Its midseason a lot could still happen - look back to 2003

 
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drew4lakers
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 12:58 pm    Post subject: Its midseason a lot could still happen - look back to 2003

I thought this old article might put a little perspective on the current situation. First off, i know that the talent level is nowhere near the same. But we're looking at making the playoffs, not the finals.

Of course we'd like to reach the finals and win (but thats true every year)

So the 2002-03 squad, after 3 consecutive NBA championships was at .500 near the all-star break. They would go on to reach the NBA finals.

So before trashing this season already, I thought it was worth remembering our own recent history.

Lakers Make It Indy .500
Bryant scores 35 points in 97-94 victory over Pacers, and three-time champions win fourth in a row to finally even their record.


Mark Heisler. Los Angeles Times. Feb 5, 2003.


The Lakers are back ... well, to .500, anyway.

Drawing even at 23-23 for the first time since Nov. 3 when they were 2-2, the three-time defending champion Lakers continued their long-awaited and deferred comeback Tuesday night, defeating the Indiana Pacers, 97-94, to run their winning streak to four games.

Even with key opponents out (Chris Webber at Sacramento, Ron Artest and Coach Isiah Thomas here), the victories were impressive. Starting after home losses to Golden State and New Jersey, the Lakers won in Phoenix, where the Suns were 19-3; at Sacramento, where the Kings were 18-3; defeated the Jazz at home and won in Conseco Fieldhouse, where the Pacers were 22-2.

When they started, the Lakers were 5-15 on the road, No. 10 in the West behind Golden State, and Coach Phil Jackson was musing publicly about his inability to reach his players any more. Now they can go into the All-Star break over .500 by winning their last game, in New York on Thursday, which might not sound like much, unless you saw them their first 11 weeks.

.....

In important ways, the Lakers -- now No. 9 in the West, 2 1/2 games behind No. 8 Houston -- remain a work in progress, starting with Shaquille O'Neal, who's playing harder (19 points, 12 rebounds, seven blocks, despite foul trouble), but is still not his old, dominating self.

However, Kobe Bryant, who scored 35 points against the Pacers and is averaging 38.8 in this streak, is carrying them and the supporting cast is again supportive.

.....
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KobeButler
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 1:05 pm    Post subject:

difference between that team is they could turn it on anytime they wanted. This team doesnt have that advantage.
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laker4life
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 1:10 pm    Post subject:

KobeButler wrote:
difference between that team is they could turn it on anytime they wanted. This team doesnt have that advantage.


Thank you for pointing out the obvious. Some fans don't get it.
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kells1220
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 1:22 pm    Post subject:

Part of it is because this team is very young and inexperienced. They need some veterans and proven players.
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Panthas
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 1:45 pm    Post subject:

I think this team is expeirencing the same thing the warriors were last year before they got B diddy. We just need a TRUE point guard. Someone who can hit the open 3 and see the floor for us. Smush is a sg by nature and Sasha is too passive. Odom has lapses on the floor, KObe loses his scoring presence. A true pg would allow us to actually get done the things we need to get done.
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dwonderful
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 1:46 pm    Post subject:

uh, but we had kobe and shaq then. now we have kobe and well...kobe
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lakers0505
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 1:57 pm    Post subject:

So the 2002-03 squad, after 3 consecutive NBA championships was at .500 near the all-star break. They would go on to reach the NBA finals

ummm we got knocked out be san antonio that year sir .

And we had the most dominant interior player in the game and amony the games history in his prime and we had kobe considered the best premiter player at that time as well.

Now well we have undeinably the most explosive player since the days of M.j and lamar odom ..and not even lamar now, we have chris mihm ...
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AirKobe8
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 2:13 pm    Post subject:

^ Yup, we didnt get to the finals that year, but the year after that.
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Canuck
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 2:29 pm    Post subject:

Much better team back then. You can't compare the two.
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NoMoreGame7s
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 3:09 pm    Post subject:

Yeah - how dare you try to put a positive spin on things. Don't you know people here LIKE their panties in a wad? Don't go giving them any reason, however small it might be, to pull it out of their crack.
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drew4lakers
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 3:16 pm    Post subject:

Wow.

