Ok.  I get it.  Yes, where the LA Lakers currently find themselves (an unbelievable 4 games below .500, an unimaginable 3 games out of 8th position, in 12th within the Western Conference) sucks.  Yes, for the vast majority of the time thus far this season, that verbiage (sucks) could be used to describe the Lakers... a team with a starting roster that is beyond even fantasy teams.

But at what point is enough, actually enough?  At what point as a fan do I give up on this season?  A team with Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Pau Gasol, Metta World Peace and Steve Nash on the roster?  Even looking ahead to the Superbowl - what are the odds you can accurately pick which teams will be in there, and what the result will be?  Easier than predicting that this team would perform like this, that's for sure.

Clearly, Dwight's not quite yet "Dwight".  And Pau's been very un-Pau-like... but a large part of that has to fall on the inability of Mike D'Antoni to effectively work Gasol into his system.  Yes, part of it is on Pau.  He has oft come across as mentally... fragile.  Perhaps "emotionally fragile" is a bit closer to the mark.  Someone recently pointed out to me that there are some similarities with what's being asked of Gasol to the way he plays with Spain (with brother Marc Gasol and Reyes dominating the low post)... and that's a good point.  But ... in that team he's "THE Guy". There's no question there, and the difference in attitude, demeanor and play is palpable. And I think it's mental - 4th wheel isn't sitting well for him. And that's a great pity (the entire situation).

Kobe recently commented that he thought that the Lakers were simply "an old team".  I don't think "age" has had anything to do with it whatsoever, and I don't think Kobe thinks that either.  What he said was more highlighting to the "young bucks" on the team that they need to do more.  The old guys?  

• Oldest player: Nash has been pretty good post breaking his leg (and before too). Even if I wish he'd shoot more.
• Third oldest player: Kobe's been having a great year.
• Another "old" guy: MWP's been having his best season as a Laker.

All of the other points people list (coaching, system, injuries): none of them have much to do with age, and matter o' fact - the "old guys" (sans Gasol) have been playing better than those younger than them.

Yet the results have been undeniable, and LA seems to be in danger of wasting a halcyon year from Kobe, a great year from Ron-ron.

It's a quandary... I just wish they'd give me something to believe in.

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The way the Lakers have played this season, and the way the fans have reacted, has had me thinking about 'passion'... and the differing levels of fandom.

Something that I find interesting, is the fandom expressed by College fans as compared to their NBA counterparts.  The NBA fan (in general) doesn't define themselves by being a fan of their team, that's precisely what many college fans do.  Additionally, being a complete and utter fanatic is a quality admired in the college ranks, yet in the NBA you'd be considered as going perhaps a little overboard.

For example, these guys:

As Duke fans, their passion and and the lengths they will go to, to express their fandom is something to be admired, whereas if the same guys were say... Charlotte fans - they'd be considered a bit nutty.  A bit extreme.  I mean, what are the odds in basketball that you'd find fans like this in the NBA?  Well... whilst they do exist - they're on the fringe.

With regards to my own LA Lakers, many fans tend to be a) front-runners... and b) of the "Chicken Little" variety.  Lakerfans tend to express dissatisfaction with the slightest straying outside of expectations.  And expectations for a Lakers team generally include a title in them.  That doesn't look like happening, then "The Sky Is Falling". 

Thus the sunny skies have been ominously heavy for Lakerfans, to the point where many Lakerfans aren't even talking basketball now.  2 games below .500, and frequent struggles have meant that for a lot of fans, the only time they're talking basketball now is to complain about what's occuring with the team... if at all.

Me?  Well, whilst a 12-14 record is not exactly what I envisaged when LA signed on Dwight Howard and Steve Nash, the team's had very little opportunity to gel as a unit under Mike D'Antoni.  Agreed, they *should* be playing better, and there have been few bright spots beyond the youth and vigor of Kobe Bryant's play... but I still believe the team's going to be one helluva competitor come the pointy end of the season.

Overly optimistic?  Delusional?  Perhaps... but I'm just refusing to buy into the negativity.

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Well done Kobe Bryant!

Only the fifth player to score 30,000 points - and the fastest ever to do so.

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Some thoughts on LA at the moment...

