Have you not watched Kobe this preseason? He's been excellent. Why would go away from that? Understand that having Lin run the pick and roll is the second option, a damn good second option. Hill is just as capable in the pick and roll as Davis is. Clarkson hasn't done much this preseason, partly because he was injured, but partly because he's not NBA ready yet. In Summer League, he was going up against Summer League talent. The minute he started going up against NBA guys, he was throwing up shots and playing out of control. He still has a lot to go before even thinking about getting heavy minutes. Ellington and his shooting is ahead of Clarkson at backup SG. The goal every year is to win as many games as possible. What kind of question is that?
You serious? I said the starting unit is centered around Kobe. Why? Because it's the most effective use of the team and the starting unit. That's not really debatable given our current roster. If we had Carmelo or LeBron or Durant, it's a different story but I'm not worried about Lin and Wesley Johnson getting looks when they're out there with Kobe Bryant. What do I want from this season? The greatest amount of success we can have while developing our young players. What do you think is more important? Lin learning to play with a ball dominant scorer or Davis and Lin running a pick and roll? You think Lin/Davis is going to be the recipe for a Championship? If Lin can play with Kobe effectively he can certainly play with someone like Durant who we'd like to pick up eventually. I find your tone pretty condescending.
Ed Davis was a steal, grand larceny! Another feather in Kupchek's hat. Rim protector, big that runs the court and finishes, gladly plays P/R, even if he doesn't get it back on his roll most of the time, solid rebounder/defender. I could not believe he did not get a better offer elsewhere...that he wanted. I know he's looking for playing time and that figured in his decision.....or maybe he's the only player on the planet that wanted to play with Kobe Bryant!
Picked him up in my deep fantasy league. If Hill were to miss any time, Davis is going to fill up the stat sheet.
Yeah I'm still scratching my head as to how we stole this guy. Not that I'm complaining but given how there was slim pickings in quality free agents this year we got especially lucky. I'm a big fan already.
Yeah Mitch has a knack for it. Maybe they have these guys on their draft radars since college, and they keep track of where they are and if they're being underutilized.
I think we got him for a couple good reasons: 1. We offered him a guaranteed role and guaranteed minutes. He'd been in two cities that hadn't done that for him. 2. It's LA and you get fantastic exposure here. Have a good year in LA and you can get a great contract somewhere else.
I disagree that the goal every year is to win as many games as possible. It all depends on where you are at as a franchise. Right now, we are in rebuild mode. So for me, the win/loss column isn't that important. What I want to see is our young players getting playing time, getting better and building their confidence so when next year comes around, they will be better players. No, I'm not saying we should lose on purpose. But the win/loss column isn't as crucial this year as if we were competing for a title.
LOL as usual. Hey send Jim, Mitch and Jeanie an email with your thoughts..... I'm sure a light will go off in the front office and at Time Warner Sports Net as well....... that maybe they haven't all these years been thinking through things correctly as heads and partners of the Lakers storied franchise. Oh forgot....send it to Byron too and he will take into consideration. The rooks and young and athletic players are going to get time as they deserve it in the COACH'S eyes as HE is trying to win every game. Like every player on that roster is going to be trying to do. I fully expect the most talented to get plenty of time over the course of this season.
Umm, no. You compete for a championship EVERY year. Anything can happen at any moment. Durant went down. Lebron could go down. Doesn't matter what mode you're in, you try to win every game. Young players will develop in trial by fire. If they can't handle the pressures of playing in the NBA, then they don't deserve to play. Do you think the Lakers were in "rebuild mode" when they drafted Kobe? Do you really think they really didn't care about the W/L because they wanted to develop him? Please. They fought every year in the playoffs until things fell in the right places. Just because YOU don't believe we can't win a title, doesn't mean this team can't. If you want to go watch a team disregard their record to "develop talent," to watch the Sixers. You can't attract premier free agents by losing, and that's proved itself the last three seasons. This is the Lakers, not some garbage Clippers organization.
What possible response do you think is appropriate to this? What discussion comes from this reply? How can lakerfan2 respond to this without being offended or similarly antagonistic? This is a new site and hopefully a new start for all of us and it'd behoove you to try harder to discuss things instead of responding like this. This is childish and very close to baiting. I implore you to try harder than this if you're going to respond to people. Call it an unofficial warning if you'd like, but this kind of post is NOT what LB is about.
