New Album & The Beginning of Basketball Season

[Steve Williams]

I'm stunned. Never thought they would give up on Andrew. Artest unfortunately hasn't cut it this year.

 

[FrantzM]

I'm stunned. Never thought they would give up on Andrew. Artest unfortunately hasn't cut it this year.

Steve

Melo has upper echelon talent.. With the right coach he can be at the Dwayne Wade /Durant level.. The kid is that kind of good, For some reasons actually for reason one canunderstand he never really seem to like his team,,, If the Lakers can get him for Bynum (very brittle and after all a decent but not world-shattering center and Artest who never seem to fit in the lakers offense ... Lakers see already how to re-sign him ..Woah!

 

[jadis]

That's the one swing of the bat trade for the Lakers, if that happens. Deadly. Melo and Kobe. Each can score 30 or 40 points any night. Quite similar now to Wade and James. Explosive. Not good news for Celtics fans. LOL

 

[Steve Williams]

That's the one swing of the bat trade for the Lakers, if that happens. Deadly. Melo and Kobe. Each can score 30 or 40 points any night. Quite similar now to Wade and James. Explosive. Not good news for Celtics fans. LOL

But can Kobe accept another star on the team. We can only wonder how many championships he and Shaq could have won if the two had gotten along in Lakers' uniforms

 

[FrantzM]

But can Kobe accept another star on the team. We can only wonder how many championships he and Shaq could have won if the two had gotten along in Lakers' uniforms

Kobe is a very intelligent person, he knows his body is tiring... He knows it and plays to protect that body .. You add a Melo to his team and suddenly he can rest but really rest and be ready for when Playoff comes that adds almost 5 years to his career as a dominant player ... If Melo comes that's a three-peat ..with scary thoughts of 4-peats and 5-peats

 

[JackD201]

I'd think he'd welcome it. If it means he can take longer rests it could add up to a couple of more years to his career. I'm pretty sure he wasn't even thinking that 3 or 4 years in.

The question mark is Melo's D. Can he stop or even bother Durant, Pierce or James?

 

[Steve Williams]

What I have been reading is that
1. Kobe is 33 and Mel 26 so the Lakers are obviously looking for their next great star for the future

2.Jerry Busse' son is a big fan of Andrew

3. Lakers are also talking to Charlotte about Bynum

4. The buzz is the Nuggs are obviously concerned about draft choices and right now they wouldn't know who those draft choices could be until the end of the season

5. As a result most feel Melo will finish the season as a Nugg with and end of the season trade when the Nuggs would know who those choices and order of the draft would be

 

[es347]

Steve

Melo has upper echelon talent.. With the right coach he can be at the Dwayne Wade /Durant level.. The kid is that kind of good, For some reasons actually for reason one canunderstand he never really seem to like his team,,, If the Lakers can get him for Bynum (very brittle and after all a decent but not world-shattering center and Artest who never seem to fit in the lakers offense ... Lakers see already how to re-sign him ..Woah!

I'm surprised that Artest hasn't started a bleachers brawl like he did when he played here. The guy is a thug.

 

[Steve Williams]

Without doubt he is the toughest player in the NBA however having watched him come under the tutelage of Phil and Kobe, I feel he has made a sincere attempt to improve his life, being under the care of a psychiatrist as well as getting involved in charitable foundations for troubled youths and auctioning of his NBA ring to make money for that foundation. So not so sure that I would judge him now based on his actions in Indianapolis. Remember it was him who won it for the Lakers last year against Boston.

 

[es347]

To each his own Steve. He's a thug.

 

[Steve Williams]

Each of us at some time in our lives look to seek redemption and I am a very forgiving person Gavin

 

[jadis]

But can Kobe accept another star on the team. We can only wonder how many championships he and Shaq could have won if the two had gotten along in Lakers' uniforms

It can go both ways for Kobe. We never know till Melo and him plays together for a couple of years. If Melo becomes the main man (at least scoring-wise), then the ego of Kobe might be bruised and the it will be another Shaq-Kobe feud Part 2. A lot had doubted the tandem of Wade and James before the opening of the season but it seems to me that there is no ego factor in their play, so far. Their being close buddies shows. And agreed, that season the Lakers got in Malone and Payton, that would be have been a championship no less but the Shaq/Kobe feud took over. And a couple of years later, Shaq was still fit enough to bring the crown to Miami. It would have been a six-peat for the Lakers had they stayed together. But by any standard, 3 was great. LOL.

 

[jadis]

The question mark is Melo's D. Can he stop or even bother Durant, Pierce or James?

True, Jack. That has so far been the weakness of Melo, defense. But at this point, Lakers seem to need a shot in the arm in the microwave-like offense of Melo. It's a bit strange that LA did not have this problem with basically the same core last year. And SA, with virtually the same core players last year, is doing fantastically this year. Seems to be something called 'inspiration'.

 

[es347]

Each of us at some time in our lives look to seek redemption and I am a very forgiving person Gavin

That's an admirable trait which I normally share but when it comes to a multi gazillion dollar prima dona that was given numerous chances to repent and reset yet responds by thumbing his nose at fans and management, I draw the line. Artest is lucky to be wearing a uniform that isn't day glow orange.

