What else can I say?

When the Lakers made the move and got Pau Gasol, I think all of us Lakers fans expected a lot. We were immediately thrust into title contention and became one of the favorites, but I don't know if many people would be able to say they expected this much. This team is rolling right now and hasn't skipped a beat as they integrated Gasol into the offense. He does so much for this team it's unreal to think of what we had to give up to get him.

Now our only concern seems to be when Bynum comes back and how will he fit into this team as he comes back from injury. At least he is on schedule, unlike Trevor Ariza who will be missed as his broken foot is not healing as quickly as hoped. We need Ariza because Luke Walton has definitely regressed after getting his new contract. I don't know what it is but he is not playing very well and is extremely frustrating to watch at times. Sasha is really now a machine as he likes to call himself and with Jordan putting up solid minutes backing up D Fish there's not much more this team needs.

I was sitting there watching the game last night and thought to myself how unbelievably lucky we are as Lakers fans to be rebuilt like that so quickly. I was extremely young at the time but I do remember the end of the Showtime era and growing up with Cedric Ceballos and Sedale Threatt. Then the summer of 96 came with Kobe and Shaq and we were rolling again in a few years. Then Shaq is traded, the team made some dumb moves (Caron for Kwame) and combine that with Kobe's tirade this offseason I didn't know what to expect. Now we are one of, if not the favorite now to win the title and the team is set up for a great run as this team is extremely young.

As I said before, Lamar would play well in this role as a 3rd option, but the question is two fold, one is how will he react once Bynum comes back and he becomes option 3 or even possibly 4, and then for the future, how does he fit into this team in the long run? Lamar has put up unbelievable numbers since Pau has arrived but he's currently the 28th highest paid player in the league at $13.524 million per season and his contract is up next year. With Pau in the fold and Kobe who will not be moved and Bynum becomes eligible for his big time extension the front office will have a tough decision.