Where do the Lakers go from here...?

[trojanfan12]

Oh they're still going big game hunting...but the days of doing that and being left with Jordan Farmar, Jordan Hill, etc. are over. As for Randle, I have no clue to be honest. I don't know if they keep him, or let him walk

On Randle, I think it depends on how they do in FA. If they sign 2 max guys, I think he's gone.

If they sign 1 or 0, then I think they will match to keep him because they can always trade him later if they need to.

 

[trojanfan12]

Word around Cavs HQ is that they think Lebron is going to the Lakers.

Not sure if this is news or not. Didn't read the whole thread.

That's kind of been the speculation. Most have him staying in Cleveland or going to the Lakers. Whichever they have as most likely depends on who is doing the speculation.

But, end of the day, it's Lebron and anyone who says they know what he's going to do is either lying or a bit over confident in their speculation.

 

[tlance]

That's kind of been the speculation. Most have him staying in Cleveland or going to the Lakers. Whichever they have as most likely depends on who is doing the speculation.

But, end of the day, it's Lebron and anyone who says they know what he's going to do is either lying or a bit over confident in their speculation.

I thought it was a foregone conclusion that LeBron was gone a month ago. Now? I am not so sure. And not because the Cavs made the Finals.

The legacy thing matters to LeBron. A lot. Prior to This playoff run, the common thought was that LeBron needed more rings to legitimately enter the GOAT conversation. I am not sure that is true anymore.

In fact, in the eyes of many, LeBron might have more to lose than gain by jumping to another stacked team. If he stays in Cleveland and plays anywhere close to how well he played this year, he should be the front runner for MVP next year and can continue to post insane numbers and elevate Cleveland further than anyone else possibly could.

 

[Shaqdaddy11]

I thought it was a foregone conclusion that LeBron was gone a month ago. Now? I am not so sure. And not because the Cavs made the Finals.

The legacy thing matters to LeBron. A lot. Prior to This playoff run, the common thought was that LeBron needed more rings to legitimately enter the GOAT conversation. I am not sure that is true anymore.

In fact, in the eyes of many, LeBron might have more to lose than gain by jumping to another stacked team. If he stays in Cleveland and plays anywhere close to how well he played this year, he should be the front runner for MVP next year and can continue to post insane numbers and elevate Cleveland further than anyone else possibly could.

Lebron also knows both the Celtics and Sixers are going to be a lot stronger next year, while the cavs are probably not going to improve a lot, if at all.

I doubt the JR Smith incident yesterday didn't exactly help his confidence in his current team mates either.

I give it about a 70-75% chance he's gone. Not saying the Lakers though, I actually see him going to Philly.

 

[trojanfan12]

I thought it was a foregone conclusion that LeBron was gone a month ago. Now? I am not so sure. And not because the Cavs made the Finals.

The legacy thing matters to LeBron. A lot. Prior to This playoff run, the common thought was that LeBron needed more rings to legitimately enter the GOAT conversation. I am not sure that is true anymore.

In fact, in the eyes of many, LeBron might have more to lose than gain by jumping to another stacked team. If he stays in Cleveland and plays anywhere close to how well he played this year, he should be the front runner for MVP next year and can continue to post insane numbers and elevate Cleveland further than anyone else possibly could.

I think it depends. His legacy could be enhanced by going to a team like the Lakers or Sixers and leading that team to a title.

He would have led a storied franchise back to a title. He also would have led 3 different teams to titles. That's something that no other all time great can claim.

If he goes to a team with established stars like the Rockets...I could see it being held against him.

But with a young team like the Lakers or Sixers? I think that helps his legacy.

 

[wazzu31]

Why doesn't LeBron just go be player/GM/coach of the Raptors and cement his legacy?

 

[tlance]

I think it depends. His legacy could be enhanced by going to a team like the Lakers or Sixers and leading that team to a title.

He would have led a storied franchise back to a title. He also would have led 3 different teams to titles. That's something that no other all time great can claim.

If he goes to a team with established stars like the Rockets...I could see it being held against him.

But with a young team like the Lakers or Sixers? I think that helps his legacy.

There is some risk there, however.

Say he goes to Philly and they underachieve. It wouldn't hurt him, but it won't help him either.

This season has done as much to cement LeBron's legacy as his 2016 championship. He has been that good. He is single handedly debunking the titles argument with every passing game.

There is no risk staying in Cleveland. He won't win another ring, but he can continue to build his legacy one ludicrous stat line at a time.

 

[tlance]

Lebron also knows both the Celtics and Sixers are going to be a lot stronger next year, while the cavs are probably not going to improve a lot, if at all.

I doubt the JR Smith incident yesterday didn't exactly help his confidence in his current team mates either.

I give it about a 70-75% chance he's gone. Not saying the Lakers though, I actually see him going to Philly.

It doesn't matter if the Cavs improve. That was kind of my point. He won't be blamed for losing to a team like Boston next year.

It all comes down to his relationship with Gilbert and how bad it actually is. If it is salvageable, there is a hood chance LeBron stays. It may not be.

 

[Heatles84]

I thought it was a foregone conclusion that LeBron was gone a month ago. Now? I am not so sure. And not because the Cavs made the Finals.

The legacy thing matters to LeBron. A lot. Prior to This playoff run, the common thought was that LeBron needed more rings to legitimately enter the GOAT conversation. I am not sure that is true anymore.

In fact, in the eyes of many, LeBron might have more to lose than gain by jumping to another stacked team. If he stays in Cleveland and plays anywhere close to how well he played this year, he should be the front runner for MVP next year and can continue to post insane numbers and elevate Cleveland further than anyone else possibly could.

The only way I agree with this is due to the fact that Lebron's not really expected to win in Cleveland anymore given how that roster looks around him. If he goes to a team like Houston or Philly, he's expected to win again and not doing so damages his legacy.

