Lakers did have superiority over the Rockets last season. Good job.
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Lakers suck. If they did have a revolving door on their bandwagon, they'd have no fans at all.
It's the only true constant in the universe.
The Spurs were not going to win it all last season even with a healthy Ginobili.
They had subpar defense, a weak frontcourt, and no bench.
Stop being ridiculous.
And LA was such a weak champion they went 4-0 against both BOS and CLE. It's not their fault neither of those teams were good enough to make it to the Finals. And for the record, I don't think even with a healthy KG that BOS makes it past CLE without HCA. That's just not happening, considering a far inferior Cavs team took them to 7 games the previous season.
My favorite part about that thread was the "Bynum is a Duncan stopper" comment.
Also, if the Miami thing goes down, LA basically traded Odom and Ariza for Artest. They don't have to suck now, but they're surely not as good.
Actually, it's not so much that the Lakers suck. They've got some good players and good coaching. Sure, they have some complete buttholes on the team, but most teams have had those over the years... It's their fans. Lakers fans are complete dicks. You can't have a civil conversation with them. Just look at Dr. House... No matter which forum you go to, there they are. Complete losers with nothing better to do than trolling. With attitude worse than T-park and spork-killer combined.
God... am I reading this shit?
You say that with a healthy KG, the Celtics (essentially the same team from last year with maturing, young talent) weren't good enough make it past Cleveland. Your argument? That they went 7 games against them the previous year... so what. A hobbled Rockets team took the Lakers to seven games, but that doesn't mean next year a healthy Rockets team with Ariza would beat the Lakers. Despite the length of the series, the Celtics beat the Cavs and then humiliated your "ridiculously stacked" Lakers.
Another day, another retarded post from Dr. House :wakeup
This Guy's a Gimmick, has to be.
He says the Spurs are uncertain because the future hasnt played out, but the Lakers are a lock to not only be better, but repeat after losing two KEY players, not role players, KEY players.
He's a Gimmick I tell you, or he's 9 with that line of logic. There's no way any person with a rationale thought can come up with a line of thinking that asinine.
Oh and my favorite part of his argument, the lakers will be better next year because of experience. Because only the team that wins the Championship gains experience, every other team in the league starts at exactly the same as they did last year. George hill will still be a rookie, and Hairston will play like he's just been brought up from the toros.
First of all the Lakers haven't LOST Odom. In all likelihood they resign him, which means this offseason was a success. I'm of the belief that Ron Artest is a better player than Ariza and will upgrade the Lakers at the SF spot, he is a player we've been wanting on the team for a LONG time.
Adding Ron Artest and keeping the core intact means the Lakers will be a better team next season than they were this season. The Lakers will not only have the talent superiority over just about every NBA team, they will have the championship mettle to boot.
I couldn't care less about George Hill or any of your other sophmore players because the Lakers core is better than the Spurs core right now. Assuming Odom resigns the benches will cancel each other out. And we all know Phil has the edge over Pop. I'm not terribly worried about the Spurs.
Really better than Boston too? Lakers core better than the Spurs core?? With every post you seem more and more like a homer who really has no idea what your talking about. Its like you just watch Laker games and nothing else cause your knowledge of the game seems very little.
Your role players have changed but the core hasn't.
And it's the core that is your problem. Duncan's knees, Ginobili's ankles.
The Lakers core has 1 title while the Spurs core has 3. So not only has the Spurs core accomplished more, they also have MORE championship mettle. Boston however is a superior team talent wise compared to LA.
Boston has KG Rondo, Allen, Pierce, KG and Wallace to throw at Fisher, Kobe, Artest, Gasol and Bynum.
And don't be so sure about Odom resigning. Remember, while the Heat aren't more money per season, the contract they're offering comes out to about $34 million over 5 years as opposed to $27 million over 3. So in reality, Odom is guaranteed a paycheck for longer, and the value of the contract is more. Throw in the fact that Florida has no state income tax (reportedly saving him about $1 million a year) and Miami starts becoming a really attractive destination.
Finally, Odom wants to be near the beach and no beach in the US can challenge South Beach as far as nightlife and scenery. Well, maybe the beaches in the Hamptons.
