**LA LAKERS THREAD** Sitting on 17! 2023-2024 offseason begins

It's simple, really. Lakers are better now because they've had more games under their belt to gel, work on their deficiencies, and get used to one another's tendencies.

They are slowly starting to find their identity as a team and should continue to improve as the season progresses.
 
Derek Fisher last night said something along the lines of this: "If you gonna pull on Superman's cape, you better be ready to bring it and put on your cape as well. Unfortunately, DLo didn't do that."

Fish knows. Worthy knows. Mike Bresnahan, who said DLo should not have done that, also knows. These media people are simply being PC and staying neutral. But they know DLo ain't the answer, they just can't say it yet.

Y'all are too blind to see it. DLo is not the player y'all think he's gonna be, and I don't care what numbers you all put in front of me. 

The only person who thinks he's a star is DLo himself. The sad thing is that he's not wired that way.
 
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It's simple, really. Lakers are better now because they've had more games under their belt to gel, work on their deficiencies, and get used to one another's tendencies.

They are slowly starting to find their identity as a team and should continue to improve as the season progresses.
Notice how I said Lakers as a team. Doesn't necessarily mean DLo will "find his identity" from an individual perspective LOL. Heck, his teammates didn't even back him up after that scuffle last night LOL...I wonder why. I honestly think guys like Lou and Swaggy don't actually like Russell.

Plus nowhere above did I say they will maintain their consistency. All I said is that they would improve (as opposed to implode) as the season progresses simply because of more games played.

Don't get it twisted homie.
 
 
 
meh

things like this happen, someones team was gonna win regardless

game is over, move on...blazers got  other things to prove 
Weak response. Blazers are in the same position record wise against the Lakers so they got just as much to prove as the Lakers in my book.

And as Lillard said, "I took it as a challenge" and we all know what happened next.

Yeah, DLo is young but that ain't an excuse. Rookie Bynum didn't back down from Shaq either but the difference is Bynum went right at Shaq the next play. 2nd year Kobe didn't back down from MJ either, and in fact scored over 30 points against MJ's Bulls. You remember that? lol Meanwhile, DLo started launching Brick 3 after Brick 3. So whatchu talkin bout "things like this happen, move on." LOL...DLo's character and will to win was tested and he failed yet again. Bottom line.

If it's true what Lillard said, that DLo has been trying to give him cheap shot elbows all season long, goes to show you that DLo trying to make up for his lack of skill and quickness by playing dirty. That doesn't fly well with me. 

I bet Lillard got in his head and I wouldn't be surprised if DLo puts up stinkers against the Spurs and Pistons in the next two games.
What cheap shots? You could just as easily call Dame a crybaby for complaining about getting posted up by a 20 yr old. FOH.

You get mad when he's not aggressive, then when he is aggressive he needs to stay in his lane.

The game was close, he just drew a foul on Dame then blocked his shot. Dame got mad and Dlo stood his ground. What is he supposed to do in that situation?
 
I don't understand how anyone can be so sure we will get anybody in free agency.

The new CBA is built to basically stop player movement.

For example everyone seems to be so enamored with DeMarcus Cousins:

With the new CBA, He can sign the new "super max" contract extension worth 207 Mil. He can command up to 35% of the cap space even if the kings have no cap room.

If he comes to us, we can only sign him for 4 years and he can't command that same cap space.

Nobody is leaving 70 mil on the table to join a "brand" nobody.

And being traded doesn't help either. Say they trade DeMarcus to us, we can't give him that new super max extension. It doesn't apply to traded players.

Free agency will be boring unless the player absolutely wants to leave.
 
 
 
meh

things like this happen, someones team was gonna win regardless

game is over, move on...blazers got  other things to prove 
Weak response. Blazers are in the same position record wise against the Lakers so they got just as much to prove as the Lakers in my book.
exactly, look at what they did last season

the team has regressed, lilliard getting outplayed by CJ all season

like i said, the blazers have other things to prove 

the whole team shot like crap last night, talking about d'lo shot them out of the game trying to one up Dame. 

albeit, he did clang 2-3 3's after the altercation ....but its not like everyone else wasnt either
 
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meh

things like this happen, someones team was gonna win regardless

game is over, move on...blazers got  other things to prove 
Weak response. Blazers are in the same position record wise against the Lakers so they got just as much to prove as the Lakers in my book.

And as Lillard said, "I took it as a challenge" and we all know what happened next.

