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PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2016 1:20 am    Post subject:

lakersfreak wrote:
Byron Scott admits he could have been better at communicating with Lakers' young players
by Harrison Faigen - silverscreenandroll.com

Understatement of the year candidate

Less than 24 hours after calling the play of his younger players "soft and passive," Los Angeles Lakers head coach Byron Scott admitted the way he's communicated with the team's young players has been an issue.

"With our young guys, could I have probably done a better job [communicating]? Probably so," Scott told Bill Oram of the O.C. Register before the Lakers hosted the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday night. Scott has repeatedly called out his younger players for their lack of effort, or most often for "not being ready to play," following the Lakers' many losses so far this season.

The approach hasn't worked, with the team losing 61 games to guarantee at least a tie for the worst record in franchise history, a tie they can only achieve if they win their final five games.

The futility has seemingly given Scott some perspective, and the head coach was self-critical of his coaching on Wednesday:

Byron on job he's done this seasons self-assessing: "I'm very critical of myself. I think I could have done better. I can do better."

Scott also blamed the times we live in for the ineffectiveness of his communication with the Lakers' young core:

Continued....


Too little, too late, and too offset by his other remarks.
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PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2016 7:09 am    Post subject:

Russell Breaks Franchise Rookie 3-Point Record
by Joey Ramirez - nba.com

With a triple early in the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday, D'Angelo Russell broke the Lakers' 22-year-old record for 3-pointers in a season by a rookie.

That basket from downtown pushed Russell past Nick Van Exel, who hit 124 in 1993-94.

The 20-year-old's proficiency from deep extends outside the franchise, as he is also the youngest player in NBA history to sink at least 120 3-pointers.

Russell averages 1.6 3-pointers per game, which leads all rookies ahead of Phoenix's Devin Booker (1.3). His 35.1 percent clip from deep also ranks fifth among first-year players.

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PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2016 7:12 am    Post subject:

After Game Videos - Clippers at Lakers
by lakersnation.com

Kobe Bryant: 'You Either Win A Championship Or You're Sh*t'

Chris Paul After Final Game Against Kobe Bryant

Byron Scott On How Kobe Bryant's Farewell Impacts Young Players

Kobe Bryant's Expectations For Final NBA Game Of His Career
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PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2016 7:13 am    Post subject:

Kobe Bryant Says He Was ‘Very Close’ To Signing With Clippers In 2004
by lakersnation.com

Los Angeles Lakers fans have been extremely fortunate that they have been able to enjoy Kobe Bryant for the entirety of his 20-year career. That nearly wasn’t the case, however.

When Kobe was a free agent in 2004, there was a legitimate belief that he could leave the Lakers and join the crosstown-rival Los Angeles Clippers.

In an interview on ESPN LA 710, Kobe admitted that he was very close to signing with the Clippers via Lakers Nation reporter Serena Winters:

Kobe (on ESPN710) said he was "very close" to signing w/ Clippers in '04. At the time, potential of them playing in Anaheim very intriguing

The thought of Kobe in anything besides purple and gold is difficult to imagine, but it was very nearly a reality. The feud between Kobe and Shaquille O’Neal had reached its breaking point, and many believe Kobe would not have returned if the Lakers retained Shaq. Of course, the Lakers ultimately traded Shaq to the Miami Heat and Kobe re-signed the next day.

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PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2016 7:14 am    Post subject:

TDIKH: April 7, 2007
by nba.com

On a night when Kobe Bryant broke the scoring record of a 13-year arena, his explosion still wasn’t enough for a Lakers’ victory.

Bryant dropped 51 points at U.S. Airways Center, but his team still fell in Phoenix, 107-96.

Bryant shot 19-of-33 from the field with five 3-pointers, but the Suns countered with seven of their eight players scoring in double figures, including Steve Nash (25) and Leandro Barbosa (23).

Lamar Odom complemented Bryant with a 17-point, 11-rebound double-double, but Shawn Marion (12 points, 14 rebounds) and Boris Diaw (12 points, 12 rebounds) also collected a couple.

Despite Bryant scoring 18 points in the first quarter, 12 in the second and 13 in the third, the Lakers never led.

