The 2007-08 Los Angeles Lakers thread

[D-Dogg]

Kobe was the only unanimous selection for the All-NBA first team.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3387097


Quite a year for KB24.

Man, I don't know how much freaking money I would pay to watch that team play, but it would be A LOT.

Kobe, CP3, LeBron, KG and Dwight Howard? Holy crap man...not only are all those guys insane offensively, but every one of them save LeBron are good defenders, with KG and Kobe able to lock down their guy.

My word, that might be one of the best all first team ever. If not now, by the time all those guys hang em up.

 

[Haren]

The Lakers' six-game winning streak in the playoffs is about to be put to the test. Utah does not lose at home very often, so I don't expect them to lose both games. I would be more than satisfied with a split, though, and would be very pleased if that's what happens.

 

[Darth Llama]

The Lakers' six-game winning streak in the playoffs is about to be put to the test. Utah does not lose at home very often, so I don't expect them to lose both games. I would be more than satisfied with a split, though, and would be very pleased if that's what happens.

I agree, while I would like the sweep, I'm really just hoping for the split. I can see them losing game 3 or 4, but you never know. I really didn't think we would sweep Denver either.

 

[D-Dogg]

Split, split, split, split.

If they win tonight's game, I'll officially be surprised and impressed. So far, nothing nothing yet has surprised me.

Taking the first home game from a sloan coached team in EnergySolutions Arena will impress me. We have to withstand the great start they will get, battle back in it and steal it in the end. I don't think we win tonight, but have a good shot to on Sunday.

 

[abomb]

sloan coached team in EnergySolutions Arena

You had to have googled that. Even I didnt know where they played.

 

[D-Dogg]

You had to have googled that. Even I didnt know where they played.

Nope.

I'm a font of knowledge of everything remotely laker-related.

 

[Joe L]

If the Lakers play the way they did the last 2 games (good interior defense) I don't see how this isn't a sweep. I know their place is not the easiest place to win but They have done it this year. If they win tonight, it will be a clean sweep.

Have to handed to the Lakers, They are playing the best team ball I have seen
in a few years.

 

[abomb]

A Lakers team Chick Hearn would've loved

Marge Hearn says her late husband would have enjoyed how the Lakers have played so far in the postseason.

By Larry Stewart, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

May 9, 2008

Chick Hearn has been gone since Aug. 5, 2002, but he certainly isn't forgotten. He was honored by the Lakers on Wednesday night right before Kobe Bryant got his MVP trophy. And Marge Hearn, a spry 90, was there to present the game ball to the referees.

"I didn't just hand it to them, I threw it to them," she said proudly the next day from her home in Fullerton.

Marge attends just about every Lakers game with granddaughter Shannon Pearce and husband Tim, who live about six miles away in Yorba Linda.

Asked what her late husband would have thought of this Lakers team, Marge said: "He would really like it. He would say these kids -- he would call them kids -- love each other. You can see it. He'd say, 'They're doing it together and I think it's great.'

"And you know he always liked Kobe. He would have been so happy that he finally got an MVP award."

Television commentator Stu Lantz, now in his 21st season, spent 15 of those alongside Hearn.

"I think about him all the time," Lantz said Thursday before going with the team to Salt Lake City for tonight's Game 3 of the playoff series with the Utah Jazz.

Echoing Marge Hearn's sentiments, Lantz said, "He would be very excited about this team because they're playing together."

Lantz compared it to the championship teams of the 1980s with Magic Johnson.

"This team has many of the same elements as those teams -- a superstar, a couple of really good players and a real nice bench," Lantz said. "Everyone is getting involved."

Tonight's game will be televised at 6 on Channel 9, with Lantz and play-by-play partner Joel Meyers. It will also be televised on ESPN, with Mike Tirico and Hubie Brown announcing.

Said Tirico before getting on a plane Thursday: "You see the genuine joy of sharing the ball on that team. When you pop from game to game, you feel a certain magnetism toward a team that is enjoying what they're doing, and you can see the joy with this team."

Game 4 Sunday at 12:30 p.m. will be on ABC. Tirico and Brown will also call that game.

On Saturday, there's an Eastern Conference playoff doubleheader on ESPN and ABC. Game 4 of the Detroit-Orlando series will be on ESPN at 2 p.m., with Dan Shulman and Doris Burke announcing.

Following Detroit-Orlando at 5 p.m. on ABC will be Game 3 of the Boston-Cleveland series with Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson.

On Sunday, besides the Lakers and Jazz, there will be Game 4 of the New Orleans-San Antonio series on TNT at 5 p.m., with Marv Albert and Reggie Miller.

TNT's studio crew Sunday will go barefoot, as it puts its best feet forward for a good cause. The idea is to raise awareness of Samaritan's Feet, a charitable organization whose mission is to help outfit 10 million impoverished children worldwide with 10 million pairs of shoes in 10 years.

One other NBA note: The Lakers' Lamar Odom will be featured on "NBA Access With Ahmad Rashad" Sunday at 3 p.m. on Channel 7. Odom says when he was a Clipper, he "always looked over at the other locker room and wondered what it would be like to be a Laker."

