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

[DLF]

Last season seemed like that roster wasn't very popular...fans and media included.

All year long a lot criticism was directed at Dennis, Trez, Gasol, Drummond, and at times throughout the season KCP, and Kuz got their share of heat as well.

Now a year later seems like most people would gladly have that same roster back...and the same talking heads who dismissed that roster are speaking about those players who left in high regards. Funny how that works smh...

It’s all relative

Were kuzma Dennis Trez and kcp great? No. But compared to Russ, baze, Ellington, bradley, DJ- they are damn near hall of famers.

It’s like: hey let’s make a change. Ok. Let me give you the worst possible change and see if you complain.

 

[pmatic]

Schroeder had no vision, Trez wasn't a reliable defender, KCP/Matthews were streaky. Kuz, Gasol and Drummond were fine to me until the playoffs hit.

Meanwhile, DJ shouldn't be on a roster, Bazemore is reckless, Ellington is a one trick pony, Bradley is getting by on reputation.

 

[DLF]

Schroeder had no vision, Trez wasn't a reliable defender, KCP/Matthews were streaky. Kuz, Gasol and Drummond were fine to me until the playoffs hit.

Meanwhile, DJ shouldn't be on a roster, Bazemore is reckless, Ellington is a one trick pony, Bradley is getting by on reputation.

This. But kcp was a hell of a defender. Kuzma was improving defensively. Shroeder had good point of attack defense. Trading them was ok but not for Russ and a band of vet min misfits. Both can be true.

Nobody is saying kuz and kcp were all stars but if the clippers can get Powell and Covington for the corpse of Bledsoe and a second rounder, we coulda damn sure used kcp and kuzma better in trades. Further: shroeder was fine as a 6th man. Poor use and *** kissing by management to appease him.

To make it worse, we offered him 22 mill a year. Lol ****ing idiots

 

[Brosizzlew30.23]

Even sadder is you got former Lakers Gary Payton II and Javale McGee absolutely thriving in their defensive roles playing regularly on two championship contenders. Lol

Lakers dismantled a title winning team only to come back to square one a short two yrs later. Now they have only one player from their farm system (THT) whose trade value is sinking fast, a bargain guard in Nunn who hasnt played all year, and very little else to build with.

The all-in gamble that is Russell Westbrook has failed miserably and it would take a miracle to trade him by Thursday's deadline.

It's a Laker clusterfk

 

[tay1]

Wonder if we’d ever sit him like Wall or have buyout discussions with him. Why Not?

We didn’t wanna sign Caruso for the little he asked for. You think we gon buyout Russ?

 

[pmatic]

Russ will be traded in the summer. Easier to construct a three or four team trade with open roster spots.

No team would be dumb enough to trade three to four of their own players for him.

 

[noblekane]

Last season seemed like that roster wasn't very popular...fans and media included.

All year long a lot criticism was directed at Dennis, Trez, Gasol, Drummond, and at times throughout the season KCP, and Kuz got their share of heat as well.

Now a year later seems like most people would gladly have that same roster back...and the same talking heads who dismissed that roster are speaking about those players who left in high regards. Funny how that works smh...

the reason last year didnt work out well?

frank ****ing vogel.

he would do the weirdest **** throughout the season

refused to play certain players if he played others.

refused to remove schroder and drummond from the starting line up.

wouldnt play certain players all game then randomly insert them in the third or 4th quarter.

even when players would be playing like absolute dog **** he would refuse to take them out.

just talking about last year gets me heated.

 

[Lizakers]

We didn’t wanna sign Caruso for the little he asked for. You think we gon buyout Russ?

Well buying him out will save the lakers some money. And we’d play better, make the playoffs, and make Jeanie some more money with a few extra home games lol

Maybe they’ve had buyout talks on the low and that’s why Russ’ mental is all fu**ed

 

[CP1708]

the reason last year didnt work out well?

frank ****ing vogel.

he would do the weirdest **** throughout the season

refused to play certain players if he played others.

refused to remove schroder and drummond from the starting line up.

wouldnt play certain players all game then randomly insert them in the third or 4th quarter.

even when players would be playing like absolute dog **** he would refuse to take them out.

just talking about last year gets me heated.

So......the coach that won the title in October forgot how to coach by December?

