Dude, I'm agreeing with Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith!
Let me see if I won any of last night's Power Ball.
After that it was a miasma of barely NBA players and those too undeveloped to make an impact. As of this writing, the Lakers are 23rd in points per possession, 29th in points allowed per possession, 27th in net points per possession, 24th in assist ratio, 17th in rebound percentage and 26th in effective field goal percentage.
They weren't good at anything. They were just not-as-bad in some areas. Carlos Boozer was a pro, but wasn't able to give them anything. Jordan Hill underwhelmed. Jeremy Lin underwhelmed. Nick Young had his requisite games of fooling everyone into believing his nonsense is helpful before shooting 36 percent, eventually getting benched and feuding with his coach.
Oh, and the coach! Byron Scott came out publicly against taking too many 3-pointers, despite that being the only thing the Lakers really can do capably, and his offense looks like an anachronism next to the modern concepts he railed against. As the season wore on, he threw his players under the bus harder and harder, despite being the man in charge of coaching them.
The front office is split between Mitch Kupchak and Jimmy Buss, who maintain everything will be fine, and Jeanie Buss who has declared "heads will roll" if this doesn't get turned around soon.
All in all, a rollicking romp the whole family could enjoy for Lakers fans.
Source: cbssports.com
I got a sense of a whole lot of people I wouldn’t want to be in a foxhole with,”...“I think they’d end up shooting me in the back. I have a pretty good sense of the guys who will be around that we can build around and build together this process and go through it. I think we’ll be fine.
Source: insidesocal.com
Buss insisted, though, that her connection to the franchise is as strong as ever. "The Lakers are my life," she said. "This is the family business. The family's going to own the team for as long as the family's together."
Buss went on to say that, with Jackson gone, she anticipates that her attention will be more fully trained on being an ambassador for the Lakers—which should come as music to the ears of those fans who've long called for her to assume a bigger role within the organization.
"Now that my fiance is going to have something to occupy his time," Buss added, "that's going to free me up to be able to go to games again."
If this is her way of introducing herself as the one calling the shots instead of Jimmy, that's fine with me. I would like to think that these words are coming out of her mouth instead of the truth, that she didn't want to trash her brother and start a family fight.
God help the woman if she isn't as competent as I thought that she was, though.
Source: bleacherreport.com
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith reported on Wednesday morning that he had heard D’Antoni would be out, and that the Lakers’ potential pursuit of free-agent Carmelo Anthony would be the reason. But multiple sources told Sporting News that the reason for D’Antoni’s potential dismissal is closer to home—star guard Kobe Bryant.The Lakers are expected to undergo a massive overhaul in the offseason, with enough cap space available to sign a max-level free agent—like Anthony. But Anthony played for D’Antoni with the Knicks and was never able to see eye-to-eye with the coach, who eventually agreed to walk away from the job in New York in March 2012.
Uh Kupchak...'Melo = Dwight Howard²
Source: bleacherreport.com
No matter what happens in coming days, it's impossible to imagine D'Antoni returning for next season. But again, with Buss, you never know, his penchant for bad decisions surpassed by his penchant for shocking decisions.
Bill Plaschke on Jimmy Buss, Lakers lose not just a game but their dignity in rout by Clippers
Source: Los Angeles Times
"Everybody was coming back from dinner, and the elevator door opens,” Black said. “It was Earvin, Cooper, Byron, Orlando Woolridge and one other guy...”
Black looked over the crowded space and suggested he’d wait for the next ride. A long arm grabbed him by the shirt and yanked him inside. “John,” Johnson said, “we’re gonna fill you in.”
The men retreated to a suite, where the following hour was devoted to a verbal slaying of the prison guard known as Patrick James Riley. “They had a team meeting and they’re motherf------g him,” Black said. “M---------er this and m---------er that and all these m---------ers directed at Pat. I didn’t know it was to that extent. And I was like, ‘Holy f--k.’ It was all melting down.”
John Black, former Lakers media relations chief in Exclusive Book Excerpt: Bitter, Dark Days of Pat Riley and the 'Showtime' Lakers
Source: bleacherreport.com
The look on Kupchak's face says it all about The Lakers
Source: nba.com
Anything besides BRING BACK BLAAAACK MOMBAAAAAAAAA is welcomed input.
Is the Zen Master trying to drive Lakers' fans insane?
Source: thehoopdoctors.com
Happy Birthday to my Gianna, Gigi, Viva Boom. Time has wings. #fatherslove #daddysgirl #babymamba #taurus instagram.com/p/YxiMZXxNqd/
— Kobe Bryant (@kobebryant)
May 1, 2013
Source: twitter.com
diegueno reblogged
Is it time for the (short-lived) Dwight Howard era to end? After last night’s blowout loss to the San Antonio Spurs, cementing the Lakers’ exit from the playoffs in an embarrassing sweep, columnist Bill Plaschke has some tough words for the highly-touted center.
“This is like a nightmare,” said Howard later. “This is like a bad dream and I couldn’t wake up out of it.”
Here’s how that nightmare can end. The Lakers don’t re-sign it. The Lakers walk out on Dwight Howard the way he walked out on them. The Lakers shake themselves awake after watching Howard’s pathetic performance Sunday and have the courage to move forward without him.
Yesterday’s loss marks the first time the Lakers have been swept in the opening round of the playoffs since 1967, something fans won’t forget as the team decides whether or not to re-sign Howard in the offseason. So what do you say, Lakers faithful: Should the team stick by Howard, or move forward without him?
Photos: Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times, Joe Klamar / AFP/Getty Images
My Unsolicited Advice to Mitch Kupchak Only take Howard back for one more season if you can pay him ⅓ what you paid him this past season.
Even if Kobe's career is finished.
Source: Los Angeles Times
So little comment about what a bust Dwight Howard was, so many cries to bring back Phil Jackson
it is Facebook, after all
diegueno reblogged
@pau16gasol and the Lakers have arrived in San Antonio. #GoLakers (at San Antonio International Airport (#SAT))
Get some, Lake Show
@PauGasol va tenir un molt bon joc.
Source: facebook.com
That's it for Kobe Bryant for this season, folks.
Source: instagram.com