Yeah, DLo is young but that ain't an excuse. Rookie Bynum didn't back down from Shaq either but the difference is Bynum went right at Shaq the next play. 2nd year Kobe didn't back down from MJ either, and in fact scored over 30 points against MJ's Bulls. You remember that? lol Meanwhile, DLo started launching Brick 3 after Brick 3. So whatchu talkin bout "things like this happen, move on." LOL...DLo's character and will to win was tested and he failed yet again. Bottom line.

If it's true what Lillard said, that DLo has been trying to give him cheap shot elbows all season long, goes to show you that DLo trying to make up for his lack of skill and quickness by playing dirty. That doesn't fly well with me. 

I bet Lillard got in his head and I wouldn't be surprised if DLo puts up stinkers against the Spurs and Pistons in the next two games.
What cheap shots? You could just as easily call Dame a crybaby for complaining about getting posted up by a 20 yr old. FOH.

You get mad when he's not aggressive, then when he is aggressive he needs to stay in his lane.

The game was close, he just drew a foul on Dame then blocked his shot. Dame got mad and Dlo stood his ground. What is he supposed to do in that situation?
Trying to scuffle with someone and throwing "cheap shots" per what Lillard said, has NOTHING, absolutely NOTHING to do with being aggressive on the court as far as DLo's style of play is concerned. Get it right. 

Like @Lizaker4Lizife  said, DLo should have been posting Lillard's *** up after the scuffle instead of jacking up 3 after 3 after 3. 

I don't care about the scuffle. What I care about is that DLo didn't respond to the challenge AFTER the scuffle. Good for DLo that he stood his ground. I expect that. But HOW WILL YOU RESPOND? That's the bottom line.
 
 
 
 
meh

things like this happen, someones team was gonna win regardless

game is over, move on...blazers got  other things to prove 
Weak response. Blazers are in the same position record wise against the Lakers so they got just as much to prove as the Lakers in my book.
exactly, look at what they did last season

the team has regressed, lilliard getting outplayed by CJ all season

like i said, the blazers have other things to prove 

the whole team shot like crap last night, talking about d'lo shot them out of the game trying to one up Dame. 

albeit, he did clang 2-3 3's after the altercation ....but its not like everyone else wasnt either
Last season was last season. What matters is what they're doing now. And oh btw...POR OVERACHIEVED last year, and nobody even expected them to play as well as they did after LA left for San Antonio. 

When POR's record is almost the same as the Lakers, both teams are fighting for essentially the same playoff seeding. Which means, BOTH LA and POR have something to prove to each other because they're competing for the same spot. 

And I don't care if everyone else was clanking shots left and right. As D-FISH SAID (and oh, are you going to discount Fisher's opinion too? lol), DLo was presented with a challenge, and as the leader of the team, he failed while Lillard stepped up to the challenge and the rest of his teammates stepped up collectively as a result.

And its not like the Lakers were getting blown out when the scuffle happened. It as 64-63, which means the Lakers were still in the game. DLo had the perfect opportunity to LEAD and WILL his team to victory in light of the scuffle but sadly, his bad play after the scuffle rubbed off on his teammates and the rest of the Lakers started bricking as well.

Even Fisher, Bresnahan, and the rest of the Spectrum crew attributed the loss to what happened directly after the scuffle.

You make it sound like the Lakers were clanking shots all night and that they were already down double digits at the half lol. Enough with the excuses. The Lakers were playing well until the 3rd quarter and what happened after the scuffle sealed the deal.
 
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It feels like the reason we continue to lose games in the second half is because we don't have someone who is that true general on the court. Not saying D'lo/Randle won't be that one day, but they aren't there yet. Not even saying we need a superstar right now, but where's our Draymond Green? We need someone that can hold others accountable on the court, and someone that can inspire others to maintain intensity when winning or when we are down. 
 
Last season was last season. What matters is what they're doing now. And oh btw...POR OVERACHIEVED last year, and nobody even expected them to play as well as they did after LA left for San Antonio. 

When POR's record is almost the same as the Lakers, both teams are fighting for essentially the same playoff seeding. Which means, BOTH LA and POR have something to prove to each other because they're competing for the same spot. 

And I don't care if everyone else was clanking shots left and right. As D-FISH SAID (and oh, are you going to discount Fisher's opinion too? lol), DLo was presented with a challenge, and as the leader of the team, he failed while Lillard stepped up to the challenge and the rest of his teammates stepped up collectively as a result.

And its not like the Lakers were getting blown out when the scuffle happened. It as 64-63, which means the Lakers were still in the game. DLo had the perfect opportunity to LEAD and WILL his team to victory in light of the scuffle but sadly, his bad play after the scuffle rubbed off on his teammates and the rest of the Lakers started bricking as well.

