Lakers in the News 8/16/12: No more goofing around, Dwight

 
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:01 am    Post subject: Lakers in the News 8/16/12: No more goofing around, Dwight

Quote:
No more goofing around, Dwight

OK, Dwight Howard. You’ve finally done it.

You’ve muscled your way from Orlando to Los Angeles, forcing the Magic to accept an inferior deal and bankrupt themselves of all their talent in order to get you off their hands.

You’ve also seen your once-pristine public persona take a devastating blow as a result of your various antics – which include, but are not limited to, having a beloved coach fired; influencing a former GM into making a series of bad deals to make you happy, then publicly criticizing the lack of help he provided you; speaking (and allowing others to speak) of your loyalty to your city despite having one foot in Brooklyn and the other in LA throughout this ordeal; and, finally, ditching your own youth basketball camp as a parting shot to the impressionable kids of Orlando.

And, to boot, you’ve done most of your damage to the Magic and to your reputation while you recovered from surgery to repair your damaged back. So it hasn’t exactly been easy for you physically or emotionally over the last year, either.

But don’t start thinking your problems are behind you now that you’re sporting Laker purple and gold. Because only now – after you finally got what you wanted – do things really start to get hard.

In addition to all of the emotional weight you’ve saddled yourself with since you decided it was best for you and the Magic to see other people, you also carry, for the first time in your career, the pressure to win – and win now. This isn’t a suggestion.

You’re a Laker – not a Net, not a Magic, not a Maverick or a Hawk – and when you’re part of this franchise, second place isn’t fine. It never has been. It wasn’t OK for George Mikan in Minneapolis nor for Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or your career-path doppelganger Shaq after the move to LA.

In Orlando, you didn’t win a title, but that was OK because there were missing pieces that prevented you from doing so. In Los Angeles, you are the missing piece, and if you don’t work out, any and all Lakers shortcomings will become your problem. If the Lakers don’t bring home a title this year, the only year they’re guaranteed to have you on board, it’ll be your fault.

So winning a championship is Option 1 and Option 1A this season, and in order to make this whole “title” thing happen so you can steer clear of the failure tag you so badly wish to avoid, there are a few things you have to do.


Link to full article
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Aussiesuede
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:08 am    Post subject:

Was this written by that guy from "Entourage"? I think his name was Drama?
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:10 am    Post subject:

just win, baby
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:15 am    Post subject:

Sam Gardner wrote:

You’ve muscled your way from Orlando to Los Angeles, forcing the Magic to accept an inferior deal and bankrupt themselves of all their talent in order to get you off their hands.


I always wonder if these writers even do any research besides reading what other writers write and then writing their own report.
The magic deal is not all that terrible. They get trade exemptions and trade assets and lots of greatly usable picks. To use a much used argument: Look at what happened to the Kwame for Pau trade.
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:27 am    Post subject:

matrixskillz wrote:
just win, baby


RIP Al. GO RAIDERS...
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:46 am    Post subject:

jesus.....that was aggressive
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Mongo
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:49 am    Post subject:

Quote:
Sam Gardner covers the NBA and a variety of other sports for FOX Sports. Originally from Orlando, Fla., Sam spent last season covering the Orlando Magic for FOX Sports Florida. He now lives in New York City


Think he's just a bit bitter?
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 9:00 am    Post subject:

Sounds like whomever wrote that is totally insecure after talking too much trash to his non-laker friends.

OR went all in with the wrong bookie.
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 9:04 am    Post subject:

Aussiesuede wrote:
I think his name was Drama?

I don't know him, but I think TNT does.
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 9:49 am    Post subject:

penston wrote:
Aussiesuede wrote:
I think his name was Drama?

