2012-13 Los Angeles Lakers Thread

Originally posted by LA9erFan:

Originally posted by valrod33:
Werent you guys crying about Lebron Wade and Bosh teaming up but would be okay with Deng, Bryant, Gortat and Melo teaming up?

Kobe in his 19th year vs LeBron in his prime? A liiiiiitle bit different.

Hell, in Kobe's prime, he was trying to get away from Shaq, not form the Super Friends.

But in the prime of his career he was also demanding trade on TV and Radio because he didn't think he had a good team around him.


Also, he didn't get away from Shaq because he didn't want to make a Super team. Instead, he wanted a Super-Team with him in charge.

Originally posted by GameOver:
I just realized that Cleveland signed Earl Clark to a 2-year $9 mill deal...wtf! How come we didn't do something about this? He is one of the few young athletic guys we had on our team and we just let him walk out? Didn't we own his bird rights too? The f**k!

Lakers current goal is to have as close to $0 committed salary in 2014. Currently they just have Steve Nash.

Originally posted by 49ersMyLife:
But in the prime of his career he was also demanding trade on TV and Radio because he didn't think he had a good team around him.


Also, he didn't get away from Shaq because he didn't want to make a Super team. Instead, he wanted a Super-Team with him in charge.

Yep, he demanded a trade when the talent on the roster was on the completely opposite end of the spectrum. Outside of a solid player in Odom and a very young & raw Bynum, the vast majority of that roster was either out of the league or at the end of a bench right afterward.

He never got a super team. He got a really good #2 who was a fringe all-star. I know people like to paint Pau as being more than that, but before LA, he was a 1-time all-star that was being beaten out to All-Star rosters by guys like Andrei Kirilenko, David West, & Carlos Boozer. He took that dude, Odom, & a Bynum that could barely walk to two titles.

Not a "super team", and far different than taking one of the 5 greatest players at his position in his late 20's & early 30's and a guy who had made 5 ASG's (also in his late 20's) on his own to titles.

Originally posted by 9erReign:
Lakers current goal is to have as close to $0 committed salary in 2014. Currently they just have Steve Nash.

Wow. They're going to gave around $50 million in cap space next offseason. I'm assuming at least half of that will be spent on Kobe, but that still leaves them with plenty of cap space to bring in some nice FA's. Then you got a probable lottery pick in a deep draft coming in. Very intriguing.

Originally posted by SofaKing:

Originally posted by 9erReign:
Lakers current goal is to have as close to $0 committed salary in 2014. Currently they just have Steve Nash.

Wow. They're going to gave around $50 million in cap space next offseason. I'm assuming at least half of that will be spent on Kobe, but that still leaves them with plenty of cap space to bring in some nice FA's. Then you got a probable lottery pick in a deep draft coming in. Very intriguing.

There's a lot of talk from guys I know that have contacts in the organization that Kobe's going to take a steep discount, and perhaps all the way to the vet minimum.

Originally posted by 9erReign:

Originally posted by GameOver:
I just realized that Cleveland signed Earl Clark to a 2-year $9 mill deal...wtf! How come we didn't do something about this? He is one of the few young athletic guys we had on our team and we just let him walk out? Didn't we own his bird rights too? The f**k!

Lakers current goal is to have as close to $0 committed salary in 2014. Currently they just have Steve Nash.

$4 million won't freaking kill you! God damnit...I get wanting to have little to no money committed in 2014 but can we at least have SOME young guys on the squad? Putting all our eggs in this summer of 2014 basket just seems ridiculous...

Originally posted by GameOver:

Originally posted by 9erReign:

Originally posted by GameOver:

I just realized that Cleveland signed Earl Clark to a 2-year $9 mill deal...wtf! How come we didn't do something about this? He is one of the few young athletic guys we had on our team and we just let him walk out? Didn't we own his bird rights too? The f**k!

Lakers current goal is to have as close to $0 committed salary in 2014. Currently they just have Steve Nash.

$4 million won't freaking kill you! God damnit...I get wanting to have little to no money committed in 2014 but can we at least have SOME young guys on the squad? Putting all our eggs in this summer of 2014 basket just seems ridiculous...

Dantoni pretty much hates earl's guts. It was a given he was a goner if dantoni stayed on as the coach.

Originally posted by LA9erFan:

Originally posted by 49ersMyLife:
But in the prime of his career he was also demanding trade on TV and Radio because he didn't think he had a good team around him.


Also, he didn't get away from Shaq because he didn't want to make a Super team. Instead, he wanted a Super-Team with him in charge.

Yep, he demanded a trade when the talent on the roster was on the completely opposite end of the spectrum. Outside of a solid player in Odom and a very young & raw Bynum, the vast majority of that roster was either out of the league or at the end of a bench right afterward.

He never got a super team. He got a really good #2 who was a fringe all-star. I know people like to paint Pau as being more than that, but before LA, he was a 1-time all-star that was being beaten out to All-Star rosters by guys like Andrei Kirilenko, David West, & Carlos Boozer. He took that dude, Odom, & a Bynum that could barely walk to two titles.

Not a "super team", and far different than taking one of the 5 greatest players at his position in his late 20's & early 30's and a guy who had made 5 ASG's (also in his late 20's) on his own to titles.

We've gone this route before...so I'd leave it at - I disagree that it wasn't a super-team. Gasol was not an all-star due to other reasons...not because he didn't deserve it. Hibbert made the all-star team in East with 13/9 averages.

