No Lucky Numbers Yet
The 2007 NBA Draft took place yesterday in Secaucus, New Jersey. To everyone’s surprise, the Blazers advanced. When the Milwaukee Bucks logo was pulled first, everyone knew that the top three teams were up against a wall. The top lottery winners were the Portland Trail Blazers, Seattle Supersonics, and the Atlanta Hawks.
The Blazers are now faced with the option of trading Zach Randolph. His high salary makes him a sensible trade, but last season’s amazing performance still makes him a valuable asset. The Lakers might have a chance to trade Lamar Odom for Randolph and point guard Jarret Jack. However, the Blazers have made no mention of such a trade, and we can only keep a close watch and speculate at this point. Keep an eye open and get your Los Angeles Lakers tickets soon.
Who’s Feeling Lucky?
As with the rest of the NBA, the Los Angeles Lakers have been in a holding pattern until now, the famous day of the NBA lottery. Recent talks have made mention of trading for Jermaine O’Neal or Pau Gasol, using frosh Andrew Bynum as the trade-up. But since Bynum is bound by a rookie contract, the dowry would have to be fattened with another sheep from the herd. Kwame Brown is the most likely to be traded with Bynum to suffice securing a big timer on the Lakers roster.
And what will this leave for size on the Laker roster? Not much. The Lakers would need to trade for a stellar center or power forward to put some weight back on the court. This would add some validity to speculation about the Lakers trading for Indiana Pacer Jermaine O’Neal. Vice President of Player Personnel Jim Buss openly admitted that the Lakers planned to make adjustments around Kobe and are not adverse to major rearrangements for the roster. Get your Los Angeles Lakers tickets today.
Media Mess
It looks like the Los Angeles Lakers’ recent talks of new coaching positions may be inciting some latent disagreements between the gentlemen in the higher echelons. Lakers VP Jim Buss was recently on a talk radio show where he ripped Phil Jackson for ripping Lakers players in the media. Well, isn’t that a bit hypocritical? Buss definitely made himself guilty of exactly what he was accusing Jackson of. Way to go with the quick fix on that one Buss.
This is not to say that Jackson was in the right, but Buss’ calling out should have taken place in private. Buss’ sister Jeanie, Jackson’s girlfriend, and another Lakers VP returned Jim’s volley by calling him out for vilifying Jackson. Anyone else picturing a sandbox with children pointing fingers at each other? Apparently it’s time for some restructuring in management. Let’s hope this is all part of ironing out the wrinkles of the off-season. Make sure you get your Los Angeles Lakers tickets and join the action.
Former Lakers GM Receives Hall of Fame Honors
Fred Schaus was recently inducted into the Ohio Hoop Zone Basketball Hall of Fame. This is a well-deserved accolade for Schaus, who has multiple, significant accomplishments under his belt. It began with aiding the Newark High School boys basketball team in winning the 1943 boys basketball state championship. Schaus then went on to become the first Newark Mountaineer to score 1,000 points. This task is even more commendable considering plays and tactics weren’t as advanced then.
Following this great feat, Schaus coached Newark through five consecutive NCAA tournaments, and then became the general manger for the Los Angeles Lakers, building one of the most successful NBA franchises of the 1960’s and 1970’s. He helped the Lakers achieve a record 33 consecutive wins, and an NBA championship in 1972. For your chance to see potential, future Hall of Famers, get your Los Angeles Lakers tickets today.
Bionic Basketball
Los Angeles Lakers forward Lamar Odom successfully underwent shoulder surgery Tuesday. Odom will most likely be able to play by the start of training camp in October. Team doctor Dr. Lewis Yocum completed the surgery in 40 minutes. This was nothing new for Odom or Yocum, as this was the same surgery Odom had two years ago. Odom is expected to begin rehab work shortly. Today’s medical advancements and surgery capabilities must be quite comforting to coaches and managers. Granted, injuries can be devastating to a team, but they’re certainly not looked at the same as they were a few years ago. Our professional athletes will soon be looked as bionic super-humans.
Professional teams must also be taking this into consideration when trade talks are being made. And sports medicine and therapy are discovering advancements on a daily basis, whipping players back into playing form in significantly less time. After all, if a player can simply be tinkered with, to at least temporarily extend his time on the court, then wouldn’t that be much better than trading up for a healthier player with less innate athletic talent? A fine line divides these views. At the very least, these injuries are indicative that our athletes are still vigorously pounding the court and earning their keep. Get your Los Angeles Lakers tickets today.