This seems to have gone right over some of your heads.

I guess its my own reaction to all of the whining going on.

No they are not the same teams. They are two very different teams.

However, at the halfway point, I'm sure the same woe is me crowd -- with some "brilliant" solutions or chicken littles realizing the sky is falling were thick as flies on $^&t.

Count me in with those who are tired of seeing praises being sung after every win or winning streak, and the crying going on after every loss of string of losses.

We've got half a season to work with. We could fall out of the race or we could pull it out and make the playoffs. Its a young team.

I'm sure i've offended people with this. But I'm also sure i'm not alone at almost wanted to avoid the place with all the rampant negativity that spreads like a virus in times like these. I am realistic about the talent on this team and their chances.

So to simplify things for those who need it -- We have half a season left. We don't know how its going to end. The story was a reminder of that. Period.
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TLT
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 3:55 pm    Post subject:

Panthas wrote:
I think this team is expeirencing the same thing the warriors were last year before they got B diddy. We just need a TRUE point guard. Someone who can hit the open 3 and see the floor for us. Smush is a sg by nature and Sasha is too passive. Odom has lapses on the floor, KObe loses his scoring presence. A true pg would allow us to actually get done the things we need to get done.


Agree completely, but good point guards are very hard to come by and very expensive. What do you give to get? Can a fire be lit under Sashas and Smushs asses? I don't know if you can teach aggression.
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Aussiesuede
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 4:12 pm    Post subject:

drew4lakers wrote:
Wow.

This seems to have gone right over some of your heads.

I guess its my own reaction to all of the whining going on.

No they are not the same teams. They are two very different teams.

However, at the halfway point, I'm sure the same woe is me crowd -- with some "brilliant" solutions or chicken littles realizing the sky is falling were thick as flies on $^&t.

Count me in with those who are tired of seeing praises being sung after every win or winning streak, and the crying going on after every loss of string of losses.

We've got half a season to work with. We could fall out of the race or we could pull it out and make the playoffs. Its a young team.

I'm sure i've offended people with this. But I'm also sure i'm not alone at almost wanted to avoid the place with all the rampant negativity that spreads like a virus in times like these. I am realistic about the talent on this team and their chances.

So to simplify things for those who need it -- We have half a season left. We don't know how its going to end. The story was a reminder of that. Period.


Thanx Drew!

It's always nice to see that there are a few of us left out there who enjoy living the majority of our time in a positive world. I'd admittedly bea depressed wreck if I had to live with the constant negative outlooks that seems to pervade the time of so many on here. Thanx for the smile! I'll take that outlook anyday if the alternative is "Everything sucks".....
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Panthas
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 4:13 pm    Post subject:

TLT wrote:
Panthas wrote:
I think this team is expeirencing the same thing the warriors were last year before they got B diddy. We just need a TRUE point guard. Someone who can hit the open 3 and see the floor for us. Smush is a sg by nature and Sasha is too passive. Odom has lapses on the floor, KObe loses his scoring presence. A true pg would allow us to actually get done the things we need to get done.


Agree completely, but good point guards are very hard to come by and very expensive. What do you give to get? Can a fire be lit under Sashas and Smushs asses? I don't know if you can teach aggression.


I would think if we could get a guy like Bobby Jackson, or Kirk Henrich, Mike James...someone like those guys would take our team to a new level.
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lakers0505
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PostPosted: Wed Feb 08, 2006 4:25 pm    Post subject:

^We need either a superstar or an all star cailber player and a couple SOLID Rick fox, Derek Fisher type role players too RETURN TO prominence, but in all honesty this team needs alot of work its mostly phil jackson smoke an mirrors and kobe bryants greatness that is carrying this team, usually that gets exposed in the playoffs.
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Lionel The Laker
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PostPosted: Wed Feb 08, 2006 4:46 pm    Post subject:

That team had Shaq and Kobe. This team has Kobe and a bunch stiffs.
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PostPosted: Wed Feb 08, 2006 4:47 pm    Post subject:

Lionel The Laker wrote:
That team had Shaq and Kobe. This team has Kobe and a bunch stiffs.

Stiffs is generous. This team has kobe and....................
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