 

[Ron Party]

Artest never will be forgiven by some, no matter what he does. For others, Artest is recognized for what he has been doing, including his most recent endeavor with his championship ring.

Now, if you really want to know who is a thug, look no further than the starting power forward for the Celtics. Great player but an absolutely complete jerk. Anyone remember his interview on the court after game 6 against the Lakers 2 years ago? Thug, pure and simple. Everyone in and associated with the NBA knows this, but because he is and has been an All-Star, he is given a free pass.

 

[jadis]

5. As a result most feel Melo will finish the season as a Nugg with and end of the season trade when the Nuggs would know who those choices and order of the draft would be

I'm not completely familiar with the rules of trades but suppose the trading deadline ends and Melo is still a Nugget, then he has to play out the rest of the season/playoff as a Nugget; isn't it that the Nuggets cannot trade him anymore even if during the playoff time, the order of the draft and the draft players will be known? The Nuggets would just lose Melo to free agency the day after the trading deadline. That was my understanding but I'm not too sure if this is the case.

 

[jadis]

Just read this from denverpost.com
"A trade with the Lakers, however, is not one of them — at least not in the configuration involving young center Andrew Bynum — according to a source. ESPN.com quoted sources Tuesday as saying preliminary talks had begun between Los Angeles and Denver."

A little snag. Same report says NYN and NJN are still in the fray for Melo.

 

[Steve Williams]

Just read this from denverpost.com
"A trade with the Lakers, however, is not one of them — at least not in the configuration involving young center Andrew Bynum — according to a source. ESPN.com quoted sources Tuesday as saying preliminary talks had begun between Los Angeles and Denver."

A little snag. Same report says NYN and NJN are still in the fray for Melo.

seems that the Bynum thing remains a rumor and the buzz about Melo coming to the Lakers seems to have been started by the Nuggs or the local press there to keep the talk going between the NJN and/or Knicks.

This comes from Laker website

Lakers Practice Through Distractions
Published by Mike Trudell on February 9, 2011 1:19 pm in Practice News.
Following Wednesday’s practice in Boston, the Lakers didn’t talk much about the Boston Celtics.

But that’s only because many of the questions from reporters centered around a trade rumor involving Andrew Bynum, which didn’t mean much to Phil Jackson.

“I haven’t given any second thoughts, I haven’t even entertained it,” said L.A.’s Coach. “My first thought is, why are these (media) people interrupting my life with these rumors?”

Jackson was being at least somewhat facetious, as he followed that remark by explaining that the Lakers are very much used to dealing with trade rumors, even as he acknowledged that it’s “still something that we have to consider all the time to make sure (the players are) focused.”

The 11-time coaching champ was then asked if he were happy with his team as it currently stands.

“That’s what I told them,” he answered. “I still think when they’re playing their best they are the best team in the league.”

As for Bynum himself?

“I just keep playing,” said the 23-year-old center. “That’s all I can do. I can’t allow myself to focus on things that I can’t do anything about. All I can do is come in and play basketball for the team … (trade rumors have) happened before. You just have to keep playing basketball.”

The rumor that happened before came last season, involving current Heat forward Chris Bosh, then with the Raptors. Bynum said the same things at that time, then went on to help L.A. win its second straight title.

It’s no secret that the combination of Bynum and fellow seven-footer Pau Gasol give the Lakers an edge against nearly every team in the NBA, particularly when 6-10 Lamar Odom comes off the bench.

“That’s our biggest strength, our size,” said Kobe Bryant.

Odom, meanwhile, is always around to make sure L.A.’s biggest player is feeling all right, as referenced in our Lakers.com feature story on Odom from early January in which Bynum references Odom’s consistent support.

“That’s my guy,” said Odom. “I haven’t heard anything about (a trade rumor), but as I do now, I’ll definitely make sure ‘Drew’s all right, that he stays in good spirits.

“I think ‘Drew is really mature for a young dude. He understands. We all support him … he seems happy. The year is not over yet, and he knows we’re going to keep him focused and keep him into it because we need him.”

The Lakers may need Bynum more against Boston than any other team in the league. Though both Shaquille and Jermaine O’Neal will miss Thursday’s game with respective injuries, the Celtics have their core bigs on the ready.

“I still think they have the three main people they’re going to go with, that’s (Glen) Davis, (Kendrick) Perkins and (Kevin) Garnett,” said Jackson. “We only have three big guys that we work with, I think that’s pretty much what they want.”

Trade rumor or not, it’s those Celtics’ bigs — not to mention Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo — about whom Bynum, Odom, Bryant and the rest of the Lakers will think about as they gather at the team hotel to watch film of their Jan. 30 loss to Boston at Staples Center.

 

[Steve Williams]

OK Ron, are you watching the game. Lakers are finally playing (almost) Laker ball.

88-81 Lakers with ~ 3 mins to go

 

[Ron Party]

Lakers' best game of the year. Gave me energy to go to the gym.