Beaneball - L.A. Lakers

Refereeing and Game 4 of the Lakers-Jazz series

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Sun, 11 May 2008 21:21:13 -0500

I am sick to goddamn death of the referees in the NBA. Yes, I'm emotional about the fact that the Lakers got robbed of this game, that they got called for six more fouls (20 more Utah free throws) despite playing their entire offensive game at the Utah rim. The referees didn't entirely lose the game for L.A. (eleven missed free throws, Kobe's back, and the disappearing Jordan Farmar did that), but they sure as hell helped. Let's review the bad calls on both sides this game.

DJ Mbenga's completely clean block in the third quarter that was called a foul. This one wasn't even close, there was no body contact, no arm contact, nothing. It was utterly inexplicable. The Kyle Korver phantom elbow on Sasha in overtime -- Sasha sold it, but there was zero contact on the play. The overtime play where Fisher put his shoulder sideways into Deron Williams's chest, and yet Williams got hit with a foul. (I'm more ok with that call as a "quit flopping" foul on Williams, because it wasn't an offensive foul -- but it should have just been a no-call.) The most egregious one of all, Ronny's "flagrant 2." What on earth did the refs see? There was body contact and a swipe across the arms. Ronny's a big guy, so Price took a hard fall to the floor that looked worse than it was because he bounced his head. There was no head contact by Ronny, he was going for the block so it wasn't unnecessary, and it certainly wasn't excessive. Where on earth do they get calling any flagrant, much less a flagrant 2? I demand an apology to Ronny, to the team, to Lakers fans, and to NBA fans everywhere for this atrocious call. The referees were intimidated by the Utah crowd and the Utah players, especially Matt Harpring, who swarmed them, demanding a call. Rule change request: that's a technical foul. Players don't get to ask for flagrants, and they certainly don't get to run up on the refs like that.

Oh, and how about Ronnie Price's "block" of Luke Walton's breakaway. He got the ball cleanly, in terms of not getting arm, but his body just flew right through Walton's. That's the definition of a foul. He knocked Walton to the floor by flying into him. How do you not call that? Oh, and the Kyle Korver travel in the fourth quarter when he switched his pivot foot out on the wing, Phil Jackson flew up off the bench (the play was right in front of him), but no call. Carlos Boozer's shove (not tiny push, not subtle; Carlos Boozer doesn't do subtle; he gets away with full-on pushes and shoves the entire game) on Derek Fisher on a screen late in the game.

This was just atrocious, and it's nothing new. Half the flagrants this postseason (and I've seen almost every playoff game so far) weren't flagrants in February. Double technicals are handed out like candy instead of the referees actually making an effort to determine if one player doesn't really deserve one. Blatant travels are missed (and not just the hop-step style, or the LeBron to the bucket style, but switched pivot feet). Offensive fouls abound when guys are running in under the driver after he's already started off the ground. And the clock! Forget about the atrocious rule that resulted in an unjustified three for the Pistons the other night. What about the numerous clock problems and technical malfunctions? We're in the 21st century! This stuff doesn't happen anymore!

One last word on the Jazz -- I said it after Friday's game, and I say it now. They hit their jumpers, they got the benefit of every doubt from the referees, they got L.A.'s backup center and hit man tossed, Kobe was visibly weakened (the Kirilenko block from behind in overtime doesn't happen if Kobe's 100% because he stuffs that ball instead of trying to lay it up), Fisher got hit with early fouls again ... and it still took overtime to win the game! It still took the Lakers forgetting team offense and going to a guy playing at 60% on every possession in overtime for the Jazz to pull it out!

A word on Pau: he does complain too much, but at this point, the refereeing on him is getting downright bizarre. He's a skilled post player who spends the entire game in the paint. He took sixteen shots and grabbed ten rebounds. And he only shot two foul shots! He shot zero on Friday! What is the deal? Okur, who spends the entire game 20 feet from the basket, shot six. Kirilenko shot nine. Kobe took 33 shots, with at least half of those coming in the lane, maybe more, and he shot only ten. How on earth does Andrei Kirilenko shoot as many free throws as Kobe, when Kirilenko is the one who plays on the team that fouls more than anyone in the league? How does this happen?

