Yes it is true, Garnett is probably going to be a Celtic. The deal is pretty much done, all they need is Garnett's okay to play in Boston. Apparently dumbass Danny Ainge is close to pulling out a huge blockbuster deal while Mitch Kupchak continues to sit around doing nothing. 100 bucks bet that Kobe demands a trade to Boston at the trade deadline
As much as it sickens me, if I were Minny, I'd take that deal in a heartbeat. At least he's in the Eastern Conference and we won't have to deal with the Celtics much this year... PLEASE MITCH, OFFER THE WHOLE TEAM LESS KOBE!
The TWolves settle for Al Jefferson, Theo Ratliff's hefty expiring contract and Rajon Rondo and possibly a draft pick (which will be a late 1st rounder). Talk about hooking your homeboy up. Kevin McHale is handing over a championship invitation to his former teammate, Danny Ainge. The good news is Minnesota will not be a threat to make the playoffs next season, and at least KG is heading to the Eastern Conference instead of Phoenix or Golden State. I think it's time to trade Kobe Bryant and start building around Bynum now. Get a head start and all you can in return for Kobe. If this trade goes down, the Bulls might be more willing to give up some of their young core for Kobe in order to compete with Boston's trio.
What about if the Lakers were to offer Sasha, Cook, Brown and Odom for KG. I've checked it and it works. But I hope that KG does not go to Boston.
<div class="quote_poster">shapecity Wrote</div><div class="quote_post"> I think it's time to trade Kobe Bryant and start building around Bynum now. Get a head start and all you can in return for Kobe. If this trade goes down, the Bulls might be more willing to give up some of their young core for Kobe in order to compete with Boston's trio.</div> I second that...
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">I think it's time to trade Kobe Bryant and start building around Bynum now. Get a head start and all you can in return for Kobe. If this trade goes down, the Bulls might be more willing to give up some of their young core for Kobe in order to compete with Boston's trio.</div> What a sad, sad state the Lakers are in when they're thinking of trading the top player in the game to develop Andrew Bynum. It's not like the guy is on the same level as Al Jefferson, Andrew Bogut, LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Oden, etc.; he's more on the level of an Amir Johnson, Andray Blatche, C.J. Miles, etc. The Lakers would have been better off taking Gerald Green, Monta Ellis, or Danny Granger in that draft, maybe even Jarrett Jack. Bynum was a reach, and the gamble hasn't paid off. These reports keep saying that he's developing nicely, but it's Los Angeles, the media and hype machine is incredible. Every single season, we hear all of these too-good-to-be-true rumors involving the Lakeshow, but none of them ever come true. Why should I believe a second hand source telling me that Andrew Bynum's looking good in a practice setting? He's yet to prove anything on any level. It's not like we're talking about a proven commodity here in Greg Oden. We're talking about someone who's just a raw physical specimen, ala Saer Sene, Johan Petro, etc. --- not exactly a reason to rebuild your franchise.
<div class="quote_poster">Voodoo Child Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">What a sad, sad state the Lakers are in when they're thinking of trading the top player in the game to develop Andrew Bynum. It's not like the guy is on the same level as Al Jefferson, Andrew Bogut, LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Oden, etc.; he's more on the level of an Amir Johnson, Andray Blatche, C.J. Miles, etc. The Lakers would have been better off taking Gerald Green, Monta Ellis, or Danny Granger in that draft, maybe even Jarrett Jack. Bynum was a reach, and the gamble hasn't paid off. These reports keep saying that he's developing nicely, but it's Los Angeles, the media and hype machine is incredible. Every single season, we hear all of these too-good-to-be-true rumors involving the Lakeshow, but none of them ever come true. Why should I believe a second hand source telling me that Andrew Bynum's looking good in a practice setting? He's yet to prove anything on any level. It's not like we're talking about a proven commodity here in Greg Oden. We're talking about someone who's just a raw physical specimen, ala Saer Sene, Johan Petro, etc. --- not exactly a reason to rebuild your franchise.</div> I wanted them to select Danny Granger because he was ready to contribute immediately. You're right it's a sad state for the Lakers franchise, but if they traded Kobe you would expect them to acquire at least two young talented players to build a new core around and cap space. Bynum has a lot to prove and right now the team and fans are in a wait and see stage with him. He doesn't necessarily have to become a dominating center like Shaq was. If he can produce a double/double every night and anchor the defense for the next 10 to 12 seasons, he will turn out to be a good pick. The Hawks, Bulls, and Bobcats have the most young talent in the East. The Bulls are the only team who would consider dealing for Kobe at this point, and also Chicago is the only one of those 3 Kobe would agree to be traded to. Kobe-Wallace-Deng vs. Pierce-Allen-KG is the makings for a fantastic ECF Lakers receive Gordon-Thabo-Tyrus or Noah and a 1st rounder?
