[::2009 Champion LAKERS OFF-SEASON THREAD Vol. Boring Non-News Days Causing In-Thread Tension::]

[kookcle]

JOSH POWELL
Schaefer: Josh has been traveling in and out of town all summer (between North Carolina and L.A.), but every week I e-mail him his program so we can follow him from afar. That way I know exactly what he's doing, so when he gets back in L.A. we can hit the ground running. I already know where he is in the cycle phases, which varies from player to player.

Last year was the first time I had a chance to work with Josh since it was his first with the Lakers, and [color= rgb(255, 0, 0)]I found him to be among a handful of the most dedicated players we've had. He has a mantra of 'I'm just trying to get better' that applies off the court in strength training and some of the different things we do to try and keep him healthy.[/color] He's been in here first thing in the morning working with (Lakers advance scout and assistant coach) Rasheed Hazzard for his on-court work, then he comes in and goes full blast with me for an hour or hour-and-a-half every day. His programs are such that we're sort of peaking towards training camp, which means an increase in the intensity of the program as well as the volume. That means we may be doing more weight and fewer repetitions to try and get him in tip-top shape heading into training camp.

Contract year...

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[dyyhard]

why the hell is sasha working on defensive stance? broke down machine needs to be making 1000 jumpers a day.

actually sasha would be better off wearing that exercise prop during the game, to prevent him from reaching and committing his favorite type of fouls.

 

[bigmike23]

the 2 biggest females on the team playing ball with females

 

[darthska]

Calling them females is disrespectful to female roughnecks like Tina Thompson.

Tina would clown both of them. Tina and Candace would destroy Sasha and Luke.

 

[bigmike23]

and

that ariza story is BS...
no its not

 

[CP1708]

If one of them strings snap, Luke or Sasha might be eligible to play for the Sparks.

 

[westcoastsfinest]

Calling them females is disrespectful to female roughnecks like Tina Thompson.

Tina would clown both of them. Tina and Candace would destroy Sasha and Luke.

sasha looks like something a female would be known to havethough and im not talking about breasts

 

[dyyhard]

caveman was serious today beating France in quarterfinals 28/9/1

 

[Los Angeles]

[h2]Report: Lamar Odom, Khloe Kardashian To Marry[/h2]
Posted by Brooks on Sep. 17, 2009, 9:33pm

Wow, that was fast. Ken Baker of E! News has a blindside on the Lamar Odom-Khloe Kardashian front.

Khloé Kardashian and her NBA star boyfriend Lamar Odom are already planning to tie the knot. A source close to the couple tells E! that Odom, a forward for the L.A. Lakers, and Khloé recently have been "talking about rings." Members of the Kardashian family are neither confirming nor denying the wedding plans or a date. A rep for both stars have declined to comment.


The two apparently "met over the summer" and Kardashian confirmed the relationship publicly two weeks ago.

And now they're inseparable engaged getting hitched?

This is the same Odom who had three kids with the same woman, but never married her - Liza Morales. And Kardashian recently was dumped broke it off with Rashad McCants of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

But Odom is certainly a step up from McCants in celebrity stature for Khloe as is Kardashian from Morales for L.O., so I suppose they deserve each other.

To be fair, Odom has always seemed like a decent enough dude, fake holdout notwithstanding. And for all we know, the report is inaccurate or a plant from the publicity-hound Kardashians.

The good news is we won't be left to wonder for long. God knows L.O. won't be able to keep anything on the down-low with a Kardashian involved.


True or not ...

 

[mjsaver]

Always thought they never REALLY went after TREVOR.

 

[lalakerfan213]

Already getting hitched

 

[dyyhard]

if anyone wants to read a piece on Lamar about his transition from high school to Rhode Island, I found an article in the nydailynews from over 10 yrs ago...

http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/sports/1998/11/01/1998-11-01_odom_is_on_right_rhode_to_su.html




[h1]ODOM IS ON RIGHT RHODE TO SUCCESS[/h1]
By %#%% WEISS

Sunday, November 1th 1998, 2:05AM

KINGSTON, R.I. Rhode Island coach Jim Harrick has tried to low-key expectations, but the secret is getting out.

It only takes one trip to the tiny, aging Keaney Gymnasium to realize freshman wing forward Lamar Odom may be the most talented player in collegebasketball.

Seeing is believing.

Odom is a shade over 6-10, weighs a solid 226 pounds and has a versatile perimeter game that reminds Rams assistant Jerry DiGregorio of Toni Kukoc of theBulls. Odom can play all five positions. He is a strong defensive rebounder. He has exceptional quickness and a solid handle in the open floor, which makes himthe perfect candidate to run the middle on Harrick's UCLA-style break. He is unselfish and has exceptional passing skills, which should allow him to playthe point when needed and he has a sweet left-handed stroke from beyond the three-point arc.

