As everyone knows, the Lakers made it to the Finals last year only to lose to the Celtics in 6 games. Everyone wants major changes like trading Lamar Odom, Pau Gasol, and some people even want Derek Fisher gone!?!?!?! Most Lakers fans don't think of the fact that if it wasn't for Odom and especially Gasol the Lakers wouldn't have made it to the Finals, but who knows if they can win with them. The Lakers don't necessarily need to trade anyone unless it is the only way to acquire a certain player that will propel them to the championship. James Posey could be that player. He has proved that he is good under pressure and at every aspect of the game. He can defend, shoot, pass, and drive in and dunk it. James Posey and Shane Battier are sort of the same in what they do except for Battier doesn't flagrantly foul people as often as Posey. The Detroit Pistons, Boston Celtics, and Los Angeles Lakers have shown a lot of interest in keeping Posey on their team (Celtics) or signing him as a free agent (Lakers and Pistons). That just proved how much Posey helps, because those were the 3 best teams last season according to record. If the Lakers offer James Posey a 6-8 million dollar a year contract and promise him a starting spot for a team that will probably be in the Finals again next year with him then that just might make him want to come. With a starting lineup of Fisher, MVP, Posey, Pau, and Bynum, along with Odom, Sasha, Farmar, and Ronny of the bench the Lakers will be a lot better. Odom would have a good chance of winning 6th man of the year and would have even less pressure than he already has, so he would probably avg about 11 ppg, 8 rpg, and 3 apg off the bench and be an even bigger matchup problem for other teams. With the maturation of Farmar, Ronny and Sasha the Lakers bench will be even better than it was last year and if Odom is on it, than their bench could be a starting lineup in the league and still be able to compete with other teams. The Lakers also really need a backup center who can play defense and isn't Kwame Brown. The best person available that fits that description is Desagana Diop, who won't want too much money, but will be a big help to the team. The addition of those 2 players would make the team a lot better, and if they decided to trade Odom for Marion, they would have better defense and a better starting lineup, but their bench would be worse because Marion wouldn't come off the bench and Posey would. The lineups without the Marion trade would be:
Starting:
PG- Fisher SG- Kobe SF- Posey PF- Pau C- Bynum
Bench:
PG- Farmar SG- Sasha SF- Odom PF- Turiaf C- Diop
The lineups with Marion would be:
Starting:
PG- Fisher SG- Kobe SF- Marion PF- Pau C- Bynum
Bench:
PG- Farmar SG- Sasha SF- Posey PF- Turiaf C- Diop
The Lakers don't really need to change anything, they just need to get better at defense and under pressure, but these trades and signings sure wouldn't hurt them.
Wasn't Odom already in Miami before he got to the Lakers (he was traded from there for Shaq)? I don't think he'd want to return there, and I don't see him willing to give up his starting spot, so it could get very messy in L.A.
You suggest that the Lakers need to make minor adjustents to a roster that was utterly smoked by the Celtics....that was the single most embarrassing Laker performance I have seen in 40 years of watching that team. Kobe Bryant is a great individual player but he is not capablle of carrying that team against a balanced defense. Think what you will about Derek Fisher but the consensus before the series was that he was probably a step slower than Rondo...wrong! He was 3 steps slower and when Rondo settled down he destroyed L.A. Want to build a better team in L.A., Keep Gasol but understand that he is soft and one dimensional...he is an excellent player but he is never going to be a classic power forward....he's a 3 in a 4 body....Dump Odom....he has zero heart and he so clearly resents Kobe's privileged position that he is NOT going to come back if he can help it....as far as that bench, Posey would be an enormous help and Farmar and Walton should stay....Sasha and Turiaf are wastes....
You are wrong when you say the Lakers don't need to change anything...playing defense is not just getting better at it....you need players who give up the O and their stats on O to do what the Lakers need....KG proved this year that he was more valuable than Kobe....do you ever see Pau, Lamar, or Kobe giving up their Offensive game to work on shut down defense....nah....that is why they need a major overhaul and they know it.
cammatt... we are all dumber for having read your ridiculous post. i award you zero points and may god have mercy on your soul.
as for the main blog, ubershorty, i hope the lakers don't get posey. $6 mil a season for a 31 year old role player? ew. i like posey, but not for that price.
you described diop as someone who "won't want that much money." Huh? trust me, diop and posey are both going to get the full MLE from someone. diop might actually get MORE than the MLE. big men that have any semblance of skill are like gold in this league. i like the idea of adding diop if he'll take a reasonable contract. he's 25 and a good defender and would be an ideal backup to bynum. but GMs seem to like to hand out ridiculous contracts in this league. i hope mitch isn't that GM.
Dump Kobe. As great a scorer as he has become, he still doesn't belong in the same gym as Jordan (in the second half of his career). Jordan had absolute control over the game. Kobe takes every opportunity to pose for the camera but his maturity has been retarded by his ego. Besides I still think that out-of-court settlement screams "I'm a ####". Smile CA.
To laker fans unfortunately somebodys has to go with a projected 90 mil salary cap nexty year. lamar will get 14.6 mil next year,personaly I hate to see him go I would trade Gasol and farmer (weak D )and try to get Caron Butler back he should never have been traded in the first place,and pick up a gaurd who can stay in front of the qiuck guys.
ur all wrong if the lakers trade lamar odom for ron artest they will have everything they need.They would have a reliable defender and a all around better player than lamar and james posey.
I am a die-hard Lakers fan. I write a lot of blogs for foxsports. I know a lot of stuff about basketball and have been named "The Basketball Oracle" by my family because of my basketball knowledge. I'm a huge Kobe Bryant fan and think he is the best in the game today. L.A. Lakers - 08-09 NBA Champs!!!
