"OK, This smells familiar for us"

It's been 4 long years since the Lakers have won a playoff series, 6 years since a sweep and damn does it feel good. The Nuggets finally showed up for a game and looked like they were on the verge of winning it until Kobe stepped up and reminded everyone why he is considered the best closer in the league finishing with 14 points over the last 5 1/2 minute to send the Nuggets to vacation and the Lakers waiting for a 2nd round opponent.

The first half went very well looking like the Lakers were ready to just take the W without getting much of a fight from Denver. Turns out the Nuggets did have some fight in them as they fought back in the third and kept it close for the rest of the game. But Kobe did what he needed to do to get the W. The turnaround jumper over K-Mart as the shot clock expired was ridiculous as was the stretch when he made the 3, then got an and 1 on JR Smith. Only concern is with his Free Throw shooting which has been troublesome at times, but when it comes down to it he makes them when he needs to but it has been enough of a problem for me to mention it.
Luckily for the Lakers, Denver is a team that is not very mentally tough. They gave up at times throughout the series making it easy for the Lakers to go on some runs and put games out of reach. That will not be the case as we wait for Utah or Houston, most likely Utah. But the Lakers have had success against the Jazz this season and I am confident we can get the job done in the next round. The good news is the extra time off will help Trevor Ariza get some work in and it sounds like he could make a contribution in the next round. Still no positive news from the Bynum camp but I am not worried about it, if he's ready great bring him along slowly, but there's no need to rush with the long-term future to think about. For now I'm going to enjoy this series win since it's been so long and worry about all that stuff once we officially get the 2nd round set.

What a difference a year makes

The following is a post I started writing halfway through the series but never was able to finish up. Full update a little bit later.


I had planned to write about the Michigan hockey team prior to the Frozen Four but considering the run we were on I didn't want to jinx it and I guess it didn't matter since either way. That said the NBA playoffs began this past weekend and it's just amazing to think how different the Lakers situation is in just one year. From Kobe and no help and a 7 seed to a real team that isn't solely dependent on Kobe and the #1 seed. Considering Kobe's comments during the offseason and then Bynum's injury, I don't think any Lakers fan even the most optimistic ones, could have seen this team winning the West this season. I came into this season thinking that getting to Round 2 would be good enough in conjunction with the development of Bynum but with the addition of Gasol and his seamless integration into the offense the expectations have changed.
With that, the Lakers opened the 2008 playoffs with high expectations of bringing home another banner. Although I can dream of that as a fan, I know this years Western Conference playoffs will be extremely difficult, even as a #1 seed considering the gap between teams 1 and 6 was only 3 games.

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.

A quick break from the countdown to Signing Day

Yes, I've been neglecting the site for a while, I just didn't feel like I had anything new to bring to the table aside from all the news that is regularly being reported. Besides I didn't want to get too worked up over how Terrelle Pryor could potentially determine the fate of the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry for the next few years. Good news is we did receive a commitment from Terrence Robinson last night and if his clip below doesn't get you excited I don't know what will.



That said the exciting news broke from out here in Los Angeles as the Lakers made the blockbuster move to acquire Pau Gasol from the Grizzlies for essentially nothing, giving up Kwame Brown and Javaris Crittendon along with Aaron McKie and two first rounders. It does hurt having to give up Javaris as he is very exciting to watch but with the emergence of Jordan Farmar this season, he became expendable.

Obviously getting an All-Star caliber player is huge, but to do so without giving up any of our key assets makes it even better. In addition I believe, as many do, this will free up Lamar Odom as it will relieve him of any pressure of having to be the #2 guy and will be the 3rd scorer until Bynum comes back at which he could be the 4th. Now is a 4th scorer worth the contract he has right now? That's another question we'll ponder at a different time. This immediately throws the Lakers back into the championship mix, those of us optimistic folks out here had already thought we could compete with the emergence of Bynum this season, but this legitimately puts us in the conversation across the league. The two keys will be how will Pau acclimate himself to the triangle? Something I don't think will be a problem and how/when will Andrew come back and will he be at full strength? With a healthy lineup this team is as loaded as any in the league now and throw in the depth across the board this is a team that no one will want to face come playoff time. An exciting week is ahead as Gasol's debut will be tomorrow against New Jersey, then National Signing Day is on Wednesday. I'm still holding out hope for Terrelle Pryor and hopefully he will realize that Ann Arbor is the best place for him.

