Los Angeles Lakers Blog – Page 60 – NBA Blog

Billy Hunter claims Kobe Bryant meddled in NBA lockout negotiations

Here’s the Los Angeles Times blog reporting on some alleged details of that horrible thing called the NBA Lockout:

Former NBA players’ union executive director Billy Hunter has claimed that Lakers star Kobe Bryant and agent Rob Pelinka, acting on behalf of union president Derek Fisher, meddled with his efforts to end the 2011 lockout.

In a Los Angeles Superior Court filing Thursday that is part of his wrongful-termination lawsuit, Hunter stated that he received a call from Bryant and Pelinka the night before he was scheduled to meet with league officials in October 2011. According to Hunter, the player and his agent told him to agree to a 50-50 split of basketball-related income.

“On the phone call, Bryant told me to agree to the new CBA [collective bargaining agreement] at a 50-50 share of BRI, saying, ‘I know that tomorrow is a big day. You can put this thing to bed. Do the deal,’ and also telling me, ‘I got your back,’ ” Hunter said in the court filing. “What Bryant and Pelinka were telling me is that a 50-50 deal had already been completed behind my back.”

Lakers assign Ryan Kelly and Elias Harris to D-League

The Los Angeles Lakers have assigned Ryan Kelly and Elias Harris to the Los Angeles D-Fenders, the team’s NBA Development League affiliate.

The assignments are the ninth and tenth of the 2013-14 NBA D-League campaign and are the first for both Kelly and Harris, who become the sixth and seventh NBA players to be assigned to their NBA D-League affiliate this season.

Pau Gasol has been playing with strained foot

The Los Angeles Lakers face a difficult season, and Pau Gasol not being fully healthy makes it even more of a challenge. Here’s ESPN Los Angeles:

Pau Gasol underwent an MRI last week that showed a muscle strain in his left foot, the Los Angeles Lakers forward revealed to reporters after his team’s 116-95 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday.

“I had a strained muscle there,” Gasol said. “It’s feeling better now. It’s feeling a little better.”

Gasol missed 20 games last season after suffering a plantar fascia tear in his right foot, and he said the two injuries could be linked.

“Now it’s the left foot, maybe compensating,” Gasol said. “Things like that happen. … Hopefully we can keep it under control.”

Said Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni before the game Tuesday: “He’s a big guy that takes a pounding, but he knows how to deal with it.”

Lakers home sellout streak ends at 270 games

The struggle is real. At least, that’s what the cool kids like to say these days. Anyway, here’s the Los Angeles Times Blog:

The Lakers suddenly have some catching up to do with the Clippers, and not just in the Pacific Division standings.

The Lakers’ home sellout streak ended at 270 games Tuesday night when the team drew 18,426, just short of the capacity of 18,997, during a 116-95 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans at Staples Center. The Lakers had sold out 320 straight games including the playoffs.

The last non-sellout for the Lakers at Staples Center came Dec. 6, 2006, against New Orleans/Oklahoma City, when they drew 18,535.

Steve Nash frustrated by persistent injuries

Point guard Steve Nash has had an amazing NBA career. But he’s now consistently hurting, and a shade of his former self. Here’s the Los Angeles Daily News blog:

The stoic demeanor masked Steve Nash’s frustration. His graceful movement walking down a Staples Center hallway also camouflaged his pain.

But as he’s realized through a full offseason, a complete training camp and only two weeks into the regular season, no amount of work Nash has done thus far can cover up the persisting injuries that’s emerged all over his 39-year-old body.

He sat out the entire second half of the Lakers’ 113-80 loss Sunday to the Minnesota Timberwolve because of persisting back issues. Nash will then see back specialist Dr. Robert Watkins on Monday before deciding what to do next.

As he stood in a Staples Center hallway shortly after the Lakers’ loss, however, the early returns don’t sound pretty.

“You can call it the back. You can call it the nerves,” Nash said, referring to the feeling he still has in his surgically repaired left leg. “The pain in the hamstring. They’re all the same things. It gets a lot of convoluted. It’s basically the same thing.”

Luke Walton hired as player development coach in D-League

The Los Angeles D-Fenders, a D-League team, have hired Luke Walton as a player development coach, it was announced today by team President/CEO Joey Buss.

“We are very excited to add Luke to our staff,” said Buss. “His championship experience will help build upon the winning culture that has been established with the D-Fenders. His extensive and successful NBA career will allow him to instill the work ethic it requires for our players to reach the NBA.”

