a 5 min span, really poor possessions with JC and Lou just dribbling the air out of the ball or Larry passing up great looks. He even called multiple timeouts where you think "ok, he's finally gonna pull the bench unit like he does the starting unit whenever they have a shitty spell"...nope. If that was the starting unit, they would have been yanked at least 2 mins earlier. This time they came in and got the lead back to 13 and navigated the rest of the game to a W.

Just really silly.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/lakers-advisor-magic-johnson-first-call-i-make-if-im-in-charge-kobe-bryant-210903717.html

Magic Johnson’s first turn as whatever the heck you think he is with the Los Angeles Lakers is going exactly as you’d expect. Big proclamations, big stars, appearances on television shows that people Magic’s age (and people that tweet like Magic) tend to watch, and not a whole heck of a lot by way of specifics.



Beyond, apparently, a “three to five”-year window, that seems like a heck of a lot of time for a fan base that will celebrate the seventh anniversary of their last NBA title in June.

The first move, if Magic Johnson is calling the shots in his new role as “advisor” to the team? Call Kobe Bryant. Because, like Magic and unlike current president of basketball operations Jim Buss, Kobe Bryant was very good at basketball. From a talk on ESPN’s First Take, a show you missed on Tuesday morning because you have a job:

“First call I make if I’m in charge? Kobe Bryant,” Johnson said on ESPN’s First Take. “Because Kobe understands winning. He understands, also, these players. I would call: ‘What role you want? … If you’ve got a day, just give me that day.’
“I’ll take that. Whatever time he has, I want him to come and be a part of it.”
This is what you’re supposed to say, and these are the Showtime promises that you’re supposed to make. Especially when speaking directly to the sort of less-enlightened crowd that First Take typically reels in on a weekday morning.

If the Lakers had hired an analytics wizard whose name you’d never heard of outside of a few tweets and Sloan Conference listings, that analytics wizard would still be charged with fawning over Kobe Bryant in his first round of press meetings. If Jerry West weren’t currently under contract with the Golden State Warriors, his name would be out there as well. The same works for Shaquille O’Neal, otherwise bothered by his small ownership stake in the Sacramento Kings.

The problem here is that, with Magic Johnson and Los Angeles Lakers, you actually believe that Magic and the Lakers would follow through with these sorts of moonshots.

Remember how you weren’t surprised at all when Isiah Thomas traded to add Steve Francis to a Knicks team already featuring Stephon Marbury and Jalen Rose, as coached by Larry Brown? How you couldn’t be knocked over by a flying mallet after the Chicago Bulls added Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo? Same ideal.



What’s a little more frightening, and (in a bit of good news for Lakers fans) altogether less accurate is Magic’s insistence that the team might need in upwards of a half-decade to sort everything all out. From Johnson’s appearance on CBS This Morning on Monday, as relayed by Mark Medina at the Los Angeles Daily News:

“It’s going to take three to five years to get them back rolling again,” Johnson said in an interview on CBS This Morning that aired on Monday morning.
“If we’re patient and we develop our own players, in today’s NBA it’s different than when I played. you have to develop your own players because free agent movement is not like it used to be. You have to make sure you hit a home run with the players you do draft and keep the players you have on your roster.”
Magic absolutely isn’t wrong about the draft approach, and that young talent on cheap contracts, acquired for no cost outside of a lost season spent out of the playoffs, are worth its weight in gold. No longer are championship teams created with wads of free agent cash and midnight meetings on July 1. At worst, some holdover star has to act as an incumbent draw, and the Lakers do not have that star yet.

Five of the seven best players in the last two Cleveland/Golden State NBA Finals matchups were drafted by their own teams, with the only two additions (trade acquisition Kevin Love for Cleveland, free agent Kevin Durant for Golden State) only coming on board because the franchises have drafted so well.

Of course, Cleveland did its damage with two current No. 1 overall picks (LeBron James, Kyrie Irving) and two other No. 1 overall picks (Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett) that turned into transaction gold with Love. The Lakers haven’t had a No. 1 overall pick since 1982, when it housed Cleveland in a deal that landed Los Angeles (for Don Ford and Chad Kinch) the eventual top overall draft selection, which turned into James Worthy.