Happy New Year

Been a long time with a combination of being on vacation and laziness so there haven't been any posts for a month. During my last post there was a lot of confusion and disappointment as our coaching search was in the middle of the Les Miles debacle and it looked like we were going to promote from within. Then a short few days later we learned that we were talking to Rich Rodriguez. Initially I thought there was no chance it would happen but I'm extremely happy that it happened and with the hire. Sure there was a strong pull towards Miles because he is one of us but Rodriguez wasn't a big problem with our coaching staff due to the fact that they were all Michigan Men and too stuck in their ways? In addition Rodriguez is considered one of the authorities on the spread offense and considering how Michigan was still stuck in the three yards and a cloud of dust mentality with our old coaches I'm extremely pleased that we are moving into the 21st century.

Onto the next topic being the performance of the team on New Years day sending Coach Carr out with a big W. I was one of many who thought we didn't have a chance in this game. Considering the way we finished the year and the running ability of Tebow and the speed of Percy Harvin I didn't think we would keep it within 2 TD's, but as they say that's why they play the game. I couldn't have been more thrilled to be proven wrong. When I turned the game on and watched our first drive I knew we definitely showed up to play and we were going to give a hell of a performance. It was great to see not only Coach Carr but the seniors go out with a bang like that. Especially seeing Henne play in his best game as a Wolverine.

Now it's down the stretch of recruiting season with signing day only a few short weeks away. There was a lot of concern with the coaching change but there have yet to be any defections as of yet. Marcus Witherspoon is supposed to now visit Tennessee but after getting Brandon Smith over the weekend and reconfirming with J.B. Fitzgerald should help in keeping him in the Maize and Blue. The big recruiting news centers around the Rivals #1 player in the nation Terrelle Pryor who added Michigan to his list after Coach Rodriguez was hired and it looks to be a Michigan/Ohio State battle. There is a lot of talk that it will depend on what Ryan Mallett does so we will just have to sit and wait. But after watching Pryor in the U.S. Army All-American game I couldn't help but think of what kind of damage he could do for us in a winged helmet or against us in a grey one. Let's hope he decides on the good guys.

Finally, I want to close with the Lakers who are on a tear and looking like they will be able to do some damage this season come playoff time. Andrew Bynum has become a force on the inside and the youngsters are all stepping up even as Kobe has struggled these past few games. It's great to see the team taking care of business against these bad Eastern Conference teams and now we've got a big two game roadtrip to Memphis and New Orleans the next two days. It'll be a good test on Wednesday against a Hornets team that carved us up earlier this year.

My new theory on the Kobe situation, probably way off

Last week it was reported that Kobe had vetoed a trade that was in place to send him to Chicago. It confirmed reports that Kobe was not willing to go to Chicago if Luol Deng would be sent back to Los Angeles. As I read this part of me thought that maybe Kobe doesn't want to leave anymore and this was before the two big wins over Phoenix and Utah. Kobe is known as a stubborn person and I think that he does not want to admit that he doesn't want to leave anymore. So he vetoes this trade and any other future trade to stay in Los Angeles while not admitting that he messed up. It's probably way off base but it's the first thing that came to mind when I saw the article.

Another interesting point which was brought up by a buddy of mine as well as an ESPN article is how much mileage is left in Kobe? If he opts out will he truly have the demand that we think he will? Granted if Kobe is all about winning as he says, and I believe him, then I wouldn't be shocked to see him opt out and sign for the MLE somewhere.

Not a good way to start for the Lakers and Dodger talk

First up is the news that Grady Little has resigned and it looks like Joe Torre will become the next manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. I'm definitely excited to hear about this as Torre is a proven manager who has won multiple championships and should be able to help this young ballclub. It probably won't hurt that he'll want to prove to Steinbrenner and the Yankees that he's still got it as a great manager. And who knows maybe this means Arod is coming to the Dodgers?

I was in attendance at Staples Center last night as the Lakers opened the season against the Houston Rockets. From my side of the arena I didn't think Kobe was being booed but I had friends sitting at the other side who said he definitely was. But those boos turned to cheers near the end as the Lakers almost came back from a double digit deficit in the last minute and a half. I was very pleased with the way the team played defense at times, but then there was the big lapse in the third quarter, combined with Kobe forcing his shot too much and it spelled doom for the Lakers.

