The time has finally arrived for me to cover my wondrous Los Angeles Lakers! In honor of the NBA champions, I will cover all 13 Lakers players who have guaranteed contracts, despite the fact that they may not be fantasy relevant (sorry, Sun Yue, you just missed the cut - literally). This also marks the end of me determining what team I cover. From now on, I will analyze whatever team you request of me (please just leave your request in the comments) or no further teams, if there is no interest... (I'm hoping/assuming this is not the case). Wes has already requested the Trail Blazers, so I will work my mojo on them next, but after that, my world is yours.
www.basketballmonster.com will have their customizable projections section available next week, so I may be out of commission for a couple days, while I enter in my projected stats and finalize my cheat sheet for my upcoming drafts. In the meantime, the preseason is about to be in full swing, but apparently Danny Granger thinks that the regular season has already started (he had 27 pts, 2 3's, 11-12 FTs, 3 rebs, 4 asts, 3 stls & 1 blk in 25 mins against the Bulls on Friday) - take it easy there cowboy! While the preseason, like the summer league, must be taken with a grain of salt, I think it definitely sheds some valuable light on how some players will perform during the regular season (and how many minutes they will get).
Also big ups to GMTR (thanks, Nels!) @ http://givemetherock.com/, who added me as one of their 'Coaches' (see the link on the left side of the website). They have a very intriguing mock draft going on right now, with the first 2 rounds posted thus far. Some of the stranger picks so far have been Gerald Wallace in the 1st round, and LaMarcus Aldridge in the 2nd (it's your world, Nels - lol)... now, I love both of these guys' games, but that is just too early to be drafting them. Otherwise, the picks have been pretty solid so far (although the first few rounds are generally the easiest to draft).
GMTR also has a link to another mock draft (http://thefantasysportschannel.com/blogs/?p=185), which I only mention, because it's the single "best" (imho) mock draft I've seen to date, with mostly solid picks by all the managers across the board. The "experts" in the draft include Steve Alexander (from Rotoworld), Matt Buser and a few guys from RotoExperts and Rotowire. These guys could outdraft most of the "experts" out there from ESPN, Yahoo, etc. any day. Given the strong showing by the McKeown's, I may have been a bit harsh on Rotowire in the past. However, it doesn't seem their published player analysis matches their draft skill, because I was definitely impressed with some of their picks (e.g. Salmons at pick 74 - wtf?! What a steal!)
LOS ANGELES LAKERS
Contrary to what some people (and by people, I mean "stupid people") think, Ron Artest is a significant upgrade over Trevor Ariza. Ariza has a good playoff run (after a mediocre regular season, mind you), and all of a sudden, he's the best thing since sliced bread, and his jack-ass agent (who also unfortunately represents Andrew Bynum) thinks he's worth $50 million over 5 years. I kind of feel bad for Ariza (since his agent got him banished to the NBA wasteland that is Houston), but I'm happy that Kobe and the Lakers finally got Artest, a player we've wanted in Lakerland for a long time now. And, if Bynum can stay healthy this year and regularly play like the brief glimpses he's shown us in the past, it's almost like the Lakers added a new, near All-Star level C to the squad for free. They convincingly beat the Orlando Magic last year, but the Magic, Cavs and Celtics have all improved significantly, so while I don't think the Lakers will have that tough of a time getting back to the NBA Finals, it's gonna be a dogfight for the Larry O'Brien trophy with whoever represents the East.
Out with the old: Trevor Ariza (who can thank the worst agent in the league, David Lee, for having to leave the city of angels) and Sun Yue (bit of a bad read there by Kupchak and the scouting staff)
In with the new: Ron Artest (woot!)
Laker Girls:
Since this analysis is following up the Heat, I thought you may be curious to see the 09-10 Laker Girls. Sadly, they're not much to look at, but, in their defense, they are an actual dance troupe, as opposed to a collection of insanely gorgeous models that can move their legs a bit (i.e. the Miami Heat dancers). Still, if I had to choose, I'm thinkin' I would go with the Mia... You catch my drift - on to the basketball!
So now let's look at the position breakdown and the relevant players for an average-sized (~10-12 managers, ~150-180 players) fantasy league:
PG
Derek Fisher, Jordan Farmar & Shannon Brown:
The Lakers appear like they will have a PG-by-committee arrangement this year.
Derek Fisher is the incumbent starter, and hero of many a Laker playoff game (including in the Finals last year), but his defense is horrendous and he made me want to pull out my non-existent hair during the first 3 rounds of the playoffs, as I watched Deron Williams, Aaron Brooks, and Chauncey Billups blow by him like he was a practice cone. On one hand, I recognize what he has done for this franchise, and he has earned the right to continue starting, despite his deteriorating (and now inferior) basketball skills, but on the other hand, I may seriously burst an artery in my brain if I have to watch another season of him playing 25+ mins/gm and getting burned on D like a dry Southern Californian forest.
