In his first season out west with the Los Angeles Lakers, 34-year old LeBron James has proven that he's still among the best players in the NBA if not still the top dog in a league that favors fresh legs and young talent. After helping turn around what's been a struggling Lakers franchise for the last five years and morphing them into a playoff caliber team in his first campaign with the Lake Show, a groin injury suffered in the Christmas showdown against the defending champion Golden State Warriors would sideline James for five weeks. Missing a whopping 17 games, the Lakers would log a record of 6-11 in James' absence while watching their stock plummet from being the fourth place team in the Western Conference to the ninth. But after returning from the longest hiatus of James' career due to injury, all things were suddenly right in the world again as L.A. who entered the night with a record of 26-25 on the season, picked up right where they left off before their team captain was bitten by the injury bug.
In his return, James who appeared rather hesitant at times and perfectly fine at others, shook off the cobwebs to score a game-high 24-points and amass 14-rebounds and 9-assists, falling one assist shy of a triple-double. Showing signs of rust early on, the deeper the game went on, the better LeBron looked in a game that he wasn't expected to play in and was initially ruled out of before arriving to the arena and expressing to both the coaching staff and medical staff how good he felt. Needing all the help his team could get as point-guard Lonzo Ball (ankle) and power-forward Kyle Kuzma (hip) have also recently missed time with injuries, Lakers head coach Luke Walton welcomed the thought of having James return to action and didn't hesitate to pencil him into the starting lineup just hours before tip-off. With ground to make up in the playoff race and facing a Clippers team that entered the day with a two-game cushion over the Lakers for sole possession of the No. 8 seed, Walton's team could ill-afford losing to the team they share a building with and are currently chasing.
What appeared to be an easy win for the Lakers who entered the fourth quarter with a 12-point lead, quickly shifted into a back and forth melee that saw the Clippers storm back to score seven unanswered-points in the final 1:49 of regulation to force the game into overtime. It would be in the extra period where LeBron took control of the game like the floor general he's been known to be, as all 11-points in OT were either scored by James or were scored off his play-making ability. LeBron who played a less than ideal 40-minutes in his first game back, would receive some help from Lance Stephenson who poured in 20-points off the bench, including five 3-pointers as the Lakers managed to escape with the 123-120 victory. A crucial five-game road trip is what lies ahead for the Lakers including their first test in the Bay Area on Saturday night against the Warriors who will be showing off their newest toy in DeMarcus Cousins who also recently returned from injury after missing the first three months of the season. With stops in Indiana, Boston, Philadelphia and Atlanta to follow, getting LeBron back couldn't have come at a better time, but the pressure will only increase for LeBron and company to rise to the occasion and make up for lost time as they look to reestablish their position in the playoff hunt with the All-Star break on the horizon and just 30 regular season games remaining.
As the February 7 NBA trade deadline approaches, we'll see whatever help if any the brain trust of Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka decide to acquire for LeBron and coach Walton. One name that has already hit the airwaves and has gained traction among Laker fans and officials alike, is Pelicans All-Star Anthony Davis who recently asked to be traded. Though he'll definitely require a hefty return if Lakers brass decide to pull the trigger for his services.
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With the NBA currently in its All-Star break and some 50 games into the regular season, the Los Angeles Lakers which consists mostly of a young crop of talent, are enjoying some time off the court in preparation of the final stretch. But while the team sent zero players to participate in the actual All-Star Game itself, the organization has remained every bit as busy in the front-office. And on Tuesday, team owner Jeanie Buss made the announcement that both Mitch Kupchak who had been with the Lakers organization since 1981, including six years as a player before spending the last two plus decades in the front-office as general manager, and Jim Buss (executive vice president of basketball operations) would be relieved of their duties. And the man Jeanie would replace her own brother with is one that knows the Lakers franchise as well as anyone -- Mr. Earvin "Magic" Johnson. After helping lead them to five NBA titles in the 80's, Magic isn't quite done helping the Lakers return to being the dominant franchise he remembers them as.
