Optimism: I couldn't care less how this team does this season now. I don't think it's even salvageable. The lack of effort, the lack of adjustments. Wesley Johnson. What I do appreciate is the ability to still watch Kobe. I don't care if he's playing 1 on 5, and how much it hurts the team, he's still, imo, the greatest Laker I've ever watched. People can hate on the team as they want, deservingly so, but for people to go out and downright say Kobe isn't great, or lost it, just blows my mind. To be honest, I'd rather be watching a team with Kobe go 20-62, than watch a team without Kobe go 41-41. I enjoy watching this man play, even if it's in the dark ages of the team. The moments he's brought for us the last 18 season were magical. Enjoy this ride Kobe is giving us folks, it's not going to last. Until we quickly get back into contention, or find his successor, it's just the Kobe show for now. As much as that truth hurts. I'm not saying this because I'm a "Kobe fan", I'm a Laker fan first and foremost. You can imagine what's going through Kobe's head right now. If I don't have help, I'll put on a show. What does he care about passing to a bunch of journeymen on the court? Not even Lebron could save this team.
Watching Kobe chuck is pretty entertaining I guess... He would've definitly put up close to 50 shots yesterday if he played in the 4th quarter.
I am optimistic that I will save space on my DVR when not home to see the Laker's games... Top 3 pick here we come!
Im optimistic that Mitch has to make some time of trade, unship ANYBODY that has value. We have to maximize any assets and or additional picks for this upcoming off season.
Some semi-optimism. On/Off defensive rating: Wesley Johnson On: 120.7 Wesley Johnson Off: 101.8 When Wesley Johnson is on the court, we are the worst defensive team in the NBA of all-time. When he is off the court, we are equivalent to the 6th best defensive team in the league. It's not that simple, but I think we could be at least average defensively. To continue... Carlos Boozer has the worst defensive rating on our team at 121.2. He has the 3rd worst d rating when he's off the floor at 105.6. Our defense is even worse when Boozer is on the floor, but we are at about league average when he is off the floor. Why does this matter? Byron Scott said he's going to be making some changes. His patience is running thin. Gangsterbomb mentioned that Ed Davis came in at the 6-minute mark last game, the earliest of the season. My guess is that Boozer's going to see less minutes in favor of Ed Davis. In addition to this, Nick Young is returning and should significantly reduce Johnson's minutes. While he's not some defensive guru, playing Johnson and Boozer minimal minutes should automatically result in a much better defensive team.
^Good stuff. Ideally, if Quincy Miller does sign replacing Xavier on the roster, I'd hope he takes Wesley's position in the starting unit resulting in Wes playing a very limited about of minutes. He's a liability out there. The PF position is a problem, though. If you run any of of the combination of Hill, Sacre, Boozer, we have spacing issues on offense. The fact that Kelly is out for the foreseeable future and Randle got hurt really hurts. Nevertheless, any time you could get Boozer and Wesley off the floor for good or close to it, I'm happy.
We have the league right where we want them... In all seriousness, the team has played well for stretches even against Spurs. Just being short on the bench is hurting and showing up. I predict we go on our first winning streak once Swaggy gets back. He is going to inspire the team with his love of the game and flair and knocking down big shots. I feel a 3 game streak coming.
Also, I think we will see Kobe top 70 points again this year. I just feel it coming (his shoes will say #4UCHUCK! Geritol Rules).
@thkthebest nice stuff. I think you're right. Boozer, Johnson, and Lin were the three guys that I thought mailed it in against the Warriors; especially Boozer and Lin. There was just so little activity from them it was really disappointing. Johnson at least made a couple of things happen with his athleticism, but he's just not developing the way he should and that's probably on Byron. If you're not going to take Lin, Boozer, or Johnson out of the starting lineup altogether, then at least play them less minutes. The team is simply better with Davis on the floor. I don't know if the stats support it, but Davis is just a better fit for this team than Boozer is. Go get boards, take and make easy shots, and protect the rim. What's so hard about that?
Funny I was just talking about this on the Ed Davis thread, realdeal! Yeah, Davis is just a better fit for the starters. He's a much better partner for Hill, and for Lin as well. Kobe likes to set him up in the post as well. I'm sure I know why Byron hasn't pulled Booz yet - because he's the Vet (and a free agent) and he wanted to give him some leash. But at some point you have to do what's best for the team, not the individual. Davis deserves the starting job and more than that, we're just better with him than without him on the floor. That's what a starter is supposed to be.
And while Boozer would no doubt take offense to it, he's much better served for us as the bench scorer, especially until Swaggy gets his sea legs back under him. His defense is just too awful to justify starting, especially with Davis providing exactly what we need - rim protection.
Definitely. At this point Boozer's game is better suited to solidifying a bench unit. He doesn't play enough defense and his offense is way too inconsistent. What bothers me is seeing him OCCASIONALLY do good things on the floor. He'll occasionally box out. He'll occasionally roll hard to the basket. He'll occasionally make the 2nd pass. Damn it man! Do that ALL the time!
@therealdeal , no doubt youre right... but at this point, its a no brainer that well sacrifice his offense with the starting unit, to give us more D with Davis. All while at the same darn time, he should be able to get around the same shots off the bench if not more, ESPECIALLY if he is one who thinks Kobe is getting too many shots. Also another thing I might add of how competitive the league truly IS, dont let the record fool you as far as being 1-9. WE ARE capable of beating any team, even with a far less talented roster. Memphis is 10-1... When we played them it was both teams game for the taking. Side Optimism- We held Randolph and Gasol to a combined 7-20 shooting. Thats why im hoping to re-sign Hill and Davis for 10-11 mill combined to take care of our big man situation.
Young returning tonight. Ellington returning on the road in Dallas or Houston. Two of our best shooters back helps...
I'm optimistic that with Young back we atleast come close enough to the playoffs to show free agents that Kobe is 1 or 2 pieces away from contending. Keep your top 5 pick unless we're trading it.. we'll be in the lottery every year for half a decade when Kobe retires. What a difference having an actual scorer makes on a team that had Jordan Hill as a 2nd option.