 

[noblekane]

So......the coach that won the title in October forgot how to coach by December?

lebron james and anthony davis won that title.

luke walton won how many games with the warriors?

then proceeded to suck *** with the lakers and kings.

only so many times 2 of the top 5 players can save your *** from getting fired when one is injury prone and the other is getting up there in age.

 

[DLF]

If we did a top players in LA what would it look like?

1) lebron
2) Kawhi assuming health
3) AD
4) PG
5) Powell
6) Reggie
7) Morris
zubac
9) Mann
10) Monk
11) Kennard
12) Batum
12) Ibaka
13) Coffey
14) Hartenstein
15) covington
16) reaves
17) melo
1 Johnson
19) Westbrook
20) THT
21) rest of lakers scrubs

Coaches:
1) lue
2) all of his assistants
4) handy
5) fiz
6) vogel

Front office
1) west
2) Lawrence frank
3) Rich paul
4) pelinka
5) Linda’s nice ***

Owner:
1) ballmer







6) Jeanie

If we combined LA teams for the playoffs. We might be able to win it all

Ad/Zubac/Ibaka
Lebron/Morris/Melo
Powell/Covington/batum
Mann/Kennard/Monk
Reggie/Reaves/coffey

do it Silver

 

[darthska]

So......the coach that won the title in October forgot how to coach by December?

Or... the coach road the tails of AD & Bron being a league problem.

Your logic that he was a great coach but just a few months later forgot everything also works in reverse: A coach who Larry Bird couldn't stand and who did absolute Jack crap in Orlando figured it all out in one season en route to a championship?

-foe

 

[noblekane]

a damn shame kawhi is always injured.

clippers would look like title favorites.

 

[tay1]

We’re 14th in defensive efficiency but 24th in offensive efficiency. Middle of the pack defensive but terrible on offense.

We gotta get that together.

 

[freeze]

Please appreciate LeBron while he is here with us folks.

Not too many players take their craft this serious.

He’s a fanatic, all he wanna do is play….

Kinda remind me of another PSYCHOPATH I got to know over the years

Lolllll he's NOTHING like Kobe.

You think he's a psycho like bean because he warms up in pregame?

Can't wait til he's up outta LA

 

[freeze]

Hell no

Hustling backwards. Would be making our rivals (nets) better.

Russ and KD back? Issa wrap for da league

How are the nets the Lakers rivals exactly? Lmaooo

 

[CP1708]

lebron james and anthony davis won that title.

luke walton won how many games with the warriors?

then proceeded to suck *** with the lakers and kings.

only so many times 2 of the top 5 players can save your *** from getting fired when one is injury prone and the other is getting up there in age.

Oh, so players on the court matter more than the coach? What an interesting concept........

Or... the coach road the tails of AD & Bron being a league problem.

Your logic that he was a great coach but just a few months later forgot everything also works in reverse: A coach who Larry Bird couldn't stand and who did absolute Jack crap in Orlando figured it all out in one season en route to a championship?

-foe

Note, never once have I said great coach. Never that.
Note, same coach gave PRIME LEBRON JAMES (With Wade and Bosh) absolute fits with Roy Hibbett and Lance Stevenson
So.....he coached well in Indy with good players, lost terribly in Orlando with crap players, and won a title with great players. The same exact guy.......

It's almost like.........naaaaawwww........well....it's almost like.......players mean more than suits. Cuz the same exact suit had 3 completely different sets of results with 3 diff units. That's so weird.

Surely getting another suit......will fix our players tho.......

I guess if Bron and AD stayed healthy and dominant........he'd suddenly coach better.......

 

[had pants]

 

[tupac003]

Had NBA central posted anything legit? Lol

 

[darthska]

he's NOTHING like Kobe.

You think he's a psycho like bean because he warms up in pregame?

You don't stay productive as long as he has by being casual about what you do.

Yes, he's a basketball 'psycho' if that's the word du jour. Sure, I'll agree Kobe was more psycho, but they're both basketball junkies.

-foe

 

[darthska]

So.....he coached well in Indy with good players, lost terribly in Orlando with crap players, and won a title with great players. The same exact guy.......

It's almost like.........naaaaawwww........well....it's almost like.......players mean more than suits. Cuz the same exact suit had 3 completely different sets of results with 3 diff units. That's so weird.

Surely getting another suit......will fix our players tho.......

I guess if Bron and AD stayed healthy and dominant........he'd suddenly coach better.......