They chipped Phoenix’s lead down to 80-79 at the end of the third quarter, but the Suns began the fourth with an 18-4 run.

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PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2016 3:26 pm    Post subject:

lakersfreak wrote:
Russell Breaks Franchise Rookie 3-Point Record
by Joey Ramirez - nba.com

With a triple early in the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday, D'Angelo Russell broke the Lakers' 22-year-old record for 3-pointers in a season by a rookie.

That basket from downtown pushed Russell past Nick Van Exel, who hit 124 in 1993-94.

The 20-year-old's proficiency from deep extends outside the franchise, as he is also the youngest player in NBA history to sink at least 120 3-pointers.

Russell averages 1.6 3-pointers per game, which leads all rookies ahead of Phoenix's Devin Booker (1.3). His 35.1 percent clip from deep also ranks fifth among first-year players.

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Not bad rook
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 6:20 am    Post subject:

The 2015-16 Lakers are officially the worst Lakers team ever
by Harrison Faigen - silverscreenandroll.com

A postmortem on the poorest purple and gold squad of all-time

The Los Angeles Lakers lost to their Staples Center co-tenants on Wednesday night. It was their second loss in a row to the Clippers, and their 62nd loss of the season. That second number means that this group of Lakers will officially finish the season with the worst record in the franchise's history. It's a fitting end to a miserable campaign.

I normally don't like to talk about myself in these posts, but here goes. The three years I've covered the Lakers in any capacity have been the worst three seasons in the team's history (Maybe I'm the problem). My first post was the day Dwight Howard left, and things have only gotten worse from there.

The bottom fell out on Mike D'Antoni's mismatched group of veterans the next year, and he was fired soon after that team posted the worst record in franchise history. Byron Scott was hired to make the Lakers great again. A poor roster and poorer coaching have made that impossible, and his team also set a new low.

The point is, there has been a lot of bad basketball over the last few years. This group of Lakers still earned their distinction as the worst of those teams.

Little-to-no ball movement? Check. Lack of a coherent defensive plan or execution? Yup. Nearly every coaching press conference turning into a storm of quoted tweets mocking the head coach? That happened, along with nearly every other ingredient necessary to create the burnt frozen pizza that was this year's Lakers.

Like a frozen pizza, the 2015-16 Lakers were never expected to be good. They were expected to be competent, to get the job done until better options could be found. Instead, they just left everyone associated disappointed and with an understanding that the team needs an almost entirely new dish with a different chef.

Byron Scott wasn't at fault for everything wrong with the Lakers, but his strange rotations and seeming lack of a plan beyond telling his players to do some variation of putting in more effort or manning up certainly didn't help the team. Scott himself summed things up after the loss to the Clippers better than I ever could:

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 6:21 am    Post subject:

Kobe Bryant and young Lakers didn't come together as well as had been hoped
by Mike Bresnahan - latimes.com

Lakers Coach Byron Scott has a vision of Kobe Bryant's final shot.

Bryant gets the ball down low, perhaps on the right post, and scores on his patented fadeaway with almost no time left next Wednesday against the Utah Jazz. The Lakers win and Bryant goes out a hero amid slowly dissolving cheers at Staples Center.

Bryant had a different idea of what he wanted in his final game.

"Win the championship," he said Wednesday. "That — ain't happening, so there you go."

Long before this season began, Lakers officials hoped there would be a somewhat successful confluence of young and old — Bryant leading the way with D'Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson and Julius Randle eagerly learning on the fly.

It's exactly what hasn't happened for the Lakers (16-62), who begin the final trip of Bryant's tenure Friday in New Orleans.

Bryant has largely been an apparition, playing more games than expected but attending about 3% of practices and shootarounds. And that might be generous.

He has dutifully tried to preserve his body in his 20th NBA season. The fact he'd likely hit 66 games on his last route through the league was impressive considering his previous three seasons were prematurely ended because of injury.

The many gifts and pregame ceremonies on the road have been thoroughly enjoyed by Bryant — and also deserved — since he announced his retirement intentions Nov. 29.

