Optimism Discussion: The Laker's Sky Is Not Falling

Discussion in 'Lakers Discussion' started by therealdeal, Jun 20, 2016.

  1. LakerFanIam

    LakerFanIam - Lakers 6th Man -

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2014
    Messages:
    1,779
    Likes Received:
    5,181
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
    Thanks Real.. It's definitely not an unreasonable scenario & not that horrible of a sacrifice if we truly got both LBJ & PG without breaking up the core.
     
  2. fabfourlakers

    fabfourlakers - Lakers Starter -

    Joined:
    Oct 19, 2014
    Messages:
    3,599
    Likes Received:
    8,181
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
    Is there a way to get LeBron, PG13 AND Cousins OR Westbrook? I'm guessing the only way would be if LeBron, PG13 and Westbrook/Cousins all took major paycuts like KD did?

    I'm also seeing that we'll have to for sure get rid of Deng, Clarkson AND Randle? Is there ANY WAY to keep ONE of the 3 (say, Randle?)? Let's say we keep Randle...can we sign LeBron and PG13 to max deals? Or would we have to renounce Randle and then hope we have some cap left over to re-sign him?

    Can we keep EVERYBODY and add PG13 and LeBron? Meaning, can we keep Clarkson, Deng, Randle, KCP and Lopez and add LeBron and PG13?

    I need someone to break down all of the scenarios here....
     
  3. SFGOLDRUSHER

    SFGOLDRUSHER - Lakers Starter -

    Joined:
    Oct 25, 2014
    Messages:
    3,094
    Likes Received:
    2,181
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Occupation:
    Master Optimist.
    Location:
    San Diego
    Offline
    Lebron thread page 28. To answer your question as well, no we can't.
     
  4. therealdeal

    therealdeal Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Sep 7, 2014
    Messages:
    28,475
    Likes Received:
    62,061
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
  5. LTLakerFan

    LTLakerFan - Lakers Legend -

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2014
    Messages:
    36,604
    Likes Received:
    60,845
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    So Cal
    Online
  6. therealdeal

    therealdeal Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Sep 7, 2014
    Messages:
    28,475
    Likes Received:
    62,061
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
    Rob Pelinka was on the Dan Patrick Show this morning and he said something specific that has been sort of floated around by some smart Laker bloggers. He said that what the Lakers are going to try to do is turn passing into the next breakthrough in the NBA. Pelinka brought up how shooting has become the norm and has changed the way the NBA is played. Golden State changed the game with fast, efficient shooting outside and are able to go small with quick, aggressive defense and punishing three point shots that add up too quickly.

    The Lakers, with Lonzo, are going to try to do the same thing with passing the ball. Golden State passes the ball at a high level and so does San Antonio, but what we're going to try to do is take that to another level entirely. We want to take the energy of the Warriors and ramp it up further with passing from all positions.

    This seems like an oversimplification, but think about what made Lonzo such a unique college prospect: he had either the most or second most assists in college last season with one of the lowest usage rates of all premiere guards in the draft. He doesn't just pass the ball, he passes the ball constantly. Think about what happened with Vander Blue in this summer league. He went from never even looking for a pass, to passing the ball all the time. He had 6 assists in one of the games! We're going to try to make passing the new shooting.

    Of course that doesn't mean we won't also put a premium on shooting, I think the two go hand in hand now. I just think that when you're talking about "transcendent", that's the direction we're trying to go in. We're going to try to do something different than what we've seen in decades. I find this mentality to be not just encouraging, but deeply exciting. We're talking about being the Lakers again.
     
    tada, OmarE, Barnstable and 7 others like this.
  7. abeer3

    abeer3 - Lakers Legend -

    Top Poster Of Month

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2014
    Messages:
    28,367
    Likes Received:
    76,323
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Online
    could be great, but requires very specific roster construction.
     
  8. LaVarBallsDad

    LaVarBallsDad - Lakers Legend -

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2014
    Messages:
    16,172
    Likes Received:
    31,056
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
    Interesting...
     
    sirronstuff likes this.
  9. Savory Griddles

    Savory Griddles Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 7, 2014
    Messages:
    9,152
    Likes Received:
    22,367
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
    This sounds good in theory, but I'm not sure how you improve on Golden State's passing model. They make the right basketball play 90% of the time. How much more can a team pass than them? How many times can you choose to make a better than the Warriors make? Not trying to be a downer as I am encouraged by Pelinka and Magic's commitment to ball movement, but I've watched a lot of GS over the past 3 years and I'm not sure how much more you can actually pass than they do.
     
    LTLakerFan likes this.
  10. alam1108

    alam1108 - Lakers Legend -

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2014
    Messages:
    13,585
    Likes Received:
    37,190
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    Laker Land
    Offline
    We already have some pieces to make it happen. I think I'm seeing a GSW/Showtime redux from what Rob is saying.

    We have the coach and guys who can push the pace and play make. 1-4 can grab a rebound and run, heck we saw some quick offense off a made basket. Gotta be careful though when that's not available or against Memphis and Utah who slow the game down tons.

