Archive for September, 2007
Lakers.com: Have you talked to Phil about the current depth chart within the team?
Yes. We’ve met everyday since he’s been back, which has been about three weeks now. We talk every three or four days during the summer and of course he doesn’t leave for the summer until the summer has actually begun. There’s really not a (long) period of time when we’re not in communication. There might be six weeks when he’s out of town and we talk every three or four days in those six weeks. Sometimes every other day, sometimes three or four times a day. So we communicate frequently.
We are deep at every position and I think that’s good when it’s on paper, having said that, not everybody can play (gets playing time). We’re curious for training camp to begin. We’re going to let the guys figure out who plays and doesn’t get to play beginning Tuesday in Hawaii. That’s going to sort itself out. We do feel that we have 14 guys that all want to play and the likelihood is that some of them won’t get to play. Phil’s going to have to narrow down the rotation to eight or nine players. I suppose you can play ten from time to time, but because of our depth I can see where maybe a couple guys that think they should be playing won’t be playing. That may be something we need to address.
You’ve said that you expect to go with this team into training camp, what’s the next opportunity to make a deal? What needs to change so that the opportunity to trade becomes open again?
Our approach now is not that different than our approach at anytime prior to the beginning of training camp. We’re not looking to make a deal just to make a deal. Because we didn’t finish on a positive note last year we were more aggressive in the off-season and we will remain aggressive, maybe more so than you normally would be. But we’re not going to succumb to making a move just to make a move or because there is the illusion that the Lakers have to do something. We feel that we’re a good team and could be a very good team. Our goal in making a move, you would hope that you’re not making a move that would make yourself a worse team. So in our case, you’re looking to make a move that would make you go from being a good or a very good team to a great team. Those moves are hard to come by. We’re going to look to make that move, but they just don’t appear. You can make a move to make a move, there’s a bunch of those we can do, and we could do a bunch of things with players that may not play a lot of minutes, we can make those moves. But it’s our feeling that if you’re going to make a move you should think that it’s going to improve your teamI.
Continue reading ‘Catching Up with Mitch Kupchak: Part II’
Lakers.com caught up with General Manager Mitch Kupchak to discuss the 2007-08 Lakers as they head into training camp next week. Check back for part two tomorrow.
Lakers.com: Has Kobe reached out to you and Phil and other teammates?
I don’t know if he speaks to his teammates, I assume that he does. I know that he and Phil have communicated and Kobe and I have also communicated, recently.
Who looks most improved to you as a result of their off-season workouts?
It’s always hard to tell by looking at guys in pick-up games. All our guys work hard during the off-season. I know that physically people will see a difference in Andrew (Bynum) because he worked hard during the off-season on his body and his conditioning. Whether or not that translates into being a better basketball player we’ll find out starting next week. I know Chris Mihm has worked very hard and he looks close to being the same player he was 2 years ago. I don’t worry about Luke Walton, I don’t worry about Kobe, and I don’t worry about Fisher. I don’t worry about Jordan Farmar and I don’t worry about Cook.
Ronny Turiaf played with his national team, France, for the European Championships and I am little bit concerned that he will be a little burned out when the pre-season begins. He played well this summer, but he played a lot of minutes. I was hoping that he’d get some rest before camp. It remains to be seen.
Kwame had recovered from his 2 off-season surgeries and has been playing very well for the last month of so here at the facility. I don’t worry about Maurice Evans. He’s in San Antonio during the off-season.
Lamar had the second surgery on his labrum and he’s not scrimmaging yet and he’s not doing a whole lot on the basketball court so I don’t know how much he’ll participate in training camp. He’ll be there; he’ll be on the court. But is he scrimmaging or is he working at the side basket doing dummy offense and dummy defense, we don’t know right now.
Most of our guys, when they’re in town, come by and they’re in the gym. Some of our guys live in L.A. and they’re always in the gym. With the exception of Lamar, because of his injury, everybody is ready to go and they look good.
Continue reading ‘Catching Up with Mitch Kupchak: Part I’
The Arizona Republic: Suns forward Shawn Marion said he would show up Monday, the team’s mandatory reporting day, if his trade request is not met.
The Suns anticipate that no trade will be made and Marion will be smiling for photos Monday.
The predictions around the NBA are similar to ones inside US Airways Center.
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A sampling of executives and agents said it is unlikely that the Suns would move Marion before Monday. After Monday, it appears the Suns could stop exploring trade possibilities.
