**LA LAKERS THREAD** Sitting on 17! 2023-2024 offseason begins

[atlsfinest]

Nah there's a sizable contingent of the fanbase that are already calling to trade Russ and swooning over the thought of Buddy Hield. Just silliness.

In a vacuum, Russell Westbrook is a better player than Buddy healed but on this team Buddy is a much better fit especially when you consider the fact that we gave up so many key rotation players and sacrificed Caruso in order to get Russ.

A team of AD, LeBron, KCP, Kuzma, Caruso, Buddy and role players makes a lot more sense than our current roster.

We're effectively playing four on five in the half court because Westbrook still doesn't move off the ball and is an awful shooter so teams just ignore him. The paint is constantly clogged. If you think it's bad now, wait until the playoffs when games slow down and half court execution is paramount.

I'm a Lakers fan regardless and I'm never going to jump ship but I don't have a lot of hope for this team. I'll be watching and praying that Westbrook magically becomes this new, smarter player you guys have imagined him to be.

 

[Lizakers]

Imagine Kuzma did the pump fake free throw

or KCP had a game like Russ last night

 

[pmatic]

I think Caruso was more than likely going to be let go in free agency no matter what. And Kuzma was part of the Hield trade, with Trezz.

 

[Brosizzlew30.23]

Gotta deal one of these guards for a forward in December.

Covington a perfect fit. Been wanting him since he was with Philly

 

[DLF]

I think Caruso was more than likely going to be let go in free agency no matter what. And Kuzma was part of the Hield trade, with Trezz.

Nah man. Hield makes 24 mill. Russ makes 44. That 20 mill dollar difference is why they didn’t wanna pay more for caruso

 

[pmatic]

Nah man. Hield makes 24 mill. Russ makes 44. That 20 mill dollar difference is why they didn’t wanna pay more for caruso

KCP would be on the hook for $13M and the rookie would be making $2M. Maybe they re-sign Caruso and make him the starter. Or they turn their attention to re-signing Schroder.

 

[DLF]

KCP would be on the hook for $13M and the rookie would be making $2M. Maybe they re-sign Caruso and make him the starter. Or they turn their attention to re-signing Schroder.

Also think about the trade assets
If you get Hield, you would have had 5 assets ready to trade in Hield, kcp, Caruso, tht and the 1st rounder. Now we have 1 in tht just in case Westbrook doesn’t work. Again this is just fantasy and for fun. I don’t think lakers are gonna fall flat on their face. They will figure it out. They have no choice but to

 

[Brosizzlew30.23]

Just one game. I'm not even worried. Is the media and the fans just need something to talk about

This team's DNA is to attack the rim and dominate the boards. Not to shoot 3 pointers, last night I'm a last night was just then practicing their long range shots to see if they could match the Warriors.. In due time we will see the aggressive lakers that I envisioned them to be

 

[MVP]

In a vacuum, Russell Westbrook is a better player than Buddy healed but on this team Buddy is a much better fit especially when you consider the fact that we gave up so many key rotation players and sacrificed Caruso in order to get Russ.

A team of AD, LeBron, KCP, Kuzma, Caruso, Buddy and role players makes a lot more sense than our current roster.

We're effectively playing four on five in the half court because Westbrook still doesn't move off the ball and is an awful shooter so teams just ignore him. The paint is constantly clogged. If you think it's bad now, wait until the playoffs when games slow down and half court execution is paramount.

I'm a Lakers fan regardless and I'm never going to jump ship but I don't have a lot of hope for this team. I'll be watching and praying that Westbrook magically becomes this new, smarter player you guys have imagined him to be.

Lol your entire premise makes no sense from jump seeing as you believe Buddy was a free agent. That roster wouldn't have been possible b/c at least 2 of those guys (Kuz & Caruso) one def gone in a trade and the other as he did anyway left as a free agent. A team of Bron, AD, Buddy and KCP doesn't scream anything better than what we have by any stretch. Would have been bargain bin hunting for the same role players we got because of the cap.

Vogel is going to have to figure out how to use Russ effectively going forward period. You definitely don't do that with starting DeAndre or playing him with Rondo. That's just dumb any everybody knows it. Maybe once THT, Ellington, and Nunn get back the rotations will settle out better and Rondo will only be in break in case of emergency situations.

Russ is going to have to make some shots, but last night was his first game he was very passive and not himself. I don't expect that to continue all season, his MO pretty much every year since KD left is to use the first month or so to figure out how he fits/his new teammates and then he gets going. Vogel has to let Russ be Russ for us to be the best version of what this team can be.

But all the panic and nonsense that some of the fans are spouting after one game like we pretty much haven't gotten washed every season opener since Bron got here is comical to say the least. Just calm down and give them more than a damn game to gel.