But though he went through countless hours of stretching and massage therapy every week, the Lakers' young players were left without him on the practice floor while wondering whether he'd be in the lineup for the next game.

It didn't help team continuity throughout this season, and that was well before last week's saga with Russell, Nick Young and a leaked video.

Earlier this week, Scott said it "bothered the hell" out of him that Bryant was going out with so many losses. He reminded everybody that Bryant was "a champion" and cited frustration with uninspired efforts from just about every player except 36-year-old Metta World Peace.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 6:23 am    Post subject:

Byron Scott: Players Already Thinking About Offseason
by Ramneet Singh - lakersnation.com

In the first game of a back-to-back against the rival Los Angeles Clippers, the Los Angeles Lakers suffered an embarrassing 22-point loss. The Clippers have had the Lakers’ number as of late, and nothing changed as their Pacific Division foes walked away with a 103-81 loss. The two teams will square off once again on Wednesday night with Kobe Bryant and company being the home team this time around.

The Lakers did not play well on Tuesday night and from the opening tip the Clippers asserted their dominance. The Clippers shot over 50 percent from the field while the Lakers were a miserable 31 percent. After the loss, coach Byron Scott spoke to the media and torched his team for their lack of effort.

Scott called out his players for already looking forward to the offseason and how they cannot duplicate the intensity of Bryant and Metta World Peace, via Mark Medina.

Byron said the team played "soft" and argued he thinks many have already thought about the offseason

Byron wondering aloud why his young players don't match Kobe's and Metta's intensity

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 6:25 am    Post subject:

D-Fenders' selfless culture on display in win over Reno Bighorns
by Harrison Faigen - silverscreenandroll.com

Los Angeles' minor league team all wanted to share credit for a big playoff win

Culture is as highly valued in basketball as any intangible quality. Good culture is cited when teams when championships, and bad culture is blamed when teams spend years stuck in mediocrity.

The Los Angeles Lakers' D-League affiliate, the Los Angeles D-Fenders, have developed the former type of culture under head coach Casey Owens. This positivity and selflessness was on display both during and after the team's 127-116 win over the top-seeded Reno Bighorns in their first game of the postseason.

It's easy for teammates and coaches to be happy with each other after a win, but the D-League is a slightly different dynamic than an NBA team. With players and coaches all working with the hope of a far more lucrative call-up, the temptation for selfishness is high, but it's one the D-Fenders have resisted. This habit starts at the top.

If one only listened to Casey Owens talk, they would think he was coaching one of the greatest basketball teams ever assembled rather than a collection of talented but flawed players who have banded together to cover for each others weaknesses. Maybe that's part of the point.

To Owens, the D-League's leading scorer Vander Blue, who led the D-Fenders with 43 points on the night, is "far more talented" than many of the players called up before him this season. "That's an NBA player out there," said Owens.

In the mold of his head coach, Blue credited his teammates for keeping him focused after a poor first quarter and allowing him to score 18 points in the second. Rather than discuss his scoring though, Blue wanted to talk about the contributions of one of those same teammates that helped create the driving lanes he used for so much success all season long.

"Andre [Ingram] is our best shooter," said Blue. "We expect him to be a leader and just come in and keep everything together."

If there is a position more thankless than being a D-League spot-up shooter that mainly helps create space for higher scoring teammates, it has to be "D-League assistant coach." That's also exactly where Ingram said much of the responsibility for his 17 points on 7-9 shooting belonged.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 7:18 am    Post subject:

lakersfreak wrote:
The 2015-16 Lakers are officially the worst Lakers team ever
by Harrison Faigen - silverscreenandroll.com

A postmortem on the poorest purple and gold squad of all-time

The Los Angeles Lakers lost to their Staples Center co-tenants on Wednesday night. It was their second loss in a row to the Clippers, and their 62nd loss of the season. That second number means that this group of Lakers will officially finish the season with the worst record in the franchise's history. It's a fitting end to a miserable campaign.

I normally don't like to talk about myself in these posts, but here goes. The three years I've covered the Lakers in any capacity have been the worst three seasons in the team's history (Maybe I'm the problem). My first post was the day Dwight Howard left, and things have only gotten worse from there.

