Andrew Bynum, Lakers Agree on Extension

The Los Angeles Lakers and their prized young center Andrew Bynum have reached a deal to extend Bynum's contract for four more years.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the deal is worth $42 million guaranteed for three seasons, with a $16 million option for the fourth.

If you ask me, the deal comes at an iffy time. The Lakers won easily against the Portland Trailblazers in their season opener and just crushed the hapless Los Angeles Clippers in a 38-point win in a Staples Center tenant match the following night, but Bynum only had so-so performances in both games.

In those two games, Andrew Bynum averaged 10 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks and 47% shooting from the field. I know it's still early in the NBA season, but that's still a far cry from the 17 points, 10 rebounds and 60% shooting he had just before he left with a knee injury early this year.

But I still think Bynum is the Lakers' center of the future. Four more years with Kobe Bryant and the rest of the Lakers is definitely a good window of championship glory for the young center.


Tags: Lakers

Lakers Win, "Glass" Oden Down in Season Opener

The Los Angeles Lakers opened the 2008-2009 NBA campaign with a demolition of the up and coming Portland Trailblazers. The Lakers never looked back en route to a 96-76 win in a basketball match anticipated for the first regular season match-up between the best young centers in the league: The Lakers' Andrew Bynum and the Blazers' prized rookie Greg Oden.

However, that match up flamed out when Oden picked up two quick fouls in the first quarter and injured his right foot in the second quarter. Oden left with zero points, five rebounds and a blocked shot. SI has this about the injury:

Oden's first NBA game didn't last long; the 20-year-old center left the game late in the first half with an injured right foot after taking four shots and going scoreless. He had five rebounds, one turnover, blocked one shot and picked up two fouls while playing 12:51.

X-rays were negative and the injury was diagnosed as a sprain. Oden will undergo an MRI on Wednesday.

This is quite scary for Greg Oden. He is already establishing himself as an oft-injured player in the mold of Sam Bowie in the 1980's. I even dub him "Glass Oden." But I do hope he recovers this season so we will see those battles inside the paint against the Lakers' frontline in the future.


Tags: Lakers

The Lakers' Fantasy Sleeper for 2008-2009 is...

The Machine!!!

If you're in a deep NBA fantasy league and you need some nice sleeper goodness, look to Los Angeles Lakers gunner Sasha Vujacic to give you a nice source of points, three's, FT% and steals. He may be looking at 20-24 minutes a game, with about 9 points, 1.8 three-balls, a steal, plus he won't hurt you with turnovers.

Thank me if my advice reaps dividends for you. :)


Tags: Lakers

Scout's Take on the Lakers' 2008-2009 Season

I found this very good and insightful scouting article about the Los Angeles Lakers. Here's an excerpt:

"...I think the Lakers were really surprised that they reached the Finals, but that success isn't going to mask the issues they have in terms of trying to win the whole thing. They're still a young team, and their style is more finesse than physical, with Kobe [Bryant]'s top teammates being finesse players in Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol. I don't see that other talented guy on this team who has the tough buck-stops-with-me demeanor that Kobe has. Kobe needs a secondary star and leader, and he still doesn't have it."

The scout's take can be found at Sports Illustrated's Enemy Lines series.


Tags: Lakers

People Like the Lakers' Chances in 2008-2009

The 2008-2009 NBA season is just a few days away and there are a lot of season previews all over the web. So far, the previews are putting the Los Angeles Lakers in a "favorite to win the Western Conference" position.

Here's a rundown of the NBA season previews:

• Sports Illustrated's Marty Burns puts the Lakers at the #2 spot over-all, behind the reigning champions Boston Celtics. (Ugh!)
• Eight of the ten ESPN experts pick the Lakers to come out of the Western Conference.
• Almost 50% of NBA General Managers think the Lakers will win the NBA championship this coming season. (One little side note: none of the GM's picked the Lakers to even win the Pacific division last year)
• EA simulated the upcoming season and the outcome was the Lakers beating the Miami Heat in six games to win the crown. (Well, the same simulation also had Yao Ming winning the MVP award-- go figure...)
• NBC is giving the Lakers the edge over the New Orleans Hornets in the West.
• I gave my own sneak peek recently .

If there's one thing the previews say, the Los Angeles Lakers are entering the season with sky high expectations. So let's see if Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom and the rest of the Lakers can deliver.

Tags: Lakers

Kobe Bryant Injures Knee

Two words you don't want to see together in a single sentence: Kobe and injury.