The move to bring Johnson aboard is a seismic shift in the landscape of the Lakers organization and is one Jeanie Buss says she should've made years ago as the franchise is suffering from its worst playoff drought in team history which will reach four consecutive seasons come seasons end. And in just his first day on the job, Johnson wasted little time before making phone calls to get a deal done just days before Thursday's trade deadline as he shipped guard Lou Williams to the Houston Rockets in exchange for small forward Corey Brewer and a first round pick in this year's draft. Williams, a former Sixth Man of the Year Award winner in 2015 with the Toronto Raptors, is having the best year of his career while averaging 18.6 points per game coming off the bench. With the Rockets (40-18) being one of the better teams not only in the Western Conference this year but in the entire Association, the acquisition of Williams provides depth to a team already stacked with shooters including Eric Gordon who won Saturday's Three-Point shooting Contest and is second in the league in points off the bench, trailing only his new teammate.
The trade figures to help both teams as the Lakers add another draft pick in their ongoing efforts to rebuild and Houston adds another shooter which now gives them the top two highest scorers coming off the bench. Not to mention Rockets superstar James Harden gets some much appreciated help while leading the league in assists per game (11.3) and trailing only Russell Westbrook and Isaiah Thomas for the scoring title. With the Western Conference looked at as being Golden State's to lose, Houston is one of the teams that isn't expected to stand in the way of the Warriors but at least stands a punchers chance and could cause problems for the back-to-back Western Conference Champions come playoff time.
Back to the Lakers, Los Angeles is suffering yet another disappointing season at 19-39, one win better than the Phoenix Suns for the worst record in the West and third worst overall, but has already surpassed last season's win total of 17-65 under first-year head coach Luke Walton. After a fast start to the season which saw L.A. win six of its first ten games for the first time since the 2011-12 season, Walton's team has taken a step back whether that be a result of a series of injuries they've endured or the young guys are experiencing exhaustion while still getting acclimated to the grind of the NBA season. Or perhaps a combination of the two. Moving forward, Johnson promised in his interview with Spectrum Sportsnet that when it comes time to making a pitch to a player in the free-agent process, that it won't be about telling old stories about the organization's past success during the Showtime Lakers or the Kobe-led Lakers, but rather "the new Lakers." For me personally, this comes off as especially important considering its an area that Kupchak struck out in numerous times in the past few seasons when attempting to lure star players via free agency. With a new GM expected to be announced in the coming days, only time will tell if the hiring of Magic will pay off. But at least for now it's a hire that ensures Lakers fans they've got someone in the drivers seat who cares dearly about the organization and one who will give it his all to try and right the ship in Tinsletown just like he did on the court.
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With a vacancy in their head coaching position, the Los Angeles Lakers have found their man. After finishing the past three regular seasons with the worst record in franchise history and diminishing win totals of 27, 21 and 19, the Lakers are ready to start off on a clean slate. And they'll be doing so under newly hired head coach Luke Walton. Name sound familiar? That's because it wasn't long ago that Walton was on the court playing for the Lakers where he spent nine years as a fan favorite. And now both Laker fans and the front-office are hoping that will continue as he returns back to the Lakers bench, only this time with a suit and tie on instead of a jersey.
Hired to become the 26th head coach in franchise history, Walton, son of NBA Hall of Famer Bill Walton, joins a long list of names of former Laker players who later went on to coach the team. Impressive names with the likes of George Mikan, Jim Pollard, Jerry West, Pat Riley, Magic Johnson, Kurt Rambis and most recently -- Byron Scott who was relieved of his duties after just two seasons. Thus making Walton the eighth former Lakers player turned coach. However, of the seven others before him, only three of those names have finished their tenure with a winning record. And only two if you're counting a full season's worth of work. With Walton being the eighth Lakers coach to have also donned the purple and gold as a player, it's safe to say the Lakers prefer to keep it in the family by hiring one of their own. And hopefully this one works out better than the last one did.
After capturing only 38 combined wins in two seasons under Scott, the Lakers are hoping to have much more success under Walton who was twice named coach of the month this season while filling in for Steve Kerr as the intern head coach of the Golden State Warriors, whom he led to a 39-4 record, including a blazing 24-0 start. Following Kerr's return back to the Warriors bench after recovering from back surgery, the Warriors went on to assemble the greatest regular season in NBA history, finishing with an all-time best record of 73-9, narrowing the 72-10 mark previously held by the team that Kerr coincidentally played for -- the '95-'96 Chicago Bulls. Because of the accomplishment, Kerr would be named Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season, while many believed the award should've gone to Walton or at the very least share the award with co-Coach of the Year honors. Unfortunately for Walton, that wouldn't be the case. But at least his time in the driver seat helped skyrocket both his stock and interest in landing a head coaching job.
