Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh play the Warriors for the 3rd time in like 3 days, it feels like. Fuck. ESPN game tonight
Most difficult stretch in the NBA this year, and the most difficult since 2014-15. http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...toughest-four-game-stretch-last-three-seasons
would help if KCP could have hit a shot kept tuning back in and it seemed like every time he bricked a ball 4/16 ain't gettin it done
So reading that MGT might be targeting PG13 and Boogie at the trade deadline. I wonder, would Clarkson/Hart/Zubac be enough to get Boogie???
http://www.nba.com/article/2017/12/24/los-angeles-lakers-andrew-bogut-team-frustrated#/ Andrew Bogut says Los Angeles Lakers players 'frustrated' about current situation “Grousing” was what Lakers coach Luke Walton did after his team’s home loss to Portland Saturday, criticizing the game officials who had hit him with a technical foul in the third quarter. But “pouting” was an even bigger emotional topic, using Walton’s word for what seemed a distracted or downcast Lakers bunch. It was left to L.A. center Andrew Bogut, one of the grown-ups on a very young Lakers team, to explain the source of the alleged pouting: the organization’s very public plan to overhaul its payroll after this season to lure big-name free agents. That invariably means some currently employed Lakers will be losing their jobs – and that sort of worry can wear on a fellow. ESPN’s Ohm Youngmusik provided details: "Pouting? Possibly. Guys are frustrated," Bogut said of the Lakers as Brandon Ingram sat out because of injuries to his quads. "There are some injuries right now, different rotations. Guys are frustrated, obviously. You would be lying to say that there are guys that are not frustrated on this team. "Everyone knows what is going on with the salary-cap situation next season and all that. That is just distractions that we can't let affect us. That is part of the league, the business decisions that front offices and coaches make. So if that is distracting guys, that is going to be like that your whole career. That is just the nature of this league." The Lakers are building around the two most recent No. 2 overall picks in the draft -- Ingram and Lonzo Ball -- and also have impressive rookie Kyle Kuzma. But to pursue potential free agents such as LeBron James and Paul George next summer, management will have to create cap space, and that could impact players such as Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson, two vets who have been excellent for the Lakers this season off the bench. On Friday night, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Lakers and Dallas Mavericks had some "initial talks" involving Randle and center Nerlens Noel, but that those talks fell apart when Noel got injured. According to league sources, the Lakers have received interest in Randle and Clarkson this season. Have to say, saw this coming. Was happening early on in the season with Julius and all his pouting, predictable, but then you knew that others like Clarkson would soon be in the same boat and that as the trade deadline neared LAL would possibly find themselves in a funk with a group of guys pouting because their LAL tenures are likely to be cut short. Just the nature of the beast, especially in LA and for LAL, everything has always been so public with the FO since forever. But yeah, there's really only 3 or 4 guys on the entire team that should feel like they're going to be Lakers beyond this season. Zo, Ingram, Kuz and probably Hart. Both Nance and Zubac could be dealt, although, I'd be semi-shocked if they moved the cheap Nance. Zubac probably isn't playing because they know he's not suited for the uptempo pace they've moved to with Zo on board and so they likely don't want to do harm to the trade value he built last season. Out of the rest of the non-Zo/Ingram/Kuz/Hart group, probably a safe guess that they'll look into retaining Brewer and Bogut on the cheap if they make it past the deadline, that is. Couple vets that know how to get the little things done and seemingly always play with an edge. They could be helpful moving forward beyond this season. Hopefully, they keep Thomas Bryant around because he can play, but TBT he's not overly quick up and down the floor either and then he's young as well, so I could see them letting him go too. This Nerlens Noel/Julius Randle thing seems real. Could see a scenario where Nance and Noel are competing to start at center for LAL next season. Athletic, high energy types that defend multiple positions well, and then have Bogut in that mix as the spot/vet guy. If LAL does trade Julius for Noel, LAL better be getting a draft pick(s) as well in return. Dallas has to pay Julius, but he's still better than Noel and LAL could just wait and sign Noel as a free agent anyway, so it's on Dallas to make a trade worthwhile for LAL. They have to take Clarkson as well..something. Sucks that LAL is gonna ditch Julius.
BTW, Julius only played 11 minutes the other day against Memphis So the last 5 games.. 8 minutes 24 minutes 22 minutes 18 minutes 11 minutes Smh They're going to trade this kid and they better not regret it. Tania Ganguli✔@taniaganguli The Lakers had a team meeting yesterday instead of practice. Luke Walton gave players the floor to discuss whatever was on their mind. Lots of talk about frustrations guy were feeling, both on the court and with the business of the organization. 1:23 PM - Dec 29, 2017 https://www.silverscreenandroll.com...rs-trade-rumors-julius-randle-jordan-clarkson
This team is pussying it out. Play the freaking game. You play better with the time given, the better your value whether You are staying or leaving. Counterpoint, Magic and Pelinka should be smarter than this. Why can't you wait and have ziplock mouths before the trade deadline if you are serious? Wise up! This franchise doesn't deserve this incompetence.