 

[DLF]

Lol your entire premise makes no sense from jump seeing as you believe Buddy was a free agent. That roster wouldn't have been possible b/c at least 2 of those guys (Kuz & Caruso) one def gone in a trade and the other as he did anyway left as a free agent. A team of Bron, AD, Buddy and KCP doesn't scream anything better than what we have by any stretch. Would have been bargain bin hunting for the same role players we got because of the cap.

Vogel is going to have to figure out how to use Russ effectively going forward period. You definitely don't do that with starting DeAndre or playing him with Rondo. That's just dumb any everybody knows it. Maybe once THT, Ellington, and Nunn get back the rotations will settle out better and Rondo will only be in break in case of emergency situations.

Russ is going to have to make some shots, but last night was his first game he was very passive and not himself. I don't expect that to continue all season, his MO pretty much every year since KD left is to use the first month or so to figure out how he fits/his new teammates and then he gets going. Vogel has to let Russ be Russ for us to be the best version of what this team can be.

But all the panic and nonsense that some of the fans are spouting after one game like we pretty much haven't gotten washed every season opener since Bron got here is comical to say the least. Just calm down and give them more than a damn game to gel.

Panic is def not the right move but it’s still fun to think of what coulda been IF this doesn’t work.
Hield trade was for kuzma and Harrell. And the salary drop would have opened us to keep kcp and Caruso along with tht.

but who cares. Team is what it is. Let’s see how it rolls out

 

[atlsfinest]

Rockets fans have been trying to warn us

 

[DLF]

 

[SORIANOTRON]

Some flashes and stretches to be excited about last night….

it’s there….

the challenge will be putting it all together and finding our identity.

there were good stretches of Defense last night.

Defensive rotations have been killing us these 7 games, if the ball swings more than 2 times teams are getting a wide open 3 ball. WAAAYYYY too many wide open 3’s for GSW last night.

the rotations will come, but the intensity and willingness to play D is there.

compared to last year, the offense is way better and we wont have to worry about being outscored this season

Just focus on tightening the D.

AD and LJ freethrows

 

[CP1708]

Yea, I'm not worried. There were good stretches, they just needed to finish the job.

The overall key is health, if they stay healthy, after 6-7-8-9 months of working together, things will balance out.

But boy do I hope the free throw thing isn't going to be a season long deal.

Because honestly, this team should lead the NBA in free throws, by a wide margin. Bron/AD/Russ/Melo/Dwight can and will all draw fouls. Get into the penalty early and often and create even more free throws from there, but man, ya gotta hit them. Bron gotta at least be 75%, and AD needs to get back to that 84-85% mark. Russ is a 79% guy but has been terrible the last 3-4 years, that has to change. If he can give us 80%, then he's a lot more useful just off that alone.

9 for 19.....

Be patient. These guys are all too smart to not put it together. But Melo gon need some gentle reminders on falling back on screens when it's Steph comin towards him.

 

[pmatic]

 

[Hijo Del Promo]

An 82-0 season, wasted.

I knew losing Caruso would be big, but this big, I never imagined.

 

[atlsfinest]

We had a simple, but effective formula of focusing on defense, rebounding and physicality and we spent the last couple of off-seasons doing the exact opposite. I understand wanting to take the playmaking burden off of an aging LeBron James but I don't understand completely reworking the roster.

 

[noblekane]

pmatic can you give me some hope and tell me what westbrook brings to this team that is valuable? because people are saying its one game but we have seen this movie before.

 

[pmatic]

pmatic can you give me some hope and tell me what westbrook brings to this team that is valuable? because people are saying its one game but we have seen this movie before.

 

[DLF]

Lakers:

all right. We are gonna bring in shooting. Playmaking. Gotta rest lebron

Also lakers:

brings in worst 3 point shooter of all time, starts an old center that can’t shoot and lebron still brings ball up 90 percent of the time.

depending on how things go: rob might have gotten blindly lucky in 19-20. If this season is like last year, he would have 3 of 4 years of AWFUL AWFUL choices.

 

[pmatic]

noblekane

 

[DLF]

When to turn off the suns lakers game:

1) if rondo and Westbrook is in the game together.
2) the offense runs through melo
3) AD takes fade aways against a guys 10 inches smaller than him.

 

[pmatic]

 

[Brosizzlew30.23]

We had a simple, but effective formula of focusing on defense, rebounding and physicality and we spent the last couple of off-seasons doing the exact opposite. I understand wanting to take the playmaking burden off of an aging LeBron James but I don't understand completely reworking the roster.

Because the rosters of the leading opposition have all improved the last 2 years.

Can't remain stagnant when the rest of the league's title contenders started gunnin for LAL after winning the chip in 2020.

 

[moonman818]

Need the Brodie to clank a last second 30 footer against the Suns Friday... for the chaos.