Aloha

Normally this is the time of year that I kind of tune out the NBA. Most everything is settled by now and we are just waiting for training camp.
Not this year. The Lakers still are holding onto a couple of roster spots and it has me checking everyday.

At this point we go a solid 12 deep. We are the deepest team in the league and I believe we will use all 12 guys because of our collective age. So those last couple of spots aren’t exactly crucial but they are intriguing. The Lakers maybe waiting for the the buy outs. And while they maybe privy to inside league scuttle butt that we haven’t heard, it could be dangerous waiting because the few remaining quality guys won’t be on the market much longer.

For me I would rank a big physical wing as our number one need. We don’t have much depth there. I like Ennis here and I’m a bit surprised that no one has scooped him up yet. He might be holding out for a piece of a remaining MLE. I looked at a few of the other wings we have shown interest in but I would bring back Mckinnie over them.

I see PF with the ability to play some small ball 5 as our 2nd greatest need. AD is our only small ball 5. With LeBron, Davis and Melo our only PF although Ariza can probably play there. Milsap would be the best solution and it shouldn’t really matter if Marc decides to retire or not we need Marc’s size on the roster as well. The thing about Milsap is you read a lot of writers suggesting Milsap but there really haven’t been a lot of chatter about interest from the Lakers. You hear the Warriors and a couple other teams. If the Lakers can’t land Milsap, I would take a flyer on a young guy with upside like Marques Criss. He has shown real potential at times and perhaps we could develop him at the end of the bench. Harry Giles is another young big we might be able to develop if he can ever stay healthy.

The last spot is back up PG. and I’m really not that concerned there. Nunn will get most of his minutes at PG. I see him playing with LeBron when Westbrook sits. It would be similar to how Bradley was playing the point on D but was a secondary ball handler on offense. And THT can also play the point so I’m not that concerned. I guess IT for scoring but Im not sure he would want to come here for a small role where he can’t re-establish his value. Same goes for Collison. We can always call Reeves up in a emergency. I would definitely add a wing and a PF before a PG.

Aloha,

It seems like ever time a big 3 is formed, there is always negative comments about fit. It seems like no one other then the superstars involved can see how it will work. When the big 3 in Miami was formed the naysayers were out in force. But D Wade and Bosch both adjusted their game to fit with LeBron. The same thing happened when KD joined the Warriors. He adjusted his game to fit in the Warriors system. And last year when Harden joined the Nets, it seemed like no one thought that could work. How could ball dominate Harden fit with ball dominate Irving. Well Harden adjusted his game from scorer to playmaker.

Our big 3 will figure it out. And one thing to remember is that a huge advantage of having a big 3 is that at least one of the 3 is usually always on the court. LeBron will still run the show when Russ sits. And when they play together Russ will learn to play off the ball a little more, like D Wade did in Miami. I expect to see Russ with his athleticism cash in big from LeBron’s
Passing. For me the offense will be fine. It will be all about our defense. On paper we gave up a lot defense. But defense more then anything else is all about effort. I think everyone will buy in. If you play for Frank you will need to give 100% on D to see the floor.

Aloha

The narrative you read everywhere is that the Lakers are too old to win a ring. A lot of factors as we saw this year goes into winning a championship, health being as important then anything else. One might argue many different things about why the Lakers won’t win a championship but if they don’t win, it won’t be because of age.

Let’s look at the roster. First we have 12 rotation quality guys. We don’t have any typical end of the bench players. With this kind of depth, there will be fewer minutes played and opportunities to rest players through out the year.

LeBron should be over the hill but he’s not. He was the leading candidate for MVP before Hill rolled up on him. a freak accident, not age. Honestly he may retire before he leaves his prime. And having Westbrook should keep his minutes down.

I think it was Phil Jackson that said a player enters his prime at 28 and then they are usually there 4 to 6 years barring injuries. AD is 28 so let’s not worry about him. Westbrook is 32, like KD, Harden, Steph etc. So I’m not concerned about his age. Bazemore is also 32 and Ellington is 33. Perhaps they are at the tale end of there prime but both should have plenty of quality minutes left. So that is potentially our starting line up. All 5 have gas left in the tank.