The bottom fell out on Mike D'Antoni's mismatched group of veterans the next year, and he was fired soon after that team posted the worst record in franchise history. Byron Scott was hired to make the Lakers great again. A poor roster and poorer coaching have made that impossible, and his team also set a new low.

The point is, there has been a lot of bad basketball over the last few years. This group of Lakers still earned their distinction as the worst of those teams.

Little-to-no ball movement? Check. Lack of a coherent defensive plan or execution? Yup. Nearly every coaching press conference turning into a storm of quoted tweets mocking the head coach? That happened, along with nearly every other ingredient necessary to create the burnt frozen pizza that was this year's Lakers.

Like a frozen pizza, the 2015-16 Lakers were never expected to be good. They were expected to be competent, to get the job done until better options could be found. Instead, they just left everyone associated disappointed and with an understanding that the team needs an almost entirely new dish with a different chef.

Byron Scott wasn't at fault for everything wrong with the Lakers, but his strange rotations and seeming lack of a plan beyond telling his players to do some variation of putting in more effort or manning up certainly didn't help the team. Scott himself summed things up after the loss to the Clippers better than I ever could:

Continued....

Burnt frozen pizza. So that's what I've been tasting...
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 2:46 pm    Post subject:

Lakers Currently One Loss Away From Locking Up the Second Worst Record Overall
by Eric Yee - lakeshowlife.com

After the worst season in Lakers’ franchise history, fans are desperately hoping that the lottery balls fall their way come May 19

When ESPN projected that the Los Angeles Lakers would only win 27 games on the season, proud fans of the Purple and Gold everywhere scoffed in disgust.

However, with only four games left on the year and a dismal 16 wins under their belt, the Lakers may have finally reached rock bottom.

With a loss, or a Phoenix Suns victory, the Los Angeles Lakers will lock up the second worst record in the association and the 55.83 percent chance of keeping their draft pick that comes along with it. When it’s all said and done, the Lakers will trail only the Sam Hinkie-less, Philadelphia 76ers.

That said, if the Lakers somehow miraculously end up winning their remaining four games, which, all things considered, is doubtful, and the Suns lose out, then the Lakers will split the lottery balls with Phoenix.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 2:47 pm    Post subject:

TDIKH: April 8, 2005
by nba.com

A bruised shin wasn’t going to slow down Kobe Bryant.

“It was actually sorer today than it was before the last game,” Bryant told reporters after dropping 42 points in the Lakers’ 117-94 win in Seattle.

Bryant shot 15-of-22 from the field, including a blistering 7-of-11 on 3-pointers, while Caron Butler poured in 31 points to help the Lakers rout the SuperSonics.

While Ray Allen led Seattle with 30 points and five 3-pointers, Los Angeles’ entire offense was clicking. L.A. tallied 31 assists, with six Lakers notching at least four, including Bryant, who had all five of his in the first quarter.

Seattle took a 35-31 lead midway through the second period before the Lakers unleashed 15 unanswered points. Minutes later, Bryant banked in a buzzer-beating 3-pointer for a 56-41 advantage at halftime.

After the Lakers increased their cushion by seven points in the third quarter, Bryant buried the Sonics by erupting for 21 by himself in the final frame.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 2:49 pm    Post subject:

Kobe Bryant finale leads to plethora of high-ticket items
by Darren Rovell - espn.go.com

Fans looking to acquire commemorative items to celebrate the end of Kobe Bryant's career better have a healthy bank account.

Limited-edition items conceived by Anschutz Entertainment Group, which runs the Staples Center and its merchandise, will run the gamut, from snakeskin texture jerseys for $424 all the way up to a hat that costs $38,024.

Some items will be available for purchase at the Los Angeles Lakers' online store beginning at 8:24 a.m. PT Thursday. Other items will first be available at the Lakers store at the Staples Center on April 13, the night of Bryant's final game, against the Utah Jazz.

"This city is all about spectacle," said Sean Ryan, vice president of AEG Merchandise. "Derek Jeter might have represented the blue-collar people of New York, but Kobe is more about showtime, so we had to think of diamonds and gold."

