hole at SF?

[Soulsphere]

It was a shame seeing the lakers not take a stab at dorell wright who got traded to the sixers for basically nothing. we need an athletic 3pt shooter who can play good defense.

artest is getting old. though i still like his defense because he has some muscle. his 3pt shot is just too inconsistent last year.

ebanks is really not a solution at all. with the way the lakers are setup, the SF needs to be able to play defense to give kobe a break on D. a shooter who can spread the floor for nash to dish to. and needs to have size to slash to the basket or play D on bigger wing players.

there doesn't seem to be anyone on the market left to sign with our partial mini-exception.

people may say gasol is off the table.....but as much as i like the guy, i think we should still consider trading him. get a strong SF and good PF is just fine since we can have dwight pick up the slack. we also have jamison who can play well enough at PF.

doubt it would happen....but if we can get gasol in a trade for deng...i'd do it.

[LApwnd]

dont want to see Jamison starting, trading Pau for upgrade @ Sf will only downgrade the PF position, so we'd still have a hole.

[Sofa King]

MWP will be fine. He's been in shape and will be ready for the season.

Having a starting line up of

Nash
Kobe
MWP
Jamison
Gasol

... will be just fine until Dwight gets back. MWP will also play better with Nash since he makes everyone better.

If MWP slims down and gets his speed back, he should be good on defense. Not the All-Defensive stopper he once was, but his defense shouldn't be that much of a worry. Then when Dwight gets back, look out for the Lakers to be top 5 in the league in Defense.

[Levity]

metta's biggest problems last year were that he came into training camp out of shape, and was still hampered by chronic injuries from previous seasons. the first half of the season, he played absolutely terrible at points. but by april, he was back in shape, his back and feet were feeling better, and as a result, he was actually productive. jump ahead to this offseason, hes been relentlessly working out in the gym, playing pick up games/charity games, and looking great while doing so

knowing all this, i think metta can put up a very productive season for us at the 3 spot. hes going to be the 5th option in the starting line up, and still put up great D. if he can hit the 3 at a decent percentage throughout the season, he'll be just fine.

[Stebo_SSK]

metta's biggest problems last year were that he came into training camp out of shape, and was still hampered by chronic injuries from previous seasons. the first half of the season, he played absolutely terrible at points. but by april, he was back in shape, his back and feet were feeling better, and as a result, he was actually productive. jump ahead to this offseason, hes been relentlessly working out in the gym, playing pick up games/charity games, and looking great while doing so

knowing all this, i think metta can put up a very productive season for us at the 3 spot. hes going to be the 5th option in the starting line up, and still put up great D. if he can hit the 3 at a decent percentage throughout the season, he'll be just fine.

This. Not sure why some guys keep raggin on Artest. The dude has got it made and just has to focus on defense. The fact that the original poster suggested Dorell Wright over Artest for this team speaks volumes about his basketball knowledge. While Wright's 3 pt shooting would be nice I'd rather have Artest's defense and ability to score in a multitude of ways that he has been underrated in especially since being in LA. In shape Artest is still capable of 15-17 ppg IMO. This team doesnt need that though.

[hermes]

lebron james plays sf doesn't he?

[Sofa King]

lebron james plays sf doesn't he?

Lebron is better at pf.

Now Durant plays sf.

[Stebo_SSK]

lebron james plays sf doesn't he?

Lebron is better at pf.

Now Durant plays sf.

Lebron really doenst have a position. Outside of center wherever he is at he is going to be highly effective. Im sure he doesnt play PF against LA with a full lineup in place.

[Sofa King]

Stebo_SSK takes things too seriously

[VTi]

Let's say we face the likes of Lebron and Durant, who is better to defend them than MWP at this point that isnt a superstar/allstar?

I think a motivated and in shape MWP should be just fine. I just dont hope he takes to many shots cause he always make me cringe

[s3antana5757]

MWP will be fine. He's gotten over his back problems with his nerves or whatever, and should be playing like he did towards the end of the year.

The issue, is the back-up SF. Ebanks has some potential, but I don't think he's the answer. Jamison is not the answer, he can't defend 3's. I would have loved to get Hill, but that ship has sailed. I think it'll get addressed at the trade deadline, or PIetrus gets signed pretty soon for the rest of the MLE.

[Stebo_SSK]

Stebo_SSK takes things too seriously

Some of the talk I see makes my stomach hurt lol. Maybe I just need to realize that most fans dont know a lick about bball.

[kobe808lak]

Artest, while not in his prime is still only 32. I think the lockout hurt him last year. He wasn't in good shape and it took him a few months to get back to form. I think he ended the season very well, his shot came back as well.

I don't have any issue with him at SF. Ebanks is meh but I think he can grow.

[Leor_77]

Artest is a huge liability on offense. I'm not betting that he plays at the level he was at, at the end of the year. Ebanks showed a glimpse of what he could do for us against Denver. Was hitting jump-shots when teams doubled other players. I also like his length and athleticism - Would be a great fit with Nash, as far as cutting/driving to the hoop. If Ebanks can hit jumpers with any kind of regularity, we will be unstoppable.

[Stebo_SSK]

Artest is a huge liability on offense. I'm not betting that he plays at the level he was at, at the end of the year. Ebanks showed a glimpse of what he could do for us against Denver. Was hitting jump-shots when teams doubled other players. I also like his length and athleticism - Would be a great fit with Nash, as far as cutting/driving to the hoop. If Ebanks can hit jumpers with any kind of regularity, we will be unstoppable.

How is he a liability on offense any more than Ebanks could be? Explain this

[KingLakers]

Its not a hole at SF Artest can still hold his own the only potential hole is at backup SF if Ebanks disappoints in his play after him all thats left is a 37 yr old Jamison. Maybe as the season progresses a guy like Corey Brewer may become available the Lakers could look at him.

[alaskan34pac34]

Haha people relax artest isn't that bad. What do people expect we had a great offseason. We can't get a all star at every position, plus don't you think artest( i hate calling him peace) is exactly what the Lakers need a wing defender. Lets not keep acting like we have to upgrade every position lets be lucky for the team we do have.

[LApwnd]

Haha people relax artest isn't that bad. What do people expect we had a great offseason. We can't get a all star at every position, plus don't you think artest( i hate calling him peace) is exactly what the Lakers need a wing defender. Lets not keep acting like we have to upgrade every position lets be lucky for the team we do have.

Mitch/Jim spoiling the fans, expect all-stars at every position but techincally Artest is a former all-star

[Bandwagon1]

Earl Clark can ball.

[Dr Aki]

MWP just won the yo gabbalympics, he'll be fine