tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44776399142425836652024-03-05T15:49:57.549-08:00Hack-a-ShaqCommunity Blog For The Los Angeles Lakers. Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comBlogger94125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-75170799629165785682016-10-13T09:14:00.000-07:002016-10-13T09:14:58.766-07:00The Lakers are probably going to be bad and that's okay<a href="https://cdn3.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/51259091/usa-today-9593316.0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="290" src="https://cdn3.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/51259091/usa-today-9593316.0.jpg" width="400" /></a>It's almost time for the start of the new NBA season and with it, a new era for the Los Angeles Lakers. For the first time in 20 years, the Lakers will field a team that does not include <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a>.<br />
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Bryant had achieved legendary status for the franchise due to his longevity, his almost unreal scoring ability, his five championship seasons and generally being an insane person that won a lot during his time here.<br />
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Because of those factors, this is more than just a new season for Los Angeles. It's a whole new beginning with a new system and fresh, young faces anchoring the team. It's certainly much more exciting than the Kobe Bryant Retirement Tour from last season, as the Lakers finally have a future to look forward to. Gone is <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/scottby01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Byron Scott</a> and his refusal to use three pointers to his advantage. Gone is Bryant and his absurd usage percentage from last season. In their place, we have <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/waltolu01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Luke Walton</a> implementing a system fit for a modern NBA team, with the proper players to run said system.<br />
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With that said, this team is going to have a lot of growing pains. For starters, this team is astonishingly unproven. Luke Walton got rave reviews from nearly everyone in Golden State and he had an extremely impressive coaching record last season, filling in for <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kerrst01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Steve Kerr</a>, who had taken some time off to heal from a nagging back injury. Walton led the Warriors to a 39-4 record before Kerr returned. That record is mighty impressive, especially for someone as inexperienced at coaching as Walton is, but we do have to question how much of that was Walton and how much of that was the Warriors being absurd last year.<br />
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Despite the fact that the Warriors blew a 3-1 lead in the Finals, they did still break the regular season record for wins in a season, ending with a 73-9 record. You have to figure there are going to be growing pains for him. Despite how much I like the core of <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/r/russeda01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">D'Angelo Russell</a>, <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/clarkjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Jordan Clarkson</a> and <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/r/randlju01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Julius Randle</a>, they aren't anywhere near as good as Stephen Curry, <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/t/thompkl01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Klay Thompson</a> and <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/greendr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Draymond Green</a>.<br />
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Additionally, the talent on this team is immense, but very raw. D'Angelo Russell and rookie <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/i/ingrabr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Brandon Ingram</a> ooze potential and are likely going to be the cornerstones of the franchise going forward, but they're still very young; neither is old enough to buy a beer yet. Jordan Clarkson is a bit more mature at 24 years old, but he also has some question marks surrounding him. For starters, his defense has not exactly been up to standard the past couple seasons. There are questions as to how much farther he can develop, and if he was merely putting up good numbers on a sub-par team. Julius Randle showed flashes of potential last year, namely the fact that he's already rebounding at an elite rate, but was extremely rough around the edges with his finishing and decision making. Rookie <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/z/zubaciv01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Ivica Zubac</a> looks like an absolute steal in the 2nd round of this year's draft and could potentially anchor the Lakers at center in the future, but he's going to be eased in because of how young and unproven he is.<br />
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The building blocks are there, it's just a matter of developing our young core properly. Thankfully, Walton already has some ideas on how to properly utilize each players strengths. Noticing a large drop off in quality of play between the starters and the bench, Walton is going to use Clarkson as the leader of the bench unit and the 6th man. This will be similar to <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/odomla01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Lamar Odom</a> or <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/ginobma01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Manu Ginobili</a> and their respective roles as 6th men. It will help get both Russell and Clarkson more time with the ball, while significantly improving the bench unit.<br />
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Walton has also implemented a system built on screens, off-ball movement and crisp passing that is a much welcome change to the isolation heavy offense that Scott ran last year. As great as Kobe was over his 20 year career, he was a major reason the Lakers were so bad last season, as he was a complete black hole on both sides of the ball and the Lakers were obviously catering to him.<br />
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How good will this team be? Probably not very good. For the first time in a long time, the season won't be measured on wins and losses, but rather on how the Lakers win or lose. LA is okay with having another bad season, as long as the young core is taking strides to improve. A 30-52 record is fine, if Russell and co look good while doing so. It's going to be a bumpy road coming up, but for the first time in years, the team finally has something to look forward to.Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-47014990596870429672014-08-13T09:13:00.000-07:002014-08-13T09:16:01.517-07:002013-2014 Lakers in Review: Frontcourt<a href="http://img.bleacherreport.net/img/images/photos/002/701/999/nyoun_crop_exact.jpg?w=1500&h=1500&q=85" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://img.bleacherreport.net/img/images/photos/002/701/999/nyoun_crop_exact.jpg?w=1500&h=1500&q=85" height="320" width="320" /></a><i>Note: All grades are handed out according to preseason expectations vs. actual production. </i><br />
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Small Forward: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Nick Young</a></strong><br />
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<i>17.9 PPG, 1.5 APG, 2.6 RPG, 2.5 WS, .067 WS/48 on 43.5% shooting and 38.6% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(B-)</b></i><br />
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At first, I didn't really know how to grade Nick Young, as I seem to remember him being better than he actually was. This was probably because the rest of the team was so terrible and I had such little expectations for the majority of the players involved (which is why a handful of players got a fairly high grade) that Swaggy P seemed better than he was.<br />
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The B- seems unfair to him because his production was better than a guy like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong>, for example, but Young's preseason expectations were met and not really much else. His stats seem like they should net him at least a B, but most of those career bests are simply him playing more minutes. His shooting percentage was only slightly better than his career average and his defense remained non-existent, save for that game winning charge he took against the Pistons early in the season that earned him the nickname Swaggy D, if only for a few weeks. His high scoring was attributed to him taking more shots; he had the highest Per 36 average of shots taken for his career at 17.7. This isn't to say that he wasn't good, he had stretches where he was by far the best Laker player on the court, but those were quickly cancelled out with some very cold stretches as well. The one thing that really earned Young a B- and not a C+ was that he had a career high PER of 16, which was the highest among qualifying perimeter players on the Lakers.<br />
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Overall, Swaggy P did his job, which is to score, sometimes in the most infuriating way possible with contested, 20 foot jump shots early in the shot clock. Nonetheless, Swaggy gets a bit of an upgrade in his final grade because he was simply entertaining as hell.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3782/13426246923_91e4d68b03_o.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3782/13426246923_91e4d68b03_o.gif" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Never change, Swaggy P.</td></tr>
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Small Forward: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnswe01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Wesley Johnson</a></strong><br />
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<i>9.1 PPG, 1.6 APG, 4.4 RPG, 1.9 WS, .041 WS/48 on 42.5% shooting and 36.9% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(C+)</b></i><br />
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It's always hard to see such a highly touted prospect, like Johnson once was, completely flame out in such a fashion that he's taking league minimum contracts at age 25. Johnson was a low risk, potentially high reward signing last season. We didn't see much of the reward part, at least not on offense, because Johnson was exactly like Nick Young with his offensive production. Most of it was simply because of an increase in playing time. Unlike Young, he didn't see a big increase in Per 36 minute numbers one would normally see with a guy who saw a big increase in minutes from one year to another. It all just kind of stays the same, save for a few categories because of <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/dantomi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mike D'Antoni</a></strong>'s insistence on using Johnson as a power forward.<br />
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Johnson provided a major upgrade in the athleticism department and really came into his own as the corner three point shooting defensive specialist that the Lakers had him as last year. Johnson could barely create his own offense, relying mostly on late rotations and his athleticism to force himself to the rim, as well as fast breaks. He was basically your typical three point shooting, defensive specialist, except he didn't know his own limits offensively and his defense isn't good enough to make up for it, like it is with a guy like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bowenbr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Bruce Bowen</a></strong>. Johnson was a solid enough player to have in the rotation, and was a pretty good defensive player but I expected at least marginal improvement offensively from the freakishly athletic 25 year old. As it is, his decision making hampered his grade, though I'm hopeful for some improvement from him with the addition of <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/scottby01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Byron Scott</a></strong>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bkcLeX7Jcbk/UpwPl05_-eI/AAAAAAAAAXA/Z7llLdW8JsA/s1600/wesblk.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bkcLeX7Jcbk/UpwPl05_-eI/AAAAAAAAAXA/Z7llLdW8JsA/s1600/wesblk.gif" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This really shouldn't even be possible</td></tr>
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Small Forward: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/henryxa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Xavier Henry</a></strong><br />
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<i>10 PPG, 1.2 APG, 2.7 RPG, 0.3 WS, .017 WS/48 on 41.7% shooting and 34.6% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(B-)</b></i><br />
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X-Man was had quite a few highlights last year, as well as a bunch of blunders that he hopes we could forget. He was another high draft choice that didn't pan out and the Lakers got the 22 year old from Belgium on a cheap, league minimum contract because, why not? It was a great signing at the time, and it's still a good signing, considering the production he had compared to the money he was getting. Henry was a nice part of the bench's offensive production, as his slashing ability was truly something to behold at times, sometimes reaching the paint despite team's basically gearing their defense for it.<br />
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Penetrating the defense wasn't a problem for Xavier, the problem came immediately after, as he would sometimes put up some major clunkers in heavy traffic, or simply turn the ball over. It's the major reason his shooting percentage is as low as it is, despite getting to the rim so often. It's also why he averaged more turnovers than assists this year. Poor decision making is not something you want to see out of a guy that was your starting point guard at one time because of injuries and Pringles. And then, in typical Lakers fashion, Henry himself succumbed to injury and missed half of the season. If not for injury, his grade may have been a tad bit higher. I'm hopeful Henry can develop even further; he's still a very young 23 years old and he did manage to develop an outside shot last season. He was a fun player to watch and his athleticism made things exciting on the offensive end of the ball. Hopefully, he can stay on the court next year.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thirdfloorcrew.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/3b7865f9-e26b-4506-aab7-42dd8de4c20e.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://thirdfloorcrew.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/3b7865f9-e26b-4506-aab7-42dd8de4c20e.gif" height="307" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bah Gawd! He's killed him!</td></tr>
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Small Forward: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/willish03.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Shawne Williams</a></strong><br />
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<i>5.6 PPG, 0.8 APG, 4.6 RPG, 0.7 WS, .045 WS/48 on 38% shooting and 32.6% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(F)</b></i><br />
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There was nothing more frustrating last year than watching Mke D'Antoni continue to give Shawne Williams minutes at both power forward and small forward, despite the fact that he can't really shoot, or pass the ball or dribble the ball and his best quality, his defense, isn't anything eye popping either. And he gave him 20.9 minutes per game, which is <i>still</i> somehow more than what <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Hill</a></strong> got last season because Pringles.<br />
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I understand we didn't have the depth last year to flat out not play anybody, but playing three centers at the same time would have been about equally as useful as Williams was in the rotation last year. He was as inefficient as they come, yet he kept on taking shots as if he was a shooter who was merely on a cold streak. When the defense leaves you all alone and it still takes you 5.3 shots per game to get to 5.6 points per game, you need to stop. Immediately. If he could have gotten anything worse than an F, he would have if not for his okay defense and the fact that he was no longer on my TV after February. Good riddance.<br />
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Power Forward: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kellyry01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Ryan Kelly</a></strong><br />
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<i>8.0 PPG, 1.6 APG, 3.7 RPG, 2.2 WS, .081 WS/48 on 42.3% shooting and 33.8% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(B-)</b></i><br />
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I bet not a lot of Lakers fans knew who Ryan Kelly was before the Lakers took him in the 2nd round of last year's NBA draft. Kelly didn't see any regular playing time until after the Christmas day game against the Miami Heat. What we saw was a surprisingly solid power forward who could stretch the floor well enough but wasn't a massive liability defensively, and helped provide some semblance of size (something the 6'7'' Wesley Johnson never could, despite the athleticism).<br />
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I don't think anybody expected anything out of Kelly, so his B- is inflated simply on the fact that he was a second rounder with no expectations whatsoever. He was still a solid part of the rotation and could be a nice piece to have going forward with his three point shooting ability from the four slot. You can't really ask for much more out of a second round rookie.<br />
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Power Forward: Jordan Hill<br />
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<i>9.7 PPG, 0.8 APG, 7.4 RPG, 4.4 WS, .141 WS/48 on 54.9% shooting and 68.5% from the free throw line. Grade: <b>(A-)</b></i><br />
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There is not enough praise that I can give to Jordan Hill. I spent most of the season praising him and asking myself why Mike D'Antoni refused to play him more than 20 minutes per game, especially considering that Hill was tied with <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Pau Gasol</a></strong> as the team leaders in PER (19.3), he is easily the leader on the team in WS/48 with .141. The second highest WS/48 on the team is <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jodie Meeks</a></strong>' .084, which is also under the league average of .100. The only reason Hill is second on the team in total Win Shares is because he only plays 20 minutes a game, which is just a shame. I would have loved to see how many Win Shares Hill could have been worth if he played 30+ minutes a game.<br />
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I'm hoping Hill and Scott don't have the same relationship that Hill and D'Antoni had all through his career because that would mean more frustration for Lakers fans who want to put out the best possible team. I'm not saying he should get immediate starter minutes (though he might be our starting center next year), I'm only asking for more than 27 minutes a game for him, because his production is too good to continue to ignore. Hill isn't without weaknesses, however, as he can't consistently create his own offense, but that didn't really matter, as nobody would have confused Hill for a guy like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/howardw01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Dwight Howard</a></strong> or <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/couside01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">DeMarcus Cousins</a></strong>. Hill can clean the glass like no other, and most of his points come off of offensive rebounds and easy baskets around the rim. His main problem last season was foul trouble, as he would have averaged 4.1 fouls per 36 minutes.<br />
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Hill's Per 36 minute numbers were outstanding, as he would have had a slash line of 16.7 points per game, 12.8 rebounds per game and 1.3 assists per game. Those 12.8 rebounds would have been third in the league, ahead of <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/loveke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kevin Love</a></strong>, Dwight Howard and DeMarcus Cousins. Clearly, Hill should have gotten more minutes, and one of the reasons I'm excited about Byron Scott is the possibility of Hill getting starter minutes in the rotation.<br />
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Center: Pau Gasol<br />
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<i>17.4 PPG, 3.4 APG, 9.7 RPG, 3.0 WS, .076 WS/48 on 48% shooting and 28.6% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(C+)</b></i><br />
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I kind of feel bad for how much scrutiny Pau Gasol was under in his final few seasons in Los Angeles. Here's a guy who was one of the league's top offensive options at power forward, and left it all on the court, just to have fans clamor for management to trade him. I can definitely see why he chose to leave. Gasol wasn't exactly himself last year, relative to other seasons. He put up some solid numbers; 17.4 points per game and 9.7 rebounds per game is very, very good. He remains one of the best passing big men in the league today (Side note: the pairing of Gasol and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/noahjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Joakim Noah</a></strong> should be lots of fun). Gasol's problem may have very well been a product of D'Antoni, because the team still played primarily through the perimeter, despite the fact that Pau was easily the team's best available player.<br />
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Pau was never really put into the best position to succeed, and it showed in his efficiency; this was the only year as a part of the Lakers, that Pau had a PER of under 20 (not counting last year, for obvious reasons). Gasol also had a WS/48 of under .100 for the first time in his 14 year career. Gasol was still a pretty good, productive player. Unfortunately for his grade, I sincerely thought he was going to be at least a little bit better. Either way, thank you Pau. You will forever be a Laker great.<br />
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Center: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kamanch01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Chris Kaman</a></strong><br />
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<i>10.4 PPG, 1.5 APG, 5.9 RPG, 0.5 WS, .036 WS/48 on 50.9% shooting and 76.5% from the free throw line. Grade: <b>(F)</b></i><br />
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I'm sad and disappointed that Chris Kaman didn't really work out with the team. Whether that was a product of Pringles or not is up to you, but he never really got it going when he did play. He was a solid, if unspectacular player on offense, but his defense this year was a bit painful to watch, as he was frequently slow on his rotations and sometimes even got beat on the glass by much smaller players. Kaman spent most of his time playing garbage minutes and laying down on the bench. So much time, in fact, that I can't think of a single memorable moment for him, save for the bench moment. When the best thing you did in a whole season was lay down on the bench because the team barely had enough players to use, it's safe to say you didn't have a good year.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://usatthebiglead.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/grab-2014-02-05-19h55m37s162.jpg?w=1000&h=557" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://usatthebiglead.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/grab-2014-02-05-19h55m37s162.jpg?w=1000&h=557" height="222" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This will always be hilarious.</td></tr>
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Center <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/sacrero01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Robert Sacre</a></strong>.<br />
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<i>5.4 PPG, 0.8 APG, 3.9 RPG, 1.4 WS, .061 WS/48 on 47.7% shooting and 68.1% from the free throw line. Grade: <b>(C+)</b></i><br />
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Last year, I had 0 hopes for Robert Sacre. He was drafted in the second round after his four years at Gonzaga. Really, the only thing he had going for him was his size, as he was a true 7 footer. He had a pretty surprising season last year. He wasn't good, by any definition, but he was definitely a guy who could come in and play 10 minutes a game to give your center a breather. And, you know what? Sacre continues to be surprisingly competent. Aside from his amazing cheer leading abilities from the bench, Sacre provides legitimate value as a back up center, with solid passing skills and a nice jump shot from 15 feet out. He's not adept at scoring (that 47.7% shooting is not good at all for a big man), but he will work hard for your team night in and night out. You can't really ask for much more out of a second round pick. The past two seasons, the Lakers have made the most out of their 2nd round picks, which gives me hope for Jordan Clarkson, whom the Lakers picked in the 2nd round during this years' NBA draft.<br />
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All in all, it was a pretty bad season. We had a lot of very unproven talent that produced way beyond what we could have reasonably expected, which attributed to guys who got such high grades, despite the team finishing with a 27-55 record.Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-1485009366957243722014-08-07T09:06:00.001-07:002014-08-07T09:06:45.694-07:00Cavaliers, Timberwolves agree to Kevin Love deal<a href="http://www.howlintwolf.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Kevin-Love1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.howlintwolf.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Kevin-Love1.jpg" height="162" width="320" /></a>In a move that shakes up the landscape for both the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference, the Timberwolves finally agreed to ship <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/loveke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kevin Love</a></strong> out to the Cavaliers. After about a month of trade talks not really going anywhere, the Timberwolves finally got a package centered around 1st overall pick Andrew Wiggins. The trade can't become official until August 23rd because Wiggins can't be traded until one month after he was signed.<br />
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<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/news/sources--cavaliers-have-agreement-to-acquire-kevin-love--who-commits-to-staying-in-cleveland-054657392.html" target="_blank">According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports</a>, the full deal will be Wiggins, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bennean01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Anthony Bennett</a></strong> and a protected 2015 1st round draft choice for Love. Cleveland is doing the trade on the basis that Love opts out of his current deal in the summer and re-signs with the team for the max salary. Although a deal was close to being finalized a few weeks ago, both teams are being quiet about it until it can officially go through, the reason being that the Cavaliers were apparently afraid of the Chicago Bulls coming in and taking Love in the last minute, basically ensuring their trip to the Eastern Conference Finals.<br />
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The trade means a lot to Cleveland because, not only are they now the favorites to come out of the Eastern Conference, but they also acquired Love's Bird Right's to go along with him in the deal, ensuring that they can re-sign him despite not having the cap available to do so otherwise. Cleveland now sports a "Big 3" of Love, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/i/irvinky01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kyrie Irving</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">LeBron James</a></strong> that will surely propel them to the Conference Finals, on talent alone.<br />
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For Minnesota, the trade comes off the heels of Love telling the team that he wouldn't re-sign with them in the off season. The Timberwolves chose the right decision in trading him, and they definitely got a good trade for him. Reports indicated that Golden State wasn't willing to include <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/t/thompkl01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Klay Thompson</a></strong> in a deal, opting instead to offer <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/player_search.cgi?search=David+Lee&utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">David Lee</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/barneha02.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Harrison Barnes</a></strong>, which isn't a terrible trade, but not exactly what Minnesota was looking for. By doing this trade, they have just cut their rebuilding efforts in half by acquiring the last two first overall picks in Wiggins and Bennett. Granted, Bennett had one of the worst rookie seasons in NBA history last year, but that doesn't mean he can't potentially turn it around, and all reports so far have indicated that he has arrived to camp in incredible shape compared to last season. Wiggins is one of the most hyped players in years. Maple Jordan, as they call him because of his Canadian roots, is a freakish athlete who could use some work on some of his skills like perimeter shooting. He was very good in college, but his shooting percentage left a bit to be desired. His dribbling, likewise, is a little rough around the edges, but he still is just oozing with potential.<br />
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For Cleveland, this was definitely the right trade to make because there was no guarantee that Wiggins would ever develop into a superstar player at the NBA level, so trading him and Anthony Bennett for an established star was definitely the right choice. Love and Irving provide James with a few things that former teammates <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/wadedw01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Dwyane Wade</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/boshch01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Chris Bosh</a></strong> didn't; both Love and Irving can absolutely shoot the lights out from three point range and that should help open up space for the four time MVP. That's a thought that is absolutely scary, because teams definitely don't want to give James more space than he already has. Love and Irving are also younger than Wade and Bosh, though both of them are injury prone as well. Love has played only one full season and Irving has yet to complete an NBA season, while once breaking his hand while slapping a padded wall.<br />
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It was the right move for both teams, as Cleveland looked to get better to keep LeBron James happy and contend for an NBA Finals berth, and Minnesota looked to restock in the young talent department by acquiring the last two 1st overall picks and also getting a draft pick from Cleveland. Scary times for the rest of the East.
