It has become quite apparent 2 games into the 2011-2012 NBA season that Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers are in trouble this season. Bryant is playing his usual great quality game but it appears the the Lakers are a mess while Andrew Bynum is sitting out the first 4 games of the year due to his suspension.

Even with Bynum, do the Lakers have what it takes to make some noise this year?

I don’t think so.

Kobe is a year older, and has had two “mad-scientist” procedures performed on him by a doctor in Germany. He just suffered a slight tear in a ligament in his shooting hand. He claims it cannot get any worse, but over a grueling schedule due to the shortened season, there will be a lot of wear-and-tear on his wrist.

Add into the fold the recent news of his pending divorce, and Kobe is getting press for all the wrong reasons. How will he cope? I am guessing that the egotistical Kobe will be the usual Kobe Bryant everyone either hates or loves. He is to sociopathic to allow something like a divorce to bother him.

You can bet that NBA teams will perform a vintage “Karate kid” and sweep the wrist. All scouting reports and pre-lakers matchup practices will make sure of this. Any time Kobe takes it to the rack, expect to see hacks going directly at his wrist. This defensive strategy will be implemented league-wide to try and slow down the league’s best player.

The second fact is that there is no point guard worth mentioning on their roster. Whoever the Lakers face, their PG match ups will be a nightmare. During their second game, the Kings starting back court lit the Lakers up for a combined 47 points. You simply will not win when players can score like this.

Lamar Odom being “given” to the Mavericks. This move makes zero sense. You don’t just give away the 6th man of the year. Odom is a jack of all trades, and does it in a 7-foot frame. You just don’t let that get away. Period. And if you do, you get at least get something for it.

All said and done, the Lakers are not near being a championship caliber team after the moves they made. If they do manage to make a big trade this season, it will further deplete and disrupt the lineup, but perhaps it might give them some hope for the next season.

To get someone like Dwight Howard you will have lose Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum, which will leave the lakers with Kobe, Dwight, and Metta World Peace.

Yikes.

Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers championship and “Threepeat” hopes had the door emphatically slammed shut this week after Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks shocked the basketball world,  sweeping Los Angeles in four games.

Credit is due to the Mavericks, as their recently discovered toughness – influenced by the Tyson Chandler effect – soundly demolished the Lakers in 4 straight games. However, had the Lakers actually played as a team for even one game, they would have not been swept away in such a devastating fashion.

Not only were all the Lakers deficiencies exposed during the series, but questions now arise regarding how the Lakers move forward, and whether or not Kobe and the current makeup of the Lakers has a legitimate chance at challenging any time soon

The concept of team chemistry immediately comes to mind when addressing the first issue in Lakerland. There appears to be some sort of off court rift between Pau Gasol and Kobe. If the Lakers are to find a way to get back on track, reconciliation between the leagues most skilled power forward and the leagues most arrogant superstar must be first on the Lakers organizations agenda.

Restructuring the franchise must address the following needs for the Lakers:

Head Coach

This is the one position that is changing with absolute certainty. Phil Jackson has made it clear he is stepping down as the Lakers head coach. But will Brian Shaw get his chance to run the Lakers? Whoever it is, expect that there will be no way the players net yield on the floor will be as plentiful as it is with Jackson.

Point Guard – Derek Fisher

Fisher needs to retire. He has little left to offer his team as a full time starting point guard in the NBA. Steve Blake has proved he can run a team as a full-time starter, but teams seem to do better with him coming off the bench. If a Dwight Howard trade does happen, look for the Lakers to also try to improve here.

Shooting Guard – Kobe Bryant

Kobe is starting to look his age. His injuries and wear and tear finally caught up with him, and he looked like a mere mortal against Dallas. Of course, Kobe will never have to worry about a thing, as whatever he wants, he gets.

This does not bodes well for Gasol’s future with the Lakers.

