Plan E. send Kareem, West, Johnson, Baylor, Kobe, and McMillan to the Genesis Project planet.
New Album & The Beginning of Basketball Season
- Thread starter Ron Party
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Plan E. send Kareem, West, Johnson, Baylor, Kobe, and McMillan to the Genesis Project planet.
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
sadly the Lakers will be wannabes for 2013 with only journeymen players. Even sadder is the fact that they believe they can get Melo and LBJ for 2014 with all their cap space. I seriously doubt LBJ is going anywhere although Cleveland to end his career is a thought
It happened so fast that only on slow mo can you see that after Allen caught the ball, he moved both his feet to step back behind the line. It was a nifty move. Much like a couple of years ago, James would lift both his feet up on a head and shoulder fake and start his dribble.
If the NBA allows replays on last touches and 3 point line shots, why not add these blatant game infractions like traveling? Oversight is one thing, but when the game is on the line, rules are rules, the other team can't be allowed to suffer because of an oversight. And mostly, when the other team 'practices' these infractions on the other end, they get CALLED for it. Shades of WWF, or WWE.
And to prevent what Jeff van Gundy hates when replays are called for and 'ruin the flow of the game', the league can impose a one-replay-per-team down the last 2 minutes or lose a timeout when the challenge is lost ala NFL, for traveling violations.
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Ainge's moves may start to look right after all. Ironically, it was all fueled by his coach wanting to bolt his contract. Then KG didn't want to play without Doc or with a rebuilding team as well, and he didn't want to play without Pierce either in Boston. Pushed to the brink, the only move Ainge was left to do was to ship them all out for some assets and that he did, got lots of first round picks in the process. LAL is now left with the same problem, with no clear solution to it. Aging players Kobe, Gasol, and Nash as their core. Kobe cannot be traded. One option is to ship out Gasol for future picks to start their own rebuilding. This can be done only after losing the D12 sweepstakes. Ainge's job for now is about done. Mitch has to start doing something.
New rules on instant replay and flopping. Lightning quick traveling is still allowed or as long as refs do not see them. 
http://nba.si.com/2013/07/18/nba-rule-changes-flopping-policy-instant-replay-tweaks/?sct=uk_t2_a11
http://nba.si.com/2013/07/18/nba-rule-changes-flopping-policy-instant-replay-tweaks/?sct=uk_t2_a11
New rules on instant replay and flopping. Lightning quick traveling is still allowed or as long as refs do not see them.
http://nba.si.com/2013/07/18/nba-rule-changes-flopping-policy-instant-replay-tweaks/?sct=uk_t2_a11
Put that in the same box as palming.
including those WAY over-the-head dribble over an opponent that ends in a layup, as perfected by wade. yes, the game has evolved to go around everything in the rule book.
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
seems Lamar will re-sign with the Clipps rather than with the Lakers....
http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/7/21/4542690/2013-nba-free-agency-rumors-news
http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/7/21/4542690/2013-nba-free-agency-rumors-news
When I started to play the game in Grade 6, it was all about shooting, putting the ball into the basket. Not even about winning a game. So when I saw the shooting form of Larry Bird when I was in college, and his 3 peat at the 3-point contest in the mid 80s, I put in my mind when it comes to pure outside shooting, I put Larry Bird on top of my list. And because he was a Celtic - I had to put him on top of my ALL-TIME list.
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-b...-time-larry-bird-shooting-form-191723730.html
Paul George talks about the time Larry Bird’s shooting form stopped Pacer practice in its tracks
By Kelly Dwyer | Ball Don't Lie – 14 hours ago
Indiana Pacers All-Star Paul George has been in the news quite a bit of late, explaining away why he’s unlikely to flee an up and coming Pacers team for his hometown Los Angeles Lakers next summer. George will be a restricted free agent next year, one the Pacers will likely match at all costs (that’s assuming they don’t sign him to an extension prior to that), and it’s still unclear if the Lakers (stuck with cap holds and Kobe Bryant’s reported refusal to take a pay cut) will have enough space under the cap to make a move possible.