Even Fisher, Bresnahan, and the rest of the Spectrum crew attributed the loss to what happened directly after the scuffle.
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Smh. So the entire team started bricking because he rimmed out a couple of open 3s?? What? 

If he makes a couple of those 3s and Julius doesn't have the worst offensive game of the year it's still a close game and the entire narrative changes.

You're reaching. 
 
 And I don't care if everyone else was clanking shots left and right. As D-FISH SAID (and oh, are you going to discount Fisher's opinion too? lol), DLo was presented with a challenge, and as the leader of the team, he failed while Lillard stepped up to the challenge and the rest of his teammates stepped up collectively as a result.

And its not like the Lakers were getting blown out when the scuffle happened. It as 64-63, which means the Lakers were still in the game. DLo had the perfect opportunity to LEAD and WILL his team to victory in light of the scuffle but sadly, his bad play after the scuffle rubbed off on his teammates and the rest of the Lakers started bricking as well.

Even Fisher, Bresnahan, and the rest of the Spectrum crew attributed the loss to what happened directly after the scuffle.

You make it sound like the Lakers were clanking shots all night and that they were already down double digits at the half lol. Enough with the excuses. The Lakers were playing well until the 3rd quarter and what happened after the scuffle sealed the deal.
derek fisher was great as a laker, loved what he did on the court for the team...but hes not credible outside the game. not for coaching not for following the locker room code not for nothing, i hate that hes even on spectrum. 

as far as the team shooting goes, the team was shooting around 40% going into the 2nd half and were leading by 2 at the break

portland just flat out outplayed us (as in the whole team ) in the second half

thats no excuse...thats fact
 
I don't understand how anyone can be so sure we will get anybody in free agency.

The new CBA is built to basically stop player movement.

For example everyone seems to be so enamored with DeMarcus Cousins:

With the new CBA, He can sign the new "super max" contract extension worth 207 Mil. He can command up to 35% of the cap space even if the kings have no cap room.

If he comes to us, we can only sign him for 4 years and he can't command that same cap space.

Nobody is leaving 70 mil on the table to join a "brand" nobody.

And being traded doesn't help either. Say they trade DeMarcus to us, we can't give him that new super max extension. It doesn't apply to traded players.

Free agency will be boring unless the player absolutely wants to leave.
On face value, it would seem as if it would be extremely difficult for teams to acquire free agents or do trades for players who decide to re-up with their current teams. However, creative GM's can still find a way especially if the superstar who re-ups with their team no longer wants to be part of their team.

According to an article by an NBA columnist, it would be wiser for teams to seek a trade AFTER the player re-ups so that the player being traded is still guaranteed his new contract under the terms of the new CBA. This is the work-around for agents to ensure their client will maximize his financial future even if he is traded. At the same time, the team he is leaving won't lose the player for nothing because the sign-and-trade transaction would net the team considerable assets.

Under the new CBA, it is expected that you will see a lot more SIGN-AND-TRADE deals than we have seen in the past, especially when it comes to offseason free agency.

"However, if players agree to those extensions before being traded, they suddenly become far more  valuable.

If you're the Boston Celtics, and you have the choice of trading for Cousins before or after he signs a massive extension with the Kings, you're probably trying to work out a way for Sacramento to sign him and then ship him over. That way, you've got far more certainty than you would if you'd traded for him with just a year left on his contract.

It's unclear how the CBA might work to avoid sign-and-trade moves like that, but as it stands now, the six-year designated player provision seems to have the power to both retain stars and  make them more tradable—depending on the timing."
 
It's funny how everyone is blaming DLO for last nights lost but people tend to forget that Julius had his worst game of the season. Nick young has been 3 for 24 the last few games. Heck even luke got mad at Ingram for not moving the ball as much. so because DLO didn't come back scoring 40 on lillard he's to blame? Everyone saying he poked the bear when in reality everyone knew that lillard wasn't going to shoot bad in the second half. Smh at the DLO hate
 
 
It feels like the reason we continue to lose games in the second half is because we don't have someone who is that true general on the court. Not saying D'lo/Randle won't be that one day, but they aren't there yet. Not even saying we need a superstar right now, but where's our Draymond Green? We need someone that can hold others accountable on the court, and someone that can inspire others to maintain intensity when winning or when we are down. 
THIS. Big Time.

I expect that player to be Brandon Ingram in due time, although right now it should really be DLo, Jordan Clarkson, or Lou Williams.
 
Last season was last season. What matters is what they're doing now. And oh btw...POR OVERACHIEVED last year, and nobody even expected them to play as well as they did after LA left for San Antonio. 

