Are the Lakers Better Off Without #24?

There is no doubt that Kobe Bryant still can play the game very well even if he is 36 years old. He is averaging 24.6 points per game, 4.9 assists, and 5.1 rebounds in 35 minutes a night. Those are some incredible numbers given his age and recent injury history. So what is the problem? Well Kobe is shooting 37% from the field and he is averaging 22 shots a game. That sure does not bode well for team basketball.

Over the last three games Kobe has not played due to, as he put it, “old age”. He has been feeling soreness in his Achilles, ankles, and knees. Over those three games the Lakers have gone 1-2, but all three were against very good playoff bound teams. The Lakers only win over that span was against the NBA’s best record team, The Golden State Warriors. The Lakers won pretty handily, as they shot 52% from the field as a team and had seven players score in double figures. Team Basketball are two words you do not hear very often when watching the Lakers, but that is the reason the Lakers won the game as they played as a team both offensively and defensively.

The Lakers next game without Kobe was against the Bulls. Even though the Lakers did not shoot the ball very well, they were still only down by 6 points going into the fourth quarter. They collapsed in the fourth quarter and lost by 20 points, but they still shared the ball and had five players in double figures even with their shooting woes. Their other loss was against the Dallas Mavericks, who look scary good with their new acquisition of Rajon Rondo. The Lakers shot an awful 36% from the field, but still managed to only lose by four points to a team that possesses the ninth best record in the league. Again the Lakers shared the basketball and had six players score in double figures.

Now some might say the Lakers just got hot against a tired Warriors team, but there is a lot more to it. The Lakers showed that they can come together as a unit and have everyone pitch in for a team win, both on the offensive end and defensive end. Although this was just a glimpse of what the Lakers can become, there are some changes that need to take place. The first change that needs to occur is with Kobe Bryant’s minutes. A good example is to look at Tim Duncan and how his production has been consistent through his aging. A big reason for this is the amount of minutes he plays and the way he takes care of his body. Kobe has no problem taking care of his body, but Byron Scott really needs to manage Kobe’s minutes better. Kobe is 14^th in the league in minutes played per game and only one of those players is over the age of 29, Carmelo Anthony, who is 30 years old. Limiting Kobe’s minutes is going to lessen the risk of injury, but it is also going to lead to better team basketball for the Lakers.

If Byron Scott can start limiting Kobe’s minutes to around 30 minutes a game there is going to be a lot of progress for the Los Angeles Lakers Basketball Team. Not only will Kobe be taking less shots, he will not be as tired on the defensive end. The Lakers are dead last in Defensive Efficiency and a lot of that has to do with Kobe Bryant. Plain and simple, you are asking a lot for a 36 year old Kobe Bryant to be able to guard the up and coming elite shooting guards. Kobe hurts the Lakers a ton on defense and limiting Kobe’s minutes by just five minutes per game is going to allow for him to have more energy while he is playing, and also allow for his substitute to play better defense from the shooting guard position.

Kobe Bryant still holds an incredible amount of value to the Lakers, and it is not just off the court with jersey sales. He is still a threat in this league, but he needs to be able to trust his teammates every game. He has shown that he can trust them during some games, but he needs to commit to his teammates, limit his shot selection, and get his teammates involved so that the Los Angeles Lakers can start to get some rhythm and grow as a basketball team.

As a Laker fan, it is hard to say that Kobe is hurting the Lakers chances at winning while he is on the court. Even though the numbers he is averaging at his age are off the charts, he is hurting the team both offensively and defensively. Byron Scott needs to limit Kobe’s minutes and Kobe needs to play more team basketball as his 22 shots per game have only led to 21 losses through 30 games. It is time for a change and hopefully Kobe has realized that while witnessing the last three games. Although his expensive suits do look nice, we would rather see Kobe in purple and gold, playing. Once Kobe begins playing a few less minutes and starts getting his teammates trust on his side, The Los Angeles Lakers are going to look like a different team. Contender? Absolutely not, but positive growth is what Laker fans are looking for in this dark time of Laker history.

Historic Draft Class or Bust?

