View on lakers as of 12-4

I haven't been able to post much recently due to work/school, but i do keep an eye on ltb almost daily. and until now, I'm satisfied with the lakers team, and FO. Heres why. 1st of all. the FO- My pre-season prediction, about the FO rebuilding is coming true, i'm begining to see the overall design that they are going for. In MY opinion, the FO realized, that kobe will more than likely opt out when he gets the chance, and a trade will destroy the team's season (it proved to be too hard to make a trade that would suit all 3 sides lakers, kobe, other team). So they decided to play the waiting game, and hope kobe resigns when the time comes, if not. good ridance....now why would they just let kobe go? here's a better question...Why wouldn't they? lakers as of today, have a squad of the future hidden in their roster. Farmar- showing all star potential this year..and if his dramatic improvements after the offseasons improve.. can we say.. all star guaranteed. Critt- out of all coaches, phil is the last to compliment rookies...and that's all he's done with Critt. with minutes and experience, it isn't farfetched that he can become a starting sg, or a quality bench player in his career Ariza- i've read up on him a bit, he's a defensive stopper, that is explosive to the basket. his jump shot is less than impressive, but thats something that can be fixed. He can be a defensive anchor on the team in the future. Turiaf- pure hussel player as you all already know..but he also has a decent jump shot. I forsee him becoming more of an offensive force in his career. aka. a solid 3rd option.(he goes hard to the basket giving him easy opportunities) or a....

i agree, the loses we had have come to reat teams, but i disagree, WE NEED A "REAL" SECOND OPTION, odom is a third option.....period.

your right if kobe does decide to opt out i think those five guys you mentioned will be able to step up however i do think we need a real 2 option by trading kwame, sasha, and if we have to luke or vlad take your pick so lamar can become the third option, i like turiuf and vlad but we need a true stong power forward that can consistently give us at least 18 and 12, and i dont think bynum is ready to be it either

sorry i don't think i covered the 2nd option thing. in my eyes. our 2nd option will be farmar or bynum.. and odom will turn into our 3rd.(similar to what AJ said) this season it will be tough, as players emerge and odom's role begins decreasing, just a matter of time..we have the staff needed. just need to tweak it

and as for pf. i do agree we need a big body to step in. but moving players isn't neccessarily the way to go, i think things will settle down once kwame gets back. and turiaf starts keeping out of foul trouble..yes i know not the best tandem in the league, but with turiaf's hussle and kwame's interior defense. it will be enough to keep us in games.

also..if we do end up trading....who would we trade for? our current roster has few players that are of value to other teams. rad... we need for the 3 ball.. sasha..nobody wants. luke... off year..so why would someone trade for him?.. so whats left is our young talent. and if we are in a rebuild mode. our Fo wouldn't want to give them up.

Dfish is more a third option than LO. So that Lil' star on his head didn't really help him this season so far.. hahahaha.

haha it seems that way, but fish's playing time is going down cause of farmar which limits the possibilities of being a solid 3rd option, also his age has become a factor. Fish is at his best when he's able to control the pace, and get everyone involved...when that happens he always manages to sneak points on the board.

Very good post. You are right on the money

Great post. But notice one thing -- all the so called "elite" teams can only go downhill. They have older players. Tim Dullcan, KG, Nash...age catches up with you real fast around here. (Just look at the Miami "Not Very Much" Heat.) Whereas we can only get better. Farmar, Bynum, Crit, even Sasha -- they are all on the way up.

Kobe knew that but underestimated how long it would take for these young guys to blossom. Seems he panicked a bit too soon. I think he is starting to see that.

By the end of the season, the AI's and the KG's of the world will be huffing and puffing and our guys will cruise right by them.

Lakers. 2007-2008 NBA Champs.

wow... brings back memories.. seems i was roughly 70% right

Boy where you. Kobe stepped up his game and I'm glad we kept him. The Lakers started off slow, but wow!!! Let's hope we can snowball this to the finals.