I could hear that collective gasp of Los Angeles Lakers fans when news of Kobe Bryant injuring his knee in a pre-season game against the Charlotte Bobcats broke out. Kobe left the game in the first half after he hyperextended his knee going for a rebound.

This latest development can give Lakers coach Phil Jackson reasons to be cautious in giving the NBA's reigning MVP minutes during the early part of the season. This could also translate to several games missed for Kobe if the injury proves to be more severe than a hyperextended knee. (I hope that doesn't happen).

Could this be a result of wear and tear from playing in the 2008 Beijing Olypics? Kobe has been known to be be in shape all year round, but he has played a huge amount of basketball this year so this could be an effect of his apparent lack of rest.


Tags: Lakers

What's the Best NBA Fantasy Basketball League?

The 2008-2009 NBA season is less than two weeks away, but apart from the actual games where we will catch out favorite teams playing, fans are looking forward to something else: NBA Fantasy Basketball!



Yep, I've played several fantasy basketball leagues in the last six years and this season is my biggest challenge yet: I'm playing GM for fantasy basketball teams in three different leagues. My track record has been a roller coaster: I wound up second place for one of my leagues last year (Thanks to Chris Paul, Steve Nash and David West), but I also placed second to the last in my other league.



Prior to this season, I've played in Yahoo's Fantasy Basketball leagues and I've been very satisfied with how it has improved over the years. (Yep, it has gone a long way in six seasons). This upcoming season, I'm joining an NBA.com league and so far it has sucked. NBA.com's draft system is broken! (NBA.com folks, you better fix your system). We're thinking of moving away from NBA.com and transferring to a different fantasy basketball platform.



So I'm asking the blogosphere: What NBA Fantasy Basketball league would you recommend?





Tags: Lakers

What We Can Expect from the Los Angeles Lakers 2008-2009

The new NBA season is fast approaching and for the Los Angeles Lakers fans, it's a season we are anticipating.

Why? Because this is the season we get to see the Lakers in their maximum power, at their full strength.

Yeah, the Boston Celtics drew (or re-drew) first blood in the Finals last June, but the Lakers are stronger with Andrew Bynum back manning the middle and Pau Gasol sliding to power forward. That frontline is young and big-- I honestly think they have the best frontline in the NBA right now, bar none.

The Lakers are also experimenting with putting Lamar Odom on the point guard slot, to try what Ron Harper did for the 1990's Chicago Bulls-- facilitate the offense and make passes to get the team going. That also means reigning MVP Kobe Bryant moving to the small forward. It's a hard position to play for in Phil Jackon's scheme because it involves a lot of playing defense. Kobe will be matched up against the likes of LeBron James, reigning NBA jackass Paul Pierce, Carmelo Anthony, Shawn Marion, and Andre Igoudala. It will defintely be tougher because of Kobe's injured finger, plus the impending playing time reduction because of his stint in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Here's what I foresee for the Lakers in 2008-2009:

• Kobe Bryant's numbers will be down, I see a 26 PPG, 4 APG and 5 RPG, with lower FG%
• Pau Gasol's numbers will also slide, with 15 PPG, 7 RPG and 3APG, with 1.5 BPG.
• Andrew Bynum will start slow, but will be a beast by December
• Lamar Odom will come off the bench more this season
• Derek Fisher's minutes will be reduced to give more PT to Jordan Farmar
• Opponents will kill the Lakers' second unit off the boards with no Ronnie Turiaf, and only Vladimir Radmanovic on the PF
• Sun Yue will not play any significant NBA minutes, and is a strong candidate for the D-League
• The Lakers' X-Factor: Trevor Ariza
• The Lakers will kick the Celtics butt this season: 2-0 for the regular season, baby!

The new season starts on October 28, 2008. Let's see how accurate I'll be.

Tags: Lakers

Lamar Odom: I'm a Starter

The last time I talked about Lamar Odom, he was being mulled as the season's point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers. Now, he's starting to sound like the team's resident malcontent.

Lakers coach Phil Jackson recently shared to the media the possibility of leaving Lamar Odom out of the starting lineup, and perhaps going with a starting five of Andrew Bynum, Pau Gasol, Trevor Ariza, Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher. Odom reacted with this when he was asked about it:

"He must have woke up and bumped his head. He probably hit his head on something -- boom. To start off like that, you've got to be out of your . . . mind."

Is this the new Lakers soap opera we've been missing the past couple of seasons?


Tags: Lakers