Stream of consciousness thoughts on Lakers-Jazz Game 3

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Fri, 09 May 2008 23:49:08 -0500

I hope the Jazz fans are really excited about this win, because it took ridiculous games from their three stars, terrible shooting and ball-handling by the Lakers, two early fouls on Derek Fisher, and a real adjustment in the first half by the officials, from calling everything in the first two games to calling nothing (before returning to the call-everything mode in the second half). All of this to win by five, and even then only because a horrible play on the final jump ball where Luke Walton just threw the ball away after getting exactly the tip L.A. wanted from Pau Gasol.

The Lakers deserved to lose this game, and the Jazz earned their win, for all of the above reasons. But you know what? When you only lose by five, despite doing everything wrong while the other team does everything right, you're the better team. The only question is whether the Lakers can regroup on Sunday, stop fumbling the ball away every other possession, and stop missing layups when you're not bailed out by the officials.

Really just a frustrating, frustrating game. Did Okur or Boozer miss a single contested jump shot? (Obviously they did, but it sure didn't feel like it. Every time you looked up, they were hitting a 20-footer with Lamar Odom's hand in their face.)

So what's the prescription for Sunday? Kobe: don't go 0-6 from three. Sasha Vujacic and Jordan Farmar: don't combine for 0-9 shooting. Referees: Pau Gasol works all game inside against a team that fouls more than anyone in the league; he seriously didn't shoot a single free throw in this game? Really? Pau: turnovers! Lamar: turnovers! Phil: don't be scared of Derek Fisher's two fouls; Jordan Farmar is a good player, but he's overmatched in this series because that position needs to guard Deron Williams, and Farmar can't do that. Fisher started with two fouls, and then, at the end of the game, you know how many fouls he had? Still two. It's not like Fisher stopped Williams, but he certainly did better on him than Farmar did. So in short, Phil, Fisher can play with fouls. If the offense is churning out the points, then you can sit Fisher, because the Jazz can't run with the Lakers. But if the offense is sputtering like it was in the first half tonight, Fisher has to be in the game.

One final note: the Lakers only lost one quarter tonight. The problem is they lost that quarter, the second, by nine, while they only won the second half by four, and tied the first quarter. They got seriously outplayed over those 12 minutes, and could only play more or less even with the Jazz for the other 36. That's on the bench mob, since they were playing that quarter, and Phil played the starters (more or less) the rest of the way, once he figured out that his reserves couldn't play the game tonight.

Ariza also still hurt

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Fri, 09 May 2008 18:18:43 -0500

Ariza still not healed; seeing specialist today | The Lakers Nation

What on earth is up with these Laker injuries?

More Bynum injury news

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Thu, 08 May 2008 11:37:57 -0500

Bynum may undergo surgery on left knee | The Lakers Nation

That's just terrible news. I mean, maybe not because we're talking about a 'scope, but really? We still haven't figured out what's wrong in there? He hurt it in January! What's going on?

Lakers win impressively

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 02:11:54 -0500

It's possible that the Nuggets are the best #8 seed in history, and the Lakers made them look silly tonight. (It's also possible that the Mavericks are the best #7 ever, and the Hornets made them look silly last night.) I don't think the Lakers will sweep, but I do think they'll take one of the two games in Denver and then close the series out in Game 5 at home behind a meltdown by one of the three at-times-overly-emotional Nuggets scoring guards (Iverson, Carmelo, JR Smith). L.A. just looked too good tonight. They have too much size, too much shooting ability, too much penetration ability, and they're a marquee team that, this being the NBA, gets the borderline calls when they play at home. Things just don't look good for Denver.

