Official Los Angeles Lakers Thread

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1/22/04: 104-87

I wasn't too far off the other day with respect to the score of Lakers vs Dallas

Lakers played fairly well, going so far as 65-65 in early 3rd quarter

then we got blitzed on a 23-4 run, and that was the end of that.

We really only have 2 scorers: Payton and Kareem Rush

and Rush should have shot the ball every time he touched it.

oh well, just another road loss, our 9th in a row

it's off to Utah Saturday

boy oh boy...we might slip out of the playoffshunt!!

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1/24/04: Lakers beat Utah, I forget the score

boy, it's good to see talent!

It's one thing when subpar players are paid outrageous millions (like Austin Croshere, and his 5 year, $55M, garnered after a tremendous post-season play vs the Lakers in the 2000 playoffs; he hasn't done a damn thing since then)

but Kobe deserves the millions and so much more!!

Kobe came back; the shoulder still hurt him (later in the game, he ran while leaning to his right, and rarely double-pumped to fake a player into the air, then lean into the player to draw the foul), but he came out shooting 4-8 in the 1st quarter, and ended up with 21 points, 6 boards, 4 assists, but missed about 5-6 free throws, a rarity due to his hurt shoulder

Phil Jackson, in an interview in the LA Daily News newspaper, gave a LONG interview, and parts of it included him saying that this is Shaq's team, and that Kobe will have to fit into this structure

Phil said he talked privately with Kobe about this, comparing this situation b/t Kobe and Shaq to the Magic and Kareem situation.

At the beginning, it was Kareem's team....and as the years went by, Kareem handed the reins over to Magic when Kareem got older, and his skills declined.

As Shaq gets older, he'll play less games a season, less minutes a game, and presumably, will be mature enough to acknowledge that this is now Kobe's team.....but for 1-2 more years, Shaq will still be the Most Dominant.

Can Kobe handle this, as he looks to sign a new contract this offseason (Lakers are the only ones who can pay him the most; other teams, by league rules, have to pay Kobe $12M less)?

Will Kobe move on?

If so, Kobe better be smart, and move to San Antonio to be with Tim Duncan

No way Kobe can win a championship alone.

Jordan didn't win crap, until the cavalry (Horace Grant, Pippen, Kerr, Rodman, Phil Jackson) came.

You can stop Kobe, albeit, it takes constant double and triple teams.

So, if he's stupid enough to go to any team (other than the Spurs, or perhaps the Pacers), there's no way he'll do anything other than make money and score lots of points on a bunch of shots!!

[minew_m]

Damn I'm gald Kobe is back. Now they finally have 1 more scorer. Nothing against Rush who played in his place, but he isn't a Kobe Bryant. Medvedenko still led the way in scoring which is very impressive. Hopefully now Shaq can return Wednesday.

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I am hoping Shaq returns by Friday at the latest, when we play Minnesota!

[minew_m]

That will be a good game if Shaq can return. All the Lakers really need are bodies on the court now. Another one went down in rookie Brian Cook. That will hurt them more than people think. He was quite productive (more than Walton) off the bench. Also Fox still hasn't made his season debut yet. That is another valuable asset to the Lakers squad!

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Originally posted by minew_m
That will be a good game if Shaq can return. All the Lakers really need are bodies on the court now. Another one went down in rookie Brian Cook. That will hurt them more than people think. He was quite productive (more than Walton) off the bench. Also Fox still hasn't made his season debut yet. That is another valuable asset to the Lakers squad!

agree!!!

Cook looks like he will be more of an asset - able to defend, rebound, and score

Walton is a great passer, average rebounder, average on defense, and rarely looks to shoot. It's amazing how bad his shots look - it's like he's never shot a basketball before

Can't wait for Fox to return; Fox was the ultimate Peja stopper!

[minew_m]

I know! I noticed the same thing about Walton's shot. It is pretty terrible looking. Good news for Fox though. They activated him off of the injured list. Could be any day now that he returns!!

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Well, news out today after Shaq was examined is that the big p*ssy is afraid he'll hurt his calf more, so he's going to stay out until things get fully resolved.

Meanwhile, Kobe plays while in pain.

[minew_m]

I can see Shaq (and the coaches concern). With the type of injury he had, if he plays on it while it isn't fully healed, it could easily rupture. Then he would be out for at least a season. With Kobe's injury, there isn't any risk of damaging anything else. That was the only reason he was cleared to play.

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Minew - yea, that is an excellent point!!

couldn't have said it better myself.

but, Shaq's been hurt off and on these past 4 seasons, and he wants a MASSIVE extension for 4-7 more years?!?!

I think 3-4 definitely, but at his weight, and with the fact he doesn't work out in the summers, he'll be useless after 3-4 more years