Sooooo many contradictions in a single post Rube. Per your prose the word "luck" shouldn't exist unless it is in the ways you wish to twist it by the minute. How about... "Luck is a dividend of sweat, the more you sweat the luckier you get" - Ray Kroc "Luck is not something you can mention in the presence in self made men" - EB White "The harder you work the luckier you become" - Jeannette Walls "Shallow men believe in luck, strong men believe in cause and effect" - RW Emerson and my favorite... "success is simply a matter of luck, ask any failure" - Earl Wilson
Not contradictory in the least and every man views luck differently. The problem is that not every man is correct. "Winners are simply a matter of luck, ask any loser" Losers will tell you that they are losers because of bad luck. They are losers because of bad luck. But bad luck has never been a valid reason for anything. When you have bad luck you are supposed to steer clear. A guy with bad luck will hear there is a gold rush out in California and will sell all he has to join the rush to become a miner. Another guy with bad luck will hear the same news and decide it best to just stay home and keep working at the mill to provide a steady diet for his family. Two different ways to act if you are a born loser. The winner/lucky guy will, of course, go to California but not to become a miner but to sell wares the miners will need, like Sol Star and Seth Bullock.
Yeah luck is largely what you make of it and hard work never hurts. I totally agree with the supply chain thoughts though the merchant get pinched from every corner but he can also wrangle enough to feed his kin along the way.
If we sign Leonard, we don’t have the cash. Although Durant only signing to a 1 and 1 deal was interesting.
I really can't wait to see what Lonzo, BI, Kuz and Josh Hart look like with LeBron getting all the defensive attention. I may be drinking the Cool Aid, but I think BI and Zo can both be all-stars. Maybe not this year, but I'm excited about their propects. This team may not need another star...although I'd still take Kawhi.
I actually think, along with Lebron, the Lakers will have Josh Hart and Kyle Kuzma in the ASG. Not sure about Zo unless he has really worked on his shot and can stay healthy. BI also has a chance, but the voters are going to go heavy with GS and Houston again, so there may not be enough spaces especially for the positions they play.
I was thinking the same.. how do these guys all get to claim to be the GOAT? Bring rings to multiple teams JUST BECAUSE I went there. Measured by that metric LeBoner has the chance to make LA the 3rd city he's landed in and graced with a ring. Michael has 6, Kobe has 5 but all on the same teams. You have top go back to Robert Horry to have won two or more rings with 3 teams. Including all of the damned Celtics that have 5-11 rings, not a single Celtic ever won a ring anywhere else. The delta is that Horry was a solid wing but never the leader on Rockets Lakers or Spurs. LeBoner, despite whatever else I say, "is" a leader, a man among men. I do give him that but it will still be tough to cheer for him after sooooooooooooooo many years of revulsion at his mercenary ego. Of course when you're that good well.. your that good. Show me Buckeye, show me the rings and I shall too believe. (for a little while anyways) In contrast Durant got shit accomplished until joining as a 'me too' to win a ring with the Warriors. One could argue could Durant take a team on his shoulders like LeBoner does routinely? Close but no cigar, not quite even with Westbrook. OKC swallowed the sword and choked on it when they broke up Durant, Westbrook and Harden. Sweat the draft forever to get that and then not pony up?? anyways tangential except for Durant has only a ring with the Curry Warrior's cast so street punk pecking order is everything. Ask Kobe. 5. Or Shaq. 4. Or Magic. 5. Or a bunch of guys at 3 rings including LeBoner and Curry but not Durant... These highly paid pro's absolutely care about their positions on that list. Absolutely. So Curry's Warriors crew gets even tougher when/if Boogie comes back around. He won't need to throw up 25 points to be highly effective in their scheme. OTOH the Warriors don't set up to play big ball so Durant spoke of the myriad large options Cousins brings. Time will tell. Experts are saying that the Lakers won't have a chance against the Warriors until the 2nd or 3rd year but by then LeBoner is getting ancient and exhausted. This posse of rented hoodlums and the Lakers kids need to gel the "F" up and in a hurry. Lets make these Lakers entertaining again dammit.