- Dwight Howard's still not quite 'Dwight'. He's far better than he was at the start of the season, but he's still not 'there' (wherever that destination is).
- He (Dwight) needs to shut-up. You can talk about "wanting a ring", but hit your goddamn FTs and hit 50+% from the field more often than not please. Hell, 50% from the charity stripe would be a blessing. With LA performing the way they are, this won't help much.  Talk about it once you're part of the solution.
- I'm ok with Kobe Bryant shooting. Guy's hitting a very high percentage of shots from far further out than the bigs... but I'm not ok with Kobe taking quick shots from outside in the dying seconds of a game when the Lakers are down by 2. Look inside.
- Obviously, LA hurt for the absence of Steve Nash. Tho' I am honestly not buying the hand-wringing about his back-up (is he even?) Steve Blake being out. It's resulted in both Darius Morris and Chris Duhon getting some run. Now, neither are game winners, but both have been better than 'ok'. Morris is still too young, and Duhon too old... but they've been ok. Problem is, with one of those guys starting, and with Pau Gasol out so Antawn Jamison starting (vs Houston), the bench (not a strong point to begin with) is further decimated.
- I am beginning to think that perhaps Gasol might need to go. It's VERY difficult for me to say that, as he's been an absolute rock for LA... but having a player like Jamison (not necessarily Jamison himself!) would be a far better fit. I expected D'Antoni to be able to find a way to fit Gasol in, and Gasol to be able to find a way to fit... but it's not happening. Having more a stretch forward who's comfortable away from the basket might be a necessity.
- D'Antoni's vaunted offensive mind. Not saying it doesn't exist, but just that I haven't seen it yet.
- I do expect some stability when Nash returns. I expect D'Antoni (to an extent) to basically get outta the way at times and let Steve run things. I would not be surprised to see a significant improvement when Nash's back. Nash/Gasol back in the line-up bolsters the starting 5 hugely, and will make the bench a whole lot better.

There are no panic buttons being pressed as yet, but given the Lakers booted Mike Brown out after his start, stuff needs to start to change. Back on track, and soon please.

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In the comment section, state which basketball team you follow, and why you love your team!

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Ok, not breaking news any more re. Mike Brown being fired, and I guess it's no surprise that the rumor mill is firing up massively as to who will be his replacement.  ESPN reports that Phil Jackson is open to a return to the NBA,

Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak told reporters Friday afternoon that the team's brain trust -- Kupchak along with Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss and executive vice president of player personnel Jim Buss -- already has put together a list of potential replacements for interim coach Bernie Bickerstaff. Among the "four or five" names on that short list is Jackson, according to a league source.

My own sources (ok... a friend-of-a-friend who lives in LA... hardly concrete, but worth stating!) state that Phil Jackson has been seen today at LAX.  Coincidence?  As Franklin D. Roosevelt famously once said, "There are no coincidences."
Additionally, I do not believe that the Lakers would make this move unless all their little ducks were neatly in a row prior to this happening.  Whoever the coach-elect is, I expect him to be in place before the next game - a home game vs Sacramento on Sunday... or at the latest, before the Spurs on Tuesday.  This will happen fast enough to make heads spin.  Still, if you want to win at sports or gambling, you have to take chances.

LA will definitely be looking to insert a coach that has instant gravitas with the players.  It won't be someone like Brown... and is there a single coach alive with more weight than Phil Jackson?  Quite literally, in the league's pantheon of coaches... Jackson sits above all others.

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Mike Brown booted from the LA Lakers" class="caption" />
From all accounts, Mike Brown's one helluva guy.  A really, really nice guy - liked by pretty much all and sundry.  However, being a 'nice guy' doesn't win games.  Hard working too.  And whilst it's a sure bet that the players liked Mike Brown and respected his work ethic, "liked" isn't the same as being either respected as a coach nor being effective as one.
Clearly, the Lakers were ineffective.

Mike Brown's always been considered a defensive coach (defensive in the sense of courtplay, not any personality deficiencies!), somewhat lacking in having anything resembling an offensive scheme.  Even when he was first hired, like many others I thought he was a bad fit for LA, especially when a guy like Rick Adelman was available.  Brown lacked the resume to be the coach of a franchise like LA, and the hiring surprised me.  Again, like many others.  This season, there seemed to be a semblance of a plan: Brown surrounded himself with seasoned veteran coaches, that would hopefully shore up his shortcomings.  Well... 5 games into the season and it's been pretty obvious to everyone that something's clearly wrong.