Two years removed from being a part-time assistant coach in the NBA's Developmental League, Walton, who becomes the youngest active head coach in the league at just 36 years of age, will now takeover the most winningest franchise in the NBA. Having grown up in Southern California and later playing for the team he lived just a stones throw away from, the hiring of Walton could be the perfect fit in L.A. Or it could be another Byron Scott-type disaster that we were more than excited for at first, and later ended up hating. At first glance, Walton doesn't seem like the type of hire you'd make when looking to help develop players which is exactly what the Lakers are in need of with their crop of young players led by Julius Randle and DeAngelo Russell. Then again, Walton could be the perfect man for the job, knocking it out of the park and proving us all wrong. The truth is, only time will tell. And whether or not the Lakers organization might not want to admit it, regardless of who it was they decided to hire, the next man for the job was going to need plenty of that to help get the Lakers back into winning form -- time. Entering year three of the Lakers current reconstruction, the front-office will have to show patience with Walton, something they showed very little of with Byron Scott calling the plays. And with Walton reportedly agreeing to a five-year deal, four of which guaranteed at an amount not yet made public, they appear to be understanding.
Smart move or not by Walton with many believing he jumped the gun and should've returned to Golden State for at least another year, he might not have had the opportunity to land his dream job again if he chose to wait it out another season. Sure leaving an organization that is currently atop the basketball world in both popularity and excitement, not to mention has the talent to become a dynasty, seems hard, but jobs like the one Walton just agreed to take don't come around too often. Though it was only a small sample size, we've seen how well Walton can coach a roster full of stars and talented players in their prime including the league's MVP, now lets see how well he can coach a bunch of youngsters still looking to make a name for themselves and whether or not he can help guide the Lakers franchise back to prominence as they look to end their dry spell of missing the playoffs for a franchise worst three consecutive seasons. And with a young team in hand already, the Lakers are expected to get even younger as they hope to strike gold in this month's NBA Draft Lottery and perhaps even in free-agency after striking out in each of the last three seasons.
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Despite the NBA being only two months into the offseason plagued by a lockout, those familiar with the work stoppage have already noted that they don't see an agreement being made any time soon. But with their counterparts in the NFL finally reaching a mutual agreement to their CBA some four and a half months later, you would have to think there's the slightest bit of optimism in the air, right? Those closest to the source, however, would tell otherwise and believe the lockout could last until the start of the regular season in November or worse, last beyond Christmas like it did in '98, if not threaten the entire 2011-2012 season which is very much likely.
How much worse is the NBA's lockout than that of the NFL's? Due to the demands of the players and owners being so far apart from one another, players have already began seeking an alternative for work. While most players have considered playing ball overseas in China and Turkey among other places, former Celtics point guard Delonte West is among those who aren't as fortunate. After being busted by police in September of 2009 for riding his 3-wheeled motorcycle around with a guitar case which had three firearms inside including a 9mm pistol, a court ruling by the judge will prevent West from leaving the country to join those who plan on flocking to play ball elsewhere until the lockout ends.
With basketball no longer an option, the D.C. native has instead resorted to filling out job applications like many other struggling Americans during this tough recession. His place of choice? The Home Depot as he mentioned via his Twitter account. Though it doesn't quite remind us of the situation Malik Rose was in during the NBA lockout of 1998-1999 when he was forced to move back in with his parents, it does show shades of former bad boy and current Lakers forward Ron Artest who filled out an application for a part-time job at Circuit City in order to get an employee discount during his time with the Bulls. Not only am I curious to see if Delonte knows a thing or two about wallpaper, but I'd also like to know which of his teammates he put down on his reference list.
West isn't the only one seeking work stateside this offseason as Lakers small forward Luke Walton plans to take an alternative route from the home improvement department by joining the University of Memphis' coaching staff as an assistant if the lockout continues.
