Hollywood Hoops Podcast: Gary Payton Says Lakers Would have Won if Malone was Healthy

[emplay]

Hey all,

I had the chance to interview Gary Payton - as did my partner Josh Martin - The Glove in two parts on the Hollywood Hoops Podcast

I also ask him, did he regret teaching Kobe those defensive moves?

https://soundcloud.com/eric-pincus/hollywood-hoops-gary-payton-3-on-3-lakers-clippers-sonics-warriors

We also touch on Seattle, Oakland, the Warriors, Clippers, and the 3-on-3 basketball tournament he's helping to bring to the Olympics.

Thanks,

Eric

PS - I have 4 tickets available for sale for the season opener, hit me with a PM if interested - they're in section 108 row 15.
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Salary Cap Strategist and Columnist at Bleacher Report and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/EricPincus

[Startrout]

Yep, there's no question in my mind that Malone's freak injury cost us the title.

[ReaListik]

Of course. Malone had rarely been hurt, if ever, before that injury.
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"We are the goodest." - Shaq ESPN interview

[defense]

duh

[Runway8]

That's just silly. Put down the homer goggles. I've always thought this idea was ridiculous and Laker fans should let get go. We got waxed. It wasn't a 4-3 series, not even 4-2. It was a 4-1 domination and it took a Kobe buzzer beater for the game we won. To think 41 yr old Malone was going to swing 3 games? Then Shaq and Kobe should be ashamed of themselves. Despite his game winner, that was the worst Kobe had ever performed in the finals. No amount of Malone would have helped him shoot straight in that series. Keep dreaming man, we lost that one.

Even if the Lakers only landed Gary Payton in free agency, and no Malone. The Lakers would have still been the favorites. You, me, everybody would still bet the Lakers against the Pistons. Nobody saw what happened coming. The Malone injury is a pretty weak excuse. We would have been heavy favorites even if he had never signed.

[lakersken80]

Malone would've made the series a lot more competitive than 4-1 thats for sure....I remember watching that series and pretty much knew they were doomed. There was just the inevitable feeling that the Pistons would keep it close and just put on the pressure in the 4th quarter to win the game.

[emplay]

Malone and Ho Grant absent - Slava/Cook getting the PF minutes - come on now
_________________
Salary Cap Strategist and Columnist at Bleacher Report and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/EricPincus

[Daphanabe]

There is no way we lose that series with Malone healthy. So many 'What-Ifs' if that had happened.

Still happy with the way it actually turned out, even if losing then was painful. I thoroughly enjoyed rebuilding around Kobe, those insane scoring years, then the Kobe-Gasol-Odom peak.

[Runway8]

[kobe_4_mvp]

gp was a disgrace that series. one of the worst lakers finals performances. we win with malone healthy AND without billups running circles around payton for 5 games.

[lakurluv]

No doubt about that... Although their was some tension in the Locker room because they three-peat players didn't like how the new guys came in and stole their thunder and wanted a chance to run their offense that they had won with for three years straight.

But a healthy Karl would have made all of the the difference.

[Worthy42]

Billups was untouchable that series. Dude got a whistle in his favor if he picked his nose.

[adkindo]

am I the only one that felt like GP was screaming his responses during the interview?

[adkindo]

I think the season's challenges cost us more than anything...Kobe missed about 20 games....same for Shaq. Karl missed 40. Kobe's problem in Colorado....the Kobe-Shaq feud......all that weight finally broke the team down by the time the Finals arrived....and once Detroit saw they could beat us, their confidence skyrocketed as a young hungry team.

[Runway8]

Kobe is so great that I think we often forget when he was bad, and I think Laker fans who believe Lakers would have won with Karl Malone have selective amnesia. My point is we needed way more than Malone, we needed Kobe. You don't win a championship without Kobe. Folks, despite game 2, Kobe was MIA!!! An older Shaq in 2006, Gary Payton and Dwayne Wade beat those same Pistons in 2006 ECF and then went on to win the finals. You know why? Dwayne Wade shot 62% against the Pistons. Say what you will about the favoritism he received from the refs that year, but the point is, whatever it was.. Miami had their MJ. We did not have our MJ in the finals, Kobe shot 38%. Malone wasn't going to fix that. We din't lose because of Malone. Nobody in the Laker organization or on that roster is going to say this. The easier to swallow narrative is Karl Malone.

[70sdude]

I think it's a very reasonable perspective, that the Lakers were plenty strong enough to win it all that season with a healthy Karl Malone. Of course, we'll never know.

[4OnTheFloor]

[emplay]

You can have three of the best tires ever made but if the fourth is flat...
_________________
Salary Cap Strategist and Columnist at Bleacher Report and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/EricPincus

[22]

With a healthy Malone we win that series

[allNet]

We would've won if Malone was healthy or if we kept Robert Horry.

[SGVL1]

while Malone wouldn't have swayed 3 games, Phil in one of his books spoke of the absence of he and Horace Grant and not being able to contain Rasheed and Ben. There was also a portion where he spoke about not keeping Janero PArgo on the playoff roster to run with Billups and L Hunter. The Lakers had a great strategy in game 4 by feeding Shaq and he destroyed Ben, but I think he at that point in his career ran out of steam, especially on the defensive end. Plus there was a horrific offensive rebound on a missed FT in game 4 that sealed the deal. And hate to be THAT FAN but the officiating in that series was sketchy at best

[activeverb]

[mde24]

[Laker_Dynasty_01]

[marga86]