L.A. Enigmas
Granting that Kobe Bryant is playing absolutely sick basketball and that Pau Gasol is every bit as consistently terrific as his look and general shtick are consistently annoying (which is to say: as hell), can anyone think of a recent Finals team featuring more walking question-marks in crucial roles than the current installment of the Los Angeles Lakers? (Perhaps you can; my sports memory isn’t that good.) I mean, sure: the Magic aren’t exactly the model of consistency, either – but with the exception of Rafer Alston and Mickael Pietrus, by my lights they’re characterized more by garden-variety youth (Howard and Lee) or good-but-not-greatness (Turkoglu and Lewis) than by the kinds of vanishing acts that we so often see from some of the Lakers. On the other hand, Andrew Bynum, Trevor Ariza, and Lamar Odom as (in no particular order) your third to fifth most important players? The Lakers are certainly a formidable team when one or two of that trio decide to show up, but how many games or stretches of games are there when you get the sense that at least two of those three have simply left their minds at home? I suppose the Bulls took the title with Dennis Rodman and the underratedly crazy Scottie Pippen playing third and second fiddles, and it may be that the Lakers ultimately manage a similar feat – but they’re presently a few inches on a Courtney Lee alley-oop and some questionable officiating away from being in a 2-1 hole, and it seems to me that if Orlando ultimately prevails it should be the frequent and oh-so-predictable disappearing acts of their central players that deserve to be the primary plot line in the tale of the Lakers’ undoing.
P.S. When he’s in his element, I could watch Hedo Turkoglu play basketball all day.
Filed under: sports
The 2008 Los Angeles Lakers? I was going to suggest Iverson’s Sixers in 2001, but he wasn’t really surrounded by walking question marks – more like decent role players who weren’t quite good enough to win a championship.
Kobe is a little overrated. He’s no longer one of the top three players in the league, and doesn’t deserve consideration in the Bird/Jordan/Magic range. He’s a volume shooter who scores a lot but shoots a lot, and is constantly bailed out by refs. His clutch rep at the end of games is way overblown.
If this team wins the Finals, they will be the softest team to do so in the history of basketball. They simply will not defend the interior with any kind of aggression or toughness,.
Yeah, but they had Bynum on the bench and Ariza barely playing. That’s not to say that the present team isn’t better than last year’s – they are – but only that they’ve got a kind of inconsistency that’s pretty much sui generis.
Incidentally, who do you want the Bulls to pursue this off-season?
Hell, I don’t know – is Bosh going to be traded or not? I’ve seen some talk of maybe moving up in the draft for Gerald Henderson, and while I don’t buy the Shaq rumors I do think that Camby or Kaman would be okay, and that this rumor sounds okay, too. I’m reasonably confident that Salmons is the real deal, and if that’s so then either Gordon or Hinrich has to move or be moved on, and I guess that Thomas and Deng are expendable, too. Barring a move for Bosh, the best strategies seem – in no particular order – to be (a) acquiring a low-priced or short-term veteran, (b) targeting someone the team likes in what’s obviously a weak draft, and (c) dumping salary with an eye toward making a serious move in 2010.
All of which is to say that I have no idea what the Bulls should be doing!
I don’t like this Bosh trade talk. Without him, Toronto’s destined to become a more of a rudderless mess than it was this season. Treano? Really, that’s considered a step forward? Toronto loves CB, but CB may not love Toronto (well, maybe the lack of playoffs 2 seasons running is the problem).
How about you Bulls take Bargniani off our hands. We’ll take on of Jordan’s old towels in return.
If I were a Raptors fan, neither would I. The question, though, is whether the team’s actually got a chance to re-sign him – if not, then taking (say) Luol Deng, Tyrus Thomas, and a draft pick (I have no idea whether this is feasible, or whether it would work financially) might be a decent way to cut their losses.
“If this team wins the Finals, they will be the softest team to do so in the history of basketball. They simply will not defend the interior with any kind of aggression or toughness.”
Your talking points are a year old, Freddie. That’s completely ridiculous. The biggest story of the Finals so far is how much trouble they’ve given Howard on the inside when he has the ball. Howard ate Cleveland for lunch – why aren’t they called soft? Oh, it must be because they’re not from LA and it doesn’t make a nice storyline…well, whatever works for you, I guess.
And John, no complaining about Gasol’s look and schtick from the Joakim Noah fan, please.
Hey, I’m not a fan of Noah’s look either – he needs to cut his hair and shave, just like Gasol.