Since its 2010 title, the Lakers have missed the playoffs three times and are well on its way (6 1/2 games out of the final spot in the West with 36 to play) to missing the postseason for the fourth consecutive year. Those misses have resulted D’Angelo Russell, Julius Randle, and current rookie (and now youngest active player in the NBA) Brandon Ingram.

Fine talents, we recognize, but none of the three even looks like a surefire All-Star in waiting just yet. Worse, the Lakers are set to give up its pick in this year’s draft to Philadelphia (due to 2012’s Steve Nash deal) if their pick falls out of the top three. Los Angeles, entering Tuesday night, is a game and a half “ahead” of Orlando and working with the third-worst record in the NBA.

That’s good news in another bad year, but also recall that we’re not only working within the same time frame that Jim Buss gave himself to turn the Lakers all the way around, but with the same front office that once needlessly (the deal was in 2012, not 1999 … and who still does this?) sent semi-protected draft picks to Phoenix (who sent them to Philadelphia) just to deal for Nash.

Steve Nash’s disappointing, pre-retirement play as a Laker isn’t the point. General manager Mitch Kupchak acquired him while working with a set of rules that even predated Phil Jackson’s time with the Lakers. Kupchak did not need to send draft picks to another team in order to sign the free agent; because despite his brief and understandable waffling at age 38, Steve Nash was not going to pass on the familial priorities that pointed him toward sticking with a West Coast team in the first place, ahead of other free agent suitors (most notably, in 2012, the Toronto Raptors).

This works right in line with the report from Ramona Shelburne that suggests that Mitch Kupchak is a bit behind the times when it comes to the idea behind team-building. And that the confluence of free agent money and Los Angeles Lakers bluster is enough to secure a boffo star in the moments just past the initiation of the official free agent period just past midnight on July 1. As if he’s going after Antonio Davis or Derek Anderson on the free agent market, and not Kevin Durant and, potentially, Russell Westbrook.

Kobe Bryant and Magic Johnson, two men who are rather set in the ways of their respective eras, wouldn’t seem like the types to break that moldy habit. The Unnamed Upstart Math Kid probably would be, all full of gusto and NBA-legal chats with player representatives both official and unofficial, but this isn’t how the family-run, star-obsessed Lakers run things.

Which is fine, when the center is Shaquille O’Neal, and not Dwight Howard. Or when the rookie teenager is Kobe, and not Brandon Ingram. That “confluence of free agent money and Los Angeles Lakers bluster” worked in 1996, but it has been less successful over the last few years.

It wasn’t even working when Kupchak was charged with building depth around the Shaq and Kobe Laker teams during the championship years. Veterans should have been lining up around the block for the free ring, but Mitch struck out repeatedly with both aging big names (Isaiah Rider, Mitch Richmond; with A.C. Green, Ron Harper and Horace Grant playing way over their heads) and the sort of successful and lasting role players that former Phil Jackson boss Jerry Krause had no trouble finding for minimum salaries in Chicago.

However, Magic Johnson loves Mitch Kupchak, his former teammate. And the Lakers love Magic enough to not only look to him to rescue the slow-building re-building project, but to tolerate him bounding about your television dial, saying very Magic Johnson-styled things.

Multiple sources reporting including Woj

I just hope he's good at this.

----------------------------
Same as it ever was!

Neither have I a negative impression. I genuinely have no idea.

I will say that I haven’t been all that enthralled with his talking head moments over the years.

To that end I’m mostly ambivalent. This is definitely a wait and see approach. I’ve never heard much about him being a great X & O mind or a great personnel guy. I just don’t know. He gets an A to start and we’ll see what’s what.

Obviously I hope for the best but I’m a little concerned by a few things where Jeanie is concerned:

-Recent reports that Jeanie was being “told” that the LoulzGov signings weren’t “strong enough”.

