[:: LAKERS 2014 THREAD | POLL: Who Should Coach Next Year? ::]

[grandtheftbike]

yeah, i mean who really wants MDA. bet dude just skims through albums.

that ssol flow

 

[pmatic]

Ding:

Lakers Insider: Why Would L.A. Not Fire Mike D'Antoni? Here's Why (Maybe)

Judging from the Twitter response to my recent column about Chris Kaman and Mike D'Antoni, the element that really got to many people was the part about the Los Angeles Lakers leaning toward retaining D'Antoni as head coach next season.


As also stated in the column, no conclusion has been drawn by Lakers officials yet. A broader evaluation is planned for after the season, so whoever wants to organize an anti-D'Antoni petition right now, feel free.

The Lakers are already well-aware of the fanbase's general contempt for D'Antoni—along with Kobe Bryant answering, "I don't know," on The Dan Patrick Show when asked if D'Antoni should return.

But the decision whether to fire the coach with one guaranteed year (worth $4 million) left on his contract includes other elements.

If the Lakers continue to focus on 2015 free agency for the more meaningful shift in the team's direction, they are reluctant to bring on a new coach for 2014-15 and commit contractually to another three or four years with that coach while not knowing how he would mesh with the next star player or players.

One option would be to ask Kurt Rambis, D'Antoni's assistant who has not exactly grown into a D'Antoni disciple in his one season away from Phil Jackson, to fill in as head coach for next season. There'd be some possibility of Rambis earning the right to stay on for 2015-16 and beyond. (It'd be familiar territory for Rambis, who was Lakers head coach late in the 1998-99 season before Jackson swooped in for the 1999-2000 season.)

But being short term for Rambis or anyone else is a very awkward position for a coach and for the players he's trying to lead. Would that be better than giving D'Antoni one more season to be a lame duck? Odds are that no matter his inadequacies, there would be more success for his system with many of the same players back, plus Bryant.

The Lakers are also unsure if there is a compelling reason to dismiss D'Antoni, who obviously hasn't succeeded as a communicator or motivator but has been hampered by no training camp last season and even more injuries this season.

Although many Lakers fans just want D'Antoni gone after he has presided over two disappointing seasons, management has to consider the options they have for replacing him. That's the challenge even with all the evidence that he is not a great leader of men.

After their 107-102 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night, the Lakers have three road games left: Sunday afternoon at the Los Angeles Clippers, then April 14 at the Utah Jazz and April 16 at the San Antonio Spurs.

For all the competition in the Western Conference this season, one thing has held true for just about everyone in the West: They win when the Lakers come to town. (Or come to their home court, given the Clippers won by 36 in their previous home date with the Lakers on Jan. 10.)

The Lakers are 4-19 in road games (.174) within the Western Conference. There have been so few West road victories that all of them stand as fairly memorable for the Lakers:

Nov. 7 at Houston: Steve Blake's three-pointer at the buzzer, off a dual pick from Pau Gasol and Steve Nash, won the first game against the departed Dwight Howard.

Dec. 6 at Sacramento: A rally in the fourth quarter behind a previously struggling Gasol moved the Lakers to 10-9 on the season—one rare stat of pride—before Bryant's highly anticipated season debut the next game.

Dec. 17 at Memphis: Bryant played well through his fractured knee and delivered a victory in what wound up being his final game of the season.

March 3 at Portland: A 107-106 victory was secured by Kent Bazemore's inbounds lob pass to Wesley Johnson and then Jodie Meeks' stop of Damian Lillard.

For all the logic that D'Antoni's system is an ill fit for Kaman—something we predicted as far back as the start of training camp—Gasol's decent health this season stands as the real reason Kaman has endured such a lost season.

I asked Kaman why he thinks the Lakers signed him to D'Antoni's team, paying him $3.2 million, which is more than any of the other free agents they added last summer. Kaman's reply: "That's a good question I can't really answer. I don't really know."

I said I thought it was because the Lakers really just wanted him as insurance for Gasol, who played 42 of 82 games last season and was coming off significant procedures to both knees with tremendous NBA and international mileage on his body. Gasol was also going to be a constant trade candidate.

The Lakers were desperate for a veteran big man upon Howard's exit, and it wasn't really intended for Kaman to play much next to Gasol for D'Antoni, given their defensive inactivity.

"I don't know," Kaman said. "That's not what they told me. They told me I was going to play. I didn't think about insurance (for Gasol). I didn't even think about it until you brought it up, to be honest. It's an interesting topic."

Gasol has played 60 out of 75 games this season, and it was only upon Gasol suffering vertigo that Kaman's streak of 10 games without getting off the bench ended last week.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...ould-la-not-fire-mike-dantoni-heres-why-maybe

 

[CP1708]

Although many Lakers fans just want D'Antoni gone after he has presided over two disappointing seasons, management has to consider the options they have for replacing him

, I'm getting close to asking some of these guys for portions of their paychecks. This is bull ****. Least they could @ me or something, ya know?


See, what else can I type in here for them to use in a few days? Hmmmm


Let's go with Lance. I need to see the Lakers make a run at Lance in the offseason, another young guy to pair next to the rook and help lure Love and whoever else in 2015.


Lance Stephenson to the LA Lakers in 2014? Prime free agent target? Come on Ding, LakerNation, SilverScreen and Roll, Melbourne, Adande, etc etc, type somethin up.

 

[pmatic]

I'm not trying to see Kobe, Lance and Love in a locker room. That sounds like a ticking time bomb.