The 2014 NBA draft class was supposed to be one of the ages. Some said it was supposed to be the best draft class of all time, beating out the 2003 NBA Draft class with high value names such as Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony, Dywane Wade, and Chris Bosh. Incredibly, however, just 15 games into the season there is already talk about how this draft class is a bust. These claims are absolutely ridiculous and here is why.

First, the word “potential” is a very important word for this draft class. By definition, potential is “having or showing the capacity to become or develop into something in the future”. In this case we are talking about these rookies developing into stars. Now this does not happen overnight and we have seen players who have high potential become studs, but we have also seen these players find themselves out of the NBA after a couple of years. Good examples of players becoming stars are guys like Russell Westbrook or Kevin Durant. Examples of players not living up to their potential are Hasheem Thabeet and Kwame Brown. Potential is all about the future and when over half of the first ten picks in the draft are teenagers, potential is what these NBA GM’s are looking at.

The 2014 NBA draft had a lot of hype, but the first five picks are what everyone is making noise about. Andrew Wiggins, 19, picked 1^st overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers, was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Kevin Love. The 6’8” 200 pound Small Forward out of Kansas is thought to be the next Lebron James. He has shown off his athleticism and glimpses of offensive production, but he is still shooting a very low percentage from the field and not rebounding well. He did show the world what he is capable of with a 29 point, 5 rebound, and 4 steal performance against the Sacramento Kings, but he needs to put on some muscle and continue to grow all aspects of his game before he can become a dominant force in this league.

Jabari Parker, 19, picked 2^nd overall by the Milwaukee Bucks, is a 6’8” 240 pound Small Forward out of Duke. Parker is supposed to be the safest pick in the draft and will be able to contribute right away with his polished skills and NBA body. Jabari is currently not putting up numbers that people projected that he would, but he is still averaging an efficient 11.9 points per game along with 6.1 rebounds in 29 minutes of play.

Joel Embiid, 20, was picked 3^rd overall by the Philadelphia 76ers and he is touted to be the next dominant big man in the NBA. The 7’0” 250 pound Center out of Kansas is currently nursing a foot injury, but when healthy he has advanced post moves, can shoot the basketball, and is a dominant presence in the paint on defense. Basketball is fairly new to Embiid as he started playing when he was 15 years old. He has made an immense amount of progress in the last five years and still has an abundance amount of potential still to fulfill.

Aaron Gordon, 19, was selected 4^th overall by the Orlando Magic. The 6’9” 240 pound Small Forward out of Arizona is an athletic specimen, but he is also very raw on the offensive end. His defense is already above average, but he will have to continue to improve his jump shot along with some post moves in order to be a force in the NBA.

Dante Exum, 19, was selected 5^th overall by the Utah Jazz. The 6’6” 190 pound point guard out Australia has shown glimpses of his untapped potential early in the year, but his shooting has been very poor to start the year. He is shooting 37% from the field to go along with 62% from the free throw line. His athleticism and passing ability is what excites the Jazz’s front office, but he needs to work on his jump shot if he wants to reach his full potential and separate himself from other point guards in the league.

Marcus Smart, 20, was selected 6^th overall by the Boston Celtics. The world was shocked when the 6’4” 220 pound point guard out of Oklahoma State did not enter the 2013 NBA Draft after his freshman year. He was a lock to go in the top 3, but instead he decided to play out his sophomore year and it hurt his draft stock. Smart is very explosive and he is very good at attacking the basket, but he needs to work on his shooting. Smart is currently out with an ankle injury, but in his first 5 games he shot 30% from the field and a poor 24% from the three-point line. The Celtics are going to need to see more improvement out of him before they can trade Rondo and give the reigns to Smart.

Julius Randle, 19, was selected 7^th overall by the Los Angeles Lakers. The 6’9” 250 pound power forward out of Kentucky suffered a broken leg during the first game of the season. This was a devastating injury for Laker fans as this was supposed to be a year for a lot of growth on a very poor Laker team. Randle was supposed to make an immediate impact and was already making noise about potentially winning Rookie of the Year honors. Randle has a long ways to go still as he needs to continue to improve his jump shot and his right hand. We will see if he can overcome this injury, but if he can watch out as he has the body, talent, and mindset to dominate in this league.