Well, no shit. Aside from that surprising first month this season has gone about as expected and most of us assumed that we signed those players from a locker room/maturity standpoint to help the kids grow.


It’s incredibly jarring to think that anyone- ANYONE- thought those were strong talent signings. If Jeanie thought that those were strong talent signings and was surprised to learn that they weren’t, I say fire her too.

If they wanted to flip these kids into veterans overnight and weren’t invested in their long term growth as a unit and expected Luke to be a miracle worker in his rookie year as a unit, they should have just given Byron a shot.

I’m also troubled by the reports that suggested Jeanie at some point considered giving up BI for Cuz. I hope that’s not the case but again, if so, they’re basically gunning to be the Knicks West.

Basically I’m just a tad concerned that the plan going forward will cater much more to the lower tier of the base that calls up ESPN 710 every day and less toward a disciplined long view of things.

I will say I’m ok with them flipping JC + Randle + Nick or Lou for Butler… though I don’t know that that’s a wise move if we’re trying to keep this pick.

roster is untouchable if we have a shot at a bonafide all-star

Can't wait.

Fantastic critical thinking skills you have here.

And then dude would be the first person blaming and complaining about being stuck in the bottom half of the the west with no way to get out.

>And then dude would be the first person blaming and
>complaining about being stuck in the bottom half of the the
>west with no way to get out.

..hopefully the lakers can truly get back to the business of basketball.


*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

Jesse Buss staying on as head of scouting and he's been really dang good.

I like the direction. The GM role has increasingly becom one of relationships rather than player analysis which is being handled by the assistant GMs and directors of personnel. Bob Myers worked out pretty well for the W's.

>Jesse Buss staying on as head of scouting and he's been
>really dang good.

The obvious point being made is that it's hard to find second-round talents that stick in the league, period. Lakers have done a good job of this the last couple of years.

because they found some roster fillers in the second round.

Where's Devin Ebanks these days?

Like Mitch wasn't a Jerry West protege for years and outside of the Gasol trade didn't do shit yet somehow Jerry's West's kid can magically channel some of his father's magic from 20-30 years ago lol.

And who knows, West could be decent or not but I hate a lot of the nepotism shit that goes on in pro sports, there's way to many people with jobs based off their last name as opposed to their resume.

>And who knows, West could be decent or not but I hate a lot of
>the nepotism shit that goes on in pro sports, there's way to
>many people with jobs based off their last name as opposed to
>their resume.

Homosexuality and nepotism, things that get under ThaTruth's skin. Got it.

>because they found some roster fillers in the second round.

Most second rounders don't become roster fillers, period.

>>because they found some roster fillers in the second round.
>
>Most second rounders don't become roster fillers, period.

Roster fillers on one of the worst teams in the league lol

You have to be willfully ignorant to believe those 3 guys don't have a spot in the league. Or, you know, just never watch them play.

>And who knows, West could be decent or not but I hate a lot of
>the nepotism shit that goes on in pro sports, there's way to
>many people with jobs based off their last name as opposed to
>their resume.

Or is it just mere coincidence that the only times you post in live laker game threads happens to coincide with the national TV games

pretty much watch any game at any time so the whole "you don't watch games" card doesn't really fly these days lol.

Weird how that works. We all know your forte man, basic binary opinions without any information. Give it a rest already, you aren't fooling anyone.

And there's also been this thing called NBA league pass where you can watch games for years now.

>Weird how that works. We all know your forte man, basic
>binary opinions without any information. Give it a rest
>already, you aren't fooling anyone.
>
>And there's also been this thing called NBA league pass where
>you can watch games for years now.

I'm well aware of league pass, I'm not home enough to justify paying for it I'm more likely to be at a local bar with league pass watching games

solid for a few years now...we've gotten...

teams don't get 3 guys like that...Nance, Clarkson and Zubac...and I'll add Black who we picked up on waivers.... but getting those guys where you got them, and what they've shown speaks highly of the scouting department

Glad he got dealt to a good team. He will do some serious work there.