Actually, going on the basis of Chicago putting together a deal for Kobe, they could kill two birds with one stone and try to trump Boston's offer. Acquire KG for themselves and run the table in the East.
<div class="quote_poster">shapecity Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I wanted them to select Danny Granger because he was ready to contribute immediately. You're right it's a sad state for the Lakers franchise, but if they traded Kobe you would expect them to acquire at least two young talented players to build a new core around and cap space. Bynum has a lot to prove and right now the team and fans are in a wait and see stage with him. He doesn't necessarily have to become a dominating center like Shaq was. If he can produce a double/double every night and anchor the defense for the next 10 to 12 seasons, he will turn out to be a good pick. The Hawks, Bulls, and Bobcats have the most young talent in the East. The Bulls are the only team who would consider dealing for Kobe at this point, and also Chicago is the only one of those 3 Kobe would agree to be traded to. Kobe-Wallace-Deng vs. Pierce-Allen-KG is the makings for a fantastic ECF Lakers receive Gordon-Thabo-Tyrus or Noah and a 1st rounder?</div> Ouch, the Lakers get dominated in that deal. It's essentially Ben Gordon and role players for Kobe Bryant. At the very least, you'd hope they could get one of the league's up-and-coming stars. Now that Portland has Oden, maybe they can swing both Roy and Aldridge in a deal with them.
<div class="quote_poster">Voodoo Child Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Ouch, the Lakers get dominated in that deal. It's essentially Ben Gordon and role players for Kobe Bryant. At the very least, you'd hope they could get one of the league's up-and-coming stars. Now that Portland has Oden, maybe they can swing both Roy and Aldridge in a deal with them.</div> They get the short end of the deal, but they gain tremendous cap space to go after the 2008 free agents. Gilbert Arenas becomes target A, B, & C and they sell him on returning to play in his hometown. Other potential free agents... Elton Brand Tim Duncan Kevin Garnett Shawn Marion Jermaine O'Neal Allen Iverson Baron Davis Corey Maggette Monta Ellis
This is actually positive for the Lakers. At least Garnett is not going to the Suns, Mavs or even worse the Warriors, he is going East and we don't have to see him except twice a year. McHale is obviously going to help his Celtic buddies out before he helps out the Lakers. Now the Lakers can concentrate on making Bynum and Farmar all-stars and hopefully getting rid of our biggest mistake.....MITCH.
<div class="quote_poster">shapecity Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">They get the short end of the deal, but they gain tremendous cap space to go after the 2008 free agents. Gilbert Arenas becomes target A, B, & C and they sell him on returning to play in his hometown. Other potential free agents... Elton Brand Tim Duncan Kevin Garnett Shawn Marion Jermaine O'Neal Allen Iverson Baron Davis Corey Maggette Monta Ellis</div> Why plan for free agency when you can get one of those players immediately in a deal for Kobe? He's probably the most valuable player in the league right now, so they should be able to set their asking price unreasonably high. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">This is actually positive for the Lakers. At least Garnett is not going to the Suns, Mavs or even worse the Warriors, he is going East and we don't have to see him except twice a year. </div> The thing is, the Wolves weren't going to be competing with the Lakers for a playoff spot this season anyway, so the fact that Garnett goes to the East doesn't really mean much for Los Angeles. The bigger story is the Lakers' loss in their KG trade pursuits.
