Real growth won't happen for the youth until Byron and Kobe are gone. Unfortunately that is not likely to happen until the summer. Best case scenario for enduring another awful season will be to hold onto that top-3 pick. I'll always be a fan of Kobe for all the rings and great games we...
The traits that made Kobe great are making for an embarrassing end to his career. It won't affect his legacy though. That's pretty much set in stone at this point.
I'm beginning to think that Byron was hired, not to develop the youth, but to usher out the Kobe era in fanboy fashion. He's not going to hold Kobe accountable for his shot selection.
You are more confident than me. I'm not sure Kobe can physically do it all game anymore, let alone play at a high enough level to beat the Warriors. He may catch fire for a short stretch, such as the first quarter last night, but it's just not sustainable all game.
It's somewhat similar to what I thought may be the case if the Lakers drafted Okafor to play alongside Randle. A stretch-4 is probably the better player-type to go with Okafor. Keep the middle spaced for him. Randle has a long ways to go with his jumpshot.
Russell's play recently should inspire some optimism in the naysayers. He's looking more comfortable on the floor as he's been given more playing time and a longer leash. I like seeing him mixing in attacking the rim off pick and rolls rather than always pulling up at the elbow. That elbow...
So far Noel and Okafor on the court together have been awful. Offensively something in the low 80s per 100 possessions. Not great defensively either. If Embiid finally plays in this league, they are going to have to trade one of these bigs.