Brewer's contract is up after next season, the same as Lou's...the max slot is intact.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
<---- 5....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dlgiritpmfo

=======================================

this is gonna be a fun ride so enjoy it.

https://twitter.com/ESPNSteinLine/status/834636197737615360

And I assume Deng and Mozgov can be had for a handshake and a pat on the back. Magic should see if Thibs wants to get the band back together and add Deng alongside Rose (if that ever happens.)

I sincerely hope you guys can land him today before trade deadline without giving up too much. GO FOR IT LA!! WOOOOOO!!!!

Even Woj is saying that he wants to come back to LA and that his family idol, Magic, now being in charge adds another element to that....add in Pelinka's ability to backchannel and there'a decent chance.

It's been my hope since the start of the season...I believe I've said it on here: Along with caring about the Lakers, I've been hoping for the Pacers to crash and burn. That roster is a mess, all sorts of overlapping pieces.

and he tells potential trade partners that he's not gonna resign.

So the Lakers get Brewers, Houston's 1st round pick and Tyler Ennis for Lou Williams and Marcelo Huertas.

Guess that's it for us - thought the deadline was 4pm EST. We're done.

Buss brothers withdraw motion on Lakers meeting to oust Jeanie Buss

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/18816027/los-angeles-lakers-jeanie-buss-thwarts-coup-attempt-brothers-johnny-buss-jim-buss

OK, maybe not really but he says that Buss and Kupchak weren't the problem.

http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2017/3/3/14805386/la-lakers-news-jim-buss-mitch-kupchak-werent-problem-mike-dantoni-magic-johnson-kobe-bryant

because of Jim Buss...

But he was really hamstrung by Kobe's unwillingness to create a culture which was attractive to free agents and by his outsized contract.

Also, in retrospect, the Nash and Dwight acquisitions were horrible. They were all past their primes and the cost to get them was too great. The Lakers are still recovering from those bad deals.

The Pau deal was a masterful stroke and if the Paul deal would have worked the team would still likely be a contender.

But those last two Kobe years hijacked the franchise and because the team didn't / couldn't make any real progress back towards contention the team is now in purgatory.

Jim is being blamed for being on the tail end of a great run. The number of losses is to be expected, but these last two years are unacceptable in LA.

http://scores.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400900313

He'll clearly be the better player throughout their careers and this game was empirical evidence of that.

You're so insightful.

Travesty

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/18840779/the-story-los-angeles-lakers-owner-jeanie-buss-tough-decision

and I have a hard time picking who is at fault between Jim and Jeanie.

Jeanie - The Phil stuff is weird. I felt like she pushed to resign Kobe then also went on radio to call any free agent who didn't want to play with a washed up star, who wasn't ready to take a back seat a loser. She seems kind of sloppy sometimes.

Jim- I can point to some bad signings (that are really bad in hindsight). Are the Lakers in a horrible spot right now, though? Especially given the 2 or 3 years of Kobe-limbo. I know they're not winning, but it seems like Jim and Mitch laid a foundation with lots of cap room, young improving talent and flexibility. Luol and Timofey are probably the most unforgivable sins I can see on their roster right now.


Maybe Magic and Rob Pelinka can bring them back to the promised land, but if not Jeanie is gonna start having to carry a lot more blame than she currently seems to. Or it could work out and she's a genius. Buckle up Lakers fans.

The team is so messed up it doesn't even know how to lose right.

It is probably the most unfortunate winning streak in the history of the franchise. I'm glad that the young players are doing well, but if they end up with a pick outside of the top 3, this win streak is going to seem really shortsighted.

Don't get it twisted - we needed help regardless and I'd rather the young core win together.

The team is playing selflessly and has started winning close games, somethin we were struggling to do all year regardless of the competition level.

As for the pick odds, after Phoenix benched Bledsoe and they started getting blown out to open games while we continued to stay in games, I knew tied for 2nd was the best case scenario. Dropping to 3rd is only a 4.5% change from that and I'll more than take that drop if it means the team is starting to trust each other and play composed basketball - that's an extremely hard hill to climb for young teams.

