Game Thread: tOfficial Lakers Summer League Thread

[trojanfan12]

Not just that, but the guys have only been working out together for two weeks... under Mark Madsen.

Things will be a lot different when B Scott is in charge of training camp.

Exactly. The announcers made a good point during the game yesterday. They were saying that Madsen is a perfect summer league coach because he's pretty much all positive all the time. That's great because you want the guys to want to get out there and run and not be afraid to make mistakes. That allows them to adjust a bit to the speed of the NBA game and get some good runs in.

The development will come starting in training camp when Byron starts telling them about all of the things they suck at.

I think he's been to all of the summer league games, so I'm sure he's making a list for them.

 

[Kold]

Are we really doing this after 3 or 4 summer league games? The kid is gonna be fine. He's gonna definitely go through growing pains, and he's gonna have a tough time....BUT HE'S 19! He's gonna have his moments of genius, and he's gonna have his moments where he looks overwhelmed

 

[Retroram52]

At some point the "fans" need to chill just a tad and let the summer league serve its intended purpose. It is a developmental league and its intended purpose is to develop players who otherwise would not get that opportunity.

 

[Black Adam]

At some point the "fans" need to chill just a tad and let the summer league serve its intended purpose. It is a developmental league and its intended purpose is to develop players who otherwise would not get that opportunity.

i'm tryin', man...

look, I wanted Okafor like a bunch of others here did, but I AM willing to see the point of view that Russell MAY have been the better pick and give the guy a chance at least to pan out. if the choice was a poor one we'll ALL know it soon enough...

 

[TheSnowdog]

If Russell doesn't lead the Lakers to the NBA championship while also winning Rookie of the Year, All Star MVP, NBA MVP, and NBA playoff MVP then it is a failure of a draft for the Lakers

Kupchak should be fired

 

[Retroram52]

i'm tryin', man...

look, I wanted Okafor like a bunch of others here did, but I AM willing to see the point of view that Russell MAY have been the better pick and give the guy a chance at least to pan out. if the choice was a poor one we'll ALL know it soon enough...

Yea I hear you CL67. Apparently the Lakers still aren't satisfied as there are reports that the Lakers are interested in Ty Lawson from the Nuggies. Beats me at this juncture.

 

[jaz4u11]

If Russell doesn't lead the Lakers to the NBA championship while also winning Rookie of the Year, All Star MVP, NBA MVP, and NBA playoff MVP then it is a failure of a draft for the Lakers

Kupchak should be fired

Yea and Sam Hinkie is the best GM in Basketball.

 

[trojanfan12]

Yea I hear you CL67. Apparently the Lakers still aren't satisfied as there are reports that the Lakers are interested in Ty Lawson from the Nuggies. Beats me at this juncture.

I understand the Lakers interest in Lawson, but I'm not sure I'd want them to get him.

Pros: He's a very talented player and when his head is right, he's one of the better point guards in the league. He could take a lot of pressure off of DeAngelo Russell and would be a solid insurance policy if Russell doesn't pan out. He also potentially makes good trade fodder if Russell turns out to be as good as most think he will be. Because of his off the court issues, he can be had for next to nothing.

Cons: His head doesn't appear to be right. His off the court issues seem pretty significant at this point. He may have serious alcohol abuse issues. He was just arrested for DUI for the 2nd time in 6 months despite being on a no alcohol order from a Colorado judge and could be facing jail time (although that seems unlikely).

Maybe the proverbial "change of scenery" is what he needs and the Lakers would seem to be in position to take a chance on him.

On the other hand, they are already hoping a "change of scenery" works for Roy Hibbert and Robert Upshaw. Not sure how many of those types of players you want on one team.

 

[Hangman]

I would love to get Lawson. He can run the point well. Also, he is in his prime right now and having him and the young core will be a draw to free agents next season. It is all about what the Lakers give up for him. He also will be cutting into free agent money available for next year. Also means that Nick Young would be most likely traded away for him. So there is some more plus than just getting Lawson.

 

[Retroram52]

I agree CL67. The mix of players with "issues" and a guy like Kobe could be a disaster waiting to happen or they could get some help and it could all click. Kobe's desire and competitiveness and his persistence could be too much for guys like Hibbert, Upshaw, and a Lawson.