As I've mentioned plenty of times, and all Lakers fans know, Kobe will get frustrated when he doesn't get calls then tries too hard to get them by forcing the action and essentially playing 1 on 5 so it's tough for the guys around him to get involved in the game. Granted Lamar Odom and Javaris Crittendon did not play but still they should have won the game if they had hit their free throws. The team shot 60% with Kobe only shooting 67%, I have never seen Kobe miss so many free throws, I guess his wrist is hurting him. On the other positive, it was great to see Derek Fisher back in purple and gold. He knows how to play with Kobe and it showed as he was the only other Laker in double digits on a very efficient 6 of 9 shooting night.

That said, I’ve stopped discussing all the Kobe rumors as they’ve just gotten out of hand and I didn’t want to deal with every little rumor that spread as we know 99% of that stuff is not true. Honestly, I can’t imagine that the Lakers would’ve green lighted the trade that ESPN is reporting today that fell through which would’ve brought Ben Wallace and Ron Artest to the Lakers. It would make no sense and it would've been a terrible move. Also making things more difficult is Kobe's insistence on Luol Deng staying a Bull if he gets moved. Someone has to budge and we'll just have to wait and see who does, Kobe or the Lakers, or for myself and all other Lakers fans sakes either the front office makes another push for Jermaine O'Neal, as long as they don't have to give up Odom AND Bynum, one or the other is fine, or this team gets it together somehow once Lamar gets back and starts winning because as they say winning cures all and it may be the only thing that can save this situation. Below are pics I took from last night.

Vacation Time

I never got a chance to do a draft recap after it was done and since I don't have much time I'll keep it short. I loved the Javaris Crittendon pick at 19, he was the guy I wanted all along. I don't know much about the two second round picks but maybe the fact that we got Pau Gasol's brother Marc, Pau will push for a trade to LA? And I have no clue about Sun Yue so we'll have to wait and see how it turns out, I don't mind the two picks as gambles.

Not like I've been updating frequently anyways lately but the updates will become more infrequent for the next few weeks, as in none, because I will be in Europe on vacation until August. Hopefully I can come back home and hear that we got Kevin Garnett or Jermaine O'Neal or someone that can help the Lakers win a first round series.

Draft Day

I've got to admit, I haven't been following the draft prospects as much as I normally do because first we all know what is happening at the top with Oden and Durant and second, I fully expected that whoever the Lakers draft at 19 will not be with the team as he should be moved in a trade. But as the draft draws near, I am facing the reality that the 19th selection very well may be on this team next year. Considering the Lakers already drafted Jordan Farmar last year, and they have an offer out for most of their Mid Level Exception to Theodoros Papaloukas it is assumed that the Lakers will take a player for the front line if the pick is theirs to keep. But we can hope someone like Farmar, who was projected higher last year, can fall and the Lakers can get a steal at 19. I've heard numerous possibilities from Javaris Crittenton to Josh McRoberts to Rudy Fernandez to Sean Williams or Jason Smith. If it is a random player not on our board that could be the signal that a trade has been made and the pick is for another team. Which would be reminiscent of the Lakers drafting Chris Jeffries a few years back and shipping him that night to Toronto for Kareem Rush.

There is a lot of anticipation among Lakers fans for a trade, free agent signing or draft pick, anything to help the team improve and also show Kobe that the team is serious about winning. The next few weeks are very important to the Lakers franchise and can either save or destroy the team. I can only hope for a miracle move by the front office or my beloved Lakers may be put into rebuilding mode for many years to come, which is extremely difficult for me to fathom considering the success the Lakers have had all throughout my life. There have only been a couple of times the team has even missed the playoffs while I've been alive so to think of it without a superstar and a competitive playoff team is difficult for me to swallow. I really hope it doesn't have to come to that.

And we're back

Been away on trips to New York and Las Vegas so there has been no activity on the site of late but there is so much to get to, let's begin with recruiting.

• The Summer Football Camp has come and gone and there are two new commitments, with one impending one as well this weekend. Rocko Khoury got the offer he was waiting for and committed a few days after receiving the offer. He becomes the 4th OL to join this class but we will still be looking to add another one or two. The other camp commitment was junior DT William Campbell from Cass Tech in Detroit, same school as Boubacar Cissoko, it's rare to see a junior commitment be released so early but it's definitely great to see us continue to lock up in-state talent and show that last year was a fluke.
  