 

[D-Dogg]

Chick would have hated..HATED when Lamar taps the ball on the backboard on rebounds. He would have lost his mind over that.

 

[abomb]

Chick would have hated..HATED when Lamar taps the ball on the backboard on rebounds. He would have lost his mind over that.

Ha ha.

I think he would have bagged on Vlad Rad aka The Space Cadet to no end.

 

[Joe L]

Ha ha.

I think he would have bagged on Vlad Rad aka The Space Cadet to no end.

I disagree. Rad Man has been great as of late. His passing skills have been amazing, especially to gasol. I think that label given to him by PJ was early on when he wasn't getting the triangle offense. He knows it now. He is a good role player...just needs to be consistent in shotting the ball.

 

[abomb]

I disagree. Rad Man has been great as of late. His passing skills have been amazing, especially to gasol. I think that label given to him by PJ was early on when he wasn't getting the triangle offense. He knows it now. He is a good role player...just needs to be consistent in shotting the ball.

Did you watch the last game?!? Phil was ripping his ass the whole game for his air-headed plays.

 

[abomb]

Kobe's MVP award not a surprise to West
Doug Krikorian, Sports columnist

I ran into an old friend, Jerry West, Wednesday evening, at the Lakers-Utah Jazz match at Staples Center, and it wasn't exactly a surprising development that the Man Who Brought Kobe Bryant To Los Angeles was present to observe Bryant receive his MVP trophy from NBA commissioner David Stern.

West and Bryant have maintained a close bond ever since West on July 11, 1996 decided to trade Vlade Divac to the Charlotte Hornets for Bryant, who the Hornets had made the 13th pick of the first round of the NBA draft.

Earlier in the week, West, who shuns public appearances, even showed up at the Sheraton Gateway Hotel at LAX for the press conference that made it official that Bryant had won the coveted award, as Bryant had requested West's presence.

"Definitely, Kobe deserved it," said West. "He's had just another great season. Doesn't surprise me one bit. Nothing he does surprises me."

Jerry West admits he has felt that way ever since he first saw Kobe Bryant demonstrate his immense skills in person.

"Of course, I had heard about him from the scouts and from people who saw him play in high school," said West. "His agent at the time, Arn Tellem, was a friend of mine, and it was arranged for Kobe to have a workout at a recreation center gym in Inglewood near the Forum.

"Immediately, you could see that he was a special talent. It would have been impossible not to see it. I'm sure it would have been like the first time someone would have seen Sugar Ray Robinson in a sparing session. You could just see he was something special."

A few weeks later in that fateful spring of 1996, Kobe Bryant returned for another workout at the same venue.

"That second one he had was a joke," related West. "We had him go one-on-one against Michael Cooper, who had been retired for a few years but who still was pretty good. Cooper was a great defensive player, but he just couldn't handle Kobe in that workout.

"Kobe was so far beyond his years from an athletic and ball-handling standpoint. He was incredibly creative, and you could see he already had developed a great work ethic. He didn't shoot the ball then as well as does now, but he's made himself into a great shooter.

"I remember telling Jerry Buss (Laker owner) after we made the deal with Charlotte, 'You just got the No. 1 pick in the draft.' The Lakers and the fans in L.A. have been fortunate to have him here for all these years."

Jerry West has noticed a distinct change in Kobe Bryant's persona this season.

"I think Kobe has really matured," he said. "He's right now at the top of his game."

Jerry West, who turns 70 on May 28, is now retired after running the Memphis Grizzlies for four seasons, and is back living at his Bel Air residence.

He also maintains a home at the legendary Greenbriar resort in White Sulfur Springs, West Virginia, and suffered a harrowing accident there last August while riding in a golf cart.

"It was raining, and I could barely see where I was going when the golf cart hit a bunker and flipped over and nearly impaled me," he revealed. "It was just awful. I suffered a serious shoulder injury and could barely walk for a month."

But Jerry West has recovered, and recently played his first round of golf since last summer.

"Actually, I did pretty well ... shot a 76 at Bel Air," he said.

He's not surprised the Lakers are doing well in the playoffs.

"Obviously, Pau Gasol has given the team a tremendous lift," he says. "But when you have a Kobe Bryant, you have such an advantage.

He can score any time he wants to, and his teammates get a lot of wide open looks because he's so often doubled, even tripled team.

He's just a great player."

Of course, Jerry West knew that 12 years ago when Kobe Bryant was a mere 17...

 

[dreamcastrocks]

Thank you! I didn't think anyone on here was going to appreciate my humor. (dcr did not )

I didn't say it wasn't funny, I said it wasn't like you.

 

[Renz]

Earlier in the week, West, who shuns public appearances, even showed up at the Sheraton Gateway Hotel at LAX for the press conference that made it official that Bryant had won the coveted award, as Bryant had requested West's presence.

Class move by KB. Especially considering what a "bad" guy Kobe is.

 

[Linderbee]

I didn't say it wasn't funny, I said it wasn't like you.

you didn't say it was funny, either.

 

[Renz]

Today is the one-year anniversary of this game. It still amazes me that the Jazz fans booed Fish. Ahh, how quickly they forget.