Jordan Farmar should have won the starting PG job by the end of last year, but an early-season injury halted his momentum, and Shannon Brown showed up in the VladRad salary dump trade and surprised everyone with his play. Consider this: in the 1st month of last season Farmar averaged 9.1 pts, 0.7 3pters, 3.2 rebs, 3 asts, 1.4 stls and 0.3 blks in 20.6 mins/gm. Sure, he had stinky percentages (43% FG and 66% FT), but if he played at that pace and got a few more minutes, he would definitely be worthy of a roster spot (think Rafer Alston kind of value). Sadly, he has never translated his IRL confidence to the NBA court on a consistent basis.
Shannon Brown was the big surprise of last year for the Lakers, as he was basically a toss-in to match up salaries so we could dump VladRad. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that he is way more valuable to the Lakers than Adam Morrison is, and I am very interested to see what role he carves out for himself in his first full year with the Lakers (and things will get even more interesting when Fisher retires in a year or 2). Brown is easily the best defender of the 3 PGs, is the most physical and athletic, and actually has a pretty decent 3pt shot - kinda sounds like he should be the starter, huh?...
Unfortunately, none of these guys are draftable as of now. They will all get a decent amount of run, but none of them will get enough minutes to put up big enough stats. The only way I can see this changing is if Farmar wins the starting job outright (which I can't realistically see happening, given the level of respect Phil has for Fisher) and gets 25+ mins/gm.
SG
Kobe Bryant:
The King of the NBA is a quintessential winner. People mistakenly call LeBron "King James," but last time I checked a king is defined as the ruler of his domain. And, there is no mistaking the fact that Kobe is the current ruler of the NBA. Once LBJ stops choking and gets a ring (those lil shiny things that Kobe has 4 of), then you can consider calling him the king - until then, KOBE IS KING! The Lakers are an overall improved squad from last year, and Bynum and Artest will take even more of the offensive load off of Kobe than Pau did last year. This means less points for Kobe, but his fantasy value should stay fairly steady with increased assists and efficiency (i.e. better %'s and less TOs). He is still a top 6 NBA player statistically, and is as dependable as they come in the fantasy game.
09-10 proj. = 26 pts, 1.5 3pters, 5.1 rebs, 5.1 asts, 1.5 stls, 0.5 blks, 2.6 TOs, 46.5% FG, 85% FT, plays 82 gms (target with the 5th-7th pick)
Sasha Vujacic:
The hair is gone, and hopefully so are the bricks that Sasha was chucking up on a regular basis last year (38.7% FG from someone who lights it up on the regular in practice is pathetic). He should be ignored from a fantasy perspective (especially with Brown and Morrison possibly eating into some of his minutes this year), but it is always fun to watch the Machine get hot and ruffle some star guard's feathers with his all-up-in-your-grill defense.
SF
Ron Artest:
Ron-Ron is the big question mark this season for the Lake Show. Personally, I love the pick-up, and think he will do just fine this season. He usually had his head on straight last year in Houston (except when he was missing all the team buses for Game 7 of the playoff series against the Lakers, while wearing only underwear), and I am confident Phil, Kobe and Lamar (his long-time buddy) will keep him in line. He brings a much bigger offensive game than Ariza did, but his fantasy value will inevitably drop this year on such an offensively loaded team. On the bright side, his defensive stats should bump back up from last year's lows to closer to his career averages, his 3's should stay pretty high (since he'll see a lot more wide open shots), and his efficiency should improve significantly.
09-10 proj. = 15.3 pts, 1.9 3pters, 5 rebs, 3.5 asts, 1.9 stls, 0.5 blks, 1.9 TOs, 44% FG, 74% FT, plays 70 gms (target with the 65th-75th pick)
Luke Walton: LUUUUUUUKE! I am a big fan of Luke Walton, especially after he dominated Pietrus in game 1 of the NBA Finals last year (which I was fortunate enough to see live at Staples Center). He is the most unselfish player the Lakers have, and is the glue that keeps the 2nd unit productive. Unfortunately for him, now he is sitting on the bench behind Artest, instead of Ariza, so minutes will be even more difficult to come by.
Adam Morrison: The Gonzaga alum had a very good summer league and guess what? It matters not. The only way Morrison sees the court this year is if he steals Sasha's minutes (by outplaying him in practice) or the Lakers are up by 30. He is the classic example of a college star whose game does not translate well to the NBA.
