This year's Lakers team just doesn't have "it"
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Halflife
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PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2021 7:48 am    Post subject:

yinoma2001 wrote:
People putting too much stock into the regular season during this COVID year and short turnaround. We got hit with major injuries. Now we are all back. Let’s see where this team goes instead of crying about last year’s team or constantly saying the sky is falling.

I guarantee you no team wants the Lakers in the playoffs. LBJ/AD showed everyone of what they are capable of when it’s the playoffs and every game starts mattering.

The same energy was there when we lost games 1s. I agree. Assuming we are as healthy for rest of year I have all the confidence in this team smashing their way to another ring
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PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2021 7:53 am    Post subject:

yinoma2001 wrote:
People putting too much stock into the regular season during this COVID year and short turnaround. We got hit with major injuries. Now we are all back. Let’s see where this team goes instead of crying about last year’s team or constantly saying the sky is falling.

I guarantee you no team wants the Lakers in the playoffs. LBJ/AD showed everyone of what they are capable of when it’s the playoffs and every game starts mattering.


I hope you're right.

It's looking more and more like we are play-in bound, so maybe that will work to our advantage in getting reps with everyone.

That said, the team has been harping on "must win" lately and have lost almost every game...
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yinoma2001
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PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2021 7:55 am    Post subject:

Halflife wrote:
yinoma2001 wrote:
People putting too much stock into the regular season during this COVID year and short turnaround. We got hit with major injuries. Now we are all back. Let’s see where this team goes instead of crying about last year’s team or constantly saying the sky is falling.

I guarantee you no team wants the Lakers in the playoffs. LBJ/AD showed everyone of what they are capable of when it’s the playoffs and every game starts mattering.

The same energy was there when we lost games 1s. I agree. Assuming we are as healthy for rest of year I have all the confidence in this team smashing their way to another ring


Oh yeah. Omg remember the game 1 losses against Portland/Houston? People were flinging themselves off the cliff.
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PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2021 11:29 am    Post subject:

Way to early to make a judgement one way or another. I wouldn't panic though because I am expecting things to turn around. The thing that is disappointing is our guys did not take advantage of the extra minutes, reps, and opportunities to build some confidence and develop synergy and teamwork among themselves. The only guys that have really stepped up are DS (which will be key for our run) and KCP. Morris has been a hot mess, Trez (who we NEED) is fragile, Mathews has been a HUGE disappointment. I love the McLemore signing and I think he will be a big addition if he gets some run with our big 2.
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PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2021 11:32 am    Post subject:

Halflife wrote:
yinoma2001 wrote:
People putting too much stock into the regular season during this COVID year and short turnaround. We got hit with major injuries. Now we are all back. Let’s see where this team goes instead of crying about last year’s team or constantly saying the sky is falling.

I guarantee you no team wants the Lakers in the playoffs. LBJ/AD showed everyone of what they are capable of when it’s the playoffs and every game starts mattering.

The same energy was there when we lost games 1s. I agree. Assuming we are as healthy for rest of year I have all the confidence in this team smashing their way to another ring


Agree
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PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2021 11:33 am    Post subject:

https://twitter.com/unwrittenrul3s/status/1388937737177223170?s=21

My eyes tell me the lineup of DS/AC/KCP/LBJ/AD is the death lineup.

Against the wing teams, one of AC or KCP is probably replaced with Kuzma...Wes will be insurance for wing defense if Kuzma is up to the defensive assignment.

That’s the way I would go if I’m Vogel.

17/1/4/23/3 is the best lineup. They demolished the Sixers in that frantic comeback and doesn’t seem like we have seen too much of them since whether it’s the injuries or Vogel hiding that lineup.
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troy
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PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2021 8:29 pm    Post subject:

yinoma2001 wrote:
Halflife wrote:
yinoma2001 wrote:
People putting too much stock into the regular season during this COVID year and short turnaround. We got hit with major injuries. Now we are all back. Let’s see where this team goes instead of crying about last year’s team or constantly saying the sky is falling.

I guarantee you no team wants the Lakers in the playoffs. LBJ/AD showed everyone of what they are capable of when it’s the playoffs and every game starts mattering.

The same energy was there when we lost games 1s. I agree. Assuming we are as healthy for rest of year I have all the confidence in this team smashing their way to another ring


Oh yeah. Omg remember the game 1 losses against Portland/Houston? People were flinging themselves off the cliff.


Glad you're amusing yourself, but in my opinion, you have no idea what you're talking about. If there are Chicken Littles on LG, then there are certainly the Pie in the Skies types who are too afraid or too basketball-ignorant to know when things are not right. I want my Lakers to win every year. Wishful thinking won't make it happen.
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PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2021 8:34 pm    Post subject:

troy wrote:
Glad you're amusing yourself, but in my opinion, you have no idea what you're talking about. If there are Chicken Littles on LG, then there are certainly the Pie in the Skies types who are too afraid or too basketball-ignorant to know when things are not right. I want my Lakers to win every year. Wishful thinking won't make it happen.


I feel ya. There are 2 questions. Are we good enough when healthy to win it all?

