[::OFFSEASON OVER. Lock Please.::]

[Maximus Meridius]

D'Antoni will still be coach at the beginning of the season. But if he comes out like Mike Brown did earlier this season. He'll be out by thanksgiving/christmas.

this would be the biggest mistake. if you are going to fire the coach fire him before training camp.

They need to learn from this mistake, get it done now and move on. All D'Antoni cares about is scoring 115 points a game. He would be great with a team like Denver, not this team though.


That was a weak move by Dwight getting thrown out. Handle yourself like a professional bruh.

 

[daddyrabbit251]

Nash's contract and not being able to sign and trade will kill this roster. To improve at the PG and SG they gonna have dump Pau's salary ASAP. They should've done this before the damn trade deadline We probably could've received some expiring contracts in return

 

[essential1]

Nash's contract and not being able to sign and trade will kill this roster. To improve at the PG and SG they gonna have dump Pau's salary ASAP. They should've done this before the damn trade deadline We probably could've received some expiring contracts in return

Even if we had dumped Pau for $19mil in expiring contracts, and amnesty MWP. We still would not have anything more than the mini-MLE. We could sign and trade, but we wouldn't really have anyone to do it with.

 

[grittyman]

All series long, Dwight was getting hammered all series with absolutely no sympathy from the officials. Not saying he deserves a pass for how he handled his frustration, but I don't think it's a big deal as some people are making it out to be.

 

[darthdeezy]

**** the Lakers.
Disowned.
Im joining Heat Nation so I know what it feels like to win again.

 

[dland24]

**** the Lakers.
Disowned.
Im joining Heat Nation so I know what it feels like to win again.

Cant wait for them to be upset at some point. 

 

[knightngale]

What the Laker can do seems to be limited. I wonder if Jimbo will let Mitch do his job or if he will fire Mitch and make himself owner/GM at the same time :x

Hopefully this whole business about getting rid of first round picks stops now. They should buy a damn draft pick. They just suffered a huge embarrassment.

Jimbo's legacy is already terrible.

 

[Coupé It]

Cant wait for them to be upset at some point. 

Sucks to say, but you're going to be waiting a while.

 

[grandtheftbike]

jim should fire himself and let jeanie take over

 

[essential1]

What the Laker can do seems to be limited. I wonder if Jimbo will let Mitch do his job or if he will fire Mitch and make himself owner/GM at the same time :x

Hopefully this whole business about getting rid of first round picks stops now. They should buy a damn draft pick. They just suffered a huge embarrassment.

Jimbo's legacy is already terrible.

If you're going to give him **** for his "legacy" you also have to give him praise.

Save your response of "What good has he done?" It's pretty typical response that you will give. He got Nash & Dwight to go with Kobe & Pau. In an offseason, where everyone said we'd get nothing done.. He also went out and went after Chris Paul, and successfully got him before it was voided. Did his plan work out? No. But anyone who gives a guy **** for getting the best center in the league, a hall of fame Point Guard who almost single handed dragged a team to the playoffs the year before, and dumping the 6th man of the year whose career collapsed immediately afterwards deserves praise.

 

[licensed to ball]

Essential is finally back, ladies and gentlemen.

 

[CP1708]

All series long, Dwight was getting hammered all series with absolutely no sympathy from the officials. Not saying he deserves a pass for how he handled his frustration, but I don't think it's a big deal as some people are making it out to be.

You and I watched the same series.

I pointed it out all series long, EVERY play, Dwight is tangled with multiple bodies, nothing called. He goes to a spot, bumps a guy too hard, foul on him.

Sometimes those calls happen, he has to work thru that, life goes on, but all series long, the Spurs did nothing but foul him. Nothing. Pop made a great adjustment, if the refs call it closer, that whole team fouls out, the refs let it go, and the Spurs get away with murder.

Then we touch foul and the whistles blow like crazy. See the Manu calls, or the Duncan lay up over Goude and Morris.

Dwight has to fight thru it tho. I can get being frustrated, but I can't back him on letting it affect his play, got to be mentally stronger.

 

[VinMillerHearn58]

**** the Lakers.

Disowned.

Im joining Heat Nation so I know what it feels like to win again.

Cant wait for them to be upset at some point. 

That isn't gonna happen for a while bruh. That team is serious.

 

[CHAOSE57]

Call me crazy but I'm seeing the heat on top for 1-2 years top.

 

[knightngale]

If you're going to give him **** for his "legacy" you also have to give him praise.