So, not much of a story, there. What should be a story is Indiana Pacers president Larry Bird shooting basketballs. Because nothing is better than watching Larry Bird shoot a basketball. From Nima Zarrabi at SLAM Online:
SLAM: I believe you had talked about seeing Larry shoot in the gym.
PG: He picked a ball up that had rolled over. He rolled up his sleeves and made about 15 in a row and just walked out like nothing just happened. It was the craziest thing I’ve seen.
SLAM: How did you and the rest of the team react?
PG: We were speechless. We didn’t know whether to keep shooting or just to end practice. It was sweet, man.
Not unlike Julius Erving … still got it.
I don’t recall who said it, and it’s possible that this is an apocryphal story, but I remember hearing about a sportswriter that, upon watching Bird practice and swish jumper after jumper in the hours before a game, tell a passerby that it was “like watching a fish practice swimming.”
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-b...-time-larry-bird-shooting-form-191723730.html
Paul George talks about the time Larry Bird’s shooting form stopped Pacer practice in its tracks
By Kelly Dwyer | Ball Don't Lie – 14 hours ago
Indiana Pacers All-Star Paul George has been in the news quite a bit of late, explaining away why he’s unlikely to flee an up and coming Pacers team for his hometown Los Angeles Lakers next summer. George will be a restricted free agent next year, one the Pacers will likely match at all costs (that’s assuming they don’t sign him to an extension prior to that), and it’s still unclear if the Lakers (stuck with cap holds and Kobe Bryant’s reported refusal to take a pay cut) will have enough space under the cap to make a move possible.
So, not much of a story, there. What should be a story is Indiana Pacers president Larry Bird shooting basketballs. Because nothing is better than watching Larry Bird shoot a basketball. From Nima Zarrabi at SLAM Online:
SLAM: I believe you had talked about seeing Larry shoot in the gym.
PG: He picked a ball up that had rolled over. He rolled up his sleeves and made about 15 in a row and just walked out like nothing just happened. It was the craziest thing I’ve seen.
SLAM: How did you and the rest of the team react?
PG: We were speechless. We didn’t know whether to keep shooting or just to end practice. It was sweet, man.
Not unlike Julius Erving … still got it.
I don’t recall who said it, and it’s possible that this is an apocryphal story, but I remember hearing about a sportswriter that, upon watching Bird practice and swish jumper after jumper in the hours before a game, tell a passerby that it was “like watching a fish practice swimming.”
Stumbled into this just now, and Wilt's prime was a bit before when I started to love the game. But looking at this tape has dropped by jaw. A lot of fans rank Wilt as the best who ever played the game, and I can clearly see why.
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
The Dismal Summer as a Lakers Superfan
By Narbeh Avanessian | Yahoo! Contributor Network
I really thought the party would go on. I thought the Los Angeles Lakers would always win. The weather was just too nice for it to all come crashing down like this. Whether it was Magic's "Showtime" Lakers, the quick rebuild into the Nick Van Exel-Eddie Jones-Cedric Ceballos trio that spawned "The Lake Show", or the arrival of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, I ate up the winning like a high school kid at In-N-Out.
But everything changed this Summer. It was really the new NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement about 20 months ago that set the stage. With any amount over a $71.748 million roster salary now being charged a higher tax penalty than ever (up to a $3.25 to $1 dollar tax rate and progressively higher past $20 mil), large market teams like the Lakers lost the advantage of overspending on star-studded rosters.
Then David Stern vetoed a trade to bring Chris Paul to the Lakers - his lowest moment in the eyes of many basketball fans (even non-Lakers fans) this side of Tim Donaghy.
