The historic loss is still fresh in their minds and unfortunately will be for a while. The good thing is that it is over, now the Lakers are in the healing process. The Lakers have to mentally recover from the beat down laid on them at the hands of the Celtics and learn from it and mature.
Kobe Bryant will not play GM this offseason, he is on record as saying that Mitch Kupchak has done a great job of building the team.
The numbers don’t lie; The Celtics used a fierce defense to smack the Lakers around. They were able to choke off and limit the scoring of Kobe Bryant who was held to 24 points and 42 percent shooting. He averaged 31 points a game and shot 50 percent from the field in the first three rounds.
The Lakers guards struggled the most; Derek Fisher shot 39 percent and Sasha Vujacic shot 35 percent from the field.
Boston bullied Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom while burying their young bench. The Lakers needed to execute their offense and move the ball to be effective and did not. The Lakers were also blown away in the rebounding column the entire series.
The Lakers never played with a sense of urgency, never matched the intensity of the veteran Celtics, and were bullied, out-toughed if you will.
The best quarter the Lakers had was at the start of Game Four, which they ultimately lost. I have to give it Lamar, it was almost laughable seeing him get in Kevin Garnett’s face on defense, attacking the basket and going to the free throw line after being down by 39.
I could only ask myself, “where was that earlier?” Like when the series started.
The Lakers had a great season; They have a good young team that exceeded everyone’s expectations. Several predicted that the Lakers wouldn’t even make it to the playoffs, and if they did that they’d be a seventh or eighth seed at best.
As an analogy, several great teams had to go through years of showing promise and losing before rising up. The Lakers are still young, they need to mature. They will continue going through growing pains. As of now, they can be classified as only a good team at this point.
What happens now? What changes does the team make to improve? These are two of the questions that need to be answered.
Kobe Bryant was bombarded with the above questions as well is if he is happy with the team. Even though he was pissed he responded that he was.
For the Lakers to improve as a team they need to add toughness, better rebounding, improve the depth and productivity of their bench. They also have to become a more physical team and focus on playing better defense from training camp on.
The Lakers have some decent young players but need to add veterans to their bench.
Center Andrew Bynum will return healthy next season. He will only be just 20 years of age. With the help of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and the Lakers' coaching staff, he is developing into a complete player and a force in the low post.
In the best interest of the team a few moves need to be made.
Lamar Odom is a good guy but is the most marketable trade asset. I would talk to the Sacramento Kings and offer Lamar Odom and Chris Mihm for Ron Artest to help bring toughness to the team.
There are two ideal fit veteran small forwards available and both would serve as a solid defender against Paul Pierce. They are Tayshaun Prince of the Detroit Pistons and Richard Jefferson of the New Jersey Nets. They need to be pursued.
The Pistons have lost in the Eastern Conference Finals three times and changes need to be made. The team has fired their head coach and it can be argued that the changes to the team aren’t complete. Bringing the Los Angeles area native back home would add toughness, a strong defender, shot blocker, and excellent ball handler to the Lakers.
Richard Jefferson has three years left on his contract and Lamar is a free agent after one year. However, if the deal is made, the Nets will have only $38.2 million on the books for 2010.
The Lakers have some average guys with above average contracts.
Lamar Odom is due $15 million, Vladamir Radmanovic is due $5 million, and it is likely Sasha Vujacic will want the full mid-level exception, which is $5.8 million.
That is too much money to be tied up in this trio. The Lakers can get a lot more production for the money.
Rony Turiaf is up for a new deal and will be resigned unless someone else gives him a large contract. He is good young player that is still developing, so I think it is unlikely.
The Lakers need to take trip down the hall in the Staples' Center and make a play for Elton Brand and/or Corey Maggette. Both have an early termination clause in their respective contracts on June 30 and could be available.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1pvpnuZ_Vk
The Lakers drafted an extremely talented player in the second round of the 2007 draft that was just killing it in the summer pro league. His name is Yue Sun in America, Sun Yue in China. He stands 6’ 9” and is an excellent ball handler. Yue can pass and defend well. He is also an excellent shot blocker, his skill set is a good fit for the triangle offense.
Yue can play point guard, shooting guard, and small forward. He is an exciting player with a high basketball IQ. He was originally in the 2006 NBA draft before withdrawing his name.
Yue was playing for Beijing Aoshen of the Chinese Basketball Association. The team was suspended from competition and the owner moved the team to Los Angeles to compete in the American Basketball Association.
He was named second team All-ABA in 2006 and played in the ABA All-Star game. Yue is a member of the Chinese National Team. He also played for the Chinese under-20 National Team in 2004 and participated in the Asian Championships in Doha in 2005.
I end up being starved for basketball and I go to local Summer Pro League games to see how the rookies and players trying to make it to the NBA fare in this setting. I went to see some drafted players who played Division 1 ball and came away asking “who is that guy?” when I saw Sun Yue.
Last summer, while on a lunch break from work, a friend took me to a restaurant and who is in there having a bite to eat? None other than Sun Yue and his team.
I had no idea who he was then but this chance meeting was prior to seeing him play in the Summer Pro League. No disrespect, but when you are in a restaurant and you notice 12 guys standing between 6’2” at the shortest and 6’9” at the tallest, you assume basketball team.
These guys just happen to be of Asian decent. I know some still might say, “why is this guy being brought up at all?” And for you guys I’ll just say check out this YouTube clip and keep in mind that he is a part of the teams’ future. He will help improve the Lakers team as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAjB0k6A6dE&feature=related
The Los Angeles Lakers will return in the 2008-2009 season after a few roster tweaks. They will be just as competitive and ready to defend their Western Conference Title. Hopefully, they will have re-grouped and will be prepared to deal with the Boston Celtics and the rest of the NBA.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_RYBlwLLcs&feature=related
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3 months ago
I would like to see the Lakers pursue Prince. He's a California native. I do think Pierce got the best of him in the Eastern playoffs.
Brand and Maggette would be a nice option.
I would like to keep Odom but PJ Brown beat him up so bad I wonder if he'll end up like George McGinnis after Mauruce Lucas took care of him in the '77 Finals.
Mihm is not a world class pivot nor is he an effective backup in his present physical condition.
Gasol, don't let 38 year old retired men like PJ Brown throw you up in the crowd whenever they feel like it.
We must never allow anything like this (131-92) to happen again.
from 3 months ago
Thanks for the comments and the feedback, BabyTate! I agree with all of your takes. The Lakers have too many average guys with above average contracts and they're kind of stuck with them at this point. I would try to get Ron Artest or Tayshaun Prince. Prince would require a trade and the Lakers would have to convince Ron Artest to opt-out of his deal with Sacramento, sign a one year deal with the Lakers and get a big contract from them the following year. Pau Gasol & Lamar Odom needed to take the contact and attack the basket and chose not to. I have no idea why Lamar Odom will rely on a jumper that he doesn't have so much and Pau needs to be taught to go strong to the rim & attack the basket. Thanks for reading and weighing in on the topic.
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