I don't know him, but I think TNT does.


nicely done
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 4:15 pm    Post subject:

PepsiShine wrote:
jesus.....that was aggressive
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 4:52 pm    Post subject:

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Lakers roundtable: Dwight Howard could face adjustment period

Below are the highlights of my conversation with the Orlando Sentinel's Magic reporter Brian Schmitz on everything surrounding Dwight Howard getting traded to Los Angeles:

On Howard adjusting to the Lakers as a possible fourth offensive option: "He's going to have to. He has little choice now because his reputation is in shambles. I don't know whether hate is the word, but he's probably the most despised player in the NBA surpassing LeBron James. Whoever thought that could've happened? He has to really fall in line with whatever Mike Brown and Kobe Bryant have in their plans for him to rebound and play defense ... If Dwight does those things and doesn't worry about scoring, the Lakers are scary."

On whether Howard would follow that blueprint: "I hope he would, if he's smart. Look at that lineup. Steve Nash is the best shooting point guard in the league. Kobe Bryant is the guy in the fourth quarter. Pau Gasol has a better offensive game than Dwight. Metta World Peace is a defender, three-point shooter and has his own role. Dwight, you can't get him the ball in the fourth quarter because he can't make free throws. He doesn't have a lot of offensive versatility. It's gotten better with using both hands and a hook shot. But he can't step away from the basket ... But if he uses the pick-and-roll with Steve Nash, he will light it up. I assume Nash and Kobe will feature him early in the game. But late in the game, it's going to be Kobe and Nash."

On Orlando's reaction to the trade: "Flags are flying at half-mast. It's a dark day because some of these people here remember losing Shaq to the Lakers in 1996. Orlando is just sort of a farm team for the Lakers."

On Orlando getting Arron Afflalo, Al Harrington, Nikola Vucevic and one protected future first-round pick from the Lakers, Denver Nuggets and Philadelphia 76ers: "It's not a good deal. Let's not kid ourselves at all. The best thing they got out of it is they got to move some contracts ... Dwight held them effectively hostage and hamstrung all their efforts to move him to get a really good deal because he listed only his preferred destinations, starting with Brooklyn. The Magic really had its hands tied."

On how the Magic makes this deal work: "They didn't get a lot of great draft picks through this Howard trade. They're real low first-rounders. But the Magic will have to use their own lottery picks the next two seasons to get the top college player ... This is where a lot of losing comes in. The only way to get better in the league at times is to get worse. The Magic have to set its eyes on a 20 or 25-win season to get the highest pick possible."

On why Orlando was reluctant to take Andrew Bynum: "He's going to be a free agent and the Magic didn't want to go through the same thing as they did with Dwight in not knowing whether the guy would just leave ...They did research on Bynum's physical stature and they don't believe his knees are going to hold up much longer. You can see that Bynum's going to Germany to get the same knee procedure as Kobe Bryant and Alex Rodriguez had. The other thing, as Laker fans are well aware of, Bynum is immature at times. It just haunts the team and could've provided a distraction."

On whether there was a turning point where it was clear Howard wouldn't stay in Orlando: "It was really a procession of things that ended up bothering Dwight. After the 2009 Finals and lost to the Lakers, this team got worse. They were never able to get Dwight that star sidekick or go-to guy, or guy who could create his own shot. They tried. They spent a lot of money on Rashard Lewis, who was never a No. 1 guy, but more of a shooter and role player. They tried getting something out of Vince Carter hoping he had some gas left. Gilbert Arenas, all these reaches to get Dwight back to the Finals and showing him they would have a team that could compete year in and year out; they never did that.

To exacerbate that, of course, Howard's relationship with Stan Van Gundy went down the tubes. You could see in the last season with Stan charging Dwight tried to get him fired ... There were a lot of people telling Dwight that since he was in his prime, this was his chance to cash in at a big market. All of those things factored in to where we are now."

On witnessing Van Gundy confirm reports to the media scrum that Howard asked the front office to fire him moments before Howard put his arm around him and denied the stories: "I saw Dwight trying to slip out the door, so I leave that media scrum and go over to the hallway to make sure Dwight doesn't leave. I wanted to get his reaction to the story that he tried to get Stan fired. I asked Dwight and he denies it and tries to make fun of it.

