Archive for the 'Off-Season' Category

Shot Swatting Champ

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on August 12, 2009
in Miscellaneous and Off-Season
. Closed

With the Lakers coming upon their 50th season in Los Angeles, we’ve been digging into the history books, which always nets a fun fact or two.

Here’s one:

After moving from the Buffalo Braves to the Lakers in 1973-74 as a third-year player, Elmore Smith set a still-standing league record of 17 blocks in one game, which he accomplished against Portland on Oct. 28, 1973 (a 111-98 Lakers win). You have to wonder whom he was guarding … Ouch.

The NBA has pages devoted to stats such as these, where we learned that fellow Laker Kareem Abdul-Jabbar shares the NBA record for seasons leading the league in blocks (4), along with Utah’s Mark Eaton.

Of course, the league didn’t start keeping track of blocked shots until 1973-74, and Wilt Chamerlain retired the year before. Who knows how many shots the Stilt might have blocked in a single game? Alas, for Smith, it was his most prolific shot-blocking season, in which 4.9 balls per game were sent a different way.

Not bad at all, but it’s the 17 in one game that we’ll remember most. For a point of reference, Andrew Bynum’s best game in 2008-09 featured six blocks, and Pau Gasol’s only five. Do your thing, Elmore.

Pau Gasol Injury Update

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on August 11, 2009
in Off-Season and Pau Gasol
. Closed

Pau GasolAccording to Lakers spokesman John Black, Pau Gasol had surgery earlier this week in Spain to repair a torn volar plate on the index finger of his left hand. Gasol will wear a splint for three weeks, when the Spanish National Team hopes that he can return to play for his country in the European Championships.

The Lakers expect to have an update on Gasol’s progress and return status in approximately three weeks.

In related news, Gasol spoke to Lakers Athletic Trainer Gary Vitti early Tuesday morning, determining that Vitti will travel to Barcelona at the end of the month to see Gasol.

Rambis Introduced in Minnesota

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on August 11, 2009
in Off-Season
. Closed

Kurt RambisA day after L.A.’s brain trust weighed in, former Lakers assistant Kurt Rambis was officially introduced as the new Head Coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday afternoon in Minneapolis in press-conference format.

We watched on timberwolves.com and took some notes on Twitter in case you missed it:

LakersReporter: Rambis: “I left an incredible job in Los Angeles. I was very happy there. That team has a chance to win several NBA championships.”

LakersReporter: Rambis was quite gracious in thanking the Buss family, coaches & players individually. But bottom line: Couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

LakersReporter: Rambis cited the influence of Tex Winter, whom he called an unparalleled basketball mind that had no filter.

LakersReporter: Rambis is certainly cogent & comfortable in front of the media - After 10 minutes he’s yet to have a slip of the tongue. Impressive.

LakersReporter: Rambis on Phil Jackson: “I like the way that he allows players out there on the court to make decisions for themselves.”

LakersReporter: On Phil cont’d: “I like the freedom he’s given players to make decisions with the ball - be passers, be shooters, be basket attackers.”

LakersReporter: It took a little while, but Rambis finally got the cold weather dig in. For those of us from Minnesota, we know it’s coming eventually.

LakersReporter: Rambis cited his exp. w/Shaq and Kobe - plus Rodman - as a head coach as boosting his knowledge. “Best learning exp. for a young coach.”

LakersReporter: Rambis highlighted that he learned preparation from Pat Riley and player management from Phil Jackson, two of the best at each.

LakersReporter: Bottom line from presser: Rambis is very obviously prepared and excited to be a head coach.

Buss, Kupchak, Jackson Wish Rambis Well

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on August 10, 2009
in Mitch Kupchak, Off-Season and Phil Jackson
. Closed

Kurt RambisThe Los Angeles Lakers released the following quotes from owner Dr. Jerry Buss, General Manager Mitch Kupchak and Head Coach Phil Jackson regarding the announcement of Kurt Rambis as new Head Coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves:

Dr. Jerry Buss
“Kurt is one of the hardest-working and brightest assistant coaches we’ve ever had, and I expect he will be very successful with the Timberwolves. Kurt has been a key figure in the success of the Lakers for nearly three decades. In my mind he will always be a Laker, but we wish him the best of luck in Minnesota.”

