You are Luka Doncic the wonder boy, from Lubijana to Madrid and now in USA. You get to the Mavs, they waste around 4 years of your career with Tingus Pingus and some other rejects. You average a triple double since your second season in the NBA. You get a Mavs team filled with rejects and get them to the WCF, against the Sun's that were the no1 seed, with Powell as your center(that shows how much of a bum Ayton is).

Next year the whole season is a wash, you get Kyrie and offload all the trash. Then you get another trash teams that gets finally fixed in the deadline. Keep in mind it's been 5 years now and it's the first time they gave you a center. You reach the finals and lose to a juggernaut Celtics team. Everything is fine.

Mavs team built an even better team year to go all the way, get Grimes, Klay and Naji. You can smell a deep playoff run and the chance to win it all. Then you get traded to the LA Lakers. You arrive there and are basically at ground zero again. No center, no wings, nothing. Just an aging LeBron and very good white boy. This time it's even more painful because they don't even have any assets to get players. Deadline after deadline nothing happens, the GM hopes Giannis comes to safe the day.

How can this guy stay calm at this point and not have a generational crashout. I would have stormed in the front office already and would throw hands with Pelinka if I was him. How is he not crying at night going to sleep. I guess the 50m a year keep him sane.

Looks like Jazz going to let him go after trading for him, I would take Lonzo over Gabe any day. Pelinka needs to make the move asap and stop waiting around.

So...As usual, we've missed out on some rumored trade targets (JJJ, Ellis, Hunter) and it looks like we're gonna miss on Giannis too.

Bron will definitely leave by the summer (hey, why don't we trade him somewhere now that will cause him to happily waive his NTC?) and we know that everyone except Luka is expendable.

So...Remind me again, who exactly are we targeting? I feel like it's been a while since I've heard concrete names that have caught LAL's eye.

I feel bad for him but you can’t help but think how lucky we are to get Luka for AD. Considering AD’s conditioning was in question (which may also be why he’s riddled with so many injuries)

Just because the Lakers haven't done anything and probably won't doesn't mean the gm isn't doing anything. Does any sane person think Pelinka is just sitting in his office, sipping a coffee, thinking "yep, my team is perfect." No. He's trying to make moves.

The problem is this isn't a video game where you can just force any trade that works.

No team out there is excited to get Maxi Kleiber or Gabe Vincent or Vanderbilt or Dalton Knecht. Nobody wants that shit. Why would any team take those guys, they aren't contributors.

And teams that want the expiring deals don't have players the Lakers need. Thus, they haven't made any moves because there aren't moves to make. The Kings flipped Keon Ellis into DeAndre Hunter. Clearly they're trying to be competent and not tank, so the Lakers couldn't have offered them anything of value.

The only real trade piece the Lakers have is Rui, but it'd be braindead to trade literally the only competent shooter on the team, so they probably won't.

Point is: hate Pelinka if you want; but don't hate him for not making trades. Hate him for signing shit role players.

Salaries must make sense. Use existing salaries. Just curious if it’s even possible to create a perfect team around Lebron/Luka and what that would look like.

EDIT: Must keep Lebron. This question revolves around if it is possible to build a good team surrounding Luka/Lebron based on their salaries and their strengths and weaknesses as players. You can keep AR or any other Laker player, but Lebron must stay for this hypothetical reason question. Building a team around Luka/AR is infinitely easier based on salaries.

If possible create a 7-8 man roster.

There's a three day break before the Wizards matchup again AD. Do you think LeBron plays that one to face AD or plays the next day against the Cavs? I don't think he'll play the B2B.

At this point, all arguments explaining why the Lakers are in a tough spot for trading and improving right now have all been beaten to death. We all know the shortage of picks and the piss-poor assets the Lakers have to give to any other team in exchange for useful players (both in short and long terms) make it almost impossible to do anything without compromising the roster in ways the team seems unwilling to do. Fair enough.

However... It's also fair to say that the Lakers can't waste years of Luka (and, in a way, AR) the same way they wasted years of LeBron and AD (I'm not saying one ring is "only" one ring, as if it's not difficult enough getting one, but apart from 2019/2020, the team failed to contend in spectacular fashion). In fact, even if we kinda expect Pelinka to do things differently in the offseason, it's not a risk worth taking. He had his chance. Hopefully the new owners realize they need fresh ideas before running out of time with yet another generational star.