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-13361511097748339102014-08-05T20:22:00.001-07:002014-08-05T20:22:39.979-07:002013-2014 Lakers in Review: Backcourt<a href="http://img.bleacherreport.net/img/images/photos/002/676/540/hi-res-8018792_crop_north.jpg?w=630&h=420&q=75" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://img.bleacherreport.net/img/images/photos/002/676/540/hi-res-8018792_crop_north.jpg?w=630&h=420&q=75" height="213" width="320" /></a><i>Note: All grades are handed out according to preseason expectations vs. actual production. </i><br />
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Point Guard: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nashst01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Nash</a></strong></div>
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<i>6.8 PPG, 5.7 APG, 1.9 RPG, 0.1 WS, .017 WS/48 on 38.3% shooting and 33.3% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(Inc.)</b></i></div>
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Remember when we were excited about trading for Steve Nash during that amazing 2012 off season (that led to that frustrating 2013 season)? It feels like such a long time ago that Nash was stealing MVP trophies from <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/duncati01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Tim Duncan</a></strong> and young <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">LeBron James</a></strong>, while easily being top-2 in offensive production out of a point guard, his only competition being <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/p/paulch01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Chris Paul</a></strong>. Those days are long past us, as Nash can't even stay on the court anymore, let alone control a team's offense. </div>
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Nash looked extremely bad this season, being one of the worst players on the roster for the 15 games that he played. This was emphasized, as he constantly had the ball on offense, and teams were constantly pushing their offense through him on defense. Nash's value has always been on the offensive side of the ball, but this past season, he had absolutely no value, as he could never get it going. To be fair to him, I don't think Nash is worthless (though he's certainly not worth the 9.7 million he is getting this year), but he cannot play the same style he used to prior to being traded. His value no longer lies in running an offense to perfection; the best he can be now is a spot up shooter that helps spread the floor and a guy who can bring the ball up without having any incidents. I'm assuming he can even play, because he was hurt all year long, with some serious leg strength problems. The only reason I'm hopeful that he can still be a good enough shooter is because he was a terrible shooter because he couldn't get enough lift under his legs.<br />
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It's difficult seeing such a great player decline so hard.<br />
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Point Guard: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/blakest01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Blake</a></strong><br />
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<i>9.5 PPG, 7.6 APG, 3.8 RPG, 0.8 WS, .041 WS/48 on 37.8% shooting and 39.7% shooting from deep (w/LAL). Grade: <b>(B)</b></i><br />
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Good, old, reliable Steve Blake. I was sad to see him go because he was always a player who played hard on both sides of the ball. He was also the Lakers only reliable defensive player at point guard, so trading him became a problem. Blake was a steady presence on a crappy team, and really helped get everybody involved in the offense, which was incredibly helpful for guys like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnswe01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Wesley Johnson</a></strong>, who struggle to create their own shots.<br />
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Blake was never a spectacular player, but he at least tried to make the Lakers watchable last year. For as much heat that he got the past few seasons because of lackluster performance, he really made up for it in his last two seasons in Los Angeles. I do wish him well with Portland (except when he plays the Lakers). He might not be a guy we'll remember in 5 years, but at least we'll always have that game winner over <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/howardw01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Dwight Howard</a></strong>. #VinoBlanco<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://d3j5vwomefv46c.cloudfront.net/photos/large/820341308.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://d3j5vwomefv46c.cloudfront.net/photos/large/820341308.gif" height="253" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pictured at the free throw line: All of Steve Nash's 0.1 Win Shares in one convenient GIF.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Point Guard: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farmajo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Farmar</a></strong><br />
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<i>10.1 PPG, 4.9 APG, 2.5 RPG, 0.7 WS, .039 WS/48 on 41.5% shooting and 43.8% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(B+)</b></i><br />
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At first, I felt a B+ was too high for Farmar, who barely qualified to even receive a grade, as he only played 41 games. But, then I remembered what he was doing in the NBA last season, which was nothing because he was playing in Turkey at the time. It looks like he never left, because he had a very similar season in his previous NBA season with the-then New Jersey Nets.<br />
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I don't think anybody thought Farmar would come in, fresh from non-NBA competition, and have such a big impact on the game. It certainly caught me by surprise, as he was driving past guys with ease, and making them pay later in the game for sagging off of him. He was a big reason why the bench was one of the best in the league early on, and they kept on chugging even after Farmar went down with injured hamstrings. It was nice having him around again, but he will be a nightmare to contain now that he plays on the Clippers and their three point heavy lineup because he showed notable improvement in the passing area. He averaged 7.9 APG per 36 minutes played, which is the highest of his NBA career. A solid season from a guy I didn't really expect to produce that much.<br />
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Point Guard: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong><br />
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<i>8.0 PPG, 8.8 APG, 2.9 RPG, 0.9 WS, .029 WS/48 on 40.6% shooting and 39.9% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(A+)</b></i><br />
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If there was a surprising, emerging player on the Lakers last year (basically half of the team was) that deserves huge praise, it's Kendall Marshall. After being a lottery pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, he played pretty badly with the Phoenix Suns for his rookie season. So bad, in fact, that the Suns parted ways with the young point guard after one season. He was traded to the Washington Wizards as part of a package deal that sent <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gortama01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Marcin Gortat</a></strong> to the Wizards before being cut three days later and finding himself in the D-League, with out an NBA team to call his own. The Lakers scooped him up a few months later, and suddenly we had a legit, distributing point guard on the roster.<br />
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Marshall started off really hot, as he averaged 12 PPG and 11.5 APG in his first month with the team. These numbers, predictably, dropped, but he was still distributing the ball well. He actually finished 2nd in assists per game (yes, really), tied with <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/lawsoty01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Ty Lawson</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/walljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">John Wall</a></strong>, behind Chris Paul. Marshall had become somewhat of a burden when it came to scoring, as he could only take open three point shots and couldn't create any sort of offense to speak of. Nonetheless, his assist numbers were eye popping for a guy who so blatantly discarded by the NBA a few short months before that.<br />
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He was placed on waivers last month, and the Milwaukee Bucks happily picked him up. Here's hoping he continues his run of success after being given a second chance.<br />
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Shooting Guard: Kobe Bryant<br />
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<i>13.8 PPG, 6.3 APG, 4.3 RPG, -0.4 WS, -0.097 WS/48 on 42.5% shooting and 18.8% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(Inc.)</b></i><br />
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This past year was rough for Vino. After having an incredible 2012, he tore his Achilles tendon trying to carry his team to the playoffs. He went through his recovery period, watching his team play horribly without him before finally being cleared to play. Everybody was excited, and we got an (expected) sloppy Kobe Bryant before he broke a bone in his knee during the third quarter in a game against the Memphis Grizzlies. Kobe, being the insane person that he is, returned to play the fourth quarter and helped elevate the Lakers over the Grizzlies with a huge three pointer down the stretch. It was all for naught, as we found out the next day that Kobe had been seriously injured, and was expected to miss 6 weeks.<br />
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Except, those 6 weeks turned into the whole year because the bone wasn't healing well at all. It's clear that Kobe's age is finally catching up to him. He is now 100% healthy, but I doubt he is even close to being in game shape. It might be a while until we see Vintage Kobe again, if at all. For now, we can be hopeful that he will be back for the majority of next season.<br />
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Shooting Guard: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jodie Meeks</a></strong><br />
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<i>15.7 PPG, 1.8 APG, 2.5 RPG, 4.5 WS, .084 WS/48 on 46.3% shooting and 40.1% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(A)</b></i><br />
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And now we get to one of the bright spots on this train wreck of a team. Meeks was at his absolute best last year, averaging a career high in points, assists, rebounds and steals, while shooting a career high from the field and three point range. Meeks was one of the few players who stayed off of the disabled list, as he played 77 games, starting in 70.<br />
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Meeks is a very streaky player, but he seemed to improve on this last year, as he was able to cut down on his cold streaks because his decision making was notably improved, often times passing up a few shots he would have normally taken to make the extra pass, or to drive into the lane. His defense was average, as it usually is, but his offense was vastly improved. There is a reason why he went from 1.5 million this year to 6.3 million next year, as he starts his new 3 year, 19 million dollar contract with the Detroit Pistons. That reason wasn't because the Pistons are desperate for any and all three point shooters (they are), but because he was so good last year. It's a shame the Lakers didn't keep him because he would really helped the bench this upcoming year.<br />
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Shooting Guard: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/brookma01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">MarShon Brooks</a></strong><br />
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<i>6.4 PPG, 1.2 APG, 1.7 RPG, 0.3 WS, .072 WS/48 on 48.9% shooting and 57.1% shooting from deep. (w/LAL) Grade</i>: <i><b>(Inc.)</b></i><br />
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MarShon Brooks was acquired in the Steve Blake trade from the Golden State Warriors and... there's not really much else to say about him. He had a very promising rookie season in 2011-2012 with the Nets, but hasn't done anything since. Teams weren't really seeing any potential, evidenced by Brooks playing on 3 different teams this past season (Boston, Golden State and Los Angeles).<br />
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He is still a free agent, and nobody really has any interest, except for the Indiana Pacers, due to the aftermath of the <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/georgpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Paul George</a></strong> injury. A very forgettable player and this might be the last we'll see of him in the league.<br />
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Shooting Guard: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bazemke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kent Bazemore</a></strong><br />
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<i>13.1 PPG, 3.1 APG, 3.3 RPG, 0.4 WS, .029 WS/48 on 45.1% shooting and 37.1% shooting from deep. (w/LAL) Grade: <b>(Inc.)</b></i><br />
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The other player who came in the Steve Blake trade, Bazemore was surprisingly productive for the few games that he played with the Lakers. Unfortunately for him, he tore a tendon in his foot (because this team was cursed) that ended his season in early April. That's very unfortunate timing for him, as nobody is looking to sign a guy who just had a pretty serious injury close to the end of last season. Hopefully, if he gets healthy, the Lakers will look in his direction, should they need bench help, because he really did look like an NBA caliber player last year.<br />
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Shooting Guard: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/harrima01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Manny Harris</a></strong><br />
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<i>8.1 PPG, 1.2 APG, 3.8 RPG, 0.0 WS, .002 WS/48 on 42% shooting and 35% shooting from deep. Grade: <b>(Inc.)</b></i><br />
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The amount of Incomplete players on this list is baffling. There were so many injuries, I'm forced to review guys like Brooks and Manny Harris for the few games they played filling in because of injuries. Manny Harris wasn't good in the small amount of time he played. That's pretty much all I can say about him.<br />
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Part two, coming soon!</div>
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-45710180782171879292014-08-02T17:05:00.001-07:002014-08-02T17:05:20.791-07:00Julius Randle scouting report<a href="http://www.lex18.com/images/news/randle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.lex18.com/images/news/randle.jpg" height="320" width="267" /></a>The Lakers had a lottery pick this year for the first time since the 2005 off season, where they picked <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bynuman01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Andrew Bynum</a></strong>, who was very good for the Lakers but hasn't done anything since being traded in the 2012 off season for <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/howardw01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Dwight Howard</a></strong>. Bynum has played 21 games in the past two seasons, being a member of the Philadelphia 76ers (0 games), Cleveland Cavaliers (24 games) and Indiana Pacers (2 games). The Lakers used the 7th overall pick in this years' NBA draft to select Kentucky power forward Julius Randle, who probably would have been the first overall pick in last years' draft (though, to be fair, everyone in the Top-7 of this years' draft would have been 1st overall in last years' awful draft class). Randle is a talented player, but will he be able to translate well into the pro's? Let's evaluate:<br />
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Physically, Randle has an NBA ready body, as he was one of the strongest players in the nation last season. He comes in at a bulky 6'9'', 250 pounds. By comparison, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">LeBron James</a></strong> is listed as 6'8'', 250 pounds. Apples and oranges, I know, so I compared him to a player with a very similar body type in <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/r/randoza01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Zach Randolph</a></strong>, who comes in at 6'9'', 260 pounds. So Randle can still put on a few pounds of muscle here and there, but he is, by all accounts, ready for the punishment of the low post in the NBA. Some scouts have said that Randle is too small, but the average power forward height from two years ago was 6'9.5'' and the average weight was 246 pounds. The landscape hasn't changed much since, which bodes well for Randle. What doesn't bode well for Randle, however, is his short wingspan; Randle is built like a T-rex, relative to NBA power forwards, as his wingspan has measured in between 6'11'' and 7 feet. Most big men in the NBA have wingspans in the 7'3'' to 7'5'' range and even Randolph (Randle's closest comparison in terms of body type) has a wingspan of 7'4''. Now, Randle is substantially more athletic than Randolph, as he is able to consistently play above the rim, while Randolph can barely dunk, but that doesn't mean I'm not worried about his lack of length going forward.<br />
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There are three starting power forwards in the NBA with sub-7 foot wingspans: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/loveke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kevin Love</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/griffbl01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Blake Griffin</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngth01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Thaddeus Young</a></strong> (all measured in at 6'11''). All three of them are substantially different from Randle, as Love is a master three point shooter and a great passer; Randle has neither of those skills. Griffin is a high flyer who doesn't only play above the rim, he practically plays in the rafters. While Randle is a very athletic guy, he will never be as athletic as Griffin. Young is a completely different beast altogether, as he is used as a small ball power forward, which is basically putting a small forward at power forward. All three of these guys are very talented players, which is to say that if Randle is good enough, there's no reason why his short wingspan will have a big negative impact on him. Whether or not he is that good is left to be seen.<br />
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This isn't saying that Randle doesn't stand a chance, but Randle will need to be put in the right situation to truly thrive. He is offensively talented and has a well polished post game, if he's going to his left hand. His right hand leaves a lot to be desired, but he has plenty of time to develop, seeing as he is only 19. He could still add a few moves to his arsenal, as his post game in college involved lots of bruising and sheer power, something he won't be able to consistently do in the NBA. He has good mechanics on his jump shot, but his shooting percentages from mid range are sub-par and he has shown nothing to indicate that he could shoot threes at all. He is a classic, back to the basket power forward. Randle will have difficulty defensively because of his short wingspan, as he simply cannot protect the rim (0.7 blocks per game in college), or pick pocket any big men in the low post (0.1 steals per game), therefore, Randle will not be able to be the one big man in a four perimeter player rotation because of bad defense. And, since Randle cannot stretch the floor, he can't be put with just any shot blocker because the spacing in the paint will be horrid. There aren't too many big men who can stretch the floor and are great shot blockers in the league and none of them are on the Lakers (though <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Hill</a></strong> certainly tried to improve on it last season). The absolute best situation for Randle would have been with guys like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/i/ibakase01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Serge Ibaka</a></strong> or <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolma01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Marc Gasol</a></strong>.<br />