Mitch Kupchak
“While we’re obviously sad to see Kurt leave, we are excited for him to realize his long-time goal of becoming an NBA head coach. Kurt is a true professional and has ingrained himself as a fixture as a player, front office executive and coach in this organization, and has become a fan favorite both on and off the court. I’d like to thank Kurt for his tremendous contributions to the organization over the years. While he will undoubtedly be a welcome addition to the Timberwolves franchise, Kurt will always remain a part of the Lakers family.”

Phil Jackson
“It’s ‘best of luck’ that the coaching staff sends to Kurt Rambis as he takes on the coaching duties with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Kurt has been the workhorse of my staff the past few years. He’s worked with the youth of our team, coming in early and staying late, to help players develop. Last season he took on the responsibility as the defensive coordinator, a valuable part of our championship run. We will miss him, but know this is his time to do what he’s destined to do.”

Dodgers CF Matt Kemp on Lakers.com

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on August 7, 2009
in Miscellaneous and Off-Season
. Closed

For the latest segment of the “Popcorn Machine,” we went to Dodger Stadium to sit down with a serious basketball fan who dabbles in center field for the L.A. Dodgers: Matt Kemp.

Kemp, who came to several Lakers games this past season, played high school hoops with Shelden Williams* at Midwest City in Oklahoma on a squad that was so good, they won back-to-back state championships.
*Williams, who starred at Duke and was the No. 5 overall pick in 2006, recently signed a free agent contract with Boston.

Kemp almost continued his hoops dream in college, but instead decided to sign with the big leagues as his game continued to grow and scouts became superfluous at his high school baseball games.

So, on Tuesday afternoon prior to L.A.’s 17-4 win over Milwaukee, Kemp joined us in the Dodgers dugout to detail his basketball past, speculate about Lamar Odom’s baseball prospects (the lanky lefty fancies himself a pitcher), guess that Jordan Farmar would be the Lakers’ best baseball player and give us his top five musical artists as compared to those of Josh Powell and Shannon Brown.

TO LISTEN TO THE PODCAST, CLICK HERE.

Mailbag Question - Jay Z/Lil’ Wayne

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on August 3, 2009
in Miscellaneous and Off-Season
. Closed

Lil WayneLakers.com reader Stanley checked in recently with this question:

Q: Jay-Z has seemed to have aligned himself with LeBron James (he’s in his new video) and Lil’ Wayne made the song called “Kobe Bryant”… So who wins that battle, and what’s your take on arguably the two best rappers in the industry using the two best basketball players on the planet to sell records?
- Stanley, Valencia, CA

Any time someone can sensibly mix Jay-Z and Lil’ Wayne into a legit question, I’m compelled to answer. In fact, this topic could probably circle sports talk radio for weeks (OK, maybe a day … all right, an hour … fine, one segment). Alas, I’ll first refer to J-Peezy’s Playlist. During our 2009 Lakers Hip Hop Draft (Playlist No. 3), featuring Josh Powell and Shannon Brown with myself on the side, Lil’ Wayne went No. 1 overall (to Powell), while Jay-Z fell to No. 3 (to Brown as I took 2pac second).

“(Lil’ Wayne’s) just poppin,’,” said Powell at the time. “He’s gettin’ it in right now. I’ve been a ‘Lil Wayne fan since he was 12.”

I’d argue that while Jay-Z is the more accomplished artist at this stage (who has more hits?), the younger generation of NBA players seem to prefer Lil’ Wayne. Many, like Powell, literally grew up with him. Per your question, Stanley, the fact that Weezy not only wrote a rap about Kobe, but that it’s well-written and has a solid beat, supersedes an appearance in Jay-Z’s video from LeBron. Furthermore, Lil’ Wayne joined Kanye West to perform at L.A.’s championship party, so I’d have to say that the man from the South gets Round 1.

