To Tank or Not To Tank....That was the Question.

The Lakers 2014-2015 season has come to an end, and not a moment too soon. Being the tireless, devoted fan that I am, I did everything I could think of to inspire the Lakers to victory. Tried as I may, nothing I attempted seemed bring them much luck. Nonetheless, I gave it my best shot. Here is one way I tried to save the season and revive the team:

For every Lakers game that I attended, I wore a different jersey. I was attempting to demonstrate my team spirit to the masses. Below are a few examples:

I brought out the old school Kobe "8" jersey for my first game of the season. I even posed with his likeness before the game. It may have inspired him to score 39 points, but it wasn’t enough to inspire the rest of the team to play defense as the Lakers lost to the Suns 112-106.

Next I brought out the Big-Shot Rob home white jersey to inspire the team to knock down their three pointers. A lot of good that did.  I might as well have been out there hoisting three’s. It was brick city. But despite their performance from beyond the arc, this would be the one game that I attended (out of nine) that they actually won! The Lakers beat the lowly Kings 98-95.

Inspired by my previous visit to the Staples Center, I continued with my ingenious jersey plan.  By bringing out the Captain’s jersey, I was hoping the Lakers would go retro and shoot some sky hooks.  In the end, the Lakers got hooked by one of Cap’s old archrivals, the Portland Trailblazers 106-94.

A few days later, I kept it 80’s old school by wearing the jersey of the player I was nicknamed after in high school, Kurt Rambis, aka Superman. But on this night there would be no Super heroics from the team. The Lakers lost to the Miami Heat 78-75.

Taking it way back, I brought out a Mr. Clutch Jerry West 1960's-era jersey out of the closet.  Meh. West failed to sway the young Lakers as their season continued to go south.  The Lakers dropped yet another one, this time to the Thunder 108-101.

                                           

At a season-ticket holder event, I dropped in to take a photograph with “Never-saw-a-shot-he-didn’t-like” Swaggy P, and “Never-saw-a-party-he-could-pass-up” Jordan Hill. I was wearing my Horry jersey again hoping that would inspire Swaggy's recently lost jumper.                                     

I was also photographed with two Lakers from the Showtime era in “Big Game” James Worthy, and “Coop-a-Loop” Michael Cooper. Have the young-ins watched any tape of these two legends?

In a last desperate effort to save their dignity and pride, I brought out my Shaq jersey to inspire the troops to dominate and crush that night’s opponent the New Orleans Pelicans. Alas, the Lakers submitted and wilted to the birds from the Big Easy and lost by 21 points.

                ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Looking back, I’ve had to time to evaluate, scrutinize, and analyze the Lakers efforts this season. There were rampant rumors, media-fueled speculations, and no shortage of conspiracy theories about their lopsided record. Were the Lakers really tanking in order to secure a high draft position?  

             

I couldn’t believe. I wouldn’t believe it. Not our Lakers. As fans, we’ve endured some painful seasons in the past, but they were merely bumps in the road while the organization rebuilt the team.

Surely the Lakers wouldn’t purposely tank the season just to acquire a potentially good player in the NBA draft?

I had to pause and think about my own past. In my earliest years of playing hoops, I was never taught how to purposely lose. What kind of message would that send? Why teach a young kid how to fail?  If I had been taught to let the other team win, or to give up while being behind in a game, I would have never achieved my average of 2.5 points per game in my senior year of high school (sarcasm here)! 

I’ve played, coached and even refereed my beloved sport of hoops. I’ve never known anyone who taught a player how to lose, or to purposely throw in the towel. It’s just not something you teach a player. The only part of losing I was ever taught was how to lose gracefully…which happened quite often as a senior because we lost more games than I care to remember.

So why would the Lakers tank? Why should the Lakers tank? This is LA, and we don’t tank. I won't apologize for being smug about this. We play to win all the time, every time. Their record of 21-61 (a franchise worst) was just a fluke, right Kobe?

You can’t script a season like this: Nash, Kobe, Swaggy P, and Julius Randle, were all expected to be major contributors, yet each of them succumbed to an injury in one form or another. It was unreal!