<br />
Now that he is on the Lakers, I do believe <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/scottby01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Byron Scott</a></strong> will see that Randle needs to develop a mid-range jumper to be able to play successfully in most rotations and, given his already pretty good mechanics, I think he will improve on it enough to be able to play with Hill/whomever the Lakers throw out at center. Randle is very energetic on all sides of the ball, and he has a nose for rebounds. He did average a double-double last season and I think his rebounding skills will translate well into the pro game, given his strength and rebounding fundamentals. Of all the prospects in this years' draft, Randle might be the most NBA ready player (alongside Duke's/Milwaukee's Jabari Parker), but he also probably has the lowest ceiling among the Top-7. That doesn't mean I think he'll be the worst of the bunch (I think Aaron Gordon will struggle the most), but it does mean that I don't think he will be lighting the league on fire as a top player. I do think he will be a good player because of the Lakers track record of success with lottery picks and his sheer talent.<br />
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Since 1979, the Lakers have picked in the top-10 a total of five times. With those picks, the Lakers have selected <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnsma02.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Magic Johnson</a></strong> (1979, 1st overall), <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/worthja01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">James Worthy</a></strong> (1982, 1st overall), <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jonesed02.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Eddie Jones</a></strong> (1994, 10th overall), Andrew Bynum (2005, 10th overall) and Julius Randle (2014, 7th overall). Of the four players that aren't Randle, two were great (Johnson, Worthy) and the other two were pretty good (Jones, Bynum). All four of those picks were good players, though not all of them were ready to produce upon being drafted like Randle is. It shows us exactly why the Lakers have rarely been in the draft lottery; great draft choices is the key to success.<br />
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1979 is ancient history for NBA standards, but Randle is still a top prospect and a very talented, very young player. And it helps that all reports point to him not being a headcase, and being a hard working, coach-able player who leaves everything on the court. At worst, Randle could be just a rotation player; a guy who scores but can't play defense. I think he has a pretty high ceiling that he probably won't reach, but he could still realistically become a more athletic version of <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/player_search.cgi?search=David+Lee&utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">David Lee</a></strong> (6'9'', 240 pounds, 7 foot wingspan), which is good offense, good rebounder, but needs protection in the back because of his sup-par rim protecting. 20-10 seasons certainly is something Randle should strive for, and I do think he could produce close to a double-double per game in his rookie season, if given starter minutes. There's a lot to like about Randle, and there are some concerning things about him. As it is, I am excited and cautiously optimistic about him going forward. </div>
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-19485255175944734832014-07-31T09:17:00.002-07:002014-07-31T09:17:28.248-07:00There's a lot to be excited about next year<a href="http://www.rantsports.com/ncaa-basketball/files/2014/04/julius-randle-kentucky-Robert-Deutsch-USA-TODAY-Sports.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.rantsports.com/ncaa-basketball/files/2014/04/julius-randle-kentucky-Robert-Deutsch-USA-TODAY-Sports.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a>As bad as the Lakers were last year (and they were terrible last year, finishing with the second worst <br />
Win/Loss percentage in franchise history with an awful 32.9%), there were still flashes of excitement here and there, mostly in the beginning of the season, where they were 13-13 at one point, believe it or not. The team had a horrific run of injuries; only 3 players played over 70 games last year, and the team's most important player only played 6 largely ineffective games due to an Achilles tear the year before. The Lakers had <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nashst01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Nash</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/blakest01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Blake</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farmajo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Farmar</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Pau Gasol</a></strong> miss significant time with injuries, which really helped derail last year. The run of injuries was so bad, the Lakers had 19 total players suit up for the team last year; most teams have around 15 players suit up, as they have 12 active players ready to play, and 3 waiting on the bench in case of injury. The Lakers way surpassed that limit and quickly had to put together a team full of sub-par players who wouldn't have cracked the team otherwise. The injuries to the starters did have one positive effect, however, as it made other players step up.<br />
<br />
Last season, we saw the likes of <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/henryxa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Xavier Henry</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnswe01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Wesley Johnson</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kellyry01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Ryan Kelly</a></strong> and (especially) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jodie Meeks</a></strong> really step it up last year and carry the Lakers' for long periods of time. The bench unit was particularly good, as they were second in points per game last year with an astonishing 42.3 points per game. The bench usually helped keep the team in the game, and they really made the most of the opportunities they got with the massive amount of injuries the team had last year.<br />
<br />
Why am I excited about a team who was the second worst in franchise history last year? Because of the return of the Great One. Because of the cost effective, and really smart moves <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kupchmi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mitch Kupchak</a></strong> has done this off-season. Because <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/dantomi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mike D'Antoni</a></strong>'s reign of terror is over and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/scottby01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Byron Scott</a></strong> gets to take over in his place. Because Byron Scott will probably give <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Hill</a></strong> the minutes he deserves. Because there's no possible way the team could be as bad as they were last year.<br />
<br />
It might be a bit delusional on my part, but I'm excited because I really like what this team had done so far. They went out and traded for <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/linje01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jeremy Lin</a></strong> (and a first rounder, to boot). I'm not a big fan of Lin, but Mitch went out and got a starter caliber point guard for a team that desperately needed a starter caliber point guard who isn't 40 and extremely injury prone. Mitch went and got the freshly amnestied <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/boozeca01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Carlos Boozer</a></strong> for a cool 3.2 million (yes, Boozer is definitely worth that) to help replace the departed Pau Gasol. The Lakers also signed the young <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/davised01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Ed Davis</a></strong> for 2 years, 1.9 million dollars, which is really cheap for a guy who will probably crack the rotation. Mitch also managed to keep the core of the bench unit by re-signing <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Nick Young</a></strong>, Wesley Johnson, Ryan Kelly, Jordan Hill and Xavier Henry. All this without mentioning the 7th overall pick in the draft, Julius Randle (more on him later).<br />
<br />
I'm not saying this team will make the playoffs, they will be fringe contenders/late season spoilers, at best, or a few games better than they were last year, at worst. There's no possible way this team even comes realistically close to making the playoffs next year, especially not in the loaded Western Conference. And yet, I still get pretty excited to see what this team can do. A healthy Kobe Bryant could really make things difficult for a lot of teams. Maybe Randle becomes a terror on the low-block and maybe Jordan Hill leads the league in rebounding next year. Maybe the bench stays extremely productive, but instead of having broken down Pau Gasol leading an abysmal starting unit, we get a middle of the pack starting unit anchored by Kobe Bryant and we get a playoff push in March?<br />
<br />
Whatever happens, this season should be about 1000 times better and more captivating than last year, if not for the return of Kobe, then because Lakers fans finally have a young, talented player to look forward to. It's been nearly 10 years since Lakers fans had a young lottery pick to cheer for and it's hard not to be excited about Randle; the last two lottery pick players the Lakers acquired were pretty successful, for the most part, though <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bynuman01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Andrew Bynum</a></strong> has had a rough past 2 seasons, but I'd say that gets overlooked because Kobe has been one of the league's best for about 15 years now.<br />
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It's still going to be a hard season, but it leaves us a lot to look forward for next year. It will be the end of Steve Nash's terrible contract and it will be a year closer to ending Kobe's albatross deal. The bench is kept together with really cheap, affordable deals and it wouldn't surprise me if most of these guys returned next year on similar deals. Julius Randle may develop into a monster on the low block, and the Lakers will have more money to spend in Free Agency to possibly bring in an impact player in his prime. And, we can always hope the Rockets somehow miss the playoffs, inadvertently giving us a lottery pick. Things are slowly looking up and, with some good luck, it might not be that long before the Lakers can eye the playoffs as a realistic goal to end a season.<br />
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Oh, and if we're terrible next year too (it's likely we will be), the Lakers at least do have their own draft pick and could get a Top-5 pick, should we have the worst case scenario happen for us. The situation seems a lot better than it was just one year ago, all things considered.
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-13284099107888112302014-07-30T19:53:00.000-07:002014-07-30T19:53:10.248-07:00The Lakers are interested in Michael Beasley<a href="http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/fb9def623332a0012cc1d7bb98aa77a173a0308e/c=0-40-1832-2480&r=537&c=0-0-534-712/local/-/media/USATODAY/test/2013/09/11/1378932932000-AP-Heat-Beasley-Basketball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/fb9def623332a0012cc1d7bb98aa77a173a0308e/c=0-40-1832-2480&r=537&c=0-0-534-712/local/-/media/USATODAY/test/2013/09/11/1378932932000-AP-Heat-Beasley-Basketball.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a>Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com has reported that the Lakers have worked out Michael Beasley. It isn't known how much interest either side has shown with each other, but I'm all for giving Beasley a contract; the Lakers only have the minimum to give him, so it wouldn't be damaging at all to the team's finances if he takes a one or two year deal for the minimum. Given Beasley's current stock around the league, the minimum should be enough to sign the former 2nd overall pick.<br />
<br />
Beasley has actually been receiving interest from several teams around the league, especially since the Heat do not seem very keen on keeping him. Beasley wasn't a part of the regular rotation for Miami, playing in 55 games for them last year, and playing only 23 minutes in 4 games during the playoff run for the Heat, but he was a lot more efficient last year than in previous years. Beasley shot 49.9% from the floor, 38.9% from three point land and 77.2% from the line, while putting up a 16.8 PER, which is the second highest in his career, behind the 17.2 PER he put up in his rookie season. Beasley's Per 36 numbers also looked pretty good last year, as he would have averaged 18.9 points per game and 7.5 rebounds per game. Obviously, these likely would have gone down if he had actually played the 36 minutes per game, but with that said, Beasley might still be a pretty good player, especially if he were brought on with a cheap contract.<br />
<br />
Maturity problems have been with Beasley for his whole career, but it seems he's starting to turn it around; on top of his solid efficiency, teams that are interested in him apparently found him to be mature last season as a role player with the Heat, and they hope he can continue to be so with their teams.<br />
<br />
The Lakers could benefit from having a guy like Beasley on the team. He's a player who is talented, but because of mental hiccups, could never really put it together. I'm not saying he'll magically reach his potential now, but he is still only 25 years old. He has a solid chance of improving and becoming a pretty good player for most teams. I'm all for giving him a chance on a one or two year deal. What's the worst that could happen? He gets cut and we forget who Michael Beasley was in 10 years? Low risk, high potential is what Mitch Kupchak should be looking for while rounding out the bench, and Beasley is the definition of that.Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-27451695284291410762014-05-30T12:14:00.001-07:002014-05-30T12:15:13.487-07:00The Lakers are looking at Marcus Smart with the 7th pickThe 7th pick in this years' draft is giving me <br />
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a headache. After the top-3 of Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker and Joel Embiid (in no particular order), which is basically chiseled in stone already (though, again, in no particular order), then the draft gets really, really interesting. After that, nobody seems to have any idea who gets selected for the rest of the top-5, let alone of the top-10. So far, the top choices to fill out those remaining 7 slots are: Dante Exum, Noah Vonleh, Julius Randle, Marcus Smart, Zach LaVine, Doug McDermott and Aaron Gordon. And so far, it's looking like Exum and Vonleh will round out the Top-5, leaving the Lakers with two very intriguing options.<br />
<br />
Let's ignore McDermott, LaVine, Randle and Gordon, I'll get to them in a later piece. Let's focus on Smart, a guy who was supposed to be sure-fire Top-5 picks until Exum and Vonleh started gaining some traction. Ultimately, Smart is very talented, and there's always the chance that he ends up going in the Top-5, leaving the Lakers with one of Exum or Vonleh (a problem that I'm happy to have). Anyways, here's a quick scouting report on the one of the players who will be strongly considered come draft day:<br />
<br />
Smart is such a strangely frustrating and completely exciting player to cover. He is a pretty physically gifted athlete, being, by far, the strongest guard in the draft. He is listed as 6'3'', and weighing in at 227 pounds, so he can easily play both of the guard positions. Despite being such a big guard, he has very good quickness and he uses that and his superior strength to get to the rim and then routinely finishes through contact. He plays hard on the defensive end, and has good lateral quickness that combines well with his massive wingspan of 6'8'' that helped him produce 3 steals per game at the college level, and helped him become one of the better perimeter defenders in the draft.<br />
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He has been very aggressive on driving to the rim, and as a result, he usually draws multiple defenders with him on any given drive; he also creates a lot of contact and reaches the free throw line at a very high rate because of his strength. Smart still has the vision to see which teammates were left open as a result of the help defense, and he usually can give a pass that is on target, despite all of the defensive attention. Smart has great offensive awareness and will usually look to involve his teammates.<br />
<br />
Most of Smart's negatives are things that can be worked on: his offensive decision making needs some work. For example: Smart only shot 42% from the field last season, despite shooting over 51% from two point range. It was his willingness to take the three point shot (which he shot at a 29% clip) that proved to be his doom. I would hope that is corrected at the pro level, lest he become the guard version of Josh Smith; ultra-talented, and good at a lot of things that aren't three pointers, yet he can't stop jacking up threes. Smart's jump shot isn't very reliable, and he could use some work with his mechanics to help him hit on a more consistent basis. Opponents at the NBA level will find it easier to cover Smart's dribble drives to the rim if they can sag off of him because of his inconsistent jump shot. Smart needs to cut down on the turnovers and take better shot attempts, both of which can be fixed with some experience.<br />
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And then, of course, there is the Texas Tech incident, which got him suspended for 3 games. Ugly stuff.<br />
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Overall, Smart is a very talented athlete, a very hard nosed, capable defensive player and a player who can penetrate a defense with the best of them. Smart has an inconsistent jumper, and his intensity can sometimes get the best of him, but he easily holds his own against the rest of the Top-7. You could even argue that the Top-4 were set before the Texas Tech incident, with Smart taking that distant fourth place behind the Big 3 of draft prospects this year.Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-30438451184752186222014-05-29T17:27:00.001-07:002014-05-29T17:27:42.962-07:00The Top 10 Upcoming Free Agents<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://sports.cbsimg.net/images/visual/whatshot/greg_monroe_max.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://sports.cbsimg.net/images/visual/whatshot/greg_monroe_max.jpg" height="225" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Greg Monroe needs a new team to showcase his ability</td></tr>
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Okay, so we have to set some ground rules for this list, that would have <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">LeBron James</a></strong> as the uncontested number one player 100 times out of 100. This list will contain guys who the Lakers could realistically pursue and acquire. So while guys like LeBron, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/wadedw01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Dwyane Wade</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/boshch01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Chris Bosh</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/anthoca01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Carmelo Anthony</a></strong> would all be pursued by the Lakers, it's highly unlikely we get any of them, especially Miami's Big Three, who look like they will be re-signing as soon as possible. This includes older players, who are legendary on their respective franchises, like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nowitdi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Dirk Nowitzki</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/duncati01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Tim Duncan</a></strong>. This does not include guys who have restricted contracts, since not all of their teams will match all of the offers that are given to them. Without further ado, your 2014 Free Agency Power Rankings:<br />