With the supporting cast aging around Kobe and Pau Gasol, the Lakers brought in Steve Nash and Dwight Howard. I love Steve Nash as a human being, and in his prime he was indeed a two-time MVP of this league, but a 3-year, $27 million contract for a 38-year old point guard that's a defensive liability was a grave mistake in cap management. And Dwight Howard has always been a sensitive manchild whose bolt to Houston should not have come as a shock - he was a calculated risk that unfortunately did not pay off. Playing under Kobe is too stressful for fun-loving smiley people like Howard. It's tolerable if you're winning championships. When you're struggling to make the playoffs? Time to join James Harden and the no-pressure Houston Rockets.
So here stand the Lakers, all of their advantages stripped. In the past, we'd lean on the genius of Jerry West to get us out of this. Jim Buss now calls the shots - with Mitch Kupchak helping at his side, in case Buss needs someone to let the greatest coach of all-time know that they are going to make Dwight Howard stay by hiring a perimeter oriented coach over the Zen Master. If the Lakers' management couldn't get that decision right, are they really going to find draft pick steals like the think tanks in San Antonio or methodically build a team like the Houston Rockets?
The Lakers are in danger of turning into the New York Knicks. An attractive location for star players, but just not the game-changing Superstar players. Maxing out a then 36-year old Kobe Bryant, but not LeBron James. Getting Danny Granger, but not Paul George. Paying more attention to the antics of Jack Nicholson in the 2nd round of yet another playoff exit than realistically eyeing the NBA Finals.
Fear not, Lakers fans, as there is a solution to all of this. Here is what the Lakers can do to get back to contention.
Drive a Hard Bargain with Kobe
"The Black Mamba" will be 36 years old next year. Here's a fact: As great as he is, he can't be one of your two best players on your team at that age if you realistically want to win a championship. So handing him a $15-$20 million a year contract is a death sentence for the Lakers' championship aspirations. The Lakers must offer Kobe an $8-$10 million a year two-year extension before the summer of 2014 rolls around.
Drive a Harder Bargain with Gasol
Pau is an effective, creative power-forward. But he'll be 34, and his already suspect defense has been a half-step lower these previous two seasons. Defense should be a priority if the Lakers want to seriously contend. Also, Gasol is not Kobe Bryant. So if Kobe can be locked down for around $9 million a year, it's realistic to sell Pau on the super-team and convince him to sign for $7 million a year for two years.
Max Out Only Tier 1 Superstars
That would be LeBron James. Included are Carmelo Anthony and Paul George if you have to. Every other all-star, the story for Lakers' management should be that they need everyone to take a little cut to fill out the rest of the roster with stars. As the game has changed, the plan could be for Anthony to see some duty at power forward, with a player like Paul George (or Luol Deng or Danny Granger) playing small forward.
Realize It's Not About 1 Year - It's About Building Blocks
Guess which team was less than a minute away from the NBA title up by 5 points? The San Antonio Spurs - who probably only have one player presently in the league's Top 10 best players - Tony Parker. Duncan turned back the clock for a series, which Kobe and Gasol could arguably do. But why did the Spurs reach the finals? It's because they've built a team based on today's NBA.
A) Great individual and even better team defense players.
B) At least one player that can consistently create a high-quality, efficient shot (Tony Parker shot 52% from the field, compare that to Kobe's 46%).
C) Good shooters (Spurs were 4th in the league with 37% 3-point FGs made)
Sure, great defenders that could shoot the ball well are not easy to find. But it's time to eye draft prospects that can turn into Kawhi Leonard over fitting D'Antoni's offense.
It won't be easy, but with a few smart pickups and a splashy free-agency signing (Carmelo Anthony seems more realistic than James at this point), the Lakers could very well be back in title contention. But for now, here's to a year of watching my Lakers fight for that 8th seed.
By Narbeh Avanessian | Yahoo! Contributor Network
I really thought the party would go on. I thought the Los Angeles Lakers would always win. The weather was just too nice for it to all come crashing down like this. Whether it was Magic's "Showtime" Lakers, the quick rebuild into the Nick Van Exel-Eddie Jones-Cedric Ceballos trio that spawned "The Lake Show", or the arrival of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, I ate up the winning like a high school kid at In-N-Out.