Then, late in the season, there was this gem from Coach Scott. His frustrations had reached their boiling point:

That sounds like an old-school vet trying desperately to find some players with a heartbeat.  I don't believe a coach who was tanking would utter something like this. The Showtime-era teams of the 80's that he played on would never have agreed to lose games purposely. Although Magic did recently say that is what this team must do, I don't believe he would have done it back in the day.

I refuse to accept the theory that they tanked the season. They just didn’t have the players, healthy or otherwise, to compete night after night. This group did the best they could (or so I made myself believe). Most of them won’t return as Lakers next season. Likely some of them may never suit up in a NBA uniform again. But I wish them all the luck in the world. Thanks for trying.

It’s time to move on. It’s time to forget this injury-plagued, loss-filled fracas. It’s in the past now. We made it! You, me, and a whole lot of other die-hard fans got through it. We survived the lows, and now were ready for a new beginning.

It been tough, but there is optimism for what’s on the horizon.

We’ll have a nice pick in the upcoming NBA draft. We’ve got some youth potential in Jordan Clarkson and Julius Randle. 

Plus there will be plenty of big-named free agents to pursue. And we’ll have the cap space to pursue them thanks to the retirement of social security-bound Steve Nash.

Let’s not forget, Kobe will be back for his swan song. Though hopefully not in a suit.

                                                             
The Lakers franchise is too popular to stay down for long. Witness the number of Lakers jerseys in the crowds while they are on the road. Even after two forgettable seasons, and with most of the Lakers stars on the injured reserve list, fans across the country still donned the purple and gold when the Lake Show came to their town.

The Lakers are still the big draw they've always been. And with a little luck, and some new faces, next season we'll be back in the mix.

Some last thoughts on what I'd like to see next season: I want a return to the salad days of yore....when purple and gold confetti fell from the rafters after every winning home game; when free tacos vouchers were handed out like candy on the way out of the arena; when the never-tiring tune of "I Love LA" by Randy Newman was played after another W. 

And last but not least, I'd like to see the familiar site of the Lakers lifting the championship trophy towards the heavens in the month of June.

Until then, this blogger will continue to work on his own game with the faint hope that his favorite team will pick him up off the waiver wire.

I will continue to blog during the off-season. Good things are coming! Hang in there! Be patient! Have faith! Or, do whatever it is you do when the Lakers aren’t playing. 

Until my next post, this Lakers fan will keep the candle burning for us all. 

Thanks for reading!

The Curse of the Panini: One of the Many Reasons the Lakers Have Faltered This Season

Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash - Frequent visitors to the X-Ray lab

After entering the Staples Center on Tuesday January 15^th to watch the purple and gold take on the Lebron-less Miami Heat, I was handed a sheet of Lakers player stickers by a Staples Center employee. This is one of the many giveaways that the Lakers have imparted on their fans during home games this season.

The giveaways themselves have been a precursor of doom for the 2014-1015 campaign. Searching the data banks of my clouded memory, I could not recall a season in recent years where the Lakers had given away so many promotional items. In fact, they’ve created a page on their website to advertise these rare goodies to their win-starved fan base. Obviously this has been a nice surprise, but it's not a common practice for the organization, at least not on this scale.

When the Lakers were winning and had a reserved spot in the upper levels of the playoffs, these giveaways were typically reserved for playoff games. Upon entering the arena, you’d have your ticket scanned, and then you followed the throng of crowds to your seat to gawk at everything in Lakersland.

Now that the Lakers are headed for possibly their worst record in franchise history, often you can expect to be greeted with a free something or other before you begin the ascent to your seat (in my case the seats are up near the Hubble Telescope).

But I digress….back to the sticker sheet. The sheet was made by PaniniAmerica, a maker of sports cards and related products. I was grateful for the item, as I am with all of the giveaways, but I didn’t pay much attention to it until recently. There are six Lakers players featured on the sheet: Kobe Bryant, Carlos Boozer, Jeremy Lin, Steve Nash, Nick Young and Julius Randle.