Marion, 29, went public Tuesday night with his trade request, which he made weeks ago to Suns management after another summer in which the team considered dealing him. He also is unhappy that the team seems unwilling to extend his contract, which has two years remaining.
“It’s sad to hear he wants to go,” Suns guard Steve Nash said after an informal workout Wednesday in which every Suns player except Marion and Brian Skinner was present. Skinner is expected to arrive and sign his contract Sunday.
“We’re very close to winning a championship,” Nash said. “We want everyone on board. All his teammates love him. We want him to be a part of this for sure, and we feel like he’s a big part of it. It’s frustrating to hear he’s unhappy, because we want him to be happy.”
The known trade possibilities involve Marion, a four-time All-Star, going to the Los Angeles Lakers for forward Lamar Odom and possibly forward Brian Cook or to the Utah Jazz for forward Andrei Kirilenko.
Continue reading ‘Suns say trading Marion is unlikely; All-Star plans to report for camp’
SportingNews.com: There’s still no official word on the Shawn Marion-for-Lamar Odom swap detailed on SportingNews.com Tuesday. Marion told me he wants the deal to go down, and he sounded genuinely excited about the possibility of changing scenery. Marion also said he spoke with Kobe Bryant over the weekend and was left with the impression that Bryant supported the trade.
The Lakers, of course, need to appease Bryant. Bryant’s angry tirade in May about the Lakers’ inability to surround him with more talent became a major story of the offseason. The Lakers haven’t done much to improve their roster this summer, and while it could be argued that swapping Marion for Odom wouldn’t lead to significant improvement, it would at least be a change. And the Lakers need a change. If the Lakers are convinced Bryant wants this trade to happen, they’d be foolish not to pursue it.
So what’s the holdup? The deal was presented last week, giving the Lakers and Suns plenty of time to evaluate it.
As I said, there has been no official word. But a source close to the Suns says the Lakers are grappling with the same misgiving Phoenix has expressed: They’re wary of giving Marion an extension, which could cost in the area of $65 million over three years. If L.A. traded for Marion without extending his contract, Marion could opt out next summer and hit the free-agent market. The Lakers still could re-sign him then, but the team might not want to run the risk of giving up Odom, its second most important asset, only to watch Marion leave after one season.
Continue reading ‘Source: Lakers grappling with Marion extension’
Let the trade scenarios begin…
ESPN: Shawn Marion was bringing the good news. If you’re a Lakers fan.
“I’m definitely interested in the Lakers,” the Phoenix Suns forward said.
More than that, he said he talked to Kobe Bryant, and Bryant “embraced it.”
Said Marion: “He wants to make it happen.”
If Bryant cares about what trades the Lakers make and thinks adding Marion would help, at least it’s an indication that he’s thinking about the Lakers as “we” not “them.”
Still, it’s hard to miss the irony of Marion’s wanting to fulfill his desire to be traded by joining a guy who kicked off this summer’s stream of trade wishes. Bryant’s radiothon at the end of May started a trend followed by Jermaine O’Neal, Andrei Kirilenko and now Marion.
“My name has been mentioned in trades over and over,” Marion said. “I’m tired of hearing about it. It’s time for me to take the next step and leave.
“It’s like a bad marriage. It’s time to get up. I love my fans, I love the city, I love my teammates. I just think it’s time for me to leave.”
The simplest way for him to get to Los Angeles would be for the Lakers to send Lamar Odom to Phoenix. Their salaries are close enough (Marion is making $16 million this season, Odom $13 million) and the cost-conscious Suns would shave $3 million off their payroll.
Continue reading ‘Kobe Wants Marion’
Related:
Shawn Marion asked about Lakers (VIDEO)
Marion: “I think it’s time for me to move on.”
L.A. Times: OK, guys, big smile.
Wait a minute, aren’t we missing someone?
Or not. After a summer of wondering if Kobe Bryant would show up, the Lakers will fly to Hawaii for training camp after Monday’s media session, with Bryant expected to be among them.
After demanding that the Lakers trade him in May and pointedly refusing to take it back in July and August, Bryant is back in touch and planning to be there.
“I have no reason to think he won’t report,” General Manager Mitch Kupchak said Tuesday.
“I communicate with Kobe. We’ve met. We talk on the phone, text [message], all of these things within the last month and very recently.”
If it’s not quite a happy ending, at this point the Lakers will settle thankfully for a happy beginning.
Bryant has already apologized for ripping Kupchak and railing about trading Andrew Bynum in a video recorded by three fans and sold on the Internet.
