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The Lakers’ situation
As much as I would like to avoid it, I cannot overlook the whole ‘Howard gone wrong’ case. If the Lakers’ management had sensed the slightest possibility of Dwight leaving the very next year, they would never have traded a young and potent Bynum for the cause. Well technically, the plan was perfect – use the big wallet, west coast climate and Hollywood dreams to lure a big star to join the eternal megastar of the Lakers, Kobe Bryant. But Howard never clicked and dissatisfaction only grew within both parties.
Prior to the beginning of the 2013 season, Howard moved to Houston and Bryant was out recovering from an Achilles injury. In an attempt to salvage any remaining chances of making it to the playoffs, the Lakers signed veteran big man Chris Kaman and the gifted but inconsistent youngster Nick Young. As of now, the Lakers have spent quite a bit on the contracts of Steve Blake, Jordan Hill and Chris Kaman, while there are some other minimum level contracts for the likes of Jordan Farmar, Xavier Henry and Nick Young.
The new look Lakers revolve around youngsters such as Nick Young and veteran Steve Blake
For now, Kobe and Nash are still out injured, while Gasol still seems far from 100 percent. The Lakers are at the .500 mark owing to vigorous efforts from Blake, Young, Jodie Meeks, Hill, Farmar, Henry, etc.
It has now been confirmed that Kobe has signed an extension with the Lakers for the next two years in a deal worth $48 million. There is also a high possibility that a rehabbing Bryant fast-forwards his return to the court. This contract will make Bryant the highest paid athlete in the NBA. A wise move that the Lakers could make in the near future is to let go of Nash for a younger option or a draft pick. Then, we could see Bryant combining with Farmar/Blake in the backcourt while Young/Henry, Gasol/Hill/Kaman man the front.
Selling off Nash will not only free some salary cap for the big free agent that LA is looking to sign, but also allow Blake to be first choice for PG which will automatically give the younger Farmar more minutes on rotation, thereby developing a better guard. Both Xavier Henry and Nick Young are already showing promise this season and both have optimum ability to play guard or forward. The lack of Howard in the paint frees Gasol and gives him the freedom to use his passing ability to feed Hill/Kaman who have better spot-up mid-range ability than Howard.
The Lakers and Mike D’Antoni are going to have to play tough if they are to make any noise this season but if they take wise, calculated decisions in the near future, a well-rounded Lakers team is not far away.
The Celtics’ situation
Danny Ainge is in charge of operations of the Celtics, and simply put, it’s a ‘youth movement’ down at Boston. It will also be foolish to say that it was unexpected. The average age of the Cs’ starting lineup was slowly but steadily creeping into the unacceptable 30s and it was only a matter of time before the management took steps to reinforce the idea that ‘players come and go, but the franchise lives on’. The only way to fight age and survive long-term mediocrity was to take tough calls, and that they did.
Letting go of Doc to the Clippers gave them a first-round draft pick. The trade with the Nets included not only Gerald Wallace, MarShon Brooks and others but also three first-round draft picks. Now, the Celtics have first-round draft picks in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2018 (can be swapped for 2017).
Jeff Green (far right) is now one of the leading lights in the Celtics squad and Gerald Wallace (far left) brings solid defense
Also, over the years Rajon Rondo has come to be the real ‘heart’ of the Green army. Constant improvement and considerable experience with the ‘Big 3’ has truly made him the General of the current Celtics. When he comes back from his ACL rehab, the team will function with Rondo at its centre. Coach Stevens and the management now need to surround Rondo with the required talent, rotate wisely and make smart choices with the draft picks that they have in the kitty. The draft picks could be potent stars or could be optimally developed to later be traded for bigger names (remember Al Jefferson and Gerald Green who formed part of the Garnett mega deal).
Sometimes it does get easy to lose focus of the bigger picture, and claim that a team is going down the dreaded rabbit-hole. The only place I see the Celtics and the Lakers going from here on is to a place of new possibilities, renewed rivalry and new individual battles.
Now that the Mamba is confirmed for the next two years, it will be worth watching what the alpha dog does with the young talents that surround him. On the other hand, the Celtics will have Rondo rallying his team of young upcoming athletes to go up against the established big names of the NBA. More importantly, when these two teams meet in the future, fresh names will strive to revitalize the match-up that once gave us Wilt-Russell and Bird-Magic.
Guess the Lakers players!
