Okay.. This thread is probably the best place to get this off my chest.. Although it's hard not to be excited about the Lakers getting a Player like Luka, as a Laker Fan & Basketball Fan, I hate this trade right now. It's been really hard feeling connected to the Lakers for quite some time.. New coaches every 2 years, completely revamping the roster every year because all our role players have been on one year deals, the Westbrook fiasco, etc. etc. This organization has had no glue & no identity for years now. We were just starting to get to a point where it was feeling like a well rounded Team with an identity. We've had a core of LBJ, AD, Reaves, Rui & Vando for 3 seasons now & Reddick feels like the first Coach with an actual system we've had since D'Antoni (cough)... Finney-Smith & Vando have given us the perimeter defense we were lacking & this Team appeared to be progressing in a positive direction... That's what I want from a Team. Not constantly chasing the next thing, but being competitive & committed. I'm not gonna have any problem rooting for Luka. He's a fantastic Player & I get why you make this trade. But my initial reaction is that we just hit the reset button on a Team that was finally starting to gel & that I was actually starting to enjoy rooting for again..
My WMC is Drammond is a dirty a** player. I don't understand how this dude gets away with so much crap every game. He should of been T'd up like 8 times in this game and could of hurt a couple people. I hate this dude more than Bruce Bowen. Thats all.
It’s become obvious Charles Barkley hates the Lakers like Stephen A hates the Cowboys. The difference is and I’m actually a Cowboys fan, but the Lakers don’t choke in the playoffs and they’re champions so his hate is completely unwarranted. To sit on national TV and say it with a straight face this team isn’t a contender is laughable. This is why I hate when our games are on Thursday nights on TNT because I have to see this buffoon hating on the Lakers.
When a lot of my friends were upset that it looked like this would be the last year of the TNT crew, I was celebrating. Their antics were funny like...10 years ago. They haven't evolved and the shtick is old. The biggest transgression is that crew is also actively making casual NBA fans dumber. There is no actual basketball analysis and they push ignorant narratives (i.e. Street Clothes AD). People who don't watch religiously or aren't on the West coast get their basketball takes from clowns like this. Really hoping things don't work with NBC and they find a crew that can have knowledgeable conversations about basketball.
He's just tired of us being THE headliner all the time. Needs the attention... Not shocked he is OPENLY rooting against us.
all this. they've destroyed basketball discourse. it was cute for a very short time, and they ran with all the worst aspects of it. even kenny smith--considered the level-headed one--seems to be a complete basketball idiot. jj was right--you want fans to like the game? get rid of these clowns. give ernie three guys who actually know and like basketball and don't just want to get drunk and rant incoherently each week. there are plenty of former players who would do much better than these guys.
LeBron fired back a bit and I loved it. I'm also ready for this era of NBA commentary to end. Let's get some folks who actually love the game and respect the current players and go from there.