Nick Stauskas, 21, was selected 8^th overall by the Sacramento Kings. The 6’6” 205 pound shooting guard out of Michigan has not had a good start to the year. Many Kings fans were puzzled by this selection as they just selected shooting guard, Ben McLemore, with their first round pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. Stauskas’ value comes from his ability to score and he has not been doing a great job of that. He is shooting 32% from the field and 24% from the three-point line. Although he has lost minutes early in the year, he still possesses the skills to make a difference in the NBA as a shooter. Now he just needs to mature physically and find his shooting stroke!

Noah Vonleh, 19, was selected 9^th overall by the Charlotte Hornets. The 6’10” 240 pound power forward out of Indiana is a very raw player. Vonleh is a very long and athletic power forward who could be a potential All-Star in the NBA. He had an offseason injury that kept him out of training camp and has only received a total of 25 minutes this season. Vonleh is a beast on the boards and he also has a nice jumper as he shot 16-33 from 3-point range last year at Indiana. He will need to continue to get stronger and work on his post moves in order to be the star that GM’s are projected him to be.

Elfrid Payton, 20, was selected 10^th overall by the Philadelphia 76ers and then traded to the Magic on draft day for Dario Saric and future picks. The 6’4” 185 pound point guard out of Louisiana-Lafayette is a pass-first point guard who showed us a lot in his junior year of college when he averaged 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists. Although these numbers haven’t translated too well to the NBA, Payton has still showed us that he can contribute as he is averaging 6.6 points a game to go along with 4.9 assists and 3.4 rebounds. In order for Payton to earn starter minutes and become a solid NBA player, Payton is going to need to improve his jump shot. He is currently shooting 39% from the field and only 49% from the free throw line. He also turns the ball over quite a bit, but once he can develop a jumper and learn to be a little more disciplined, don’t be surprised if Payton is a top point guard in the league one day.

The majority of these rookies are not getting very much playing time. Not single rookie in the top ten is averaging over 30 minutes a game and they are still in the process of learning. Jabari Parker, the number 2 pick in the draft, is averaging 11.9 points along with 6.1 rebounds a game in 29 minutes. Now compare that to Anthony Davis’ rookie season where he put up 13.5 points and 8.2 rebounds a game in 29 minutes. Those numbers are very similar and Anthony Davis is now a top five player in the NBA! Now some might say three rebounds is a big difference but Parker is playing SF compared to Anthony Davis who spends a majority of his time in the paint. It is going to take these players a couple of years to mature physically and get adjusted to NBA basketball.

Why hasn’t there been at least one rookie who has shine? Well, again you are looking at a lot of young bodies and Wiggins and Parker have not been bad to start the year. Andrew Wiggins, who is supposed to be the next Lebron James, is coming into the league at 6’8” 200 pounds. Going up against a 6’8” 250 pound Lebron James is not a fair comparison at this point in his career. So now instead of looking at the first 15 games, show some patience and allow these players to really develop.

Keep in mind that Julius Randle and Joel Embiid, two of the top seven picks in the draft, have season ending injuries. Julius Randle was projected to go in the top three before his freshman year in college, and Embiid was supposed to go 1^st overall before he suffered a foot injury just before the draft. Both of these guys are on rebuilding teams and would have seen a lot of playing time. Either one of these guys could have been the “breakout” rookie to begin the year, especially with Julius Randle having the most NBA ready body out of all of the players selected in the first ten picks of the draft. These players are a big chunk of the 2014 draft class and labeling this draft class as a bust without even seeing these two play is unfair.

The first ten picks of the draft consist of six 19 year olds, three 20 years olds, and one 21 year old. I cannot stress this enough as a majority of these players were picked based off of potential. Two years ago half of these guys were graduating from high school! Yes, a lot of the 2014 draft class doesn’t appear quite ready for “prime time”, but lets give them a chance. Time will tell if these players turn their potential into star talent.