Last year I felt like we’d lose nearly, if not as many, games by letting the kids run amok, so to me the net affect would have been roughly the same albeit with the major caveat of learning to play together and gel as a team as well as develop each individual game.

Earlier this season it made sense to let Lou and Nick get so much tick because we were winning but once we started losing I felt that we needed to go away from them and just let the kids play. Obviously losing as many games as possible is and should be a priority but not at the expense of developing what we already have. I loved games where we scratched and clawed and fought but still lost, because that satisfied all needs.

Ideally we’d have lost those four, but learning how to win together is huge, even at this late stage. As has already been mentioned our chances don’t sleep a great deal. It’s a crapshoot either way so IMO we’re better off playing for the hand we already have while hoping for the best on lotto day.

can't even fucking tank right.

are worth losing this pick.

His grandma passed away yesterday morning, his brothers convince him to play bc that's what she would have wanted...and he ends up hitting the game-winner, finds the fam in the stands afterwards. Can't write that.

Thoughts are with you fam, keep your head up.

at the end of the season..and we still finish in the bottom 3..

tank mode definitely sucks.... keeping this pick this season though takes on even greater value in that if we keep a top 3 pick this year....we keep our 2019 first round pick....

if we finish outside the top 3 in the lotto this year.... we lose this year's first....we keep 2018 first round pick.....and 2019 first round pick goes to Orlando for sorry azz Dwight howard...

if we keep this year's top 3 pick....2018 first round pick goes to the Sixers.....and we keep our 2019 first round pick, with the Dwight howard pick converting to two 2nd round picks....because of the rule that a team cannot trade away first round picks in back to back years...


So this year's ping pong balls are worth a lot to the Lakers.....

but if it doesn't go our way....we have young players...who've shown some value...and Magic Johnson is ready to make moves....

the image of him next to Magic is worth it...

he would be an interesting option with that 28th pick...

had a couple of decent seasons in college.......

http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2017/5/4/15553912/nba-draft-news-lakers-work-out-tacko-fall-lonzo-ball-magic-johnson

I honestly won't be surprised if he goes undrafted. Maybe they're just looking for big bodies to sign in the swarm of undrafted dudes.

They should really look hard at Jordan Bell with that pick, frankly. He's a guy who could get minutes tomorrow.

great job Earvin Johnson Jr...

Thank goodness

That better be enough to turn shit around.

.

With Zubac's emergence, he is expendable. That would set us up with a huge 2018 FA budget.

he wouldn't be a fit with Boston..... and would Fultz would be...

I don't necessarily see anyone jumping in to trade with Boston for the first pick either...

So Lonzo is our guy likely...

now about Paul George....the thing is that people are saying we should wait and just sign him...

if you do that you still have to make a trade because you have Russell ...now a 2 guard...and Ingram..... you have to trade one of them..

I say trade Russell and Randle to the Pacers now for Paul George...

you can roll with Nance and Black as our PF ....you got Zoubek...

There are Power Forwards on the market now.... Blake Griffin...

but you wait a year and Boogie Cousins comes on the market...Zoubek could play the 4....

we got options...

but obviously keeping this pick was big for us...

>Zoubek could play the 4....

hahahaha

In response to your post, I don't think you need to trade Russell or Ingram. George is 6'9, 220, and the NBA is spreading the floor more. You've got good positional rebounders everywhere. I say you plop Zubac or Mozgov on the interior, spread Russell, Ingram, and George out, and let Ball kick it around. You'd have four guys who can handle, pass, and penetrate. It's not a "traditional" NBA offense, but that model is pretty close to toast anyhow.

>>Zoubek could play the 4....
>
>hahahaha
>
>In response to your post, I don't think you need to trade
>Russell or Ingram. George is 6'9, 220, and the NBA is
>spreading the floor more. You've got good positional
>rebounders everywhere. I say you plop Zubac or Mozgov on the
>interior, spread Russell, Ingram, and George out, and let Ball
>kick it around. You'd have four guys who can handle, pass, and
>penetrate. It's not a "traditional" NBA offense, but that
>model is pretty close to toast anyhow.