Center – Andrew Bynum

The Lakers should trade Bynum while he has any value left. Bynum imploded this year in the playoffs, and at this point in his career it is hard to believe he is going to get it together mentally, or play a complete season without injury. Fortunately for the Lakers, Bynum is less injury prone than Greg Oden, and has value still.

Bynum  could be implemented in a system that caters more to him, and gives him more touches, thus allowing him to have major market value.

Power Forward – Pau Gasol

Gasol is the most valuable player on this team behind Bryant. It is truly a shame that he might be on the way out simply to appease Bryant, the aging star on the decline. If Bryant gets his way, it will be some combo of Kobe, Lamar Odom, and whoever else they can keep while liquidating the leagues best power forward in an attempt to rebuild.

Small Forward – Ron Artest

Artest has fallen off the planet as a NBA player. His game has worsened so bad that his disappearance was the only thing going unnoticed against the Mavericks. He barely contributed, and his suspension didn’t help either. Apparently, the Lakers will likely be stuck with Artest, unless Mitch Kupchack  can create a whopper of a trade.

Expect the Lakers to be one of the most active teams this summer.

Memphis Grizzlies vs.  Oklahoma City Thunder

If Zach Randolph continues playing basketball the way he is now, it is hard to imagine any team stopping the Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies are the first team since the Golden State Warriors in 2007 to be the #8 seed to knock off the #1 seed.

Memphis emphatically dismantled the San Antonio Spurs in 6 games, and it would likely have been five games had Manu Ginobili and Gary Neal missed those unbelievably clutch 3s in the waning moments of game 5 to push the game into overtime.

The Thunder have Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook to combat Zach Randolph and Gasol. They also scored at the trade deadline and stole Kendrick Perkins away from Boston (Boston will regret this move before their post season is finished) for Jeff Green.

In fact, the Thunder’s roster boasts Perkins, Serge Ibaka, Nick Colison, and Nazr Muhhammed to throw at Marc Gasol and Randolph. That is a lot of depth, and expect the Thunder to wear out Memphis as this series goes on.

But we cannot forget that Marc Gasol dominated Tim Duncan in round 1, and when paired in the front court with Randolph the two mutated into some sort of mythological, twin-towered beast for the Grizzliest whom terrorized the Spurs.

This series should come down to the performance of two players performances that will decide the outcome:

Can Russell Westbrook can keep his turnovers low and push the transition game?

If Westbrook is on so are the Thunder, this has catastrophic results for most opposition, and makes life more pleasant for Kevin Durant on offense by reducing his load, and saving his game for the 4th quarter.

If Zach Randolph continues to dominate the game as he did in round 1? How will he handle the myriad of never-ending size the Thunder throw at him?

The Grizzlies might make this a series, but it is hard to bet against the Thunders talent and depth.

Prediction: Thunder in 7

Dallas Mavericks vs. Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers will be facing off against the tallest version of Dallas they have ever experienced in the playoffs.

The Mavericks will have Dirk Nowitski, Tyson Chandler and Brendan Haywood – three seven-footers- to battle Andrew Bynum, Pao Gasol, and Lamar Odom – another three seven-footers – which will take away the height advantage the Lakers used on New Orleans in round 1.

Even though the height might be equal in numbers, it does not account for the fact that the Lakers talent level over-matches the talent of the Mavericks.

Jason Kidd has the upper hand over Derek Fisher at point guard, but how do the Mavericks have any chance whatsoever at slowing or doing anything to disrupt Kobe from imposing his will on them?

Jason Terry or DeShawn Stephenson, maybe even Corey Brewer, perhaps. Brewer is the better defender of the group, but his limited offense (major offensive regression this year) and lack of playoff experience with a winning club all but rule this out the chance of making an impact.

Rodridgue Beabois is lightning fast, but at 6’2″, he has no chance to stop Kobe.

This gives the Lakers the ultimate advantage, and should be allowed to dictate most of the pace of this series.