The problem is is that Lebron actually has a minuscule chance at winning anything in Cleveland going forward. Look at the work load and effort he has to give on a night-to-night basis just so his team has a chance to win.

 

[trojanfan12]

There is some risk there, however.

Say he goes to Philly and they underachieve. It wouldn't hurt him, but it won't help him either.

This season has done as much to cement LeBron's legacy as his 2016 championship. He has been that good. He is single handedly debunking the titles argument with every passing game.

There is no risk staying in Cleveland. He won't win another ring, but he can continue to build his legacy one ludicrous stat line at a time.

Of course, there's risk. There's risk no matter what he does including if he stays in Cleveland.

I think that if he goes to the Lakers or Sixers, the potential reward is much greater than the risk. If he goes to one of those teams and they underachieve, it could be looked at as the result of a young roster that wasn't quite ready and Lebron finally getting old.

If he stays in Cleveland, knowing that chances are he not only doesn't win another ring, but likely isn't even getting back to the finals...it may be looked at as him giving up.

Disagree about the titles argument. Right or wrong, no one is giving that up. It's the ultimate goal for every single player. 10-15 years from now, no one is really going to remember his stats all that well, but they will remember his ring count.

 

[Retroram52]

I have stated this all along and stick by it.

"If they don't get anyone, then they do exactly what Magic said...don't spend money, just to spend money...sign some guys to deals like they did Lopez and KCP, then try again next off-season with a young core that hopefully has continued to develop and made themselves even more attractive to top FA's."

TJF12.

 

[Retroram52]

Mecca's has some good points as usual. Didn't know the hatred for Lakers and their fans was that deep.

 

[Retroram52]

Everyone seems to forget that the Lakers won 35 games this year which was an improvement of 12-13 games over the previous five years. If we keep that up we will be in the play-off window of 47-48 wins and that would be exactly what the GS model accomplished in the Bay area.

 

[tlance]

Everyone seems to forget that the Lakers won 35 games this year which was an improvement of 12-13 games over the previous five years. If we keep that up we will be in the play-off window of 47-48 wins and that would be exactly what the GS model accomplished in the Bay area.

No it isn't though.

The Lakers have a nice young core, but comparing them to GS is a major reach. They are a once in a generation combination of non-elite draft picks melding into home grown stars. The odds of the Lakers becoming that if they keep the roster as is are almost zero.

The Lakers are in a good spot because of their cap space along with solid young talent. If they aren't able to do anything with the cap space, the rebuild plan isn't likely to ever allow them to contend.

 

[tlance]

Everyone seems to forget that the Lakers won 35 games this year which was an improvement of 12-13 games over the previous five years. If we keep that up we will be in the play-off window of 47-48 wins and that would be exactly what the GS model accomplished in the Bay area.

No it isn't though.

The Lakers have a nice young core, but comparing them to GS is a major reach. They are a once in a generation combination of non-elite draft picks melding into home grown stars. The odds of the Lakers becoming that if they keep the roster as is are almost zero.

The Lakers are in a good spot because of their cap space along with solid young talent. If they aren't able to do anything with the cap space, the rebuild plan isn't likely to ever allow them to contend.

 

[trojanfan12]

The Lakers have a nice young core, but comparing them to GS is a major reach. They are a once in a generation combination of non-elite draft picks melding into home grown stars. The odds of the Lakers becoming that if they keep the roster as is are almost zero.

I don't think he's necessarily saying it's the exact same thing as far as how the Warriors were built vs. what the Lakers are doing.

I think it's more about the number of games improvement from the season before they made the playoffs to the season they did.

Although, in that respect, the Warriors actually had an even worse record the season before than the Lakers this past season.

 

[Retroram52]

Thanks TJF12. I could not have summarized my response to tlance any better myself. The voice of reason is always good to read!!

 

[Mecca of the “B” Team]

Laying that foundation....

It won’t bother James to be in Houston rather than a glamor capitol like Los Angeles. If the best players usually want the brightest lights and the biggest stage, Bron is 180 degrees different. It has always a personal conceit that wherever he is is a marquee market. He wasn’t even 21 as a young NBA player when he began convening an annual marketing conference—in his home town of Akron, not even nearby Cleveland—obliging his sponsors to show up there. It’s true that LeBron owns two pricey homes in Brentwood, suggesting that he is, indeed, thinking about the Lakers… but that may mean little in the end. “These days it doesn’t matter because you can be known and be a star from anywhere-–anywhere in the world,” Maverick Carter, Bron’s point man, recently told syndicated talk show host Rich Eisn. “I mean, could he sell a few more sneakers if he was in a gigantic market like Boston, Chicago, New York, or L.A.? Maybe. But not as much as if he wins. What matters the most is if he wins. When you win as an athlete, that matters the most.”

– viaOrange County Register

 

[Retroram52]

Could be Mecca. Or maybe James' ego wants to be around a team that features mega super stars and a history of championships. Do I detect a note of hating on the Lakers again from you? lol.

 

[Mecca of the “B” Team]

They were my own words you retarded deadbeat fuck. It’s gross because you’re so pathetic stalking a trite married woman on the internet. You’re a loser

It's sad that you are jealous of someone on the internet.

You must have the most pathetic existence known to man.

You literally follow people from thread to thread looking for any type of attention.

Were you in the foster care system?

Abandoned in a box behind a dumpster at birth?

So, Any attention is good attention?

I don't think I have ever seen a man act this way before.

You have to be in a mental institution.

He doesn't like Dick.

You don't have a shot.

So, don't get your saggy panties in a twist when he compliments someone else.

Ps. Clean the jizz from around your crusty ass lips.

That's disgusting.