Archive for February, 2008
Thanks to Carlos for e-mailing us this article that he found on the net. Again, if you find an article that you think deserves to be on TLN, please e-mail it to us at Articles@theLakersNation.com.
L.A. Times: The chant has always been there.
The truth behind it has not. During the first few years, it was a high-pitched dream. During the last few years, it was a hollow honorarium. Finally, this season, for the first time, it is a reality.
“M-V-P! M-V-P! M-V-P!”
Kobe Bryant can win it. Kobe Bryant should win it. The chant that began just four minutes into the Lakers’ 96-83 victory over Portland on Tuesday night should finally become a part of Bryant’s resume. It won’t be the top line. But it will be the only one that is in bold. Because this is the one title Bryant could never win. The wording was never right. The tone never fit. He has often been the most.
But has he ever been valuable?
He’s been a great scorer for lousy teams. He’s been a brilliant entertainer in a band of dullards. “He’s been the best player in the league,” said assistant coach Brian Shaw. But the basketball writers, voting at the end of the regular season, never give it to the best player. They give it to the player who is best at making the players around him better.
Continue reading ‘Kobe has more than chants to be MVP’
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From Kobe’s website (though it will carry into the Lakers season, I’m happy to see him play out the rest of this season – and the Olympics; the dude is the toughest basketball player on planet earth).
KB24.com: In a video on his blog, Kobe Bryant says he can’t miss the Olympics, because he has been looking forward to them for a long time. So the operation that the team would like him to have now, he will instead have shortly before next season.
I admire his dedication to playing. Yet I can’t help but worry that he could hurt his hand worse in the interim. Maybe opponents won’t intentionally target his hand now. But between this day in late February and the twin goals of an NBA title and an Olympic gold medal stand more than a few bloody minded players.
For what it’s worth, Bryant also displayed the movie tastes in sync with my mom, saying Cate Blanchett was robbed at the Oscars. He says she truly was “Elizabeth.” He also says he can’t even tell what “No Country for Old Men” was about, other than “just people shooting each other.”
Watch the video on KB24.com!
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This is something that was really impressive to me. This year, the West is insane. And more surprisingly, despite all the drama leading up to this season, the Lakers stand on top when it matters; down the stretch run. Now, a couple things to note…
- The Lakers are the first team in the West to 40 wins.
- EVERY Phil Jackson coached team which hit 40 wins prior to its 61st game (40 wins before 20 losses), went on to win the NBA title.
- Considering we’ve played the most road games (31) of any team in the conference, that’s even more impressive!
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On the evening of June 26, 1996, one day after my youngest sister was born, I sat in my Uncle’s car, deep in the throes of my 4th grade summer sabbatical in San Diego.
My Uncle Doug and I listened to the local sports talk radio coverage of what would be the night the Los Angeles Lakers landed the 13th pick of that particular draft, a 17 year-old kid from Lower Merion, Pennsylvania named Kobe Bryant, in exchange for their then starting center Vlade Divac. The hosts of the program praised Jerry West for his shrewd move that would prove to be his greatest gift to the franchise, and speculated the Lakers were also trying to deal their other pick at 24 for a veteran big man.
Thank goodness Zeke did not pull the trigger on that deal. For we would not have gained the opportunity to get to know of one of the best human beings to ever play professional sports.
With the 24th pick in the 1996 NBA Draft, the Lakers selected a little known 6’1” guard from the University of Arkansas-Little Rock named Derek Fisher.
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L.A. Times: Kobe Bryant scored 11 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter and the Los Angeles Lakers held the Trail Blazers to 36 percent field goal shooting, beating Portland 96-83 Tuesday night for their ninth straight victory.
Second-year backup point guard Jordan Farmar tied a career high with 21 points for the Lakers, who lead the Western Conference by one game over San Antonio and Phoenix and are 40-17, just two wins behind last season’s total with 25 games to play. Bryant added nine rebounds and seven assists, and Pau Gasol had 15 points and 10 rebounds.