• The impending commitment looks like it will come from Texas WR Daryl Stonum. He was just up at Michigan this past week and his top three was supposed to be Michigan, Florida State and USC. His original plan was to visit FSU in July and USC in August, but now he has changed his mind and will announce this coming Sunday on TV in Dallas. That is a great sign for the Maize and Blue.
  
• There are so many Lakers rumors out there right now it's tough to figure out what is going on. What we do know is that the front office is actually trying to make something happen and bring in some big name talent whether it be Jermaine O'Neal or Kevin Garnett. The rumored 4 team deal that spread on Monday is now dead and supposedly Phoenix is now the leader to pick up KG. But some of the pieces don't add up. No matter what is rumored, unless Amare Stoudamire's knee requires more work down the line I find it hard to believe that the Suns are willing to trade him for KG. There was rumors of the Lakers bringing in Atlanta to make a deal and I thought that would be the best way for it to work. Use Atlanta instead of Boston in the 4 way deal and then you have happy campers all the way around. Atlanta gets a veteran big in O'Neal to solidify their team with Joe Johnson, Minnesota gets the high draft pick they desire at #3 as well as expiring K in the form of Kwame Brown, Indiana gets Bynum/Odom which they wanted all along and the Lakers get the Big Ticket which would immediately create the buzz in LA that would makes Staples Center the place to be again. So while the Suns may be the leader I'm not counting the Lakers out yet. The interesting note is that if KG is traded after July 1st his trade kicker counts fully against this year, as opposed to before July 1st the trade kicker can be spread out over two years. In that case, we know Jerry Buss is willing to take on Garnett's contract even if it means luxury tax, while we know Robert Sarver, Suns owner, does not want to pay any more luxury tax than is necessary. Throw that in with the fact that Dr. Buss did tell the Wolves that he is willing to re-sign KG to an extension and I still like our chances. Do I like them as much as I did a few days ago? No, but I still think we have a chance to get it done.
  
• Oregon State repeated as National Champs in baseball but UC Irvine made a great run including being the first team to win back to back extra inning games in the CWS. I hope to catch some games next year when I'm down there.
• I was in Vegas over the weekend and was able to catch the Ricky Hatton-Jose Luis Castillo fight. The fight was good for the time it lasted, only four rounds, but what made the fight worth it was the atmosphere. Thousands and thousands of English fans made the trip across the pond and created a setting like I've never seen before. It gave me a taste of what watching a soccer game in England would probably be like. There were groups of friends all wearing shirts they had made for the trip along with horns, a band and a number of songs they had created for their fighter Ricky Hatton, who ended up winning with a 4th round KO. The interesting thing afterwards was Hatton calling out Floyd Mayweather and even more interesting now is the fact that Floyd says he'll fight. Hatton is a very good fighter but he will be no match for Pretty Boy Floyd. Hatton recently has been holding a lot during fights after getting his punches in but Floyd would not allow that to happen. Also Hatton has not seen the speed of Floyd before and that will be difficult for him to handle. If this fight really goes down, chalk it up for Floyd by decision.
  

Friday Roundup

Been a while since I last updated and a lot has gone on but covered by most already so I'll keep it brief:

• Michigan football received two more commitments for the 08 class from NJ LB Marcus Witherspoon and in-state DT Mike Martin. Both are 4 stars according to Rivals and are in the Rivals 250. Gotta love the fact that the staff is hitting NJ so hard this year with Witherspoon already in the fold as well as being in the top 3-5's of so many highly ranked NJ kids as well. In addition, getting Martin adds to the number of in-state kids we are locking up. There was some concern after last year's in-state recruiting debacle but it doesn't look like it's going to happen again as we are in great shape to lock up the majority of the top 10 in state this season. As always MGoBlog has more details on Witherspoon and Martin.
  
• After the big upset over the #1 team in the country Vanderbilt, the Michigan baseball team continues its quest to get to Omaha and the College World Series tomorrow as they travel to Corvallis, Oregon to take on the Beavers of Oregon State in the Super Regionals. Oregon State is the defending national champion and will be a tough opponent but after beating Vandy, anything is possible. Especially with the great road record the team has this year.
  