Looking ahead, at the risk of a jinx, I have to say that L.A.'s road doesn't look easy. I'm afraid of every team L.A. might have to play, except for Phoenix (and it's looking very unlikely that they'll have to play them). They'll get Utah in the second round -- with so many weapons, and an unstoppability on their home court, they're fearsome. If they get past Utah, they'll have to deal with either the Hornets, who, after watching their dismantling of a Dallas team that doesn't have a quick guard to put on Chris Paul (check the Lakers roster -- they're not exactly brimming with quickness at the guard spot) really frighten me, or the Spurs. San Antonio's players don't really intimdate me that much, because L.A. has a variety of big bodies to throw at Duncan, and at least some semblence of a defensive presence against Manu Ginobli. (Don't ask me about Tony Parker.) The real reason I'm afraid of San Antonio is because, outside of Utah, they have the only coach in the league who can actually go toe-to-toe with Phil Jackson. Byron Scott, George Karl, AVERY JOHNSON? Flip Saunders? Doc Rivers?

That said, even if the Lakers get to the Finals, they're still faced with Detroit or Boston. (Wait, what? LeBron? Ha! Haha! Please, the man can't get up for a game unless DeShawn Stevenson is insulting him. He has less fun on the court than Kevin Garnett. He hates his teammates more than Kobe. Don't talk to me about LeBron James.) Either of those teams is, I think, perfectly capable of sweeping L.A. (which I think isn't something you could say even about any of the Western teams).

Yes, this is the best basketball season I've ever seen. Nice of you to ask.

Showtime in L.A.

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 10:23:28 -0600

A lot has happened since Sunday, the 24th, the date of my last NBA post. Sam Cassell has been bought out, which will help Boston, Yao Ming is done for the year with a stress fracture, which sucks because he's one of my favorite non-Lakers, Jamaal Magloire joined Dallas, and Caron Butler has a torn muscle in his hip, which means Washington will be an even worse playoff team in a few months.

Also, the Lakers won three more times: Sunday against the Sonics, by 20, Tuesday against Portland, by 13, and yesterday over Miami by 18. Seattle and Miami aren't good teams, of course, but holding the Blazers to 83 points is pretty impressive, even if they're not a playoff team anymore. The Miami game featured a King Kobe (as Pat Riley apparently calls him now) dunk contest, and also a patently ridiculous Showtime-style fast-break: Kobe gets a long defensive rebound around the foul line, throws a ridiculous over-the-head, no-look pass to Luke Walton at the Miami three-point line; Walton catches the ball up over his head like a wide receiver in traffic and in one motion, as he's coming to the floor, throws a behind-the-back bounce pass to Lamar Odom, who catches the ball at about the free throw line, takes two steps, and throws it down. The video is currently here, and I'd encourage you to watch it. Just beautiful. The Knicks haven't had a play like this in three years, I think.

What's happened in the standings? L.A. is now alone in first place, with a one-game lead over San Antonio. Phoenix has dropped all the way to fifth, two games back of the Lakers, in a virtual tie for third with New Orleans (which has one fewer win and one fewer loss), but with Utah getting the priority for the fourth-seed by virtue of being the division leader. Dallas, Houston, and Golden State remain the bottom three, with Golden State just a half game better than Denver. Sacramento, 11th in the West, would be a playoff team in the East.

The Bulls, Heavyweight Champions going into last Sunday, lost the title to Houston that day. Houston then destroyed Washington, holding them to just 69 points, on Tuesday. They'll play Memphis tonight, and I really can't see them losing that game, Yao or not. You know, it's not like they need Yao to shut down the likes of Kwame Brown (who actually started against Cleveland on Sunday, but then got a DNP against Phoenix on Tuesday; at some point, you can't just yank the guy around like this, can you? Either you treat him like an expiring contract or you treat him like an actual player, right?).

2007-08 Title Bout Records:

Boston	12	2
Cleveland	5	2
Houston	5	2
Milwaukee	5	2
San Antonio	7	3
Phoenix	3	2
Utah	3	2
Chicago	1	1
Denver	1	1
L.A. Clippers	1	1
Philadelphia	1	1
Miami	2	3
Washington	2	4
Charlotte	1	2
Chicago	1	2
Memphis	1	4
Sacramento	1	4
Dallas	0	1
Detroit	0	1
Orlando	0	1
Portland	0	1
Seattle	0	1
Atlanta	0	2
Indiana	0	2
New York	0	2
L.A. Lakers	0	3

Lakers win again; Bulls have the belt; West roundup

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 10:39:16 -0600

L.A. destroyed another team last night, beating the Clippers in a "road" game by 18. The theme of the AP story was that Kobe Bryant was just "one of the guys", and the box score backs it up: six different Lakers took either 11 or 12 shots (Kobe and Pau among them), and Luke Walton had nine. Nobody took more than 12 shots. The assist numbers also back up the general ball-sharing theme: 27 assists on 39 field goals.