<br />
1) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/lowryky01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kyle Lowry</a></strong>, Unrestricted, Point Guard, Toronto Raptors.<br />
17.9 PPG, 7.4 APG, 3.6 RPG, 20.1 PER.<br />
<br />
Kyle Lowry has been absolutely fantastic this past year for the Raptors, and he could be had for less than a max contract; despite being a top five point guard in all advanced statistics, a lot of teams didn't really know how well he was playing, due to playing on the Toronto Raptors. That has changed after his good showing in that first round playoff series against the Brooklyn Nets, as he managed to open some eyes, averaging 19.7 points per game and a 17.5 PER.<br />
<br />
I'm sure the Raptors think very highly of Lowry, however because he is an unrestricted free agent, they have no pull over where he might end up signing, save for the power to offer him the most money, which would be irrelevant if he really wanted to play elsewhere.<br />
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2) <b><u><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/monrogr01.html" target="_blank">Greg Monroe</a></u></b>, Restricted, Power Forward/Center, Detroit Pistons.<br />
15.2 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 2.1 APG, 18.1 PER.<br />
<br />
Greg Monroe has been the most underrated big man of the past three years. Here's a guy who has a complete back-to-the-basket game, is an excellent rebounder, has amazing court vision and passing abilities for his size and puts up consistently good numbers, despite being one of the only good players on his team, and nobody really even knows who he is.<br />
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For those who still don't know, Monroe is basically a young, athletic <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Pau Gasol</a></strong>. Monroe's numbers took a pretty big hit when the Piston's added <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/smithjo03.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Josh Smith</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jennibr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Brandon Jennings</a></strong>, and when <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/drumman01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Andre Drummond</a></strong> returned from injury, yet he was still very close to averaging a double-double and was still worth an 18.1 PER. His assists numbers are way down from last year, where he was fourth among centers with 3.5 assists per game, right behind Pau Gasol, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolma01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Marc Gasol</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/noahjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Joakim Noah</a></strong>. He has a career 19.3 PER, and he even put up a 22.0 PER season just two years ago. And he's only 23. The only real knock on Monroe's game is his weak rim protection, as he has never averaged more than 0.7 blocks per game. Thankfully, the Lakers have a chance because the Pistons are so high on Drummond and have nowhere else to put Josh Smith, since he cannot play Small Forward for an extended period of time. All reports, so far, have indicated that Monroe is the odd man out in Detroit.<br />
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3) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/haywago01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Gordon Hayward</a></strong>, Restricted, Small Forward/Shooting Guard, Utah Jazz.<br />
16.2 PPG, 5.2 APG, 5.1 RPG, 16.2 PER.<br />
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Gordon Hayward is another guy who frequently gets overlooked due to being in a small market team, despite being very talented. Hayward is a player who can do just about everything you ask of him. He rebounds well enough, distributes like a natural guard and can score from just about anywhere within 30 feet. Hayward had his worst season last year from an efficiency standpoint, shooting career lows from everywhere except for the free throw line, but I don't blame all of that on Hayward; the Jazz were a horrendous team who have promise on the inside with <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/favorde01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Derrick Favors</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kanteen01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Enes Kanter</a></strong>, but are completely depleted on the outside, with Hayward being their only good player.<br />
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The Jazz are likely to match most offers, however if a team wanted him badly enough, I'm sure the Jazz would rather not overpay for his services. Hayward has shown that he can't be the number one guy on his team, but he would be an excellent complimentary player to someone like, say, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a></strong>.<br />
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4) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/denglu01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Luol Deng</a></strong>, Unrestricted, Small Forward, Cleveland Cavaliers.<br />
16.0 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 2.9 APG, 15.2 PER.<br />
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Good job, Cleveland. You gave up multiple draft picks for Luol Deng, who was a terrible fit for the team, yet you wouldn't relinquish one first round draft choice for the services of the far superior Pau Gasol. After the Cavaliers lucked into the 1st overall pick (again), Deng is all but certain to leave the team, unless they end up drafting Joel Embiid, and then overpaying for his services, since Deng would be a third wheel on a team he never meshed well with to begin with.<br />
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Deng has proven to be adept at defense and scoring in years past, however, thanks to Cleveland's awful spacing and terrible coaching, Deng could never get going with them. If the Lakers end up getting a coach like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hollili01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Lionel Hollins</a></strong>, I can see them pursuing Deng strictly for his defense.<br />
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5) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/stephla01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Lance Stephenson</a></strong>, Unrestricted, Shooting Guard/Small Forward, Indiana Pacers.<br />
13.8 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 4.6 APG, 14.7 PER.<br />
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I don't even know where to begin with Stephenson. He's a talented guy who plays defense, and rebounds with the best of them for his position. He's also a good passer and a solid playmaker. Or at least, he was before he didn't make the All Star Game this year. Since then, his play style has changed dramatically, as he has focused primarily on scoring. His assist percentage dropped dramatically in the second half, going from 25% in the first half to 19% in the second. As a result, the Pacers have become a discombobulated mess and will need the old Lance Stephenson to advance against Miami.<br />
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People have speculated that Stephenson's style of play has changed because he felt not making the All Star Team has hurt his chances at a big free agency payday. The opposite has happened, however, as Stephenson is now slated to get paid in the 6-8 million dollar range, instead of the 10-12 million dollar range it was before the All Star break. All of this is just speculation, but the fact that we're even talking about this makes Stephenson not as desirable as previously thought.<br />
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6) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/arizatr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Trevor Ariza</a></strong>, Unrestricted, Small Forward, Washington Wizards.<br />
14.4 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 2.5 APG, 15.8 PER.<br />
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Old friend Trevor Ariza has bounced around a bit since he was traded 5 years ago (has it been that long? Time really does fly), as Ariza has played for (and struggled) with the Houston Rockets, New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans and, most recently, with the Washington Wizards, where he has excelled playing alongside <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/walljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">John Wall</a></strong>. Ariza has become a lights out three point shooter, as he finished the year with 40.7% shooting from beyond the arch, and he continues to play excellent defense. It would be great to have him back, though I'm sure he would much rather stay in D.C. with John Wall and friends at this point.<br />
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7) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hawessp01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Spencer Hawes</a></strong>, Unrestricted, Center, Cleveland Cavaliers<br />
13.2 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 3.0 APG, 15.7 PER.<br />
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Hawes is not your typical center. For one, check out those assist totals. And two, he's basically a poor man's <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/loveke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kevin Love</a></strong>, as he actually quite the three point shooter. Last year, Hawes shot an outstanding 41% from downtown. He's not a guy who can carry the load, by any means, but he is a guy who can stretch the floor well, while still being an adept rebounder. He would be great to have to ensure that the lane isn't completely clogged when Kobe Bryant is in the post, however if you're relying on him to be your savior, then you have bigger problems.<br />
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8) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/sessira01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Ramon Sessions</a></strong>, Unrestricted, Point Guard, Milwaukee Bucks<br />
12.3 PPG, 4.1 APG, 2.4 RPG, 16.0 PER<br />
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Another old friend on the list, Ramon Sessions is really good at one thing, and one thing only: attacking the basket. That doesn't bode well for later in his career, but who cares about that, right? Sessions would be a nice guard to have, if he would be okay coming off of the bench; we already saw what happens when you put someone like Kobe Bryant with a guy who can't do anything other than attack the rim. Sessions is a quality guard, but not one who is an amazing fit, though it can be done if you get some viable options to stretch the floor.<br />
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9) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/grangda01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Danny Granger</a></strong>, Unrestricted, Small Forward, Los Angeles Clippers<br />
8.2 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 1.0 APG, 10.9 PER<br />
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Many would say Granger is over-the-hill, and isn't worth much now-a-days. I, however, say that Granger can still be an important piece on a playoff team. Sure, his days of being the number one guy who averages over 25 points per game are over, but Granger is still a guy who plays tough defense and can stretch the floor, as he is a career 38% three point shooter. Granger could be a quality signing, assuming no team gives him anywhere near the 14 million he made this year.<br />
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10) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/t/turneev01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Evan Turner</a></strong>, Restricted, Small Forward, Indiana Pacers<br />
14.0 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 3.2 APG, 12.4 PER.<br />
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Let's get this out of the way: Evan Turner is a bust. The former 2nd overall pick (who was taken before <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/georgpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Paul George</a></strong>) has been worth a career 12 PER, and has been as inefficient as they come, shooting a career 42%, despite being 6'7'' and one of the most physically gifted players in the league. Turner is also not a very good defensive player. Nonetheless, the trade from Philadelphia to Indiana took a huge chunk of his sheer numbers down a notch, costing him millions of dollars in free agency, potentially making him a steal, depending on how he is valued in free agency. There's always the chance that he could still improve, and he would at least give the Lakers a more athletic perimeter player.
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-53467539468376790942014-05-28T23:18:00.002-07:002014-05-28T23:18:23.649-07:00Lakers to interview Lionel Hollins<a href="http://lakerholicz.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Lionel-Hollins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://lakerholicz.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Lionel-Hollins.jpg" height="200" width="320" /></a>The Lakers will be bringing in <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hollili01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Lionel Hollins</a></strong> for an interview on Thursday, and he will also be interviewing with the Cleveland Cavaliers sometime next week.<br />
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So far, the Lakers have been slow to address the coaching void left with <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/dantomi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mike D'Antoni</a></strong> resigning weeks ago. It's an interesting strategy by the team that can backfire, should the desired coaching candidates sign elsewhere before the Lakers can bring in somebody credible/ready and willing to step into this mess of a team.<br />
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Hollins is a major far cry from D'Antoni, being a defensive-minded, grind it out coach, instead of a run and gun, showtime style coach that Jim Buss was looking to build when he hired D'Antoni. The Lakers have already interviewed <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/player_search.cgi?search=Mike+Dunleavy&utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mike Dunleavy</a></strong> (ugh) and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/scottby01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Byron Scott</a></strong> (okay). Hollins is the first candidate to interview with the team that doesn't have any previous history with the team, as Dunleavy coached the Lakers 24 years ago, when <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnsma02.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Magic Johnson</a></strong> was still playing, and Scott previously played for the team during the Showtime era and was actually coached by Dunleavy himself.<br />
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Hollins has coached for 7 seasons, all with the Memphis Grizzlies. His team won 56 games during his final season, but ultimately lost to the Spurs in the Western Conference Finals. I suppose the team is hoping Hollins' defensive, serious style of coaching will help win the approval of aging star <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a></strong>. They might be right, but the coaching spot won't even matter if <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kupchmi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mitch Kupchak</a></strong> doesn't do some seriously positives things with the roster.<br />
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-90360574574895979382014-03-06T18:27:00.002-08:002014-03-06T19:12:56.307-08:00Steve Nash Wants to Return to the Lakers<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://blogimages.thescore.com/tbj/files/2012/11/steve-nash-suit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://blogimages.thescore.com/tbj/files/2012/11/steve-nash-suit.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just retire.</td></tr>
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Let's get this out of the way now: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nashst01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Nash</a></strong> has been absolutely terrible in a Lakers uniform. I don't care that Nash had a semi decent first season, in which he only played 50 games, or that he shot well during the first year here; he has still been nothing like the player the Lakers traded for. He hasn't been worth any of the draft picks the Lakers traded for him two years ago; he hasn't been worth the 9 million+ they use on him in cap space; he has barely been worth a roster spot, quite frankly. Injuries have made him more of a burden than anything else.<br />
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Now, it's been confirmed that Nash wants to return to the Lakers. Per Mike Bresnahan of the L.A. Times:</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"One thing's certain: Nash wants to return next season. "I want to come back for sure," he said."</blockquote>
I used to be a big fan of Steve Nash and his wonderfully complete offensive skill set. The seamless and smooth pick and rolls that Nash used to run were a thing of beauty; he was one of the most complete offensive players at his position and will likely be in the Hall of Fame when the time comes. However, Nash is a major burden on this team's cap situation and he isn't worth a roster spot anymore. Not when you have <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong>, Marshon Brooks, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jodie Meeks</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farmajo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Farmar</a></strong>, and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bazemke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kent Bazemore</a></strong> to play between the two guard positions. Not when all of those players are under 28 years old and ready to step in to the rotation and provide solid overall play. Nash's defense is worse than all of those players, and his offense is no longer good enough to break even when it comes to Win Shares. And this isn't even taking into account <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a></strong>, who will probably not return this year, but it leaves even less room for Nash in an improving rotation.<br />
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Of course, the real reason I think allowing Nash to come back is a mistake is because of the cap space he takes up. There are only five players under contract for next season (Bryant, Marshall, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/sacrero01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Robert Sacre</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Nick Young</a></strong> and Nash); the Lakers need to fill up the rest of that roster space, hopefully by retaining all of the younger players they have and filling the cracks with a few new players via Free Agency while potentially adding star level talent via a top five pick in the NBA draft and saving their cap space for the next free agency when <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/loveke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kevin Love</a></strong> will be available. Obviously, this could backfire, but the Lakers need to keep their options open, and getting rid of Nash helps them do just that.<br />
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Nash cannot be simply cut or waived. Should Nash retire, then the Lakers will still have to pay him the 9.7 million he is owed for next year, including the cap hit. Should Nash decide to stick around for another year, then the Lakers can get rid of him via the stretch provision, saving 3 million this year, and stretching out his cap hit over the next three years. For the sake of the future, just go away, Steve.