    I like it though. The light at the end of the tunnel is finally in reach.
     
    Barnstable, LTLakerFan and TIME like this.
  11. therealdeal

    therealdeal Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Sep 7, 2014
    Messages:
    28,475
    Likes Received:
    62,061
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
    I think we're seeing part of it already. Lonzo is a fantastic passer, Ingram is a good passer, and Lopez is a good passer. Randle, if he stays, is a solid passer, and I don't know that KCP is a great passer, but he's solid in pick and roll. KCP had a 2:1 assist to turnover ratio last season. I think Kuzma is a very good passer. Nance is an underrated passer. Ennis is solid.

    The real intriguing part is LeBron. LeBron would be ridiculous in an open passing game. George would be good at it too, but LeBron is a tremendous passer especially for his size. I believe we're going to build the type of game that everyone wants to be a part of in our own unique way. If LeBron doesn't commit, I still think we're going to have a tremendously fun team with next-level potential. It might take a while to reach it, but I think that's the direction we're headed today which is exciting.
     
    OmarE, Barnstable, LTLakerFan and 2 others like this.
  12. therealdeal

    therealdeal Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Sep 7, 2014
    Messages:
    28,475
    Likes Received:
    62,061
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
    What they do is predicated off of shooting though. You have to over-adjust which opens up back-doors and cuts. It's a tremendously dangerous offense, but when they have cold shooting nights, the offense slows down. Obviously they've stacked the deck so that those shooting nights are few and far between, but that's how the lowly 2016 Lakers beat them last year.

    What we're going to do is keep constant pressure on the defense by moving the ball ahead. Ideally you don't want anyone holding the ball for more than 5-6 seconds before passing it or shooting it. I've been touting it a lot already, but the hit-ahead pass is going to open up the offense for the Lakers even off of made baskets. Once the ball goes up, at least one player needs to be filling the same-side wing as the person receiving the inbounds pass while another flashes toward the rim. We'll get into offense 3-4 seconds into the shot clock which is rattling for defenses. Golden State does this with their small-ball lineups sometimes, but I want to do it with every lineup. Having a PF in their that's as mobile as Julius is going to free up a lot of points in transition and semi-transition. Have Lopez run to the three point line early in the offense and he'll probably get an open three just out of the pressure we put on the rim moving the ball.
     
    OmarE, LTLakerFan and TIME like this.
  13. alam1108

    alam1108 - Lakers Legend -

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2014
    Messages:
    13,585
    Likes Received:
    37,190
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    Laker Land
    Offline
    It all make sense sense now, why Magic wants these guys in shape. We're running 48 mins a game.
     
  14. LTLakerFan

    LTLakerFan - Lakers Legend -

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2014
    Messages:
    36,604
    Likes Received:
    60,845
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    So Cal
    Online
    I think we're doing a pretty good job of it in the very short time these 2 guys have been here. For those specifics I assume you're referring to. (hope they are anyway) Big turnover in the roster and big expectations for the players who have bought into Magic's competitiveness and will listen to what he tries to teach.
     
    Last edited: Jul 27, 2017
    Barnstable likes this.
  15. sirronstuff

    sirronstuff - Lakers Legend -

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2014
    Messages:
    31,727
    Likes Received:
    77,090
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Occupation:
    Your time is running out Ham
    Location:
    Laker Purgatory
    Offline
    what if Russell Westbrook came here and was in attack mode off of a passing game like that? That would be interesting.
     
    Barnstable and LTLakerFan like this.
  16. Khmrp

    Khmrp - Lakers Legend -

    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2016
    Messages:
    12,135
    Likes Received:
    13,854
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
    would be cool if we could get at least 3 of these rooks into the rookie/sophmore gm, I know its gona be difficult to get PT with Hart at this point.
     
    LTLakerFan likes this.
  17. therealdeal

    therealdeal Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Sep 7, 2014
    Messages:
    28,475
    Likes Received:
    62,061
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
  18. KRL

    KRL - Lakers 6th Man -

    Joined:
    Dec 30, 2016
    Messages:
    1,369
    Likes Received:
    1,190
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Offline
    Being well conditioned can be the difference in winning close games. You can push teams harder down the stretch to tire them out even faster.
     
  19. Battle Tested20

    Battle Tested20 Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2014
    Messages:
    9,213
    Likes Received:
    24,866
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Occupation:
    Technical Data Analyst
    Location:
    Fair Oaks, CA
    Offline
    The best thing I heard out of that entire interview was one of the last things he said which was that he and Magic are very conscious about wanting to be great now and try to beat the Warriors but not sacrificing our future for success today. This will be the key thing for us to never lose sight of.
     
    OmarE, LTLakerFan and therealdeal like this.
  20. Battle Tested20

    Battle Tested20 Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2014
    Messages:
    9,213
    Likes Received:
    24,866
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Occupation:
    Technical Data Analyst
    Location:
    Fair Oaks, CA
    Offline
    what was this?

    upload_2017-7-27_11-39-29.png
     

Share This Page