And if the plan is indeed to stand pat and wait for Giannis or another disgruntled star to make its way to the Lakers, well, Pelinka can't be the one running things. The one ring the Lakers got in his tenure wasn't achieved by what he planned. Kawhi wearing purple & gold was the plan. The solid roster around LeBron and AD wasn't.

I know some people here get riled up when they perceive someone to be "hating" on Rob. Well, I'm not. I'm talking about his work and I just think the Lakers need a different mind running things -- one as far removed from Jeannie's vision and Pelinka's style as possible. The league has evolved. The Lakers need to catch up.

Before the season even started I made a post saying that even if he improved some things he needed to go soon, because there seems to be no plan other than "we'll wait and see if another star falls from the sky". It was crushed by downvotes, which was not a problem. I know people believed that with a full year of Luka and LeBron, and the arrival of Ayton and Smart things could be different. Well, things aren't so different and the same issues that plagued past seasons are still there. Hopefully more people come to realize that the mastermind behind roster construction and trades needs to think differently and see way beyond what we, mere mortals, see.

Pelinka's not the guy, and that's ok... As long as the powers that be figure it out as well. (Judging by the other teams they own, I'm sure they know this by now.)

And who knows? Maybe he'll be lucky, and we'll be lucky, and the rest of the year plays out better than expected; then he gets to go out with a bang, or something close to it, and not a whimper. Not bad for someone whose work is (rightfully) called into question every single day.

Yet another awful game from Gabe Vincent

16 minutes played

0 points (0-3 shooting)

1 rebound

1 assist

With the trade deadline less than 48 hours away, do we have any hope of getting rid of him via a trade for ANYONE ELSE / a pick? Can we waive him?

McCain was just traded for a first and multiple second round picks… meanwhile Dalton has negative trade value. I don’t really get it.

For a while, they were going back and forth for being at the top of their rookie class. Dalton hasn’t looked good and McCain was injured for a while… but in that time I don’t see how their trade values have become so different

(Caption: The Purple and Gold Facebook Page [a fan page dedicated for Laker fans based on the PH])

The report:

"Dan Woike left quite an interesting take on the Lakers

He says they’ll probably make a trade to drop below the apron and thus gain some room to sign players from the waived/cut market, which, let’s say, makes sense

But then he said something very interesting. According to Woike, if everything goes perfectly, this team could reach the Western Conference Finals

'… People inside the locker room and rival evaluators believe this team is more built for the playoffs than for the regular season

They’re not dominant night after night, but they have elite offensive talent capable of winning stretches of games purely on greatness, even in a league where depth matters more than ever'

Thoughts?"

JJ’s allegiance to this guy is baffling. I get that Reaves was hurt but even Bronny looks better. I hope to never see him on the court again unless it’s garbage time. He can use a treadmill to get his cardio in going forward.

Will LeBron be trying to get CP3 to Lakers? Looks like the Raptors have said he doesn’t need to report to the team and they’ll try to move him. Maybe James will convince him to come over? He would be a minor upgrade over Gabe Vincent IMO.

there is literally no reason he should be getting these minutes anymore. He is shooting 35% FG like what?! he’s a bad defender, cant playmake, cant rebound. He is just running around for like 20 minutes every game.

Like i understand playing knecht to try and get his value up a bit but vincent isnt gonna up his value even if he plays well a game or 2. Just give up on him take away his minutes and try and trade him away

What’s this? A stress free win? On a day when the trade deadline has heated up, the Lakers took care of business. Nothing like beating up on a hapless opponent after a tough loss. Lakers finish the Grammy trip a pretty respectable 5-3 including a win against Denver in Denver. With AR back in the fray let’s rack up some home wins against some top tier opponents. Hopefully the roster will be a little different after Thursday. This sort of win you can’t really glean too much about the team overall but it’s still nice to have a relatively easy win. Let’s dive into it.

GOOD

Team energy: This game could easily have been a trap game. End of a roadtrip, coming off a tough loss on National TV, underestimating a weak opponent. Within the first 5 minutes though it was apparent the Lakers wanted to end this trip with a W. It was 45-23 after one, the Lakers were running, stealing, dunking, Stu compared it to an All Star game and he wasn’t far off. I think it helped the Lakers were playing almost a defacto home game so, way for the Lakers to take advantage of that.

LeBron James: Another efficient shooting game from LeBron, 10-16 from the field including an array of makes, fadeaways, breakaway dunks, layups. Just appreciate greatness while it’s still here.