Your approach is is too black-and-white for me to even dignify all that with a response, but I'm an idiot so here goes:

Gray area.

If I were coaching and the team had to do what I said and I decided we need size so I roll out a SLU of Russ/Avery/Johnson/Dwight/Jordan, we'd get killed. I'm the coach. Bron & Monk available, but we're losing games.

Save the sarcasm and pretend to get the point. "It's almost like... naaaw... couldn't be..."

It's almost like even with stellar Center production, you could maybe improve your Guard production with different pieces.

It's almost like even with solid starting lineup, you could maybe improve your bench production with different pieces.

It's almost like even with a an extremely talented and balanced roster top to bottom, you could improve your front office with different pieces.

It's almost like you could have pieces that are awesome and other pieces that could be improved upon regardless of how terrible or great the other pieces are.

It's almost like we can have AD and Bron healthy, but have better coaching production with a different piece.

It's really not that difficult of a concept.

Gray area. It's not "Bron/AD healthy, coach good. Bron/AD miss games, coach bad."

I rocked with Dfish hard during all 5 of his titles. I'm not an idiot about DFish. Like I know he was no Kidd/Nash. So imagine during that 1st title run, Shaq is out a week and we lose all of those games that week, and my man DFish played horrible. Just terrible, by all measurements. Someone says "Man, we gotta do something about Fish. I wonder if we could trade him?" And I bark back, "Shaq is out. The problem isn't Fisher, it's that we don't have Shaq. It's almost like... naw couldn't be... if we have the most dominant player in the game today, then Fisher looks awesome."

It's a black-and-white approach that fails to acknowledge that separate elements can be 'better' regardless of OTHER elements.

-foe

 

[pmatic]

 

[CP1708]

Your approach is is too black-and-white for me to even dignify all that with a response, but I'm an idiot so here goes:

Gray area.

If I were coaching and the team had to do what I said and I decided we need size so I roll out a SLU of Russ/Avery/Johnson/Dwight/Jordan, we'd get killed. I'm the coach. Bron & Monk available, but we're losing games.

Save the sarcasm and pretend to get the point. "It's almost like... naaaw... couldn't be..."

It's almost like even with stellar Center production, you could maybe improve your Guard production with different pieces.

It's almost like even with solid starting lineup, you could maybe improve your bench production with different pieces.

It's almost like even with a an extremely talented and balanced roster top to bottom, you could improve your front office with different pieces.

It's almost like you could have pieces that are awesome and other pieces that could be improved upon regardless of how terrible or great the other pieces are.

It's almost like we can have AD and Bron healthy, but have better coaching production with a different piece.

It's really not that difficult of a concept.

Gray area. It's not "Bron/AD healthy, coach good. Bron/AD miss games, coach bad."

I rocked with Dfish hard during all 5 of his titles. I'm not an idiot about DFish. Like I know he was no Kidd/Nash. So imagine during that 1st title run, Shaq is out a week and we lose all of those games that week, and my man DFish played horrible. Just terrible, by all measurements. Someone says "Man, we gotta do something about Fish. I wonder if we could trade him?" And I bark back, "Shaq is out. The problem isn't Fisher, it's that we don't have Shaq. It's almost like... naw couldn't be... if we have the most dominant player in the game today, then Fisher looks awesome."

It's a black-and-white approach that fails to acknowledge that separate elements can be 'better' regardless of OTHER elements.

-foe

Your approach is is too black-and-white for me to even dignify all that with a response, but I'm an idiot so here goes:

Gray area.

If I were coaching and the team had to do what I said and I decided we need size so I roll out a SLU of Russ/Avery/Johnson/Dwight/Jordan, we'd get killed. I'm the coach. Bron & Monk available, but we're losing games.

Save the sarcasm and pretend to get the point. "It's almost like... naaaw... couldn't be..."

It's almost like even with stellar Center production, you could maybe improve your Guard production with different pieces.

It's almost like even with solid starting lineup, you could maybe improve your bench production with different pieces.

It's almost like even with a an extremely talented and balanced roster top to bottom, you could improve your front office with different pieces.

It's almost like you could have pieces that are awesome and other pieces that could be improved upon regardless of how terrible or great the other pieces are.

It's almost like we can have AD and Bron healthy, but have better coaching production with a different piece.