The Lakers are simply overall a much better team.

I would consider predicting a sweep, but can’t beat against a sweep if Jason Kidd is involved. Even at the age of 38, Kidd can still be expected to will Dallas into stealing at least 1 game.

Prediction: Lakers in 5

The Lakers started their quest for a Three-Peat by receiving their NBA Championship rings before their first game of the 2010-11 season. We did a piece that covered last years rings here at Protect the Paint, so it is only right if we continue to do so again.

Kobe is running out of things to say.

This years edition of NBA Championship Rings feature all sorts of tantalizing features, including actual pieces of leather from the game 7 ball.

Talk about pulling out all the stops. The rings also have 16 over-sized diamonds to signify the 16 titles the Lakers have won, and each ring given to the players has an actual 3-dimensional sculpture of his own face. Talk about cool.

Thank you Michael, Kobe, Shaq, Triangle, and Zen!

Phil Jackson can now confidently compete with Liberace due to all the jewelry Jackson now possesses.

Ron Artest is already creating a stir by selling raffle tickets in order to raise money for charity, awarding one lucky raffle winner the chance to own a ring with a 3-dimensional diamond sculpture of Ron-Ron. The money raised will be donated to mental health therapy.

My precious.......

Ironically, the more I mull it over, the greater disturbed I become. Definitely not because of Artet’s generous gesture, but likely more so because staring at Artest’s face for a long enough period of time might drive anyone over the edge. Perhaps he helps many with mental illness at the cost of driving one to madness?

All in all, the Lakers are looking like strong candidates to win their 3rd consecutive title, and as the season progresses, raffles are won, people go crazy for the purple and gold, it will be great to see who wins/loses, and who who loses their sanity staring at a sculpture of Ron Artests face along the way.

Wouldn’t it be crazy if the winner of the raffle actually ends up suing Artest because the ring drives him or her crazy?

There is not much reason spending all the effort getting into all the specific details as to why I consider Kobe Bryant to be the world’s most colossal douche, because I could write a gargantuan-sized book possibly dwarfing Bill Simmons’ Book of Basketball spewing my vitriol and opinions on this matter.

Anytime I watch Kobe do anything involving speaking in front of the media, it annoys me. But hey, he’s a unbelievably talented basketball player, I’ll give him that. I have to. There is no disputing this whatsoever.

But every dog must have its day, because I feel like I just had mine after seeing this picture, so I’ll leave you with the following picture to decide for yourselves, along with this thought:

Anyone who sports their own tee shirt is a 100% complete and utter “Le Douche.”

Kobe, wake up and smell the Disney Coffee. You are Le Douche.

Kobe Bryant just finished another stellar playoff performance landing him his 5th NBA Championship. He has possibly positioned himself atop the centerpiece of the mantle of Laker greats alongside Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Bob MacAdoo, Jerry West, Elgin Baylor ,and Wilt Chamberlain.

I know most of the “Lakeshow” nation might disagree, but I feel it is safe to say that no matter how many rings Kobe wins by the end of his career, there is no way the “Lakeshow” nation should be allowed to compare Kobe Bryant to Michael Jordan. Period.

The main distinguishable fact when debating this is taking into consideration the starting center of any of Jordan’s championship teams, and compare them to Kobe’s.

Jordan won rings with centers: (1st Three Peat) Bill Cartwright, Will Purdue,  Scott Williams, Stacey King, (2nd Three-Peat) Luc Longley, John Salley, Robert Parish (43 years old at the time), Brian Williams (aka Bison Dele), Bill Wennington,  and Joe Kleine.

Kobe had Shaquille O’Neal to lean on during his first Three-Peat, and let’s just say Shaq is, at worst, extraordinarily better than any of those centers on their best day.

Kobe currently has a slew of 7-foot talent in Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, and Andrew Bynum on his current roster. This compilation of 7-footers includes All Star and two big men who are far above average by NBA standards. Only once you start mentioning D.J. Mbenga are you close to entering the “Jordan Zone” of Championship centers.