<div class="quote_poster">Voodoo Child Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">What a sad, sad state the Lakers are in when they're thinking of trading the top player in the game to develop Andrew Bynum. It's not like the guy is on the same level as Al Jefferson, Andrew Bogut, LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Oden, etc.; he's more on the level of an Amir Johnson, Andray Blatche, C.J. Miles, etc. The Lakers would have been better off taking Gerald Green, Monta Ellis, or Danny Granger in that draft, maybe even Jarrett Jack. Bynum was a reach, and the gamble hasn't paid off. These reports keep saying that he's developing nicely, but it's Los Angeles, the media and hype machine is incredible. Every single season, we hear all of these too-good-to-be-true rumors involving the Lakeshow, but none of them ever come true. Why should I believe a second hand source telling me that Andrew Bynum's looking good in a practice setting? He's yet to prove anything on any level. It's not like we're talking about a proven commodity here in Greg Oden. We're talking about someone who's just a raw physical specimen, ala Saer Sene, Johan Petro, etc. --- not exactly a reason to rebuild your franchise.</div> The Lakers would have been better off taking Gerald Green? Why? He hasn't shown much more than Andrew Bynum at this point besides winning a dunk contest, which is meaningless. Monta Ellis was drafted in the 2nd round, I bet if the Lakers took him #10 overall, people would be calling for the front office's heads. I like Jarrett Jack, but there's no way I would take him over Bynum. I?m not trying to take a jab at you Voodoo, but why so much hate for Andrew Bynum. The guy showed tons of promise last season until fatigue settled in on him. I?m not saying Bynum is going to be the next great center, because I don?t think he will. But he has the potential to be a very good center in the league one day. Earlier on in the season, when Bynum was given the minutes, he played great. He looked like a future superstar in the making. Later on in the season, his conditioning settled in and his play was disrupted by fatigue. Bynum is going to turn 20 years old next season, and next season will be his third season in the league. I think many people are forgetting how much progress he made last year. He came from sitting on the bench all game in his rookie season, to starting and averaging 20 minutes per game. His stats last season were 8 points per game, 6 rebounds per game, and 1.5 blocks per game, which is basically identical to Al Jefferson?s stats in his sophomore year in the NBA. Al Jefferson also played an average of 15 minutes per game in his rookie season, while Andrew Bynum played only 8 minutes per game in his rookie season (the 8 minutes were usually all garbage minutes anyways). If Bynum continues to work hard and improve his conditioning, I don?t see why he won?t be a star in the league one day, or at least be an ?Al Jefferson? type of player.
<div class="quote_poster">Brian Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">The Lakers would have been better off taking Gerald Green? Why? He hasn't shown much more than Andrew Bynum at this point besides winning a dunk contest, which is meaningless. Monta Ellis was drafted in the 2nd round, I bet if the Lakers took him #10 overall, people would be calling for the front office's heads. I like Jarrett Jack, but there's no way I would take him over Bynum.</div> Gerald Green averaged 10+ ppg this season. That's a lot more than just winning the dunk contest, and that's a lot more than Andrew Bynum has done. He's raw, just like Bynum, with all the same upside, and yet he's a better player at the moment as well. Laker fans get all worked up over the few instances Bynum grabbed ten boards. What about the 33 points Green went off for towards the end of the season, or the 20.8 ppg he averaged in the first seven games of April? He's shown far more in the little time he's played so far for the C's than Bynum has shown in the little time he's played for the Lakers. Monta Ellis was a second round pick, but he slipped there. In the months leading up to the draft, he was a projected mid first rounder. Had the Lakers shown a commitment to him heading into the draft, the pick wouldn't have come as much of a surprise as the Bynum pick was. If you remember, Bynum was a projected late first rounder when the Lakers stretched and picked him #10. Need proof? http://web.archive.org/web/20050529084824/...t.net/index.asp #21 - Monta Ellis #22 - Andrew Bynum Date: May, 26th Still think that going after Ellis would have been a stretch? <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">I’m not trying to take a jab at you Voodoo, but why so much hate for Andrew Bynum. The guy showed tons of promise last season until fatigue settled in on him. I’m not saying Bynum is going to be the next great center, because I don’t think he will. But he has the potential to be a very good center in the league one day.