And, will we ever be "healthy"?
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slavavov
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PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2021 8:41 pm    Post subject:

Now that we've been almost fully healthy for the last 2 games (and lost both), I wonder if the Lakers are mailing it in for the rest of the regular season. We've heard several guys on the team say that they don't care which seed they finish with.
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 3:24 am    Post subject:

slavavov wrote:
Now that we've been almost fully healthy for the last 2 games (and lost both), I wonder if the Lakers are mailing it in for the rest of the regular season. We've heard several guys on the team say that they don't care which seed they finish with.


I wouldn't call LBJ fully healthy at all. AD doesn't look right yet either. And while DS may be healthy, a DNP is no different as far as the end result.
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 5:17 am    Post subject:

It'll obviously take this team a number of games to figure it out with everyone healthy and knowing their role/part in the rotation.
I hope we'll be fine once we get to that place, however getting there is the difficult part to watch!

Vogel will eventually have to shorten the rotation and may need to sacrifice some offense for defense at some point. But, IMO the team should be good to go if they gel at the right time.
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troy
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 5:30 am    Post subject:

More excuses. Denver has played without their all-star J. Murray and they are still winning games. Clippers have won key games without one, and both, of their superstars. Same for Boston, Nets, 76'ers. So, please, not accepting all the excuses. Every team is banged up; you have other players that must step up. Other teams have done that, we haven't. It's as simple as that. Stop making all these stupid excuses.

We've lost to lesser teams when we didn't have both our superstars, and we lost with one superstar back, not we've lost with both superstars playing. Players are now making statements in the media that reveal what the true issue is, and it involves the merry-go-round at our Center position. Drummond angry now after getting scapegoated, Kuz saying Gasol should play more, Gasol complaining about lack of PT, Trez checking in and out mentally, Kief playing like stale buttocks. And then there's DS talking about bad on-court chemistry and turning down contract extensions, AD tripping over the paint on the floor, Caruso playing like he misses the G-league, Matthews gone MIA. We didn't have these issues last season.

What we had last season was a DAMNED CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM THE ROB PELINKA PROCEEDED TO BLOW UP. WHO DOES THAT???? AND THE LOVELY JEANNIE BUSS LET IT HAPPEN. DAMMIT!

You don't fix what's not broken.
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yinoma2001
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 6:49 am    Post subject:

Quote:
You don't fix what's not broken.


This misses the point entirely.

If AD/LBJ are still hurt, you think Rondo (who has missed a ton of games this year with injury), Green (same old), and Dwight (about same) fare better?

No. This season was not the result of newer pieces. IT was the result of our core two players missing nearly 1/3rd of the season at the same time. Other teams have lost 1 key all star and have stayed afloat. We lost two.

I'm very chill AF about this season. I think we are going to surprise folks in the playoffs. You obviously disagree. That's fine.
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 6:53 am    Post subject:

yinoma2001 wrote:


I'm very chill AF about this season. I think we are going to surprise folks in the playoffs. You obviously disagree. That's fine.


I'll share your optimism once I see them play 48 minutes of defense and demonstrate the ability to get stops in crunch time. I feel they can do it but they have fewer than 9 games to show it.
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 7:07 am    Post subject:

The bottom line:

https://twitter.com/bj_metta/status/1389105227995836416?s=21
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yinoma2001
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 7:15 am    Post subject:

ThePageDude wrote:
yinoma2001 wrote:


I'm very chill AF about this season. I think we are going to surprise folks in the playoffs. You obviously disagree. That's fine.


I'll share your optimism once I see them play 48 minutes of defense and demonstrate the ability to get stops in crunch time. I feel they can do it but they have fewer than 9 games to show it.


This is just one of the "who knows" (shrug emoji) type of seasons. I think it will be a free for all at the end. Will be a playoffs like no others, and last year's was a crazy one (but IMO was a higher level of basketball b/c players were more focused).
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 7:24 am    Post subject:

The Lakers are getting back to what they fixed last year.
it was Lebron on five.
There was no ball or player movement and just Lebron going on five.
The same thing is happening.

Last year they had a solution.
The big solution was Rondo. He pushed for ball and player movement.
And he was a playmaker and could do it.
The influence of Rondo cannot be discounted.
Also, Howard a middle stuffer.
There is no replacement.
And Danny Green was a master at moving without the ball.
No other player can do it as well.

So though it looks good on paper, the loss of smart ball and player movement is great.
So is the loss of a great rim stuffer.
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 7:31 am    Post subject:

Here is the truth. And people on this board often fail to see it. Other than Bron, AD and maybe Drummond, this team dues not have a single player that would being a starter of even a 6th man on any other legitimate contender in the NBA (maybe Trez again this year). Now of course teams will struggle when their two best go down but the reality of just how bad we were and how little KCP, Alex, Gasol, Kuz etc are without Bron/AD just shows how horribly bad we are going to be as Bron continues to age and we have no cap to really do anything with.

And before anyone says Davis, please remember this guy had a much younger Jrue, a prime Cousins (before injury that season), younger Rondo, Crawford, Hield, and even decent role players like Frazier, Jones, Stephenson and finished the season 34-48. And that team was far more talented than anything that is around Davis now w/o LeBron. The truth is Davis is not going to be that superstar that can carry this team. Think Kevin Love in Minnesota.

