Archive for June, 2007
After reading the article, give us your thoughts on who the Lakers should sign via Free Agency. Sound-off in the comments!
L.A. Times: The Lakers can breathe easier. They are no longer paying Brian Grant. His contract finally expires tonight, but so does the one belonging to Luke Walton, who will be thrust into the open market at 9:01 p.m. while ushering in another phase of the Lakers’ off-season — and more questions — with the beginning of the free-agency period.
Will the Lakers retain Walton by perhaps tripling the $1.4 million he made last season? They hope so.
Will they re-sign Chris Mihm at a substantial pay cut? It’s a wait-and-see.
Whom will they sign with their mid-level exception? Denver point guard Steve Blake, Milwaukee point guard Mo Williams, Orlando forward Grant Hill and Miami sharpshooter Jason Kapono are all possibilities.
Although the Lakers just drafted a young point guard for a second consecutive season, they’re in the market for one with more experience than Javaris Crittenton, who played one season at Georgia Tech.
“I think that remains a position we need to pursue,” General Manager Mitch Kupchak said Friday. “Jordan Farmar may end up being that player, but we do feel that another player in the backcourt, a veteran player, would be a good fit.”
Continue reading ‘Free Agent Market-watch’
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Here is a great read from the O.C. Register blog. Keep the hope alive fellas!
O.C. Register Blog: The Lakers walked away from draft night feeling fine, expressing these opinions: There is time (all summer), and there is still opportunity to make the trades that they want.
Minnesota didn’t trade Garnett, meaning the Lakers could have come in with the best deal for him, because no one else did.
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Our friend, JSM, from Clublakers.com scoured the internet to find more information our 1st round draft pick, Javaris Crittenton. His also seen him play a few games. Here are his thoughts on Crittenton:
I’ve watched him play some here at GT, but I wasn’t all that familiar with his background. From what I’ve read in what I posted in the post I made, I like what I’m reading about him.
- Smart
- Family oriented
- Vocal on the court (weren’t all of us begging for some on court communication all season?)
- Very competitive (Kobe will respect that)
- Plays D (he’s already the anti-Smush)
- His quote about not giving up, wanting the W (spells more kudos points from #24)
- Knows his role as a PG (Smush would stare at the bench, practically pleading for direction)
- Watches 4 hours a week of NBA PGs (that’s already more off the court work than 3/4 of Kobe’s teammates put in)
- He’s a Magic Johnson fan (has to earn some kudos points from Laker fans)
- Very coachable (meaning the coaching staff can mold him)
http://www.clublakers.com/forums/get-to-know-javaris-t76896.html
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This afternoon our beloved General Manager was on the Loose Cannons commenting on last night NBA Draft and what the Los Angeles did. Mitch actually showed some personality in this interview considering what is going on.
Here’s the interview from AM570:
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This article claims KG talks will pick up Sunday. Could this be the day Taylor gets back from his honeymoon? A lot of people are speculating a deal won’t be signed off until Taylor gets back. It could be that Boston will begin talks again on Sunday, but that wouldn’t make much sense unless you believe what Jim Gray said to Mitch and said, “you’ve been on the phone for three weeks now with the exception of today.” Maybe KG talks are stalled until Sunday for everyone. Makes you wonder. Oh yeah, Boston is back in it too… maybe:
Boston Globe: Kevin Garnett stayed put last night. Starting Sunday, look for the offers to resurface for the Timberwolves All-Star. The question has to be asked: Will the Celtics be back in the chase?
One of the most important non-components of last night’s deal securing Ray Allen was who was not involved. That would be Theo Ratliff, whose attractive, expiring contract is still on the Boston books. That was good enough to get Garnett a week ago, along with, ahem, Al Jefferson and assorted flotsam and jetsam. Would the Celtics do the same deal? Would the Timberwolves?
For those of you dreaming of an Allen-Garnett-Paul Pierce triumvirate, there are a few entanglements, starting with the reason the deal was killed in the first place: Garnett’s desire not to play in Boston. He was unambiguous about not only not playing in Boston, but that his preferred destination be Phoenix. (Somehow, we think he wouldn’t object to the Lakers.)
Continue reading ‘Boston Globe: KG talks will resurface on Sunday’
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This has been posted on Pau’s official website for quite some time, and I never really want to post it here until now. Considering we’ve drafted Pau’s brother and Kobe & Gasol had a nice private meeting in Spain a few weeks ago. I think it’s worth mentioning. Check it (note: it’s in Spanish):
Pau’s Gasol’s website: ‘If they want to keep me that bad, they need to make the necessary effort to surround me with players capable of competing at the highest level. I want to be on a wining team, with ambitions and options, and have the chances I didn’t have last year.”
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Found this tidbit this morning. David Aldridge mentioned that Dallas was on the phone yesterday to Minnesota about KG. However, they couldn’t find a deal in terms of the specifics. Add Dallas to the “we want KG” list:
McClatchy News Service: Meanwhile, trade talks for Timberwolves forward Kevin Garnett shifted from a possible Phoenix destination, with the Dallas Mavericks seriously entering the discussions for the first time, according to a league source. The teams talked extensively Thursday but could not reach an agreement on specifics, according to another source.
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ESPN Insider grades all the teams. This year they gave a B+ to our Los Angeles Lakers. Here is what they had to say:
Phil Jackson like big point guards who can shoot. and Crittenton has the talent to make the Lakers very happy — if they’re patient. Crittenton’s not ready now, though he could be soon.
The Lakers also did a nice job with those second-round picks. Sun can sell tickets in L.A — and become an effective understudy for Luke Walton. Gasol doesn’t have the talent or athleticism of his brother, but he is a big body who can be a nice role player down the road.
Also, Chris Sheridan made an interesting comment about Gasol during his chat:
Nate (Portland, OR) : Biggest steal of the draft? McRoberts at #37? Splitter at #28?
Chris Sheridan: (12:43 PM ET ) My gut reaction last night was Marc Gasol to the Lakers at 48.
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Wow, a story out Dallas all about our 40th pick, Sun Yue. They claim he is the “Chinese Magic.” The Mavs were extremely high on this guy and the Dallas news wrote up a really inspiring story on him. Take a look at the “Chinese Magic!”
Dallas News: Some nicknames are overused and unfair. The next Michael Jordan, for instance.
And then there’s this one: the Chinese Magic Johnson.
It’s equal parts unfair and unheard of.
In addition, here is a Sun Yue mix. Check out some of his passes and highlights:
[youtube Bvs45ZykkN0]
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I found this interesting in the latest report from the Star Tribune. McHale makes it seem like there were legit KG trade rumors going around, but now since they didn’t obtain another top 10 pick, it may be that Garnett remains a Timberwolf come fall.
Star Tribune: Finally, after a week of smoke, some fire:
The newest Timberwolves first-round draft pick is Corey Brewer, an athletic, versatile — and, yes, fiery — forward with a championship pedigree and enough character references to fill a bunch of résumés. And one of his new teammates is, at least for now, Kevin Garnett.
Oh, the rumor mill was rolling. Los Angeles. Phoenix. Atlanta. Late in the day, Charlotte. There were rumors of two-team trades as well as three- and four-team trades that would have had players and picks traveling all over the country, rumors that gathered steam as draft time approached. Don’t expect them to slow any time soon.
But in the end Garnett stayed put. And with the seventh overall pick, the Wolves grabbed Brewer, who brings with him two NCAA championship rings from Florida, the ability to blanket both guards and forwards on defense and an offensive game that continues to improve but is already clutch.
Continue reading ‘McHale on KG – too late for KG trade now?’
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