 

[CP1708]

I'm not trying to see Kobe, Lance and Love in a locker room. That sounds like a ticking time bomb.

You won't.

That's 2 years away, and Kobe's final days. If Kobe wants ANY chance at 6, he better shut the **** up, and let Lance, the rook, and Love do work + the other 2015 FA LA tries to pull.

That's 1 season, and then Kobe bounces. So locker room will be clean. Love and Lance will be fine. They both play hard, they'll do alright.

Mike will keep em in line......

****

 

[pmatic]

If that core comes together and they happen to make a run in 2016, you can bet Kobe will be back for 2017.

 

[CP1708]

Naw, **** that, we won't have the cap space for his ***.........*bird rights*......


**** again.

 

[noblekane]

kobe just need to face reality. the only way hes gonna get a 6th ring is if hes a coach or assistant coach...

but three years later....i still do not get why the **** they signed mike brown....

like who the **** thought that was a good idea?

 

[kal-el-8]

kobe just need to face reality. the only way hes gonna get a 6th ring is if hes a coach or assistant coach...

but three years later....i still do not get why the **** they signed mike brown....

like who the **** thought that was a good idea?

Apparently he had a good interview

 

[pmatic]

kobe just need to face reality. the only way hes gonna get a 6th ring is if hes a coach or assistant coach...


but three years later....i still do not get why the **** they signed mike brown....


like who the **** thought that was a good idea?

Apparently he had a good interview

He brought in binders full of notes to show Mitch and Jim.

It sort of made sense on the surface, but ugh...

 

[grandtheftbike]

never forget

 

[rck3sactown]

was he ******* high 

 

[MVP]

Should have known then, the demise of the Lakers was quickly at hand.

 

[senorroboto2k5]

Kinda warms my heart to hear CP3 get booed at Dodger Stadium

Must suck to play for a city that doesn't really support you like a city should.

 

[MVP]

He'd be treated like a king if he was in purple and gold. Alas, though Stern ripped him from our clutches.

 

[CHAOSE57]

He'd be treated like a king if he was in purple and gold. Alas, though Stern ripped him from our clutches.

 

[moiety]

Kinda warms my heart to hear CP3 get booed at Dodger Stadium

Must suck to play for a city that doesn't really support you like a city should.

I like CP3 though, not like it was his choice to have the trade vetoed but it definitely makes me happy that even in our worst year that we still have fans bleeding that purple and gold.



Side note-- here are a couple of recent articles on ESPN insider, some stuff most of us know but for those who dont keep up as much as others:

Nick Young’s player option
April, 4, 2014
By Nick Borges | ESPN.com

Nick Young will become an unrestricted free agent on July 1 if he declines his player option for 2014-15. At this time no decision has been made, according to his agent.

“It’s obvious what Nick’s value is, but I don’t want to get into that right now,” Mark Bartelstein told the Los Angeles Daily News. “He wants to finish the season strong. It’s hard if someone comes up and asks him these questions. We’re not proactively worrying about next year right now."

That may be true, however the option will be declined because it's only worth the veteran minimum of $1,227,985 and Young can easily get that whether he re-signs with the Lakers or moves on to another team. The Lakers will probably offer just a one-year contract as they don't want add payroll beyond next season with the view of having a lot of cap room in 2015.

Xavier Henry's free agent future
April, 4, 2014
By Joe Kaiser | ESPN.com

Xavier Henry (knee) is done for the season, per Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com, and that could very well put a bow on his time in a Los Angeles Lakers uniform.

Will Henry's breakout season under coach Mike D'Antoni raise his free agent value over the offseason, or does the 2010 lottery pick still have more to prove before a team is willing to give him a lucrative deal?

I tracked down ESPN Insider Amin Elhassan, who has a great handle on the NBA's free agent market, for his take on the 23-year-old swingman.

Elhassan believes that despite Henry scoring 10 points per game this season and posting a respectable 12.48 PER, "he's still a minimum guy."

Is Friday Nash's final NBA game?
April, 4, 2014
By Joe Kaiser | ESPN.com

There are seven games remaining on the Los Angeles Lakers schedule this season, but Steve Nash says that Friday's matchup against Dallas will likely be his last of 2013-14.

Could it be worth reading more into this, since the 40-year-old Nash is ending his season prematurely, and against his former team and playing partner, Dirk Nowitzki?

Probably not.

Nash is due to earn just over $9.7 million next season, and all indications are that he's going to do everything he can to play out the contract and earn that money. So the thought that he may announce his retirement -- either tonight or in the weeks ahead -- is a major, major longshot.

If the Lakers use the Stretch Provision to cut ties with the legendary point guard, however, it would allow Nash to get paid without having to endure another injury-riddled season as a 41-year-old.

The Lakers, under the rules of the 2011 CBA, can spread the remaining guaranteed salary of Nash over twice the remaining length of the contract, plus one year. In the case of Nash, that'd mean the Lakers could waive him and stretch the remaining $9.7 million owed over the next three seasons at roughly $3.24 million per season.

 

[sea manup]

nba legend 

 

[MVP]

Celtics about to lose to the Sixers

 

[MVP]

Man get Love here asap, damn all the rest. Dude is a superstar talent.

 

[had pants]

 

[CP1708]

Jazz winning, let the damn Mavs beat us.

 

[noblekane]

Giants win. Lakers lose. Today was a good day

 

[essential1]

Man get Love here asap, damn all the rest. Dude is a superstar talent.

2015. No sooner.

 

[pmatic]

Celtics about to lose to the Sixers

Good loss by the Lakers though.