When POR's record is almost the same as the Lakers, both teams are fighting for essentially the same playoff seeding. Which means, BOTH LA and POR have something to prove to each other because they're competing for the same spot. 

And I don't care if everyone else was clanking shots left and right. As D-FISH SAID (and oh, are you going to discount Fisher's opinion too? lol), DLo was presented with a challenge, and as the leader of the team, he failed while Lillard stepped up to the challenge and the rest of his teammates stepped up collectively as a result.

And its not like the Lakers were getting blown out when the scuffle happened. It as 64-63, which means the Lakers were still in the game. DLo had the perfect opportunity to LEAD and WILL his team to victory in light of the scuffle but sadly, his bad play after the scuffle rubbed off on his teammates and the rest of the Lakers started bricking as well.

Even Fisher, Bresnahan, and the rest of the Spectrum crew attributed the loss to what happened directly after the scuffle.
roll.gif


Smh. So the entire team started bricking because he rimmed out a couple of open 3s?? What? 

If he makes a couple of those 3s and Julius doesn't have the worst offensive game of the year it's still a close game and the entire narrative changes.

You're reaching. 
I said that DLO could've easily set the tone for his teammates AS THE LEADER ON THE FLOOR, but since he didn't, the poor play rubbed off on the rest of the team and was infectious. How is it that in the first half, DLo was dropping dimes left and right and in the second half all of that disappeared? That's because POR upped the ante in the 3rd quarter, got more physical, and the Lakers COLLECTIVELY did not respond to the challenge.

If DLo was able to play floor general in the first half when POR was playing soft, DLo should have been able to play floor general in the second half as well, even when POR started playing more physical.

Sorry, bro. the only people who are reaching are those of you who absolutely love to go back and forth with me on this thread because y'all choose to believe that nothing about DLo's game stinks.
 
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 And I don't care if everyone else was clanking shots left and right. As D-FISH SAID (and oh, are you going to discount Fisher's opinion too? lol), DLo was presented with a challenge, and as the leader of the team, he failed while Lillard stepped up to the challenge and the rest of his teammates stepped up collectively as a result.

And its not like the Lakers were getting blown out when the scuffle happened. It as 64-63, which means the Lakers were still in the game. DLo had the perfect opportunity to LEAD and WILL his team to victory in light of the scuffle but sadly, his bad play after the scuffle rubbed off on his teammates and the rest of the Lakers started bricking as well.

Even Fisher, Bresnahan, and the rest of the Spectrum crew attributed the loss to what happened directly after the scuffle.

You make it sound like the Lakers were clanking shots all night and that they were already down double digits at the half lol. Enough with the excuses. The Lakers were playing well until the 3rd quarter and what happened after the scuffle sealed the deal.
derek fisher was great as a laker, loved what he did on the court for the team...but hes not credible outside the game. not for coaching not for following the locker room code not for nothing, i hate that hes even on spectrum. 

as far as the team shooting goes, the team was shooting around 40% going into the 2nd half and were leading by 2 at the break

portland just flat out outplayed us (as in the whole team ) in the second half

thats no excuse...thats fact
You just don't get it do you.

What D-Fish said about DLo has NOTHING to do about coaching. What Fish said had EVERYTHING to do about taking on challenges and stepping up your game against the opposition when the opposition steps up their physicality, which D-FISH WAS GREAT AT when he was a player.

And do you know why POR outplayed us in the 3rd quarter? Hint: It wasn't because we were shooting poorly. POR's physicality and defense MADE US shoot poorly and we had no response for it. 
 
It's funny how everyone is blaming DLO for last nights lost but people tend to forget that Julius had his worst game of the season. Nick young has been 3 for 24 the last few games. Heck even luke got mad at Ingram for not moving the ball as much. so because DLO didn't come back scoring 40 on lillard he's to blame? Everyone saying he poked the bear when in reality everyone knew that lillard wasn't going to shoot bad in the second half. Smh at the DLO hate
Solid performances by Randle is directly linked (even correlated) to solid play by DLo because DLo is the one who gets Randle involved. 

Yes, I said a couple times how Randle was playing terribly. But it's DLo's job as the floor general who has the ball in his hands more than half the time to get Randle involved. 

So as much as I was upset at Randle's lack of involvement and energy, I'm even more bewildered as to how the Lakers' guards (DLo in particular) could not somehow find a way to get Randle involved on offense, especially in that dismal 3rd quarter.

DLo (and Coach Luke) should have made a concerted effort in the 3rd quarter to get Randle some shot opportunities so he could develop a rhythm.
 
