The Los Angeles Lakers playoff run ended less than 72 hours ago against the superior Oklahoma City Thunder and the trade rumors and blame game are in full swing. Clearly, the Lakers lacked sufficient talent and youth along with lacking the will and determination to close out games when they had the opportunity. There are a number of things to be concerned about but a clear perspective is not always an ardent Lakers fan's best attribute. The local media can be a mixed bag between apologists and doomsayers and fill up airtime, print space, or websites with any and all angles to drive attention. I suppose I could be guilty too but it happens every year the Lakers fall short of winning another championship. As Lakers fans we demand a lot but let's not drive ourselves crazy.
For almost any other team in the NBA appearing in the second round of the playoffs would be considered a success. However, this is Los Angeles, where it's championship or bust. We've been spoiled. We want championship #17 and for some a sixth ring for Kobe Bryant. The team faced a lockout shortened season with very little training camp time and few preseason games with a new coach and a new system. Commissioner David Stern aborted a trade that would've sent Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom away for Chris Paul in return. The ensuing hurt feelings led to Odom's departure in a different deal. They opened the season playing 3 games in a row and it didn't get much easier from there. Trade rumors lingered but ultimately nothing significant occurred early on in the season. Lakers played well. They toiled as middle-of-the-pack teams. Later in the season they sent the aging leader in Derek Fisher to the Houston Rockets for Jordan Hill and picked up Ramon Sessions from Cleveland. Small moves but seemingly important to provide more youth and speed at the point guard position. Sessions fit the bill for the most part; speedy drives to the basket with a nice floater, lobs to Andrew Bynum, Josh McRoberts, Gasol, etc.
The team was essentially thrown together with some new additions under new coach Mike Brown and his staff to basically learn the playbook during the season. It was often ugly but the Lakers proved to be better than most of the league. All the while rumors persisted about what other moves Lakers would make to help secure a successful playoff run. Names like Dwight Howard, Deron Williams, Rajon Rondo, Kevin Love, Michael Beasley were thrown around but ultimately Sessions and Hill were the only "significant" players acquired.
And so the playoffs began. The Lakers beat the Denver Nuggets in 7 games in a tougher than expected first round match-up. Then met the Oklahoma City Thunder where they were not favored to win and lost in 5 games. Both series exposed a lot of issues.
Sessions proved not to be ready for the spotlight by being underwhelming both offensively and defensively. Steve Blake took over more minutes especially in the fourth quarter of the Denver series where he made some timely shots. Blake however was mostly ineffective in OKC. Metta World Peace seemed to take his play to another level by providing tenacious defense and some good shooting. His elbow to James Harden's head was the low point and it cost him a game. Gasol's numbers had gone down across the board and appeared unsure and passive at times. He was not very aggressive unless prodded by Bryant publicly. Bynum played well in Denver but was out-hustled at times by the more athletic JaVale McGee and Kenneth Faried. Against the Thunder he was bullied by Kendrick Perkins and struggled. His focus and motivation was also suspect. Bryant didn't shoot particularly well but always found a way to get to the line, making 18 of 18 in one game most notably. The biggest surprise was his inability to close out games. The usually reliable Bryant often went away from feeding the post players and shot jumpers that didn't fall. It would often lead to fast breaks for the other teams. He also contributed his share of turnovers at the worst of times. His performance was uncharacteristically mortal and pedestrian.
The bench didn't supply much help either. Matt Barnes, Devin Ebanks, Blake, were routinely outscored by the opponents bench. The only bright spot was Hill who at least provided some energy and rebounding.
It would be easy to dismiss this outcome as a failure. And it is but not because the Lakers didn't win the championship. It's a failure because they didn't play at their full potential. Whether their effort waned from fatigue or indifference the series were not lost for lack of talent but lack of total commitment. The commitment to finish games, to communicate, to fight for position, to rebound, to move the ball. These are not abstract concepts these are fundamental tenets of basketball. The Denver series never should have gone to seven games. Against Oklahoma City the Lakers gave away games.
So who do we blame? Someone has to take the fall. There has to be an incompetent figure who deserves our scorn. The masses must be fed a sacrifice for such failure! If you listen to local sports radio the villain changes with each fan who calls in. A listener in Pacoima blames Gasol's soft play. A listener in West Hollywood blames Kobe. A listener in Long Beach blames Stern for not allowing the Paul trade. Everybody has an opinion. Beat reporters get it. They have the best perspective since they're embedded with the team. They understand there isn't an easy answer. Changes will occur. Columnists' opinions will vary from the team is too old to compete to it's so-and-so's fault. If you ask Petros Papadakis from Fox Sports Radio's "
The Petros and Money Show" the blame falls squarely on Kobe's shoulders.