But everything changed this Summer. It was really the new NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement about 20 months ago that set the stage. With any amount over a $71.748 million roster salary now being charged a higher tax penalty than ever (up to a $3.25 to $1 dollar tax rate and progressively higher past $20 mil), large market teams like the Lakers lost the advantage of overspending on star-studded rosters.
Then David Stern vetoed a trade to bring Chris Paul to the Lakers - his lowest moment in the eyes of many basketball fans (even non-Lakers fans) this side of Tim Donaghy.
With the supporting cast aging around Kobe and Pau Gasol, the Lakers brought in Steve Nash and Dwight Howard. I love Steve Nash as a human being, and in his prime he was indeed a two-time MVP of this league, but a 3-year, $27 million contract for a 38-year old point guard that's a defensive liability was a grave mistake in cap management. And Dwight Howard has always been a sensitive manchild whose bolt to Houston should not have come as a shock - he was a calculated risk that unfortunately did not pay off. Playing under Kobe is too stressful for fun-loving smiley people like Howard. It's tolerable if you're winning championships. When you're struggling to make the playoffs? Time to join James Harden and the no-pressure Houston Rockets.
So here stand the Lakers, all of their advantages stripped. In the past, we'd lean on the genius of Jerry West to get us out of this. Jim Buss now calls the shots - with Mitch Kupchak helping at his side, in case Buss needs someone to let the greatest coach of all-time know that they are going to make Dwight Howard stay by hiring a perimeter oriented coach over the Zen Master. If the Lakers' management couldn't get that decision right, are they really going to find draft pick steals like the think tanks in San Antonio or methodically build a team like the Houston Rockets?
The Lakers are in danger of turning into the New York Knicks. An attractive location for star players, but just not the game-changing Superstar players. Maxing out a then 36-year old Kobe Bryant, but not LeBron James. Getting Danny Granger, but not Paul George. Paying more attention to the antics of Jack Nicholson in the 2nd round of yet another playoff exit than realistically eyeing the NBA Finals.
Fear not, Lakers fans, as there is a solution to all of this. Here is what the Lakers can do to get back to contention.
Drive a Hard Bargain with Kobe
"The Black Mamba" will be 36 years old next year. Here's a fact: As great as he is, he can't be one of your two best players on your team at that age if you realistically want to win a championship. So handing him a $15-$20 million a year contract is a death sentence for the Lakers' championship aspirations. The Lakers must offer Kobe an $8-$10 million a year two-year extension before the summer of 2014 rolls around.
Drive a Harder Bargain with Gasol
Pau is an effective, creative power-forward. But he'll be 34, and his already suspect defense has been a half-step lower these previous two seasons. Defense should be a priority if the Lakers want to seriously contend. Also, Gasol is not Kobe Bryant. So if Kobe can be locked down for around $9 million a year, it's realistic to sell Pau on the super-team and convince him to sign for $7 million a year for two years.
Max Out Only Tier 1 Superstars
That would be LeBron James. Included are Carmelo Anthony and Paul George if you have to. Every other all-star, the story for Lakers' management should be that they need everyone to take a little cut to fill out the rest of the roster with stars. As the game has changed, the plan could be for Anthony to see some duty at power forward, with a player like Paul George (or Luol Deng or Danny Granger) playing small forward.
Realize It's Not About 1 Year - It's About Building Blocks
Guess which team was less than a minute away from the NBA title up by 5 points? The San Antonio Spurs - who probably only have one player presently in the league's Top 10 best players - Tony Parker. Duncan turned back the clock for a series, which Kobe and Gasol could arguably do. But why did the Spurs reach the finals? It's because they've built a team based on today's NBA.
A) Great individual and even better team defense players.
B) At least one player that can consistently create a high-quality, efficient shot (Tony Parker shot 52% from the field, compare that to Kobe's 46%).
