2014-15 Official Lakers Season Thread, Vol: We Love Each Other

[mosk33toe]

Say we pick up Melo, which I am not against, this is our lineup...

Nash
Kobe
Melo
Randle
Pau

Farmar
Kelly
Sacre
Open Spot
Open Spot

This isn't a championship team, but it isn't a horrible team as well.

Regardless of what we do or not, this year, Championship isn't likely, and neither is getting our draft pick, I feel if we can put this team together and make a nice push in the playoffs it will give us momentum next year to pick up another good free agent.

That is how I see it, but i'm sure i'm in the minority, I don't really enjoy tanking, I look forward to Laker basketball, and a big part of that is winning, I don't want to go through another year of hoping for losses, we Laker fans aren't used to that...

 

[kookcle]

If we're out of the LBJ sweepstakes ( he got his "Point Guard" i guess ) i'd rather have Bledsoe and Monroe.

Dont want a Kobe Melo duo .

 

[knightngale]

If he hire Byron Scott or Kurt Rambis we're almost guaranteed a top 5 pick next year.

MDA's system probably won us an extra 5 games this year.

do the lakers even have a 1st round pick in next year's draft?

 

[CP1708]

Top 5 protected, otherwise it goes to the Suns. Hence, us pushing for tanking to keep the pick.

 

[grandtheftbike]

Side note, throwback vid:

This was LO's best game as a Laker, but the vid only covers Kobe vs. Bron highlights. Still a nice watch.

LO |I

Venoms

 

[BIG LEEMELONE]

Kobe just followed Melo....


nice signing I guess

Still has yet to follow Kendall marshall

Just how much flexibility you have.
Like the only FA I would feel comfortable throwing money at are Bledsoe, Lowry or Parsons. Not sold on Monroe, esp. now that we got Randle.
Deng is too old with too many miles logged, Ariza & Gortat are definitely getting overpaid this summer as well.

Why mess up our future salary cap just to compete for a spot you know, we're not winning anything this year.
Now if you're trash again in 2015, you suddenly have two great draft picks playing for 2-3 million and Kobe for 24 million.
This leaves you enough money for potentially 2 max contracts or 1 max and additional good pieces. That's a lot of money to play with.

Kobe/Randle/2015pick + over 30 million in cap space for the 2015. That's why I'm against stretching Nash this season.

Edit: I'll all for signing young players to good/cheap contracts. But only if I knew the player has a reasonable contract that could be traded for a better piece in the future. No handcuffing deals.

You're assuming that if we tank next year we will have two great draft picks on cheap contracts. As of right now we don't even have one . Look at teams that went all in on tanking like Philly and orlando. Look how they still suck and are in awkward positions going forward. Hopefully randle is so good he helps carry the team on his back, I thought that was supposed to be the idea of getting a good draft pick anyway.

It's within reason that the lakers can make moves to contend for the playoffs this year, become a legit title contender next season, and then go into free agency the year after with plenty of cash. May not have the luxury of a lottery pick but if the object is to contend for titles I don't see the big difference. Instead of having a cheap young guy you'll have to settle for a cheap old guy. It wouldn't even put a dent in our stride to miss out on a top 5 pick if the rest of the plan goes accordingly.

 

[CP1708]

pmatic finished the vids on Clarkson. Guess what, he isn't a very good defender.

He and Randle both abuse people to the basket, but don't have the skillsets on defense. That's a trend methinks.

He does have length, that's "helps" I guess, but could you imagine him chasing Rose, CP3, Rondo, etc.

In a perfect world, his offense is enough to get him reps somewhere, but I bet they D-League him a bit to work with him, see if he can improve his jumper and somehow defensively. Profile says Mizzou played a ton of zone and that masked his deficiencies.

He has a floater tho, a pretty good one too.

 

[mjsaver]

Honestly who is projected to come out next year that's actually worth rooting against your team ?

Is there a true difference maker or do we just not want the Suns to get the pick by any means necessary ?

 

[pmatic]

Finished a game (Illinois), decent prospect I guess. Good in the P&R, either attacking or kicking it out (just one game though). Slight build and poor footwork hurt him defensively.

Reminds me a bit of Alec Burks.

 

[CP1708]

Honestly who is projected to come out next year that's actually worth rooting against your team ?

Is there a true difference maker or do we just not want the Suns to get the pick by any means necessary ?

Flat out don't want to give up the pick first and foremost.

As for players, Jahlil Okafor is going to be great, Emmanuel Mudiay is a 6-5 PG prospect, the Center from Kentucky that got hurt in the tourney is a nice 7 footer, Cliff Alexander (tho, we may not need him as he's a PF), Karl Towns another 7 footer, Stanley Johnson, Justise Winslow,

Pair any of those guys with Randle, and that's a nice start to a rebuild, finished off when we get rid of Kobe's bull **** contract.

 

[had pants]

 

[kookcle]

Kobe just followed Melo....


nice signing I guess

Still has yet to follow Kendall marshall

View media item 1049504

 

[CP1708]

Finished a game (Illinois), decent prospect I guess. Good in the P&R, either attacking or kicking it out (just one game though). Slight build and poor footwork hurt him defensively.