The merchandise is licensed by the NBA and Bryant's company, Kobe Inc., which will receive an undisclosed cut of each sale.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 8:37 pm    Post subject:

Byron Scott's status to be a key topic for the Lakers in the off-season
by Mike Bresnahan - latimes.com

There's a lot to be determined once the Lakers' season ends, mainly what to do with Coach Byron Scott.

He has one more guaranteed year on his contract for about $4 million and he'll have presided over the two worst seasons in Lakers history.

Team executives Jim Buss and Mitch Kupchak have deliberately put off pondering Scott's future until after this season. It might take a while, even after the Lakers' season finale next Wednesday.

The team has until June 1 to notify Scott whether he'll be retained, as per terms of his contract, according to a person familiar with the situation.

Scott has some sympathizers in the Lakers' hierarchy. He has had to deal with Kobe Bryant's eroding play while relying heavily on four young players — Jordan Clarkson, D'Angelo Russell, Julius Randle and Larry Nance Jr.

There's also some curiosity regarding what Scott would do with a better roster. With Bryant's contract coming off the books, along with underperforming center Roy Hibbert, the Lakers will have about $55 million to spend on free agents this summer, likely enough to sign two maximum-salaried players.

But the Lakers were 21-61 last season and Wednesday clinched an even worse mark after losing to the Clippers, 91-81. With only four games left, the Lakers (16-62) will finish with the lowest winning percentage in their 68-year history.

If Scott got fired, he would be the third Lakers coach in a row to exit before his contract expired, joining Mike Brown, who was fired, and Mike D'Antoni, who resigned.

Scott, for his part, tried to analyze how he'd fared this season.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 8:38 pm    Post subject:

Rounding Up the Reasons Los Angeles Lakers Should Fire Byron Scott
by Michael Pina - bleacherreport.com

Byron Scott’s second season as head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers was even worse than the first, when they set a franchise record with 61 losses. Heading into their Friday night contest against the New Orleans Pelicans, they're at 62 losses with four games left in the year.

From Halloween to April Fools’ Day, each day seemingly delivered a new controversy: Scott’s off-putting obsession with machismo, D’Angelo Russell’s infantile performance art, Julius Randle’s broken jump shot, Kobe Bryant’s distracting melodrama—the list goes on. This entire year has been a steady avalanche of interference.

All the team’s problems do not lead back to Scott. He didn’t build the roster or know on opening night that Kobe would railroad the organization’s short-term objective—meaning their clear, albeit shortsighted intention to win basketball games—by announcing his retirement.

But Scott’s inability to handle what he should be able to—nightly effort, execution, scheme, player development, minute distributions, etc.—was, and continues to be, a big part of the problem.

Of course, Scott’s job is to play the cards he’s dealt, and Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak has dealt him a losing hand. Instead of experimenting with NBA Developmental League call-ups or making any move at the trade deadline to open up a roster spot, there was silence.

But the best coaches extract juice from the driest fruit. Scott didn't.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 8:38 pm    Post subject:

D-Fenders Game Recap: Vander Blue’s 43-Point Performance Leads L.A. To Game 1 Win
by Alan Huerta - lakersnation.com

The NBA Developmental League Playoffs tipped off last night for the Los Angeles D-Fenders as they hosted the Reno BigHorns in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals. Unlike the best-of-seven playoff format that is seen the NBA, the D-League operates in a best-of-three contest with the top-four seeds (including the division winners) from each conference advancing to the postseason. In the D-League playoff system, the lower seed plays at home for Game 1 as the higher seed plays Game 2 and Game 3 (if necessary) at home to finish off the series.

This D-Fenders team is led by D-League All-Stars and former NBA players Vander Blue and Justin Harper. Blue, who was a Los Angeles Laker call-up last season, had been one of the league’s top scoring threats throughout the season, ranking second overall with 26.3 points per game. Harper, on the other hand, was called up by the Detroit Pistons in late February and signed two 10-day contracts before the team deferred on picking up contract up for the rest of the season. Although Los Angeles (No. 4 seed) has a tough matchup against the No. 1 seeded Reno BigHorns led by the dynamic backcourt of Erik Green and David Stockton, the D-Fenders have one of the more well-rounded teams with a combination of former call-ups and potential NBA talent.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 8:40 pm    Post subject:

Kobe Bryant says “you should hate me” in latest Nike commercial (Video)
by Mark Medina - insidesocal.com

On the surface, the adoring crowds, endless gifts and infinite farewell videos suggested Kobe Bryant became this revered figure that smiled, laughed and shook everyone’s hands in sight.