Sasha Vujacic went nuts again, hitting 5 of 9 from three and 6 of 11 overall for 17 points.

Other Western powers in the last few nights have done this: Houston beat Miami by 12 on Thursday as Tracy McGrady and Rafer Alston each had points-assists double-doubles and Yao Ming shot 10/11. San Antonio edged Minnesota by one behind Manu Ginobli's 44 points on 7/9 three-point shooting. (But don't the Spurs have to beat teams like the Wolves by more than a single point?)

On Friday, Houston won again, clobbering New Orleans by twenty, as Yao Ming had 28 and 14, Tracy McGrady dropped 34, and the Hornets shot just 40%. Chicago beat Denver at Denver's own game, winning 135-121 despite J.R. Smith's 43 points in 33 minutes off the bench (8/14 from three); Ben Gordon had 37 points of his own off the bench and Jo Noah and Ty Thomas each had double-doubles, proving the Bulls probably won't miss Ben Wallace's sulking about not getting to wear a headband at all. Dallas beat Memphis by 15, which is what Dallas is supposed to do: Dirk had 27 points on just nine shots and Jason Kidd had 2 points and 15 assists. Golden State lost to Atlanta by seven, despite Baron Davis and Monta Ellis combining for 61 points. Utah lost to the Clippers by ten as the Jazz apparently lost the ability to guard small forwards: Al Thornton and Corey Maggette had 27 points apiece. Phoenix beat Boston in a Celtics-style game, 85-77. It was sloppy, with 44 turnovers combined, but the Suns won by dominating the glass, 50-32. Shaq had 14 of those rebounds despite getting just five shots (making one), proving that the new, improved, motivated Shaq has actually quit the "if the big dog don't get fed, maybe he won't guard the house" nonsense he was spouting a few years ago with the Lakers.

Finally, last night, Denver lost again, this time to Milwaukee, as Michael Redd went off for 42 points and Andrew Bogut grabbed 20 rebounds, including seven offensive. It's not every day a guy gets seven offensive boards against Marcus Camby. San Antonio sent New Orleans to another L behind Manu Ginobli's continued offensive dominance: 30 points and 12 assists. Tim Duncan showed again why he might be the best player of his generation: 25 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, four blocks, a steal, and just one turnover. Bonzi Wells shot 1-7 off the bench for his new team. Utah beat Atlanta as seven Jazz scored in double figures.

The result of all these wins and losses? The Lakers and Phoenix are now tied for first. New Orleans has dropped to fifth (albeit with a better record than the division-leading Jazz), in a tie for third with San Antonio, just a half game back of the leaders. Dallas, Houston, and Golden State round out the top eight, but the Warriors are tied for that last spot with Denver. The Lakers hold the tiebreaker against Phoenix, having beat them 3-1 in the season series. San Antonio currently holds the tiebreaker over New Orleans, leading them 2-1, but they have one game left in New Orleans. Denver and Golden State have split their first two games with each other, and each have a home game left in the series. Golden State's in-conference record is one game better than Denver's.

On the Heavyweight front, my guess about Denver soundly beating Chicago missed pretty badly, so the Bulls are the new Heavyweight champions. The Bulls defend their title tonight against the red-hot Houston Rockets in a nationally televised bout!

