September 2009 Archives

The Lakers signed guard Thomas Kelati, boosting their training camp roster to 18 players. Kelati, who played at Washington State, spent last season with a Spanish club team. He also has played professionally in Poland and Belgium.

Boxing! Boxing? Boxing! Lamar Odom took up boxing this summer. He explained why today after practice: "I needed something combative. I was thinking about defense. It's all footwork. I'm staying in there. I'm not a (wimp) anymore. It just made me think of competing at the highest level and that's one-on-one. Warriors. I'm just waiting for someone to act up a little bit. I'm going to sneak one in at a real close range. Nah, I would never fight on the court. It's all about footwork. I want to become a better defensive player."

I went to media day today expecting the circus to be in town, with TMZ trucks and paparazzi hiding in the bushes outside of the Lakers training facility in El Segundo. While there were a few, shall we say, non-traditional media outlets asking some of the guys what kind of food was served at Lamar's wedding, it was a mostly calm day. Calm by Lakers standards that is.

Two years ago, there was real drama as everyone waited to see if Kobe Bryant --who had blown a gasket over the summer --would actually show up to training camp.

Last season, there was all the talk about avenging the loss to the Celtics.

You know, real basketball issues. Now that the Lakers won the title, and things on the court are pretty well set, there really wasn't much angst in the room.

I was joking with Luke Walton about it, who is always a good guy to joke with about stuff like that, and he was like, ``I mean, I can start something if you want. Who do you want me to call out? Josh Powell. Man, I can't stand Josh. He's so selfish. I hate Josh. Is that good?

``Nah, but seriously, this is what makes our team so fun. We all get along, we have a great time and we're looking forward to do it again.''

But Luke, what about all of us scribes bored with the Laker love-fest?

``We'll figure something out,'' he joked. ``We'll talk about it in the locker room and figure something real good out. By the end of training camp, we'll have something good for you guys.

The Lakers held their annual Media day, which as ever resulted in precious little in the way of actual news. Lots of talk about Lamar Odom's wedding. Plenty of talk about winning a second straight title, too. Kobe Bryant had some good things to say about getting back to work and staying focused on chasing another ring. So did Derek Fisher. Sasha Vujacic got a haircut. So did Pau Gasol. Jordan Farmar got a new number.

Bryant had this to say about the offseason and preparing for a title defense: "It was peaceful, got a lot of time to relax, a lot of downtime, just resting and recuperating. We understand. We worked really hard to get to this point. It took us a lot of time to get here, so this is something we don't want to give up because of our inability to move forward or not take the season seriously. If somebody's going to take it from us, we want them to take it from us with us being 100 percent focused and locked in. It was a different feeling. It was something we worked hard for from the bottom. The previous teams I was on that won, we had a lot of talent. We were always a favorite, every single year. This team, we grew up together. There weren't any distractions last year or the year before. Everything will be smooth."

Fisher on defending the title: "The bull's eye becomes bigger after you become champions. So there's more scrutiny with the ups and downs of the season. I think about last year and it seemed, like, can we really complete the mission we set out to accomplish? Even winning 65 regular-season games,, there are so many ups and downs and good stories and bad stories, and there will be much more of that this year. We plan on being better than we were a year ago."

Vujacic on getting a haircut: "I decided to do it. I studied some DVDs from during the year .. I was playing with my hair too much. It was a big distraction to me. I just did it and I was, like, what the hell? After I played basketball, I felt really good. It's not in my eyes anymore and I don't have that compulsive thing, so I'm happy. Like a week ago, six days, last Thursday. I did it, yeah. I did it. When I cut my hair I didn't have a beard, so I looked like I was even younger. I looked like Benjamin Button. I looked like a teenager."

Farmar on changing to No. 1 this season after wearing No. 5: "It's just the number I grew up wearing. I wore it in high school and won a championship. I got to wear it in my McDonald's All-American game. I came to UCLA and my freshman year somebody had it, so I had to change it. I ended up changing it back my sophomore year and then a few people had it when I got here. When I got here, Smush (Parker) was No. 1, then Javaris (Crittenden) had it. You have to have your jersey three years when you get in the NBA because of all the rules and stuff like that. I just had to wait my turn to get it. Now I've waited my turn and I'm ready to have some fun."