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-78065369268411142382014-02-15T20:26:00.001-08:002014-02-15T20:26:31.987-08:002013-2014 Lakers Mid-Season Review: Back Court<a href="http://myfantasylinks.com/wp-content/uploads/kendall-marshall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://myfantasylinks.com/wp-content/uploads/kendall-marshall.jpg" height="320" width="285" /></a><i>Point Guard</i>: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nashst01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Nash</a></strong><br />
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<i>7.6 PPG, 4.7 APG, 1.7 RPG, -0.1 WS, -0.014 WS/48 on 30.6% shooting and 31.6% shooting from three point range. Grade: <b>(Inc.)</b></i></div>
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There isn't much to write about a player who has only played 10 games out of the 53 games the team has slogged through this year. And if you're keeping count, Nash has played in 60 games out of 135 total games with the team. Nash has been sidelined for most of the season with nerve root irritation and has played some of the worst basketball possible when he has been on the court. Without his legs, his shooting stroke isn't there and his dribble penetration has suffered as a result. Nash is no longer the player he was; he isn't even a serviceable point guard at this stage of his career. It's sad to see such a dynamic offensive player limp to the finish line of his career like this, but it's a reality for every player. Father Time is undefeated, after all. The two-time MVP will consider retirement at the end of the year. For now, Nash is lucky he has an incomplete; if he played enough games, he would have been awarded a big, fat F.</div>
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<i>Point Guard</i>: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/blakest01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Blake</a></strong></div>
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<i>9.5 PPG, 7.6 APG, 3.8 RPG, 1.0 WS, .054 WS/48 on 37.8% shooting and 39.7% shooting from three point range. Grade: <b>(B)</b></i></div>
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Steve Blake has long been a favorite player of mine, even during his disappointing initial seasons early on with the Lakers. Blake is a solid, all-around guard, who may or may not suffer from peer pressure (the noticeable change in play and quality of play whenever <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a></strong> is on the court is astounding.) Blake has had one of his best seasons so far, averaging a career highs in assists per game (7.6) and rebounds per game (3.8), while putting up his best scoring output with the Lakers (9.5). Unfortunately, Blake has had to miss quite a few games thanks to a torn ligament in his right elbow, which is always bad, but more so whenever a player is putting together one of his finer seasons. We'll see if Blake can keep up this play, and, if he does, if he's willing to take on a smaller deal to stay with the Lakers. </div>
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<i>Point Guard</i>: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farmajo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Farmar</a></strong></div>
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<i>9.3 PPG, 4.9 APG, 3.2 RPG, 0.5 WS, .050 WS/48 on 41.5% shooting and 38.7% shooting from three point range. Grade: <b>(B+)</b></i></div>
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Farmar has been unexpectedly good this year. And I really mean unexpectedly. Farmar was playing in Turkey for the past year and it was questionable whether or not he would play in the NBA again because he wanted more money than what teams thought he was worth. Luckily, Farmar, a UCLA product, missed his friends and family enough to take a minimum contract with the Lakers. Farmar has been slashing to the basket relentlessly and shooting well from deep to help compliment his penetration. Overall, he has done an excellent job of leading the second unit and maintaining a <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/dantomi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mike D'Antoni</a></strong> approved pace. He wouldn't be a Laker if he didn't tear his hamstring twice, costing him a lot of games this year. </div>
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<i>Point guard</i>: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong></div>
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<i>10.3 PPG, 9.5 APG, 3.1 RPG, 1.4 WS, .086 WS/48 on 45.1% shooting and 46.5% shooting from three point range. Grade: <b>(A++)</b></i></div>
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I can't say enough about Kendall Marshall and how big he has been for this team. He has been the best point guard on the team and he started the year without a job, before signing with a D-League team. He has been seriously good on the offensive end and has orchestrated the offense impeccably. There isn't much I can say about Marshall other than this: please come back for more than just next season. </div>
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<i>Shooting guard</i>: Kobe Bryant</div>
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<i>13.8 PPG, 6.3 APG, 4.3 RPG, -0.3 WS, -0.082 WS/48 on 42.5% shooting and 18.8% shooting from three point range. Grade: <b>(Inc.)</b></i></div>
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Six games. The most anticipated return of the Western Conference was up and down, and mired with turnovers. Kobe only played six games before breaking his knee. Take the rest of the year off, Kobe. Please. </div>
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<i>Shooting guard: </i><strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Nick Young</a></strong></div>
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<i>16.9 PPG, 1.5 APG, 2.7 RPG, 1.6 WS, .057 WS/48 on 42% shooting and 35% shooting from three point range. Grade: <b>(C)</b></i></div>
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<div>
I love watching Nick Young play. He's exciting and infuriating at the same time. He creates his own shot in the most spectacular way this side of Kobe. While you will have your fair share of ugly, ugly moments, but he was still one of the only Lakers who can create his own shot, which was an important attribute down the stretch in games. The reason Young gets such a low grade, despite his 16.9 points per game, is his very poor defense. All of the others (save for Nash) at least try to play defense, while Young hasn't been doing any of that at all. Plus, Young's stat line this year has been roughly what his Per 36 numbers project, so he hasn't been playing any better than usual. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i>Shooting guard: </i><strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jodie Meeks</a></strong></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i>14.4 PPG, 1.7 APG, 2.8 RPG, 2.7 WS, .085 WS/48 on 45% shooting and 40.3% shooting from three point range. Grade: <b>(B-)</b></i></div>
<div>
<i><b><br /></b></i></div>
<div>
Meeks is always a double edged sword. He can get hot in a hurry and be the most dangerous player on the court, but then, he can get cold and seriously hurt his team with his shot attempts. Meeks tries to play defense, but is usually not fundamentally sound enough to be good at it. He makes up for it by stretching the floor as good as anybody in the NBA today. Meeks has a career best in field goal percentage and in shooting percentage from three point range and has played well on the offensive end, despite his inconsistency. Hopefully, Meeks will decide to return after this year on the cheap to provide long range shooting. </div>
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-5490207668454818412014-02-13T10:00:00.002-08:002014-02-13T10:07:51.629-08:00State of the West: Oklahoma City Thunder<a href="http://cdn.blackenterprise.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2013/11/kevin-durant-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://cdn.blackenterprise.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2013/11/kevin-durant-01.jpg" height="252" width="320" /></a><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">For the next month or so, Hack-a-Shaq will be having these State of the West posts, which will be about the current and future state of each of the Western Conference teams. It will include some guest writers for certain teams and I'm really excited to see how this turns out. Enjoy! This post comes from good friend and Dodgers Digest commentator Joseph Wolfe, A.K.A Lobo. Thanks, Lobo!</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i><i>Previous State of the West posts: <b><a href="http://hackashaq.blogspot.com/2014/02/state-of-west-los-angeles-lakers.html" target="_blank">Lakers</a> | <a href="http://hackashaq.blogspot.com/2014/02/state-of-west-portland-trailblazers.html" target="_blank">Blazers</a></b></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><b><br /></b></i>
</span><br />
Even though I grew up in LA, I wouldn’t really call myself a huge Laker fan. I definitely pull for the team, but I don’t have the same vested rooting interest in them that I do in the Dodgers. In fact, in my whole family, only my uncle is a big Laker fan, despite all of us being fans of basketball as a sport. My brother somehow ended up being a Cavs fan (LOL) and my Dad and I both are kind of just fans of the sport as a whole rather than of one team. As a result, though I will pull for the Lakers over pretty much anyone, there are really about 4 or 5 teams that I consider myself a fan of.<br />
<br />
Chief among the teams I root for (apart from the Lakers) is the Oklahoma City Thunder. Yeah, yeah, bandwagon fans and all that but I’m a bit of a #casualfan when it comes to basketball so I don’t really care. What I care about is that the Thunder are an exciting team to watch and a very well run organization. And when it comes to basketball, that’s what I tend to look for. I like teams that are fun to watch for either their hustle or explosiveness and that are well put together. The other two teams that I tend to root for are the San Antonio Spurs and the Memphis Grizzlies, both of whom are teams (to my eye at least) that play hard and are very well built teams, particularly the Spurs who have been great year in and year out despite swapping out role players seemingly every season.<br />
<br />
But I digress. Back to the Thunder. Led by superstars <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/duranke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Kevin Durant</a> and <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/westbru01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Russell Westbrook</a>, the Thunder have been one of the best teams in the NBA over the last four seasons. And while <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hardeja01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">James Harden</a> was a huge part of their initial success, the Thunder have been just as good in the season and a half since they traded him to the Houston Rockets. Though there is little doubt that the Thunder team is spearheaded by the dynamic duo of Durant and Westbrook, it is the solid core around them that has led to their dominance of the Western Conference. So without further ado, let’s take a look at a Thunder team that should once again be serious contenders for the NBA title. <br />
<br />
<b>Starting Lineup</b>:<br />
<br />
<div>
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/westbru01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Russell Westbrook</a></strong>, PG (yes he’s injured right now but he’s clearly the starter when he comes back and he’s expected to be back for the playoffs)<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/sefolth01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Thabo Sefolosha</a></strong>, SG</div>
<div>
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/duranke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kevin Durant</a></strong>, SF<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/i/ibakase01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Serge Ibaka</a></strong>, PF<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/p/perkike01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendrick Perkins</a></strong>, C<br />
<br />
There is no question that the Thunder have one of the best starting lineups in the NBA. Hell, you could start with Durant and Westbrook and fill in the rest with scrubs and they’d still be pretty ok. But they have more than mere scrubs manning the other three positions, Sefolosha, Ibaka, and Perkins are all solid players who contribute a great deal to the team’s success. Let’s take a look at Ibaka first. Since coming into the league in 2009, Ibaka has been one of the game’s better big men. Though he mostly plays power forward, he has the height to play center, something he uses to his great advantage. With his long arms and thick frame, Ibaka is a force to be reckoned with down low. Averaging 8.9 rebounds to go with 14.7 points, Ibaka has provided plenty of value to the Thunder, and that’s without even considering his defense. This year, Ibaka ranks 13th in the NBA in Defensive Rating, and 10th in Defensive Win Shares, anchoring a Thunder defense that is 5th in Opponents Points per Shot and 7th in Opponents Points per Game. That’s a defense plenty good enough to support one of the league’s best offenses. But perhaps most importantly, Ibaka has really developed a nice outside shot, which lets the Thunder spread the floor and get a ton of different looks for their big three offensive weapons.<br />
<br />
Now we move to Sefolosha and Perkins. I’m going to discuss these guys together because I want to address a trend among defensive statistics in basketball that affects both of these players. Now, as a baseball fan I tend to dismiss the impact of hustle or “grit” in the sport. In the game of baseball, there just aren’t many opportunities for hustle to greatly impact the outcome of a play or a game. It’s certainly a desirable trait, but it doesn’t really add any significant value to a players skill set. However, it’s a completely different story when it comes to basketball. Because of the nature of the sport, where every player is active on every play and every player interacts with all the other players on the court, hustle and effort can have a HUGE impact on a game. Running after a loose ball, battling for position down low, standing tough to draw a charge against a driving opponent, all of these can impact the outcome of a play. The problem is that there’s no easy way to quantify these things, the number of times a player dove to save a ball that was going out of bounds isn’t recorded anywhere that I know of. And so this hustle isn’t really reflected in a player’s defensive ratings. In the case of Perkins and Sefolosha, I really think that advanced defensive metrics sell them short, particularly with Perkins. If you watched the 2008 and 2010 NBA Finals which both pitted the Celtics against the Lakers, you may recall just how much trouble Perkins presented to the Lakers. It was particularly bad in 2008, because with Bynum out for the Finals due to injury, Perkins was matched up against <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Pau Gasol</a> for most of the series, and though Pau was a more skilled player, Perkins absolutely abused him down low by simply outmuscling and outhustling Gasol. It didn’t necessarily manifest itself in the scorebook but it had a huge impact on the series as Pau was basically a non-factor in every game. And while Perkins isn’t as good now as he was back then, he still provides plenty of value with his hustle and toughness. And though he may give back a lot of that value with his abysmal offensive production, because he plays on the same team as Durant and Westbrook, the damage is minimized as those two are more than capable of picking up the offensive slack. Sefolosha suffers similar disparagement from the defensive statistics, though to a much lesser extent. As the SG counterpart to Westbrook, he is allowed to be a slightly more defensive oriented player. While he doesn’t provide a ton of value on his own, he fits well in the construction of the Thunder roster as a complement to Westbrook.<br />
<br />
This brings us to the stars of the team, Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant. As if I even need to tell you how good these guys are. Though Westbrook has been hurt for almost all of this season, when he’s healthy, he’s one of the best point guards in the league. For his career, Westbrook averages 20.7 Player Efficiency Rating (PER), and over the last three seasons he’s averaging 22.8 (league average is 15). His Offensive Win Share (OWS) last year was 7.7, good for 8th in the NBA. He’s one of the league’s fastest players and also one of its most trigger happy, which is probably his biggest flaw. Westbrook has a tendency to just heave up shot after shot, regardless of whether or not he makes them. While in some respects this can be a good thing (for example, he rarely gets down about missing shots and doesn’t let it go to his head), when he’s cold, it can be a huge drain on the team as he throws up miss after miss. Luckily for the Thunder, Westbrook is a darn good shooter, posting a 45.2 2P% and 30.3 3P% for his career. Even though that’s just a league average 2P% and a below average 3P%, very few players shoot well from both within and beyond the arc. And though he’s never been known as a pass-first point guard, Westbrook has still managed to average 6.9 assists per game. So while Westbrook may not do one thing particularly well, very few players possess a skill set as diverse as Westbrook’s.<br />
<br />
What Kevin Durant is doing this season is nothing short of historic. Currently, Durant is sporting a .327 WS/48. If the season were to end today, that would be good for the 2nd best single season number of ALL TIME, trailing only <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/abdulka01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Kareem Abdul-Jabbar</a>’s 1971-72 season when he posted a .3399 WS/48. That’s right, better than anything <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jordami01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Michael Jordan</a> ever did and better than <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">LeBron James</a> has ever done (though LeBron and Jordan each hold 3 of the top 10 spots. Durant’s 31.0 PER would be good for the 11th best single season PER, missing out on the top 10 by 0.11. For the past two years, the title of “NBA’s Best Player” has been a hotly debated topic, with Durant and LeBron having the strongest cases. But while LeBron may still be the best overall player and the one more likely to be better next year, Durant has been without question the best player in the NBA this season. It’s not even particularly close, Durant’s OWS is just 0.1 less than LeBron’s TOTAL WS. Add in Durant’s defensive value (a part of his game which he has greatly improved on over the last few years) and he’s been the league’s best player by a margin that isn’t even close. The rest of the Thunder are great players, but Durant takes them from being a good team to one of, if not the most, dangerous teams in the NBA. No player has had a bigger impact on their team this year, and this level of individual play arguably hasn’t been seen since LeBron’s days in Cleveland, when he single handedly led that team to the NBA Championship game. Durant is an incredible player and we should all be thrilled that we get to see him play in his prime.<br />
<br />
<b>Bench</b>:<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jonespe01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Perry Jones</a></strong> PF<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/collini01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Nick Collison</a></strong> PF<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/fishede01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Derek Fisher</a></strong> PG<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/lambje01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jeremy Lamb</a></strong> SG<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/adamsst01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steven Adams</a></strong> C</div>
<div>
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jacksre01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Reggie Jackson</a></strong> PG</div>
<div>
<br />
Andre Robertson PF</div>
<div>
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/t/thabeha01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Hasheem Thabeet</a></strong> C<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gomesry01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Ryan Gomes</a></strong> SF<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/i/iveyro01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Royal Ivey</a></strong> SG<br />
<br />
The Thunder bench is largely made up of solid but not spectacular players. With Westbrook out, <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jacksre01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Reggie Jackson</a> has taken over starting PG duties and has performed admirably. While his quality of play is a sharp drop off from Westbrook’s, he has provided roughly league average production which is all the Thunder needed right now with how Durant has played. The bench is anchored by two longtime vets in <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/fishede01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Derek Fisher</a> and <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/collini01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Nick Collison</a>. Fun fact: Collison and Durant are the only players still on the team from the Seattle Super Sonics days. Collison provides solid minutes down low with his hustle and fundamental play. Fisher, who is incidentally my all-time favorite player, may not light up the stat sheets but he is a veteran presence, and he and Collison are strong leaders for this fairly young team. <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/lambje01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Jeremy Lamb</a> has shot very well of the bench and provides a nice counterpoint to Sefolosha so that the opposing team has to deal with two very different shooting guards. The remaining guys don’t play much, but none of them outright hurt the team. All in all, the Thunder bench does a good job of providing solid rest minutes for the starters and ensuring that the game remains even when they’re in so that the starters can continue to pull away from the opposition when they’re in.<br />
<br />
<b>Championship Chances</b>:<br />
<br />
Let’s not beat around the bush: the Thunder have to be the favorites to represent the West in the Finals and are almost certainly the favorites to win it all. There are a lot of very good teams in the West this year (Portland, San Antonio, and the Clippers), none of them have quite the talent that the Thunder do. The Spurs are always good but their Big Three are another year older and they just haven’t played as well this year as they have in the past. The Clippers starting lineup is good, but Westbrook and Paul are very close in value and the Clippers have no answer for Durant. Portland is the really dangerous team here, but again, they just don’t have an answer for Durant while the Thunder do have answers for the Blazer’s best players (Lillard and Aldridge). In the end, the Thunder are probably not going to lose unless they beat themselves. There’s just no other team in the West that can compete with them when they’re at their best, and they are almost always at their best. My prediction: Thunder beat the Spurs in 5 in the Western Conference Finals and beat the Pacers in 6 in the Finals.</div>
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-22977823697017473312014-02-11T17:24:00.001-08:002014-02-11T17:35:13.000-08:00State of the West: Portland Trailblazers<a href="http://www.cascadiasports.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2013/08/damian-lillard1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.cascadiasports.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2013/08/damian-lillard1.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a><i>For the next month or so, Hack-a-Shaq will be having these State of the West posts, which will be about the current and future state of each of the Western Conference teams. It will include some guest writers for certain teams and I'm really excited to see how this turns out. Enjoy! This post comes from good friend and Dodgers Digest commentator PFP. Thanks, PFP!</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Previous State of the West posts: <b><a href="http://hackashaq.blogspot.com/2014/02/state-of-west-los-angeles-lakers.html" target="_blank">Lakers</a> | </b></i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<b>Why You Don’t Want To Read A Sob
Story From A Portland Trail Blazers Fan Right Now</b></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Greetings! P_F_P here, taking a break
from my regularly scheduled posting/campaigning for the 2016 election
over at Dodgers Digest to give you a basketball update from the
Pacific Northwest. Now, as usual, the Seattle Supersonics are a force
to be HAHAHAHA LOL oh man got you got there, aging grungeheads. Of
course, this update is regarding the Trail Blazers of Portland,
Oregon, who despite several disappointing, furniture-overturning
losses in recent weeks, are still a healthy 35-14 on the season (as
of February 7) and in the driver’s seat to grab their first playoff
spot since <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/r/roybr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Brandon Roy</a></strong> had his own ligaments in his knee. Or since
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/odengr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Greg Oden</a></strong> still had the potential to be an All-Star. Or since the
front office wasn’t engaged in an annual game of musical fucking
chairs that always ended with a really good GM being shown the door.
Sigh.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Wait wait wait…”sigh”? What is
this bullshit, you’re likely saying out loud to an inanimate
computer screen? The title of this article <i>wasn’t</i> a lie? I
<i>actually</i> have to feel bad for the Blazers for a few minutes,
when I’m currently a fan of the
Hawks/Raptors/Wizards/Bobcats/Nets/Knicks/Cavs/Bucks/Clips/Warriors/Suns/Nugs/Wolves/Hornets/Kings?
