Let's speak realistically -maybe Odom doesnt like playing in LAL

novano2004 · Starting Rotation Joined: 03 Dec 2005 Posts: 312

Let’s speak realistically and away from emotional judgments on who is doing what and who is not. The main question as a FAN, what do we want from the LAL to accomplish this season with what they really have from talent and skills not what we hope them to have for this season.. I think the LAL are where they should be and not more or less, maybe 2 or 3 games that they lost against teams that they should not but again all teams go through that. If you look at the roster you only see rookies taking out Kobe, Odom, and George. So I don’t think I would expect more than what I see now from these rookies. Jackson sees something I Odom that we probably can’t see, again we as fans want things now and soon and can’t wait and I think that is our right to be like that caz we want our team to be the best. Jackson is a very patient man but if Odom doesn’t change his game or adapt the system and if Kobe does not find the comfort zone to play with Odom then he will leave. Forget about 07 08 plans. I read one fan saying the right thing about these plans “too much IF’s with these plans”. I think this season is just a testing season for the players and we won’t see anything new happen because its not the right time. I read a lot about Kobe’s prime that is going to be wasted LAL org doesn’t do something soon. Kobe will be Kobe until 34-35 if stays healthy. I hope the Org doesn’t go and make quick changes now just because the team is not doing very well and bring is another player that we pay him 7-9M for nothing. Let’s just set back and watch some of these games and enjoy it and wait for next season and see then what will happen. Maybe Odom does not want to play in LAL and that’s why he is not playing the way we all know he can play. Just like Carter when he was not happy in Toronto, he said that he was not putting in the effort to win with his team. Time will tell. Look back on Odom’s game in Miami and look at him now, it’s like he lost his name in Miami and came to LAL with only his number. Am sure there is something wrong. LAL is paying a big price for the Shaq trade when it comes to CAP, getting ODOM and BRIAN is the price the team will pay for the next few seasons so to all fans that are afraid of losing Kobe's prime, we have no choice but to watch.......
i think i have changed my mind in the last few weeks about the LAL team and i just want to watch this team grow together and see where they will go next season, if there is a trade that can help,,, fine,, but no big contracts pls.

Ziggy · Franchise Player Joined: 10 Feb 2005 Posts: 12717

This makes it easier for people to read.

Addicus · Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2006 11:46 pm Post subject:

Lamar likes playing for the Los Angeles Lakers. He had offseason surgery and his shooting went to crap. He really needs to get into the gym during the offseason and become a better mid range shooter. He has the form, but not the confidence.

Cool down water boy, cool down.
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lakeshow03 · Star Player Joined: 19 Jul 2005 Posts: 3082

maybe the LAL doesnt like him playing for him how bout that?

kobeodom · Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2006 12:09 am Post subject:

Dear Lamar:

If you don't like LA, please demand a trade. I'm sick of Phil thinking you're "Pippen".

If you like it here, get your ass in the paint.

From a Laker Fan (Not in particular an Odom fan).
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Sidious · Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2006 12:19 am Post subject:

Send this bum to the raptors so he can be happy in mediocrity for the rest of his career. The guy is just content with just being mediocure.

dubaholic1 · Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2006 12:21 am Post subject:

Rather than speculate on Lamar (let the poor guy get out of his slump without being crucified), I think Kwame is the real suspect here.

I know his primary role is not as a scorer, but damn how many passes are going to go off his head and through his hands???

If I was his size, I would be pulling down rebounds like Big Ben, and blocking fools like Zo.

I was sitting right up front when we played the 76ers, and I swear he looked pathetic.

Kwame needs a heart transplant, or something?

J.C. Smith · Franchise Player Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 12674

Odom is a very good player. He's not a superstar, and he won't ever be one. We're expecting too much from him in some regards.

That having been said he has angered me a bit lately because he has been even more passive than usual. That having been said he's still a good team guy, he's a good guy to have in your locker room, he's one of the leagues best rebounders, and he is a versatile big man who can play every position if need be.

I think too many people are expecting too much from this team. We're the second youngest team in the league. I'm sure Phil, Mitch, Dr. Buss and Kobe would all love for the right deal to fall into place to put us back into contention right now. If it comes then we'll all be ecastatic. But if it don't we have 2007 to look forward to. We also have teh rest of this summer and next season to look at these young players and find out how much talent Bynum really has, find out of Kwame can ever become the player that people hope he will. To discover if Sasha can take his game to the next level. Can Smush continue to improve. These guys are young, you had to expect ups and downs. We had two raelly bad stretches, the 5 game losing streak and the 3-8 stretch at the start of the season. If you take away those two stretches this team is 21-8. Since starting 6-9 this taem is 18-12. Considering the amout of talent on this team and the age of this team, I'd say that is pretty good.

And the scary thing about that statement is that we've lost a lot of close games this year. For a lot of the Laker players they don't have much experience in the crunch. These experiences will make them better players in the longrun.

Here's another encouraging fact. The Lakers have played 25 road games already, no team in the league has played more to date. Our next four games are also on the road, though I expect us to go 3-1 on this trip looking at who we are playing, at worst we should go 2-2. What's really encouraging though is what comes after that....

We don't leave Los Angeles for the next 8 games after that, our on away game being vs. the Clippers. The only decent teams we face during that stretch are the Clippers and Utah. The Lakers record should look pretty good by teh end of February. We should realistically go 6-2 during that stretch.

We hit hte road quite a bit after that with 8 or our next 12 games being on the road. That's a tough stretch, with San Antonio Twice, Detroit once, Cleveland, New Jersey and Golden State. If we can survive that at 6-6 then we hit the home stand part of our schedule.

