OT: LOL at LAL

[Upstate]

Stan Van Gundy is available...lol

I'm giggling like a little kid thinking about that

 

[djcon57]

I DEMAND Kobe as player/coach

 

[moqui]

this is how you stick a knife in someone's back

 

[Gabjon]

Bron Bron is going to stop Dwight from putting up 40/20 on them every night in the Finals? (If the Heat were lucky enough to get by the Knicks)

Dwight will stop Dwight! and if he doesn't Kobe will

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

Dwight Howard has gotten 2 coaches fired over his last 6 games. Please note.

 

[MikeSU02]

Bron Bron is going to stop Dwight from putting up 40/20 on them every night in the Finals? (If the Heat were lucky enough to get by the Knicks)

A guy that averages 18 / 13 for his career and shoots less than 60% from the line isn't putting 40 up on anyone in the NBA Finals.

Bosh is going to make him guard him 20 feet from the bucket to open up the lane.

So, yes, I'll take the team with the greatest player since Jordan over the center with the bad back that can't shoot free throws and that can't keep troubles with his coaches out of the media.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

A guy that averages 18 / 13 for his career and shoots less than 60% from the line isn't putting 40 up on anyone in the NBA Finals.

Bosh is going to make him guard him 20 feet from the bucket to open up the lane.

So, yes, I'll take the team with the greatest player since Jordan over the center with the bad back that can't shoot free throws and that can't keep troubles with his coaches out of the media.

I read on the internet that Kobe Bryant is better than Lebron still.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Well that escalated rather quickly.

I'd take the Lakers lineup, just to spite Lebron.

 

[OrangeDW]

it's a perfect storm: none of their starters can defend the perimeter anymore, and none of their bench players can score. they are the Hurricane Sandy of the NBA

I would bet anything that the bench play improves greatly with Brown gone.

Better combinations of players on the court, and playing guys in their natural roles/positions works wonders. Meeks and Jamison can both score off the bench.

 

[djcon57]

Listening to LA radio today...

All about "I would love Mike D'Antoni".

Ah yes, all that success Mike D has had with big guys in the low post.
What, they gonna trade Howard?

 

[djcon57]

Listening to LA radio today...

All about "I would love Mike D'Antoni".

Ah yes, all that success Mike D has had with big guys in the low post.
What, they gonna trade Howard?

From that Kupcheck presser: Sounds like they are gonna try to drag Phil out to me

 

[IthacaMatt]

It's a fair point, definitely. I would never count them out in early November though. Howard is not nearly 100% yet and is still playing well, Kobe has been pretty efficient offensively, and they haven't really even had Nash yet. They still may put it together and make a run.

But they are a mess right now. Though I really do think Brown's utilization of the bench is the biggest thing that's hurting them. They may be old and slow at many spots, but they still have enough talent to win. Their bench kills them every night, but I do think that can be ironed out.

Not using Jodie Meeks at all baffles me - he can at least shoot and space the floor. Playing Devin Ebanks at the 2 baffles me - he can't shoot beyond 17 feet, doesn't have a 2 Guard handle, and is not quick enough laterally to guard 2's...he's a clear 3, and playing Jamison so inconsistently and out of position baffles me. He's old, but he's got more in the tank than this, he looks like a fish out of water out there. Even playing Darius Morris over Duhon is questionable...I understand maybe wanting the young legs out there and developing the young player with possible upside but he hasn't shown much game so far and Duhon(who I don't even like) would do a better job of settling things down and running the show as the backup PG.

Brown screwed up their offense badly, trying to create a Princeton style system where all 5 guys have to make complicated reads on the fly and if 1 guy gets a read wrong, the play breaks down. That's the first thing to be fixed now that Brown had been fired - putting in a simpler offense that permits the players to play more instinctively.

 

[OrangeDW]

Brown screwed up their offense badly, trying to create a Princeton style system where all 5 guys have to make complicated reads on the fly and if 1 guy gets a read wrong, the play breaks down. That's the first thing to be fixed now that Brown had been fired - putting in a simpler offense that permits the players to play more instinctively.

Agreed. Though I think that part actually would've come. There's so much offensive talent there with the big 4(3 right now), that pretty much any system should be able to work. But it was completely unnecessary, I don't see the reward of that system being that high with this group when they would have no problem scoring with much simpler stuff.

Playing inside out with Howard and Gasol inside, pick and rolls(especially when Nash gets back), and Kobe iso's...it doesn't really need to get much more complicated than that, with those guys.

And what do you know, Brown's first game gone and the bench produced last night! Shocker. He may be a good coach in some aspects, but he's a terrible manager of PT and rotations and establishing roles and chemistry.

 

[moqui]

resurrection bump, because I am laughing even harder

 

[Gabjon]

They will struggle to make the playoffs at this point, and it puts a smile on my face.

 

[Knicks411]

sigh, one of my worst calls ever, perhaps.

They'll start playing better if Nash comes back, but still.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

My favorite part of all of this is teams just letting Kobe play hero ball. He is seeing less double teams than ever in his career (0nly 8% of his possessions).

 

[moqui]

They will struggle to make the playoffs at this point, and it puts a smile on my face.

I would love to see them miss the playoffs, but I would love it even more if they put on a late push and got a 5 or 6 seed, got their fans excited, but then get bounced in 4 by the Clips.

 

[baggerbob]

Yes the worst possible coach to hire was Mike D, his system worked when he had a young team. The lakers are now much like the Yankees, sons took over who don't know how to run a franchise, trying to fill their fathers shoes.

 

[OrangeDW]

Brown was terrible in LA. D'Antoni was terrible in NY and so far is off to a terrible start in LA.

They played their best ball this year when Bickerstaff was coaching. They are a mess at this point. Obviously a healthy Nash and Gasol will help, but there is no chemistry offensively or defensively.

 

[moqui]

the Lakers' failures might be the thing that gets Jonny Flynn another shot at the NBA . . . rumor has it that he is one of the point guards the Lakers are considering while Nash & Blake recover

 

[djcon57]

My Laker fan friend said to me today, "Kobe doesn't deserve this." I laughed and laughed.

He's deserved this for awhile.

 

[4evaOrange]

the Lakers' failures might be the thing that gets Jonny Flynn another shot at the NBA . . . rumor has it that he is one of the point guards the Lakers are considering while Nash & Blake recover

Id love to see Johnny get another shot, but they have a young D. Morris(who I think is very good) and a vet Duhon. Who's spot does Johnny take if this does happen?

 

[moqui]

Id love to see Johnny get another shot, but they have a young D. Morris(who I think is very good) and a vet Duhon. Who's spot does Johnny take if this does happen?

Mark Stein reports the Lakers are not happy with either one and are looking to move one or both

 

[Knicks411]

Duhon is really terrible.

Zach Lowe had a good article about the Lakers today. Puts a lot of the defensive blame on both Dwight and Kobe.