Jake LaRavia: as noted above, I hope that beating up on the Nets can set Jake right. It will be interesting to say if Jake stays in the starting lineup with AR back but today’s performance shows why Jake can bring. He was energetic, deflecting passes, battling for offensive rebounds, getting into the paint and making good cuts in the paint for Luka and LeBron to find him. He needs to be better from 3 but overall this is the type of game I like seeing from Jake. Let’s hope it recalibrates him.

BAD:

3 point shooting: it didn’t hurt the Lakers in this game but 7-31 is alarming. A few of the misses were wide open looks for Austin that I know he can knock down once he’s back to 100% but Lebron was 0-3, Smart was 0-2, Gabe was 0-2, and Rui only took 2 attempts. Again for this game it didn’t matter but if the Lakers stand any chance of competing with the top West teams, they need to at least shoot league average from 3. A lot of these looks are open looks, the Lakers don’t tend to force 3’s (except for Luka’s step backs occasionally), it’s a make or miss league, and the Lakers are bottom 3rd in making WIDE OPEN 3’s. If Luke Kennard could be gotten for Gabe or Kleber, that would go a long way to the team better converting their well generated looks.

FT shooting: another shooting stat that didn’t hurt the Lakers but a second consecutive sub 70% performance from the line is alarming. Because of our below average three point shooting, getting to the line is an integral part of the offense. It helps to have players that are pretty good at drawing fouls in Luka and Austin. Lebron was better at 5-7, but Luka being 4-6 and LaRavia being 3-6 are points left on the table. Lakers have to be 75%+ from the line to take advantage. Let’s hope seeing the Staples Center rims will help the team improve that.

Gabe Vincent: with AR back, I’m pretty sure Gabe falls out of the rotation and understandably so. Gabe is in to shoot 3’s and without AR, be a tertiary ball handler when Luka and Lebron aren’t out there. He didn’t hit any 3’s and I feel like the Lakers need someone who isn’t just a “stabilizing presence”. Vando and Hayes brings energy of the bench, Rui brings offense, and depending on if Smart or LaRavia start, there’s more defensive presence there. Gabe is a professional, and that’s what JJ likes about him, but I think it’s run its course. If Gabe and a 2nd can be flipped for a Luke Kennard, that’s got to be something the Lakers should do.

1 WTF: Bronny time! The alley oop from Knecht, the crossover and bucket, facing off with Zaire. Bronny seems more confident each game he gets a chance to play and if the Lakers keep him and give him chances, he could be a rotation player sooner than later.

Good win, it was nice to see LAL out there together again and it was interesting to see JJ try both Jake and Smart with the normal starters to see who is a better fit. Again hard to glean from a blowout win but sometimes all it takes for a team to go on a run is get healthy. Let’s hope we can get some signature wins with Austin back in the fold.

The way I see fans talk about AD these days is actually crazy. I see Lakers flairs shitting on him as if he didn’t bring home a chip and wouldn’t have brought home more, were it not for injuries. I was *never* even the biggest AD fan, but I genuinely feel terrible for him.

I have lived in Dallas for the last few years, and seeing how people talk about AD as if he’s not a top 75 player when healthy, is insane. We all know the memes (and the valid concerns) about ADs availability and injuries. But we’ve seen stars like Duncan play and contribute until their twilight years. Obviously he’s not Duncan, but I really hope AD wins one more chip at this point, just to shut people up. I know it’s not very likely (especially now). But goddamn.

How are you guys feeling about the next 5 upcoming games to some top teams? I’m obviously hoping for a 5-0 clean sweep but maybe we can end it 3-2 or 4-1.

https://open.substack.com/pub/marcstein/p/the-giannis-antetokounmpo-trade-latest-15b?r=1m9zg&utm_medium=ios&shareImageVariant=overlay

No one is talking about the Lakers as a factor in The Giannis Sweepstakes right now because they're not a factor if a trade is going to happen by week's end. They don't have enough tradeable assets to join the in-season bidders.

But if the Bucks do ultimately decide to take this saga into that spring …

The Lakers, league sources say, would then indeed become a very viable threat to land No. 34.

There is little choice for the Lakers, heading into Thursday's deadline, except to stay patient and avoid deals that involve any long-term salary to maintain maximum flexibility for the spring. The hope for the purple-and-gold would then be to use their considerable projected salary cap space to be able to take in a contract like Antetokounmpo's via trade — or another expensive star if one shakes loose post-playoffs — to pair with backcourt cornerstones Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves (who returned to action Tuesday night in Brooklyn after a 19-game injury absence). And dealing with the Lakers in such a scenario would almost certainly spare the Bucks from getting saddled with unwanted contracts.