Save your response of "What good has he done?" It's pretty typical response that you will give. He got Nash & Dwight to go with Kobe & Pau. In an offseason, where everyone said we'd get nothing done.. He also went out and went after Chris Paul, and successfully got him before it was voided. Did his plan work out? No. But anyone who gives a guy **** for getting the best center in the league, a hall of fame Point Guard who almost single handed dragged a team to the playoffs the year before, and dumping the 6th man of the year whose career collapsed immediately afterwards deserves praise.

He got a 39 year old Nash by giving up 2 first round picks a second rounder and also giving him a 9 mil a year contract.

He got Dwight for Bynum who was at the time considered the 2nd best center in the league. Some people even had him as the best center .

Wait, why should he get credit for giving away Odom for basically nothing? a trade exemption? Odom had more value than that at the time and his career had not gone down the drain yet. He basically gave him away to the Mavs and did not even get a 2nd round picks. That was a terrible trade.

The lakers have been giving away draft picks since his dad started giving him the reigns to the franchise. No 1st round draft picks 6 years in a row? Where dey do dat at? Pretty sure that is not Mitch's work.

He has had 3 years to trade Gasol. Gasol had some value before and needed to be traded. Keeping him has not been a positive. Do I need to even mention his anti-depth movement? his willingness to sign scrubs for long term contracts? His hiring of Brown and Dantoni instead of Adelman or Jackson?

The Chris Paul trade was not successful.

 

[frenchblue23]

What exactly can a team do with a player option like Metta besides Amnesty? Buy out? I would think it would be cheaper. But amnesty would probably be best.

Buy out that disgusting contract that Duhon has, or include him in a packaged trade with Gasol.

I wouldn't want to be Mitch right now, that's all I can say.

 

[pmatic]

Kevin Pelton:

Lakers must focus on what's next

When Kobe Bryant hobbled off the court with a ruptured Achilles on April 12, it marked the end of the Kobe era in Los Angeles Lakers history. That's not to say that Bryant won't come back (he will), or even that he won't excel after surgery to repair his Achilles tendon. But his uncertain status means that, for the first time since the Lakers traded Shaquille O'Neal to the Miami Heat in the summer of 2004, Bryant won't be the focal point of everything the team does.

The Lakers have been preparing for this moment. Throughout franchise history, the Lakers have been able to find a replacement whenever they have lost a superstar. Ideally, this transition will be like when Magic Johnson took the conch from Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the mid-1980s, increasing his scoring while Abdul-Jabbar slid into a smaller role in the offense.

In Dwight Howard, the Lakers already have Bryant's heir -- provided Howard re-signs. And general manager Mitch Kupchak has managed L.A.'s payroll so that the Lakers will have enough cap room to potentially add to Howard and Bryant another top player from the star-studded 2014 free agency crop (headlined by LeBron James) -- provided that Bryant accepts a pay cut of at least half his current $28 million salary.

Everything the Lakers do this summer -- and, more importantly, what they don't do -- must be filtered through the perspective of the summer of 2014 and the next era of Lakers basketball.

Amnesty?
The first big decision the Lakers must make is how to use the one-time amnesty provision of the current collective bargaining agreement. Because all their eligible players are entering the final season of their contracts, it's now or never for the Lakers and amnesty.

Barring an unexpected setback in his rehab, we can safely rule out Bryant despite the potential financial windfall. That leaves Kupchak and company considering Pau Gasol and Metta World Peace as amnesty candidates. If Howard re-signs, using amnesty on Gasol would save approximately $62 million by the calculations of ESPN's cap guru Larry ****, while dumping World Peace would save the Lakers around $23 million.

Strictly financially, Gasol is an easy choice. It's hard to imagine his contributions being worth $39 million more to a team that's unlikely to contend for a championship. Still, Gasol remains too valuable on the court to let walk for nothing in return. There's also the possibility of trading Gasol, which Kupchak will surely explore before having to make a decision. World Peace's contract is closer to untradable. That's why he's the most likely amnesty candidate.

Free Agency
It's Dwight or bust for the Lakers, who must re-sign their star center, one of the top-two free agents on the market along with Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers. Any questions about Howard's health in the wake of back surgery were answered by the way he played during the second half of the season. Following the All-Star break, Howard averaged 17.7 points, 13.1 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per 36 minutes. Compare that to his 2010-11 marks of 21.9, 13.5 and 2.3, which earned him second place in MVP voting. The disappointing way both Howard and the Lakers ended their season shouldn't change his importance to the franchise's future.

