Monthly Archives: May 2011

Impending free agents the Lakers could welcome

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Their words are still hovering over Lakersland,
well-meaning advice for the offseason from two Hall of Fame members who
know a thing or two about building and maintain championship-caliber
teams in the NBA.
"It needs to build speed," retiring Lakers coach Phil Jackson said of
the team in his farewell address last week. "They need to have speed to
get easy baskets."
Days earlier, former Lakers guard Magic Johnson told viewers on ESPN,
"The Lakers have two problems. They’re too slow and no athletes." Continue reading “Impending free agents the Lakers could welcome” »

Role player might be Pistons' best bet in draft

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The lack of star power in next month’s NBA draft doesn’t have many
people excited about the Pistons’ chances to select an impact player.
There
are some fans who would love for the Pistons to tank seasons in an
effort to get the next Tim Duncan or Shaquille O’Neal, believing the
star system is the only way to win in today’s NBA.
While many
feel it would be easy to obtain a superstar, a team can’t just sit
around and wait until Kevin Durant or Derrick Rose falls into its lap.
Many times, it’s pure chance.
Unless Kyrie Irving or Derrick
Williams are on the board when the Pistons are up, they’ll be selecting
from a depleted talent field. College kids choosing to stay in school,
due to the likelihood of a lockout, has made the seventh pick (the
likely Pistons pick) less attractive than in previous years.
Continue reading “Role player might be Pistons' best bet in draft” »

Cavaliers unlikely to score a big star

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The Cavaliers will finally learn during Tuesday
night’s lottery where they are drafting next month. Unfortunately, there
isn’t a set of pingpong balls on the planet that will improve the
quality of this draft.

We’ve heard for months this could be the worst draft in 25 years, but just how bad is it?

This bad: One NBA talent evaluator
said last week he isn’t sure there is a future All-Star anywhere in this
draft. To put that in perspective, every draft between 1978 and 2008
has produced at least three All-Stars, except one year (2007). That
draft is still too young to judge, since guys like Mike Conley, Jeff
Green and Joakim Noah could still make an All-Star team before their
careers are through.
Continue reading “Cavaliers unlikely to score a big star” »

Source: Lakers eye Mike Dunleavy

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The Los Angeles Lakers
have had to replace two coaching legends in the last 20 years: Phil
Jackson and Pat Riley. The only time it’s worked out well, the team
turned to Mike Dunleavy.

They’re thinking of doing the same again this time. Dunleavy was
contacted by the team this week and is said to be on the team’s current
"short list" to succeed Jackson, according to a source with knowledge of
the situation. That list also includes former Houston Rockets
coach Rick Adelman, who ESPN.com’s Marc Stein and ESPNLosAngeles.com’s
Dave McMenamin reported Thursday also would be a candidate for the
position. Continue reading “Source: Lakers eye Mike Dunleavy” »

Might be time for Baby to leave Celtics’ nest

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Glen Davis picked an inopportune time to have one of the worst
stretches of his career. Even worse, this forgettable postseason may be
Davis’ final memory with the Celtics [team stats].

Davis will be an unrestricted free agent this summer and clearly
intends to test the market. This postseason was not the best audition,
as Davis shot 39.1 percent and averaged 4.9 points and 3.6 rebounds.

“You just can’t base it on just this playoffs,” Davis said. “My whole
body of work, I feel like I can play in this league, I can start in
this league, from my second year when Kevin (Garnett) went down and my
third year playing in the playoffs. This year was my best year. I just
didn’t play well in the playoffs this year. I didn’t get a good rhythm.
Some things happen like that. I don’t think this playoffs hurt me as
much.” Continue reading “Might be time for Baby to leave Celtics’ nest” »

Defiant Kobe doesn’t see overhaul in Lakers’ plans

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Kobe Bryant’s(notes) face seemed to instantly boil as he was asked about the “decline” of the Los Angeles Lakers. Such talk has taken root ever since the Dallas Mavericks stunningly swept the Lakers in the second round of the playoffs, ending Los Angeles’ two-year championship reign.

He called breakup talk “nonsense” at
his exit interview with the media at the team’s practice facilities on
Wednesday, and believes the Lakers’ current core group will make another
title run next season. Continue reading “Defiant Kobe doesn’t see overhaul in Lakers’ plans” »

The Lakers are coming after Dwight Howard

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As expected, Magic star Dwight Howard’s name came up often after the
Lakers were swept out of the playoffs by the Dallas Mavericks.
A Lakers’ revival could take place quickly if they could trade for
Howard this summer or next season, according to some talking heads in
the ABC/ESPN studio and some writers with the L.A. Times.
It’s not a revelation.
Continue reading “The Lakers are coming after Dwight Howard” »