It's really not that difficult of a concept.

Gray area. It's not "Bron/AD healthy, coach good. Bron/AD miss games, coach bad."

I rocked with Dfish hard during all 5 of his titles. I'm not an idiot about DFish. Like I know he was no Kidd/Nash. So imagine during that 1st title run, Shaq is out a week and we lose all of those games that week, and my man DFish played horrible. Just terrible, by all measurements. Someone says "Man, we gotta do something about Fish. I wonder if we could trade him?" And I bark back, "Shaq is out. The problem isn't Fisher, it's that we don't have Shaq. It's almost like... naw couldn't be... if we have the most dominant player in the game today, then Fisher looks awesome."

It's a black-and-white approach that fails to acknowledge that separate elements can be 'better' regardless of OTHER elements.

-foe

That is correct, there is a gray area.......IF YOU HAVE THE PLAYERS TO EXECUTE THAT.

You said it yourself, IF you have a Center. The other night, Dwight out, AD starts at Center, Bron is trying to play Center (first game back in 2 weeks) He HAD to go to Jordan........for 3 minutes. For THREE ****ING minutes. They were -4 in those 3 minutes. Now, mind you, the Knicks started the game 11-0 in 3 minutes with AD on the court, and no one said **** about it. But Jordan plays 3 minutes and the place erupts. Was Dwight available? No.

Was Melo available? No.

Was Nunn available? No.

The man has played more lineups than any coach in the league. He's tried big. He's tried small. Young, old. He's played guys LITERALLY, and I do mean this, LITERALLY, off the street, and they have actually STARTED games.

He's played a white rookie. A guy off the street, and this stupid *** fanbase screaming "PLAY THEM MOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRREEEEEE"

Does anyone actually non black and white sit back and realize how incredibly stupid they sound shouting that, and then BLAMING THE COACH?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

He played DJ, and benched him.
He played Ellington, and benched him.
He played Bazemore, and benched him.
He's played Isiah Thomas.
Stanley Johnson.
Darren Collison.

This sure sounds like a coach searching like hell for something.

Russell Westbrook. The guy nobody wanted but Laker ownership (and their two best players) and everyone wants him to sit that guy. So again, non black and white, say it with me now, trade all our depth for Russ, then bench Russ......blame the coach.

Nunn out all year, Bron in and out, AD in and out, Dwight in and out, Melo in and out, Ariza in and out, half the team had Covid at one point, Rondo a failed attempt at the season, hell, our 3rd best player is a minimum salary Malik Monk that nobody else in the NBA wanted.......does that not sound like something of an indictment on the rest of the roster? Why hold the HEAD COACH over the coals over something like that?

So, let's talk it out slowly now......

Bron/AD, have to be there and be healthy. Hasn't happened.
Russ has to be decent. LOL.
Monk is our next best go to.
The rookie Reaves.
Melo, complete food on defense.
Stanley Johnson off the street.
Dwight, sometimes. Who locks up the offense spacing at times he's on the floor.

And everyone else is worthless.

So the head coach is down to 2 elite stars who play maybe 50% of the time, a 3rd star who has been atrocious, a white rookie, a minimum guy, a guy of the street, and 3rd stop old guy Dwight. Oh, and Melo, who's older than LeBron and not close to the defender we need. Oh, and Ariza..........

Blame. The. Coach.

There is no lineup(s) that he can use for 48 minutes a night EVERY night and survive. So just ****ing fire him already so everyone can cheer and celebrate and the next suit comes in annnnnnnnnddddddd, nothing changes. Because the roster is bone dry, minus the two elite guys being elite and a 3rd guy can emerge from time to time in Melo or Monk.

I know the gray area fam, I'm not stupid. But gray area doesn't point to the common denominator with this fanbase that is continually blaming the coach for every single issue, when the real actual true issue is the players on the court, or the players available to be on the court.

 

[tupac003]

C CP1708 I agree that Vogel isn't the major problem...

But we know he is a part of the problem with some of the line ups he rolls out and the adjustments he doesn't make some times.

I'm glad he sat DJ and Westbrook last game but more often then not, he doesn’t make the adjustment or waits until we are out of the game to make it right adjustment.

Firing him now IMO won't do anything to help but after this year he is probably gone.

 

[tay1]

Lakers gonna stick with Vogel. Not many good coaches to choose from anyway.