Reminds me a bit of Alec Burks.

As you see more clips, he starts to push too much into tight areas, and then jump passes. Turnovers galore. They also spotlight he gets tunnel vision as a scorer, leaves men open. Pop would fix him with ease, he'd be great in their system in no time.

Strong finisher tho.

He "looks" smooth tho, doesn't jitter around like Morris used to, seems sure of what he wants to do, now just needs thousands of reps to get his game right.

 

[sb]

so what were the concerns with randles foot?

 

[BIG LEEMELONE]

Honestly who is projected to come out next year that's actually worth rooting against your team ?

Is there a true difference maker or do we just not want the Suns to get the pick by any means necessary ?

There is nobody worth sitting on our hands and being tortured with a sub 30 win season if we can help it and still maintain flexibility. Okafor and stanley johnson are Sean may and hassan Adams until proven otherwise.

On the road to a championship you are going to need to take your lumps in the postseason. We can go ahead and get that started now and still be able to keep our future options open in free agency.

 

[CP1708]

so what were the concerns with randles foot?

Broke it in high school, had screw put in, apparently it was put in incorrectly, and therefore didn't heal 100% the right way. Basically needs to get the screw out, let the bone heal properly, and he should be good from there. (in theory)

 

[sb]

so what were the concerns with randles foot?

Broke it in high school, had screw put in, apparently it was put in incorrectly, and therefore didn't heal 100% the right way. Basically needs to get the screw out, let the bone heal properly, and he should be good from there. (in theory)

minus whale have the lakers correct it now than it happening at a bad time. long term investment.

 

[champcruthik]

View media item 1049504

Fun to watch at UNC, shocked Marshall got his 3PT shooting near 40% on the season.

 

[senorroboto2k5]

There is nobody worth sitting on our hands and being tortured with a sub 30 win season if we can help it and still maintain flexibility. Okafor and stanley johnson are Sean may and hassan Adams until proven otherwise.

On the road to a championship you are going to need to take your lumps in the postseason. We can go ahead and get that started now and still be able to keep our future options open in free agency.

Can't wait for that Ariza/Deng/Gortat/Kobe/Randle core to make the playoffs and take their lumps

 

[BIG LEEMELONE]

Roboto, you're a reasonable guy. In your opinion, can the lakers become contenders in the near future with or without a top 5 pick next season?

 

[kingjaffejo]

For those of you that want to tank our way to keep the protected top 5 pick next year you do realize that we have to do WORSE than we did last year ...let that sink in... Just let it sink in.

You know how hard it will be to do worse this year than last?? At that point you would seriously have to work hard to be that bad. It's not gonna happen. It just wont. The same thing is gonna happen next year as this year. We are gonna to go thru torture as a fanbase. Blame everybody under the sun for our failures. Just to get the #6 pick while the Cavs get the #1 again.

Let Phoenix get the top 5 pick. That shouldn't be our concern really. We have lots of money (minus Kobe's idiotic contract). We will always be a destination city. It's time for us to start maneuvering the building process.

We can still build thru the draft. Next year we will still be a fringe playoff team. We don't have to tank to do it.

I bet there's only like 3 people in here that even knows the projected top 5 picks next year anyway.
So everyone needs to just get a grip. Lol

 

[ValarMorghulis]

Okafor, Towns and Mundiay are the only ones that matter

 

[senorroboto2k5]

Roboto, you're a reasonable guy. In your opinion, can the lakers become contenders in the near future with or without a top 5 pick next season?

It's possible. But if the building blocks they're gonna get are 10-year vets like Deng, Ariza, and Gortat, all approaching their 30's, then no. They're gonna need that Top 5 pick if that's the building blocks they can get.

Personally I'm not gonna have a set opinion on tanking next year till I see what they get in free agency this summer.

 

[dhard17]

Say we pick up Melo, which I am not against, this is our lineup...

Nash
Kobe
Melo
Randle
Pau

Farmar
Kelly
Sacre
Open Spot
Open Spot

This isn't a championship team, but it isn't a horrible team as well.

Regardless of what we do or not, this year, Championship isn't likely, and neither is getting our draft pick, I feel if we can put this team together and make a nice push in the playoffs it will give us momentum next year to pick up another good free agent.

That is how I see it, but i'm sure i'm in the minority, I don't really enjoy tanking, I look forward to Laker basketball, and a big part of that is winning, I don't want to go through another year of hoping for losses, we Laker fans aren't used to that...

I only want Melo if he comes with some other big FA. And I see no point in bringing Pau back.

 

[dhard17]

Why is it hard to be worse or just as bad as last year? Kobe is a year older and our roster will be all new, possibly all cheap. Our lottery pick might sit till Feb. Y'all need to stop that destination entitlement talk. Last time someone big wanted to come to LA was... a washed up Nash a couple years ago? Before that... Kobe in '96 on draft day?

Bottom line, a lottery pick next year >>>>>>>> praying some big name wants to come next summer.