(Don’t even fucking think about including yourself in that group,
Laker fans. Oh, two injury-plagued seasons and a moronic front office
getting you down? Go cry into your five commemorative championship
sweatshirts of the Kobe era and let us manic-depressive NBA fans be
manic-depressive together.)</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
The more I think about it, it is kind
of a dick move for me to be writing this article. I mean, I just
named about ten franchises in the NBA alone who have a bigger gripe
than the Blazers, and there’s dozens more pro teams that fit that
description as well. Plus, [retracted comment about there being many
more important things to worry about than sports]. So, fuck it. I’m
switching directions mid-article and making an argument about why you
<i>don’t</i> want to read another Blazer fan’s sob story. The
reasons, as follows:</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<ul>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/lillada01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Damian Lillard</a></strong>! 20.6 points, 5.7
assists, and that
honestly-kind-of-stupid-considering-how-many-deep-ones-he-takes .405
three-point percentage, the kind of stat line that only a nitpicker
annoyed with DL’s <i>olẽ</i> style of defense could take issue
with. And how ‘bout him getting picked for all five skills
competitions at NBA All-Star Weekend! He’ll be awesome and
praiseworthy and <i>almost definitely won’t get hurt!</i> Great
news for Blazer fans.</div>
</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
LA! Through 49 games, the best
season yet for Portland’s favorite adopted son: 24.1 PPG and 11.6
RPG easily eclipse his career highs in those categories, and I will
gladly ignore that it’s primarily because he’s taking a ton of
shots (21.0, also easily his career high). There’s absolutely no
reason to be at all worried about LaMarcus, even though he hasn’t
gotten one iota better at defense, rebounding, or protecting the rim
since arguably his sophomore season. LA FTW!</div>
</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Other players who are good, like
trusty wings Nic Batum and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/matthwe02.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Wesley Matthews</a></strong> and surprisingly solid
role players like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/lopezro01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Robin Lopez</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/willima01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mo Williams</a></strong>, but since they’re
currently on your fantasy league’s waiver wire let’s just skip
them.</div>
</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
18-11 against the Western
Conference, bitches! (Used to be much, much better earlier in the
season…but so what!)</div>
</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
35-14! Thirty-five and fucking
fourteen! (Ugh, STOP sighing and telling me it <i>was </i>22-4
before a nasty 4-5 stretch with losses to Philly and Sacramento, and
then 31-9 before a nasty 4-5 stretch that included a loss to
Washington <i>[Washington, </i>sheesh]. The team is playing better
than ever and definitely doesn’t need to add anyone at the trade
deadline. Because good news, they probably won’t!)</div>
</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Only 36 straight seasons without a
title, and only 21 without reaching the NBA Finals. AT LEAST WE’VE
WON ONE/GOTTEN THERE, NUMEROUS OTHER NBA FRANCHISES.</div>
</li>
</ul>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
So that’s basically it. Six solid
reasons not to feel sorry for Blazer fans, or the Blazers, in any
way, shape, or form. See you in fall 2015 when we will absolutely
definitely be the defending NBA Champions (note: this message has
been partially recycled from 1992, 2000, and 2010).</div>
<br />Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-39500477760693830262014-02-09T15:11:00.000-08:002014-02-12T18:45:00.026-08:00State of the West: Los Angeles Lakers<a href="http://www.thirdage.com/files/originals/lakers-kobe-bryant-scores-39-points-defeat-of-warriors-oakland--california-99.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.thirdage.com/files/originals/lakers-kobe-bryant-scores-39-points-defeat-of-warriors-oakland--california-99.jpg" height="227" width="320" /></a><i>For the next month or so, Hack-a-Shaq will be having these State of the West posts, which will be about the current and future state of each of the Western Conference teams. It will include some guest writers for certain teams and I'm really excited to see how this turns out. Enjoy!</i><br />
<i><br /></i>I am a patient fan. I recognize all that this franchise has done during my lifetime to help make my fan experience one of the best ones in the world. It's not easy to win the Finals five times, appear in the Finals seven times and only miss the playoffs twice during the 19 years I have been alive. It's not easy to reach the top of the mountain once, let alone the 16 times this team has done it during their history, not to mention the 31 times they have made the Finals. This is one of the most storied franchises of all time between all sports and it brings me great pain to see them put up a team that is this bad. Granted, a lot of these poor performances can be traced back to the team's horrendous injury bug; they've been so injured that they played against the Cleveland Cavaliers with only 8 active players, leading to two of them getting hurt (of course) and two of them fouling out, which led to the NBA using an old rule that allowed <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/sacrero01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Robert Sacre</a></strong> to stay in the game at the expense of an extra technical foul shot for Cleveland every time Sacre fouled somebody. The Lakers, somehow, still won that game, which may not be a good thing.<br />
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The fact that half of Lakers fans are rooting against their team every night is telling; in the past, wins were sweet and beloved by all Lakers fans everywhere. But, it is virtually impossible for this team to make the playoffs in the brutal Western Conference, let alone advance should they get there. At this stage, the only thing wins are doing is keeping the Lakers further away from a potential Top-5 draft pick in what is supposed to be the most talented draft since the 2003 NBA draft. And, if we're being entirely honest, even a fully healthy Lakers squad wasn't going to advance in the West. Let's look at the potential starting lineup, shall we?<br />
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<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nashst01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Nash</a></strong>, PG<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a></strong>, SG<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Nick Young</a></strong>, SF<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Pau Gasol</a></strong>, PF<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kamanch01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Chris Kaman</a></strong>, C<br />
<br />
Or, if you'd prefer a smaller lineup (and Nick Young coming off the bench):<br />
<br />
Steve Nash, PG<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/blakest01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Blake</a></strong>, SG<br />
Kobe Bryant, SF<br />
Pau Gasol, PF<br />
Chris Kaman, C<br />
<br />
Any way you want to look at it, that is a talented lineup, one that could certainly cause headaches to some contenders in the West, on Kobe and Pau's talent alone. But, let's face facts: this team wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. Sure, they could have potentially made a run for the 6th or 7th seed, but then what? Getting swept by the Spurs or the Blazers isn't exactly the makings of a contending team. This team's star players are old, so when they broke down, the whole team broke down. You can't build a contender on the legs of 35 year old Kobe Bryant and 40 year old Steve Nash, as good as they were. We know what most of these guys provide, so I'll gloss over how the current Lakers are built and look ahead to the future.<br />
<br />
The future looks a lot better than what most people want to admit. The Lakers picked a perfect time to field the worst Lakers squad of the past 20 seasons because, after all of the draft choices they traded to get <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/howardw01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Dwight Howard</a></strong> and Nash, they still have their own 2014 draft choice, which was, incidentally, the one that was valued the least in trade talks because everybody expected the Lakers to be championship contenders for the near future. Now, the Lakers have a chance to get a top 10 draft choice in a draft where most of the Top 10 could have been the first overall pick during last year's draft. The names of this year's draft include Joel Embiid, Jabari Parker, Andrew Wiggins, Marcus Smart, Julius Randle, among others (more on them in a later article). A top 5 choice may give the Lakers a franchise player, while a top 10 choice will still go a long way to rebuilding the franchise.<br />
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Of course, one young player won't do it alone and the Lakers are well aware of that, having created a bench made of young, talented but ultimately forgotten former lottery picks like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnswe01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Wesley Johnson</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/henryxa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Xavier Henry</a></strong>. If they can keep them past this season is another story. The Lakers have also maintained their options open for free agency; the team only has Bryant, Nash, Sacre, Marshall and Nick Young under contract for next season for a total of 35.3 million dollars, largely thanks to Bryant's foolish max contract over the next two seasons, which makes up a little more than half of the salary cap available to the Lakers, without taking into account any possible exceptions and minimum salaries. This comes at an excellent time, because the next free agency period will include <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/anthoca01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Carmelo Anthony</a></strong>, potentially <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">LeBron James</a></strong> and some good, but not great players like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/monrogr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Greg Monroe</a></strong>. The Lakers are in great position to completely shake up the franchise and add potential star players via draft and free agency, while retaining the services of Kobe Bryant. All of this without taking into account one anonymous NBA GM's comments about how 2015 free agent <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/loveke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kevin Love</a></strong> is "100% certain" to go to the Lakers. Taking that into account, the Lakers will likely not offer Anthony a max contract, or any contract at all, instead opting to put a few pieces here and there to set up Love coming to LA next season.<br />
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All in all, the Lakers seem in bad shape now, with only a few first round draft choices between now and 2019, but, in reality, the Lakers could climb back to the top of the mountain in a few short seasons if they don't waste anymore money (Bryant's contract is truly horrific), and if they manage to avoid a major draft bust in this year's draft. Not bad for a team who apparently mortgaged their future by trading for Howard and Nash.
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-37916844897535756752014-01-28T11:51:00.000-08:002014-01-28T11:51:40.677-08:00Injury Update: 1/28/14<a href="http://www.insidesocal.com/lakers/files/2014/01/i-LpMXrbT-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.insidesocal.com/lakers/files/2014/01/i-LpMXrbT-L.jpg" height="204" width="320" /></a>As expected, most of the team's injured players underwent evaluations yesterday, with the exception of <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a></strong>, who will see a doctor today. Surprisingly, there was some positive news on the injury front.<br />
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<u><strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nashst01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Nash</a></strong></u>: Nash has been sidelined for what seems like forever with a nerve root injury, that apparently stemmed all the way back to last season's fractured leg suffered against <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/lillada01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Damian Lillard</a></strong> and the Portland Trailblazers. Nash has been rehabbing and training in Vancouver during select parts of the year and may finally play again sometime soon. According to the Lakers spokesman John Black, everything went well for Nash during his most recent time in Vancouver and he was expected to practice yesterday, but he tweaked his back (unrelated to the current injury) and wasn't able to participate. Nonetheless, Nash is listed as day-to-day and will likely practice on Thursday before determining if he will be able to go for Friday's game against the Charlotte Bobcats.<br />
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<u><strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/blakest01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Blake</a></strong></u>: Blake was diagnosed with a torn collateral ligament in his right elbow and has been sidelined since December 13th. He was initially expected to miss 6-8 weeks while he recovered and he still could come back in time to meet the end of that timetable. Blake hasn't yet been cleared to return to practice, however he has been doing some basketball related activities that will ramp up by the end of the week before being reevaluated during the weekend.<br />
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<u><strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farmajo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Farmar</a></strong></u>: Farmar is in a similar boat as Blake; not yet able to practice, but cleared to do basketball related activities. Farmar tore his hamstring on January 3rd in a different location than his initial tear, and was initially supposed to be sidelined for at least 4 weeks. He will be reevaluated, along with Blake, at the end of the week. <br />
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<u><strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/henryxa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Xavier Henry</a></strong></u>: Henry has been working out with the team, but isn't yet close to returning. He will likely be out for 10-14 more days and there hasn't been any new updates on his condition.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jodie Meeks</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Pau Gasol</a></strong> both have nagging injuries because of heavy minutes that are being logged in, particularly by Meeks. Meeks had an MRI for his nagging foot injury and it came back negative for a fracture. He is probable for today against Indiana. Pau continues to have toe problems, but is still listed as probable.
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-73741945000056874212014-01-23T16:00:00.000-08:002014-01-23T18:50:21.758-08:00Game-Time Chat: Lakers @ Heat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://cbsmiami.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/versailles6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://cbsmiami.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/versailles6.jpg" height="256" width="320" /></a></div>
Unfortunately, I will miss this game due to forces not entirely within my control (work), however, I'm not sure I wanted to see this one anyways. The Miami Heat are one of the NBA's very best teams and, despite a recent 2-4 road trip, the Heat are still a handful because of reigning league MVP <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">LeBron James</a></strong>, who leads the team in points (26.8), assists (6.5) and tied for the lead in rebounds (6.7), all while shooting an absolutely insane 58% from the field. It's unreal that James isn't running away with the MVP, despite these great all-around numbers. The Heat look absolutely dominant at times, especially when their role players are hitting the three point shot.<br />
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Miami has been absolutely dominating at home, amassing a record of 17-3 and playing the kind of defense that has won them two straight titles. The Heat are still primarily an offensive team behind James, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/wadedw01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Dwyane Wade</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/boshch01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Chris Bosh</a></strong>; they rank 2nd in Offensive Rating and 8th in points per game while only being ranked 21st in Pace. Miami still has a 30-12 record, despite being dead last in rebounding, though that could change if <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/odengr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Greg Oden</a></strong> could ever get his knees in good enough shape to play substantial amounts of minutes. Oden was really only brought in to help combat Indiana's <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hibbero01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Roy Hibbert</a></strong>, however, should he stay healthy enough, he could largely contribute for them on the glass and on the defensive end. </div>
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Offensively, Miami exploits any and all turnovers, being the most devastating fast break team since the Showtime Lakers; it's an alley oop fest between James and Wade on the fast break and there's very little anybody or any team can do about it. When not in transition, the Heat employ combinations of pick and rolls with James or Wade, isolations with James or Wade, or post ups with James or Bosh. While teams focus in on one of the three star players, there are subtle screens being set in an attempt to get <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/allenra02.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Ray Allen</a></strong> open and help stretch the floor so they can keep those 3 options available without the defense completely collapsing on them. Should teams manage to stick with Ray Allen and still contain the dribble drive with James or Wade, the team will usually find it's 4th or 5th option open on the perimeter, be that <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/battish01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Shane Battier</a></strong> or <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/chalmma01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mario Chalmers</a></strong>, both of which are above average three point shooters and have the ability to get hot in a hurry. </div>
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Defensively, Miami rotates exceptionally well and are very quick to close out on open shooters. The Heat's main game plan on defense is to force turnovers, so they play passing lanes early and often and will usually try to pressure the ball handler into a bad decision. This kind of defense has weaknesses against better passing teams like San Antonio, however it should work to perfection against the Lakers and their lackluster passing out of everybody not named <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong>. Miami will look to exploit that into easy baskets and more frustration out of the Lakers. </div>
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In short, the keys for Miami are: LeBron James. The keys for the Lakers are: try not to lose by more than 20. </div>
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-82058275225986720382014-01-23T09:00:00.000-08:002014-01-23T10:01:02.714-08:00Injury Update: 1/23/14<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i.imgur.com/WwWKgLJ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i.imgur.com/WwWKgLJ.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ugly season.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This train wreck of a season can't end fast enough. The Lakers are so badly injured, they don't have enough players to run their practices, using assistant coaches to fill out whatever spots are needed. Obviously, no team can go far with this many injuries. Here's what it looks like:<br />
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Lakers currently available: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jodie Meeks</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnswe01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Wesley Johnson</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Nick Young</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kellyry01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Ryan Kelly</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Hill</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kamanch01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Chris Kaman</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/sacrero01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Robert Sacre</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/harrima01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Manny Harris</a></strong>. That's only nine players. <i>Nine! </i>The team can't run 5-on-5 drills because they simple don't have enough healthy bodies. And Harris only signed a 10 day contract, for which he only has four more days. His contract runs until Sunday.<br />
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Lakers on the fence: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Pau Gasol</a></strong> (everything)<br />
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Lakers currently unavailable: <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a></strong> (knee), <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/henryxa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Xavier Henry</a></strong> (knee), <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farmajo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Farmar</a></strong> (hamstring), <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/blakest01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Blake</a></strong> (elbow), <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nashst01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Steve Nash</a></strong> (nerve). Just look at that list. You could field a semi competitive starting lineup with this group of injured players if you add a random center into the mix. That's five players on the disabled list, currently the most in the NBA, and this team is struggling to find a decent rotation. Marshall and Meeks have been playing heavy minutes and could end up getting injured themselves, should they continue to log in 40+ minutes per game. There isn't much <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/dantomi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mike D'Antoni</a></strong> can do in this case; nobody could have predicted all three point guards going down and forcing the team to sign another from the D-League. Granted, Marshall has been very good, substantially better than we could have realistically hoped for, however the point remains the same: this team is cursed. Here's each player's timetables:<br />
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<u>Kobe Bryant</u>: Bryant will be reevaluated when the team returns to Los Angeles, possibly on the 27th or the 28th. Bryant has been keeping his stamina up with bike exercises, however, until he gets medical clearance, he cannot return to the basketball court. And, Kobe wouldn't be Kobe if he didn't already say he would be back as soon as they let him. For our sake, please take as long as possible, Kobe.<br />
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<u>Pau Gasol:</u> Gasol just seems to be on and off with minor injuries, missing a few games here and there and it's likely affecting his production. Gasol's latest issue has been his foot, having sustained a moderate strain of the flexor tendon in the big toe of his left foot, originally sustaining this injury against the Clippers. I applaud Gasol for playing through it because who knows how badly the Lakers would play if they were missing him too. On the other hand, if he were to sit out, it might mean more minutes for Jordan Hill.<br />
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<u>Xavier Henry</u>: Henry hasn't yet returned to practice, but he has been running lateral drills and shooting drills. Henry doesn't sound too far off from returning, however he has been ruled out against Miami on Thursday and Orlando on Friday and will be reevaluated this weekend.<br />
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<u>Jordan Farmar:</u> If you recall, Farmar had initially torn his hamstring in early December, with the initial time table set for one month. Farmar made a surprise return against the Miami Heat and looked solid against them, however, he tore his hamstring in a different area shortly afterwards, requiring another month on the shelf. So far, no new information has come regarding Farmar's injury; I'd expect him to return sometime in mid-February, rather than late January or even early February.<br />
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<u>Steve Blake:</u> Vino Blanco, as Bryant once called him via Twitter, was diagnosed with a torn UCL in December and was expected to miss a minimum of 6 weeks. Blake had been participating lightly in practice, using his left hand as his dominant hand, and taking shots with the left. Blake will be reevaluated when the team returns to Los Angeles and a realistic timetable will likely be drawn up.<br />
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<u>Steve Nash:</u> Just retire already, Steve.<br />
<br />Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-21474990772115753642014-01-19T10:12:00.005-08:002014-01-19T10:12:54.729-08:00Game-Time Chat: Lakers @ Raptors<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/Raptors_0607.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/Raptors_0607.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not the latest Raptors court, I know</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
So, now that we're past <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Nick Young</a></strong>'s suspension and that satisfying, but not really, win over the Celtics on Friday night, we get to move on to the Toronto Raptors who are simply on fire. At first glance, their 20-18 record seems thoroughly unimpressive, especially in the lackluster Eastern Conference, however, since trading <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gayru01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Rudy Gay</a></strong>, they've been one of the most impressive teams to watch. When they still had Gay, the Raptors were sitting at 6-12 (and somehow in the playoff picture, because East); since trading him to the Sacramento Kings in early December, the Raptors have gone on a tear, going 14-6 in that time span and completely turning their team around. The Gay trade was meant to be a dump off; Toronto wanted trade away everyone of value and try to tank for hometown hero Andrew Wiggins, however, with <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/derozde01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">DeMar DeRozan</a></strong> and company turning it around, the Raptors are now seriously eyeing the 3rd seed in the East.<br />
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Remember all of the <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/lowryky01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kyle Lowry</a></strong> rumors from a month ago? They're all gone now and that's great for Toronto, not because they're actually competing (though that is always a positive), but because there is no way they would have gotten proper compensation for him. Lowry has been absolutely brilliant for them, being 6th in both WS/48 (.218) and total Win Shares (6.2), right behind MVP candidate <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/georgpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Paul George</a></strong>. Lowry has been one of the best point guards in the NBA, and nobody has really been paying attention to him. As of this writing, he's averaging 16.2 points and 7.4 assists per game while shooting 43.4% from the field (40.9% from deep) and currently has a 20.1 PER, which is bordering on elite. When you combine him with the high-flying DeMar DeRozan, who has been a Top-10 shooting guard this year, you get one of the best backcourt duo's in the NBA. DeRozan is leading the Raptors in points, averaging 20.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. The USC product is showing an improved offensive game, showing off a solid array of dribbling moves as he continues to get into the paint at will. The only knock on his game right now is his limited shooting range, as he only shoots 29.7% from long range, but that hasn't stopped him from being 2nd on the team in PER (17.2) and Win Shares (3.6) and third in WS/48 (.121).<br />
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Of course, the Raptors wouldn't be on fire with only two players playing well; teams also have to deal with the tandem of <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/v/valanjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jonas Valanciunas</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnsam01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Amir Johnson</a></strong> in the low block and they are a handful. Johnson is second on the team in WS/48 (.148) and third in Win Shares (3.5) and has been a solid contributor all season long. Valanciunas has shown a better back-to-the-basket game and has combined well with Johnson to form a solid front court, capable of rebounding well and scoring when they need to. It almost doesn't matter who they plug into at Small Forward; it doesn't make much of a different when your other starters are playing like All-Stars.<br />
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If the Lakers want to win this game, they need take care of the ball and convert their outside jumpers. It helps if you feed <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Pau Gasol</a></strong> early and often, seeing as how he's your best player at the moment. Unfortunately, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kobe Bryant</a></strong> will not be here to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2kBHsRR9Uc" target="_blank">hit a game winner</a> or <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27dfamB-4u0" target="_blank">two against Toronto</a>, (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQd2h4X0O2E" target="_blank">seriously, Kobe has been historically cruel to them in the past</a>) and that's fine; Bryant's main focus should be to get 100% healthy, and not rushing back on the court. The good news for the Lakers is that Nick Young returns today and can help take some of the load off of <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong> and the heavy minutes he has logged in in the past couple of games. Hopefully, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/dantomi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mike D'Antoni</a></strong> will decide that <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Hill</a></strong> needs more than 11 minutes in today's contest.
