Los Angeles Lakers Blog – Page 145 – NBA Blog

LeBron will reach 15,000 points two years younger than Kobe did

George M. Thomas of the Akron Beacon Journal reports:

Cavaliers forward LeBron James scored 32 points Wednesday night against the Indiana Pacers and needs three points to become the youngest player ever to score 15,000 points in a career. Kobe Bryant was 27 years and 136 days old when he became the youngest to score 15,000 points. James is 25. With his sixth rebound, James passed Jim Chones for fourth on the Cavs’ all-time list. Chones has 3,790. James finished with nine rebounds and now has 3,794.

James’ triple-double against the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday moved him into the third slot among active players, behind Jason Kidd (104) and Grant Hill (29). James has 28. Additionally, with 23 triple-doubles of at least 25 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, he topped Michael Jordan (22) and ranks third behind Magic Johnson (40) and Larry Bird (29).

Fun, unlikely idea: LeBron James to Lakers

Almost no chance Lakers ever get LeBron James

Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James will be the star of this summer’s NBA free agent market. And as is the case with all players who expect the league maximum salary (or anything even remotely close), the safest bet is that he remains with his current team.

While LeBron’s teammates in Cleveland are not the best supporting cast in the world, they’re good enough to form a squad that currently sports a league-best 46-14 record. He’s in a winning situation. The team is one of only a few legitimate championship contenders in the league. Mainly due to LeBron. But the skills of his teammates fit in well around him.

While select other teams can offer LeBron a maximum contract this summer, the Cavs can offer a longer deal, with more money involved. And most of the teams with cap room this summer are flawed, rebuilding squads that won’t offer LeBron a better shot at a championship than his current team offers.

How about LeBron James to the Lakers? Would he entertain the notion? Sure, why not! Human beings tend to entertain lots of notions. Have you entertained the notion of marrying Jessica Alba? Is it likely? Heck no.

The Lakers have no cap room. So LeBron would have to sign at a bargain rate and make less money than Jerome James (0.0 ppg) makes on the Chicago Bulls this season.

How about trades? The Cavs will never trade LeBron James. They’d consider it only if they knew for a fact he was going to sign elsewhere, and even then the team would probably refuse to believe LeBron was really leaving and would do everything possible to change his mind if there was any indication he might take off.

Does LeBron want to be a Laker? I’m sure the thought has entered his mind. They’re the NBA champions. Every good player probably imagines themselves joining the league’s best, somehow, at some point. At least in conversation with their buddies on a rainy day.

There certainly are positives to LeBron sacrificing his NBA salary for the sake of signing with the Lakers. His market value would increase being in Los Angeles. He’d be playing on a team pretty much guaranteed to win lots of championships. As Kobe Bryant gets old, LeBron would still be improving (if that’s even possible). So as Kobe faded, LeBron would gain even more glory. It’s fun stuff to think about. But likely? No.

I’d say there’s a 70 percent chance the Cavaliers keep LeBron. A 15 percent chance the Knicks get him. A 14.5 percent chance some other team in the league gets him. And a 0.5 percent chance (make sure you understand, that’s half of one percent) the Lakers get him.

So, it’s not impossible!

It’s also possible you win the lottery tomorrow. Good luck with that!

NBA fines Andrew Bynum

Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum has been fined $25,000 for publicly criticizing game officials, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.

Bynum was fined for his comments made following the Lakers 101-96 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday, Feb. 24.

Elliot Teaford of the Los Angeles Daily News reports:

“It’s hard to win when it’s five against eight,” Bynum said Wednesday.

He meant it was difficult to play against five Mavs plus the three referees. Bynum said he had expected to be fined for the first time in his career.

“I knew it was going to happen,” he said. “Whether it’s fair is debatable.”

Little expected from Luke Walton this season

With 2009-10 averages of 2.4 points on 38.5% shooting in 8.3 minutes per game, Los Angeles Lakers small forward Luke Walton isn’t doing much this season. And now it appears he’ll be doing even less.

Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register reports (via blog):

The Lakers knew when they rested Luke Walton earlier this season that his back problems were complex enough that they might return — and they have, to the point that Walton realistically is not going to give the Lakers much contribution the rest of this season.

Phil Jackson suggested it remains possible that Walton’s pinched nerve could improve to the point that he could “help us in the playoffs,” but the Lakers don’t have much reason to believe improvement is coming.

This makes Adam Morrison a bit more important to the Lakers.

Shaq snowed out of his own All-Star party

I hate to keep talking about snow and slush at Dallas NBA All-Star weekend — and don’t worry, the actual events start tonight, and then everything will probably be all about basketball and fun — but here’s another All-Start party story of note.

TMZ reports:

Shaquille O’Neal was supposed to host a party last night in Dallas for NBA All-Star Weekend — that is, until the biggest blizzard in the city’s history got in the way.

TMZ spoke to a manager of Aura Nightclub in uptown Dallas who told us that before Shaq arrived at the club, the record-setting snowfall blew out some electrical transformers … leaving everyone standing in the dark.

Sounds like this happened to lots of people.

But, that was just Thursday. The weekend really kicks into gear tonight (Friday). And while there’s slush all over Dallas, it’s done snowing, so all should go well for everyone from now on.

Lakers visit White House, meet Obama

The Los Angeles Daily News reports:

The Los Angeles Lakers will be honored at the White House today for winning last season’s NBA championship.

The team, coach Phil Jackson and Hall-of-Famer Magic Johnson, will be joined by President Barack Obama for the ceremony in the Palm Room, according to White House officials and team spokesman John Black.

The team’s White House visit is expected to last about an hour. It will come one day before the Lakers face the Washington Wizards in the fourth game of an eight-game, 12-day road trip.