If the Lakers lose Odom, they've dropped down in talent and lost they're biggest mismatch in Odom. Add in the fact they've lost they're best defender on the quick point guards in the league and Laker fans should be worried.
But of course, the bandwagoners are too stupid/arrogant to realize it. I have a vendor at work who's from LA and is a knowledgeable, respectable sports fan. He brings his talk and backs it up with sound facts. And he's not afraid to admit when his team has taken a step back. A manager at my store, from San Diego, is also that way.
Then I have a partner (who I still think is spork because of how much he acts like him) who claims that the Lakers are a lock to win the title even if Odom bolts. Of course, the only way the guy talks about the Lakers is if I steer the conversation that way. Otherwise, he'll talk about how much the Spurs suck all day long.
So I don't count him as a Lakers fan really.
Still not proving any point unless you can sit there and say you personally examined both and they will not be healthy next year. Also since when as a core been all it takes? Once again your knowledge or lack there of is getting the best of you. Role players are very important and when it comes to building a team its all about surrounding your core with the right role players to make a run. If you took the Laker core and compared it to the Spurs they are pretty evenly matched on paper. Yes, health will be the determining factor of who will win the west. Granted if both teams are healthy then it will be a good series and will come down to the wire.
If both Gasol and Bynum are healthy, LO won't even be in there during crunch time, and LO is less important to the Lakers now after the Artest signing, because they have Artest to initiate the offense for the 2nd unit. It's not like 5 bench players subs in for all 5 starting players at the same time. Either Kobe or Artest and Gasol or Bynum will be in there with the 2nd unit, and LO's biggest asset to the Lakers of initiating the offense won't be missed because Artest has handles and more offensive game than LO.
Defensively and rebounding wise, Artest and Powell are better than Ariza and LO, and on half court sets offensively they are also better. Powell has a better midrange jumper than both LO or Ariza, is also a better rebounder, and with Artest's ability to handle the ball and initiate the offense, Powell could be a better fit than LO on the 2nd unit with Artest. It also gives the Lakers' more flexibilty on offense, like posting up Artest and spreading the floor out with Powell's ability to hit to outside shots. LO on this Lakers squad is the 5th option at best, LO doesn't post up much on offense he's either taking jumpshots or taking his man off the dribble. Artest could do both and is also a better postup player than LO. Lakers will loose alot of speed on the 2nd unit, but at the same time the Lakers' are much more physical team with Artest and Powell.
On the Spurs side, Bowen has always been clutch against the Lakers and always played Kobe physically. Jefferson I don't see as a good fit with the Spurs. He will add more speed to the Spur's and will be awesome on fast breaks, but during the playoff's when the game's slowed down, his inconsistent jumper will cause the opposing teams to collapse more on Duncan and Parker, and defensively I don't think he can guard Kobe or Artest.
McDyess has declined quite alot, I really don't see him having much more of an impact than that of Kurt Thomas. Both Gasol and Bynum have a tougher time of scoring on strong and taller players and McDyess at this point in his career isn't the answer. McDyess doesn't have enough length and with his declining athletic ability won't be much of a factor.
P.S. Gutter, from the stuff you write, you 're no better off than bandwagon Lakers' fans, who just talk trash and try to put the other teams down, instead of talking basketball and respecting the other fan bases. Ofcourse having LO give sthe Lakers a better chance and more options, but even without LO, Lakers are still the team to beat and quite possibly with the addition of Artest could be a better playoff team.
As champs the Lakers are the team to beat. However, if they can't resign Odom LA and Spurs are basically even. Kobe is great but Manu can come close to Kobe in scoring and Parker can make up the rest of the difference with his mismatch against Fisher.
Side note: Did anybody else Lol'd at these two posts
Quote:
False , The Lakers have owned the Spurs this decade .
Gasol a Duncan stopper. lmao..Did people already forget how Duncan abuse Gasol in the WCF just a year ago. Also this year Duncan avg 17 points against LA.Quote:
We also have 2 Duncan stoppers in Bynum and Gasol. Both of them play Duncan we well as anyone in the league.