• All quiet on the Lakers front as it looks like it will be a couple weeks, closer to draft time, before anything happens. Also since free agency doesn't begin until July 1st any possible sign and trade deals can't happen until then so we will have to be patient to see what the front office can do. The pressure is on Mitch Kupchak and company to get something done
  

My head is still spinning

At this point most people know that Kobe has now backed off his initial comments of wanting a trade. But then in the LA Times today he stated "It's just a matter of I don't want to go no place else." But asked if he still wanted to be traded: "Yes." So what the heck is going on here? As fans we can speculate all we want but I think for my sanity I will be just sitting back and letting it unfold because this situation has already made me lose my head at times. Dr. Buss is always about winning and I think he will find a way to diffuse the situation and we will look back on this a few years from now and laugh, well that's my dream scenario that I will stick with until I have to think otherwise. The Times article says that Buss will speak with Kobe today before he leaves for vacation so hopefully that will be able to clear some things up and calm Kobe down even more than talking with Phil and Magic. I cannot fathom seeing Kobe in anything other than Forum Blue and Gold and I hope I never have to.

At a loss for words

I got a call from a friend yesterday afternoon telling me about Kobe's tirade on the radio and how upset/angry/frustrated he sounded. Then drops the other shoe today as Kobe tells Stephen A Smith he wants out and there's nothing the Lakers can say to change his mind. I'm one to say never say never, but at the same time I'm starting to brace myself for this. There's a lot that's gone wrong in Lakerland the past few years but I never thought it would come to this. There is so much that is running through my head right now about it that I can't fully post right now. I'll have something up later on it. But keep in mind as TrueHoop posted today: "It's going to be very tough to accomodate Bryant's trade request. My bet is that only a very small number of teams have anything even close to the talent, salaries, and cash to make a real offer." Just remember though Kobe's opt out isn't for two years so it's not as imperative to trade him as it was to Shaq who was going into the last year before he could opt out.

The West just got tougher

Last year at this time, no one really cared about the draft lottery and it didn't matter if you got #1 or not. Andrea Bargnani was nothing to get excited about. That changed this year with two potential franchise players coming into the draft in Kevin Durant and Greg Oden. The lottery was a major event and would immediately help two struggling franchises. Except most expected those two teams to be Memphis and Boston. Instead it turned out to be Portland and Seattle. Regardless of who Portland takes and leaves for Seattle, it means that the two best players in this draft are not only coming into the Western Conference but the Pacific Division.

Portland is already a good young team and is only getting better with their luck. Throw in Oden with Lamarcus Aldridge, Jarrett Jack, Brandon Roy and Zach Randolph and that is a very good lineup. Although this could allow the Blazer front office to move Randolph which is very possible, maybe even to the Lakers. Then Seattle with Ray Allen and Kevin Durant, and possibly Rashard Lewis, although I would assume they would try to move Lewis in a sign and trade considering he wants a big contract and since they Durant and Lewis have somewhat similar type games. So it makes the already difficult Western Conference that much tougher and since they are both in the Lakers division that means those 8 games a year are now more difficult. Also Memphis slipping to 4 may just begin the start of the rebuilding process there and they may be willing to move Pau Gasol.

Now where does that leave the Lakers in this offseason where they need to make some major changes if they are to compete for a title? I don't know. Bringing Oden into the division could make the Lakers front office realize they'll need a low post presence and end up keeping Bynum because of it. On the other hand it could make the team think that Oden will need a couple years to be brought up to speed before he becomes the dominant force that many believe he will and the front office could sacrifice the future for the present realizing their window is very small. Who knows what Lakers management is thinking, all I know is that sure it may have hurt the Lakers to get both of these great talents into the Pacific Division but at least it provides a greater sense of urgency knowing that everyone else in the division is getting better and if the Lakers even want to make the playoffs they will have to make some big time moves.

Since the Lakers were eliminated from the playoffs I have lost most of my interest of the NBA Playoffs. I'll still catch parts of games here and there but I don't clear out my schedule to watch Cleveland/New Jersey. But the Jazz-Warriors game was on at the gym and they showed Derek Fisher walking into the locker room after getting back from his family situation which had kept him from playing in Game 1. As a Lakers fan I always have great memories of Derek Fisher, hitting 3's, drawing charges and of course 0.4 seconds against San Antonio in the playoffs. No one knew what his family situation was, but figuring that it must be ok if he is playing in the game immediately coming in from the airport it was a good sight to see.