Ingram yes, Lonzo no. I'd love Lonzo to make progress but his shot is sooooo bad no way his passing is good enough to make the All Star game. Hart and Kuz are hard issues but both of them could/should flourish with LeBoner pulling all of the D attention. Who benefits most? We do. Odds are good that one of the kids makes the AS squad. Which one(s)? Kuzma could step up with ease as could Ingram and Hart is a wild card that I can't fully see how he slots around on the court with Rondo so I'll be watching how this works.
If Josh Hart gets the PT he will be an all star. Lonzo will have a hard time being and all star even if he pans out. We picked up Beasley and he and Kuzma have a similar type of role. Kuzma being a modern version of Beasley so they are similar tools for Luke to use. Like Lonzo and Rondo. KCP and Stephenson. Skinny Ingram Buff LeBron. PG: Lonzo, Rondo, Bonga, Caruso SG: Hart, KCP, Svi SF: Ingram, Stephenson, Wear PF: Kuzma, Beasley, Wagner C :LeBron, Javale, Zubac First team is the Golden Ticket. LeBron and the 4 young guns, they run hard on most teams and score so much they dont worry about opposing teams big men. Specially since most teams don't have power bigs that work the low post. When they do then they can go into flex mode where LeBron goes back to his regular position and they bring in a big man like Javale, Zubac, or Wagner. Hell since Beasley will not play heavy minutes he can be tasked with going in hard against a big man and just do everything he can from letting get good position in the post. LeBron can run, that wont tire him out but guarding big men in the post will. Second team is the Purple Guard. Veterans who will play team ball and concentrate defensively. They will guards and wings will slash to the basket and make plays or spot up for open 3's. Defensively they will hammer down and deny the ball to the post and force teams to try and shoot contested jumpers or deep 3's. You like that Sunday Whites third team? There is always a 1% of Lakers fans who will love to have their favorite player come from this group. Who knows possibly one of these guys can become the Lakers head coach someday?
This makes so much sense when you consider how to allow playing time The hired guns vets coming in intermitently at certain stretches to spell whichever kid needs it otherwise dominating the 2nd shift. Magic/Rondo 'could' make that work
Hart won't likely be getting enough minutes to pull it off. Neither will Zo. At least not this season. Short term unless Zo figures it out at the FT line he's going to sit a bunch in the 4th quarter. Rondo isn't the best FT shooter, but he's not 45%. LAL will be in some close games and your PG can't be hackashaqable. I do think Zo will be an allstar one day. Maybe perennial, but not too sure with all these injuries. Factor in the knee stuff and the bad FT shooting, I'd say Zo gets about 26 min a night this year. Cut way down from the 34 min a night last year, but LAL is trying to win so
Good points in bold. I think Zo will see he's got some HUGE shoes to fill to be NBA-competent. All good. Hart's talent's can be slotted in easier than Zo. Zo's problems ARE NOT just at the stripe but his awkward left to right hand switch mid- jumper just begs to be slapped away.. someone should show him film of Jamaal Wilkes and then maybe.. but no. Honestly Rondo's career disadvantage has always been a less than average jumper. Having NEITHER PG have a solid jumper is a HUGE shortcoming against teams like the Warriors. Chris Paul has a way better jumper but Rondo at least is good at field general and Magic knows that matters. Rondo is Lonzo's ONLY chance to make it in the NBA. It will be good tutelage but the kid needs to step up in a big huge enormous way to give us a winning advantage. Magic ran PG and hit 88-89% of FT..as well as being an amazine 6'9" PG and his FT% never kept us from winning. Hack-a-Shaq works great whenever someone can't hit 70% The league semi permits low FT%'s from "C"' or "5" players but PG's need to hit 90%ish or it WILL get exposed. Lonzo has work to do but at least he's now got a solid tutor.
Yeah so they might just go for Durant instead of Kawhi. That's what Dr. Buss would do, TBH. Get the big superstar. Plus, I'm pretty damn tired of hearing about how the Warriors are light years ahead of everybody else with the way they run their business so I wouldn't be mad if Magic just said " gimme that " Both LeBron and Durant will likely have 3 rings, so they can win out together, leave with 6
All of these thoughts have just brought up / reinforced the new Rondo to LeBoner connection. Leave out the entire rest of the Lakers team and just ponder the Rondo to LeBoner plays. By themselves.