I playing George at the 4 isn't something I think we should do... I know some teams are going small...but the Warriors model works for them..mostly.... but they have a power forward who can rebound, defend and get points inside also..

Paul George and Brandon Ingram as your 2/3 guys gives you some great match up potentials...on both ends of the court really.... You have a dynamic point guard who often looks to pass before scoring... .. and again...that's 3 pretty long guys as your 1 2 and 3....

>In response to your post, I don't think you need to trade
>Russell or Ingram. George is 6'9, 220, and the NBA is
>spreading the floor more. You've got good positional
>rebounders everywhere. I say you plop Zubac or Mozgov on the
>interior, spread Russell, Ingram, and George out, and let Ball
>kick it around. You'd have four guys who can handle, pass, and
>penetrate. It's not a "traditional" NBA offense, but that
>model is pretty close to toast anyhow.

If he makes the All-NBA team, then he's eligible for the supermax which would make him more likely to sign with whoever has him at the end of the season and makes a trade more necessary.

If BI is off the table, then Clarkson has to be part of the deal because I doubt Indy has any interest in not getting Ingram AND eating Deng or Mozgov's deal. And then the deals get messier.

so we just have to hope for the best.

in every aspect. fox/DLo looks lethal.

Not sure which teams that need a PG would have much of anything interesting to offer.

The two most intriguing options would be Sacramento and Orlando because they have top lotto picks and the ability to offer some salary relief. Not sure Sacramento would do it but I think the Lakers would have to consider (if not jump at) at #5, Afflalo, and Langston Galloway (expiring deals) for D-Lo and Luol Deng.
For Orlando, a Vooch for Deng or Mozgov would be the sweetener.

Could Jamal Murray for Russell work? Murray is better off-ball. My guess is that the Lakers might want a little more and the Nuggets would refuse.

Personally I think Ball/DLo/BI would pose an intriguing trio next year. I fully expect D and BI to be better players next year, but cap relief for next summer and the 5 this year would be a no-brainer.

by sending Indiana what you get for Dlo and adding something else besides Randle....

See this is why I'm saying trading for PG now is the move because right today, Dlo's value to other teams is actually higher than it will likely be if you wait...

It's the other pieces.

At the deadline, the Pacers were asking the Celtics for (at least) the Nets pick, Smart, Jaylen, and Jae Crowder for Paul George. Obviously, that asking price will come down now but I think someone else will offer more than Russell/Randle.

It's the NBA. The dumbest team sets the market and someone out there will be desperate to make a move and go all-in IMO.

Whether it's Russell or the #5 pick, I think the Lakers need more than Randle to get Indiana to deal Paul George. Who knows though. Maybe Kevin Pritchard loves those two and jumps at it. But I think that offer won't be really considered until the trade deadline when other offers dry up.

... one wonders if they'd go with Jackson or Tatum at 2 and pick Fox or Smith instead of Ball with the 5th.

I think that'd be brilliant... but what do I know? I also think Russell could stud out this year.

I'm disappointed that he's not the pass-first point guard I hoped he'd be and I definitely had some concerns since that was the quality that sold me, but he showed out in that second half.

I'd still prefer the slow burn *but* I understand the desire to jumpstart The Process and I'd rather use him to do that than BI. I also think we're in a position to be somewhat stingy with his value for now.

There's a zero percent chance Ball agrees to that. Fox worked him out pretty good the last two times.

https://theundefeated.com/features/lakers-should-trade-second-pick-2017-nba-draft-to-pacers-for-paul-george/

The Lakers should be adamant about keeping point guard D’Angelo Russell in such a George deal since he would complement the possible newcomer with his floor spacing from his shooting ability and passing skills. Perhaps the Pacers could get the No. 2 pick this year and the Lakers’ 2019 first-round pick too. Maybe Lakers combo guard Jordan Clarkson could be an attractive young addition to the Pacers as well.

the opportunity to get Ball doesn't eliminate us from the opportunity to get George..so you do both...

you don't have to pick one or the other