It's no secret the Raptors are trying to deal Jermaine O'neal. Another player they're trying to get value for is Anthony Parker. Odom + Walton + Mihm for O'Neal & Parker?
no no no no no...Jermain Oneal is absolute crap. I wouldn't want Jermaine Oneal for Sasha! He is beyond damaged goods and I think/hope the Lakers know that. Its a 50/50 chance at best that Oneal will be healthy enough to play come playoff time. A seven footer with chronic knee problems? No thank you. Type his name into Google! The first word that comes up after his name is "trade"...guess what the second is??? INJURY!
I held out hope that Jermaine would've revived his career because he was one of my favorite players, but no. Odom > O'neal.
Why would the Raptors do this? Parker is still worth something to the team, and they wouldn't be willing to give him up for Luke and Mihm. The trade is pretty much LA's trash for JO who isn't necessarily trash, and Parker, someone who still has value around the league. Besides, Raptors would much rather have Marion than Odom. They already have 2 perimeter bigs and don't need a third.
I'd rather have Jermaine O'Neal on the sidelines in a suit than Walton on the court. I'm not sure you realize this, but Luke is signed until the year 2013. At least O'Neal would only be here for 1 1/2 seasons vs. 4 more seasons of Puke. Besides I'm sure the Lakers could dump O'Neal during the summer for a team looking to free up cap space. Any chance we have of unloading Luke needs to be a priority.
I really don't know about the trade. I'd love to get rid of Puke....but I don't know how overly fond I am of bringing in JO, when he clearly isn't what he used to be. However, I'd love to have a guy like Parker on this team...dude can shoot the lights out on any given night and would give us some nice firepower off the bench (or as the starting 3...whatever).
Jermaine was playing fine with Toronto before the injury. Even after the injury he's had decent games. And the trash thing was more for Parker anyways. Jermaine expires in 2 years. Marion (if Raptors end up making the trade for him) expires this year.
No...winning the 'ship is the priority and this trade does nothing but hurt the Lakers chances of that IMO
Agree completely. Having O'neal sitting on the bench in a suit over not having Walton on our bench does sound nice, however, Walton can still be productive through the passing game and you forgot to mention that while O'neal is collecting a pay check in a suit on the bench, Odom is in a Raptors' uniform. He is an integral part of our 2nd unit, a piece O'neal could not replace.
Odom also expires this year. The Heat are insisting the Raptors take Marcus Banks and Colangelo has been reluctant to include him. I'm sure he'd be reluctant to take Walton either, but the Lakers could sweeten the deal with a draft pick.
You guys are right the Championship is the priority, but I don't think Odom is a key piece. I don't trust the guy in close games and his inconsistency is a hinderance come playoff time. Luke is a two-way disaster.
There is no denying Odom is inconsistent, but he has been pretty damn good lately (minus the Bobcat game). I think he is perfect off the bench, especially with Ariza out there. The only thing I would change is play Bynum and Gasol at the end of games, not Odom and Gasol.
Well in Odom's defense he was playing awesome in the playoffs last year until the finals. He later revealed he had his tendinitis flaring up bad at that time. Even if he plays not as well this time around I'll still take him over O'neal in a suit...which WILL happen. As far as Luke, yes his contract is a bummer, but he IS a contributor. This team is better with him on it. We all love to bash Walton but he actually hasnt been playing all that bad since he's become a starter.
I think Colangelo would rather sit on JO's contract and play with $60 mill in 2010, rather than deal with such a long-term commitment to such a marginal player (Walton). I know we're in a deadlock with Miami over bringing in Marcus Banks, but Walton's contract is a million times worse than Banks'.
LOL... u mean to tell me the Raptors are willing to do that??? Lakers lineup: 5 - Fish, Kobe, Parker, Pau, Bynum Bench - Farmar, Vujacic, Ariza, JO, Powell I wouldn't mind this is it were during the offseason AND if Pjax finds a way to incorporate them into the lineup. Why? Walton and Mihm (less than 1 min per game) do almost nothing for us. Parker is an offensive threat (once went toe to toe against Kobe, if i recall), and JO will give us the NEEDED toughness on D.
I don't want to have anything to do with O'Neal. Odom can at least be very useful to us and gives us quality depth.
O'Neal will be injured 99% of the time. At least Lamar plays. The only thing that we will benefit from this trade is getting rid of Luke. Who knows, I'd probably do it since I hate Walton so much. Get rid of Phil's pet.