So, Kobe might be the best Los Angeles Laker ever. I am sure you will get a plethora of arguments the spaning the different generations of Laker Nation arguing Magic vs. West vs. Kobe vs. whichever Laker that person grew up watching win NBA Championships.

No matter which Laker you select it becomes abundantly clear after reading the list of centers Michael Jordan played with during his championship reign that there never be any real argument that supports Kobe being better than Jordan, ever.

Kobe Bryant was spectacular in game 5 of the NBA Finals in Boston. He took shots that bordered on ridiculous and yet made them almost effortlessly. For a brief moment during the third quarter, the possibility of the Lakers turning things around and pulling out a much needed road win began to enter the thoughts of the Celtics fans.

Unfortunately for Kobe, his effort was wasted due to the fact that his supporting cast continued their recent disappearing act from game 4 into and throughout game 5. What about game 6?

Will a switch of scenery back to Los Angeles revive the Lakers hopes for back to back championships?

You know Kobe will be hoping for his team to wake up, and justifiably so. Other than the oft-hobbled Andrew Bynum, who looks as though he is stunting the longevity of his career while playing on a torn up something-rather simply because he wants to win, there is not another Laker who is stepping up to back Kobe.

Kobe depsarately needs help.

To be fair, Bynum is rather useless out on the floor due to his injuries. Perhaps if we could build some sort of device to remove and transfer his effort level and then, say, divide it and then install it inside the bodies of Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom, the Lakers would have a much improved chance than they do currently of winning two games in a row against Boston.

Unless the Lakers make drastic moves, or if Phil Jackson can somehow channel his inner chi and turn it into an internal rage, the Lakers are in serious trouble.

It makes my heart go out to Kobe in a similar vein of Dwyane Wade wasting his talents the past few years in Miami.  Watching Kobe’s masterful performance go into the wastebasket because nobody else could step up and help him. It’s actually quite shameful.

Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, and “Bad-shot-Ron” Artest, this means you.

Wake up, or your season will be all for naught.

Hopefully for the Lakers, Kobe can use some of that magic on the court to inspire his teammates to help him out.

2008 was the year classic basketball rivalries experienced a major revival. It had been far to long since the glorious battles of the 80′s featuring Larry Legend’s Celtics and Magic’s Lakers had met their demise. Basketball was getting stagnant after Jordan left the Bulls. Then 2008 came, and as David Stern danced around the room with joy, basketball’s biggest rivalry pounced back into the mainstream.

This year marks the second time in three years the classic match up of Celtics vs. Lakers returns to the NBA Finals stage. Will this series have that same feel that those classic battles of the 80′s did?

Or will this series simply be one sided, like many of this years playoff series were?

I believe it will be a good series, but other than Lakers fans, who just as they did in 2008, are already planning a $1 million-plus celebration parade before the thing is won, who can truly be convinced the Lakers have a chance to win this thing?

What will happen if Kobe guards Rondo?

After much deliberation, I found a few points that could cause this series to shift in the Lakers favor:

Kendrick Perkins’ temper vs. technical fouls

Perkins is 1 technical foul away from a league-imposed suspension. Should Perkins lose his cool, and receive a technical, he will likely be out the following game. This could be double trouble if Perkins compounds this mistake and gets ejected from a game that the Celtics lose. They are a far weaker team without Perkins occupying the middle.

If the Celtics have to try and stave off a two-game losing streak without Perkins is as close as close can get to impossible.

Can the Celtics bounce back from injuries?

Rasheed Wallace and Glen “Big Baby” Davis headline the list of injured Celtics. They are two of Bostons key reserve players. Losing either of them for extended time will hurt the Celtics depth and game plan.

