Lakers obviously lost here. I almost stated that they shot themselves in the foot but it a far more lethal blow they inflicted on themselves.
When the Lakers stated after the season, that they were committed to D'Antoni and he "wasn't going anywhere" -- they might have well gone ahead on packed Dwight's bags for him. D'Antoni took what should have been the best frontcourt in basketball and turned on the most skilled post players into a 3 point shooter and the other into watching the ball bounce around the perimeter. IMO, the only reason why D'Antoni is still coaching the Lakers is because Jim Buss can't admit he doesn't know anything about basketball and he made a mistake.
They didn't do the Lakers strategy any good by allowing Kobe to become part of the "pitch" to Howard. How many saw that going well? While Kobe (and Nash) did have a point (stay in LA, don't let an injury ridden season be the way you left -- of yeah, you were injured most of the season too and played some of the worst ball of your career this year, learn how to win a championship) -- Howard already thinks of himself as "the man." I think Kobe and Nash are right in their assessment but that's telling Howard things he doesn't want to hear.
The Lakers roster is a nightmare for next season. Kobe is hurt until at least November. Steve Nash's age is going to be shown in injuries. MWP is a shell of his former self. Meeks didn't do well when he had wide open looks. Earl Clark was probably the brightest spot in the Lakers season last year and he is gone (glad he got a decent contract -- he earned it this year). Antawn Jamison was worthless (who liked that signing?). Jordan Hill was hurt (he may start next season which hurts our bench even more). Gasol looked horrible this year until they finally lt him go back into the post and then he proceeded to outplay Dwight the rest of the year.
Laker fans will get the privilege of watching to see how the Lakers rebuild in 2014.
As for the pros of watching Howard go -- this guy has got to learn another post move besides the baby hook and athleticism. I know the Lakers didn't have the shooters Orlando had but his post moves were abysmal. He has proven he isn't a leader. He wants to be "the man" but I still see Hardin being "the Man" in Houston but Hardin and Hardin will get together better. Hardin doesn't have Kobe's huge ego and Hardin won't push Howard as much as Kobe did. Also, I did not like what I saw in the final game of the playoffs. Howard quit. That's not the mark of a leader (okay, it is of a bad leader). Do you want to build a franchise around that type of character?
Houston should be very good this year. They already had a scrappy defense and they have a ton of shooters to give Howard room in the post. If Howard can be happy with letting the ball move around the perimeter rather than feeding into the post first, Howard will fit into the offense very well and he will make the Rockets defense very tough.
One last thought: I heard the Rockets main thrust of their pitch went something like this: The Rockets have a long history of building a championship team around a legendary big man. Hmm, wouldn't this pitch 'cause Howard to choose the Lakers, not the Rockets? The Rockets have won how many titles? And after Hakeem and McAdoo, the list starts getting pretty thin on legendary centers. The Lakers? Mikan, Kareem, Wilt, Shaq! Even Gasol and Vlade Divac were better centers than Sampson and Yao (okay, not Vlade here but definitely Gason -- I still believe Yao was over-rated). Interesting tactic.
Bottom line: Howard is a great fit for the Rockets and he makes them instant contenders. Howard, Gasol and Kobe would have put the Lakers into the mix but not, IMO, at the same level as the Rockets. I don't like the fact that Howard really never gave his best to LA (not his fault, for the most part, he was just injured). And it will be seen if Buss allows Mitch to put together a new team in the future. I do think that the Lakers ought to see about doing a sign-and-trade -- if nothing else, just to load up on some draft picks. I doubt that will happen at this point.