Facts are that if LeBron and Davis are not playing out of their minds in the playoffs, this team does not make it out of the fist round (or even the play in game) with how little everyone else is giving.
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yinoma2001
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 7:39 am    Post subject:

Quote:

Here is the truth. And people on this board often fail to see it. Other than Bron, AD and maybe Drummond, this team dues not have a single player that would being a starter of even a 6th man on any other legitimate contender in the NBA (maybe Trez again this year). Now of course teams will struggle when their two best go down but the reality of just how bad we were and how little KCP, Alex, Gasol, Kuz etc are without Bron/AD just shows how horribly bad we are going to be as Bron continues to age and we have no cap to really do anything with.


We were playing close to .500 ball without LBJ/AD. The supporting cast did very well given the circumstances.

With AD back, we are 1-5. 0-2 with LBJ back. Granted, they're coming off long injuries, but we need to do better.

We have plenty of guys who would start on other teams/or be a 6th man. Dennis/KCP/Kuz/Trezz to name a few. Drummond has been a bit disappointing. Puts up raw numbers but I don't feel his impact at all on both ends of the floor.
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 7:39 am    Post subject:

Imho the “it” was the COVID pause button on last season. At the amount of miles Bron has put on, that “luxury” helped us tremendously last year in getting #17.

Think about what that time off during the season did for our stars and for an overall older veteran team. Bron got to reset and playoff Rondo afforded him a great pace in usage during the postseason.

This team is just a poor fit cause everything is put on Bron to make this team go. Vogel isn’t a very good OC and AD can playmake, but not to the point that a true guard can. Schro isn’t that type of guard either. So the “it” is Bron (among others) being able to rest and get back to as close to a 100 is he possibly could. The time he took off this season was to rehab an injury. It wasn’t like last season where he could still be in lab and recover appropriately.

Same with AD....dude is trying to preemptively handle an Achilles injury. He can’t really hit the lab up to refine his game. He needs to limit his activity in order to rehab the injury.

Last year wasn’t some type of super team that was constructed. It was a vet team that got to lick their wounds and have the luxury to rest up and get right for the playoff push. This team doesn’t have that luxury of “it” this year. Roster construction was poor and has been poor as we seek out that 3rd guy to add to Bron/AD, but at least last year we had a rested up playoff Rondo who could assist Bron in the playmaking dept...this year we got d!ck (bupkus).

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSl24PrYK4rywyK6FFW17_rUFqHAKOsoZnbj5DCUmCccEbWA7lO
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LakerSD
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 8:04 am    Post subject:

The only player who somewhat performed imo was Schroder.

Morris did well before he got hurt.

Everyone else severely underperformed.

Should be noted that Gasol is not included in the underperformance. In the little time he did get, he was a professional and did his job. Has trouble biting his tongue off the court, but on the court he shows up.


Last edited by LakerSD on Mon May 03, 2021 8:26 am; edited 1 time in total
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lakersken80
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 8:22 am    Post subject:

Injuries derailed this year, problem is by the time they get back together they are going to have problems playing with each other, playoffs are not the time to figure out chemistry and lineup issues.
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 9:16 am    Post subject:

lakersken80 wrote:
Injuries derailed this year, problem is by the time they get back together they are going to have problems playing with each other, playoffs are not the time to figure out chemistry and lineup issues.


You don't have to. You have a lineup that was one of the best in a large sample size

DS - KCP - Bron - AD - Gasol.

You can also run last year's championship lineup

KCP - Caruso - Kuz- Bron - AD

It's really not just a lineup issue it's a health issue more than anything else. Lebron + AD are not playing to their potential due to injury. I still believe they can and I think they can go on a run.
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troy
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 9:45 am    Post subject:

ahaider wrote:
lakersken80 wrote:
Injuries derailed this year, problem is by the time they get back together they are going to have problems playing with each other, playoffs are not the time to figure out chemistry and lineup issues.


You don't have to. You have a lineup that was one of the best in a large sample size

DS - KCP - Bron - AD - Gasol.

You can also run last year's championship lineup

KCP - Caruso - Kuz- Bron - AD

It's really not just a lineup issue it's a health issue more than anything else. Lebron + AD are not playing to their potential due to injury. I still believe they can and I think they can go on a run.



"I wanted to make sure I was coming back 100%, because it wouldn't be fair to myself, wouldn't be fair to my team," Davis said on Wednesday. "I feel great. These last games leading to the playoffs, a lot of teams aren't healthy, a lot of players aren't healthy. I'm 100%, and we've got Bron coming back as well who's going to be 100% healthy. I think we've put ourselves in a good position."
-Anthony Davis, April 22, 2021

Laker record since Anthony "100% healthy" Davis returned, 1-5 (all losses against teams with worst records than the Lakers)
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LakerSD
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PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2021 9:47 am    Post subject:

https://twitter.com/sportsline/status/1389243128050114560?s=21

Well this model still believes LAL has “it.”
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