Can someone please explain to me what is happening with the PG position in LA i've heard so many rumours that Marko Jaric, Jason williams etc, etc. will join the team. Does anyone know what LA is really thinking and who will best fit into triangle offense.
Well to answer the first part of your question about does anyone know what Los Angeles is thinking? The answer is no it?s Los Angeles they probably do not know what they are thinking until after they do something. I think that the Jason Williams rumors are just simple people filling the gaps Jay Williams is available, the Lakers need a point guard, and oh I know Williams to Los Angeles. That is probably how that rumors started. He really does not fit the mold to be a Phil Jackson point guard he is to flashy, and does not have the basic fundamentals to run the triangle offense which Phil Jackson would require him to do. That was a problem with Payton when he was with the team his refusal to run the triangle, and Phil's trust in Derek Fisher often landed Payton on the bench down the stretch of games. A couple names I have heard are one a possible return of Derek Fisher to the Lakers. He was on Rome is Burning after Phil Jackson?s return to the Lakers was official, and Rome asked him about him possibly returning since he went to the Warriors to have a chance to start, and now with Davis there the chances of him starting are shall we say slim. He mentioned he would not rule out possibly asking for a trade, and returning to the Lakers, but you never know. I am pretty sure the Warriors are in no dire need of Fisher or his contract with Davis now in the mix so prying him away from them should not be that hard if the Lakers choose to go that route. Another option is Pargo he played with the Lakers before, and is a solid spark plug. I don?t see him as a starter though he does not have the overall game to run the triangle, play defense, and score. If he were to become their point guard next season it would be the Second Coming of Chucky Atkins in my opinion. A player who can score, but not much else. Another option as far as former Lakers go is Tyrone Lue he is a player who has been well traveled since leaving Los Angeles he is a small guard so does not really fit the triangle. However, Jackson does love players he has coached before so he might choose to bring him in if he has no other option. A rumor from a while ago had Jalen Rose possibly going to the Lakers. The Raptors might waive him to save some money in luxury tax. Which would allow the Lakers to scoop him up with their MLE problem with him is he is not a pure point guard, and has not shown anything in the past to prove he can run the point guard slot for a full season and be successful. He is however a big guard which is a key piece of the triangle which gives him a little bit of an advantage over some of the other options. Another option is Jaric, which is probably the biggest long shot unless they can get the Clippers to agree to a sign and trade. He would be the best fit since he is tall and a pure point. I do not know if possibly the full MLE would lure him away from the Clippers they probably don?t want to pay him that much money to ride the bench behind Livingston, but then again they also need insurance should Livingston struggle early because of his injury. Also another long shot in my mind is the return of Gary Payton to the Lakers they have talked supposable. I do not know how willing Payton is to return or the Lakers/Phil Jackson to have him on the team, but this dysfunctional relationship has not been ruled out yet. I think Payton showed a couple seasons ago he can not run the triangle effectively that team ran on pure talent early in the season, and when the defense tightened up in the playoffs Payton struggled running the offense. So like I said no one knows what's going to happen in Laker Land, but I think they still have a lot of options. There are also guys I forgot to mention like Earl Watson and some others. They still got options possibly even Brevin Knight who knows.
I was thinking of Derek Fidher earlier but hadn't actually heard any rumours of him going to LA. Lue would be a nice fit as well, he had some excellent games in Atlanta point wise if my memory serves me correctly. Brevin Night also sounds pretty good he was 2nd in the most assists per game behind steve nash last season. Any way thanks for the reply
Derek Fisher is not coming to the Lakers, because his contract extends for more than 2 years. The Lakers do not want to invest more than two years on any free agent because they want to make a big move in the 2007 free agent market. There's a lot of good names in this thread already Laker FA's Don't expect any rumors about the Lakers to be true at all. When they signed PJax, the team made it clear they were going to tighten down on leaks and not give out any real information. The Kwame Brown deal was a perfect example, everyone figured Butler or Odom would be traded, but Kwame Brown came out of left field and caught everyone by surprise. I expect the same will happen with a PG, I think the Lakers are also waiting to see which veterans get waived with the Allan Houston rule. The Lakers said Sasha Vujacic would have a bigger role this year, so it sounds like he is the worst-case-scenario for being the starter next year.
Fisher? Not with his contract. Jaric? Clips will only let him go with a sign & trade. Jay Williams? Refuses to play in the triangle again. GP? "We've already tried that experiment..." Jalen Rose? If the Raps let him go. Pargo, Knight, Lue? Haven't heard any rumors why they wouldn't be realistic possibilities.
