Lakers are a bunch of "kittens".

[WayOutWest]

I forget what the other word for a "cat" is.....anyway...the Lakers are playing like a bunch of kittens.  I wish someone would sock Gasol and Bynum in the face.  At least one of them, Gasol/Bynum, is playing against a THIRD STRING center or PF, sometimes both of them are and they are doing NOTHING!

Big soft Euro-punk and a pampered soft minded 7 foot pre-madona going up a short handed team with 10X the heart and guess what...the team with heart went into halftime with a double digit lead.

[WayOutWest]

I can't believe how gutless the Lakers are in this series.  WTF is wrong with PJ, does the not recognize that the Lakers are better off with Farmar and Brown in the lineup?

Props to the Rockets, they deserve this game and the series IMO.

[rickortreat]

It is amazing to see a 2nd-rounder like Landry outplaying Odom and Bynum. I'm not sure which team will win the series, both teams have the potential to be unable to score. In either case, the winner of this series will have a very difficult time with Denver.

I'd like to see a game where both teams are shooting and scoring keeping it close. So far most of the games have been so one-sided they weren't entertaining.

[WayOutWest]

It is amazing to see a 2nd-rounder like Landry outplaying Odom and Bynum. I'm not sure which team will win the series, both teams have the potential to be unable to score. In either case, the winner of this series will have a very difficult time with Denver.

I'd like to see a game where both teams are shooting and scoring keeping it close. So far most of the games have been so one-sided they weren't entertaining.

It's not just Landy.  Scola and Hayes are clearly outplaying the Lakers front line.  I think game 7 will be a route, the Lakers are going to kill the Rockets and get a false sense of superiority and it's going to bite them vs the Nuggets.  IMO the Nuggets are not going to be as tough as the Rockets for the Lakers but with the Lakers taking time off durring a series it could easily go the other way.  IMO Fisher is going to be much more important vs Billups savy vs Brooks speed killing fisher and Farmar being a better option.  The WC is a lot more interesting than I thought.

[ziggy]

Brooks speed killing Fisher and Farmar being a better option.

Poor msc,
Being a Duck and all, it has to be eating him up watching a Duck chew up the Lakers backcourt.  I would love to see Brooks come home and play permanently.

[Reality]

[WayOutWest]

Brooks speed killing Fisher and Farmar being a better option.

Poor msc,
Being a Duck and all, it has to be eating him up watching a Duck chew up the Lakers backcourt.  I would love to see Brooks come home and play permanently.

I've heard/read talk about the Blazers having a very hard time keeping their team together.  The players are young and cheap but they have shown they are valuable and the Blazers are not going to be able to keep the team together long enough to contend for a title.  The nice thing about Brooks is he is developing a respectable outside shot, even from 3point range, so it's not just about trying to counter his speed anymore.  I like the kid, seems like he's had to fight the "little guy" battle since HS.

The Lakers just don't have the toughness to put Brooks on his back when he drives the lane, the Lakers would rather try and beat Brooks strenghts instead of trying to take away some of them.  I expect the Lakers to win big on Sunday and at some point durring the game they should build a 20 point lead.

[msc]

Brooks speed killing Fisher and Farmar being a better option.

Poor msc,
Being a Duck and all, it has to be eating him up watching a Duck chew up the Lakers backcourt.  I would love to see Brooks come home and play permanently.

Haha!  True, true.  I'm a huge Brooks fan.  In my ideal world, Brooks would drop 40 in a Houston loss every game of the series.

I just friggin' knew the Lakers would lose this game, it's becoming annoyingly predictable.  Anything can happen in a Game 7.  

It's been obvious this team isn't a championship team all season.  They're loaded with talent but they don't play consistent enough defense.  Stat geeks can correct me, but the Lakers are like 1 or 2 in the league in offense and I think 17th in defense.  I wonder if a team ranked anywhere near 17th in defensive efficiency has ever won a championship?  Doubt it.  

Props to Houston, they are a tough team.  

I would be worried about Sunday, but I've learned here over the years from some very knowledgeable basketball fans that there is a NBA conspiracy to make sure the Lakers win, so I'm not worried in the least.  

[ziggy]

I've heard/read talk about the Blazers having a very hard time keeping their team together.  The players are young and cheap but they have shown they are valuable and the Blazers are not going to be able to keep the team together long enough to contend for a title.  The nice thing about Brooks is he is developing a respectable outside shot, even from 3point range, so it's not just about trying to counter his speed anymore.  I like the kid, seems like he's had to fight the "little guy" battle since HS.

