We’ll keep an eye on this…
L.A. Times: The NBA is reviewing the flagrant foul called against Lakers center Andrew Bynumthat landed Charlotte Bobcats forward Gerald Wallacein the hospital to determine if any disciplinary action should be taken But league officials said Wednesday that it’s common practice for the NBA to review flagrant fouls.
Mitch Kupchak sat down with Lakers.com for a midseason review of our Lakers. Check the entire thing out, great questions; great answers.
Lakers.com: After 43 games of the 2008-09 campaign, the Lakers have 35 wins. No matter how you think L.A. is playing, it’s certainly hard to expect anything more from the win column. To reflect on the season’s first half, we welcomed Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak onto Lakers.com.
MT: After advancing to the NBA Finals last season without Andrew Bynum and Trevor Ariza, you knew you had a very good team. To what degree have the Lakers lived up to your expectations at the season’s midpoint?
Kupchak: The expectations were great, and I think there was a curiosity factor with a healthy Andrew Bynum. People didn’t know what to expect based on Trevor Ariza’s short window of opportunity with us last year; I’m not sure there was much expectation there. But certainly with Andrew coming back, people were very curious, and as I would expect myself they’d expect us to be a stronger team. We’ve had our share of small knickknack injuries and we haven’t really faced any extreme adversity so far. Jordan Farmar especially, Luke Walton, Lamar Odom, Sasha Vujacic all missed time and Kobe Bryant’s probably the most banged up of anybody but he continues to play. So where we are today, overall, we’re pleased. But we’ll be evaluated on how we conclude the season, not where we stand in January.
David and G talk about the Bobcats random dominance of the Lakers, and Gerald Wallace’s stupid mouthpiece. They explain how AM570 is now nationally syndicated and how So. Cal fans are the ones that suffer, and finally discuss the upcoming six game road trip, and as always unveil a NEW top Lakers moment.
Music -
Jacks Mannequin – Crashing
Lil Mama, T-Pain, & Chris Brown -Shorty Get Loose
Maroon 5 – This Love
The Fray – Over My Head
The Clash – Rock The Casbah
Other Audio -
HBO “Entourage” Ari Gold’s rant on psychologist.
TNT Audio Timberwolves vs. Lakers
Mission Impossible Theme
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Download Link: Voice of the Nation – Episode #20
Lakers Examiner: In my article about last night’s loss to the Charlotte Bobcats, I alluded to Andrew Bynum’s flagrant foul on Gerald Wallace.
Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer wrote today that it was a dirty foul and warned that if Bynum isn’t careful he could end up a “hockey goon”. I guess Rick was one of the folks that voted for “The Brute” as Bynum’s nickname.
Here’s the video…
My opinion is that, yes, it was a flagrant foul. But I guess I’m ‘old school’ in the thought that if an offensive player comes charging down the lane, a defender (especially a center) has the right to defend his basket.
There is no doubt that Bynum’s frustration led to his foul, but at that point in the game Bynum COULD NOT simply let Wallace score.
Continue reading ‘Video: Did Andrew Bynum’s flagrant foul cross the line?’
#24 continues to lead the NBA in jersey sales. “All hail Kobe Bryant.”
RealGM: Kobe Bryant has the most popular jersey in the NBA, moving past Kevin Garnett to regain the No. 1 spot on the NBA’s list. With the Western Conference best record, the Lakers top the list of Most Popular NBA Team Merchandise.
The rankings are based on sales at the NBA Store in New York City and NBAStore.com since the start of the 2008-09 NBA season through January 2009. Garnett drops one spot to No. 2 while the Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James holds on to the No. 3 spot on the list. The New Orleans Hornets’ Chris Paul and Detroit Pistons’ Allen Iverson round out the Top 5 at Nos. 4 and 5, respectively.
New York Knicks’ David Lee enters the list for the first time at No. 14. Pau Gasol of the Los Angeles Lakers moved to No. 6, up from No. 15 last year. December was the best sales month in history for both the NBA Store and NBAStore.com, with combined sales up 10 percent over the same time period last year.
Forum Blue & Gold: With 4:21 left and the score tied 83-83, I hit pause in the DVR and decided right then and there to do a detailed breakdown of the final minutes of the game. It was bound to be instructive and exciting, right?
Well, it was exciting. But I’m not sure how much we learned and I didn’t do the overtimes. Still, the breakdown is below.
When a game goes to overtime, let alone double overtime, there are a thousand little things that could have gone one way or another and determined a win. Credit to the Bobcats, who out hustled the Lakers and wanted it more all night. Maybe the Lakers looked past the Bobcats, who knows, but they just got ground down into the kind of game the Bobcats wanted to play. The Lakers did not dictate the style of game, and to me that was the biggest mistake
Also (and most importantly), we wish Wallace and Ariza a speedy recovery.
Here’s the breakdown…
We’ll hear more on Ariza’s status tomorrow; hopefully he is alright.
O.C. Register: Trevor Ariza shown some improvement from his concussion Wednesday, according to Lakers publicist John Black. Ariza was seen by team physician Dr. John Moe Wednesday and will be re-evaluated Thursday before the team leaves on a six-game eastern swing. But Ariza is not out of the woods yet. He continues to have “some issues,” Black said without going into detail.
Ariza experienced nausea, dizziness and ringing in his ears after being hit in the head by Charlotte’s Juwan Howard with 11:10 left in the second quarter. Ariza played another six minutes before heading to the Lakers’ locker room. Black said if the team was traveling Wednesday, Ariza would not accompany the team. The forward is listed day-to-day.
Ouch! The Bobcats again? Really? They didn’t even play that well and they beat us.
Kobe goes for 38, Bynum continues to dominate, and we lose… But we learned tonight. 1) We are lucky that we only play the Bobcats twice a year and 2) Maybe Kobe really is the MVP since we play like the Clippers without him.
On a positive note, I want to congratulate Andrew on his award for Western Conference Player of the Week and his fourth straight double-double.
Also, get well soon Ariza!
Now, the bests of the night…
The president has spoken! You hear THAT… self proclaimed-best-player-on-earth Paul Pierce?
Starbury was answering questions on ESPN chat. There were some interesting answers to a few…
Parnell (Whitman, Ma): Have you ever thought of playing for my Lakers
SportsNation Stephon Marbury: (4:55 PM ET ) I would never rule out playing for the Lakers, but their roster is full. I think they are set.Adam (Chicago): If you could play with any one player, not considering rest of team, who would it be and why?
SportsNation Stephon Marbury: (4:56 PM ET ) Kobe Bryant, because he is the best player on the planet.Colby (NY): Who gets your vote for MVP?
SportsNation Stephon Marbury: (5:02 PM ET ) Kobe Bryant.
Loading ...
