Optimism Discussion: The Laker's Sky Is Not Falling

Clippers are destroying the Mavs. We'll need more from AD to have a shot to beat them. Can't be a superstar if you can't beat the Clips.

 

Kobe is one of the 5 greatest players ever and a complete psychopath. No one will be Kobe no matter who it is. Kuzma is a late first round player whom played well on bad teams and now has legit pressure on him and is a third and 4th option on a team. The dynamics changed. He isnt Kobe or even an all star. He needs to develop his game and be the player they need him to be. A guy who can hit open shots and maintain leads off the bench.

 

the driving part is as rare as his post up, n being fed is a form of being underrated? mcgee n Howard get those lob feeds too

 

OX I agree. Just saying he bleeds P&G and would work with talented current Lakers if he felt he wasn't wasting his time and they sought him out. At the very least for developing footwork better especially back to the basket. But nooooo it has to be Tatum that comes to him in a C Bags uniform instead.

 

pau was an unreliable shooter outside the paint, just like AD. he had a better post game (which would matter less now than it did in his prime) and was a better passer. he wasn't as good in the face up high post. he never averaged more than 20ppg (people are s***ting on AD for averaging a paltry 26). in all, i think people have a special place in their heart for pau here due to his role on title squads, but if we're calling AD a robin, pau was a...batgirl? alfred? commissioner gordon? i'm not good at this game.

i think AD actually has very good footwork, btw. amazing floater for a guy his size (or any size, really). people not seeing the skill aren't looking very closely, imo.

and i said all this before he was a laker--check the logs.

 

I like how people just ignore that AD is infinitely a better defender than Pau Gasol. It's like it doesn't matter to some people. I read somewhere that of all defenders, AD allows his opponents to score only 30% of their shots against him and that leads the league by a wide margin considering Giannis is 2nd at 40%. You could make a case that Pau Gasol was a better post player but I think they serve different purposes out there offensively. AD is more of someone who finishes around the rim for lobs and easy baskets whereas Gasol required more skill to his game because he wasn't the most physical or athletic frontcourt player. It depends on what you're looking for but for our team, I prefer the guy who dominates the game for us defensively by blocking nearly 3 shots per game and is currently shooting 89% from the FT line. He's an animal. Gasol was great but I wouldn't feel as confident with our team if we had Gasol over AD.

 

In general, I don't think AD wants to play in the post as much as other traditional PF's. AD has wide shoulders but he looks fairly thin out there and his legs look like twigs but because he wears leg sleeves, it's not visibly noticeable. He simply doesn't have enough mass to back defenders down or outmaneuver them when they're capable of pushing him out of the post. It's why the guy keeps opting for the fadeaway whenever he receives the ball down at the post. It becomes a question of whether AD should bulk up more at the cost of his speed and I think for now, being still relatively young, he's not at that stage yet.

 

I sometimes feel people forget Pau’s peak and only remember the later years with us. Pau was a plus defender during his peak. He had a period there at the beginning where his net rating was about 10 and many were considering him as the best PF in the game above Duncan, KG and Dirk.

During our three finals playoff runs, he went through and dominated Melo, Camby, Boozer, Millsap, David West, Tyson Chandler, Yao, Scola, Nenê, peak Dwight, Ibaka, Perkins, Stoudemire, Tim Duncan and finally KG.

But on top of being a plus defender during that time, he was an incredible offensive player. Better than current AD because you could run your offence through him to great success. Gasol could camp out at the high post and score and dish the ball out well. AD requires someone to set him up to be really effective and it’s a part of the reason why his guady stats couldn’t translate to as much success in the post season as you’d expect.

I’m not saying he’s a better player than AD, but he certainly deserves to be compared during his peak years. He was a great second option.

 

Pau had BBIQ that was off the charts. He came in, game 1 and knew exactly what was going on. Pau's game was made for the triangle offense. Reason being is he was unselfish, good passer and had great fundamentals.

 

Well, f***... Perseverance.

 

AD-41/9/4 steals

BI and Hart combined-33/15/0 steals

 

I was going to say don’t forget Zo, but him didn’t play cause tummy hurt.

 

Lol I'm sorry but if you truly thought people had Pau above KG, Dirk, and Duncan as the best PF, you have some screwed up memory. That was never the case and I question just how long you have been watching the NBA.

 

I don't want to sound so after-the-fact, but I didn't think we were going to lose to the Pels. A team has to beat us thoroughly with how we're playing. This is a generalized observation. but any time we're down, I see this team having lapses. Not the opposition stopping us. I mean a 15 point lead, refs jobbing us in 3-4 crucial calls in the stretch... yet we still make plays on D and LeBron hits some ridiculous shots.

We slow games down, we defend, and role players make big plays. AD and LBJ are gamebreakers on both sides of the floor. Only a handful of teams can stand up to all of that. A lot to be optimistic about!

 

Superstars.

 

Fixed it for you. Mister breakable movie glass.