Odom had 33 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists and 2 steals in URI's first intrasquad scrimmage. He may have missed a year, but he hasn't missed abeat.

Odom, an 18-year-old prodigy, could have turned pro right out of high school in 1997 and been a lottery pick. He dominated the summer camp scene and the NBAseemed like a logical option for a bright kid who was having difficulty applying himself in school.

"I felt almost pressured into the decision by the media and some people I had around," Odom recalled. "They were trying to put this prolifestyle in my mind. I wasn't ready for it. Kobe Bryant went pro and he was one of the best players. Kevin Garnett did it. It kind of grew out ofproportion."

Odom announced that spring that he would play for Nevada-Las Vegas, but never enrolled after the NCAA began to investigate the validity of his ACT score inthe wake of a Sports Illustrated story that questioned the scores. After Odom was told he was no longer welcome at UNLV, Odom enrolled as a non-matriculatingstudent at URI. Once again, however, he considered the NBA after becoming frustrated by not being able to participate during the Rams' Elite Eight run."It would have been so easy to go," Odom admitted. "But my grandmother convinced me that would have been the easy way out."

Odom's grandmother Mildred Mercer helped raise him in South Ozone Park after his mother, Kathy, died of colon cancer when he was just 12. Mercer hasbeen a powerful influence in his life, inspiring him, in the wake of so many questions about his academic ability, to earn his eligibility at URI by passing 24credit hours in two semesters and a summer session.

"My grandmother is 75," Odom said. "She was a nurse, raised five kids and went back to school to earn her degree in 1980 when she was 56years old. That's why education is important to her. She told me how much fun college was going to be for a young person like myself. She's the reasonwhy I'm sticking it out."

Odom knows how important it is to persevere. "The worst mistakes I made were leaving Christ the King at the start of my senior year and not paying moreattention to my classwork," he said. "That allowed people to say negative things about me."

Odom has taken a long road to this Atlantic 10 campus. His life started to change the day he scored 36 points as a sophomore against St. Raymond's inthe Catholic League championship game. He was considered the No. 1 prospect in the country but, when it looked like he might not be eligible for his senioryear at CTK, he transferred to Redemption Christian Academy, a maverick prep school in Troy, N.Y., before finally landing at St. Thomas Aquinas in Milford,Conn.

Odom spent the following summer in Vegas, working a job and finishing up two courses he needed to graduate. But happiness was fleeting. "After the SIstory broke, I was advised by the school not to release my test scores," Odom said. "At that age, I was susceptible. A lot of people don't reallyknow what happened. The SI story comes out and I don't hear from my two coaches (Bill Bayno and assistant Greg Vetrone) for two, three days. The next thingI know, an administrative assistant comes to my apartment and tells me the best thing to do is leave the school, they can't fight for me."

Odom's AAU coach, Gary Charles, made calls to UConn, Kansas and St. John's, hoping for the best. Finally, in late August, Odom got on the phone withHarrick, and begged for a chance.

Odom had his first year tuition, room and board paid for by his father Joseph, who was covered under the G.I. Bill. But the grand experiment, approved byURI president Dr. Robert Carothers, had some glitches. Odom, feeling sorry for himself, disappeared just before first semester finals. Harrick convinced threeof his four teachers to give him an incomplete and allow him to make up the work. But he told Odom this would be his last chance. "Privately, I neverplanned on having him," Harrick said. "I'd never had a guy like that. It was very difficult for him to do what he did. In the past, if somethingbad would happen, he'd hide."

Harrick had DiGregorio Odom's closest friend on campus work with him, got the kid some counseling and took away his entourage of friends. The resultsspeak for themselves. "I think Lamar became a man," DiGregorio said.

Odom found out he had been cleared to play in August. "It was like a huge weight had come off my chest," he said. "This has been the longestyear-and-a-half of my life. Now, I'm finally starting to feel like I did before my junior year at Christ the King."

How long Odom will stay at URI is anybody's guess. "It's kind of hard," he said. "I've got some relatives who are in difficultsituations. I know one day, with one flick of a finger, I'll be able to solve their problems."

 

[Johnny_Cakes]

Man, marrying Khloe better not blow up in Lamar's face, where develops some depression during the season if they're marriage falls apart.

 

[westcoastsfinest]

what hell?...odom and khloe already getting married?

...does this meanhis future sister in laws (kourtney

and kim

) attend more Laker games?

 

[CP1708]

Klohe must have some good candy.