Then he asks me, 'Should I go over there to the huddle and put my arm around Stan?' I had no idea Stan had outed him. So there goes Dwight stomping over and acting goofy as possible walking into an ambush. That embarrassed Dwight because the Magic didn't come to his defense. They couldn't because the story was true. Dwight asked ownership several times to replace Stan. That was the turning point."

On whether Chris Duhon and Earl Clark, both who are going to the Lakers, will have any value: "I don't see how Chris Duhon can help them at all. It got to the point here where he didn't want to shoot the ball. He lost so much confidence. He was a bit better last year, but to me he's a third point guard.

Earl Clark is interesting because he's an undersized power forward, but he's athletic and can block shots. I think people will enjoy watching him play."


LINK
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 6:03 pm    Post subject:

Thanks 32


Quote:
Eddie Jordan, Bernie Bickerstaff, Steve Clifford set to join Mike Brown’s Lakers coaching staff

August 16th, 2012, 2:49 pm · · posted by KEVIN DING, OCREGISTER.COM

It hasn’t exactly been a secret around the NBA that Lakers head coach Mike Brown has been courting Eddie Jordan to join his staff as an assistant coach. The official hiring of Jordan, who played for the Lakers in 1980-83 and ’84, is expected to occur in the coming days — and Brown will be hiring longtime NBA sage Bernie Bickerstaff, too.

The Lakers are also adding Steve Clifford to their staff. Clifford has been an Orlando Magic assistant — with Dwight Howard — since 2007. Before that, Clifford was with the Rockets and Knicks.

Bickerstaff, 68, gave Brown his first NBA job as a Denver Nuggets intern when Bickerstaff was the general manager of the team. He was most recently an assistant coach with the Portland Trail Blazers the past two seasons but has been a head coach in


http://lakers.ocregister.com/2012/08/16/eddie-jordan-bernie-bickerstaff-set-to-join-mike-browns-lakers-coaching-staff/73857/
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 6:54 pm    Post subject:

Quote:
Lakers can handle Oklahoma City Thunder's speed

Team: Oklahoma City Thunder

Lakers' record versus Thunder last year: 1-2 in regular season; lost 4-1 in Western Conference semifinals

How Thunder fared last season: Compiled a 47-19 regular-season record (second in Western Conference), lost 4-1 to the Miami Heat in NBA Finals

Why the Lakers are a threat to the Thunder: The Lakers maintain they easily could have led in the 2011 Western Conference semifinals had they not blown fourth-quarter leads in Games 2 and 4. The claim seems overstated, given the Thunder's superior speed and talent. Yet it's hard to ignore what contributed to the fourth-quarter lapses. The Lakers coughed up a seven-point lead in Game 2, after Kobe Bryant committed two turnovers and Steve Blake missed a potential game-winning three-pointer. The Lakers unraveled in Game 4 for other reasons. Bryant went one for 10 from the field. The Thunder fronted Andrew Bynum in the post. Pau Gasol made a costly turnover instead of shooting a wide-open jumper that could have won the game.

With Dwight Howard and Steve Nash joining the Lakers' starting lineup, it's unlikely such mistakes would happen again. Bryant won't work so much in isolation because Nash's playmaking will free him to move more off the ball. Even if Kendrick Perkins remains a physical presence, Howard is better equipped than Bynum to navigate fronting in the post. Gasol will likely feel more involved in the offense because the Princeton system will ensure more post-up plays and open shots off of cuts. The Lakers already have better outside shooters this year in Nash (career 42.8% three-point shooter) and Jodie Meeks (career 37% three-point shooter).

The Lakers are also better equipped to handle Oklahoma City's speed. Nash doesn't have a shot at stopping Russell Westbrook. Metta World Peace may have mixed success containing Kevin Durant. Gasol may not have enough physical strength to guard Serge Ibaka. But Howard's defensive presence inside gives the Lakers a huge insurance policy to offset such issues. Besides, when the Thunder resorts to small lineups, Howard appears more suited than Bynum would be in staying on the floor.