We then have 10 of our final 13 games at home. We face Milwaukee, San Antonio, Denver, Pheonix (x2), Clippers, Golden State during that stretch. Considering the number of home games though and that the Bucks, Clippers, Golden State are abotu even teams, I would say that we should be able to go 8-5 or 9-4.

So my predicated record is 24-13 to 22-15 to close the season. This is IMO a fair and realistic estimate while sitting here and looking at our schedule. That would put our record at 48-34 to 46-36. I think we could consider that a success considerig we were 34-48 last season and we didn't really make any large moves other than hiring Phil.

We drafted a high school kid and people questioned the move. We brought in Phil and people said he could not exist with Kobe. We traded for Kwame and they said we gave up too much on a gamble. I'm happy with what we've gotten from the players we have this season. I hope we can get back to the top as much as everyone else, but the approach that management has taken so far has been a safe and conservative approach and so far, it's working. We're moving in the right direction, while maintaining the cap flexibility to be a threat in the upcoming seasons.

rubintan · Starting Rotation Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 143

With all the bashing and hating that Odom has been getting lately from Laker fans, I wouldn't be surprised if he really dislike playing for the LAL right now.

iml84myd8s · Starting Rotation Joined: 06 Aug 2005 Posts: 598

iml84myd8s · Starting Rotation Joined: 06 Aug 2005 Posts: 598

hoopschick29 · Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2006 8:17 am Post subject:

i don't think it's anything against the Lakers, specifically.

Lamar wanted OUT of the City of Angels 3 years ago. He was coming fresh off his 2nd warning for hitting the peace pipe. One more violation, and he was done in the NBA. He wanted a fresh start and Pat Riley not only gave him that fresh start, but a really huge paycheck to go with it.

Lamar moves to Miami, happy as hell to be outta LA and the Clipper Dungeon. He had a real chance to start over. Statistically, he had his best year as a pro. I think the last thing he ever expected was a year later ending right back up in Los Angeles. I think that trade hurt his heart, and even though he's playing for the Lakers, I really don't think he wanted to come back here.

bounty · Star Player Joined: 15 Aug 2005 Posts: 3946

he shouldnt. There are expectations in LA. He doesnt work well with that
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Roachman · Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2006 8:20 am Post subject:

I remember the good old days when we used this site to attack Shaq.

I don't want to attack a current laker.

Am I all alone here?

wolfpaclaker · Retired Number Joined: 29 May 2002 Posts: 58344

Wino

Thanks, I was thinking the same thing.

It was like a stream of consciousness from a dream!!

Wino · Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2006 8:44 am Post subject:

Wino · Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2006 8:48 am Post subject:

Odom is a good player but he is over paid and because of that he is going to catch some heat.

I still think the jury is out and I will give him the rest of this season and then decide what I think about him.

If the Lakers had a better supporting cast, Odom could be a good piece of the puzzle.

Of course when you make that kind of $dough$, you OUGHT to be an integral piece of that puzzle and I'm NOT SURE if Odom can ever be a true impact player.

I'm not as bummed about it as a lot of people are, we aren't going to win anything this year anyhow. Let's see how it goes and then decide.
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RG73 · Franchise Player Joined: 14 Jul 2001 Posts: 11508

62 · Starting Rotation Joined: 22 Dec 2005 Posts: 656

Odom to me is looking more and more as a "grat stats on a bad team" type of a guy....you know like Abdur Rahim.

That's because Odom is limited in everything.

He can play the 4 but...
He can initiate the offense but..
He can score but..
He can pass but...

In this current situation, Odom is like a great car without an engine.
He has most skills but a low bball IQ.

To me, Odom simply isn't a material for a great team.

Maybe in some certian situations he is but he's a terrible fit here and he needs to be gone.
That Miami season will be the higlight of his career even though that team was also just mediocre.
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RashardA · Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2006 9:53 am Post subject:

Has anyone ever considered that Odom just might not be mentally tough enough to deal with all the expectations that goes along with being a member of the Los Angeles Lakers?

Maybe the guy just doenst have the mental or intestinal fortitude to be the second best player on the world's most glamorous and storied basketball franchise.

Expectations are always high for the Lakers. This guy is under a microscope to produce and to produce consistently. Maybe its just too much pressure for him to deal with. Maybe he's the type of guy who can only really flourish on a team that has absolutely no expectations.

Just food for thought.

bounty · Star Player Joined: 15 Aug 2005 Posts: 3946

62 · Starting Rotation Joined: 22 Dec 2005 Posts: 656

DP · Sixth Man Joined: 14 Oct 2005 Posts: 26

Am I all alone here?

No Roach, you're not alone. Unbelievable these LO bashers..be objective even for a minute..please

angrypuppy · Retired Number Joined: 13 Apr 2001 Posts: 32754

We'll miss Odom for the next game or two, as he's the second best player on this team. However, I'm pretty frustrated with Lamar's progress, as I expected him to be far more tri-savvy at this point in the season. Earlier in the season, Tex expressed frustration in Lamar learning the offense, and I had hoped it was just Tex being his old crotchety self. I felt that it was more reasonable to wait until the post-Xmas timeframe before judging.

Lamar is in a funk and will get better in the short-term. But at this point I suspect that he'll never be a good complimentary player in LA, limited by his motivation, shooting and poor decision-making. He needs time in the low-post to produce, which is fine for a weak Eastern Conference team. In the WC however, Lamar as PF destines your team for either the lottery, or a first round loss.