Post-Trade Musings

Posted by Flea

(still) glowing over gasol.
wow, i am still getting bursts of flotacious excitement over this
trade for gasol....
i was in a vintage eyeglass store in pasadena when i found out and
nearly trashed the place with a joyous jig of pure elation

but lets take this from the beginning

as anyone knows who has read my blogs, i was a supporter of
kwame brown
i am perfectly aware that he was never was a consistent
contributor
to the lakers, that he had klutzy hands, that he would get down on
himself when he made mistakes and retreat into himself.......
that said, i always really liked the guy, he just seemed like a good
guy to me, he just didn't deal with the pressure well, and to be
honest, i was never sure if he liked playing basketball
i just felt a lot for him, and he was wearing a purple and gold
uniform that said lakers on it, and i truly wish him the best, i hope
for him to have peace of mind, and to have fun playing basketball
in
memphis and possibly
grow into the potential he has as an athlete, he sure has the
body
for it, he could still be a good center in this league if he can find
his own center............

i am sad to see javares crittenton go
the guy showed flashes of greatness several time in his limited
playing time as a laker, i and i believe that he will go on to become
a great player in the nba
i would watch him sitting or standing by the bench during laker
games, and he looked like he was about to burst out of his skin
with
his desire to get in the game and do his thing
i could just see him thinking, put me in put me in coach put me in
the game coach i'm ready to tear it up
the critter is for real he has what it takes

the lakers got pau gasol!!!
for kwame brown and a rookie who never played and a couple a
20
something draft picks!!!!!!!!!
WHOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOO HAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!
YEEEEEHAAAAA!!!!!!
YAAAHOOOO!!!! WHOOOP! WHOOP! WHOOP!
the lakers have come up big time
when andrew comes back we have the biggest and best front
line in the
nba with gasol, bynum, and lamar
and dont forget ariza either, the guy is a important piece of the
lakers puzzle, that reckless athletic slashing small forward who
can
defend ferociously
and the puzzle is a leonardo davinci, a masterpiece

then the lakers go on an eastern road trip, the longest in history
and get the best record ever on a completed 9 game trip going 7
and 2

and they continue to rise, soaring and flowing

this is the team i have been waiting for since magic johnson
retired
i know that the shaq kobe team that three peated was a great
and
winning team
but this team, is funner to watch, has a better personality, and is
just more fun to root for
there is a greater sense of unity
i and i like em better
i get that same excited feeling when kobe, pau, lamar, and derek
whip
the ball around the court as when magic used to run the fast
break
with byron and james on the wings
the kobe shak, horry, fox. fisher team was great, and they won
and
that was awesome and i dont take em for granted
it is just a personal thing for me i guess
but this team just makes me feel better and they havent won
anything yet
if they win a championship i might do something crazy
i am a vegetarian but if they win i'm gonna get a bunch of those
free
taco coupons and eat 100 tacos like paul newman eats eggs in
'cool
hand luke'

i heard mychal thompson on the radio bemoaning their
(particularly
derek fisher's) lack of excitement over the suns game with shaq
the
other night.....
how cam mt question the deep soul of derek fisher????? absurd
and i understand that the magic led lakers he played on were
more
verbose and excitable about an important regular season game
for these lakers that game against the suns was no less
important
but this kobe led team is different, they take their cue from kobe
not magic, and kobe is just a different kind of guy
he has been through a lot in his career, has matured a lot, and
has
adopted and matured into an evenness in his psyche in regards
to speaking about games or celebrating them, and saves his
ebullience
for the hardwood
he knows not to get to up or too down and to stay focused, its like a
golfer who screams and curses when he misses a shot and then gloats
when he hits a good one
it doesn't help his overall game, and kobe knows that this
evenness
serves him
but i know he and the rest of lakers feel a sense of deep
satisfaction with a game well played against a worthy opponent
like
the suns
they just aren't gonna start hootin and hollerin til they get the ring
more mighty than the lord of the rings or the scary ring movie or a
ringaling brother barnum bailey, they are holdin out for the nba
championship ring and then they will explode with joy
but they are keeping their focus and zen and their eyes on the tip of
the top

by the way, kobe is as good as michael jordan
yes he is
michael went 6 years without winning a championship, not til phil
came along did he
kobe takes as much attention from the opposing teams as jordan did,

and kobe can do it all

and he is a true warrior, playing with that injured pinky
i know it will take kobe winning a few championships without
shaq to
prove it
but i stand by my words
the guy has been putting on a clinic lately, it is stunning

and in the greatest player of all time argument, let me solve it here and now
magic johnson is the great basketball player of all time

i like many laker fans have behaved foolishly
we insulted and derided the work that mitch kupchak was doing
while the rest of us whined and complained about losing and
about no
good trades happening
mitch was getting the big picture, knowing we had to go through some
hard times to work towards the stellar lineup we have today
and drafting players he believed in like andrew bynum and jordan farmar
he did not buckle in the face of criticism but held true to his
vision and what he thought was right
and brought us to the promised land
he has passed muster
if he does not get gm of the year then truth has not been served
of course there were times when i was very pro mitch
but i grew impatient and short sighted
and mitch is has been solid as a john bonham drum beat on when the
levee breaks

wonder if jerry west, a friend of mitch's, had any influence on
that
gasol trade happening....
hmmmmmmm,,,,,,
just wondering

if the lakers meet the celtics in the finals
my god man
wow

Feb 25, 2008 1:57 PM EST