Now we have THT, Monk and Nunn. All young rotation quality guys to back them up. Take a look at any true contender and you won’t find bench guys much better.

So we have 8 players that you can’t dismiss because of age.

Next up, our centers. Yes they are old. If AD stays healthy does anyone see them combining for even 25 minutes a game? Marc can still be effective in short bursts. And Howard is still a beast. How many young guys in the league have a body like his? It says a lot about your team when Howard is your 12th man.

Last we have a couple of old forwards. Melo had a stellar year last year coming off the bench for 24 minutes a game. Ariza was still effective at 28 minutes a game. I can’t see Melo playing more than 24 and with our depth I really don’t see Ariza playin more then 24 either. Still this my biggest area of concern and I would like to see us add one more forward, preferably a combo forward if possible.

Of all our players I’m actually more concerned about AD with his injury history holding up more then I worry about the old guys. This team is built for this season. Period. And for one season, with injury luck, I feel they are as good as any contender.

Aloha,

One of the major concerns about landing Westbrook was his poor shooting from deep. And .315 from deep is obviously not good. But what all the critics fail to mention is DWade was even worse when he played with LeBron. He didn’t fix his 3 point shot until later in his career. The pairing with LeBron worked because Wade learned to play off the ball. Russ is athletic and has a high motor. If he learns the lessons DWade learned he should thrive.

The other area Westbrook needs to improve on is shot selection. He was miserable on pull up 3’s. Only 28%. But he was a decent 35.6% on catch and shoot 3’s. And surprisingly he shot 40% from the corner. The lesson here is no pull up 3’s. Perhaps Frank should fine him every time he takes one.

Russ has never played with 2 players like LeBron and AD and with so many shooters. His already impressive assist total should be even better. If he makes these adjustments our offense can be right up there as one of the best in the league. And hopefully we can maintain enough defense to stay in the top 10 as well.

Aloha

It’s looking like Dennis is screwed. I read that the Celtics don’t want to hard cap themselves and they only want a one year deal. That means the mini mid level. Can Dennis find more as a back up somewhere? It’s looking more like we won’t get any return from him. And I would be surprised if we brought him back now after he burned down the bridge.
He could be a trade piece later but chemistry is also important. We will see.

While I like the moves we made we still have a few holes left. PG is one. I think Nunn will play PG with LeBron when Russ rests, but if Russ goes down, Neither Nunn or THT are really floor general type players. Reeves has looked good in Summer league, perhaps we would bring him up in an emergency. Not a lot of choices left on the market. Peyton maybe?

We also don’t have depth at PF, with only LeBron, AD and Melo. I guess you could move Trevor there in a pinch but he’s our only wing over 6’ 4”. I like adding either Chriss or Giles. Both can also play center. Both are young low risk potentially high reward guys for the end of the bench. I think our biggest mistake was not resigning Morris. He signed with the Heat for the minimum. He can play the 3, 4 or 5 and he’s tough. Big mistake.

I would like one more tough defender on the wing. Ennis is about the last quality guy left standing. Unless Rob knows something about a trade for Dennis that we don’t I would snatch him up. If the Celtics did agree to a sign and trade the Celtics picked up Josh Richardson which would be a good pick up for us. No way they would trade Smart.

More I think about it the more I like the Westbrook trade over a trade for Buddy. Buddy shot 39% last year on 10 attempts. We can get the same production out of Ellington and Monk. Nunn can also play the 2. When you consider that Buddy is a defensive liability, we may be better off with our SG rotation.

Aloha

I’m pleased with the roster as it stands, so why not take a flyer on a couple of low risk high reward players. First we only have 3 guys at the 4., Ad, LeBron and Melo. Why not take a chance on Marquese Chriss. He is an athletic 6’ 9” 24 year old PF. His career has been interrupted by injuries. He only played 2 games last year but played well for the Warriors the year before. He averaged 9ppg 6 rb and a block in 20 minutes. He is not a 3 point threat but we have shooters, it would give us a little depth at the 4 or even small ball 5.