The Lakers signed four forwards today, including former UCLA standout Michael Fey, boosting their roster to 17 players for the start of training camp Tuesday. The NBA champions also signed Tony Gaffney, Mickael Gelabale and David Monds.

Fey played last season in the United Arab Emirates. Gaffney and Monds each played for the Lakers' summer league team in Las Vegas. Gelabale played for the D-Fenders, the Lakers' developmental league team last season.

None of the four is expected to make the team.

Kinda touched on this last week, but even the NBA champs have questions to answer as they prepare to make a run at a second straight title. Among them:

1. How quickly can the Lakers block out the many distractions created by Lamar Odom's wedding to Bruce Jenner's stepdaughter? Even in the calmest of seasons the Lakers run sort of a three-ring circus. You can add a fourth ring as training camp begins.

2. How quickly can they get Ron Artest into the fold? He was their lone addition during the offseason, filling the opening created when Trevor Ariza signed with the Houston Rockets to fill the void created when Artest departed for the Lakers.

3. How quickly can Pau Gasol recover from a whirlwind August and September, when he injured a finger while practicing with Spain and then led his country to the European Championship? He had only a week to rest and recover before the start of training camp.

4. Is Andrew Bynum's knee in shape? Lakers coach Phil Jackson said last week that he saw the 7-foot center last week and believed him to be lighter and in better shape after a month of workouts in the heat and humidity of Atlanta.

5. How will the minutes be divided among the Lakers' point guards? This might be the only significant competition as training camp opens, what with Derek Fisher expected to start and Shannon Brown and Jordan Farmar set to battle for minutes. Jackson suggested last week he might go with a big lineup of Artest, Gasol, Bynum, Odom and Kobe Bryant in an overwhelming show of force. It's always nice to have options.

Lakers coach Phil Jackson said last week the team would limit the players' use of Twitter and other social networking sites. Now the NBA appears ready to do the same, according to a report this morning on ESPN.com. Here are two key paragraphs from the story:

"The primary restriction of the policy is expected to prevent various team representatives from tweeting during games, after the stir caused late last season when Detroit Pistons forward Charlie Villanueva, then with Milwaukee, tweeted from the Bucks' locker room during halftime.

"One source described the forthcoming policy as "very minimal" and "less stringent" than the guidelines announced earlier this month by the NFL, which now regards players, coaches and football operations personnel -- or any third party representing them -- to be in violation of league rules if they use social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook from 90 minutes before kickoff through the end of the standard post-game access period for media interviews."

TMZ has live video from outside the LOdashian wedding: Click here

In an attempt to give Sasha Vujacic a fresh start at training camp, Coach Phil Jackson said today he asked the backup guard to cut his flowing locks. Vujacic complied. Said Jackson: "Last year, Sasha got injured on the first day of training camp and it literally limited him for three weeks. So he got off to a bad start and never recovered. So we've asked him to cut his hair and he did. He's going to have a new look. I think it's a total fresh start. I think Sasha played with his hair more than he played on the court (last season)."

Phil Jackson said today that the Lakers' No. 1 priorities for training camp are simple. "We want to try and make this transition for Ron Artest seamless, get our players playing at a level that they can approximate the chemistry they've had on the court in past years and get some of the players in condition, like Lamar (Odom), who's been busy all summer."

That was in reference to Odom's upcoming wedding.

In a slightly more serious tone, Jackson admitted he is concerned about distractions derailing the Lakers' chase for a second straight NBA title. He said the Lakers would attempt to curb the use of Twitter, Facebook and other social networking sites by the players.

"It's going to be something we have to talk about, without a doubt," he said. "I don't expect them to leave it behind. There's a tendency for those things to continue or follow us, but they're going to have to get acclimated. There's a certain amount of privacy we're going to have to demand from that, so that our business doesn't become street business."

Jackson said he has not spoken to team owner Jerry Buss about a new contract. Jackson, who turned 64 earlier this month, is signed through the end of this season.

"I have not, I have not talked to Jerry about it (coaching beyond 2009-10)," he said. "You know, my concern obviously when I came back during the summer to shoot that (cellphone) commercial, it was very serious that Kurt (Rambis) was going to be chosen (to coach Minnesota) and to discuss with them (Buss) how we should approach that.

"And they felt it was an impossible situation to try to interrupt that process that was ongoing with Kurt leaving and becoming the coach of the Minnesota team and myself having a year left on that contract. So, we just had to let the business take its own course. When I suggested that it set up a lame-duck situation, they said they hoped the duck wasn't lame. We'll see how the season goes, right?"