The fact is the Celtics are old. They will not recovering from injuries like they used to. Any little minor tweak, twist, or pull will slow their veteran roster and possibly put a massive crimp in Doc Rivers’ season-long masterplan to keep his older stallions healthy for the race with the biggest purse.

Speaking of Injuries: Will Andrew Bynum’s knee explode?

Bynum is currently playing with torn cartilage in his knee. His minute per game average has experienced a significant regression since the first round, raising the question: Can he be effective against a tough defensive team that plays a tought and sometimes dirty style of basketball?

Will a Rasheed Wallace, Kevin Garnet, or Kendrik Perkins bump or elbow underneath the cup cause Bynum’s knee to explode while trying to grab a rebound?

All jokes aside, if Bynum cannot play effective basketball, it does not bode well for the Lakers. Transversely, if he can, it will dramatically help their chances.

Ron Artest’s ability to shut down Paul Pierce

Ron Ron has been a flat out stud at shutting down Pierce in the past. If he can continue this it will definitely make the series as tight as possible for the Lakers.

Who will Kobe guard?

Ray Allen will keep Kobe occupied defensively as Bryant (and eventually exhausted) chases him through infinite screens and baseline cuts, leading to the question: Does Kobe guard Rondo?

If Kobe does guard Rondo, then who covers Ray Allen?

Allen might be older, but he is very capable of exploding for 30 plus points if someone like Derek Fisher is trying to chase him through a myriad of screens. This factor might possess the most potency as to how it affects the series.

Kobe and the Lakers could afford to assign Kobe on Russell Westbrook because Thabo Sefolosha is a horrible shooter, but Ray Allen? I think you need to keep Kobe on him, and pray Fisher doesnt embarrass himself playing against Rondo.

Summary

Ultimately the Lakers have yet to face anything remotely close to a team as defensively strong during the 2010 playoffs. Even if Kobe scores 40 points a game, the Celtics can shut down the rest of the Lakers, so it will not matter. The Celtics will still win games. The Celtics playan amazing style of team basketball, never relying on just one player all the time.

They essentially never defer as much as the Lakers defer to Kobe to win games for them. They don’t have to.

It’s a well documented fact that stronger defensive teams persevere over offensive teams. Unless the Lakers can “out-defend” the Celtics, I can’t see the Lakers repeating as NBA Champions in 2010.

Prediction:

Boston will win the series in 6 as long as Perkins keeps his cool and Garnett, Pierce, Allen, and Rondo all stay healthy.

Ironically as I was checking up on game 4 of the Western Conference Finals the Beatle’s song “Here Comes the Sun” was playing on my computer. I couldn’t imagine a better song coincidentally playing while Phoenix gave the Lakers all they could handle awhile evening the series to 2-2 tie.

I guess what really substantiates this series will be if either team can step up and win on the road. I know it sounds cliche, but in what I consider this years playoffs to be one of the largest snooze fests in NBA playoff history, and this post season could use a big road win to make things lively again for the first time since round 1.

Based on games 1 and 2 at the Staple Center, it seems somewhat unlikely that the Suns can win there, but they have to win there if they want to advance. I hope they win there, for the sake of the NBA playoffs having a resurgence, revival, and possibly again have a pulse.

Kobe, wanna play game 5 here????

When analyzing games 3 and 4 it seems to be the exact scenario for the Lakers in US Airways Arena. Kobe Bryant put up insane numbers, and absolutely dominated but his insatiable appetite for individual statistical greatness didn’t amount to a Lakers victory.

The glaring discrepancy: Lamar Odom was the lone bench player worth squat during game 4, meanwhile Phoenix’s bench lambasted the Lakers with nine 3-pointers and 54 points. That’s what I consider making up for crappy performances by the Suns in games 1 and 2.

So what do we expect for game 5? Will Phoenix’s bench continue to terrorize the Lakers’ bench? Phil Jackson is a great motivator, and the Lakers are on their home court, both of which would make one think that the Lakers indeed possess the uppe hand.

