2014-15 Lakers Season Thread (21-61) KAT

[noblekane]

Not that Jumpman, the Warriors/Raiders fan one.

Nooooooooooo not my favorite niketalker of all time [emoji]128553[/emoji][emoji]128553[/emoji][emoji]128553[/emoji][emoji]128553[/emoji]

Somebody put on its so hard to say goodbye to yesterday the boyz 2 men version

In loving memory:
View media item 1390192

 

[tonelow]

I've bounced the idea in my head the last few weeks whether the Lakers should sign a SG and shift Kobe to SF or vice versa this summer since the SF market ain't that great FA wise. Another name to consier is Afflalo, but he's a little bit older and am just bothered by his game.

Was just about to mention Afflalo. He's had a weird year but Ive always liked his game.

Add Gerald Henderson to that list too. Lots of wing depth in the FA pool this year.

 

[pmatic]

I can just imagine Kobe and Afflalo alternating possessions in the post that lead to bricks.

 

[CP1708]

Depending on pick #, we could draft SF at 4-5, filling the slot that way. Sign a Center via FA, Randle and Kobe slot in, then look at PG. Either Clarkson, Houston pick, or 2016 FA.

Again, depends on pick. If we get Okafor/Towns/Russell, all that shifts to needing a SF/SG wing type.

 

[kingjaffejo]

So what are the tank standings?

 

[CP1708]

Wolves 10 wins
Knicks-6ers 11
Lakers 13

Everyone else 16+

 

[laker4lifeman]

That seems really close

 

[CP1708]

Philly winning #12 tonight.

That Bulls game really, really hurts right now. We'd be tied with the 76ers of all teams.

 

[licensed to ball]

Shut up CP just be happy a team as trash as Philly is so close to us

I can't beleive I'm so into the loss column of the standings. Never in my 27 years on earth have I cared about losses like I do this season.

What have you guys done to me

 

[kal-el-8]

Shut up CP just be happy a team as trash as Philly is so close to us

I can't beleive I'm so into the loss column of the standings. Never in my 27 years on earth have I cared about losses like I do this season.

What have you guys done to me

27?? You're an old man.


I'm 22

 

[noblekane]

you so philly is trash. we must be the smelliest trash in the league then lol

our roster is terrible

we getting our **** pushed in tomorrow too

 

[MVP]

27?? You're an old man.


I'm 22

#27gang. Ain't you married Supes?

 

[sb]

ive noticed that there is not much discussion with the pg situation. even if lakers get the 1st pick the are going after a big. wonder what mitch has in mind for pg. they need to get russy. do it mitch

 

[kal-el-8]

27?? You're an old man.


I'm 22

#27gang. Ain't you married Supes?

Gettin married in December my man

 

[sb]

27?? You're an old man.


I'm 22

#27gang. Ain't you married Supes?

Gettin married in December my man

congrats man. best of luck. this you

 

[CP1708]

Whoa, congrats Kal.

 

[darthska]

27?? You're an old man.


I'm 22

#27gang. Ain't you married Supes?

Gettin married in December my man

congrats man. best of luck. this you

No. There's no way Kal could get someone to throw on a Superman tee under a suit.

 

[CP1708]

Uhhh.......

 

[daddyrabbit251]

congrats Kal

 

[pmatic]

My condolences Kal. |I

 

[pmatic]

Tank Watch 2/8
T'Wolves vs Pistons...Rubio is a maybe after tweaking his ankle last game. Go T'Wolves
Pacers vs Hornets...The Hornets are playing the second night of a back to back. Go Pacers.
Suns vs Kings...Do you approve of the impending Karl hire rck? What about you CP? Go Kings.
Bulls vs Magic...The Bulls are playing the second night of a back to back. Go Magic.

 

[kal-el-8]

27?? You're an old man.


I'm 22

#27gang. Ain't you married Supes?

Gettin married in December my man

congrats man. best of luck. this you

nah man I'm brown. But thank you

Whoa, congrats Kal.

Thanks CP gimme some advice you been married 32 years now?

congrats Kal

Thanks my man

My condolences Kal. |I

nah man. I'm happy as can be. Looking for a house in LA starting this fall.

 

[sea manup]

grats my dude 

hopefully we will be back in the finals in a few years so that your children never have to witness this garbage heap of a team 

 

[pmatic]

Can Jahlil Okafor's defense be trusted?

Duke basketball began the new season with high hopes largely thanks to the arrival of a top recruit from Chicago. Through the first half of the season, the player had lived up the substantial hype and looked like a no-brainer choice at the top of the NBA draft after one season in Durham. Duke's offense was ranked in the top five of the country thanks to the considerable contributions of this player, but there were troubling signs to those monitoring the Blue Devils closely.