Throughout Bryant’s 20-year NBA career with the Lakers, he often played the villain. He clashed with teammates over their work ethic. He butted heads with coaches at time over his role. He once grew impatient with the Lakers over their rebuilding plan. Yet, Bryant maintained he behaved that way amid his endless desire to win.

Hence, the theme around Bryant’s latest Nike commercial involves the juxtaposition between the Lakers’ star both being loved and hated. It sounds like Bryant would not want it any other way.

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PostPosted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 8:41 pm    Post subject:

Horace Grant's favorite Kobe Bryant memory is vintage Black Mamba
by csnchicago.com

Even early in Kobe Bryant's career, Horace Grant knew not to poke the bear.

Grant, who was introduced Wednesday as a special advisor to Bulls COO Michael Reinsdorf, visited CSN Chicago's downtown studio and discussed a number of league-wide topics.

Among them, his most memorable encounter with Kobe Bryant. Grant recalled a game in Los Angeles late in his lone season with the Seattle SuperSonics against the Lakers.

Bryant, just 21 at the time, had a quiet first half, scoring just eight points while being guarded by Sonics forward Ruben Patterson. The Sonics held a surprising 40-39 lead over the league-best Lakers. And that's where everything went wrong.

"We had a guy on our team named Ruben Patterson, and he had held Kobe down. And then he walks off the court at halftime, doing the crowd like this, and I was like, 'Put your hand down!'

"And he came back (after halftime) and Kobe just lit him up."


Bryant finished with 33 points. The Lakers won in overtime. Patterson managed to finish with 21 points and learned an important lesson in the process.

The Lakers won the title that year, led by Grant's old coach Phil Jackson. It was the first of five titles for Bryant. Seattle lost in the first round of the playoffs that year. But Patterson will always have that one half against the Black Mamba.

See what else Grant had to say, including what his role with the Bulls will be, in the video above.

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PostPosted: Sat Apr 09, 2016 6:22 am    Post subject:

How the Lakers have gotten worse this season
by Taylor Smith - todaysfastbreak.com

Last season, the Los Angeles Lakers endured the worst season in the team’s 68-year history when they went just 21-61, good for the NBA’s third-worst record. However, many seemed more optimistic about the team’s chances of maybe competing for one of the West’s final playoff spots this season with the offseason pickups of D’Angelo Russell, Roy Hibbert, Brandon Bass and Lou Williams along with Julius Randle’s return from injury.

Unfortunately, in spite of having a roster with more apparent talent than last season’s bunch, the Lakers have gotten substantially worse. It’s hard to get much worse than a team that won 21 of 82 games a season ago, but they’ve managed to do so. This iteration of the Lakers currently sits at 16-62 and set a brand new franchise record for defeats in a season with their loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night.

This team’s futility is even more amazing when you consider the fact that the Western Conference as a whole is as weak as we’ve seen it in decades. There’s a good chance the No. 5 seed in the playoffs is going to have about 45 wins. Two years ago, Phoenix won 48 games and didn’t even qualify. In spite of that, though, the Lakers have mustered a record of 7-41 to this point against Western Conference foes. That’s almost as impressive as it is depressing.

Let’s compare the rosters between last year’s Lakers and this year’s team. A lot of people — yours truly included — figured they’d be better this season. Looking back, though, it’s pretty evident now that the 2014-15 iteration had better depth and playable NBA talent. Los Angeles lost Ed Davis, Jeremy Lin, Wesley Johnson, Wayne Ellington and Jordan Hill last summer. Every one of those players has managed to carve out a decent niche with their new teams. All but Ellington is a rotation cog on a team destined for the postseason. None of them is a great player by any means, but they’re all players that figure to be around for a while.

