Larry O'Brien Trophy, Say Hello To The Lakers

I hope the San Antonio Spurs are getting in their last kisses with the Larry O'Brien trophy, because they are not going to see it for a long time after the moves made by Mitch KupfakeGM and the Lakers.

The Lakers traded Mr. Stone Hands himself, Kwame Brown, along with Javaris Crittenton and two first round picks to Memphis for Pau Gasol and a second round pick.

When I first read this all I could think about was Marv Albert. Why Mr. Albert? One word. Sodomy. Sure, Memphis probably made this move to clear cap space for next season and to add young talent, but the Lakers bent the Grizzlies over.

I was embarrassed for Kupchak (for the hundredth time) when he traded away Caron Butler for Stone Hands, but now "Cupcake" has redeemed himself by finding a foolish suitor for Brown.

The head scratching continued with Crittenton's name attached involved. Yes, it made sense for the Lakers with the emergence of Jordan Farmar and solid veteran player in Derek Fisher, but why for the Grizzlies?

They have a rookie point guard in Mike Conley Jr. and young guard Kyle Lowry. Hmm, seems like the same situation in LA for Javaris.

Now to the Lakers smile. Lakers fans around the nation are smiling ear-to-ear today. One, because Kwame is a bum. Two, the Lakers have a starting five that may be better than the Pistons.

Look at the starting five that the Lakers will throw on the floor every night (once Andrew Bynum comes back):
PG - Derek Fisher
SG - Kobe Bryant
SF - Lamar Odom
PF - Pau Gasol
C - Andrew Bynum

And they have one of the league's top bench squads to fall back on. Kobe is not going anywhere. The championship banner will be raised in Los Angeles once again.

Gasol works well with a mid-range jumper and will let Bynum control the paint. Those two will be the LA's version of the "twin towers" that we saw in San Antonio with Tim Duncan and David "I ain't signing an autograph for Shaq" Robinson.

The West's elite and how they match up:

Phoenix - The Suns had problems in the past with the Lakers size, and now the Lakers have added another 7-footer to go along with "beast-in-the-making" Bynum. Lakers sweep the series in the playoffs if they face the Suns.

Dallas - Dirk Nowitzki and any other big man they throw out on the court will not be able to handle the Lakers front line. Oh, the Lakers also have Kobe and LO on their squad? Another sweep in the making.

New Orleans - Young, athletic, and have size. That can explain both the Lakers and Hornets, and the reason why I could see a series with the Hornets going six games. Chris Paul gives teams headaches and would will his team to a couple wins. Tyson Chandler and David West would put up good fights against the new "LA Skyscrapers" (copyright: First To Third), but cannot do it all. Oh, there still is a player named Kobe playing.

San Antonio - Tim Duncan, look into your mirror of the past and see Bynum and Gasol proving to be a younger and better dual big man threat compared to your "twin towers." The Lakers bench along with their starting five would make this series a five-gamer.

---

One thing that the Lakers may think about doing is moving Lamar Odom. One, because he struggles when he does not get the ball enough. Two, they may look to add a defensive-minded player to help make up for Gasol's average defensive game. Once Bynum comes back Odom may not get the shots he needs in the offense and could defer to Kobe on a full-time basis.

But it might be hard for Kupchak to pull that trigger since we will not see the Lakers with Bynum in the lineup until after the trade deadline.

The Grizzlies just gave the Lakers another "best" for their squad. They now have the best team to go along with best player in the league.

Do you smell that? Yes, it is what you think, the league collectively defecated themselves and David Stern shot a load thinking about the Lakers being back in the NBA Finals.

Get Ready For Lots Of 24

The basketball world will now get to see how deep these 2007-08 Los Angeles Lakers really are after losing starting center Andrew Bynum to a sprained knee.

Fortunately for the Lakers, Bynum will be back this season, but the void he leaves in the middle may cost the Lakers a top seed in the always competitive Western Conference. Especially when you consider his replacement to start for the Lakers is Mr. Stone Hands also known as Kwame Brown. I bet you Kobe Bryant is real happy about having Brown in the middle full-time again.

The loss of Bynum means we will start to see a more aggressive Bryant on the offensive end, and more double/triple teams on KB24.

Bryant has again re-invented himself this year by letting the game come to him; something he showed signs of the last couple of years. This will be a test for Bryant in that he may have to resort back to dropping 50 on opponents for the Lakers to stay atop the standings in the West. Or he can test the depth of his team by trusting them with the ball in their hands (well, maybe not Kwame's; when does the ball stay ever stay in those?).

Phil Jackson has been doing one of his best coaching jobs of his career with this Lakers squad, and will be tested as well in this time. Last year's squad got off to a great start as well, but faltered towards the end of the regular season due to injuries.

How will the Lakers respond to losing their big man in the middle? In the next eight weeks the Lakers will be facing the following top squads: Phoenix (twice), San Antonio, Dallas (twice), Portland (twice), and Detroit. And that game against the Pistons is part of a nine-game road trip for the Lakers. That road trip starts at the end of January, and goes deep into the month of February, a month in which the Lakers play 12 of their 15 games on the road.

The first test will come tonight, as the Lakers travel to Seattle to take on the Sonics. My prediction: Kobe goes off for 44 in a close game. If I were Jackson, I would start Roni Turiaf and have Brown come off in the bench for the center position.

Sad to know that Bynum was on his way to the most improved in the NBA this season, and that honor may be taken away from him after this sprained knee.

Bynum - The Next Shaq

Andrew Bynum continues to work his way towards receiving the NBA's most improved award, and as each day passes he is looking like the man who is supposed to replace Shaquille O'Neal.

On Friday evening he had 25 points, a career high 17 rebounds, and 3 blocks against the Milwaukee Bucks, but unfortunately sprained his knee last night against the Memphis Grizzlies.

Well Friday, Bynum had a Shaq-like interview in which he dropped the F-bomb after the game:

Oh little 20-year-old innocent Bynum dropping the F-bomb and then saying "Ooops."

Thank goodness for digital TV recorders because I got my Friday started off on the right foot with some great laughs on this one.

Here is to Bynum having his knee heal up real quick.

He Is Still There

And that is a good thing if you are a Lakers fan.

I must admit, I thought for sure that KB24 would have been traded from the Lakers this NBA season. But, after watching the Lakers move to 19-10, I think Kobe may be thinking of a permanent stay with the purple and gold.



Andrew Bynum has blossomed into the big man that the Lakers brass envisioned and have solid leadership in veteran Derek Fisher. Kareem Abdul Jabbar needs to be considered for coach of the year award, or at least assistant coach of the year based on his work he has done with Bynum.

Like I said before the season started: Bynum for most improved player of the year.

Mitch Kupchak has to be sporting a small smile because he did not trade Bynum, even though Lakers fans were calling for it when word came out that Jason Kidd was available at the cost of the young center.

The Lakers have beaten some of the Western Conference's top teams: San Antonio, Denver (twice), Golden State, and Phoenix (twice).

Lets not get ahead of ourselves though. The Lakers started last season at a 27-13 mark through the first 40 games, before stumbling to a 42-40 record due to injuries/motivation. But this squad will not fall down like last year.

Not with the tough bulldog that is Fisher in the locker room, or with Bynum becoming an elite NBA center.

Ask the Lakers if the regular season victories over the Western Conference elites mean anything, and you will get an answer Belichick-like: "It does not mean anything unless we can do it in the playoffs." Even the opposing coaches that get beat by the Lakers will agree.

But do not be fooled, the mental strength that is being built during the season with their big wins will make this Laker squad dangerous come playoff time. Western Conference champions dangerous.