PaniniAmerica Sticker sheet issued to fans on January 15th, 2015

It’s a safe bet to say that Panini created this product before the season began. The players they chose were a combination of the current stat-sheet fillers, an aging veteran, a couple of new guys, and the potentially promising rookie. They are all draped in their traditional home gold jerseys. It’s a nice set.

Depending on how you look at it, or which way your superstitious nature lies, the PaniniAmerica company feature three players that, more than likely, will not suit up for another game this season: Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Julius Randle.

Have you heard of the Sports Illustrated Cover Curse?

February 2012 edition of Sport Illustrated

 Or the Madden NFL curse? 

Popular Madden NFL Video Game

 

Could we have a new jinx in the making called the "Panini Sticker Curse?" Look at the TMZish facts:

*Nash tweaks his ever-failing back in preseason game 1, and he’s out for the season.

*Randle leaps awkwardly in his very first professional game, breaks a leg bone, and is out for the season.

*After a brilliant move on a scrub, Kobe goes up for a dunk, and comes down with a torn rotator cuff, and is potentially, and most likely, out for the season.

Coincidence? Who knows? Like my father used to paraphrase: "only the shadows knows!"

At the hopes of marketing the term Panini Sticker Curse, I'm using this post to promote it so I can cash-in big on the name. You know like Pat Riley did with the whole Three-peat thing? Donations can be made to the “Destroy All Panini Lakers Stickers Fund.” Just inbox me so I can show you how to deposit the funds into my account. :-)

All kidding aside, whether the curse is just a coincidence or just a figment of my warped sense of humor, it is somewhat creepy. I was going to hang the sticker sheet up at work next to some Lakers placards, but I’ve decided to leave well enough alone. 

And although I am entirely grateful to the Lakers organization for placating me with free stuff whilst they rebuild the team, I’d rather have playoff runs and banners as opposed to the free handouts.

On a quick side note, congratulations to Pau Gasol for being nominated to the 2014-2015 Eastern Conference All Star Squad! I sure wish it could have been with the Western Conference squad instead. 

Till the muse tackles me again in the hallway….later gators!

The Idea of A Kobe-less Lakers: The Good, the Bad and the Fugly

"[Monday] showed that he’s [Kobe] one of the top-five point guards in the league," said Lakers guard Nick Young. We needed him.” (sic)

"We're all so used to him being there in the last couple minutes of the game." 

Stop the presses! Nick Young is starting to realize what many already know: the Lakers still need Kobe Bean Bryant.  He’s still relevant to Lakers fans worldwide and to the NBA in general. But would this particular team benefit if Kobe was no longer sporting the purple and gold? 

Is Kobe the savior that can prevent this team from bottoming out in the standings, or is he a burden for the team to carry over the next two seasons? Let’s break it down and see if we can’t figure this out shall we?

The Good:

“We need him.”

A few weeks ago, Swaggy was asking Kobe for the rock. 

Nick hit one game winner, and some in Lakerdom were ready to hoist his jersey up in to the rafters with all the other greats like Magic, Mr. Clutch, and Wilt the Stilt to name a few. If Swaggy is ever to attain this honor, and I don’t think he will, he’ll have to hit a lot more game winners. He’d have to put up Kobe-like numbers (25+ game winners, an MVP trophy, numerous All-Star appearances and a few rings for starters) before they considered placing number 0 into the heavens.

So after a few games of not being able to perform in the clutch (with the team, not with Iggy), Nick realized the inevitable: Kobe is still the man: slightly withered, somewhat aged, and not quite as bouncy as he used to be…but still the man. Kobe is the guy you want shooting the ball as the clock winds down. Nick is a good 2^nd choice, but until Kobe is dragging one broken leg behind him, I’m passing him the ball for the winning shot (well…not really me…the Lakers never returned my call to join the squad; a minor oversight on their part I’m sure).

The Bad:

If Kobe is double or tripled-teamed, he’s still taking shots. The last five or six games notwithstanding, Kobe was not trusting anybody with the rock but himself. With his voice and stoic stares, he has shown his disgust with his teammate’s shortcomings. We’ve all seen “Angry Kobe”. But recently, I think Bryon Scott may have broken through the Kobe-Shield. He’s convinced Bryant to trust in his teammates, and now #24 is feeding them the ball. So we now have “Passing Kobe”. But is it a temporary fling? If his teammates don’t live up to his superstar expectations, will Kobe start firing 35 shots a game again? That, without a doubt, would be bad.