The Lakers just don't have the toughness to put Brooks on his back when he drives the lane, the Lakers would rather try and beat Brooks strenghts instead of trying to take away some of them.  I expect the Lakers to win big on Sunday and at some point durring the game they should build a 20 point lead.

I guess we shall see.  I don't believe it will be hard to keep Roy, Aldridge, and Oden, lots of good teams have 3 max or nearly max players, it not more.  The question will be Webster, Outlaw, Fernandez, Bayless, and Batum. 

Webster signed through 2012-13 on a $5 million per year deal.  That isn't a big problem.

Outlaw has one year left at $3.6 million.  My opinion is they will trade him, plus some other considerations for a veteran.

Fernandez is signed through 2012-13 at slightly less than $2 million per year.  We will see at that point.  He is probably the one player that they will want to keep who will be to expensive to keep.

Bayless is signed through 2012-13 at just under $3 million per year.  If he becomes the starting PG, then paying him $7 to $8 million a year is no big deal.

Batum is due basically what Fernandez will get paid, but I doubt he will command as much as Fernandez, so we could keep him.

By my calculations we will owe Roy, Aldridge, Oden, Przybilla, Batum, Fernandez, Bayless, and Webster about $55 million in 2012-2013.  That is the guts of your 8 man rotation, in their peak years or just before (their ages will be Przybilla 33, Roy and Fernandez 28, Aldridge 27, Webster 26, Oden 25, Bayless and Batum 24).  Throw in a couple of vets and a few rookie scale guys, and you are talking about a $65 million payroll.  Pay the guys coming off contracts 60% more that the last year of their rookie deal and you are about $80 million.  There are about 3-4 teams in that range or higher right now.  That is all doable.

An increase of 60% over their last contract would mean that Webster, Fernandez, Bayless, and Batum would go from getting paid about $4 million a year each to about $6.5 million each the next season.  That is when it will get a little dicey, because 2 years after that this group of 7 (minus Przybilla) will be earning about $74 million.  That would be 7 players earning $10 million a year.  That would be in 2014-15.  A lot could change by then, but one of that core of 7 would probably not be able to be signed.

[WayOutWest]

I guess we shall see.  I don't believe it will be hard to keep Roy, Aldridge, and Oden, lots of good teams have 3 max or nearly max players, it not more.  The question will be Webster, Outlaw, Fernandez, Bayless, and Batum. 

Webster signed through 2012-13 on a $5 million per year deal.  That isn't a big problem.

Outlaw has one year left at $3.6 million.  My opinion is they will trade him, plus some other considerations for a veteran.

Fernandez is signed through 2012-13 at slightly less than $2 million per year.  We will see at that point.  He is probably the one player that they will want to keep who will be to expensive to keep.

Bayless is signed through 2012-13 at just under $3 million per year.  If he becomes the starting PG, then paying him $7 to $8 million a year is no big deal.

Batum is due basically what Fernandez will get paid, but I doubt he will command as much as Fernandez, so we could keep him.

By my calculations we will owe Roy, Aldridge, Oden, Przybilla, Batum, Fernandez, Bayless, and Webster about $55 million in 2012-2013.  That is the guts of your 8 man rotation, in their peak years or just before (their ages will be Przybilla 33, Roy and Fernandez 28, Aldridge 27, Webster 26, Oden 25, Bayless and Batum 24).  Throw in a couple of vets and a few rookie scale guys, and you are talking about a $65 million payroll.  Pay the guys coming off contracts 60% more that the last year of their rookie deal and you are about $80 million.  There are about 3-4 teams in that range or higher right now.  That is all doable.

An increase of 60% over their last contract would mean that Webster, Fernandez, Bayless, and Batum would go from getting paid about $4 million a year each to about $6.5 million each the next season.  That is when it will get a little dicey, because 2 years after that this group of 7 (minus Przybilla) will be earning about $74 million.  That would be 7 players earning $10 million a year.  That would be in 2014-15.  A lot could change by then, but one of that core of 7 would probably not be able to be signed.

Does ownership still have the desire to spend big money?  Even billionares are feeling the pinch, but if he is still willing to shell out big bucks then it doesn't look too bad.

[Lurker]

I guess we shall see.  I don't believe it will be hard to keep Roy, Aldridge, and Oden, lots of good teams have 3 max or nearly max players, it not more.  The question will be Webster, Outlaw, Fernandez, Bayless, and Batum. 