2007-08 Current beltholder: Chicago Bulls

2007-08 Title Bout Records:

Chicago	1	0
Boston	12	2
Cleveland	5	2
Milwaukee	5	2
San Antonio	7	3
Houston	3	2
Phoenix	3	2
Utah	3	2
Denver	1	1
L.A. Clippers	1	1
Philadelphia	1	1
Miami	2	3
Washington	2	3
Charlotte	1	2
Chicago	1	2
Memphis	1	4
Sacramento	1	4
Dallas	0	1
Detroit	0	1
Orlando	0	1
Portland	0	1
Seattle	0	1
Atlanta	0	2
Indiana	0	2
New York	0	2
L.A. Lakers	0	3

Mega NBA post, including trade thoughts

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 10:39:20 -0600

With the regular season back underway and the trade deadline past, it's time for a mega basketball post.

First, the Jason Kidd deal. I hate the trade for the Mavs. They get a washed up point guard who can't or won't play defense anymore for: a young, improving point (Devin Harris), a young, improving defensive center (Diop), a young swingman (Maurice Ager), and two first-round picks. That's essentially five young players for a guy who will throw out some 10-10-10 triple doubles this year while allowing Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Tony Parker, and all the rest to run past him all game. Also, as The Yemen Deli has insisted to me over and over again, the Mavs are damaged psychologically and needed to make a move a long time ago, not now. At least now Devean George can put this whole thing behind him now.

The Mike Bibby deal. I'm just not sure how this is relevant. The Hawks should make the playoffs with Bibby, since they gave up absolutely nothing (two backup points, one lottery pick who wasn't playing any minutes for them) to get him, but this doesn't make them a contender. Bibby's a good player, but he's not a game-changing player. His peak ended two years ago. I have no idea how this deal will work out for Sacramento. I guess it depends on how good Shelden Williams actually is.

The Ben Wallace deal. The Cavs gave up Drew Gooden, Larry Hughes, Cedric Simmons, Shannon Brown, Ira Newble, and Donyell Marshall for Ben Wallace, Wally Szczerbiak, Delonte West, and Joe Smith. This is a risky move for the Cavs: Wallace is an aging malcontent who basically has one skill. He does rebound better than any of the guys the Cavs gave up, of course, so they'll improve in that area. Wally should actually be a key to the deal, since the Cavs basically had two three-point shooters: Daniel Gibson (who's also supposed to be running the point for the team, not just hoisting up threes) and Damon Jones (Sasha Pavlovic should be on the list, just not this year). Adding a third guy who shoots it at 40% from downtown could help keep defenders off of Bron Bron. Delonte West should also be a better backup point than whoever was doing the job for the Cavs before the deal (Brown? Eric Snow? Hughes?).

For Seattle, this is a straight salary dump, getting rid of Wally and getting back Newble (expiring), Adrian Griffin from Chicago (expiring), and Donyell Marshall (who's a useful player for 10 or 15 minutes per game).

Finally, Chicago gets to move on from the massive Ben Wallace mistake, and ends up with Gooden, Hughes, Simmons, and Brown. Who they got back almost doesn't matter as much as getting rid of Wallace and moving on to the next phase for the franchise. Gooden may be considered a project, to see if anyone can get him back on track: he's stagnated the last two years in Cleveland, and it's not really clear why. Maybe someone in Chicago can get him back on track.

The Hornets. New Orleans made a bit of a silly trade, sending Bobby Jackson to Houston for Mike James and Bonzi Wells. Wells is an interesting pickup, but you have to worry about a corrosive personality. Jackson for James is essentially a lateral move -- these backup point guards, they all look alike to me. For Houston, I'm not sure what the deal does. More playing time for Luis Scola and Chuck Hayes? It's a risky move because they're in the playoff picture, but the West is tight enough, with nine teams for eight spots, that any incremental downgrading could let Golden State push past you.

The Spurs. Brent Barry and Francisco Elson for Kurt Thomas. This deal reminds me of those waiver claims in baseball where you put in a claim to keep another team from picking up a player via a trade. Thomas's name has been bandied about as a guy who could defend well against Tim Duncan in the playoffs, so maybe the Spurs decided to take that off the board. The problem for San Antonio is I don't see what Thomas gives them that Elson doesn't, and then they have to give up a great three point shooter to get him? Let's say that Thomas is a better defensive player than Elson, and that he's less incompetent on offense. Both of those things are probably true. Does that make it worth giving up a shooter of Barry's caliber? I'm not so sure. (Not that I'm complaining, as a Laker fan.)