Phil Jackson will speak with reporters this afternoon in his annual pre-training camp session. Presumably he'll have plenty to say about turning 64 earlier this month and about returning to the Lakers in an attempt to add to his NBA record of 10 championships. He might even have an opinion or two or three on the team's signing of Ron Artest and Lamar Odom's wedding plans. Check back later for further details. Should be some good stuff.

With 55 percent of the vote, Lakers guard Kobe Bryant edged out San Antonio's Tim Duncan in an informal Sporting News poll.

Of course that could have a lot to do with Bryant's recent success, the popularity of the team he plays for, etc., but it's still a nice honor.

The article, written by the excellent Sean Deveney, has a really interesting quote from Shaquille O'Neal on Bryant.

``The thing about Kobe is that, over the course of my career, I have never played with anyone who was as fierce as he is,'' O'Neal said. ``By fierce I mean just having that extra killer instinct that you know when the game is on the line he is not going to shy away from the big shot, he is not going to make excuses. If we would go into the fourth quarter, playoffs or just some game in the season and we were within a little bit of the other team, Kobe was not going to shy away from the challenge of getting the win. He was going to take the shots."

Really good story out of Houston this morning from my colleague Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.

Jon catches up with former Laker Trevor Ariza and gets some interesting perspective on the how and why behind Ariza's rocky free-agent negotiations.

Ariza admitted to being ``hurt'' by the Lakers initial stance with him -- saying they'd match any offers at the midlevel exception, but would not offer more than that -- but now seems to feel that moving to Houston will be a great opportunity for him to develop as a player.

``"Every player wants to grow. Every player has goals,'' Ariza told the Chronicle. ``Every player wants to be the best player he can be. In L.A., they have so many great, great players. Kobe is the best player in the NBA, arguably ever. Pau Gasol. Lamar Odom. Andrew Bynum is coming into his own.

``I think I would have been stuck into one role there. Here, everybody said, 'We want you to work on your game. You have to do more. We believe you have the skill and the talent to do it. Come do it.' "

As for his contract negotiations with the Lakers, Ariza said, ``I'm not a greedy person by any means. Fair is fair. I helped your team win. I'm not asking for the bank. I'm not asking for the house and the farm. I need something fair. At first, I felt hurt. It's my home. I was a little upset. But you get over it. I have great memories there. I had my first real opportunity to play there, won a championship. It was a great experience. ... But you know, things happen."

About the only significant competition at training camp will be in the backcourt, where point guards Derek Fisher, Shannon Brown and Jordan Farmar will battle for playing time. It's assumed that Fisher will retain the starter's role, with Brown and Farmar providing backup help. Brown made significant progress after the Lakers acquired him from Charlotte last February. Additional steps must be taken before Brown moves into the No. 2 spot on the depth chart, however. Farmar has greater knowledge of the triangle offense, but a knee injury last December blunted his progess and opened the door for Brown's advancement later in the season. This is a duel that bears monitoring from Day 1 at training camp.

Not to throw a wet blanket over the Lakers' chances at a second straight NBA title, particularly when they haven't fired a shot in anger yet. But what's their motivation for winning in 2009-10? Last season, they made it clear they were out to avenge their humiliating loss to the Boston Celtics in the Finals in 2008. It carried them through good times and bad, and then they took out their remaining frustrations on the Orlando Magic last June. Now another championship next spring would be nice, but will the Lakers have the same fire as last season? Will they rise above the crowd to claim another title? No team has won repeat titles since the Lakers won three straight at the start of the decade, so the odds are stacked against them as they count down the days to the start of camp.

Just checked in with the excellent Mark Ziegler of the San Diego Union Tribune, who was in attendance yesterday when Ron Artest made a rather splashy appearance in front of the 619 media to promote the Lakers exhibition game down south.

As you can tell from the hilarious stories that came out of the press conference Artest had quite a lot to say.

But I'd heard from someone else who was there that Artest also had a lot to say about Lamar Odom's pending nuptials to Khloe Kardashian --which I wrote a column about today -- but that the comments somehow didn't get picked up by too many people.