"Worst teammate ever."
"No player has gotten better playing with Kobe."
"I don't think anyone wants to come to play with Kobe."
"Selfish."
Suffice it to say that Petros is not a fan of Kobe. While he tempers his disdain by acknowledging that Kobe is a great player it's clear that his analysis goes beyond reasonable criticism. Does Kobe deserve his share of blame for the Lakers exiting the playoffs? Of course he does. He became a catalyst for failure in some of those games but to speculate and treat his biased opinions as fact is irresponsible. He doesn't know for a fact if other top free agents don't want to come to play for the Lakers because Kobe is there. He doesn't substantiate his opinion with sources or facts. There are plenty of reasons free agents don't end up in LA;team's financial constraints, cost of living, available playing time, higher offers, etc. This is what the conversation devolves to. It's as clear-headed as that caller from Long Beach blaming Stern for the Lakers outcome.
From exit interviews teammates appear to like Kobe despite what some say.
Troy Murphy on Kobe: "His basketball IQ is by far greater than anyone I've ever played with."
Darius Morris on Kobe: "I didn't really expect us to be as close as we got, but it happened. ... Off the court we became good friends."
Jordan Hill: "Kobe's just like one of us. Have fun, smile, laugh, jokes. But when it's time to get that ball in the hands, it's game time."
It's clear many of the Lakers hope to return and improve for next year.
Mike Brown: "Under the circumstances, I feel like we got a lot accomplished and feel we learned a lot... But we can be better"
Andrew Goudelock on management: "They said they liked me ... Summer league is more about me showing them what to work on & solidify myself."
Andrew Bynum: "I want to be a Laker, but you never know what's going to happen."
Devin Ebanks: "i would definitely like to stay in L.A."
Steve Blake: "I still believe with this group of guys we can still get it."
Bynum: "I don't want to go anywhere. Hopefully if I keep elevating my play, I won't have to."
Ramon Sessions: "Definitely hope to be here. Hopefully everything works out."
Matt Barnes: "When you don't win here, changes are made."
Amid the exit interviews and blame game going on in the media the annual Lakers trade speculation has revved up on local radio and with some online outlets. On the radio listeners are proposing all the real and imagined trades they can muster. Everything from Steve Blake and Jordan Hill for Steve Nash to trading Kobe (who has a no-trade clause) for Deron Williams and Brook Lopez to everything in between. And it will remain like this for months to come. Some folks want to blow up the team entirely to making minor tweaks. The airwaves will be flooded with every whisper of a trade.
Probably one of the best Lakers fan site, LakersNation.com, has already begun rounding reports of speculative additions like this one from ESPN dated May 22, less than 24 hours after the Lakers lost:
"Here are different possible fits for [Steve] Nash, beginning with the recently eliminated Los Angeles Lakers."
There are other posts involving trade scenarios with Deron Williams and Andrew Bynum. I haven't even ventured into the forums as I'm sure theirs as well as other sites have a multitude of amateur general managers ready to trade Bynum for the ghost of Wilt Chamberlain. These fantasy basketball wish lists for 2013 will be a staple for the coming months even though we're only 3 days away from the 2011-2012 Western Conference Finals.
I realize changes need to be made. Obviously, the Lakers lack something that has caused them to be booted from the second round of the playoffs two years in a row. The same questions linger at point guard as well as others. If Sessions comes back will he grow into his role and run the offense with authority? Will Metta World Peace come into camp in shape and ready from the beginning? Will Andrew Bynum add to his game to break double teams and mature into a man? Will players finally feel comfortable in Coach Brown's system? Can Kobe continue to play at a high level and still have enough for another playoff run? Is there any hope to improve a dismal bench? No one knows but what we do know is that if there's a significant way to make this team a legitimate contender against the Thunders of the basketball world Mitch Kupchak and Jim Buss will make it happen. You won't hear about it. You probably won't see it coming. The Lakers brass is very tight-lipped about potential moves. They won't even discuss it with any certainty or clarity. They shocked the NBA with the acquisition of Pau Gasol a few years ago and I expect they'll do something incredulous again.
So the season was hard and the ending was brutal but as Lakers fans we know that the organization will do everything in their power to keep the team competitive and win another championship. It is winning that gold ball that drives Kobe, the team, the management, the owners, the fans and you can throw out all the mindless trade talk you want but whomever is on the roster come 2013 it'll be another NBA Finals appearance or nothing at all.
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