Of course there’s a lot of negative we can take away from that game, especially defensively (Lamar’s rotations were bad, Kobe played too far off Bowen in the 2nd half, D Fish has no shot at containing Parker, etc etc), but there was also some good that I saw.
Our own version of T.P. is emerging, and he brings with him a 42 inch vertical and explosive speed. I’m glad he has confidence in his outside shot & I expect that thing to drop a lot more consistently as the year progresses. Second, Bynum played very well. We actually had a ball game with Bynum in even though we had those 15 turnovers, it wasn’t until PJ subbed Kwame in that they went on that (24-4?) run. It certainly wasn’t Kwame’s fault, but our defense isn’t that strong and I’m pleased to say that Bynum’s defense is better than Kwame’s (plus his offense isn’t even comparable).

This would have been a good game to sit Cook and suit up Critter. I hope PJ thinks this through next time.

Turiaf is becoming a defensive monster and that’s a definite PLUS.

I agree with most of the people here, if there were a way to get Ron Ron, it would probably lock up our defense. Primarily because Kobe could defend weaker opponents which would allow him to be the secondary defender like he was in the first half.

Finally, San Antonio has pretty much picked up where they left off. That’s the GOOD news. We just faced THE NBA CHAMPION, I’m not even going to say contender, they are the champs, and they’re playing as well as they did to finish off the season. Our offense is no comparison to their D, that’s another bad (remember I said to watch for how challenging it is to get *easy* shots). We know where we stand, which is a hair short. Lamar better improve defensively & obviously we have to take care of our possessions A LOT better. We’re not as far as the score says.

Let’s hope our players can make some strides and our F.O. get their act together & we’ll be competitive come playoff time.

our main problem is our TOs. our players are still learning this new pace and the # of TOs will go down. our assists were down this game, our 3 pt shooting was horrible, and Walton led the team in FTs (6) while KB/Fisher/LO didn’t get to the line once. we outrebounded the Spurs and shot a decent % from the field. damn TOs.

all i need to say about perimeter defense: Bowen=6-6 from 3.

we’ll do better next game. we’ll beat Rockets. last time we almost beat them w/o LO. hope Mihm doesn’t start again.

Bynum had ANOTHER beastly game, no surprise. 11-12 with 1 block in 27 mins. he’s officially averaging a double-double now and outplayed Duncan (2-13 shooting and 4 TOs). great interior defense, not so great perimeter D but we’ll beat Houston.

who said ANYTHING about Bynum being ‘great’or a ’superstar’? who said ANYTHING about Bynum becoming Amare or D-Ho? who said ANYTHING about LO becoming an All-Star? get off your high horse and stop talking sh!t and putting words in people’s mouths. you talk out of your a$$. Rashard Lewis is a SF you dumb fukk, so you made a fool out of yourself trying to compare him and Bynum.

since when is JO a ‘dominant inside presence’? he’d get ripped in half going against Cs and PFs in the West and wouldn’t get us any nearer to winning a ship. i’ve NEVER seen JO backing down Amare, something Bynum did fairly easily and made it look effortless. that’s what we need. young, athletic talent with room for improvement. not old washed-up overrated, overpaid all-stars from the East that suck. if JO really was good he’d be putting up monster #s by dominating his weak team. he’s not even the #1 option on his lottery team IN THE EAST! he’d get raped in the west and you’re just plain stupid if you don’t know that.

LOLOLOLOL at you thinking that JO would get us a ship. you know that in a trade that salaries have to match, right? Bynum won’t be the only piece going. maybe Bynum+LO+Critt/Farmar+2 1st round picks if you’re thinking ‘realistically’.

Desagana Diop? wtf? that crack has not been good to you. apparently you’re smarter than all those GMs, scouts, and a HOF legend in Kareem that see Bynum as a talented young player with such humongous upside that even if he doesn’t live up to it he’d still be a monster. why did the Nets want us to give them Bynum for Kidd, and when we didn’t do it why would Kidd say that he himself wouldn’t have done that trade? and if Bynum truly sucks that much, why is he the centerpiece to all those trade rumors involving All-Stars, and MVP/DPOTY-caliber players?

gtfo troll.

p.s. i don’t drink lattes.

Blame Kupcake for not getting KG and JO – TRY BLAMING KOBE YOU BIG IDIOT!! Kobe is the one neither of these two superstars are here!! I’ve said time and time again, Kobe opening his big mouth killed any hope of getting KG because he made the Laker organization look bad. As the supposed leader of the Laker team, you do not throw your organization in the mud and make them look unorganized. KG even said that L.A. wasn’t option because of the Kobe situation, that Kobe started when he started bashing our FO and his teammates (guys that he goes to war with 82 nights a year). Even Grant Hill said L.A. wasn’t an option because of this.

Furthermore, because opened his big mouth, he made the Lakers look desparate for a trade and killed any negotiating power the Lakers had. This is why Indiana wanted both LO and Bynum. If Kobe had kept his mouth shut the Pacers probably would’ve settled for Bynum, plus expiring contracts.

Face reality Drake, DON’T JUST BLAME THE FO, KOBE IS ALSO TO BLAME FOR US NOT GETTING KG OR JO.

Finally, a bright mind in all this ignorance.

Try not to pigeon hole people Drake. I personally liked that the lakers did not trade LO or Bynum for JO. I liked what the lakers did. I do remember what they had last season..26-13 before the injuries and if they stay healthy they will have a very good record. Sometimes the best trade is no trade. YOu need to see the whole picture and not through your kobe koolaid glasses. They really are affecting your vision. Your probably thinking kobe needs to shoot 30-40 times too…That is the AI Syndrome….how good did that get him Drake??? Stick with elementary school basketball, that is more your style…on second thought you would be a bad influence on the kids since your probably one of those chuckers who hit 20% of your shots.