It doesn't really matter now, since he has Kobe, Gasol, Odom, and Bynum on his team.
You think Artest is going to plant a bomb in the Lakers lockerroom or something?
It doesn't really matter now, since he has Kobe, Gasol, Odom, and Bynum on his team.
He cant create his own shot like Manu or Vince and he doesnt even belong in the same sentence as Ray Allen (considering one is a pure shooter and the other is all athlete).
& furthermore on this subject:::your max payoff is markedly higher than ours. If Ginobili is whole again you gain much more than if Artest satisfies our "need." That "need" is unknown. Manu's "wholeness" has a stark reality, a finished painting hangs there in San Antonio, everywhere.
I love it. Two best franchises in the league. Premier teams of the 21st century. Lakers, Spurs. Its how its supposed to be.
Lets go.![]()
I God's, Luva hits it. And its a slippery slope for Kobe. Artest wants of Kobe what Daddy wanted of Kobe. Kobe wasn't Artest though and wanted no part of it, and it literally broke Daddy's heart at first and then made him bitter. Is Kobe going to want that constant adoration? It's like when a woman wants you, but, you don't want her. I hate that feeling. I'd rather want the woman and her not want me (me & Kori comes immediately to mind) than the other way.
Ironically to your point Gino Jefferson being a "Pure Athlete" is just what we need at the 3.
Lamar Odom returning to the Lakers. Gee what a shock, never saw that one coming. Am I reading correctly?
anyone playing with Kidd can drop decent numbers of points night in and night out, since Kidd always feeds you perfect assists and never takes too many shots from your hand. With Kidd as our PG, the Mavs got 3 guys last season averaging around 20 points per night. For an improper imagination, Kidd is just like the engine of a team, which gives the whole team source of power but never let anyone see him. Only when dude is missing can we notice what an important role he plays.
Lamar Odom re-signs with the Lakers
By Kelly Dwyer
Ball Don't Lie
It's a great line to toss out, especially with a bit of wry sarcasm, so we like to save it for only the best of occasions. This is one of those occasions:
My fellow Americans (and Skeets as well), our long, national nightmare is over.
Lamar Odom has signed a contract to play basketball next season.
And for two seasons after that, with a team option for a fourth year. That option belongs to the Los Angeles Lakers, because the Los Angeles Lakers were the team that Lamar Odom signed with.
Not the Miami Heat, or Portland Trail Blazers; two outfits that would have flourished with Odom in the lineup, but the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers.
It's a suitable ending to an annoying month of free agent machinations, with Odom's dalliances ranking as the chief annoyance.
From the outset, it was clear that teams were underrating the 29-year old forward, who backed himself into a corner by repeatedly professing his desire to remain a Laker throughout his contract year in 2008-09.
Odom's candid nature (for shame!) and anti-stat hoarding ways possibly cost him a few million, but he also gets to stay in the city he wants to, working on the team he wants to, for a reported four years and $33 million (should the Lakers pick up that team option).
And while we rip Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss for playing a hard juice card with Odom when he didn't have to, especially when Odom essentially sacrificed his own juice card for the good of the Lakers last season, the fact remains that Buss is under no obligation to spend his money as we sit fit. And not even counting coach Phil Jackson's eight-figure salary, Buss' Laker payroll for players alone will spiral well over $100 million once all the luxury tax costs are factored in.
What does he get from this? A likely champion, if everything goes right. An athletic team on both ends that is pleasing to the eye, and appealing to the TV audience and sponsors. A team that not only will play on Christmas, but also well into June. Again, if everything goes right.
And Lamar Odom helps everything go right. He's one of the team's best help defenders. He's the team's best rebounder. Its most creative passer. He runs the offense with Kobe Bryant on the bench, something that no other Laker save for Derek Fisher (getting on in years) and Bryant can do properly. If Odom split to Miami or Portland, the Lakers would have had a right mess with the starting backcourt on the bench, or even with one out on the floor.