Speaking of the Lakers, they won the last two nights, once in a blowout over the Hawks (it was 73-37 at halftime). Mike Bibby played just 16 minutes. The Lakers did their usual: Kobe scored, Pau scored with a ridiculous shooting percentage (7-11), Odom rebounded, and a bench guy knocked in a couple of threes (it was Jordan Farmar this time). The other Lakers win, last night, was a little more exciting: 130-124 over Phoenix. No overtimes. L.A. scored at least thirty in each quarter, and rode an eight point halftime lead to the victory. Kobe had 41 (what finger?), Pau shot 13-19, Odom had 22-11, Sasha Vujacic went off again (15 points in 24 minutes), and L.A. generally just shot the lights out (56.5%).

LeBron had a triple-double in an eight-point loss at home to Houston in which Yao shot just 3-17. That sentence makes my mind boggle. He went for another triple-double the next night, this time leading the Cavs to a victory over a bad team. (Indiana.) Congratulations, LeBron. You beat a team you were supposed to beat.

The Knicks scored 23 points in overtime in Washington. 23! Overtime is only five minutes! They should have saved some of those points for the next night: they lost by forty in Philly yesterday.

Charlotte shot a whopping 28.2% in losing by 20 to the Spurs. That's awful. Tim Duncan only hit 2 of 12 shots, and it was still a blowout? Terrible.

Dueling benchies: Francisco Garcia had 23 points in 21 minutes for Sacramento and Travis Outlaw had 23 in 27 for Portland. The Kings won, as if that matters.

After beating Detroit by keeping them under 40%, the Magic allowed Toronto to shoot almost 60% in a Raptor win. Chris Bosh dropped 14 of 16 en route to 40 over Dwight Howard. Howard had a funny line: 37 points on great shooting (13/16) and fifteen rebounds, but just five of those rebounds were defensive. Ten offensive rebounds. When you get ten offensive rebounds, shouldn't you have like 30 total?

The Marcus Williams era began in New Jersey with an overtime win over the Bulls. Williams scored 25, but with just four assists. Kidd's re-debut for Dallas resulted in a New Orleans win as Kidd had six turnovers and Chris Paul scored 31, with eleven assists, nine steals, and just one turnover. Yeah, that's pretty much what you can expect from here on out, Dallas.

My heavyweight prediction came true, as Marcus Camby came this close to a points-rebounds-blocks triple double, finishing one block short. This helped lead Denver to a win over Boston, stripping the Celtics of their Heavyweight title. Allen Iverson and Carmelo combined to shoot 33 free throws. Boston shot 28 total.

Denver's next test is at Chicago tomorrow. Yeah, I'm taking Denver in that game. That shouldn't even be close. Marcus Camby probably won't get 10 blocks, but that's only because Chicago will just shoot 65 jump shots and miss 45 of them all on their own.

2007-08 Current beltholder: Denver Nuggets

2007-08 Title Bout Records:

Denver	1	0
Boston	12	2
Cleveland	5	2
Milwaukee	5	2
San Antonio	7	3
Houston	3	2
Phoenix	3	2
Utah	3	2
L.A. Clippers	1	1
Philadelphia	1	1
Miami	2	3
Washington	2	3
Charlotte	1	2
Chicago	1	2
Memphis	1	4
Sacramento	1	4
Dallas	0	1
Detroit	0	1
Orlando	0	1
Portland	0	1
Seattle	0	1
Atlanta	0	2
Indiana	0	2
New York	0	2
L.A. Lakers	0	3

Kobe trying to skip the All-Star game

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 10:09:13 -0600

This is utter crap:

The Los Angeles Lakers are hoping that Kobe Bryant gets clearance from the league to miss Sunday's All-Star Game in New Orleans after announcing Thursday that Bryant has a torn ligament in his right pinkie.

But Bryant doesn't yet have that clearance -- and may not get it.