Jazz Outlast Warriors for Game 2 OT Victory
By DOUG ALDEN, AP Sports Writer
Posted May 10, 2007

SALT LAKE CITY, May 9 (AP) -- All Derek Fisher needed to do to inspire his teammates was make it to the game.

He did so much more, capping a dramatic night by scoring all five of his points in overtime in Utah's 127-117 victory over Golden State on Wednesday night - a game Fisher nearly missed while returning from New York, where his baby daughter underwent cancer surgery.

"I don't know how I got through this tonight. I really don't,'' said Fisher, who hit his only shot, a 3-pointer.

The win and Utah's 2-0 lead in the Western Conference semifinals were overshadowed by what Fisher did Wednesday. He had said Monday that one of his four children was ill, but did not go into detail on how serious it was other than to say he needed to be with his family instead of at the game Monday.

After the game Wednesday, he told how serious 10-month-old Tatum's condition was. She has retinoblastoma, a form of eye cancer that required a three-hour combination of surgery and chemotherapy at New York's Presbyterian Hospital.

"My daughter's doing well,'' Fisher said. "We had a successful operation in New York and I flew back and got off the plane and came to the game. I'm speechless.''

Fisher missed most of the first three quarters, then ran straight from the tunnel onto the court late in the third period to a standing ovation and a few high-fives and hugs from teammates, as well as Golden State's Baron Davis.

"He got off the plane. He didn't warm up. He didn't stretch. He didn't shoot a shot,'' said Utah's Deron Williams, who had 17 points and 14 assists. "As soon as he came into the arena, he went straight to the scorers' table.''

It was an emotional night for the Jazz, who lost rookie point guard Dee Brown to a neck injury in the first quarter when teammate Mehmet Okur landed on him.

Physically, the Jazz really needed Fisher. But his psychological impact was much, much greater and is now going to be an indelible part of the Jazz's season and history.

"There's not enough that can be said about him and what he did tonight,'' Williams said.

Utah had to rally to force the overtime after Golden State went on a 12-1 run late in the fourth quarter. The Warriors missed six free throws in the fourth quarter, three after taking the late lead.

Carlos Boozer had 30 points and 13 rebounds for Utah, while Okur added 23 points and 18 rebounds and Andrei Kirilenko had 20 points, nine rebounds and six blocks. Kirilenko also had to fill in a little at point guard when the Jazz were down to 10 available players.

Fisher made it 11 and didn't even get a chance to warm up.

"I asked him if he was all right and he said he was,'' Utah coach Jerry Sloan said. "He's gone through a lot the last few days and basketball was probably a good opportunity for him.''

The Jazz left Fisher on the active list, a move that became dicey when Brown went down with five minutes left in the opening quarter.

"My loyalty is always with family and faith first. I had to get permission from my wife to get here. My coach and teammates welcomed me with open arms,'' Fisher said. "They kept me on the active list. They didn't have to do that.''

http://www.nba.com/games/20070509/GSWUTA/recap.html

 

[D-Dogg]

I love Jerry West. One of the great tragedies of this organization is that he ever worked for another.

 

[abomb]

TOnight is the 11-year anniversary of Rookie KB's airballs in Utah.

 

[Joe L]

Did you watch the last game?!? Phil was ripping his ass the whole game for his air-headed plays.

I don't pay attention to the sidelines but I will take your word on it. if anything, I think it is his defense that lacks not the triangle. I still like his passing skills.

 

[Joe L]

Class move by KB. Especially considering what a "bad" guy Kobe is.

I don't understand how inviting the guy that recruited him to the Lakers and gave him what he's got now is a classy move...it is expected to show his gratitude. If that is classy for him to do then i would take the sarcasm smilie out.

 

[Renz]

I don't understand how inviting the guy that recruited him to the Lakers and gave him what he's got now is a classy move...it is expected to show his gratitude. If that is classy for him to do then i would take the sarcasm smilie out.

Oh, right, because everyone who is successful pays tribute to the people who helped get them there.

It was a classy move by Kobe. No one "gave" Kobe anything, BTW. He's worked his ass off to get where he is.

 

[Joe L]

Oh, right, because everyone who is successful pays tribute to the people who helped get them there.

Most do actually.

It was a classy move by Kobe. No one "gave" Kobe anything, BTW. He's worked his ass off to get where he is.

Yes, but how would it have worked out if Vlade wasn't traded for him? Wasn't he also lobbying for West to come back before the season started? Inviting the people who helped you in your career is the noble thing to do and it is expected to show gratitude and say thanks. That isn't classy...it is expected.

 

[abomb]

Great ESPN video feature on DFish and Utah.

I heard this story the other day about Chris Paul and wanted to pass it along to you guys.

 

[Darth Llama]

Loved the article on Fish, I'm so glad his daughter is doing better. Something like that is above the game, and above anything else, and I'm glad he and his family are doing well. I know some of the Utah fans don't understand that his family came first, but hey, that's on them.

With that being said, it's time for tip off. I'm nervous in this one, but no matter what, I still feel confident we got this series.

Go Lakers.