One more deal for LA?

The Trevor Ariza trade was plain rockin'! Those of you who are still not familiar, here's how it happened: Orlando acquired a DPE (disabled player exception) from the league due to Tony Battie's season-ending surgery. That said, SVG wanted a big man - who can shoot. Ever since Dwight Howard's stint with Coach K and Team USA, he has fallen nothing short of a beast. His averages of 24/15 are extremely outrageous even for Shaq's standards. Ironic how this happened to be in Orlando, where Shaq Daddy used to be. The Lakers have been eager to deal Brian Cook since the start of the off-season. Remember he was almost traded for Luther Head? The Laker fans almost wet their pants on that one, yet it fizzled into thin air since the salaries do not match, and the complications arose. But because of Orlando's DPE (amounts to 2.6M which is 50% of Battie's 5.2M), we were able to come up with a deal. Ariza earns 3.1m this year and Brian Cook earns 3.5m. However, due to Cook's BYC status, he counts for only 1.8m in terms of outgoing salaries for LA. This meant that LA needed to send more salary to Orlando to qualify the deal. Orlando's DPE was then applied to Mo Evans' contract of 1.7m thereby making the deal acceptable and official. Brian Cook = Trevor Ariza Mo Evans = Disabled Player Exception (DPE) The Lakers bring in a defensive wingman that the team lacked, Orlando added a big man who can shoot. Since Orlando is rather weak on the guard rotation, Mo Evans was swung to Orlando as well and LA ended up cutting roughly 2m of salaries for this year, bringing the luxury tax payable from 3m to 1m. In my opinion, this was a brilliant move by Mitch. Not only did we get rid....

What I'd like to see is Lamar Odom for Shawn Marion. I think our team would be set once that trade happens. Once Brown returns, everything would be a go..

Fisher / Farmar

Bryant / Sasha

Marion / Ariza / Luke

Radman / Turiaf

Brown / Bynum

That lineup is great. We'd have 4 perimiter threats in our starting lineup as well as a second option in Marion. Kwame will remain as our post defender and screen setter. Everyone will have great roles in that unit. Our bench mob will be awesome as well with Bynum joining them and giving the opposing team hell to pay.

I'd love to see Shawn Marion join our team. More then Kidd, more then Haslem, more the JO, Gasol, Artest...

Actually we can groom Ariza to be our Shawn Marion. During practice all he has to do is work on his jumpshot by sticking out his butt and shooting from his waist with no follow-through. Marion would be a good addition, but we still would lack a post threat PF in my opinion, Marion is not a post up player. The one person who I feel would fit the PF position for us is David West, but that's never going to happen of course.

Also I don't know if anyone has noticed but it seems as if Brian Cook is getting the same playing time in Orlando that he was getting in LA..........3 minutes here, 8 minutes there, 2 minutes elsewhere. Mo seems to be getting around 20 per contest.

I would rather have Marion over Odom any day.

I know you would love to have Marion over Odom, but it still doesn't make us any better. They bring different skill sets, but we don't become a better team.

Well Marion is a better shooter, better slasher, better defender, more consistant and less injury prone. Where is the downside? Of course our team will be better with Marion.

I can't necessarily say he's a better shooter because Odom doesn't shoot enough on a consistent basis. When Odom looks to just pull up without dribbling, he usually hits it. I've never seen Marion really slash, he cuts and receives lobs, but he doesn't break anyone down off the dribble. He is a better defender, no denying that. Odom is a better facilitator than Marion, which is something else needed in our offense. Odom can rebound and start the fastbreak due to his ballhandling abilities, which is something I feel causes matchup problems. Also you can't put Bruce Bowen on Lamar Odom in the playoffs and render him useless.

You don't need Bowen to render Odom useless, somtimes Odom renders Odom useless. You can't deny that. Plus all the other points you made such as Odom is a better facilitator or ball handler, Phil doesn't want that. He wants Odom as a finisher, but that's not really his game, so lets get Marion. We have other facilitators at gaurd, don't need Odom to do that. The good thing with Marion that you seem to forget is the fact that he plays GREAT without the ball. He always recognizes where to put himself on the court to become the benificiary of the pass. And Yes, Marion is a much better shooter, he not only takes and makes more threes through out his career, but he also shoots a higher percentage. Can't really argue that. It's a fact.

I agree that Marion is the better offensive and defensive threat against Odom's skills, but I feel like we aren't gaining much ground in terms of being a great team. If Odom plays SF like he wants than we are overstacked at that position. Likewise, we bring in Marion, who may be better but has less potential to improve us because the position he is filling in is already pretty decent.

In other words, you don't see anyone liking the Kidd deal as much now because our point guards are solid. Ariza and Walton and Radmanovich and Kobe (if need be and we go small) are gonna prove their decent come playoff time and if we ship Odom out, we need to fill the PF spot that is a glaring problem.

Therefore, Odom stays unless it means we get a pf IMO. Gasol, JO, West, you name it, but we gotta get a bruiser or a scorer at that position.

the big factor in the odom-marion discussion if that marion needs a great facilitator to make damage, marion needs nash, odom can do his work with out an all star PG.

kwame vlad and sasha for artest

Warren, the lakers are very high on JCritt. Even Phil who rarely praises rookies (ever heard a praise for farmar last year?), said on a recent interview that JCritt is a "player", "the real deal". Add to that, who are the lakers offering for JKidd? first it was Kwame, Farmar, Vladrad and pick. The nets didnt want vlad rad, so the lakers changed it to Kwame, Farmar, Sasha, Mihm and pick. I think playing JCritt late against NY was sort of a test, and a sign that they are ready to deal sasha and or farmar (for JKidd). No Disrespect to farmar, he's a heck of a player. But theres no point in keeping him if Kidd will be in the roster. But if its a PF we are getting (JO, Pau), then Farmar should be kept