Why the Thunder is still a threat to the Lakers: The Lakers haven't fully solved their age and speed issues. Aside from Howard, the Lakers' starting five is an old lineup that would struggle running in a track meet against the Thunder. As talented as they are, the Lakers found out the hard way last season that no amount of methodical and patient ball movement can overcome Oklahoma City's putting together a two-minute offensive outburst. And there are uncertainties: Can the Lakers' veteran team stay healthy? Will the players have ironed out their offensive roles, particularly in the fourth quarter? The Thunder might simply wear the Lakers down during a series.

Verdict: The Lakers will win in seven games. It will be a tough and entertaining series. But any Lakers health and chemistry issues will be worked out during the regular season. Once the playoffs start, everything will run smoothly. As much as the Lakers will need oxygen masks to keep up with the Thunder, the Lakers crisper offense and Howard's defensive presence will help them offset such issues.


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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 8:29 pm    Post subject: Re: Lakers in the News 8/16/12: No more goofing around, Dwight

32 wrote:
Quote:
No more goofing around, Dwight

OK, Dwight Howard. You’ve finally done it.

You’ve muscled your way from Orlando to Los Angeles, forcing the Magic to accept an inferior deal and bankrupt themselves of all their talent in order to get you off their hands.

You’ve also seen your once-pristine public persona take a devastating blow as a result of your various antics – which include, but are not limited to, having a beloved coach fired; influencing a former GM into making a series of bad deals to make you happy, then publicly criticizing the lack of help he provided you; speaking (and allowing others to speak) of your loyalty to your city despite having one foot in Brooklyn and the other in LA throughout this ordeal; and, finally, ditching your own youth basketball camp as a parting shot to the impressionable kids of Orlando.

And, to boot, you’ve done most of your damage to the Magic and to your reputation while you recovered from surgery to repair your damaged back. So it hasn’t exactly been easy for you physically or emotionally over the last year, either.

But don’t start thinking your problems are behind you now that you’re sporting Laker purple and gold. Because only now – after you finally got what you wanted – do things really start to get hard.

In addition to all of the emotional weight you’ve saddled yourself with since you decided it was best for you and the Magic to see other people, you also carry, for the first time in your career, the pressure to win – and win now. This isn’t a suggestion.

You’re a Laker – not a Net, not a Magic, not a Maverick or a Hawk – and when you’re part of this franchise, second place isn’t fine. It never has been. It wasn’t OK for George Mikan in Minneapolis nor for Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or your career-path doppelganger Shaq after the move to LA.

In Orlando, you didn’t win a title, but that was OK because there were missing pieces that prevented you from doing so. In Los Angeles, you are the missing piece, and if you don’t work out, any and all Lakers shortcomings will become your problem. If the Lakers don’t bring home a title this year, the only year they’re guaranteed to have you on board, it’ll be your fault.

So winning a championship is Option 1 and Option 1A this season, and in order to make this whole “title” thing happen so you can steer clear of the failure tag you so badly wish to avoid, there are a few things you have to do.


Link to full article


Awesome, keep these coming and continually fueling the monster year Dwight is going to have.
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PostPosted: Thu Aug 16, 2012 10:12 pm    Post subject:

Aussiesuede wrote:
Was this written by that guy from "Entourage"? I think his name was Drama?


Actually, the part of the article that was not copied to the original post was a quite nice read. Good advice to Dwight - focus on basketball only, accept that you are not the (only) superstar of the team anymore, and defend and rebound like hell.

And then good things happen. Makes sense to me.
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PostPosted: Sat Aug 18, 2012 5:16 pm    Post subject:

Just to let everyone know. I am around but haven't found anything to start a new thread with. This is usually a low time for news till training camp.

I'd bet 32 is around also and has the same to say. Haven't seen wolf for awhile. Guess he's resting from takin the load a lone for a time a few weeks ago.
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PostPosted: Sat Aug 18, 2012 5:36 pm    Post subject:

Thanks Cha*n. Yeah, it's kind of slow right now.
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PostPosted: Sat Aug 18, 2012 6:05 pm    Post subject:

These are the dog days for sure.
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PostPosted: Sat Aug 18, 2012 6:16 pm    Post subject:

if dwight howard takes things serious as he can the league better be scared!
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