Perhaps Channing Frye has finally awoken for good in these playoffs, perhaps he will shrivel under the pressures of the Staples Center. But if Frye and his shot are on, it creates major problems for the Lakers defensively.

However, what sports fan does not want to root for Steve Nash to make it to the finals? Toss out all other aspects to this analysis, and take the collective consciousness of all NBA fans, put it in a blender, then a centrifuge. What percentage of this mental mush would be rooting for Nash and the Suns versus the Lakers?

Nash has never been there.

Kobe is a great player, but his arrogance tarnishes the ability of most NBA fans to root for him to make it there, when deciding between him and Nash.

Nash has never been there.

Karma alone is on the side of the Suns.

]]> http://protectthepaint.com/2010/05/26/here-come-the-suns/feed/ 0 http://protectthepaint.com/2010/01/21/2010-all-star-starters-announced-on-tnt/ http://protectthepaint.com/2010/01/21/2010-all-star-starters-announced-on-tnt/#comments Fri, 22 Jan 2010 01:34:38 +0000 Adam Sedie http://protectthepaint.com/?p=3670

The 2010 NBA All-Star starters were named live today on TNT at 7:00 PM EST.

There has been much discussion about issues with the voting, focusing specifically on Tracy McGrady, whom played in only 6 games, averaging 3 points a game this season. He is currently at home, exiled from the Rockets as they seek out a suitor for a trade.

Allen Iverson has also been a topic of massive debate. AI has played for two teams and conferences this season, and after failing in Memphis, foudn himself back in Philly, and is about to be named to his 11th all star game. He is averaging 14.8 points, 4.5 assists, and 3 rebounds a game. Those are hardly All-Star caliber stats for a 76ers team with a losing record of 13-28.

Iverson fails in comparison to the Easts best guard, Rajon Rondo, who is averaging 14 PPG, .527 FG%, 9.6 APG, 4.1 RPG, 2.5 SPG, on a team whose winning record is 27-13.

Here are the voting results for the starters:

• Carmelo Anthony (Forward)
• Tim Duncan (Forward)
• Amar’e Stoudemire (Center)
• Kobe Bryant (Guard)
• Steve Nash (Guard)

• Kevin Garnett (Forward)
• LeBron James (Forward)
• Dwight Howard (Center)
• Dwyane Wade (Guard)
• Allen Iverson (Guard)

It is very fortunate that the Western Conference’s Steve Nash leapfrogged Tracy McGrady, ousting him in the waning moments to overtake the starting guard position. It saved the league further embarrassment after Allen Iverson was voted in.

Here is a list of players notably deserving to start:

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Chris Kaman

If not Chris Kaman, Tim Duncan should have been listed on the ballot at the center position. Both players are having substantially better years for their teams than Stoudemire. Kaman has been a beast this year, and has been leading the Clippers to respectability this season.

Kevin Durant

Durant is the reason to move Duncan to center. Durant as one of the starting forwards only makes sense. Durant is the league’s third leading scorer, and his team is in playoff contention this season after only winning 23 games total last year.

The fact that he is in Oklahoma obviously hurts his chances due to low national visibility, the only reason that logically explains, albeit unjustly, Durant’s exclusion from the Western Conference starting line up.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Rajon Rondo

Rondo has experienced some of the worst bias in fan voting I have ever witnessed. Rondo has been nothing less than the best Point Guard in the Eastern Conference all season long. He is member of one of  the best teams in the East. He averages 5 more assists per game shooting 10% better from the field than Iverson.

Rondo has helped his team overcome injuries to Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett and continue to win to the tune of a 27-13 record.

Aren’t All-Stars supposed to be star players on winning teams? Out of fairness to any other player starting this years All-Star game, Iverson is the only player on team with a losing record.

Ironically, the 76ers have as many wins as Boston has losses: 13. One would hope that fact alone should make voters rethink whom they vote for.

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