PF
Pau Gasol:
The "intimidating" Spaniard (what, the picture above doesn't frighten you?) is fresh of a Euro Basket MVP and championship, to go along with his NBA championship. For being as soft as he is, he manages to put up some solid big man numbers, but his true fantasy value lies in his high assists and percentages from the center position. I have to admit that I am a bit weary of the elder Gasol, just because he has played so much basketball non-stop over the past few years. It's also very possible that Bynum and Artest eat into some of Pau's offensive production. However, regardless of these potential negatives, Kobe's favorite big man should still be drafted in the early 2nd round, because he is too skilled to not find a way to produce.
09-10 proj. = 18 pts, 0 3pters, 9 rebs, 3.6 asts, 0.5 stls, 1.2 blks, 1.8 TOs, 57% FG, 79% FT, plays 75 gms (target with the 12th-15th pick)
Lamar Odom:
Mr. Kardashian apparently devoted his entire offseason to becoming the #1 media star on the Lakers, outdistancing crazy Artest and even the King himself, Kobe Bryant. He scared Laker fans to death for several weeks by holding out on re-signing his contract, and allowing his retarded agent (2nd in stupidity only to Ariza's agent) to almost get him shipped out to a non-contender (Miami) for LESS $. He then followed that up by dating the wildebeest of the Kardashian clan (OK, I'm so, so sorry - totally J/K Khloe - I actually don't think you're all that bad looking) for a month, and then marrying her (well, I don't think they're actually legally married yet) in a star-studded event that must have had the atmosphere of a Cirque du Soleil show. Basketball-wise, it's hard to get excited about Odom's prospects since Artest will take away some shots, and Bynum's progression should limit Odom's minutes. However, Odom is too physically talented to just fade into fantasy irrelevance, and should still be a decent source of rebs, stls and blks.
09-10 proj. = 10.5 pts, 0.4 3pters, 8 rebs, 2.6 asts, 0.9 stls, 1.1 blks, 1.8 TOs, 49% FG, 65% FT, plays 78 gms (target with the 90th-105th pick)
Josh Powell: I am truly miffed why so many Lakers fans are so down on this guy, because I actually like his contribution to the team, and think he could be a Haslem/Landry 'hustle' type of player if he got enough minutes. Unfortunately for him, he'll have to be content with collecting rings on the bench, because he has too many talented bigs ahead of him on the depth chart.
C
Andrew Bynum:
Andrew Bynum:
Thankfully, this kid is only almost 22 years old (his birthday is a day before mine!), so his knee injuries have a chance to be a distant memory in a year or 2. I REALLY want Bynum to stay healthy this year, but I must thank him for his contribution to my ESPN fantasy championship last year (if he stayed healthy, I'm pretty sure I would have lost in the finals to team Day Laborers). Let's revisit a very happy time in my (and Bynum's) life - Jan. 7 - 30, 2009: 'Drew' (as Phil likes to call him) played 12 very healthy games during that time period and posted 20.8 pts, 8.7 rebs, and 2 blks on 61% FG and 75% FT in 31.8 mins/gm. Ladies & gentleman, that was good for 21st (!) on the BBM player rater for those 24 days, and I see no reason that Bynum can't get close to averaging that in the next year or 2. Unfortunately, you're taking a big risk by trusting those knees, so for my sake (and all Lakers fans) and yours if you draft him, I pray he can finally make it through a full season as a healthy starter.
09-10 proj. = 15.5 pts, 0 3pters, 9 rebs, 1.6 asts, 0.4 stls, 2 blks, 1.8 TOs, 58% FG, 71% FT, plays 65 gms (target with the 55th-65th pick)
D.J. Mbenga:
Mbenga Time! No, Mbenga does not have any fantasy (or IRL) b-ball relevance, but his grill is hilarious to me. I mean, I'm sure he's a very nice fella in person, but he looks like a cross between Shrek and Quasimodo - LOL!
So, all is as it should be in the NBA world, as the Lakers are once again vying for back-to-back championships. Phil is all-in for another go-round, and, while I hope the Lake Show wins it all again this year, it wouldn't be horrible if they lost in the Finals if it means Phil retires and we sign Byron Scott long-term. Don't get me wrong - Phil is a great coach and I would love to see him post an unprecedented 4-time 3-peat. I just think Byron is a great basketball coach, and am worried that, if we don't sign him next year, he will sign a long-term contract with the Hornets or some other team. Regardless of who the coach is, for the next 4-5 years (which is how long the Lakers should still have Kobe, Artest, Pau, Bynum and Odom on the roster), anything less than a championship will have to be considered a failure.
My next post will be per the 1st team analysis request, and is actually the team I fear most in the playoffs as a Laker fan - the Portland Trailblazers. As Wes said, they are a legitimate up-and-coming young team, and seem to always have the Lakers' number during the regular season. Please leave your comments with who you would like to see following the Blazers, and as always, I greatly appreciate the support you provide by clicking on the ads (and perusing the sponsors' goods as you see fit). Peace out, ballers!
- by Kobe is King
please do a review of the nets and warriors next- thx doc
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