Dwight Howard to Lakers.

[Spottieottie]

I think their team might be better without Kobe. I still think they'll be really good, hopefully we can play them well when we match up and gotta hope they ultimately fall to the Spurs Heat or Thunder.

[Jazzfan12]

the difference in skill between and bynum and howard is not very great on that team. so many players on that laker team need to ball to be effective, and there is only 1 ball. what howard can/will do with his opportunities will not be much different than what bynum did.

defensively as well. nash vs fisher=eh...push, maybe even slightly less now. howard vs bynum obviously howard is better, but he will be relied upon a little more than bynum was, who wasnt that bad to begin with. so howards defensive flaws will come out more than bynums did.

the biggest change in this years laker team is jamison. he is their odom replacement and makes more of a difference than any other player change they did. if the lakers are better this year, it will be because of jamison, not nash or howard. but we'll see if kobe will allow it with his ball hogging style. this is why i expect this years laker team to be not that different from last years.

jazz can and should still pass them up if they play right.

What are Dwight's defensive flaws? He doesn't have any other than being mediocre against skilled guys, but that doesn't matter because there aren't any in the NBA who matter. And why will he be relied on more defensively? Have you seen his supporting cast on defense in Orlando? That might have been the worst collection of defenders in the NBA other than Dwight.

[JazzJuice]

To start I hate the Lakers, I hate them, I hate them, I hate them...

Now that my little tantrum is over, the Lakers are significantly better if they can all stay healthy. You won't be able to double team any of the 4 and don't underestimate the number of easy baskets Nash will get the other three. Jamison does also greatly help their bench.

I still think the Heat are better overall and that is mainly because of their 3 point shooting and the LBJ factor.

I'm not too soured though on this year's level of competition as it is realistic to hope for a 4th place finish in the west. I would love better but that depends on a big jump in the development of our youngsters. It is between OKC and the Lakers in the west. Between the Spurs, Denver, Memphis, and the Jazz after that. Next year ideally top 2-3, year after Championship!!!!!

[MeestR]

the difference in skill between and bynum and howard is not very great on that team. so many players on that laker team need to ball to be effective, and there is only 1 ball. what howard can/will do with his opportunities will not be much different than what bynum did.

defensively as well. nash vs fisher=eh...push, maybe even slightly less now. howard vs bynum obviously howard is better, but he will be relied upon a little more than bynum was, who wasnt that bad to begin with. so howards defensive flaws will come out more than bynums did.

the biggest change in this years laker team is jamison. he is their odom replacement and makes more of a difference than any other player change they did. if the lakers are better this year, it will be because of jamison, not nash or howard. but we'll see if kobe will allow it with his ball hogging style. this is why i expect this years laker team to be not that different from last years.

jazz can and should still pass them up if they play right.

What are Dwight's defensive flaws? He doesn't have any other than being mediocre against skilled guys, but that doesn't matter because there aren't any in the NBA who matter. And why will he be relied on more defensively? Have you seen his supporting cast on defense in Orlando? That might have been the worst collection of defenders in the NBA other than Dwight.

maybe i should say the addition of dwight on this laker team will not be as great as the subtraction of dwight from the magic. when you replace bynum, only dwight howard can be a step up, but he is not as big of a step from bynum as people might think because of his impact on that magic team. bynum is really good, really immature and a solid defender. the same EXACT thing can be said for howard. to me, this seems like a move for moves sake.

(even mj, who most consider the best to play the game, had his flaws *cough*push*cough* there are no perfect players. and howard-and bynum too-is still not close to the same level of top centers most of us have seen in our lifetimes, let alone before too.)

[Jazzfan12]

Dwight is significantly quicker than Bynum which will eliminate the major issues the Lakers had with defending the PnR last year. The Lakers were a mediocre defensive team last year, Dwight is always on top 3 defensive teams.

[countrybama24]

There's really no question this is a massive upgrade for the Lakers, Dwight is the second best player in the NBA. As mentioned, it makes their pick and roll defense orders of magnitude greater, since dwight is simply phenomenal at it and Bynum was poor. The biggest drag on the lakers was how lazy Bynum was imo, dwight runs the floor, gets every board, and is always moving on defense.

Also, Dwight has never played with a great PG, or even an average PG. The Dwight-Nash pick and roll is going to be incredibly dangerous.

[StocktonShorts]

Also, Dwight has never played with a great PG, or even an average PG. The Dwight-Nash pick and roll is going to be incredibly dangerous.

The most dangerous part of the Dwight/Nash pick and roll is when Kobe shoots a contested 20-footer.