Then after the game he announced what it was, his daughter had to undergo surgery for a rare form of eye cancer called retinoblastoma. According to the link via truehoop, 87% of children with the disease die but thankfully Fishers' daughter got surgery just in time. It is amazing to think of athletes in these situations where they have off the court trouble and then end up making big plays as Fisher did for Utah last night. I will always consider D Fish a Laker and it is great to hear that the surgery went well and I wish Fisher and his family all the best.

Other news in the league surrounds another former Laker Shaquille O'Neal. Who has been the subject of possible trade rumors considering the Heat were swept out of the playoffs in the first round. Pat Riley has come out and stated that Shaq will not be traded. This is exactly what I was talking about when I defended Kobe to all the Kobe and Lakers haters when Shaq was dealt in the summer of 2003. Kobe did not run Shaq out of town, it was a business decision that the Lakers made and they were right. Big men decline drastically as they get older and the numbers prove it this year as Shaq averaged 17.3 points per game as he missed 42 games. Those numbers will only get worse as Shaq keeps aging and with the Heat on the hook for his salary at $20 million per year for the next 3 seasons it can easily be seen he is not worth that money. It was the right business decision made by Dr. Buss and the Lakers, now they just need to take those savings from not re-signing Shaq and putting it towards making the moves necessary to put a contender on the floor. A lot easier said than done but the Lakers will be making some moves this offseason or, I don't even want to think about that scenario.

Get me some help damn it!

As expected the Lakers dropped Game 5 to Phoenix and are now eliminated from the playoffs. Kobe had a poor shooting night but Lamar Odom finally showed up and put in 33 to help the Lakers make a run, but as has been the case during this series, the Lakers made a run to make it interesting only to fade down the stretch. This game and playoff series has had me torn as I find it difficult for myself to root for the Lakers knowing that any win would just give the front office false hope that this team can compete as currently constructed. In a scenario that is very similar to Michigan football from 2003-2005 the Lakers thought they were good enough but this past season showed that they are not.

In 2003 and 2004 Michigan got to the Rose Bowl in back to back seasons but ended up losing both of them. Coming into 2006 a lot was expected of the team as the core of the previous two teams came back but combination of injuries and bad luck along with the bad coaching that all Michigan fans had been complaining about for the past few seasons brought the worst Michigan football season in 20+ years. So near the end of the 2005 season I was also torn because I knew only more losses would bring about the changes that would be necessary to make the national championship runs that all Michigan fans knew the team was capable of, but at the same time the fan in me wouldn't allow me to root against my team. Many times we must take one step backwards to take two steps forward and this is another one of those situations.

Last night's loss might have been the best thing possible for the future of this Lakers franchise. It was good to see TNT panned to Mitch Kupchak a couple of times near the end of the game so we knew he was watching in person how this team was not capable of making a championship run that the front office, coming into this season, believed it could make because it had the same core as last year's team that took Phoenix to 7 games. I'm still torn on the Andrew Bynum situation, I don't think we should trade him because his ceiling is so high but at the same time I am coming around on it because Phil and Kobe are here to win now, Phil is only under contract for a few more seasons and this Kobe that we see is only here for a few more years. I still believe not trading Bynum for Kidd was the correct move but if Indiana is willing to listen for Jermaine O'Neal I may change my tune.

Regardless the front office has a lot of work to do this offseason. Marc Stein has a good article up on ESPN about it. For those that are interested RealGM.com has a trade checker which you can mess around with and come up with your own trades for the Lakers to make this offseason. For those that are curious, Lamar and Kwame will match up enough salary to bring in Jermaine O'Neal or Kevin Garnett and the deals still work if they throw in Bynum as well. Perhaps O'Neal can be had for cheaper this offseason as he just had knee surgery? That is my main concern with Jermaine as he has had a problem staying healthy. Perhaps the Ron Artest talks will re-open but will the Maloofs sign off on trading to a division rival? There was a deal in place for Bibby but the Maloofs rejected it because of that so it will be difficult to deal with them. Finally the Kevin Garnett dream scenario everyone has been dreaming about, the problem is Kevin McHale is the GM in Minnesota, as a Celtic he hates the Lakers and I doubt he will ever deal with the Lakers to help them out, especially for the cornerstone of their franchise like Kevin Garnett has been. Regardless of what players they try to pursue we now know that changes should be coming, Kupchak better do something to earn his salary this offseason or there will be a lot of unhappy fans and most importantly a very unhappy Kobe.

Where do we go from here?