 

[Los Angeles]

[h2]Lakers to sign Gelabale[/h2]
September 18, 2009 @ 11:55 am by Jorge Sierra · Filed under Los Angeles Lakers, Mickael Gelabale

The Lakers will add even more international flavor to its roster with the signing of swingman Mickael Gelabale, who will be the second French player in franchise history after Ronny Turiaf. The former Sonic will join the team for training camp on a make-good contract.

Gelabale, whose career has been recently derailed by injury problems, is understandably excited about the prospect of playing for the NBA champions.

"It's a dream come true for me," Gelabale said. "It's a legendary team, with guys like Magic, Kareem, Kobe… I was a fan of the team as a kid."

Gelabale's second season with the Sonics, where he averaged 4.5 ppg and 2.1, was cut short due to to an ACL injury. He's been trying to recover from it for the last year and a half, even making an appearance in the D-League last season with the L.A. D-Fenders, the Lakers' affiliate.

The French swingman claims he's fully recovered now.

"The knees are very good. It's 100 per cent," Gelabale said. "We had some tests in Los Angeles and both of my knees are very, very strong. I've been working out a lot and now I'm even able to do things I couldn't do before."

The 6-foot-7 Gelabale has relied a lot on his athleticism throughout his career, so being completely healthy is key for him in order to have a chance to make the Lakers' opening night roster. With a team stucked with scorers, he'll have to earn his spot showing his defensive skills. There, Gelabale thinks he's up to the task.

"I had other options in the NBA. Other teams invited me, but I chose the Lakers because I think I can make the team. I can bring my defense to the Lakers. I remember there have been times when I played against Kobe that he would congratulate after the game for being such a good defender. I know it's going to be hard to make the team, but you have to start somewhere."

Gelabale had a deal in place with Alicante of the Spanish League earlier in the summer, but it finally didn't go through because of contract issues.

"They said they were going to pay me 400,000 euros, but they changed the contract to 350,000 without my knowledge. I'm not one to renounce my word, but I couldn't take that. I didn't go to Alicante, but I'm not closing the door to Europe."

That would be Plan B. The No. 1 option right now, even if a long shot, is making the Lakers.

Always liked the guy, but that knee never did him well.

Lets see how he does in camp, anyone that could make Sasha sit deeper in that bench is appreciated.

 

[mjsaver]

^^^

nice ODOM story up there.

 

[notorious 858]

Ron Ron

His time with the Lakers is going to be a crazy ride.

 

[westcoastsfinest]

Originally Posted by Notorious 858

Ron Ron

His time with the Lakers is going to be a crazy ride.

but damn whos that chick that looks like nicole

...ron ron gots an entourage

im glad hes having a good time in LA but once october 27th rolls around he better be focused

 

[troponin c]

Originally Posted by westcoastsfinest

Originally Posted by Notorious 858

Ron Ron

http://www.youtube.com/v/Ao18DpJZjbQ&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&hd http://www.youtube.com/v/Ao18DpJZjbQ&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&hdhttp://www.youtube.com/v/Ao18DpJZjbQ&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&hd

His time with the Lakers is going to be a crazy ride.

but damn whos that chick that looks like nicole

...ron ron gots an entourage

im glad hes having a good time in LA but once october 27th rolls around he better be focused

For some reason this laker team reminds me of MJ's 96 bulls.

They had the triplets
MJ-Pippen-Rodman

Oh and the reason why i quoted you was because ron ron reminds of rodman because of his eccentricities ans attention whoryness.
But regardless I think that this team is going to very special.
We got the triplets
Kobe-Pau-Ron Ron

My expectations are that this season's championship team will be historically one of the best.

 

[carlofromdapi]

Originally Posted by shaqrules

i'm sure some of you remember some pics i posted of my laker room...here's one to refresh...

2 of my all time favorite lakers, but Magic being my all time:

well...someone got some new toys...enjoy!!!

Nice!

 

[moneymike9]

I like the Gelabele signing.

He could turn out to be another "steal" like Ariza/S.Breezy was...can't hurt to have another athlete on the team. Hopefully he works hard on Dand his spot up shooting like Trevor did.

 

[shuges]

I had some Kobe hate thrown my way today and it got my juices going (chill).

I realized that I really miss the NBA right now and can't wait for the season to start.

I'm also finally over the Lakers winning the chip last year.

So to all you LA supporters, I present you with this for the upcoming season:

Spoiler

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Oh yeah, and "death" to Roster Guard 24!!

(Had to put quotes around the word "death" before some of you think I'm serious).

 

[ryda421]

LOLZ @ that video

 

[dyyhard]

Dear Ron - I just went to the gym bc of that video, but there weren't them type of girls spotting me.