I’m not really sure, however, that the rappers are using the athletes to sell records; entertainers and athletes seem to envy one another’s careers and seem constantly eager to cross over. At the same time, your point is taken - it probably doesn’t hurt the record sales to go the athlete route. Thanks for the question.

Lakers Waive Sun Yue

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on July 31, 2009
in Off-Season and Sun Yue
. Closed

The Los Angeles Lakers have waived guard Sun Yue, it was announced today.

“With the talent level and depth of our roster, the situation simply doesn’t provide an opportunity for Sun Yue to get the chance to play that he deserves,” said General Manager Mitch Kupchak. “We feel it is in Sun’s best interests to be able to go to a team where he can get the minutes to play and showcase his considerable talents. We appreciate Sun’s contributions to last season’s championship team, and wish him the best of luck with the rest of his career.”

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL ARTICLE ON LAKERS.COM.

Lamar Odom Is Back

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on July 30, 2009
in Lamar Odom and Off-Season
. Closed

The Lakers and free agent forward Lamar Odom have reached a verbal agreement on a multi-year contract, according to Odom’s agent Jeff Schwartz. Lakers spokesman John Black confirmed that the two sides have reached an agreement and hope to have a signed contract in the next few days.

TO READ THE FULL STORY AND VIEW AN ODOM PHOTO GALLERY, CLICK HERE.

Artest Runs Through China

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on July 30, 2009
in Off-Season and Ron Artest
. Closed

Ron ArtestIf you’ve been following new Laker Ron Artest on Twitter (@96TruwarierQB), you already know a bit about his journey through China, thanks to tweets about his rap concerts (”Just did another show in Shenyang, China”) and shoe appearances (”Stay tuned to my Ron Artest shoe coming soon”).

Thinking that a more detailed description of his trip would be of interest, we contacted Team Artest to get the rundown:

- Artest was scheduled to leave the country of roughly 1.3 billion people on July 29, but is having such a great time that he extended his stay until August 8 so he can visit more cities.

- L.A.’s new forward performed at Vic’s nightclub in Beijing, an event that was attended by Jason Kidd, Dikembe Mutombo and Donell Jackson and can be seen on YouTube.

- At Shenyang’s (in Northern China) Happy Family Mall, a four-floor open-air mall that had roughly 20,000 people in attendance, Artest and Jackson had a shooting contest on stage with two fans, spoke to the crowd and then Artest performed his “Champions” song.

- On Tuesday (July 28), Artest and his people were in Quanzhou, where the PEAK shoe company headquarters are located (Artest’s Lakers teammate Sasha Vujacic shares the same company, and the Slovenian was in China as well). Artest toured the factory and facilities, and then played hoops with two local teams at an arena. Prior to greeting some kids, Artest was presented with a certificate of “Master Teacher” to “acknowledge his years of basketball skills and mastery” (Anytime you can be called a “Master Teacher,” it’s probably a good day).

- The trip will continue to Hong Kong for a press conference for Artest and Kidd, after which Artest plans on going back to Beijing, Shanghai and a couple more cities to do more promotional tours.

Team Artest has photos from the trip, including pics of Artest wearing traditional Chinese clothing, that we’ll get upon the trek’s conclusion.

Jackson 4th on All-Time Coaching List

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on July 30, 2009
in Off-Season and Phil Jackson
. Closed

Sporting News used “118 Hall of Famers, championship coaches and other experts” to compile a list of the top 50 coaches in sports history.

Lakers head coach Phil Jackson, who boasts more championships (10) than any other coach in the NBA, came in fourth on the list:

1. John Wooden, college basketball
2. Vince Lombardi, NFL
3. Bear Bryant, college football
4. Phil Jackson, NBA
5. Don Shula, NFL
6. Red Auerbach, NBA
7. Scotty Bowman, NHL
8. Dean Smith, college basketball
9. Casey Stengel, MLB
10. Knute Rockne, college football

Notable:
30. Pat Riley, NBA