June 15th: Off-Season Game Plan: Lakers

[Phil]

Off-Season Game Plan: Lakers

Scott Cullen

6/15/2006 4:34:01 PM

The return of Phil Jackson made the Lakers relevant again and, though there were a few bumps in the road this year, they are in position to make further progress next season.

Jackson, of course, has to deal with a strange team dynamic in which Kobe Bryant dominates everything at all times, and then can go curiously silent in the second half of an elimination playoff game. Massaging Kobe's ego and trying to fit it into something resembling a team concept is why Jackson gets an eight-figure salary and a reputation as the Zen Master; it's not an easy job.

At the same time, teams would be lined up to have a talent like Kobe. He's among the elite players in the game and can take over games. If the Lakers are going to have success, it's going to have to come with Kobe as an integral component.

What the Lakers need is an interior presence to help ease the load on Bryant. (Hmm, didn't they have one of those before?) While Lamar Odom is versatile and talented, he doesn't command double-teams or dominate in the paint and he can get ignored offensively, so there is some reason to think that he might be better off somewhere else.

Related Info
TSN.ca NBA Off-Season Game Plans
With Odom as the bait, the Lakers could go shopping for some of the premier big men in the league. Indiana's Jermaine O'Neal, for instance, would provide that low-post presence and a package of Odom and Chris Mihm or even Andrew Bynum could get discussions moving in the right direction.

[Phil]

Roby will decide by Saturday

CU guard will have worked out for about 10 NBA teams by then

By Kyle Ringo, Camera Sports Writer
June 15, 2006

Colorado guard Richard Roby worked out for the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday and said he will make a decision about his future no later than Saturday.
Roby, the leading scorer on the men's basketball team at CU the past two seasons, made himself eligible for the NBA draft earlier this spring but did not hire an agent, leaving open the possibility of returning to Boulder for his junior season.