It's a great deal, for all sides. The Lakers get their do-everything, team-first forward at a fair price, Odom gets to stay in Los Angeles, and over seven million a year to play basketball for the champs is about right. I rate the guy as an eight figures sort of player, I'm sure most of you feel the same way, but the market is the market. So it goes.
And so we move on. Tomorrow is the last day of July, a month that brought us some wacked-out free agent machinations, some surprising twists, some appealing turns, and a whole lot of fodder for BDL to bash through.
August? Get ready for a real, real close examination of Ramon Sessions. We might have to take up shop in the cat's front lawn.
That's the NBA. From one nightmare to the next.
Since you dont believe me, lets see Hollinger's take:
Scouting report: Jefferson is an explosive driver, especially going to his right from the right side, and is among the best in the league at running the floor -- again, virtually always on the right side. The change is that he now has become a good enough midrange jump shooter that teams have to respect his shot.
He's not a great ball-handler and will make bad decisions and/or take poor shots when he's put into positions to create; as a result, he's much better used finishing what other players start, as he did to such great effect with Jason Kidd while in New Jersey.
Jefferson was the Nets' top wing defender the past three years, but seemed to pay less mind to that role last season; in fact, the Nets allowed 5.6 points per 48 minutes more when he was on the court.
No matter if the 4 year 33 million is overpaid, it's still guaranteed a smart move for Lakers team. As to the financial situation the boys in blue are facing, the Lakers are also very deep beyond the luxury threshold line and the salary cap. for teams in such a situation, letting a FA walk doesn't make any sense since no salary space can be saved by the departure. It only saves the owner some money, but can not dump the salary to somewhere below the salary cap. Donnie could have re-signed Brandon Bass at mid-level with early bird rights, i mean he didnt need to break the MLE to retain Bass but dude remained dumb and let him walk eventually.
KSeal,
Do you have the original picture for that avatar? If it's big enough, I'm going to try to turn that into a wallpaper.
So let me get this straight Lamar did come back crawling to the Lakers? 4years 33mil with that last year being a team option. So thats really a 3year 24mil~ deal? or is it 10mil a year the first 3 years with 3mil left over for the 4th?
http://art4collectors.com/magic_johnson.jpg
This is the biggest one I know of.
It's 25 million over the first three years and then 2 million the fourth year if the Lakers don't pick up the option.
1000 is right. And that f'in leech Riley got his as well. He didn't even want Odom for his own benefit. He just wanted to deny us.
Rich deal will keep Odom with Lakers
Lamar Odom will remain with the NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers after agreeing to a deal for at least three years worth a minimum of 27 million dollars, ESPN reported Thursday.
The deal, not confirmed by the club, would give the forward 25 million dollars for the first three seasons of the contract with the Lakers holding an fourth-season option at eight million dollars or a two million-dollar buyout.
Odom, who turns 30 next November, averaged 11.3 points and 8.2 rebounds in the regular season and led the Lakers with a club-best 98 blocked shots. In the playoffs, Odom averaged 12.3 points and 9.1 rebounds a game.
The Miami Heat had also made a play for Odom, pitching up to 34 million over five seasons to have Odom join superstar guard Dwyane Wade after the Lakers pulled back from an earlier offer to Odom.
Instead, Odom's return secures the final major player from the championship run to return to the Lakers in hopes of a repeat bid next season.
The lone major loss was reserve forward Trevor Ariza, who left for Houston after the Lakers landed former Rockets standout Ron Artest.
I dont believe that. What team WOULDNT want Odom for the MLE?
Its the freaking MLE! How in the world did this just happen?
Lamar Odom just got the same contract as Shawn Marion?!!!
I just caught our da raising the white flag over at phxsuns.net:::
da_suns_fan
Veteran
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 539
Re: News for July 20 - 26, 2009
Hollinger and a couple other unconfirmed sources are saying the Odom is going back to LA.
There goes anyone else's chance at the le.
__________________
At least some people (whether or not I'm a big fan of theirs or not) understand how much better the top of the league is now than it was in 2007.
Are the 2007 Suns even a top 5 team in today's NBA?
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