The visit will be the Lakers’ first at the White House since January 2002, their only visit during their three-peat tenure.

Luke Walton finally plays

Elliot Teaford of the Los Angeles Daily News reports:

Luke Walton’s long wait to play ended Tuesday night.

He peeled off his sweats and entered the Lakers’ game against the San Antonio Spurs with 5.1 seconds left in the first half, his first appearance in two months.

OK, so it wasn’t exactly a significant one. He didn’t handle the ball as the Lakers misfired on a last-second play before halftime. But it marked his return to action after an extended absence because of a back injury.

Walton also played 5 minutes, 55 seconds in the fourth quarter, scoring four points on 2-for-4 shooting in the Lakers’ 105-85 defeat.

With Pau Gasol sidelined for a fifth consecutive game because of a strained left hamstring and backup small forward Adam Morrison suffering from an illness, Lakers coach Phil Jackson turned to Walton for help up front.

Kobe Bryant shooting bricks lately

Los Angeles Lakers superstar guard Kobe Bryant is averaging 30.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.9 steals on 47.2% shooting (31.7% three-pointers) this season while playing with several hand injuries. Are the lingering finger issues starting to catch up with him?

With Pau Gasol out, Kobe has been in a bit of a mini-slump. Nothing shocking. No reason for alarm just yet. But worth paying attention to.

Right now in the third quarter of a Lakers-Bucks game, he’s shooting 2-of-17.

These are his shooting totals in recent games:

January 8 at Portland: 14-of-37.

January 6 at L.A. Clippers: 10-of-30.

January 5 vs Houston: 9-of-23.

January 3 vs Dallas: 6-of-12.

Obviously 6-of-12 is fine, but 12 field goal attempts suggests he really picked his spots.

Now, Gasol, clearly the best player on the team not named Bryant, has been out injured and hasn’t played since January 3.

So, is Kobe just tossing bricks because that’s just what happens sometimes?

Or because Gasol is out?

Or, are his hand injuries starting to catch up with him?

UPDATE: Jeff Eisenberg of the Press-Enterprise reports:

Bryant said after the game that his recent slump coincides with his decision to remove the hard metallic splint he’d been wearing to protect the fractured index finger on his shooting hand. He put the harder splint back on at halftime, sacrificing flexibility and touch to gain some extra protection.

“The finger felt pretty good so I tried to go without the splint,” Bryant said. “I have more range and movement in the finger without the splint, but I don’t have enough strength to shoot the ball. A lot of shots were going short.”

Keep an eye on Bryant these days, even more than usual.

Ron Artest injured at home

Lakers Forward Ron Artest was injured last night at his home when he tripped over a box and fell down a flight of stairs, suffering an injury to his head and left elbow.

Artest received treatment at the emergency room at UCLA Medical Center, where he was released after undergoing a series of tests, including a CT scan. He received stitches to the back of his head and to his elbow.

Artest did not accompany the team to Sacramento this morning and is not expected to play in tonight’s game against the Kings. Artest will be examined today in Los Angeles by a neurologist and after that examination, an update will be given with an estimate as to when Artest will be able to rejoin the team.

InsideHoops.com editor says: Artest should try to stay away from dangerous places like home and stick to the safety of a basketball court.

Update: Ron Artest was examined today in Los Angeles by a neurologist. Diagnosis from his examination showed that Artest did suffer a concussion in last night’s fall. Artest’s condition has improved since last night; however, he will continue to see a neurologist on a daily basis until he is cleared to return. He is definitely out for tonight’s game against the Kings at Sacramento and his status beyond that will be considered day-to-day.

Lakers sign Pau Gasol to contract extension

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed forward/center Pau Gasol to a multi-year contract extension, it was announced today by General Manager Mitch Kupchak.

According to the Los Angeles Times, “Gasol officially signed a three-year extension worth up to $64.7 million, depending on the NBA salary-cap figures to be determined in 2011.”

According to ESPN.com, “The year-by-year breakdown of the extension: $18,714,150 in 2011-12, $19,000,000 in 2012-13 and $19,285,850 in 2013-14.”

Since being acquired by the Lakers on February 1, 2008 as part of a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies, Gasol has helped Los Angeles to a 101-23 (.815) regular season record in games he has appeared in. In the postseason, the Lakers have posted a 30-14 (.682) record with Gasol, winning the Western Conference in both trips to the playoffs since he joined the team as well as the franchise’s 15th NBA Championship in 2009.

Gasol, currently a reigning NBA Champion, FIBA World Champion (Tournament MVP) and European Champion (Tournament MVP), earned a silver medal with Spain at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics, falling just shy of the gold against the United States. Named the 2008 European Player of the Year, he earned All-NBA Third Team honors in 2009 as well as his second trip to the NBA All-Star game (2006, 2009).

“Over the past year and a half, Pau has quickly developed into one of the best all-around players in the NBA,” said Kupchak. “The impact he has had on and off the court for the Lakers is significant, and we look forward to watching Pau continue as one of the best players in the league for years to come.”

“Coming to terms on an extension for Pau is another step for the organization in its goal of trying to keep the core of this team together for the foreseeable future,” continued Kupchak. “The Buss family recognizes this opportunity and will continue to do whatever is possible to put the organization in position to contend for NBA championships.”

The fourth player in NBA history to go straight from Europe to the NBA and score 10,000 career points, Gasol concluded the 2008-09 season ranked among league leaders in points (25th/18.9), rebounds (8th/9.6), field goal percentage (5th/.567) and blocks (27th/1.00) while appearing in 81 games.

In 16 games this season, Gasol is averaging 17.0 points on .543 shooting from the field, 12.6 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.75 blocked shots in 36.1 minutes.

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