A league official confirmed Thursday night that the NBA is not looking for potential replacements to fill Bryant's spot on the Western Conference squad. That's because the league office still expects Bryant to start and play for the West, even if it's only for a brief cameo, after he played for the Lakers all the way through to their final game before the All-Star break Wednesday in Minnesota.

How on earth can the league justify forcing a player to play in a meaningless exhibition when he's hurt? If they did force him to play and he got further injured, could he / the Lakers sue the league? Does the league really want to deal with pissing off one of their premier players, one of their genuine superstars? What if Kobe just stays home? Would the league fine him? Could the Lakers then just pay that fine?

Why am I using so many question marks?

Greg Popovich is a dumbass

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 17:06:52 -0600

Greg Popovich said: "What they did in Memphis is beyond comprehension. There should be a trade committee that can scratch all trades that make no sense. I just wish I had been on a trade committee that oversees NBA trades. I would have voted no to the L.A. trade."

Really, you would have voted no on a trade that vastly improves one of your chief rivals in the West? I'm shocked! But hey, while we're at it, Mitch Kupchak would have voted no on the Damon Stoudamire buyout that your team is now benefiting from. I also notice that you didn't utter a peep back when the Lakers gave up a soon-to-be All Star, Caron Butler, out of the conference for Kwame Brown. Or when Kevin Garnett got traded out of the conference for a pupu platter of young mediocre players. Or when Shaq got traded out of the conference. Or when Shaq got traded back into the conference! Bad trades happen, and it's not even clear that this Memphis deal is a bad trade -- Memphis will have tons of cap room at the end of this year purely as a result of this deal.

In other words, shut your mouth, you fucking crybaby.

But you know, thank god Pops went and said something dumb. You know why? Because I haven't had someone in the NBA to hate in quite a while, probably going back to the Lakers-Kings rivalry of the early part of this decade. And now I do.

Pau's debut; Heavyweight update

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 01:49:51 -0600

Let me tell you how excited I am about this new Lakers team. Kobe Bryant shot 3-13 with seven turnovers and didn't get to the free throw line a single time, yet L.A. won by 15 on the road. That's why I'm excited.

How'd they do it? Pau! 24-12-4 on 10/15 shooting in your debut will endear you to a lot of the team's fans. Also Lamar Odom, having the kind of game that he can really have now that he'll be the third or fourth offensive option: 14 points on four shots (13 free throw attempts), 15 rebounds, five assists. That's a tremendous game. The best thing about that line is how typical it is of Odom to put up a 14-15-5-type line. To have a guy doing that consistently as your third or fourth best player is a tremendous luxury.

I probably didn't need to tell you this, but San Antonio successfully defended its Heavyweight crown with a 27-point victory in Indiana. New point guard Damon Stoudamire started for the Spurs and scored eleven points in 22 minutes. Seven players scored in double digits and Tim Duncan had an all-too-typical 19-15-6 line. (Note, though, how similar that is to Odom's line. Note now that Duncan is the best player on his team. Note again how far down Odom ranks on the Lakers. Note also how my giddiness about L.A. is making me actually make an honest comparison between Lamar Freaking Odom and Tim Duncan, one in which I start going, "Hey, you know, Odom's actually more versatile than Duncan, so ...")

The new Heavyweight data is below.

2007-08 Current beltholder: San Antonio Spurs

Next title match: Wednesday, 2/6, at Washington. This is a back-to-back for both teams. Don't be fooled, because that's the only similarity between these two teams. San Antonio will keep the belt for another day.

2007-08 Title Bout Records:

Boston	9	1
Cleveland	5	2
Milwaukee	5	2
San Antonio	5	2
Houston	3	2
Phoenix	3	2
Utah	3	2
Washington	2	2
L.A. Clippers	1	1
Philadelphia	1	1
Miami	2	3
Charlotte	1	2
Chicago	1	2
Memphis	1	4
Sacramento	1	4
Dallas	0	1
Detroit	0	1
Indiana	0	1
Orlando	0	1
Portland	0	1
Seattle	0	1
Atlanta	0	2
L.A. Lakers	0	3

Pau Gasol to the Lakers!

