OFFICIAL 2017-2018 LOS ANGELES LAKERS THREAD

[goodlookinout]

Good win let's take care of the Knicks Tuesday

 

[Inglewood_B]

I was looking to package off Deng for an expiring deal don't fuck off the narrative... But cool we don't got Wade

You had Kuzma in that deal, too, tho. Arguably our 2nd best player.

And you wanted to trade Ingram for Paul George, when he was probably gonna end up here next year anyway.

 

[joeyfkncrakk]

I was looking to package off Deng for an expiring deal don't fuck off the narrative... But cool we don't got Wade

You had Kuzma in that deal, too, tho. Arguably our 2nd best player.

And you wanted to trade Ingram for Paul George, when he was probably gonna end up here next year anyway.

Idgaf stop crying like I'm the official GM, I was throwing names around plus that was before the season when we didn't know Kuzma was the truth, u would've had to give up some kinda prospect to move Deng's deal for an expiring contract like we did with the D. Russell deal ... I'd still have traded Ingram for Paul George personally but I'm fine how things have played out

 

[Inglewood_B]

We DID know Kuzma was the truth tho. That’s why niggas thought it was silly even back then

 

[joeyfkncrakk]

We only knew summer league at the time but whatever bro move along...

What would it take to move Deng, I wonder if we could package him with Randle or Nance

 

[toheeb27]

I sense u guys needed a good laugh, here u go.......
https://twitter.com/billoram/status/939625836721922053

 

[joeyfkncrakk]

If the Thunder can't get right by the deadline they would be smart to trade Paul George to us for Jordan Clarkson & Randle...

that's a good package, Randle is restricted so they can re him up and JC is best friends with Roberson on a friendly deal... they both could run with Westbrook for sure win-win for both teams

 

[buttuh_b]

Randle and Deng.. we need to attach Luol to shed that contract

 

[toheeb27]

Brook Lopez, smh. I cant believe that i expected more from this dude.

 

[Beta]

Brook Lopez, smh. I cant believe that i expected more from this dude.

I did too

 

[BDBIID]

Brook Lopez, smh. I cant believe that i expected more from this dude.

He pisses me off every game

 

[goodlookinout]

Yay or nay

 

[Inglewood_B]

Why would Sac accept that trade?

 

[goodlookinout]

 

[goodlookinout]

Why would Sac accept that trade?

Cause Vlade prone to do dumb shit look what he got for Boogie. Fleece his ass again

 

[Young_Chitlin]

 

[toheeb27]

https://twitter.com/nba/status/942590349280792581

 

[northside7]

Kobe Bryant is finally ready to say goodbye

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- He would peek up while sprinting out of the Staples Center tunnel for warm-ups, and again as the anthem played, and again, and again, throughout the game.

"All the time," Kobe Bryant says.

During blowouts and heart-stoppers, amid stoppages and action, if upset or seeking a spark.

"All the time," he says again.

Hidden in those quiet moments, the Lakers icon would gaze skyward, toward the southwest corner of the Lakers' downtown Los Angeles home, and scan the franchise's retired jerseys.

"All. The. Time," Bryant says once more.

And all the time, every time, staring at the hallowed digits worn by household names such as West, Wilt, Elgin, Magic and Jabbar, Bryant would be transported back to his childhood in Italy, where his father played professionally, where Bryant devoured VHS highlights of those same players whose retired jerseys he would come to play beneath.

"I've studied these players," he'd tell himself, "and there they are."

On Monday night, Bryant's two jerseys -- the No. 8 that he wore for the first half of his two-decade NBA career and the No. 24 that he wore for the second half -- will join those he long admired, as they'll be retired during a halftime ceremony when the Lakers host the Golden State Warriors.

Bryant will become just the 10th Laker to have his jersey retired by the illustrious franchise and the first player in NBA history to have two numbers retired by the same team. (The Lakers decided that given Bryant's success in both jerseys, it would be impossible to retire one number and not the other, a team spokesperson explained.)

"It's an impossible standard," he says.

Bryant began his NBA career in 1996 by wearing No. 8, the number he wore in Italy and also a nod to the number he wore at the Adidas ABCD Camp, 143, whose digits add up to 8. He never intended to switch numbers entering his career, but he says he did so because the Lakers had changed directions by trading Shaquille O'Neal to the Heat in 2004. (A year prior, Bryant was arrested and accused of sexual assault, but in 2004 the criminal charges were dropped and Bryant settled a civil lawsuit.)

"It's kind of a clean slate," he says. "I started new. Just start completely fresh, focus on the number that meant a lot to me."

He had intended to change his number immediately, but the deadline had passed, so it wasn't until the 2006-07 season that Bryant donned No. 24, the number he wore early in his career at Lower Merion High School, in Ardmore, Pennsylvania.



The two numbers halve Bryant's career neatly into two chapters, and, eerily, he scored almost the same number of points in each: 16,777 as No. 8, 16,866 as No. 24.

As Bryant considers his two different NBA selves, he focuses on one word: growth.

"When I first came in at 8, is really trying to 'plant your flag' sort of thing," Bryant says. "I got to prove that I belong here in this league. I've got to prove that I'm one of the best in this league. You're going after them. It's nonstop energy and aggressiveness and stuff.

"Then 24 is a growth from that. Physical attributes aren't there the way they used to be, but the maturity level is greater. Marriage, kids. Start having a broader perspective being one of the older guys on the team now, as opposed to being the youngest. Things evolve. It's not to say one is better than the other or one's a better way to be. It's just growth."

He adds, "It's a new book, 24 -- 24 is every day. Because when you get older, your muscles start getting sore. Body starts aching. You show up to practice that day, you have to remind yourself, 'OK, this day is the most important day. I got to push through this soreness. My ankles are tight, they won't get loose. I got to go through it, because this is the most important day.' So, 24 also helped me from a motivational standpoint."

Three of Bryant's five titles came as No. 8, but his lone NBA MVP award came as No. 24 -- ammunition for fans who prefer one or the other. Which Kobe does Kobe himself prefer?

He takes a long pause, rubbing his chin.

"It's the season where I ruptured my Achilles, actually," he says. "Because I felt like I was playing the best basketball I've ever played in my entire career."

That would be the 2012-13 campaign, when the Lakers brought in Steve Nash and Dwight Howard and seemed poised for another title run, only to be sabotaged by injuries, turmoil and infighting. Late in the season, Bryant pushed himself like never before to help the team barely reach the playoffs, but along the way, he essentially drove himself into the ground, even though his own teammates, coaches and members of the training staff tried to protect him from himself, as ESPN detailed in April 2016.



"I had to work like a maniac to be there, but I was able to be there," Bryant recalls. "Mentally, emotionally, I was able to see five, six moves ahead in the game, and all sorta crazy s---."

After the Achilles injury, Bryant was never the same, suffering season-ending injuries in each of his next two seasons.

"That was one of my favorite times, yeah," he says, smiling. "It almost killed me, but it was fun."

Full Article in the link.
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...ced-los-angeles-lakers-retire-two-numbers-nba

 

[northside7]

https://theundefeated.com/features/...mbers-8-and-24-jersey-retirement/?addata=espn:frontpage

 

[northside7]

8 / 24 will be retired tonight.