Mostly: Duke's defense was slipping, and it was partly because this Chicago native with heavy legs in the front court wasn't as effective on that end of the floor.

This could be a story about Jabari Parker, the No. 2 pick in last year's draft who spent his lone season with the Blue Devils captivating audiences with pro-ready offensive moves. You know how that season ended: Duke fell in its first NCAA Tournament game to a Mercer team that NaeNae'd its way into the hearts of America. The worry for Duke right now is that this season could be playing out the exact same way.

Jahlil Okafor and Jabari Parker are far from the same player, and admittedly some of the similarities up top are circumstantial. Parker is either a wing or a stretch four, while Okafor is your classic back-to-the-basket big man. There's a noticeable difference in having the 6'11, 270-pound Okafor in the middle of the Blue Devils' defense rather than the 6'9, 210-pound Amile Jefferson, who moonlighted as Duke's center last season.

Duke's defense is definitely better than it was a year ago, but it remains unclear if it's good enough to take Coach K on another deep tournament run. Last season, Duke's defense ranked No. 116 in the country, per KenPom. It's up to No. 55 this year. Most of the improvement can be traced to a lack of fouling. Opponents' free-throw rates have fallen from 40.8 percent last season (No. 177 in the country, per KenPom) to 24.1 percent (No. 3 in the country) this season.

The improvement is nice, but it won't mean much if Duke fails to get out of the first weekend of the tournament again. The defense remains far from a finished product. The Blue Devils have given up over one point per possession in seven of their last eight games. That includes surrendering 1.24 points per possession in a loss to N.C. State, 1.22 PPP in a loss to Miami and 1.13 PPP in a loss to Notre Dame.

In the middle of it all is Okafor, who has unquestionably emerged as one of the top players in the nation. He's in the mix for the Player of the Year award mostly because he's unstoppable on offense, posting an effective field goal percentage (65.2) which ranks No. 15 in the country.

Okafor's defense is another matter. While he's not terrible on that end of the floor, he's not particularly good, either. Draft Express did a great job of breaking down his strengths and weaknesses defensively:





While Okafor's defense will be the key to Duke's Final Four hopes this season, it carries even greater interest as the NBA draft approaches.

Okafor has been ranked as the No. 1 player in the draft by ESPN's Chad Ford since before the season started. He remains there today. On Thursday, in a story on how Okafor would potentially fit every team in the lottery, Ford wrote "As of today, every team I spoke with has Okafor as the No. 1 pick."

Perhaps this is easy to believe. There hasn't been a big man to enter the league as offensively polished as Okafor in a long time. Much like his friend Parker a year ago, Okafor has an incredible amount of offensive moves for a player his age. He's a great offensive prospect. The question is how much a great offensive center really matters in today's NBA if he's not giving you much defensively.

Okafor will remind you of a '90s big man on the low block with his constant variety of pivots, hooks and scoop shots. He's also an incredible passer. The rules are different now than they were in the '90s, though, and few elite teams are carried by post scoring. Conversely, nearly every elite NBA team has a great defensive big man.

You can go up and down the standings. Golden State is always thought to be defined by its offense, but it also has the No. 1 defense in the NBA. When center Andrew Bogut has been out, the Warriors don't look like the same title contender. Memphis has been carried by the stout defense of Marc Gasol, Houston has Dwight Howard, Portland has Robin Lopez, the Clippers have DeAndre Jordan, the Mavericks re-acquired Tyson Chandler to fix a poor defense last season.

If you're skeptical of how important rim protection is in the NBA, just look at what's happened to the Cleveland Cavaliers since they've acquired Timofey Mozgov. Twelve consecutive wins later, things don't look so bad for LeBron James' team anymore.

In the modern NBA, defense sure seems more important than offense for a center. The post-ups of the '90s have been replaced by ball movement, three-point shooting and off-the-ball cuts. It's a different league with different rules and different demands out of its stars.

This isn't to say Okafor will be a minus defensively forever. The man is 18 years old. He's blessed with incredibly long arms (7'6 wingspan) and is plenty athletic. He doesn't have great lateral quickness and his ability to corral ball handlers on the pick-and-roll is in question at the college level, let alone in the NBA. Still, he could turn himself into a solid defensive player a few years down the line. It's happened to DeMarcus Cousins this season. The team that drafts Okafor just has to know it may be a work in progress.

In the immediate, Okafor will be the key to Duke's tournament hopes on both ends of the floor. In the future, his ability to improve his defense will go a long way towards deciding how great of a player he ends up being in the NBA. No one enters the NBA after one year of college as a finished product. For as good as Jahlil Okafor is with the ball in his hands, that remains the case for him, too.

http://www.sbnation.com/college-basketball/2015/2/6/7991979/jahlil-okafor-duke-2015-nba-draft

 

[6 Rings G.O.A.T.]

Will watch today's game on abc..