The Raptors won't use the Allan Houston rule on Rose. He is the best scorer for the Raps and is a good clutch player. Toronto would be taking a step backward if they released him with no compensation.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Mel JBB:</div><div class="quote_post">Jalen Rose? If the Raps let him go. </div> There doesn't seem to be good reason for the Raptors to waive him. He is still one of our most productive players and next year he contract will be an expiring one, so he will be more valuable and we could trade him. According to Chad Ford who is often wrong, and he recommended that the Raptors waive Rose, and many other players. But he said that from a source within Toronto that they are optimistic about Rose and really want to keep him. In my opinion it would be foolish to waive Rose, especially considering he is still productive and only has 2 years left.
You overestimate Rob Babcock, Bobcats. I would not putr it past him to waive Rose and be perfectly content filling his spot with charlie villanueva who can apparently play every position on the floor.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting TheGreatK-Bob:</div><div class="quote_post">You overestimate Rob Babcock, Bobcats. I would not putr it past him to waive Rose and be perfectly content filling his spot with charlie villanueva who can apparently play every position on the floor.</div> Ok. Jamaal Magloire wants to be a Raptor. I believe Jalen Rose's contract expires the same year Magloire hits the FA market. With Rose's contract off the books, the Raps will be able to sign Magloire if the Hornets don't match or give him a better offer. Rose is going to stay in TO unless someone offers the Raptors something they can't refuse. We are getting off-topic, so I'll just leave it at that.
What do you mean Jay Williams doesn't want to run the triangle again....When did he play under Phil Jackson? I really must've missed something....anyways...Derek Fisher is obviously the best choice but the Lakers so far have stuck to their plan of saving their piggy bank for the summer of 2007. Another Guard no one has mentioned is Damon Stoudemire...on hoopshype.com it was reported that he was not going to Houston because they offered them the vet's minimum of 1.8 per. It also said he was going to sign with a "mystery" team within 72 hours...like someone else said, the Lakers might do something out of no where suggesting it COULD happen. But Damon doesn't really fit any criteria Phil has for a guard. As for the other...I say sign Brevin Knight and get Lue as a back up pg. One can pass the hell out of the ball, the other can play lock down defense...it would work well. Brevin knight fits well because on a team full of scorers and potential scorers (Kobe, Lamar, Kwame, Bynum) they could use someone passing the ball.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting ilive4ball:</div><div class="quote_post">What do you mean Jay Williams doesn't want to run the triangle again....When did he play under Phil Jackson? I really must've missed something....anyways...</div> Bill Cartwright ran the triangle as well, and it really didn't fit Williams' skill set...even Marbury told the media that Williams was one of the best guards in the league as a rookie but the Triangle wasn't utilzing his skills correctly. There were rumors that Williams wanted to be traded because he didn't fit in the system (started by Williams' dad if I recall correctly), but those rumors were denied by Williams himself. At any rate, it was no secret that he did not enjoy playing in the triangle...
Damon Stoudemire, possibly, but I can see PJax complaining about his height, PJax prefers the taller guards mainly for defensive purposes. I'm not sure if Damon is willing to only sign for only 2 years with the Lakers either. Jalen Rose is still a canidate for the Allan Houston Rule, but teams are waiting to see if they can use this exception to waive lingering contracts on their rosters. For example, the Raptors still have Zo's salary on their books, and if they can they would waive it since Zo is no longer on the team. Also teams are waiting to see what the actual cap figure is for next season. If it's the rumored $50Million, than only teams above $60Million will be in the luxury tax range. This excludes the Raptors, so there's no reason to waive Jalen Rose.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">The salary cap will be set at $49.5 million, an increase of $5.63 million from last season. For the first time, teams will know before the season begins what the luxury tax threshold will be -- $61.7 million. Teams with payrolls over that will have to pay a dollar-for-dollar tax on the amount of their payroll that exceeds the $61.7 million.</div> Those are the official figures, so the Raptors won't be in the luxury tax range, so there is no need for them to waive Jalen Rose. Source
The Lakers can officially scratch Damon Stoudemire off the list, he is now a Memphis Grizzlie ... Source
Damn, Im scratching my head. FA is way underway, and we still dont have a PG! what are they waiting for!
Realistically, how much money do they have to spend on a PG, and which PGs of Lakers interests are left? Could they pull of a trade? Sign an unknown PG?
The Lakers better get someone big in '07 Free Agency, because they are really kicking themselves in the ass right now.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Bobcats:</div><div class="quote_post">The Lakers better get someone big in '07 Free Agency, because they are really kicking themselves in the ass right now.</div> My guess is that they will go after Lebron or Bosh.
