We don't have personal agenda driven players like last season. One is somewhere on the Eastern Seaboard and the other will be splurging on Cheesesteak sandwiches without fumbling.
Banners in the rafters at Staples do. No team in the NBA has turned more paper championships into actual banner championships. That talk needs to go to the other teams in the league, not the Lakers.
Still have to play the games and not get injured. Team chemistry is huge and this team is essentially brand new. LeBron didn't win with what I think was a better team in Miami in his first year or his last. They still have to win and that's not gonna be easy this season trying to establish essentially a new team. I'm honestly not gonna sit here either and say I'm not worried about injuries. Bron & AD have both been hurt quite a bit recently (AD is injury prone) so if we can avoid that it should be much easier curve. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to be a downer here but just looking at things realistically
Let's stop with the Bron has been hurt quite a bit recently. Not that advancing age doesn't make it more likely. But groin two years ago and freak type high ankle sprain from a guy's inadvertent rolling into his leg this past season. Which could happen to someone in their 20s or a teenager. The rest have been typical minor basketball stuff, come down on a foot roll an ankle. This is a narrative I keep reading now.
Speaking of Frank, I don't recall seeing the terms of his extension, but they must have been put out there in the press. What was he making per year this past season and did they give him a decent raise?
You don't need to click on this, LT--nothing new here, but in the announcement, it does say "Per team policy, terms of the deal were not released." https://www.nba.com/lakers/releases/lakers-sign-frank-vogel-to-contract-extension-2021
Society complicates s***. It's seeped into sports more than ever because of "feelings". Results are all that matter in the real world and usually the reason(s) you do not produce those results are just as simple.
interesting that he said people were assuming based on our roster we have an automatic title, when we're not even the betting favorite. he's right, though. blending the parts isn't as easy at it seems sometimes.
Of course it's gonna be work getting the pieces to play together. I'd be really suspicious if the Lakers were planning the parade already. But these dudes are pros. They're vets. Many hungry for a ring and know their role. And they all know why Schrö isn’t a Laker anymore. I'm confident.
sure, and i think we'll be very good (again). i just think bkn has every right to believe they're going to win as long as they just sort their stuff out, too. in other words: we don't have a real goliath here, as much as we have certainly amassed top-end talent. hell, i'd argue the malone/payton lakers looked more poised to dominate at the time than this year's team does--in part because there simply wasn't another goliath. so...when there are two goliaths, there are no goliaths. sort of like when there are two starting quarterbacks?
Well, that, plus the Malone / Payton Lakers just happened to have prime Shaq + Kobe. No way we lose that series if Malone stayed healthy. This year, I would take our roster over any other team including the Nets with one giant IF. That's IF AD and LeBron are both healthy for the playoff run. Of course, the Nets are dealing with their own big injury IF.
Not only that but they're dealing with a mercurial kyrie. Never know what he's gonna do from one second to the next
Yeah, I remember crowning the Lakers champions when we got Malone and Payton. Done and delivered. No way do they lose. Damn, what a reality slap to the face that was. And I agree, Brooklyn does deserve to think they’ll take all the marbles. Sure, but for all the reasons others are listing, my bet is on the Lakers.
If Frank doesn't at the very least, get this team to the Finals he's outta here. Rob is a ruthless operator.