If they see Kobe's motives (and resulting accomplishments) as unidirectional that produce championships, then those types of players may get it. Or, if you get three of them together that don't adapt correctly, now you have a mess that Jordon Hill referred to in his latest revelation. Afterall, Jordon Hill had issues on his return from Houston.

 

[Kold]

I could see them trying to use Lawson plus something else as trade bait for Cousins...but ssince we're not giving up Clarkson/Russell/Randle, I'm not sure that we could give enough value to Denver to beat out other teams.

 

[TheSnowdog]

I could see them trying to use Lawson plus something else as trade bait for Cousins...but ssince we're not giving up Clarkson/Russell/Randle, I'm not sure that we could give enough value to Denver to beat out other teams.

I was thinking the same thing but LA would be stupid to give up any of these 3 payers for Lawson

I live in the Denver area but I haven't kept tabs that much on the Nuggets but at the moment as far as my perception is about them they seem to be a team in disarray a bit

Maybe the Lakers can swindle the Nuggets and get Lawson or even bring in a third team

Other than that I don't see LA getting Lawson

 

[TheSnowdog]

At some point the "fans" need to chill just a tad and let the summer league serve its intended purpose. It is a developmental league and its intended purpose is to develop players who otherwise would not get that opportunity.

This is a good point

I like Russell and as I have said before the Lakers would have drafted a great player either way if the drafted Okafor or Russell

Russell is going to find his shot - just have to be patient
One thing with the Lakers summer league roster is that they have at least a couple of other players on the roster and in the games who are going to be on the team when the real season starts - Randle and Clarkson

I don't know why Clarkson is out there playing as much as he is - he is like a man among boys so far in summer league.

But Randle and Clarkson are getting a lot of the touches (Clarkson has taken 60 shots or so in Las Vegas so far) and maybe it would have been beneficial to feed Russell more to help him find his shot. Looks like at the moment he is at 31% FG taking 41 shots

To contrast on the Sixers besides Okafor there really isn't anyone else on the roster that can be put in the same quality caliber group as Randle and Clarkson

The result is is that Okafor is getting a larger percentage of the touches. In Las Vegas he has played only 2 games and has taken 32 shots - almost as much as Russell has done in 4 games
Okafor is shooting 43% from the field but he is doing that from the low post so can't really compare that to Russell
From the snippet of playing time that I have been able to watch I did notice that Okafor's shot is somewhat flat - he needs to change that or else it is going to be Return to Sender

But I'm not worried - I'm taking it as Retro said - it is summer league - and just enjoying watching these kids play - not only on the Sixers but also around the league

anyways just

 

[Retroram52]

Yep I agree SnowDog. Clarkson has proven he is ready to go but I believe they want to keep Russell and Clarkson together in the manner of Steph Curry And Klay Thompson. I believe the Lakers believe they have the backcourt of the future and it would make little sense and be counter-productive to have that approach and then turn around and trade Russell and any a number of proposed scenarios for a drunk like Lawson. Makes very little sense and would make Mitch look like Jim Buss.

 

[TheSnowdog]

Yep I agree SnowDog. Clarkson has proven he is ready to go but I believe they want to keep Russell and Clarkson together in the manner of Steph Curry And Klay Thompson. I believe the Lakers believe they have the backcourt of the future and it would make little sense and be counter-productive to have that approach and then turn around and trade Russell and any a number of proposed scenarios for a drunk like Lawson. Makes very little sense and would make Mitch look like Jim Buss.

ahh yes that makes sense to start building cohesiveness - good point

 

[Shaqdaddy11]

Missed the last summer league game but apparently Russell had a very good game!

 

[Retroram52]

Yea he did Shaqdaddy. He'll come around especially working with Nash this summer.

 

[trojanfan12]

Missed the last summer league game but apparently Russell had a very good game!

Yeah, he finally looked like what we thought we were getting when he was drafted. Apparently, he went through similar growing pains over his first few games at Ohio St.

 

[tomodach10]

He hit some nice jump shots. Clarkson played too much in summer league. I did not understand that like others have said.

 

[trojanfan12]

He hit some nice jump shots. Clarkson played too much in summer league. I did not understand that like others have said.

I agree with Retro. It was probably to help build chemistry between him, Russell and Randle. Plus, if memory serves from things said before hand, I think he wanted to play in it.