Following another disappointing performance the Lakers have fallen into a 3-1 hole against Phoenix and with the way the team has played thus far it doesn’t look like this series will be going on much longer. Steve Nash tallied 23 assists as the Suns pretty much cruised after halftime to a 113-100 win. There’s not much to add to what I’ve said before about changes being needed for this team to compete to win a championship. The talent is just not there right now and it is up to the front office to realize this and not sit idle as they have stated numerous times before that the team can compete as is. Pushing Phoenix to 7 games last year I believe the front office got a false sense of security in believing this team can make a run.

This discussion brings up Andrew Bynum and if it is worth it for the Lakers to hold onto him or if they need to trade him to bring in the proven player right now to help the Lakers win. Had a debate on this with a group of friends on Saturday with half on the trade Bynum now side to bring in another great player, while the other half, which I was on, that Bynum is too valuable for the long term of the franchise that we cannot trade him. Yes Kobe is the best player in the game today and his window is only for the next few years and yes I agree that we need to bring in players that can have an impact on the team. But Bynum is still only 19 years old and has shown flashes of brilliance for someone that is still learning the game and getting his conditioning to the point to play 82 games a year. You can’t just look at it for Kobe’s years, you have to look at post Kobe era. Bynum, if he develops as I believe he will, will be the cornerstone of the franchise after Kobe is gone. When Bynum becomes the force we believe he will become, at that point it will be easier to find a suitable wing player to add to the Lakers at that time, than to trade Bynum away now for say a Kevin Garnett who only has a couple good years left in him. I think too many fans are looking at this too short sighted and need to look at the big picture. But I’m not in charge so who knows what will happen, all I know is that something must change otherwise we’ll be looking at a similar fate for the Lakers next year.

There is a faint heartbeat

The Lakers looked as if they were ready to take an early vacation. The Suns jumped out to an 11-0 lead and seemed as if they would never look back. My thoughts started to wander about how this team could be rebuilt within a season. It didn’t get any better as the Suns took a 31-17 lead into the 2^nd quarter. But the switch was flipped and the Lakers looked like a new team. Playing great defense, other guys stepping up and making plays and all of a sudden the Lakers were only down 3 at the half. Fortunately for us Lakers fans they kept up the intensity throughout and were able to secure the 95-89 victory making the series 2-1 and brought some life back into the team.

As I have said all along, as everyone else has as well, someone else besides Kobe needed to step up to make some plays and that happened last night with Kwame and Lamar pouring in 19 and 18 points respectively. The question now is can these other guys keep it up? What else can we say about Kobe that already hasn't been said? 45 points in 45 minutes on 57.6% shooting and 100% from the line. Including the game clinching turnaround jumper which he hits with such ease but when I try to replicate it when I practice on the court I can never hit it. Another key to Kobe's success last night was he did not settle for jumpers and took the ball to the rack. Kobe settles for the jumper too often when he doesn't need to and hopefully he will look back on this game film and realize he can and needs to attack the basket to give the Lakers a better chance to win.

In addition, the major key was defense and energy. The Lakers played great defense and you could tell it looked like they wanted it more and played harder. All the key stats for this went in the Lakers favor as they had more steals, blocks and rebounds than the Suns. They also had fewer turnovers than the Suns which was key. I really liked what Phil did in bringing in Shammond Williams to play more physical defense on the Suns guards. It worked last night but we will have to wait and see what adjustments are made on both sides. I can’t say enough about the defensive effort as the team settled down after the big first quarter by the Suns and did not allow more than 20 points the last 3 quarters.

Those were all the positives to take from the game, the one point that really bugs me right now still is that fucking idiot Smush Parker instead of holding the ball tried to make a point by slamming it at the end of the game. There is no need for that especially considering we are still down 2-1 in this series. Boneheaded play like that is part of the reason why Smush is disliked by so many Lakers fans. He reaches too much on defense, takes stupid shots, and then like last night makes stupid decisions. The Suns are already going to be ready to play on Sunday, no need to add fuel to the fire, especially considering it was directly in front of the Suns bench.

