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http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-sn- ... 6671.story

The Lakers have officially picked up Andrew Bynum's $16.1-million option, The Times has learned.

It will be the last year remaining on the contract of the 24-year-old center, who became an All-Star this season for the first time.

I think it was pretty much a given the Lakers would pick up the big fella's last year.

Another year to trade him. Worst case scenario he's an expiring.

This was a no brainer
Gives the team opportunity to trade him next year or to sign him long-term
I just hope they don't jump into signing him long-term right away

lakerRD wrote:This was a no brainer
Gives the team opportunity to trade him next year or to sign him long-term
I just hope they don't jump into signing him long-term right away

+1 Drew has shown he can get it done on the court, now its time to show some maturity.

if bynum for dwight pops up, you take it

Aki wrote:if bynum for dwight pops up, you take it

Even without knowing the ill affects from back surgery?

Good decision by the Lakers. Now the question becomes what they do with him. Will they seek to trade him and Pau for a different core, or will they keep him and try to build around him in the future.

One thing I'm afraid of is he gets a larger contract than what he's worth and he ends up becoming more of a headcase.

That's a no-brainer. All NBA 2nd team and all star in one season, he deserves a new contract as well.

Was there a chance they would not pick up the option?

Bynum is worth the max and is a franchise player. Not for a championship team, however.

Anklebreaker702 wrote:

Aki wrote:if bynum for dwight pops up, you take it

Even without knowing the ill affects from back surgery?

i'd do that trade right now!

rhp1990 wrote:

Anklebreaker702 wrote:

Aki wrote:if bynum for dwight pops up, you take it

Even without knowing the ill affects from back surgery?

i'd do that trade right now!

I'd do it yesterday. Dwight's back will be fine and we'll be in far better shape going forward with Dwight instead of Bynum...

good beginning. now we need to finish strong by getting MAJOR pieces around him. or shipping him out to get the gigantic piece.

16 mil is exactly what I think Bynum is worth

Bynum for Howard would work for both guys and both teams. A change in scenery is what they both need.

AcecardZ wrote:I'd do it yesterday. Dwight's back will be fine and we'll be in far better shape going forward with Dwight instead of Bynum...

There's no sure thing with back injuries. I'd wait & see. If we got a damaged Dwight who doesn't want to be here in the first place, there'd be a b*tch fest on this board like you wouldn't believe.

lakerRD wrote:This was a no brainer
Gives the team opportunity to trade him next year or to sign him long-term
I just hope they don't jump into signing him long-term right away

They wont. For the 1st time the Lakers aren't waiting to see what his on court presence would do for a whole season. They are looking for leadership qualities, maturity, & a true commitment to the organization from him.

Anklebreaker702 wrote:

lakerRD wrote:This was a no brainer
Gives the team opportunity to trade him next year or to sign him long-term
I just hope they don't jump into signing him long-term right away

They wont. For the 1st time the Lakers aren't waiting to see what his on court presence would do for a whole season. They are looking for leadership qualities, maturity, & a true commitment to the organization from him.

Exactly. If we are moving forward and possibly building around him in a long term sense, we must have confirmation that he possesses the necessary intangibles to lead us to the promised land.

I don't see Bynum as the main piece of this team in the future, I've really soured on him. His character is a real deal breaker considering his mediocre performances when he needed to step up