But, regardless of that - the fact remains...Kobe b***hed and moan while he was under contract. He did what guys like 'melo and Dwight have done past couple years. He threw team-mates, coaches, front office under the bus. He blamed everyone but himself. Kobe stayed in LA because Lakers convinced him (through their track record and ability to attract FAs) that with Lakers he will have the best chance of winning.

That's exactly what Lebron (as a FA) did. He found the best possible chance at winning after seeing San Antonio, Lakers, Boston win titles with multiple stars. San Antonio did it through draft, Boston and Lakers did it through trade, and Miami did it though FA. How is it Lebron's fault that he got drafted by an incompetent franchise that couldn't draft well or make good trades?

Originally posted by 49ersMyLife:
We've gone this route before...so I'd leave it at - I disagree that it wasn't a super-team. Gasol was not an all-star due to other reasons...not because he didn't deserve it. Hibbert made the all-star team in East with 13/9 averages.

But, regardless of that - the fact remains...Kobe b***hed and moan while he was under contract. He did what guys like 'melo and Dwight have done past couple years. He threw team-mates, coaches, front office under the bus. He blamed everyone but himself. Kobe stayed in LA because Lakers convinced him (through their track record and ability to attract FAs) that with Lakers he will have the best chance of winning.

That's exactly what Lebron (as a FA) did. He found the best possible chance at winning after seeing San Antonio, Lakers, Boston win titles with multiple stars. San Antonio did it through draft, Boston and Lakers did it through trade, and Miami did it though FA. How is it Lebron's fault that he got drafted by an incompetent franchise that couldn't draft well or make good trades?

He threw Melo & Dwight under the bus?

I got no problem with LeBron looking to better his situation. He just went to the completely opposite end of that spectrum, which was a weenie move.

Originally posted by LA9erFan:

Originally posted by 49ersMyLife:
We've gone this route before...so I'd leave it at - I disagree that it wasn't a super-team. Gasol was not an all-star due to other reasons...not because he didn't deserve it. Hibbert made the all-star team in East with 13/9 averages.

But, regardless of that - the fact remains...Kobe b***hed and moan while he was under contract. He did what guys like 'melo and Dwight have done past couple years. He threw team-mates, coaches, front office under the bus. He blamed everyone but himself. Kobe stayed in LA because Lakers convinced him (through their track record and ability to attract FAs) that with Lakers he will have the best chance of winning.

That's exactly what Lebron (as a FA) did. He found the best possible chance at winning after seeing San Antonio, Lakers, Boston win titles with multiple stars. San Antonio did it through draft, Boston and Lakers did it through trade, and Miami did it though FA. How is it Lebron's fault that he got drafted by an incompetent franchise that couldn't draft well or make good trades?

He threw Melo & Dwight under the bus?

I got no problem with LeBron looking to better his situation. He just went to the completely opposite end of that spectrum, which was a weenie move.

No, I meant to say...Kobe did some of the same things Dwight did in Orlando i.e. throwing team-mates, coaches, FO under the bus, while not taking any blame for the failures. I don't think that's something you expect from someone who is referred as strong willed and ultimate competitor. That's a pretty weak move in itself.

Originally posted by 49ersMyLife:

No, I meant to say...Kobe did some of the same things Dwight did in Orlando i.e. throwing team-mates, coaches, FO under the bus, while not taking any blame for the failures. I don't think that's something you expect from someone who is referred as strong willed and ultimate competitor. That's a pretty weak move in itself.

You're comparing a 3 time champion who was the 1b option on those teams to Dwight in Orlando. I get what you're saying, but IMO, Kobe had every right to b***h about the desolate situation that the Lakers were in post Shaq.

http://www.lakersnation.com/lakers-news-kobe-bryant-not-planning-to-take-a-pay-cut-in-2014/2013/07/10/

"I'm not taking any at all – that's the negotiation that you have to have." Kobe Bryant told Lakers Nation in an exclusive interview at his Kobe Basketball Academy on Wednesday. "For me to sit here and say, 'Oh yeah, I'm just going to take a huge pay cut. Nah, I'm going to try to get as much as I possibly can."

Originally posted by JerryRice1848:
http://www.lakersnation.com/lakers-news-kobe-bryant-not-planning-to-take-a-pay-cut-in-2014/2013/07/10/

"I'm not taking any at all – that's the negotiation that you have to have." Kobe Bryant told Lakers Nation in an exclusive interview at his Kobe Basketball Academy on Wednesday. "For me to sit here and say, 'Oh yeah, I'm just going to take a huge pay cut. Nah, I'm going to try to get as much as I possibly can."

LOL, ya blew that up quick.

Originally posted by LA9erFan:

Originally posted by JerryRice1848:

http://www.lakersnation.com/lakers-news-kobe-bryant-not-planning-to-take-a-pay-cut-in-2014/2013/07/10/

"I'm not taking any at all – that's the negotiation that you have to have." Kobe Bryant told Lakers Nation in an exclusive interview at his Kobe Basketball Academy on Wednesday. "For me to sit here and say, 'Oh yeah, I'm just going to take a huge pay cut. Nah, I'm going to try to get as much as I possibly can."

LOL, ya blew that up quick.

Either way he's still taking a huge pay cut. With the new CBA he's looking at about half of what he makes a year, now. lol

Originally posted by StOnEy333:

Either way he's still taking a huge pay cut. With the new CBA he's looking at about half of what he makes a year, now. lol

Lolwut