The Fugly:

The Lakers aren’t the worst team in the league, but if they don’t all get on the same page, they could bottom out. As previously mentioned, I like what Kobe has been doing the past few weeks. He involving everyone with his passing, and encouraging them to shoot. We all realize that this particular squad is not adding any hardware to the trophy case. But if they are close at the end of games, and they steal a few victories, that should satiate most of us (for this season anyway). If the tide turns, and Kobe becomes “Angry Non-passing Kobe”, we could be in for some real ugly games. I’ll take a losing, but hard fought, season over a split locker room any day.

So can we please dispense with the “Lakers would be better off without Kobe” chatter? He’s still our best chance of being competitive night in, and night out…period. The man has proven he can play with others (6000+ career assists, nearly 5 assists per game average over 19 years, oh, and five rings if that’s not proof enough), so let’s not get crazy with the predictions of how this squad would do sans Mr. Bryant. He may be older, but who else on this team is going fill those shoes?

And what exactly do people pay to see anyway? Jordan Hill throwing up a jump hook? Nick Young’s hair, or his girlfriend texting during the game? Robert Sacre’s latest tattoo? Steve Nash showing up to sit with his teammates on the bench? I think not. Everyone still wants to see the magic of Kobe Bean Bryant. Just look at the road games. The Lakers fans in the crowd are all wearing Kobe jerseys!

Kobe is still the face of this franchise. At least until his jersey is hoisted up there in the rafters with the other greats.

Till next time…

Lakers "Quarter of the Season Gone" Report Card!

***(NOTE TO READER: THIS BLOG ENTRY WAS FINISHED BEFORE THE GAME AGAINST THE CELTICS (FRIDAY NIGHT). I MEANT TO PUBLISH IT EARLIER IN THE DAY. OOPS!)***

Okay because my muse, or my cat, somehow deleted my notes from the last few games off of my laptop (always blame others for your mistakes!), I’ll dive right into my “1/4 of the season gone by report card” segment. Here is where I give letter grades to the players, the head coach, and even the guys who are sitting at home collecting pay checks while nursing their broken-down bodies. 

Let’s do this:

The Team: D+. I know we don’t have a prayer of making the playoffs here in the loaded West, but I still don’t think the Lakers are as bad as their record indicates. Well yes…...maybe they are.  There were a few games where nearly everything came together.  And the over-the-top blowouts seem to be a thing of the past. It can only get better from here right? Right???? 

Coach Scott: B-. Considering this team has provided plenty of overtime for the medical staff (for the 2^nd season in a row), I would say that Scott is doing a commendable job. I think he needs to reign in Kobe a bit more (year right), and possibly tweak the starting lineup. At the very least he’s made them a little more competitive. They are losing by less and less every week!

Kobe: B+. Kobe is Kobe. You know what you’re getting with him. He’s a step slower, and a bit banged up after 18 seasons, but he’s still game, and willing to put his body through the grind. I'd like to see him continue with that scorer/play-maker role he’s adopted these past few games. And is it asking to much to cut down on the turnovers? At the end of the day, when you get a triple-double, Kobe's turnovers should not be a part of it.
And when you’re triple -teamed, it’s okay to pass the ball. Really it is!

Jordan Hill: B. That’s right, a B. I’m sure some of you feel he deserves a higher grade. I certainly want to give him one. He leads the team in rebounds, and is third on the team in scoring. But I’ve been watching him closely. I still think he can play better. He falls asleep sometimes on defense, and he doesn’t always put a body on someone while rebounding. He recently said he cut down his drinking and it’s given him more energy, but why not take it one step further? How about eliminating most of your drinking during the season and see what your energy level is like then? What a novel concept.