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-10020280378661238702014-01-17T20:57:00.002-08:002014-01-17T21:03:02.497-08:00Lakers Were Missing Nick Young, Somehow Win So, on the day I didn't even bother to check what the score was at anytime during the game, the Lakers somehow pulled out a win over the Boston Celtics, 107-104 despite <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/r/rondora01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Rajon Rondo</a></strong> returning for Boston. The Lakers only had 9 players available and only one perimeter player available off of the bench, which was <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/harrima01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Manny Harris</a></strong>, who just signed a 10 day contract with the team. With <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Nick Young</a></strong> being suspended and <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Jordan Hill</a></strong> dodging the bullet, the Lakers were going to need a great game out of somebody to win.<br />
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Luckily, <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Pau Gasol</a></strong> (who finally played 36 minutes like he would on literally almost every other team) came up huge with 24 points, 13 rebounds and 6 assists on 9-15 shooting, looking every bit like the former All-Star we all remember. Surprisingly, he wasn't the only player who played well; there were 5 Lakers in double digit scoring. We had <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnswe01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Wesley Johnson</a></strong> with 11 points, 11 rebounds. We saw <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Kendall Marshall</a></strong> score 19 points and drop 14 assists. We had a solid contribution from <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Jodie Meeks</a></strong> with 17 points and 7 rebounds. Despite only having 9 players available, somehow Jordan Hill only played 11 minutes... my patience wears thin with <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/dantomi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Mike D'Antoni</a></strong>'s rotations; lucky for him, it worked out tonight because <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kellyry01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Ryan Kelly</a></strong> played like a young <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nowitdi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Dirk Nowitzki</a></strong>. Kelly finished with 20 points and 4 rebounds off of the bench, making 6-12 shots and helped bring the Lakers back late in the game.<br />
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I guess the story here is Rondo's return from an ACL tear he sustained last year. Rondo looked solid enough in the 20 minutes he played, finishing with 8 points and 4 assists. I know I'm overlooking <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/olynyke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Kelly Olynyk</a></strong>'s huge 25 point, 7 assist, 5 rebound game but I'm doing so with good reason; Rondo is one of the premier point guards in the league when healthy and, even though he's on the Celtics, I wish him well. He's an exciting player to watch and has some of the best passing skills this side of <strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/p/paulch01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-">Chris Paul</a></strong>.<br />
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I'm not entirely sure how to feel about this game. On one hand, the Lakers beat the Celtics, which is always a great thing. On the other hand, the Lakers improved their record, thereby hurting their chances at a Top-5 draft pick. This is a draft where any of the Top-5 players selected could be franchise altering players and I want the Lakers to have the chance to draft Andrew Wiggins, or Jabari Parker or Joel Embiid. For the first time in a long time, a Laker win has not made me 100% happy.
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-61543515080711389032014-01-14T13:42:00.001-08:002014-01-14T13:42:20.322-08:00Game-Time Chat: Cavaliers @ Lakers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.nba.com/lakers/media/sect.321.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://www.nba.com/lakers/media/sect.321.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Somebody has to win this game. The Cavaliers will visit the Lakers tonight, and both are coming off of the most embarrassing losses in the NBA this season. Cleveland was dominated by the Kings to the final score of 124-80, getting completely outplayed at every single position. Similarly, the Lakers were pummeled by the Clippers to an embarrassing 123-87 beat down of the hobbled Lakers.<br />
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The Lakers have been absolutely dreadful for the past couple of weeks, dropping 10 of the past 11 games, only beating the Jazz on the back of <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong>'s 20 points, 15 assists break out game. The team has been lethargic on defense and hasn't been making their three point shots, while forcing a lot of the action. It doesn't help that the team continues to suffer injuries, minor and major. Just last week, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Nick Young</a></strong> was having back troubles that nearly held him out of games and this week, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Pau Gasol</a></strong> is experiencing some toe problems; he has a moderate strain of his flexor tendon in his big toe of his left foot and is questionable for tonight's game.<br />
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The Lakers have been shooting a horrid 41% in their last 11 games while allowing 110.2 points per game in this stretch. They've been turning the ball over at a ridiculous rate in this stretch, turning it over 21 times a game. It doesn't help that Nick Young and Pau Gasol haven't been playing well; Young is shooting a terrible 38.5% in this 11 game stretch and Pau has continued to struggle all year long, shooting a career low 44.8% on the season.<br />
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<strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/i/irvinky01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Kyrie Irving</a></strong> is leading the Cavaliers in points (21.7), assists (6.1) and PER (20.1) and is second in WS/48 (.119 behind <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/v/varejan01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Anderson Varejao</a></strong>'s .144) though he is only shooting 42.9% from the field. The Cavaliers run their offense entirely through him, running isolations and pick and rolls and fully utilizing his tremendous outside shooting ability and jaw dropping ball handling skills. Cleveland doesn't have the best inside scoring presence, however against the Lakers and their small-ball lineup, that could change between <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/t/thomptr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Tristan Thompson</a></strong> and Varejao likely dominating the glass. It doesn't help the Lakers that the Cavs are entirely injury free at the moment.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQKUiGmY54sjwoleqrTLajToE4x_LFPjc0RnRiu2PK9-Cet5oKmUNA3dvxlZm6XgL6F_G8H7V8-5GAyGvZmWO8hqwyT7HENkxTiWFNMfhSaLXX05lpzd8_Ylp2lY_J1hubx38K22-g29c/s1600/injury.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQKUiGmY54sjwoleqrTLajToE4x_LFPjc0RnRiu2PK9-Cet5oKmUNA3dvxlZm6XgL6F_G8H7V8-5GAyGvZmWO8hqwyT7HENkxTiWFNMfhSaLXX05lpzd8_Ylp2lY_J1hubx38K22-g29c/s1600/injury.png" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This image is depressing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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If the Lakers want to stop this skid, they need to crash the boards and limit turnovers; you can excuse poor offense if your defense is playing well, but you can't excuse not playing either. The Lakers will need to rotate on time and try to limit the amount of times the big men switch on to Irving, while on offense, the Lakers need to pass the ball and hit the open shots. Somebody has to win this game, though if recent weeks are any indication, the Cleveland Cavaliers will likely come out on top. This season cannot end fast enough.Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-29229174207814318952014-01-13T18:02:00.002-08:002014-01-13T18:02:28.507-08:00Jordan Hill Continues to Improve His Game<a href="http://lakernation.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/jordan-hill-lakers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://lakernation.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/jordan-hill-lakers.jpg" width="232" /></a>Because I'm never finished ripping on <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/dantomi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Mike D'Antoni</a></strong> and his decision to not play <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Jordan Hill</a></strong> more than 20 minutes a game, I figured today would be a good day to dissect Jordan Hill's game and how Hill has improved from below average player, to leading the team in PER.<br />
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As we all know already, Hill is an extraordinary rebounder; he possesses the strength and fundamentals to successfully box out the NBA's best rebounding big men. It's no coincidence that Hill is averaging 13.5 rebounds per 36 minutes and currently has a 19.7% Total Rebound Percentage, making him 6th in the NBA behind <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/drumman01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Andre Drummond</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jordade01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">DeAndre Jordan</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/howardw01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Dwight Howard</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bogutan01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Andrew Bogut</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/couside01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">DeMarcus Cousins</a></strong>. Hill isn't a very good defensive rebounder, only having a 23.1% Defensive Rebound Percentage, which does not rank within the Top-20, however Hill is an elite offensive rebounder, coming in 2nd on the Offensive Rebound Percentage with a whopping 16.3%, only behind Drummond. Hill has always been a great rebounding presence since joining the Lakers; this would be his lowest Total Rebound Percentage with the team, as he has had over 20% in both of the last two seasons with the Lakers. Hill would certainly help clean up the Lakers rebounding woes, seeing as how the team is dead last in opponent rebounding.<br />
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Defensively, he plays with energy and his rotations are usually on time; he isn't the biggest shot blocker though, only averaging 0.8 per game (1.3 per 36 minutes). He knows his limitations well, however, and won't over commit to the ball handler, thus not giving up rebounding position. He is second on the Lakers in Defensive Win Shares behind <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Pau Gasol</a></strong>, despite the lack of playing time and his Defensive Rating of 106 is 5th on the Lakers. Hill is a solid man-to-man defender as well, staying close with this defensive assignments and contesting as many shots as possible, though this has led to some foul trouble in the past. His foul troubles is his only knock, as he averages 4.3 fouls per 36 minutes.<br />
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Of course, what makes Hill so good is his vastly improved offense. Here's the shot charts for this year:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJYRoCzIIAREfev8YwSbK0qFjSfDcvQBeImzERijJHM3wsir0gC8QuS4ejIj2EBfshA0Sa0_4M54HNgkVeMB2OnjD4d7L5TLs_4UCAqKmzQwC_AffHurgYPUcD36SdYElaHZqXOKwzoNE/s1600/Shotchart_1389663025884.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJYRoCzIIAREfev8YwSbK0qFjSfDcvQBeImzERijJHM3wsir0gC8QuS4ejIj2EBfshA0Sa0_4M54HNgkVeMB2OnjD4d7L5TLs_4UCAqKmzQwC_AffHurgYPUcD36SdYElaHZqXOKwzoNE/s400/Shotchart_1389663025884.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Hill's skill set does not go in line with D'Antoni's coaching game plan, as Hill isn't a very good shooter at all; he can't stretch the floor and is entirely an inside player. He is a very good finisher around the rim, shooting an above league average 61.78% at the rim; for reference, the NBA's three best centers, Dwight Howard, DeMarcus Cousins and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/davisan02.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">Anthony Davis</a></strong>, all have a worse percentage at the rim than Hill. He is an excellent finisher in the pick and roll and is effective in this role; 80 of his 134 made shots have been assisted, the vast majority of those at the rim. The problem with Hill's offensive game being his ineffective jump shot, which limits him to only pick and rolls and not pick and pops, making him a bit easier to cover than, say, Pau Gasol, who can do both. Similarly, Hill isn't the type of player to carry your offense, and isn't a straight up isolation type player, though he has shown massive improvement in his back-to-the-basket game. Hill is shooting a combined 30 for 53 in hook shots, good for a 56.6%, which is elite level of efficiency.<br />
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When we couple his finishing ability with his incredible offensive rebounding numbers, we can see why Hill's Offensive Rating is easily the best on the Lakers at an astonishing 119. For reference, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-www.blogger.com" target="_blank">LeBron James</a></strong>, the NBA's best player, has an offensive rating of 122. This isn't to say Hill is on James' level, but he certainly gives the Lakers a major boost when he's on the court. As much as Mike D'Antoni wants to disagree, you can't look at the numbers and say otherwise.