LaMarcus Aldridge led Portland with 24 points and Joel Przybilla tied a season high with 16 rebounds.
The Trail Blazers converted their first 21 free throws before Martell Webster missed with 1:33 remaining. But the undermanned Blazers shot under 40 percent from the field for the 10th time this season and the sixth time in their last 16 games. Coach Nate McMillan was ejected with 3:05 to play after arguing about a foul.
Continue reading ‘Lakers come back strong in second half to win’
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This is awesome. The next great Lakers big for the Lakers has arrived. Congrats, Pau!
ESPN: Pau Gasol maintained his 22-PPG scoring average in the Lakers’ 111-91 win at Seattle on Sunday, his 10th game with the Lakers. Only five other players averaged at least 22.0 points over their first 10 games with the Lakers: Elgin Baylor (24.1) and four legendary centers: George Mikan (29.0), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (28.8), Shaquille O’Neal (24.8), and Wilt Chamberlain (24.5).
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Mack’s prediction, the Blazers will win in L.A.; Against the Clippers.
The Blazers, however, will not defeat the Lakers. Even their own center, Joel Przybilla, doesn’t have high hopes. When asked about playing against the Lakers he said, “They’ve maintained strong play throughout the year. We need to get some wins, and it would be a good one for us to start there, but we know it will be very hard to get that done.” He doesn’t sound too confident. Maybe he doesn’t think this time around the Blazers will win, but maybe next time they will.
Sorry Joel, probably not next time either.
Tonight’s match up is the first of four the Lakers have with the Blazers this season so it will be interesting to see how they play each other. Personally, I don’t think the Blazers have a chance. One reason is because their star player, SG Brandon Roy is out with a sprained ankle. Roy says he initially sprained it against Dallas on February 13th, but aggravated it midway through the third quarter in Sunday’s beat down against the “BAH-ston” Celtics. With the injury to Brandon Roy, Nate McMillan will be trying a new lineup, again helping the Lakers’ cause. He will be running with Martell Webster at the two and the up and coming Travis Outlaw taking over the 3.
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The Los Angeles Lakers will win the NBA championship.
I just wanted to put it in wording, make it official and let everybody know that this is not a possibility, nor is it a estimated guess, but it’s fact.
When it’s all said and done and the dust settles David Stern will walk to the middle of the floor and say. “Ladies and Gentlemen, I am proud to announce your 2008 NBA Champion, the Los Angeles Lakers!”
I was trying to look at this Lakers team from a different perspective, a non fan, and a person that doesn’t have a bias. Trying to figure out the negatives of this team, something you can say that would be a legit argument why the Lakers can’t win the NBA championship…
There isn’t any.
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Funny how things work out. The summer saga was one for all Lakers fans to get nervous about. No “trades” to improve team, a disgruntled superstar and an unfortunate series of events. Today, we’ve traded for one of the best fowards in Gasol in the league, and Kobe is lovin’ every minute of it. Kob said it best, “
SBSUN: “No, I didn’t envision this (last summer), absolutely not,” Kobe said. “It worked out for the best. I didn’t want to leave here. Everything happens for a reason, and I’m very thankful that things worked out here.
“All the young players stepped up and have played extremely well. I think Pau coming here was just icing on the cake. Prior to him coming him we were a very good team. Now we’re dangerous, very dangerous.”
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This one had me laughing. Phil chimed in on Kobe’s ejection from the Seattle game…
Inside SoCal: Here’s how Phil Jackson saw the ejection of Kobe by referee Brian Forte, the son of long-time NBA official Joe Forte, courtesy of beat writer Elliott Teaford:
“You don’t know what the action was down there, but there were a couple of situations where we got caught in the position where guys were coming over the back, and we were complaining about it at halftime, about rebound situations that were not called. Seattle is an aggressive team. They’re going to go get those balls if they’re free.
“I told (Bryant) he shouldn’t jump on Junior. His dad might carry a grudge against him. That’s nepotism in our league. That’s Joe Forte’s son. He’s got a little bit of the red-ass as we say.”
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