C) Good shooters (Spurs were 4th in the league with 37% 3-point FGs made)
Sure, great defenders that could shoot the ball well are not easy to find. But it's time to eye draft prospects that can turn into Kawhi Leonard over fitting D'Antoni's offense.
It won't be easy, but with a few smart pickups and a splashy free-agency signing (Carmelo Anthony seems more realistic than James at this point), the Lakers could very well be back in title contention. But for now, here's to a year of watching my Lakers fight for that 8th seed.
More 'beef' for the Pacers, from Argentina to boot.
http://tracking.si.com/2013/07/27/pacers-suns-trade-luis-scola/?sct=nba_t2_a1
The Indiana Pacers and Phoenix Suns have completed a trade to send power forward Luis Scola to Indiana for a lottery-protected 2014 first-round draft pick and bench players Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee, according to a Pacers press release.
Scola, who averaged 12.8 points and 6.6 rebounds in 26.4 minutes per game last season, will serve as the Pacers’ primary big man off the bench, backing up starters Roy Hibbert and David West.
The 33-year-old Argentina native has career averages of 14.2 points and 7.5 rebounds as almost exclusively a starter for the Suns in 2012-13 and the Rockets for the first five years of his career.
From the press release:
“I’m very, very excited to play for the Pacers,” said Scola. “They are one of the top three teams in the NBA with a good shot to win a championship. I think it’s a great team and this is a great opportunity. I can’t wait.”
“Luis will be a very important asset to our team and to our bench,” said Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird. “He has NBA experience, international experience and is the type of player that will fit in nicely on our roster.”
Green, 27, averaged 7.0 points on just 36.6 percent shooting in 60 games last season, while Plumlee, the 26th overall pick in the 2012 draft, played just 56 total minutes during his rookie year.
Scola has two years and $9 million left on his contract, while Green is signed for two years, $7 million and Plumlee remains on a $1-plus-million rookie deal.
http://tracking.si.com/2013/07/27/pacers-suns-trade-luis-scola/?sct=nba_t2_a1
The Indiana Pacers and Phoenix Suns have completed a trade to send power forward Luis Scola to Indiana for a lottery-protected 2014 first-round draft pick and bench players Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee, according to a Pacers press release.
Scola, who averaged 12.8 points and 6.6 rebounds in 26.4 minutes per game last season, will serve as the Pacers’ primary big man off the bench, backing up starters Roy Hibbert and David West.
The 33-year-old Argentina native has career averages of 14.2 points and 7.5 rebounds as almost exclusively a starter for the Suns in 2012-13 and the Rockets for the first five years of his career.
From the press release:
“I’m very, very excited to play for the Pacers,” said Scola. “They are one of the top three teams in the NBA with a good shot to win a championship. I think it’s a great team and this is a great opportunity. I can’t wait.”
“Luis will be a very important asset to our team and to our bench,” said Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird. “He has NBA experience, international experience and is the type of player that will fit in nicely on our roster.”
Green, 27, averaged 7.0 points on just 36.6 percent shooting in 60 games last season, while Plumlee, the 26th overall pick in the 2012 draft, played just 56 total minutes during his rookie year.
Scola has two years and $9 million left on his contract, while Green is signed for two years, $7 million and Plumlee remains on a $1-plus-million rookie deal.
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
Granger, Scola, Copeland, Mahinmi off the bench? That is a pretty mean looking depth chart the Pacers have developed. Now, the question is how well they will do not just with Miami but also with the Bulls in full force next year.
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
It's true.
We tend to forget Chicago but IMO the East is the tougher Conference this year. Everyone is beefing up. Lets not forget The Knicks and the Nets.
We tend to forget Chicago but IMO the East is the tougher Conference this year. Everyone is beefing up. Lets not forget The Knicks and the Nets.
Yes
And Martin reupped with the Knicks. He can still do some damage if he's only playing 10-15 mins a game. Not to mention six hard fouls and one bonehead play.Similar threads
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