“Luke has been a consummate professional throughout his career,” said D-Fenders General Manager Nick Mazzella. “Having played on two Lakers championship teams, Luke is aware of the hard work and type of culture required to win. He will be a valuable mentor to our players and will dedicate himself to improving their basketball skills and advancing their careers. We couldn’t be happier to have him join our talented coaching staff.”

Walton has spent the last 11 seasons playing in the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers. Most recently, he appeared in 50 games with the Cavaliers during the 2012-13 season. The University of Arizona alumnus was selected with the 32nd overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft by the Lakers and helped lead the team to back-to-back NBA Championships in 2009 and 2010. Walton has appeared in 564 career regular season games (138 starts), posting averages of 4.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 17.2 minutes. Walton also served as an assistant coach on the University of Memphis basketball staff during the 2011 NBA lockout.

“I’m thrilled to be returning to the Lakers family,” said Walton. “I’m looking forward to working with the staff to develop young talent that can benefit the D-Fenders and the NBA. The D-Fenders have a proven record of developing top-flight players, and I plan to continue that tradition.”

Walton, a San Diego native, begins his first season as a player development coach. He is the third addition to Head Coach Bob MacKinnon’s staff, joining assistant coaches Casey Owens and Thomas Scott.

Phil Jackson says Kobe is like a son to him

You never know what you have until it’s gone. Or someting like that. Here’s the Los Angeles Daily News Blog reporting:

“I love Kobe Bryant. I consider him like my son,” Jackson told Seth Davis in an interview aired on Campusinsiders.com. I consider him as someone who I had a tense relationship with, but something that has mellowed through the course of the years.”

Still, Jackson hardly avoided uncomfortable topics surrounding Bryant in his interview with Davis.

Jackson noted how Bryant’s thirst for scoring often made him a difficult teammate. He acknowledged asking the Lakers’ front office to trade Bryant during his first stint with the Lakers Jackson even admitted that Bryant’s eventually dismissed sexual assault charge in 2003 tainted his view toward his player partly because his daughter was an assault victim while dating an athlete in college.

Los Angeles Lakers waive forward Marcus Landry

The Los Angeles Lakers have waived forward Marcus Landry, it was announced today.

Landry, a 6-7 forward out of Wisconsin, has spent time over the past three years with the Maine Red Claws and Reno Bighorns of the NBA Development League and internationally with teams in Spain, China, Venezuela and Puerto Rico. During his two seasons (2010-11 and 2012-13) with the Bighorns, Landry played in 84 games (83 starts) averaging 16.9 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 36.0 minutes.

Signing with the New York Knicks as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2009, Landry played for both the Knicks and Celtics during the 2009-10 campaign averaging 2.4 points and 1.1 rebounds in 6.1 minutes over 18 games.

The Milwaukee, Wisconsin native appeared in six preseason games for the Lakers, averaging 4.0 points and 1.2 rebounds in 13.4 minutes per game.

The Lakers roster now stands at 15 players.

Los Angeles Lakers will fast-break this season, but nothing crazy

Which kind of pace does D’Antoni envision the Lakers running this season?

“It won’t be crazy,” he said, “but we want to push it and get a nice pace. We want to get some easy buckets before the defense sets up, so we’ll be up in the top five probably in pace, but it won’t be breakneck speed.”

Playing at a faster tempo seems to be more of an option this season because the team got younger and more athletic with the additions of Nick Young, Jordan Farmar and Wesley Johnson.

“I think we have to utilize our wings, their speed and athleticism,” forward Pau Gasol said, “but not too much faster than we did last year because I think we still have to play at somewhat of a controlled pace and a pace that everybody’s comfortable with.”

Reported by Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times

Clippers blocking Lakers banners in Staples Center at LAC home games

Clippers Coach Doc Rivers had the Lakers’ championship banners covered and had his players’ banners draped over them instead at Staples Center.

Rivers said it will be done whenever it’s the Clippers’ home game in the arena they share with the Lakers.

The Lakers have 12 championship banners — Minneapolis has its five titles on one banner — and 10 retired jerseys, including Chick Hearn’s microphone retired jersey.

“Well, I didn’t look at it as the banner thing,” Rivers maintained. “I just look at it as putting our guys up.”

Rivers had the banners of Jamal Crawford, Blake Griffin, J.J. Redick, DeAndre Jordan, Jared Dudley, Chris Paul and Matt Barnes all put up on the wall.

Reported by Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times