Besides Howard, free agency figures to be relatively uneventful for the Lakers. They'll be armed only with the taxpayer midlevel exception of $3.2 million, and given the focus on the summer of 2014, the Lakers will probably only be willing to offer one-year contracts. Beyond that, teams like the Miami Heat and possibly the San Antonio Spurs look like better options for veterans chasing a ring.

If the Lakers are searching for a replacement for World Peace at small forward, they could look at a group including Mike Dunleavy (making $3.75 million this season) and Los Angeles native Dorell Wright ($4.1 million). Kyle Korver ($5.0 million) is probably out of their price range, and the best candidate, Matt Barnes ($0.9 million), left the Lakers on bad terms last summer.

Trades
As mentioned previously, Kupchak will surely consider dealing Gasol, an enormous expiring contract. A Gasol trade could benefit the Lakers in two ways. Moving him for two smaller deals (for example, Luol Deng and Rip Hamilton of the Chicago Bulls) could help the team's depth, an issue all season long. Or the Lakers could consider trading Gasol to a team like the Houston Rockets that will be under the cap and won't have to send back equivalent salary in return. Finding the right fit will be difficult, but Gasol is a unique trade asset.

Besides Gasol, the Lakers' best trade asset might be Chris Duhon. Don't laugh! Duhon's contract is guaranteed for just $1.5 million next season if waived before June 30, making him something of an instant expiring contract for teams trying to clear cap space this summer. For example, if Dallas is desperate for more room, the Mavericks could save $1.6 million by swapping Vince Carter for Duhon, giving the Lakers a better one-year rental at small forward than they could get in free agency and allowing them to use the midlevel on another player or two.

Filling Out the Roster
If they use amnesty on World Peace, waive Duhon and decline Jodie Meeks' $1.5 million team option, the Lakers will have just five players signed entering free agency. To compete in 2013-14, they'll have to do a much better job of filling those spots. The failure of the Lakers' reserves was a key reason why Mike D'Antoni had to play his starters, including Bryant, so many minutes down the stretch.

To see the alternative, the Lakers needed look no further than the other bench during their first-round series. The San Antonio Spurs have built around their stars by signing overseas standouts like Gary Neal, plucking players like Danny Green from the D-League and hitting on second-round picks like DeJuan Blair. Or consider the Houston Rockets, who are constantly working to upgrade the end of their roster. That resulted in Houston finding Patrick Beverley, a successful starter in the playoffs who was originally drafted with a pick the Lakers sold away on draft night.

The youth Kupchak has tried to inject into the roster (Devin Ebanks, Andrew Goudelock, Darius Morris and Robert Sacre) has been largely ineffective. But this summer gives the Lakers another opportunity to upgrade their bench, and Insider's Amin Elhassan recently offered a low-cost shopping list.

No matter how well the Lakers fill out the roster, next season figures to be tough because of the advancing age and injury-prone nature of the team's core. If Howard re-signs, however, the summer of 2014 promises a brighter future for the next Lakers era.

 

[licensed to ball]

Essential, CP, someone...
Post the free agent list for the upcoming off-season.

It's time to get to work. Normally I'm not a fan of crazy fantasy trade or signing scenarios that are just unrealistic and a waste of time, but we have no choice but to come up with some now. We gotta be creative, were in such a deep hole financially.

Plus, the seasons over so there's not much to do but to fantasize now.

I'll sharpen my pencil, grab a notebook, and get ready to work my magic while I'm waiting for the list.

 

[grandtheftbike]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/2013-nba-free-agents

 

[Coupé It]

Question.

What's the exact number the Lakers can offer Dwight? It's 117 million for 5 years, right? What about another team?

 

[grandtheftbike]

i believe its ~118mil/5 years or 88mil/4 years?

 

[pmatic]

The Lakers can offer five years-$118 million and opposing teams can offer four years-$88 million.

Stream to today's exit interviews.

 

[Coupé It]

The Lakers can offer five years-$118 million and opposing teams can offer four years-$88 million.

Stream to today's exit interviews.

Okay, right. So with California state income tax being 10%, that's 18 million out the window. Teams like Houston or Dallas, being that they're in a secular universe (Texas), they have no state income taxes.

So Dallas and Houston can pitch 88 million for 4 years opposed to the Lakers 100 million for 5 years. In actuality, on average, he'd make more per year in Texas. - just something to add. Why in gods name is California's state income tax so damn high tho

 

[tay1]

it's pretty clear you don't know anything about basketball/lakers.

restructure deals

lock up hill?

Okay I didn't know that we couldn't restructure a contract. Big ******g deal. 

 

[licensed to ball]

We need to sign Nate Rob.