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-50134482100138069212014-01-12T12:41:00.000-08:002014-01-12T12:41:59.795-08:00Mike D'Antoni And His Boneheaded Rotations<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i.imgur.com/N0lYdzs.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i.imgur.com/N0lYdzs.png" height="256" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We know, Kobe. We know.</td></tr>
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This season has just been a nightmare. The Lakers are plummeting in the Western Conference, having dropped from 13-13 to 14-23 and are realistically starting to look towards the possibility of a top-5 draft pick. This team has been pummeled with injuries and are barely able to put up a competent roster and yet, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/dantomi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mike D'Antoni</a></strong> continues to play favorites with the few players he has. Obviously, some of these moves can be traced back to injury and not having anybody else than can man that position, but others have almost no explanation at all. Here are the Lakers' leaders in minutes per game this season:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMGNCWJrdKEuJGUfKh-jeIc_T7-h20onFUX21EyBw_Hm-SQswjXOjVDnAnEXV4oMxocBlL63MgNAw6YA7A_bZAz49c28aUMcfAQc4LlkC0Xex8iP9nmX1RdxofUsF8wtRY1GT5ENoUaIo/s1600/NBAStats+(7).png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMGNCWJrdKEuJGUfKh-jeIc_T7-h20onFUX21EyBw_Hm-SQswjXOjVDnAnEXV4oMxocBlL63MgNAw6YA7A_bZAz49c28aUMcfAQc4LlkC0Xex8iP9nmX1RdxofUsF8wtRY1GT5ENoUaIo/s1600/NBAStats+(7).png" /></a></div>
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More than a few things stand out here. Why is <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Hill</a></strong> only playing 20.2 minutes a game? Why is your leading scorer, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Nick Young</a></strong>, only playing 27.2 minutes per game? Why is <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Pau Gasol</a></strong>, who is largely considered the Lakers' best player, only playing 30.8 minutes per game? So many questions and no clear answer. To help provide some context, here's the Lakers leaders in PER, as well as other important advanced statistics:<br />
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<div class="sr_share_wrap">
<table class="sr_share" data-freeze="3" id="" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 1px sold #aaa; font-size: .83em; overflow: auto;">
<colgroup><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col class="sort_col"></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col></col><col class=""></col></colgroup>
<thead>
<tr class="" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<th align="right" class="ranker sort_default_asc show_partial_when_sorting" data-stat="ranker" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="Rank">Rk</th>
<th align="left" class="tooltip sort_default_asc" data-stat="player" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;">Player</th>
<th align="center" class="tooltip sort_default_asc" data-stat="age" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="Age of Player at the start of February 1st of that season.">Age</th>
<th align="right" class="tooltip" data-stat="g" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="Games">G</th>
<th align="right" class="tooltip" data-stat="mp" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="Minutes Played">MP</th>
<th align="right" class="tooltip sorttable_sorted sort_col" data-stat="per" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #ffffaa; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="Player Efficiency Rating; a measure of per-minute production standardized such that the league average is 15.">PER<span id=""> ▾</span></th>
<th align="right" class="tooltip" data-stat="ts_pct" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="True Shooting Percentage; a measure of shooting effeciency that takes into account 2-point field goals, 3-point field goals, and free throws.">TS%</th>
<th align="right" class="tooltip" data-stat="off_rtg" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="<b>Offensive Rating</b>: An estimate of points produced (players) or scored (teams) per 100 possessions">ORtg</th>
<th align="right" class="tooltip sort_default_asc" data-stat="def_rtg" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="<b>Defensive Rating</b>: An estimate of points allowed per 100 possessions">DRtg</th>
<th align="right" class="tooltip" data-stat="ows" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="Offensive Win Shares; an estimate of the number of wins contributed by a player due to his offense.">OWS</th>
<th align="right" class="tooltip" data-stat="dws" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="Defensive Win Shares; an estimate of the number of wins contributed by a player due to his defense.">DWS</th>
<th align="right" class="tooltip" data-stat="ws" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="Win Shares; an estimate of the number of wins contributed by a player.">WS</th>
<th align="right" class="tooltip" data-stat="ws_per_48" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="background-color: #dddddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;" tip="Win Shares Per 48 Minutes; an estimate of the number of wins contributed by a player per 48 minutes (league average is approximately .100)">WS/48</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr class="" data-row="1" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="1" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">1</td>
<td align="left" csk="Hill,Jordan" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Jordan Hill</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">26</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">37</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">748</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">20.6</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.585</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">119</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">106</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">2.1</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.7</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">2.7</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.176</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="2" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="4" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">2</td>
<td align="left" csk="Gasol,Pau" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Pau Gasol</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">33</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolpa01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">34</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">1047</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">17.5</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.491</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">98</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">105</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.2</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">1.0</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">1.3</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.059</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="3" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="11" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">3</td>
<td align="left" csk="Marshall,Kendall" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Kendall Marshall</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">22</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">9</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">245</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">15.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.609</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">110</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">113</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.0</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.087</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="4" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="10" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">4</td>
<td align="left" csk="Farmar,Jordan" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farmajo01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Jordan Farmar</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">27</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/farmajo01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">22</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">456</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">15.0</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.497</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">99</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">109</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.1</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.3</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.042</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="5" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="3" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">5</td>
<td align="left" csk="Young,Nick" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Nick Young</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">28</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/y/youngni01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">37</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">1059</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">14.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.540</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">104</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">112</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">1.1</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.3</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">1.3</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.060</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="6" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="8" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">6</td>
<td align="left" csk="Sacre,Robert" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/sacrero01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Robert Sacre</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">24</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/sacrero01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">23</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">339</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">14.1</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.525</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">107</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">105</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.3</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.3</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.7</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.094</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="7" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="13" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">7</td>
<td align="left" csk="Kaman,Chris" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kamanch01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Chris Kaman</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">31</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kamanch01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">20</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">350</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">13.9</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.500</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">89</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">103</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">-0.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.0</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.005</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="8" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="6" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">8</td>
<td align="left" csk="Blake,Steve" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/blakest01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Steve Blake</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">33</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/blakest01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">21</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">669</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">13.3</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.533</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">106</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">111</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.7</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.2</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.9</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.067</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="9" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="2" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">9</td>
<td align="left" csk="Meeks,Jodie" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Jodie Meeks</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">26</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">37</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">1169</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">13.2</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.579</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">108</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">110</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">1.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.5</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">1.8</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.075</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="10" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="9" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">10</td>
<td align="left" csk="Henry,Xavier" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/henryxa01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Xavier Henry</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">22</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/henryxa01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">31</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">675</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">12.8</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.517</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">98</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">108</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.1</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.6</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.041</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="11" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="16" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">11</td>
<td align="left" csk="Bryant,Kobe" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Kobe Bryant</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">35</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bryanko01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">6</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">177</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">11.5</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.505</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">85</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">108</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">-0.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.1</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">-0.3</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">-0.076</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="12" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="5" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">12</td>
<td align="left" csk="Johnson,Wesley" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnswe01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Wesley Johnson</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">26</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnswe01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">36</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">967</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">10.7</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.518</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">99</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">108</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.2</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.7</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.9</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.045</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="13" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="7" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">13</td>
<td align="left" csk="Williams,Shawne" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/willish03.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Shawne Williams</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">27</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/willish03/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">32</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">645</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">9.3</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.500</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">100</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">106</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.2</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.6</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.8</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.056</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="14" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="12" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">14</td>
<td align="left" csk="Kelly,Ryan" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kellyry01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Ryan Kelly</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">22</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kellyry01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">15</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">189</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">8.4</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.528</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">109</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">111</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.2</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.1</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.2</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.061</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="15" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="14" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">15</td>
<td align="left" csk="Harris,Elias" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/harriel01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Elias Harris</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">24</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/harriel01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">2</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">11</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">7.8</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.000</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">91</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">108</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.0</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.0</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.0</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.023</td>
</tr>
<tr class="" data-row="16" id="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="display: table-row;">
<td align="right" csk="15" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">16</td>
<td align="left" csk="Nash,Steve" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nashst01.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">Steve Nash</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">39</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/n/nashst01/gamelog/2014/?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool">6</a></td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">135</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">6.7</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">.390</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">87</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">113</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">-0.2</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">0.0</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">-0.2</td>
<td align="right" onclick="" onmouseout="" onmouseover="" style="border: 1px solid #ccc; padding: 2px 3px 2px 2px; white-space: nowrap;">-0.065</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
<tfoot></tfoot></table>
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<br />
I'm sure most of you immediately noticed Jordan Hill and his near-elite PER of 20.6, as well as his .176 WS/48 (second among qualifying centers, behind <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/davisan02.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Anthony Davis</a></strong>), as well as his team leading 2.7 Win Shares, despite only playing 20 minutes a game. There is only one player within the Lakers' Top-5 in PER that is playing over 30 minutes a game and that is Pau Gasol, who is averaging a career low 30.8 minutes per game, though I suppose this isn't to be unexpected. Last season, Gasol only played 33.8 minutes per game under D'Antoni, both below his normal 35.7 career minutes per game. Gasol is one of two Lakers who can consistently create his own shot and it's almost criminal how D'Antoni has used him this year, running simple isolations with Gasol and hoping he has the strength, speed or quickness to score on his opponent instead of running subtle off ball screens or pick and rolls to get Gasol in better position, or better yet, having Gasol operate under the Horns set and letting him dictate who gets the ball and where.<br />
<br />
Similarly, I cannot fathom how your leading scorer is only getting 27 minutes per game; Young has been their only perimeter player than can create his own shot and I simply do not understand how D'Antoni chooses to give some of Young's minutes to lesser players like <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnswe01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Wesley Johnson</a></strong> or (formerly) <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/willish03.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Shawne Williams</a></strong>. I can understand <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/meeksjo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jodie Meeks</a></strong> leading the healthy Lakers in minutes; Meeks has been one of the few players to stay healthy all season and has been shooting well this season, but I think it's time to use a more conventional NBA rotation, one that has it's best players playing as close to 36 minutes as possible.<br />
<br />
Granted, it isn't really possible to have a rotation among the outside players because only <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong>, Young, Meeks and Johnson are available to play between the three outside positions (we saw <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kellyry01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Ryan Kelly</a></strong> get some time at small forward against the Clippers. That should never happen), though this makes me question why Young isn't playing more minutes when there simply isn't anybody else to play. And I haven't even mentioned how <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/sacrero01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Robert Sacre</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/k/kamanch01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Chris Kaman</a></strong> have been buried at the end of the bench; D'Antoni isn't playing either of them more than 17.5 minutes per game and Kaman has been basically out of the rotation. D'Antoni has taken a liking to playing a perimeter player at power forward because he does not care about defense or rebounding, which is criminal when you have Hill and Sacre who can both man that position when Gasol isn't out there.<br />
<br />
I have long said that D'Antoni is a solid coach; he a very good offensive coach and a below average defensive coach, however he was never right for the Lakers when they hired him and that still rings true. More and more, it is looking like his final season with the Lakers and all I have to say is: Don't let the door hit you on the way out.<br />
<br />Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-25804116702544833072014-01-10T16:00:00.000-08:002014-01-10T16:00:02.211-08:00Game-Time Chat: Lakers @ Clippers<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Clippers_vs_Suns.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Clippers_vs_Suns.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a>I am dreading this game. The Battle for Los Angeles, as the media has dubbed it, will be without Kobe Bryant or Chris Paul and it almost feels irrelevant, given the standings. Both teams are undermanned at the moment, however the Lakers are dangerously close to the limit, whereas the Clippers are missing Paul, JJ Redick and Reggie Bullock; they still have most of their rotation in tact. It certainly helps the team to have Darren Collison and Jamal Crawford as replacements for Paul and Redick. Bullock was barely playing 10 minutes a game, so I don't think the Clippers miss him too much.<br />
<br />
So, why am I dreading this game? Blake Griffin. The 24 year old Griffin has absolutely steam rolled most of the league, averaging 22.0 points and 10.3 rebounds per game; superb numbers out of the freakishly athletic power forward. Griffin is second on the Clippers in WS/48 (.182) and PER (21.7), and he hasn't struggled sans Paul because of his improved overall game. The numbers are similar to years' past, however Griffin's shooting stroke is much, much improved. He's at a career high in free throw percentage (70.2%) and three point percentage (35.0%), so past tactics of letting Griffin shoot and/or hacking him won't work as effectively. Griffin's shooting percentage from 16 feet to the three point line has improved considerably; he's shooting 40% from that range, compared to last season's 34%. Here are his shot charts:<br />
<br />
2013-14:<br />
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2012-2013:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3S3gB9ugkq3rjSFv5ZEvP3Myz0ADpgRAyZkpsLx7ssc7DRe9E4v13ypv1wL83Sw9KzZWUyqkvVvMKbVEXj9SxCDNmsjyyCha66AHjN0JmVN8qpyLPMjyJT5cDRI0egzVpHZuVliwrjLY/s1600/Shotchart_1389394982948.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3S3gB9ugkq3rjSFv5ZEvP3Myz0ADpgRAyZkpsLx7ssc7DRe9E4v13ypv1wL83Sw9KzZWUyqkvVvMKbVEXj9SxCDNmsjyyCha66AHjN0JmVN8qpyLPMjyJT5cDRI0egzVpHZuVliwrjLY/s1600/Shotchart_1389394982948.png" height="300" width="320" /></a></div>
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Red is below league average, yellow is league average and green is above league average. As you can see, Griffin has effectively extended his range all the way out to the three point line (granted, there's a small sample size for the three pointers Griffin takes). Last season, Griffin was above average in one spot only: below the rim. This season, he's above average in six areas of the court, and has cut down his below average areas considerably; last year's was whopping nine areas below average, this year it's only five. When you couple Griffin's past games against Pau Gasol and the Lakers, where he averages 20 points and 10 rebounds in 12 career games, you'll know why I do not like this match up one bit.<br />
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It doesn't help all of the times Griffin has basically jumped over Gasol:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/1032862/blake.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/1032862/blake.gif" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another reminder that Blake Griffin is a freak of nature</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.lobshots.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/bynum-pau-griffin-gif.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.lobshots.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/bynum-pau-griffin-gif.gif" height="179" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pau simply got demolished. </td></tr>
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When you add Griffin being a Top-5 power forward with the Clippers being 7th in Offensive Rating (108.5) and 8th in Defensive Rating (103.2) while still being 4th in rebounding and 3rd in assists, you can see why this game is a huge mismatch, heavily in the Clippers favor. Between Griffin and DeAndre Jordan, the Clippers have the size, bulk and athleticism to completely demolish the Lakers in the paint. This will not be a fun game, unless you're a Clippers fan, or the Lakers manage to limit the Clippers fast break opportunities, limit their own turnovers while simultaneously trying to create fast break points. The Lakers will need to make it rain from deep to give themselves a good opportunity to win. The good news here is that the Lakers have already beaten the Clippers this year. The bad news is that it was with almost an entirely different cast of Lakers.Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4477639914242583665.post-12578175901744506412014-01-08T09:23:00.001-08:002014-01-08T09:23:58.319-08:00There Is No Way Kendall Marshall Is This Good<a href="http://www.rantsports.com/nba/files/2014/01/Kendall-Marshall-Lakers-Jazz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.rantsports.com/nba/files/2014/01/Kendall-Marshall-Lakers-Jazz.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a>What do <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/marshke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Kendall Marshall</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/hilljo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Jordan Hill</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnswe01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Wesley Johnson</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/brownsh01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Shannon Brown</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/clarkea01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Earl Clark</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/henryxa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Xavier Henry</a></strong> all have in common? They are all talented first round draft picks that didn't pan out with their original teams and then came to the Lakers on cheap contracts or affordable trades, only to produce career bests for the team.<br />
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All of them are different and in more ways than one; playing style varies greatly between all of them and it makes pinpointing exactly why they had their breakthroughs with the team difficult. Nonetheless, all of them had a resurgence with the Lakers and Kendall Marshall has been the best of the bunch, through this admittedly very small sample size. First, let's remind ourselves what Marshall has done with his three starts: he burst onto the scene with a ridiculous 20 points, 15 assists and 6 rebounds against the Utah Jazz, becoming only the 2nd Laker ever to go for 10+ points and 10+ assists in his first start, as well as becoming the 2nd Laker to finish with 20 points, 15 assists and shoot over 65% in a game since <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/johnsma02.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Magic Johnson</a></strong>. His second game against the Denver Nuggets was a slower one; Marshall struggled from the field, shooting 3 for 10 and only scored 9 points, however he had an outstanding 17 assists in that game and looked like he thoroughly understood the offensive game plan. In last night's game, Marshall had some trouble with turnovers, racking up 6 of them to offset his 6 assists, but he did score 18 points on 7-10 shooting. Overall, Marshall is averaging 15.6 points, 12.6 assists and 5 rebounds per game while shooting 56.2% from the field and has a very good 19.5 PER, which would be 2nd on the team to Jordan Hill if he were to qualify.<br />
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So, where did Marshall come from? Drafted by the Phoenix Suns in the 2012 NBA Draft (13th overall), Marshall had an outstanding college career with the University of North Carolina, even going on to win the <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/cousybo01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Bob Cousy</a></strong> award for best point guard at the college level in his final season as a Tar Heel. Marshall struggled immensely in 48 games with the Suns last season, registering a horrid -0.012 WS/48 and was worth a -0.2 total Win Share to go along with a horrid 7.8 PER. Marshall didn't shoot well from anywhere, shooting only 37% from the field (31% from three point range) and registering a <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/h/howardw01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Dwight Howard</a></strong>-like 57% from the free throw line. Of course, Marshall did so under only 14 minutes a game, which makes hard to gauge whether or not he was NBA ready. The Suns ultimately decided he wasn't and traded him to the Washington Wizards, along side <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gortama01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Marcin Gortat</a></strong> and old friend Shannon Brown. The Wizards immediately waived Marshall, who then went on to average 19 points and 10 assists with the 76ers D-league affiliate, the Delaware 87ers.<br />
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Of course, the Lakers backcourt went down in a heap of nerve damage, muscle tears and broken bones that led to the Lakers signing Marshall to a minimum contract. I am glad they did because Marshall is clearly talented; he's a taller point guard, coming in at 6'4'', and has some of the better court vision in the league; Marshall had a solid grasp of how an NBA point guard is supposed to play and tries his best to emulate it. His passing ability has improved since college and his timing appears to now be on par with most above average NBA point guards. Marshall also appears to have greatly improved his shooting stroke; he's shooting 47% from downtown and 100% from the charity stripe. His basketball I.Q. is very high; he knows which players to feed at the correct time and at the correct area of the floor.<br />
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So, why did Phoenix and Washington give up on him? Well, the knock on Marshall was his mediocre defense, relatively slow movement out of a point guard and his below average shooting stroke. Marshall looked overwhelmed in his first season and not cut out to handle the NBA game. I insist that Marshall is talented, but is he this good? I don't think so, though <strong><a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/dantomi01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-" target="_blank">Mike D'Antoni</a></strong> runs a system reliant on a good passing point guard, so Marshall is indeed playing to his strengths. Ultimately, I believe Marshall will come down to Earth, but still be a solid guard in the rotation; his contract makes him extremely team friendly and hopefully, the team can retain him for next season as well. You know what they say, one man's trash is another man's treasure.
Kevin Sanchezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15103876526647089622noreply@blogger.com