Lakers Assistants Looking Elsewhere
First of all, yes, Los Angeles Lakers’ Lamar Odom’s shoulder surgery was a success. Now, moving on to the holistic surgery of the team. There’s been a lot of movement suggesting that the Lakers will need to doctor their coaching staff soon. The Seattle Supersonics and Sacramento Kings requested permission from the Lakers to meet with coach Kurt Rambis for the position of head coach. Rambis has been contributing as assistant coach for nine seasons with the Lakers. And Jim Cleamons is in the middle of an interview process with the Supersonics. Cleamons is on his second go around with the Lakers, and has previous head coach experience with the Dallas Mavericks from 1996-98. In addition, Lakers assistant coach Brian Shaw interviewed in Indianapolis on Tuesday for the open coaching position with the Indiana Pacers. Shaw has been assisting the Lakers since the middle of the 2004-2005 season. Shaw was also a Laker himself during their three-peat championship streak from 2000-2002. Shaw is also being interviewed by the Sacramento Kings. These coaching position talks are definitely still in the preliminary phase, pending the hiring on of other positions and some repositioning of staff on the other teams. Positions are still being juggled, so it will be interesting to see where everyone falls into place. Get your Los Angeles Lakers tickets today.
Will Odom Continue to Be a Surgery Magnet?
The Los Angeles Lakers’ off-season has begun. Unfortunately, it’s not a very positive start. Forward Lamar Odom recently tore his labrum in his left shoulder. Odom is undergoing surgery today. The fact that this is the same surgery he had two years ago is not promising. And we won’t know the extent of the damage until they actually operate. Odom has already missed five games in March due to his previous shoulder injury, and a few games earlier in the season because of a sprained knee. With all the trade talks recently, will this surgery put Odom on the endangered species list? This most definitely depends on the recovery time required before Odom can hit the court full force again.
Despite these mishaps, the Lakers’ team doctor Dr. Lewis Yocum claims that Odom should be ready for training camp. However, this means Odom will only have 4 1/2 months of recovery time before training camp, leaving a small window of flexibility with the initial 4-month recovery projection. Wish Odom luck and get your Los Angeles Lakers tickets here.
Lakers Need to Stop Kidding Around
New Jersey Nets’ General Manager Rod Thorn openly admitted to trying to trade Jason Kidd to the Los Angeles Lakers last week. The decision was in play until the last minute of the deadline. Reportedly, Kidd was a fan of the trade as well. However, the Lakers would have had to trade integral center Andrew Bynum. Bynum, the youngest player in the league, has quickly surprised many with the thorough development of his skill set. He’s obviously made himself a valuable stock ticket. Extremely young, career starts in the pocket, and already showing maturity on the court, all within his first year of going pro, why would Lakers turn this gem over at this point? Even Kidd admits, If I were the Lakers I wouldn’t have given him up for me, either.”
Lakers VP Jim Buss also admitted more trade truths on L.A. radio recently. He admitted that the Lakers are seriously considering changes to the roster after draft lottery positions are made concrete on May 22. So, perhaps Bynum may not be exempt from trade just yet. Especially when we consider the three-year slump the Lakers have been experiencing, we can see how the Lakers may start trading to make themselves undeniable challengers now. They simply don’t have the time to build up to contenders. Get your Los Angeles Lakers tickets today.
Harnessing Negative Energy on the Court.
When it comes to the Los Angeles Lakers, it’s easy to get caught up in the action on the court. But these all-stars probably wouldn’t be who they are today without their families. Kobe Bryant was reminded of this when former teammate Derek Fisher’s 10 1/2-month-old daughter recently underwent successful treatment for eye cancer. Surprisingly, Kobe said that such trauma can actually enforce a player’s concentration, “What happens is you get a higher sense of focus. You want to perform well for your family. You know it can help lift the spirits of your family for that day or however long.” After taking another minute to let this quote set in, I realized it’s not so surprising. Sports have an incredible mental component, and performing well always serves to boost spirits. For myself, I remember playing a soccer game with my freshly exed girlfriend in attendance. I wanted to make her sorry for what she did, and I felt a new level of adrenaline pumping through me that game; it was exhilarating in an almost eerie way. So, as strange as it may sound, it can be quite effective if players harness negative energy in their life and convert it to a focused plan of attack. Check out StubHub.com for Lakers tickets.
Lakers Need to Rethink Their Strategy.
It’s time to stop referring to Kobe Bryant like the mythological god Atlas, bearing the weight of the entire team on his shoulders. This is a professional NBA team right? Aren’t these multimillion dollar teams supposed to have more than one player to rely on to consistently produce? Instead of dwelling on how much longer the peak of Kobe’s copious career will last, the Los Angeles Lakers need to fall back on the basics and get a little gritty this off-season. “We’re very aware of Kobe Bryant’s age (29 in August),” Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak said. “We’re aware of that window, and we’re making every effort to make this the best team possible.”
Due to Kobe’s need to be the lone star on the court, we know that the Lakers can’t look to taking on another superstar to pick them up from their three year slump. So the Lakers need to start thinking about a new system on the court this off-season that reinvents how they use their current talent. You can view Lakers tickets at StubHub.com to watch what will hopefully be a revamped team.
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