An interesting point was brought up by Kenny Smith in the post game show. He was discussing with Sam Cassell when they were on the Rockets that during the playoffs they would always try to start out playing at a level 8 but never below a level 6. Once they lost a game they would tell themselves they would have to play at a higher level the next game. The Jet brought this up in context of how will the Suns react now that the Lakers have stepped up their game, will the Suns take it now to a level 9 or 10? Because the Lakers are now playing at that level and the Suns will need to match or exceed that to win. The same question can be asked of the Lakers are they ready to play even harder on Sunday knowing that the Suns will be coming out with more urgency than they did last night considering they had thoroughly dominated the Lakers on Tuesday, then jumped out to an immediate 11-0 lead so they let their guard down thinking it would be smooth sailing the rest of the way. Can’t wait to see what the Zenmaster has in store for matchups and adjustments. But we can’t get too far ahead of ourselves, this team does have its problems and I am concerned about the ability of the others on the team can step up the way Kwame and Lamar did last night. The Lakers must also play defense like last night the rest of the way if we stand a chance to win this series, which considering the explosiveness of the Suns offense, is not very likely. But I'll be glad to eat crow on that statement.

The future of the Lakers to be determined tonight

As you read that title I'm sure you're thinking "No shit Kenny, of course we know if the Lakers lose tonight and get down 0-3 this series is done." Obviously that is true so I'm not really going into that. The Lakers have done a good job at times throughout this series (Quarters 1-3 of the first game, and the 1st quarter of Game 2) at playing with the Suns, but as we all know basketball is a 48 minute game so unless the Lakers put together a 48 minute game we cannot win against the Suns.

What I'm more referring to is the long term future of this Lakers team. As I posted at halftime of Game 2, I was extremely frustrated at the play of this team and the fact that Mitch Kupchak has been on the radio numerous times saying this team will not undergo any major changes. Tonight may determine if he changes his tune to that statement. As Lamar Odom said after Sunday's game the Lakers lack camraderie right now. That is a statement you may expect to hear during the preseason or even in the early stages of the regular season and shake it off, but to hear it in the middle of the playoffs is disheartening. This team has gone through numerous injury problems so I understand how timing and teamwork may be off a bit but to say there is no camraderie really has me worried more than anything. You can see it in the body language of the players no one seems to really care that much aside from Kobe and hopefully this team doesn't start pointing fingers at each other. You can definitely see it in Smush Parker as he is clearly upset at his demotion this late in the year and when he's on the floor it doesn't even look like he wants to be there.

If the Lakers get blown out today it could be the signal for Lakers management to say enough and realize this team in its current state is nowhere near where they think it is. I believe last year's close call to take the Suns to 7 games put management in a comfort zone thinking that a couple years this same team could make a run at it, but it can't. Number 1, Smush must go. He is an offense first PG, who plays no D, he has a lot of steals because he finds himself reaching and getting steals or he'll let the defender by and pick up a stupid foul reaching for a steal or leaving his teammates out to dry and allowing an easy bucket. Aside from that we will have to wait and see what happens with free agency and the draft before I can make any statements as to what else I think this team needs. The Lakers franchise has a proud tradition of winning and this team is not living up to that standard. If you look up at the rafters of Staples there are only NBA Championship banners, no division championships, no conference championships as you will see with a lot of other teams. If you don't win the championship your season was not as successful as it should have been. Only a few years ago I was at Lakers games wondering where they would put the 10th banner up, Staples has them up in 3 rows of 3 and there isn't much space around them, now I'm left to ponder if I will see the 10th banner go up.

At a loss for words

and the game is not even over yet. The Lakers are trailing by 21 at halftime and I am so frustrated and furious I can't even begin to describe it. I may not even watch the second half to prevent myself from getting even worse because I don't see anyway how it can get any better. This is a pathetic excuse for an effort at the game and Lakers management needs to pull their heads out of their asses. Numerous times Mitch Kupchak has said no major changes need to be made to this team, that is bullshit. This team in its current state has no chance to do anything EVER in the playoffs. This team is much farther behind than anyone that is affiliated with the organization wants to admit. Everyone except Kobe, Bynum and Luke Walton can be moved and this team needs to be blown up. I don't know who realistically will be available, KG is a pipedream and will be continued to be treated as such, but changes have to be made. That's all I can say about that without going on a profanity laced tirade. No way should a team in the playoffs be getting blown out of the water like the Lakers are right now. If I knew the team was going to play like this I'd say the 0.5% chance at winning the lottery would have been better than this in the long run. I implore Lakers management to look long and hard and realize that this team cannot go on like this next season or it will be more of the same. Kobe carrying the team for half the season, sneaking into the playoffs, then getting blown out in the first round. I know Dr. Buss cares about winning as much as I do so I can only hope he feels the same way.