*Before any Laker fans want to call me a hater, I like the Lakers. I am a Bulls fan and have always been a Bulls fan. You can't be a fan of a team that you hate at least twice a year. I call it as I see it. I am a fan of basketball, period.
Once free agency started, we all expected the LA to make a splash to get back to its winning ways. What we didn't expect was it to be the Clippers who made the splash. They paid D Jordan, brought in C Billups and C Butler, and finalized a trade for C Paul. WTF?! Yeah, you read that right. The Clippers starting five could look like this: Jordan at center, Griffin at PF, Butler at SF, Billups at SG and Paul at PG. Lets all be honest, doesn't this starting five scare you at all? Sure there are still questions considering that Butler and Paul are coming off injuries and Del Negro is the coach and this is the Clippers we are talking about. This is a good story right now but given Sterling's past, how long should anyone expect this to last? That is an answer for another time but I just wanted to put it out there.
Now, the Lakers, who have run LA, are slowly giving away pieces that won them championships. Overspending has finally caught up with them and stupidity is taking over. Say what you want about the vetoed trade but the Lakers were not a better team with that trade. As much as Laker fans may cry about collusion and hatred toward the Lakers, the main reason Laker fans are wrong is that the trade with the Clippers allows the Hornets to field a decent team and gives stability for the next few years while it rebuilds. Also, if the Lakers had gotten Chris Paul, basically they would have traded a solid front court for a solid back court. The Lakers would have even more problems and wouldn't have been able to be in a position to go after D Howard. So I have to credit David Stern for that. Remember, the Hornets are still looking for an owner to buy the franchise and keep it in New Orleans. I understand why the Lakers may feel slighted, considering they haven't had a PG since Ron Harper left, who really wasn't a PG so then that leaves Van Excel. No knock on Derek Fisher but he can't keep up with the Rose, Westbrook's and Paul's of the NBA. Even old man Jason Kidd ran circles around Fisher last season. It seems the Lakers forgot that a new CBA is in place and getting good talent was seen as stupid compared to getting big names and raising their costs. If the Lakers could have gotten both Paul and Dwight Howard, how could they have paid them both? Even if they took less money, your still looking at paying them $17 mil a piece and then tack on the $24 mil that Kobe is getting, that is $58 mil right there. They become the Miami Heat of last year. Three great players and no depth. Teams have won with a little depth but no team has won with no depth. I can't name one. Just like every great team of the past, time has caught up with the Lakers.
On paper, the Clippers have closed the gap between themselves and the Lakers. The Clippers are in a position to finally fight to got deep in the playoffs and possibly win the division. No, I am not crowning the Clippers the best in the west. Only time will tell that story but at the same time, how can you not have higher expectations for the Clippers? The answer is that you can't. Health now becomes the main issue for the Clippers. If all can stay mostly healthy, the Clippers will be top 4 in the West. Yeah, I said it. Dallas, OKC, Denver and the Clippers as it stands right now. Now, the Spurs can make some moves before Christmas as well as the Lakers. With Howard being off the table, for now, what will the Lakers do? That is the magic question, no pun intended. With only a 66 game schedule, the five games Bynum will miss will hurt a little more. Now, Gasol has to show up but probably won't. Gasol has benefited from having Odom and Bynum, more so with Odom. With Odom gone and Bynum missing at least 5 games, plus whatever injury he will have, the Lakers must now rely on Blake and Barnes to help out with the scoring and defense. Neither of which are known for any consistent defensive play. Argue with me if you want, but if I'm so wrong, then why did the Lakers get embarrassed and bounced from the playoffs by the Mavs last year? NO DEPTH and lack of any physical presence. If you disagree then your lying to yourself.
Since December 9th, the defending champs lost a few pieces but gained replacements in Odom and Vince Carter. While your laughing about Carter, his role isn't to be "Vinsanity" but to be a role player. The Clippers upgraded. Denver resigned Nene and the Grizzlies kept Marc Gasol (the better defending Gasol). OKC stayed intact and even Golden State has added to their young squad. Six western conference teams have all upgraded and none of them are named the Lakers. I am not saying the Lakers can't or won't compete but with so many holes, I can't pick them as favorites. Dallas won and didn't get worse while the Lakers lost and have taken a step back.
Now, some Laker fans will say that the Lakers will find a way. I don't see how. There is a lot of youth in the west outside of the Spurs and Mavs. Teams are not adding to their rosters with a "win now" mentality anymore. With the new CBA Steph Curry coming to the Lakers for nothing will not happen. The Lakers have won championships by getting over on lesser teams, now its the Lakers turn to feel the pain. I'm not taking anything away from the Lakers because all they could do is beat the teams in front of them. Not made at that at all. That is the nature of sports. Kobe will still be Kobe but he only has 3 or 4 more years left. Its time for the Lakers to be realistic. The Lakers have been great over the last decade but all good things come to an end.
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