Kobe's playing well.  Dwight Howard, whilst fairly obviously not the same D-12 (not yet 100% fit) is too.  Pau's there.  Yet 1-4? 
Part of that goes on the way they played the pre-season. Brown started it with giving his projected starters very small minutes, focusing on giving lots of minutes to the end of the bench guys to sort out who would be given a contract. I think he gave them way too much. Typically, Phil would make up his mind quickly on those guys, and move on. You could almost see the panic start to set in with Brown during the last 2 games of the pre-season... so now we have what we have now: an LA team stacked to the rafters, playing terribly.
Obviously, the bench is not living up to even being mediocre.  Merely looking at the names there, it's not a top ten bench - not even close - but it is a marked improvement over the bench that LA's trotted out the past few seasons.  Yet to look at them play it's really hard to stand by that.

The offensive scheme... The Princeton (is that what it even is??) I do worry that it takes the control out of Nash's hands a bit too much (when he's been there).  You have one of the best points in recent times - how about utilizing him?  
I have a concern that maybe what might be the answer is painfully simple and obvious: run a sh*tload of Pn'R. You have one of the top pick n' roll points in the league, and two phenomenal recipients in Howard/Gasol. Or even run it with Kobe... and Kobe makes one of the best kick-out guys in the league... the opportunities to create around an offense based on the simplicity and effectiveness of the pick n' roll?  Endless and awesome.

Where LA moves from this point forward?  Well, I think we can all agree that Bernie Bickerstaff doesn't keep the interim job - the names that we're seeing on the rumor mill include a return from Phil Jackson (unlikely), Jerry Sloan (interesting... but a good fit?), a Van Gundy (a BAD fit - given who the starting center for LA is), Nate McMillan... but the name that seems to be on the tips of everyone's tongues is Mike D'Antoni.  Now... whilst he is kind of the antithesis of Mike Brown being an offensive-minded coach with very suspect Ds, I do think he's a better fit for this team than Brown is was.

Time'll tell I guess. 

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Whilst the Lakers haven't had an especially auspicious start to the season, there's little reason to panic.  To do so would be absolutely foolish with a roster as loaded as this one so obviously is.

A healthy and dominating Dwight Howard, Metta World Peace hitting corner threes again and Steve Nash learning the ropes it looks like 2013 could be an exciting season.  And of course, Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol still play in purple and gold.  Kobe relishing the greater possibility of adding to his championship total, and Pau benefiting from a season without trade rumors, and playing alongside Nash and Howard.
Mitch Kupchak has done a magnificent job putting together a roster that's the envy of every other team in the NBA.


With the Clippers looming on Friday night, the Lakers will be looking to get their first win on the ledger, and no-one could doubt that they have the ability to do so, even with Steve nash perhaps sitting out the game with a minor leg contusion.  It'll be no easy battle, and one that the Lakers will need to work hard at to come out on top.

It would be interesting to know what Lakers player's do to relax and unwind in the little time they have between hitting the court for games or for training? It's rumoured that Kupchak asks them to stay off their feet and avoid extreme sports or activities for the duration of the season, so no skiing or wild adventures are waiting for any of the players as they make the most of recuperation time. It's aid that some of the players stick to online activities and like to win off the field when they play slots games at top online casinos,whilst others spend their time working out, meditating and doing slow stretch activities like yoga to keep them in shape for the heavy training to come.

Kupchak and the Lakers haven't let the stress of Howard hitting free agency status in July 2013 affect him as he has the pick of the crop and the exclusive tag of being a Lakers player is an attractive draw card for anyone up for a new commitment. It doesn't make sense for him or the team to stress, as this team is built with the NBA final trophy in consideration, something we'll all enjoy them getting.

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 Kevin Love goes all Kojak to raise $$ for breast cancer.  Tweet and/or like (on youtube or facebook) then Love (and Larry Fitzgerald who does the barbering!) will donate cash to charity.

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