There's nothing Magic and Pelinka could do about word leaking. Once Paul George and his agent made it known that he wanted LAL, common sense kicked in for LAL players and they understood that if George joins, that a good amount of them would be pushed out for salary cap reasons. Most of these guys have been on the trade block for a while now, some of them would be in Indiana right now if Magic had his way, as they did make a real attempt at trading for George before Indy turned and sent him to OKC. Further, Julius and Paul George share the same agent, so Julius was going to find out regardless, probably be among the 1st to know. I imagine Julius also heard about LAL offering him in a trade to the Celtics for Avery Bradley. Word has been leaking in the NBA for years, even with the greatest of orgs. Nothing anybody can do about it because of agents and the way players talk amongst themselves. Word leaked about Dr. Buss' attempt to trade Worthy to Dallas for Tarpley..word also leaked about the failed Worthy/Barkley trade between LAL and Philly back in the day. It's on the players to just play and let the chips fall where they may. They just have to play for themselves. It's a fucked up situation because you ultimately want players being good teammates and playing for eachother, but it's the nature of the business, especially for rebuilding clubs. Guys have their own agendas
Not to mention a head coach who is in over his head. Some of the lineups he throws out there are ridiculous. He's trying to run the Warrior system without reliable shooters. And I'm not sure what the fuck offense they run in the 4th quarter of competitive games. I know the KCP and Clarkson chuck and clank offense doesn't cut it.
This. Same with the defensive schemes. They don't have the personnel to switch everything. They wind up with one of their wings on a big and get killed every time. You can do that with Klay, Draymond and Iggy. That shit doesn't work with Jordan Clarkson, Josh Hart. Even Ingram isn't ready for that yet (though I think he will be in time).
Overall, as far as the offense goes, I get it. Zo is basically their new highly touted quarterback and they wanted to introduce him to the system, wanted him to get used to playing at a particular pace. Makes sense, can't just throw away a year of development, so I'm OK with that. Of course, they don't really have any reliable go to guys in the half court yet, at least as far as late game situations go. We know they're looking for growth in Ingram in that category. Progress there, alone, would have them winning more often. But it's clear to see that Zo/Ingram/Kuzma are their top priorities and that they want these guys working and gathering experience in the systems that they're going to use moving forward beyond this season. Same goes for the defensive side of the ball and all of the switching that they do..implementing the system and hoping the core 3 or 4 guys benefit and grow from the experience. It sucks because you get the feeling that if they were to prioritize winning 110% this year, that they could be around .500 right now or maybe a tick better. Luke's rotations have pissed me off more than anything else, but TBT, he could be getting his orders from the FO, so it may not even be all his doing. The way this rebuild is going, they have 3 or 4 guys ( maybe 5) that they prioritize first in pretty much everything that they do and it's essentially why they had to have a team meeting to clear the air. Pretty much all we can do is hope that this core of 3 or 4 ( maybe 5) guys turns into a core of 7 or 8 guys this coming offseason and that they'll feel like more of a team next season.
I can say with confidence that there is no other team in the NBA that can play the type of game that the Warriors are playing right now. They have freakish athletes with multiple talents at all positions which allows them to get away with not playing with a pure center. Dray is a freak that can play a hybrid 4-5 position but can then layoff the PF to let KD do his thing. Curry and Klayman can shoots the lights out of the ball and Klay can also defend. All of them can switch and defend well and then take advantages of his matches all over the court. In a lot of ways, Curry could not get away with what he does if not for Klay and Dray, KD all over the place, and players off the bench like Iggy and Za Za....West and JaVale and Snazzy P. If any team tries to fully emulate this, they will fail. GS happened upon the right magical mix of players, but that might have been a once in a lifetime thing. Walton needs to create something different, and the FO needs to bring the right players. In just afraid both are too inexperienced to bring that here.
I'm pretty optimistic about the long term future of this team. Ingram looks like he's going to be special. Once he gets more consistent on his outside shot and gets a little stronger, he's going to be unstoppable and a great defender. Zo makes everyone around him better and I've been surprised at his defense. Kuz looks like a steal and is a perfect stretch 4 in this league. Go forward with that core and add some good players and they could really have something.
Think at the very least Magic will convince George to go ahead and sign and that Pelinka will be able to pull in his former client Avery Bradley. Not an Earth-shattering couple of additions, but it's potentially the floor for LAL in the offseason. Perhaps the 3rd guy would be Noel for the room exception if Rich Paul sends another unfortunate case their way