Carlos Boozer: C+. Boozer is putting up numbers that are not spectacular, but not horrible (13 points, 6.6 rebounds). This is what I expected of him. My beef with him is his defense. I know he’s never going to make the all-defensive squad, but how about just a little more effort? He gets into foul trouble quite often, and he sometimes stands around in rebounding situations. Whatever happened to boxing out?

Jeremy Lin: C. Here’s another guy who still hasn’t reached his potential. Maybe the LinSanity of a few years ago was a fluke, but I’ve seen enough of him to know that he has the potential to bring it on any given night. Why doesn’t he? Everyone seems to think it’s a confidence issue. Maybe so, but Kobe and Scott have faith in him (on most occasions). I would love to see him get to that level of consistency that he had in New York.  In the end, if he can handle the point adequately night in and night out, I’ll be satisfied.

Nick Young: A-. The Swaggester gets the highest grade so far, but not because he’s the best player on this team. He receives this grade because he brings the excitement every night, and is a big reason we’ve won four out of the last nine (you know you’re desperate when you’re quoting stats like that). His defense has picked up, and he’s been knocking down shots late in the game…......when he gets the chance. I just hope Kobe takes the blinders off and looks for Swaggy in the last few minutes of a game. Pass him the damn ball Kobe!!!!

Wesley Johnson: B+.  A few weeks ago this may have been a lower grade, but he’s starting to come around. Johnson has made huge strides since the D’Antoni reign, due in part to the coaching staff believing in him, and because of his own budding confidence. Once again we have a player whose ceiling is yet to be reached. Anybody with athleticism like Johnson’s should be putting up big numbers in at least two categories. Though his numbers aren’t scary good, they are on the rise. His confidence in his shot is growing every day, and he plays solid defense. I believe any success the Lakers may enjoy this season (and of course it’s subjective and debatable to what you’d consider “success” for this squad) might rest with the idea of Johnson becoming a reliable 2^nd or 3^rd scorer.

Now that we’ve covered the starting five and Swaggy P, I’ll breeze through the bench.

Ed Davis: C+. Yet another guy who can jump out of the building, but can’t stay on the floor long enough for us to take advantage of it. The guy can block shots with the best of them, but he has the propensity to foul while he’s at it. He can’t stay out of foul trouble, a la Boozer. I like his aggressiveness around the basket. He picks up offensive rebounds, and swat’s away nearly two shots per game. If he can stay out of foul trouble, the team’s defensive success, which has been sorely lacking this season, can only get better.

Ronnie Price: C-. I’m still an advocate for packaging him in a trade with Steve Nash to some team looking for cap space. However, I will begrudgingly admit, he’s improved over the last few games. He was aggravating my last nerve there for awhile, but as of late, he hasn't been as much of a bonehead. If he can continue playing like this, and uses his greatest advantage – his years of experience - he’ll be helpful.

Wayne Ellington: B. I liked his efforts before the tragic loss of his father, and since his return to the team, he’s been steady as a rock. I agree with the utterance from that dinosaur Stu Lantz: this guy needs more shots. He executes the jump shot off a screen as well as anybody, plays with calm demeanor, and can handle both ends of the court.  Give him the rock coach!

Robert Sacre: C+. I’m happy, for the most part, with his play. He’s starting to finally flex that over sized frame of his, and he’s hitting that 10-12 foot shot with some regularity. If he could just be a little more of a rim defender, his grade would be in the B’s.

Jordan Clarkson: Incomplete. He hasn’t been on the floor long enough for me to make an accurate assessment, but he holds a lot of promise. His athleticism and eagerness are fun to watch!

Ryan Kelly: Incomplete. I wasn’t really excited about him in the first place, and was slightly surprised when they brought him back from last year’s squad. He needs to be a consistent stretch four if, and when, he comes back.

The Injured List: F. Usually when you look over an injured list, you scan it to see who will  give us a boost when they return. Well let’s see: Steve Nash, Julius Randle and Xavier Henry. All of them are out for the year. So much for that.

I’ve run out of players. I’d grade the ownership, but I really don’t know which Buss kid is running the show. 

If you made it this far, you’ve got way too much time on your hands. See ya’ next time! Go Lake Show!!