Lakers’ D’Antoni either unable or unwilling to adapt

New York Knicks head coach Mike Woodson has been very successful since taking over the team after former coach Mike D’Antoni’s resignation last season. While D’Antoni has moved on to what most would consider a more talented team, D’Antoni hasn’t been nearly as successful as his New York successor.

It almost makes you wonder why D’Antoni was touted as such a big coaching hire to begin with. He didn’t get it done in New York and despite all the talent at his disposal with the Los Angeles Lakers, he hasn’t been able to get it done there either.

D’Antoni vs Jackson: a Contrast in Coaching Styles

Los Angeles Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak said he chose to hire Mike D’Antoni over fan-favorite and 11-time champion Phil Jackson because he felt D’Antoni’s system would be a better fit for the Lakers current roster. Only time will tell though if he made the right decision.

Now no one doubts that D’Antoni’s system can be implemented on the fly much quicker than the triangle system that Jackson prefers, but Jackson’s coaching style and familiarity with the team’s core players may have ultimately led to more team success.

Will we finally get a Kobe versus LeBron Finals matchup?

Back in the 2008-2009 season, Nike unleashed a brilliant marketing campaign using puppets to represent the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant and Cleveland Cavaliers’ star forward LeBron James.

Bryant and James were the two most dominant and most popular players in the league at that time, so Nike was rooting for a Cavaliers versus Lakers matchup in the 2009 NBA Finals. Unfortunately, James and the Cavaliers couldn’t get by the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals in order to make this dream marketing matchup a reality.

Lakers’ coach Mike Brown in trouble of being one-and-done

The Los Angeles Lakers had title hopes this season. They still do actually, but they find themselves in a rather tenuous situation having allowed the Denver Nuggets to come back from a 3-1 deficit to tie the series at 3-3 on Thursday night.  

Sure they will play Game 7 in Los Angeles but that may not be much of a consolation after the way they just got thumped in Denver last night. The Nuggets led from start to finish and the Lakers never really threatened them in the second half.

Derek Fisher released for a second time this season?

The Los Angeles Lakers didn’t want him and traded him to the Houston Rockets. The Rockets didn’t want him either and bought out his contract allowing him to sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder. And now the National Basketball Players Association’s executive committee is asking Derek Fisher to step down.

Battle Los Angeles: Clippers, Lakers fight to avoid Grizzlies in 1st round

It’s a tough job but somebody has to do it. Right now the Los Angeles Clippers are currently sitting in fourth place in the West and are looking at a showdown with the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round.

The Clippers are only a half game behind the Los Angeles Lakers but they have essentially run out of time. The Lakers only have one game left on their schedule and it is against the lowly Sacramento Kings. The Clippers have two tougher games left on their schedule since they have to play the Atlanta Hawks and the New York Knicks on the road.

Kobe’s absence good for the Lakers?

Can the Los Angeles Lakers win without their superstar shooting guard Kobe Bryant in the lineup? Well Bryant has only been out five games while resting his bruised shin but the Lakers are 4-1 in his absence.

Everybody has pitched in to help keep the Lakers in the win column but if there is one lesson that L.A.’s big men will learn from Bryant’s absence is that things are so much easier when the Black Mamba is in the lineup.

The ‘Jordan-factor’ has hurt Kobe Bryant in MVP race

The Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant is arguably one of the greatest players of all time but as good as Kobe has been it makes you wonder; why does Kobe only have one MVP award on his resume? Well there are a lot of reasons really and many of them can be traced back to Michael Jordan.

Kobe is a victim of the legacy that Jordan left. I mean you can’t fault Kobe for wanting to emulate the player who most consider the greatest player of all time but when you step into Jordan’s shadow you can expect to be overlooked at times.

Lakers’ Andrew Bynum has 30 rebounds: Big friggin deal!

Andrew Bynum pulled down 30 rebounds in the Los Angeles Lakers’ road win versus the San Antonio Spurs. Big friggin deal!

According to ESPN’s stats department, Bynum is the fifth player in Lakers history to accomplish the feat. I’ll say it again, big deal.

Why should it matter so much because he did it in a Lakers uniform?

Immaturity of Magic’s Howard, Lakers’ Bynum hurting their teams

At various points this season the Los Angeles Lakers and the Orlando Magic were in discussions to swap their star centers Andrew Bynum and Dwight Howard. Both teams were looking to move their centers for different reasons but in the end it seems that maybe they were just looking to swap headaches.

Bynum has played great for the Lakers during his six year career, when he has played that is. The major concern with Bynum going into this season was his health issues so the Lakers were willing to trade him if it meant bringing back the ultra-durable Howard.

Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum benching incidents put Lakers in difficult situation

Los Angeles Lakers’ head coach Mike Brown has come under fire over the past week for his two benching incidents involving stars Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum. While Bryant took his benching in stride not wanting the situation to become a media spectacle, Bynum took offense to his benching.

NBA trade deadline marked by flurry of transactions

A lot of the big names that we have heard bandied about over the past few months stayed home but there were still a flurry of trades that occurred as the NBA trade deadline expired on Thursday.

Gasol for Rondo nixed: 5 reasons why Lakers should have made swap

Reports have surfaced that the Los Angeles Lakers turned down a trade for Boston Celtics’ point guard Rajon Rondo because they didn’t want to trade forward Pau Gasol. Sad because Rondo would have made the Lakers way more dangerous than Gasol could at this point. Here are five reasons why:

Kobe's Legacy: 5 most deadly assassins after Bryant

Kobe Bryant recently made the statement that he hasn’t had anyone he could consider a true rival throughout his career with the Los Angeles Lakers. Although there are many players who have played in the NBA during Bryant’s tenure who should feel slighted by his remark (as well as a few current players), Bryant has a point.

Best and Worst of the Western Conference

Seeing the Oklahoma City Thunder sitting atop the West is not much of a surprise. The Thunder are a young and talented team that made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals last season. What is surprising is the teams that are currently sitting in the next few spots in the Western Conference standings.

Kobe Goes H.A.M.

Really Kobe? Really? I mean what does Kobe Bryant have to prove at this point in his career?

I don’t know what point Kobe is trying to make but he has now scored over 40 points in three straight games this week.

Can Andrew Bynum Carry the Lakers?

Los Angeles Lakers’ coach Mike Brown understands basketball fundamentals. If you have an athletic big man who can score, give him the rock. That’s right. Give Andrew Bynum the ball, Kobe Bryant be damned!

Fall from Grace for Lakers, Mavs?

Two championship caliber teams have started the season 0-2. While it’s too early to pronounce impending doom for the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks, there may be a lesson to be learned from their combined 0-4 start.

The Chris Paul Controversy Isn’t Going Away Any Time Soon

The ink hasn’t even dried on the NBA’s new labor agreement and we already have our first controversy of the season. Thursday the Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Hornets and Houston Rockets announced a three-way trade that would have sent Chris Paul to L.A. and Pau Gasol to Houston. The Hornets would have received Lamar Odom, Kevin Martin, Luis Scola, Goran Dragic and a 2012 first-round draft pick in the deal but the NBA canceled the trade hours after it was announced yesterday.