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 19:02:17 -0600

The trade of Pau Gasol to L.A. is the most exciting transaction the Lakers have pulled off since the Shaq signing. First, of course, he\'s a low-post presence to hold the fort until Andrew Bynum gets back. Second, once Bynum gets back, he has the kind of all-around game that should mesh well with Bynum (who\'s only effective in the paint). Third, the Lakers gave up almost nothing to get Gasol: Kwame Brown\'s expiring deal was the only important piece given up, and that\'s, of course, exactly what you\'re supposed to do with expiring deals: trade them for good players. L.A. also gave up Javaris Crittenton, who might be a good player but was stuck behind Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic anyway, two first round picks (2008 and 2010) which should be quite low, and the rights to Marc Gasol, Pau\'s brother, who the Lakers took in the second round of the 2007 Draft. The Lakers now run out, when healthy, a lineup of Derek Fisher, Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom (at the three!), Pau Gasol, and Andrew Bynum. Chris Mihm and Ronny Turiaf are the backup bigs (and, I guess, DJ Mbenga when Mihm is hurt); Vladimir Radmanovic, Luke Walton, and Trevor Ariza are the SF/SG types, and Sasha Vujacic and Jordan Farmar are the backup guards. The weakness is at the backup big spot, but the Lakers have been perfectly content to have Turiaf run a lot of minutes at center, relying on his energy to make up for his lack of height. One thing Phil Jackson must love is that this is a team with a lot of size: only Farmar and Fisher are small guys, and Jackson has always tolerated a little guy if he can shoot (Steve Kerr? Not that Farmar or Fisher are Steve Kerr-level shooters or anything). Everyone else is at least 6\'7\", with a lot of those being of the run-up-and-down-the-floor type: Vladi, Walton, Odom; even Pau isn\'t immobile. This should be a fun, fun team, even in Bynum\'s absence. Assuming Bynum meshes with the new big-man, this should also be a force to reckon with in the playoffs.

Lakers clear a roster spot

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 20:18:44 -0600

The Lakers made a deal today that could be a precursor to a Kobe deal: Brian Cook and Maurice Evans to Orlando for Trevor Ariza. While the players involved are minor (although I'll miss Evans - he brought attitude and defense to the backup 2-guard spot that I liked), the trade does two things for the Lakers: save them money (which can be helpful in trying to fill the Kobe void via free agency) and gain them a roster spot (extremely important because any Kobe deal is going to get them more players back than they give away). Given the seeming inevitability of a Bryant trade happening at some point, I've been wondering what players near the bottom of the roster were going to lose out to make room for the two or three additional players that would be joining the team in a three- or four-for-one trade. As for the now (or the future, if Kobe is still around), I liked Ariza while he was a Knick, and I've been surprised that he hasn't emerged as more of a useful players. Not that he should be a star, but a rotation regular, an eighth or ninth guy who can grab a few rebounds and play good defense.

Suns > Lakers

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Sun, 22 Apr 2007 23:00:47 -0500

Know why the Lakers can't win their series against the Suns? Because it doesn't matter how good your game plan is (very good) or how faithfully you execute it (pretty well) if your players just aren't very good (they aren't).

More injury woes for the Lake Show

jasonw@beaneball.org (Jason Wojciechowski) — Sun, 04 Mar 2007 16:14:59 -0600

Lamar Odom is out again, at best, in Phil Jackson's words, for two to three weeks. The performance he had against Sacramento shows the kinds of things he can do for a basketball team (26 points, thirteen boards, six dimes), and with Luke Walton still out, Odom will be sorely missed. Kwame Brown is back, and that's good, because the size of the team had really taken a hit in his absence (especially when combined with Odom and Walton), but he fills a different void. All of this has really amped up the Scottie Pippen speculation. Given the Lakers' precarious situation currently (the West is too good not to pounce on this kind of weakness), I honestly don't think anything could hurt. If he's not effective, it's only fifteen minutes a night that he's offering; basically, Maurice Evans (who's now also hurt) time. With all the injuries, I'd certainly like to see what a formerly great defensive stopper and pretty good offensive player could do rather than hope for the best with an at-best mediocre Aaron McKie.