I called Mark to check about it and he graciously filled me in. Anyway, here you go, from Ron's mouth, through Mark's tape recorder, to your computer screens:

ARTEST: "It's great to be a Laker and reunite with Lamar Odom. I've known Lamar Odom since I was 8 or 9 years old. We played against each other from ages 8 or 9 up until ages 11 or 12, then played with each other from ages 11 or 12 all the way up to age 17. We're both from Queens. His birthday is on the 7th of November and mine is on the 13th -- same age. To reunite is great.

``Lamar is marrying Khloe. Congratulations. I love him. I'll be at the wedding. I can't wait.

``I needed him there. I felt really confident in my game, and then we've got Kobe. That makes you feel even more confident. Over the last couple years, I've been the main guy on my teams. I feel I can win. When you put Kobe in that situation on your team, you know you can win. But if Lamar's not there, you've got to find a way to win. With Lamar coming back, it just boosts that confidence even more.

``With Lamar there, it gives us a better chance, especially with Rasheed Wallace over there at Boston. Rasheed is going to extend the defense, and Lamar is 6-11 and can go out there and play a little defense, and he's a great rebounder and a great slasher.

``I tried to do all I could to get him to come back to L.A. But the main thing is, I wanted him to be happy, just being his friend. If he would not have come back to LA, you know, I would have been disappointed but I would support him. I'm more than happy to have him playing on this team."

Another in a series of issues facing the Lakers going into training camp:

Ron Artest wasn't all together wrong when he said Monday that it will be his fault if the Lakers don't repeat as NBA champions next June. A good many sets of eyeballs will be on him this season. His signing, after Trevor Ariza bolted to the Houston Rockets as a free agent, could be viewed as a high risk, high reward type of deal. The Lakers might coast to a second consecutive title with Artest supplying a veteran presense in 2009-10.Then again, they might implode just as easily with Artest hitting the switch that ignites disaster.

Pau Gasol led Spain to the Eurobasket championship Sunday in Poland, scoring 18 points and taking 11 rebounds in a rout of Serbia. He led Spain to its first victory after six defeats in the tournament final, including a one-point loss to Russia two years ago in Spain. Now he has a little more than a week to rest and recover in time for the start of the Lakers' training camp. Media day is Sept. 29 and the first workout is the next day.

There's a good chance the Lakers will give their starting power forward a light workload for the first few weeks since he had a short rest followed by training camp with Spain. There's also the issue of the damaged finger Gasol suffered while working out with his countrymen before the tournament began. Lakers trainer Gary Vitti traveled to Spain to check on Gasol, and pronounced him fit to play in Eurobasket.

The NBA announced this afternoon that it will begin its referee training camp with replacements, which means there is a very good chance the Lakers' first exhibition game against the Golden State Warriors on Oct. 7 at the Honda Center in Anaheim will be staffed by fill-ins. It's certainly possible the regular season could start with replacement referees. The referees' union declined the league's final contract offer Thursday, setting the stage for today's announcement. The referees' contract with the league ran out Sept. 1. The Lakers open their training camp with media day Sept. 29. They start the regular season Oct. 27.

OK, I find this to be very hard to believe, and the first calls I've made on this are coming back with scoffs and ``I don't know anything about this'' reactions, but I felt like I should put it out there since it's coming from a source that is above tabloid status...

According to E! Online, Lakers forward Lamar Odom and his girlfriend Khloe Kardashian are planning to get married.

Yikes, that was fast.

Here's some of the article:

A source close to the couple tells E! that Odom, a forward for the L.A. Lakers, and Khloé recently have been "talking about rings." Members of the Kardashian family are neither confirming nor denying the wedding plans or a date. A rep for both stars have declined to comment.

Chinemelu Elonu, the Lakers' second-round draft pick, has signed a two-year deal to play for the Spanish club team Zaragoza. Elonu, a forward/center from Texas A&M, has an opt-out clause that will allow him to leave Europe and sign with the Lakers after the 2009-10 season.

"Just being drafted by them is exciting," Elonu said while playing for the Lakers' summer league team in Las Vegas in July. "Oh man, I was with my family and friends watching the draft on TV. I heard the dude call my name and I was numb. I was very overwhelmed. There's nothing better than to get drafted by the world champions."

There wasn't much chance that Elonu would earn a roster spot with the Lakers, which prompted his move to Spain. He looked raw and out of place while playing in a summer league game against the Clippers and Blake Griffin in July. Playing in Europe will give him an opportunity to develop his game, however.