2008-2009 NBA Season

[Ren Ying Ying]

Rumor has it that Ariza is asking for 8-9 mil. Is he worth it? Personally, if I had to pick between him and Odom, I'd rather have Odom back. I also don't think any other team is willing to take him for that much.

Rumor also has it that Boston's seeking Rasheed Wallace & Grant Hill. Are they trying to make themselves the "over-the-hill-veterans" club?

CV & Gordon to Detroit? You would think Detroit could do better than that.

[Ghaleon]

Ariza is looking for 8 million / year and Odom is looking for 10 million. yeah i don't think Ariza is worth that much. we'll see what happens though. they should be just happy playing for the defending champions

[AndyChrono]

Lakers reportedly close to signing Ron Artest for the mid-level exception.

Jordan/Rodman redux?

[LuNaR]

Lakers reportedly close to signing Ron Artest for the mid-level exception.

Jordan/Rodman redux?

lets hope so cause artest is a ball hogger and cant shoot the ball at all. but his D and toughness is great

ariza going to houston lol

[Ren Ying Ying]

lets hope so cause artest is a ball hogger and cant shoot the ball at all. but his D and toughness is great

ariza going to houston lol

so they pretty much switched places.

while i'd perfer the lakers keep ariza, in terms of getting your money's worth, artest is definitely the better deal. hopefully, he won't become a locker room distraction and will at least get a decent idea of his rank in the pecking order.

[LuNaR]

so they pretty much switched places.

while i'd perfer the lakers keep ariza, in terms of getting your money's worth, artest is definitely the better deal. hopefully, he won't become a locker room distraction and will at least get a decent idea of his rank in the pecking order.

yea i mean artest signs 3 year 18 mil? thats a bargain for artest @ 6 mil a year. ariza is demanding 8-9 mil a year.

[Ken Cheng]

lets hope so cause artest is a ball hogger and cant shoot the ball at all. but his D and toughness is great

ariza going to houston lol

Ariza had plenty of toughness and D without any of the baggage to boot.

The Rockets gain and the Lakers lose in this scenario. In Ariza, you had a solid character; in Artest, you have a disaster waiting to happen.

[Ren Ying Ying]

Ariza had plenty of toughness and D without any of the baggage to boot.

The Rockets gain and the Lakers lose in this scenario. In Ariza, you had a solid character; in Artest, you have a disaster waiting to happen.

the lakers were afraid they couldn't get ariza to sign for the MLE, so when artest came along and offered himself, it makes more than perfect sense to bite. And then what does Ariza do? Sign with Houston for the MLE (yes, blame ariza's agent for this one).

the hardest part for the lakers is to get artest to tame down and fill ariza's role. whether it happens or not depends on how much artest wants the championship,.

[Ken Cheng]

the lakers were afraid they couldn't get ariza to sign for the MLE, so when artest came along and offered himself, it makes more than perfect sense to bite. And then what does Ariza do? Sign with Houston for the MLE (yes, blame ariza's agent for this one).

the hardest part for the lakers is to get artest to tame down and fill ariza's role. whether it happens or not depends on how much artest wants the championship,.

Ariza was a hard worker and a dedicated team player. He also wasn't a troublemaker.

Artest is somewhat of a flake and is a couple of french fries short of a Happy Meal to boot. The only thing sort of working in the Lakers' favor is that he and Kobe are said to be buddies. I don't know how long that'll last when Artest ballhogs a few games away; the guy isn't known for his sterling judgment, on or off the court.

[AndyChrono]

Ariza was a hard worker and a dedicated team player. He also wasn't a troublemaker.

Artest is somewhat of a flake and is a couple of french fries short of a Happy Meal to boot. The only thing sort of working in the Lakers' favor is that he and Kobe are said to be buddies. I don't know how long that'll last when Artest ballhogs a few games away; the guy isn't known for his sterling judgment, on or off the court.

It was still the best option available to them. Odom is more valuable for the Lakers to re-sign and Ariza's asking price of 8-9 million a year would make resigning Odom unlikely. Getting Artest for ~6 million a year makes keeping Odom far more likely which IMO is more important than Ariza. This way the Lakers keep the same level of defensive prowess and toughness (perhaps even an upgrade) with the added offensive weapon of Artest in the post. The downside is the baggage, but winning a lot tends to solve that problem just like it did with Rodman and the Shaq/Kobe 3-peat. Artest has never played for a serious title contender before so I don't think his character issues will be a problem.

[Ren Ying Ying]

Hedo to the Raptors?

[Ken Cheng]

Hedo to the Raptors?

Blazers, apparently.

The Blazers will be scary good in the seasons to come. They will be the # 1 thorn in the Lakers' sides out in the West.

[Ghaleon]

Hedo to the Raptors?

Yeah it's official. I think he's getting at least 10 mil per year for 5 years kind of thing.

Calderon
Derozan
Hedo
Bargnani
Bosh

I think we may make the playoffs yet....

[Ren Ying Ying]

well, you don't even need a winning record to make the playoffs in the east

Blazers, apparently.

The Blazers will be scary good in the seasons to come. They will be the # 1 thorn in the Lakers' sides out in the West.

He was only short of signing his name on the deal before he backed out last minute.

Even without Hedo, the blazers are young enough to pose a threat in years to come. But then again, things change quickly enough in the NBA, who knows what'll come next. Maybe Lebron James will head to the Clippers next year! j/k

[Ghaleon]

I'm still waiting for Greg Oden to live up to his #1 draft status...

[Ken Cheng]

Maybe Lebron James will head to the Clippers next year! j/k

LeBron comes to the Lakers to team up with Kobe and crew. The rest of the NBA just surrenders.

[Ren Ying Ying]

LeBron comes to the Lakers to team up with Kobe and crew. The rest of the NBA just surrenders.

But where's the fun in that? It's only fun when you beat Lebron James, the same way the rest of the NBA only has fun when they can claim to have beaten Kobe Bryant.

Plus, the Laker's won't have enough money to sign him.

I'm still waiting for Greg Oden to live up to his #1 draft status...

too bad there are too many high picks who don't live up to expectations...

[LuNaR]

toronto way overpaid for hedo

56 mil for 5 years when hes 30 already and hes not really an "all star" yet

[Ken Cheng]

toronto way overpaid for hedo

56 mil for 5 years when hes 30 already and hes not really an "all star" yet

Not only that; the man has a history of being unclutch.

[LuNaR]

Not only that; the man has a history of being unclutch.

well hes clutch but 11 mil a year at his age? hes already on a decline from last year

on top of that, now toronto has to let marion walk, so they lost jermaine oneal for nothing