Link to article please...
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2681954-how-the-nbas-new-cba-impacts-trade-market-free-agency

In addition, there are limits to which players receive these "super contracts". Which means, it's still not farfetched for All-Star players can leave their teams via sign-and-trade OR for Tier 2 Stars such as a Gordon Hayward or a Paul Millsap or a Jimmy Butler to leave their current teams for better opportunities.

Here's an excerpt from an ESPN article which talks about the new CBA.

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...tions-new-nba-collective-bargaining-agreement

Q: You said it was a select group of players, so who do you mean?
A: To get this type of premium deal you have to have played eight or nine years in the league and been on the All-NBA team this year or in two of the past three years, win the Defensive Player of the Year or have won the MVP in one of the past three years. You also have to re-sign with the team you played for since your rookie contract, although players traded during  their rookie contracts still qualify. That's not a lot of players.

This might affect free agents like Curry and Blake Griffin  this coming summer and perhaps players like Paul George  and DeMarcus Cousins  in 2018. It's a small group, but these are important players to their teams, and this time frame has been when most of the megastars have been leaving their teams. Also, the new rules mean superstars who meet these criteria can be offered extensions and the promise of this huge money before they even become free agents.

The life cycle of an NBA superstar will now look like this: After being drafted, he signs a four-year rookie contract. Before that contract ends he signs a four or five-year extension. Before that  contract ends he signs a five-year extension. A superstar who wants to maximize his salary may not hit the open market until he's played 14 seasons in the league.

Q: So should Karl-Anthony Towns just buy a house in Minneapolis and assume he's there forever?
A: If you're a Wolves fan, that idea probably has you smiling. It's possible it could result in such a scenario with a star like Towns. But it also could lead to an unwanted side effect: young stars trying to force trades  within their first four years in the league. That could happen for sure.
 
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 And do you know why POR outplayed us in the 3rd quarter? Hint: It wasn't because we were shooting poorly. POR's physicality and defense MADE US shoot poorly and we had no response for it. 
the altercation happened midway through the 3rd, they started making shots and we didnt. 

so youre saying that their physicality led us to resorting throwing up 3's and not going inside?  as if thats not what the team has been doing all year

randle had a terrible game and wasnt finishing around the rim, but had he made a few more shots that "physicality" would have been mute 

lou and JC shot like crap and we know they make their living in the paint right....dude shots were just not falling.

blazers leading rebounder was Aminu with 15

two other guys had 8...davis and lilliard....that physicality really shut us out

both teams had 9 offensive boards,but  they outrebounded us by 11

bet most of those boards were cause of long rebounds off ........of jumpshots.
 
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 And do you know why POR outplayed us in the 3rd quarter? Hint: It wasn't because we were shooting poorly. POR's physicality and defense MADE US shoot poorly and we had no response for it. 
the altercation happened midway through the 3rd, they started making shots and we didnt. 

so youre saying that their physicality led us to resorting throwing up 3's and not going inside?  as if thats not what the team has been doing all year

randle had a terrible game and wasnt finishing around the rim, but had he made a few more shots that "physicality" would have been mute 

lou and JC shot like crap and we know they make their living in the paint right....dude shots were just not falling.

blazers leading rebounder was Aminu

two other guys had 8...davis and lilliard....that physicality really shut us out
The physicality affected the way in which we ran our offense in the 3rd quarter. Which means....wait for it....all of a sudden the penetration disappeared, the fast breaks and dimes disappeared....all because POR beefed up their defensive intensity and was much quicker on their rotations. Which led to.....the Lakers forcing up bad OUTSIDE shots because POR forced us out of our offense. Notice how in several offensive possessions, it seemed like the Lakers were throwing up wild outside shots with only a couple seconds left in the shot clock? That's because POR's defense took them out of their rhythm. 

Meanwhile, in the first half, the Lakers were doing everything and anything they wanted, with even Mozgov getting some nice dunks inside and Deng doing wonders in transition.

Don't act like Lou's and Jordan's shots weren't falling ALL NIGHT LONG. In the first half, Lou and Jordan had absolutely NO PROBLEM making shots from the outside. You can go watch the tape again. I watched the game live, and watched it twice more on DVR. The meltdown happened in the 3rd quarter NOT the entire game.

For you to overlook the effect POR's increased physicality and tighter defense had on the Lakers in the second half and speak with sarcasm about it lets me know you are not paying close attention to the details bro. Go watch that 3rd quarter two more times and let me know what you see.

If you need help in breaking down the game film, sequence per sequence, I'd be more than happy to do it via PM 
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