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PostPosted: Sat Apr 09, 2016 6:23 am    Post subject:

Lakers have big plans for Kobe Bryant's final game
by Mike Bresnahan - latimes.com

How active is the runway leading up to Kobe Bryant's final game Wednesday?

Lakers employees need new words to express it.

"The game is going to be a 'zircus' — a zoo and a circus," said long-time Lakers publicist John Black, who is responsible for plenty of behind-the-scenes work for Bryant's farewell against Utah at Staples Center.

The team plans to bring in about 30 of Bryant's former teammates, with commitments including Shaquille O'Neal, Robert Horry, Rick Fox, Ron Harper and, on the unique side, DJ Mbenga and Adam Morrison. Smush Parker, however, will not be there.

The rush for media credentials has also been lively.

The Lakers have already turned down hundreds of requests, Black said. There are typically 600 seats for media members in NBA Finals games at Staples Center, though it is unknown how many reporters, broadcasters, producers and whatever else the Lakers will be able to handle Wednesday.

"It's absolutely unprecedented for the regular season," Black said Friday. "Is it NBA Finals levels? Yes. It might be even bigger than that."

Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea will play the national anthem Jimi Hendrix-style and then there will be a tribute video a few minutes long.

Bryant, however, is sticking to his months-long credo that he doesn't want elaborate gift presentations before games, a message the Lakers have told opposing teams before they play host to Bryant one last time.

The Lakers currently plan on privately giving him unspecified gifts before the game.

Continued....
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lakersfreak
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PostPosted: Sat Apr 09, 2016 6:25 am    Post subject:

Kobe Bryant: D’Angelo Russell’s Desire To Learn Sets Him Apart
by Ryan Ward - lakersnation.com

The Los Angeles Lakers made a bold decision in the 2015 NBA Draft to go with D’Angelo Russell over Jahlil Okafor with the second overall pick. The franchise was both praised and criticized for the move, but the team seems confident the right decision was made with the rookie point guard showing flashes of star potential in his first season.

Although Russell has put himself and the organization in a difficult position with the recent incident involving teammate Nick Young, Kobe Bryant feels the rookie will work through it and eventually figure things out. Bryant made an appearance on ESPN LA 710’s Mason and Ireland on Wednesday and said the following about Russell, via Lakers Nation reporter Serena Winters:

Kobe on D'Angelo:
"I think it was a good pick...He’s going to have to go through many ups & downs but he’ll figure it out."


Bryant also believes Russell has the attributes to be successful in the NBA. Kobe thinks D’Angelo’s ambition and desire to learn will help him along the way, via Winters:

Kobe said the important thing with D'Angelo Russell is that "he has the ambition and curiosity" to learn.

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PostPosted: Sat Apr 09, 2016 6:26 am    Post subject:

TDIKH: April 9, 2009
by nba.com

In a preview of the 2009 Western Conference Finals, Kobe Bryant gave Denver a taste of what was to come, dropping 33 points to lead the Lakers to a 116-102 victory.

Pau Gasol added 27 points and 19 rebounds, while Andrew Bynum pitched in 16 points for Los Angeles’ fifth straight win.

Bryant shot 11-of-19 from the field and 9-of-10 a the free throw line to counter Carmelo Anthony’s 23 points.

Denver took a 64-63 lead midway through the third quarter, but Bryant, Gasol and Bynum then keyed a 19-5 run to take the advantage for good.

In fact, the Lakers outscored their visitors in the second half, 60-46, after playing to a 56-point tie in the first.

L.A. also hit 37 free throws on the night, while Denver made 25.

Continued....


Last edited by lakersfreak on Sun Apr 10, 2016 12:42 am; edited 1 time in total
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PostPosted: Sat Apr 09, 2016 6:29 am    Post subject:

Video Montage: Kobe vs Pelicans
by lakersnation.com


Last edited by lakersfreak on Sat Apr 09, 2016 6:30 am; edited 1 time in total
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PostPosted: Sat Apr 09, 2016 6:30 am    Post subject:

New Orleans Pelicans Kobe Bryant Tribute Video
by lakersnation.com
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