</div> I never said he wasn't going to be a good center, but the Laker bias is overwhelming. Trading Kobe and rebuilding around Bynum? We're not talking about Andrew Bogut here, we're talking about Andrew Bynum. He's not a franchise caliber big man. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Earlier on in the season, when Bynum was given the minutes, he played great. He looked like a future superstar in the making. Later on in the season, his conditioning settled in and his play was disrupted by fatigue. Bynum is going to turn 20 years old next season, and next season will be his third season in the league. I think many people are forgetting how much progress he made last year. He came from sitting on the bench all game in his rookie season, to starting and averaging 20 minutes per game. His stats last season were 8 points per game, 6 rebounds per game, and 1.5 blocks per game, which is basically identical to Al Jefferson’s stats in his sophomore year in the NBA. Al Jefferson also played an average of 15 minutes per game in his rookie season, while Andrew Bynum played only 8 minutes per game in his rookie season (the 8 minutes were usually all garbage minutes anyways). If Bynum continues to work hard and improve his conditioning, I don’t see why he won’t be a star in the league one day, or at least be an “Al Jefferson” type of player.</div> You're throwing around a lot of if's. What separates him from any of the Sonics' big men, for example? Robert Swift, Johan Petro, Saer Sene --- all of them are physically comparable and have shown just as much development as Bynum. What about guys like Amir Johnson, Andray Blatche, Hilton Armstrong, Cedric Simmons, etc.; Bynum has shown nothing to separate himself from that crowd. Laker fans are too beguiled by the Los Angeles media and their own lofty expectations.
<div class="quote_poster">Voodoo Child Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Gerald Green averaged 10+ ppg this season. That's a lot more than just winning the dunk contest, and that's a lot more than Andrew Bynum has done. He's raw, just like Bynum, with all the same upside, and yet he's a better player at the moment as well. Laker fans get all worked up over the few instances Bynum grabbed ten boards. What about the 33 points Green went off for towards the end of the season, or the 20.8 ppg he averaged in the first seven games of April? He's shown far more in the little time he's played so far for the C's than Bynum has shown in the little time he's played for the Lakers. Monta Ellis was a second round pick, but he slipped there. In the months leading up to the draft, he was a projected mid first rounder. Had the Lakers shown a commitment to him heading into the draft, the pick wouldn't have come as much of a surprise as the Bynum pick was. If you remember, Bynum was a projected late first rounder when the Lakers stretched and picked him #10. Need proof? http://web.archive.org/web/20050529084824/...t.net/index.asp #21 - Monta Ellis #22 - Andrew Bynum Date: May, 26th Still think that going after Ellis would have been a stretch? I never said he wasn't going to be a good center, but the Laker bias is overwhelming. Trading Kobe and rebuilding around Bynum? We're not talking about Andrew Bogut here, we're talking about Andrew Bynum. He's not a franchise caliber big man. You're throwing around a lot of if's. What separates him from any of the Sonics' big men, for example? Robert Swift, Johan Petro, Saer Sene --- all of them are physically comparable and have shown just as much development as Bynum. What about guys like Amir Johnson, Andray Blatche, Hilton Armstrong, Cedric Simmons, etc.; Bynum has shown nothing to separate himself from that crowd. Laker fans are too beguiled by the Los Angeles media and their own lofty expectations.</div> For the record, the majority of LA media does not like Andrew Bynum or believe in him living up to his potential. They've petitioned to have him traded for someone who can help Kobe win now. The only person who has supported Bynum from day one has been Jim Buss.