Continue reading ‘Lakers are what they are’
There’s been some word that a Odom for Marion trade could be in the works (again). Training camp and media day and just days away. We’ll keep a close eye on this one, should be interesting.
Sporting News:: Shawn Marion, L.A. Laker? If he has his way, that will happen.
According to a league source, the Lakers and Suns have been in discussions about a deal — a blockbuster deal — that would send the four-time All-Star to Los Angeles to play alongside Kobe Bryant. The Suns would get forward Lamar Odom and perhaps some salary-cap filler in return. The main obstacle appears to be Lakers owner Jerry Buss, who needs to OK the deal. Asked to handicap the likelihood of the deal going through, the source said, “50-50.”
Upon hearing this, I caught up with Marion this afternoon by phone. He confirmed that he spoke with Bryant over the weekend, but added, “I’ve been friends with Kobe for a while, so we talk here and there, anyway.”
Still, Marion was enthusiastic about the potential trade. “Why wouldn’t I be?” he said. “You have a great organization, great ownership there with the Lakers. I don’t see no problems with playing there.”
This, it appears, would be a good fit for everyone. It has been a rocky summer for Marion and the Suns, who drafted him out of UNLV in 1999 but have been unwilling to give him a contract extension. Marion is the highest-paid player on the team, and he can opt out of the final year of his deal and become a free agent next summer.
Continue reading ‘Marion for Odom in the works?’
We haven’t had a true point guard in years. Would Baron be the perfect fit? Uh, yeah… Sound-off in the comments and tell us what you think!
Fox Sports: After his breakout postseason, Baron Davis is looking for long-term love. He’s got two years and about $33.5 million left on his deal with Golden State, but could opt out after this season — which he says he’ll do if he doesn’t get an extension signed in the next couple weeks. Obviously you can see why the Warriors wouldn’t be rushing to commit a lot of years and money to Baron; as good as he is, the injuries are always an issue. But there’s no way the Warriors contend without him, so they’re in a tough spot. If they don’t re-up with Baron, do they try and trade him around the deadline to get something in return? What are the chances Baron ends up in his hometown L.A. with Kobe?
O.C. Register: That conscious decision Kobe Bryant made to forget he was a Laker? It did help him survive and even enjoy the rest of his summer, but the time has just about come for him to remember.
In one week, the Lakers reconvene for the next NBA season having not traded Bryant, as he sought, or traded for proven talent to help Bryant, which was his initial offseason request. Bryant’s disenchantment with the Lakers led to some speculation he would not report to training camp.
“We have no reason to believe that he won’t be there,” Lakers spokesman John Black said.
Bryant has steered clear of the Lakers’ workout facility in El Segundo in recent months, spending considerable time out of town first with USA Basketball in Las Vegas and then on a promotional tour of Asia.
He has scheduled a time to show up for his Lakers pre-camp physical examination, however, furthering belief from the organization that Bryant will maintain a professional approach to start the season. The Lakers are set to gather Oct. 1 for a 1 p.m. team flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu, where they will train through Oct. 11.
Besides the lack of substantial roster upgrades, Bryant returns to find his most talented Lakers teammate still not healthy.
Continue reading ‘Will Bryant be in camp?’
HOOPSWORLD.COM: Late last week HOOPSWORLD’s Eric Pincus contemplated a trade scenario that the Los Angeles Lakers were “rumored” to be pondering with the Miami Heat – a trade scenario that would bring Shaquille O’Neal back to the land of purple and gold. In his piece, Eric compared it to one infamous season finale to the television show Dallas, in which Bobby Ewing magically came back from the dead and the entire previous season was written off as a dream. Patrick Duffy, the actor who portrayed Bobby Ewing, just couldn’t stay away, and frankly the show had suffered greatly for his absence. An agreement was reached, a plot was written, and fans were so overjoyed to have the character back that they forgave the entire dream sequence scenario and happily welcomed their favorite Ewing back into the fold.
That was an apt comparison, but not for the same reason Eric points to. The Lakers can’t just wipe away the seasons since Shaq left, any more than they could wipe away the bad blood that has developed between Kobe Bryant and his former teammate. The two may be on speaking terms twice a year when the Lakers and Heat meet, but thinking they could somehow come back together and play cohesively is a stretch. But the real fantasy – the real shower scene – is the one that has the Heat willing to entertain the idea of trading away the most successful marketing icon they’ve ever had for what amounts to some junk no team would easily take in trade.
Continue reading ‘Shaq To LA? Not Likely…’
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