The other is Justice Winslow. His career has also been derailed by injuries. He is a tough defense minded wing that has shot 375% on threes on 4 attempts before. Both have shown a lot of upside in the past. At the minimum both guys would be worth the risk.

Aloha

I think the Lakers will not rush to fill that last required roster spot. The list of remaining free agents is underwhelming. Obre would be nice but I think something will come together for him better then the vet minimum. I also wouldn’t mind bringing Wes back but we are already a small team and Wes would be yet another 6’ 4” guy.

I think Rob wants to see what he can get in a S/T for Dennis. The market has dried up for starting point guards but he is a very good 6th man so he possibly return something of value, even if it’s a 2nd round pick, since we are thin on draft capital.

I really would like to find a little more length to add and considering we have shooters now, a defense minded player would be helpful.

The interesting thing about Kobe’s birthday is that it falls on 08/23 instead of 08/24 which would have matched his Jersey numbers 8 and 24. That’s eeriely almost like a missed free throw.

Aloha

I would still like to find another SF with size. We are a bit under sized there. James Ennis is still out there. Might see us run a lot of 3 guard offense. It would be nice to turn Dennis into that player but the reports were saying his people were not talking to the Lakers so they may just give him the middle finger salute and let him sign for the minimum.

Aloha

Feeling a bit better with Melo and Monk signing. Melo gives much need depth at the 4. Monk came into the league and struggled with his 3 point shot until this year when he shot 40% from 3 on 5 attempts. Now we need more at the SF. Ennis is still available as is Tony Dnell.

Aloha,

I am a little that we didn’t land some of the small forwards with size that were available. If LeBron and AD are going to start at the 4 or 5 We really don’t have what I believe a good option for a starting 3. Bazemore is a 3 but he’s undersized at 6’ 4”. One interesting option is Danny Green. He is 6’ 6”. Honestly I would rather sign him then Mills. He is a much better defender and he regained his 3 pointer after a off year with us. He shot a little over 40% on 6 attempts a game compared to Paddy’s .375.

Another interesting name to watch is Kelly Obre. After a horrendous start from 3 he settled down and became effective from 3. And he is another quality defender.

I’m also hoping to resign Keef because we need depth at the 3 and 4, although if Melo does come that gives us depth at the 4.

And Dennis? His market disappeared, at least his market as a starter. I would consider bringing him back on a reasonable contract. He is very good as a 6th man and gives insurance if Russ goes down with an injury. We don’t have a back up yet and while Mills is listed as a PG, he’s always been more of an undersized SG. He only has averaged a little over 2 assists a game for his career.

Aloha

Well I liked what we did to a point, then things have went a little sideways. For me the most important signing was if LeBron is going to start at the 4, landing a 3 with size to start for our MLE was critical. That hadn’t happened and most of the top prospects have signed except Rudy Gay. Now the Warriors just signed Otto Porter so that may land us Paddy Mills. We also have just AD and LeBron for the 4. There hasn’t been a peep about Keef or Wes. Keef is even more critical now.

Now it looks like the Wizards are closing in on Dinwiddie. So any hope of sending Dennis there is over and if the Nets do a sign and trade you might see Kuz on his way to the Nets. Ending hopes of expanding the trade for Buddy.
So what happens now with Dennis?

Melo could also be on his way to the Knicks for more as well. Unless another team shows interest in Dennis, the best we maybe able to do is Gay, Mills, Keef and Wes. That’s not bad but I was hoping for a little more.

Still it’s not over till it’s over. So we will see.

I hear Sasha is available😂 He’s the same age as most of the team😂

The fact of the matter is that Jeannie just flat out wasn’t gonna pay a whole lot of that luxury tax penalty. I think this might be the most they’ve ever paid and she wasn’t going much deeper than that. So that’s the given in this whole equation. When you accept that fact then you realize why our roster was constructed this way after acquiring Russ. And looking through that lense it’s also easy to see why Caruso was let go. And nobody had any incentive to cooperate in a sign & trade with us so…here we are.

Aloha

Kind of wondering who the Lakers call first. Probably someone they don’t have a commitment from. Oh wait, you are not supposed to do that. My bad😂