Webster signed through 2012-13 on a $5 million per year deal.  That isn't a big problem.

Outlaw has one year left at $3.6 million.  My opinion is they will trade him, plus some other considerations for a veteran.

Fernandez is signed through 2012-13 at slightly less than $2 million per year.  We will see at that point.  He is probably the one player that they will want to keep who will be to expensive to keep.

Bayless is signed through 2012-13 at just under $3 million per year.  If he becomes the starting PG, then paying him $7 to $8 million a year is no big deal.

Batum is due basically what Fernandez will get paid, but I doubt he will command as much as Fernandez, so we could keep him.

By my calculations we will owe Roy, Aldridge, Oden, Przybilla, Batum, Fernandez, Bayless, and Webster about $55 million in 2012-2013.  That is the guts of your 8 man rotation, in their peak years or just before (their ages will be Przybilla 33, Roy and Fernandez 28, Aldridge 27, Webster 26, Oden 25, Bayless and Batum 24).  Throw in a couple of vets and a few rookie scale guys, and you are talking about a $65 million payroll.  Pay the guys coming off contracts 60% more that the last year of their rookie deal and you are about $80 million.  There are about 3-4 teams in that range or higher right now.  That is all doable.

An increase of 60% over their last contract would mean that Webster, Fernandez, Bayless, and Batum would go from getting paid about $4 million a year each to about $6.5 million each the next season.  That is when it will get a little dicey, because 2 years after that this group of 7 (minus Przybilla) will be earning about $74 million.  That would be 7 players earning $10 million a year.  That would be in 2014-15.  A lot could change by then, but one of that core of 7 would probably not be able to be signed.

Does ownership still have the desire to spend big money?  Even billionares are feeling the pinch, but if he is still willing to shell out big bucks then it doesn't look too bad.

Pritchard learned how to manage the cap in the Spurs' front office so I wouldn't worry about the luxury tax.  IMO a bigger question is how do you approach these salaries knowing that a new collective bargaining agreement will happen in the next 2 years?  And max contracts aren't necessary for three players..  You can pay a substantial, but less than max, contract if there is no market for the player to get the max.  This is where the recession will hit the players hard; no teams willing or able to give out large salaries except for the top tier of players.  Roy is in that group...Aldridge & Oden are not (yet).

[ziggy]

Pritchard learned how to manage the cap in the Spurs' front office so I wouldn't worry about the luxury tax.  IMO a bigger question is how do you approach these salaries knowing that a new collective bargaining agreement will happen in the next 2 years?  And max contracts aren't necessary for three players..  You can pay a substantial, but less than max, contract if there is no market for the player to get the max.  This is where the recession will hit the players hard; no teams willing or able to give out large salaries except for the top tier of players.  Roy is in that group...Aldridge & Oden are not (yet).

I would agree.  I used the phrase max or nearly max, and that was for just the point you are making.  I would view Aldridge as a nearly max guy ala Kirilenko, Parker,  Randolph, Nene, Odom, Jamison, Butler (starting at say $9 million and ending at about $13 million).  Oden isn't even close to that now, but we shall see in 3 years.

[westkoast]

Like I said in the other thread, this team is MENTALLY soft.

Whereas a team like the Celtics and Rockets are not.

The jury is still out on the Cavs, they have yet to be tested in this playoffs and I honestly wish people would stop pretending like who they've played so far has been a real test.  I think the Celtics will be a test for the Cavs even with out KG.

[Joe Vancil]

"Big soft Europunk" that gets more offensive rebounds than the entire opposition in Game 7.  20 point and 18 boards.

Tell you what, WayOut - send that big, soft Europunk to Denver for a tough player like Nene, or the Rockets for a tough Luis Scola.  Those teams would make that deal in a HEARTBEAT.

[msc]

Good point, Joe.  I think Gasol is unfairly criticized for being soft.  He's not a bruiser, but that style doesn't fit his build or his game.  I think he is without a doubt the most consistent player on the team, and there are other forms of toughness.  For example when he takes a pop from an opposing player, like Ron Ron's hit for example, he hops right back up and keeps going.  He's never going to be a Charles Oakley type of tough, but banging for offensive rebounds and put backs ... I'll take it. 

No doubt those teams make those trades you mentioned in a heartbeat.  I wouldn't want to trade Gasol for any of those guys, but I would like to point out that Scola is an absolute stud and is not that far off from Gasol.  If he continues to improve like he has over the past couple of seasons, he could be at that level pretty quickly, IMO.