If Kobe/Shaq can't win a championship, I don't think any other combination can really get the Lakers to where they want to be, they need more depth, it killed them last year as well.. People just isolate and crowd Kobe, Foul Shaq, and there's nobody else to step up.. Even when Kobe and Shaq were the only 2 players on the Lakers with double figures during the beginning of the Detroit series, there was no help.

I'll admit, Odom is pretty good, but the aging Gary Payton is not what he used to be, triangle or no triangle..

Kobe could have made history and signed with the lowely Clippers to resurge them from the basement of the western conference.. While dismantiling the Lakers completely at the same time.. Instead, he chose the easier route. I don't blame him though.

 

They do have more depth. With Shaq and Kobe they had practically had no depth. Now they have a pretty deep front court, especially if Malone re-signs.

Also, I wouldn't write off Payton so quickly. He obviously didn't fit well with the triangle, but the previous year on the Bucks he still played pretty well. He's not going to be all-star calibur anymore, but he's still going to be one of the better point guards in the league.

Butler also has a ton of potential. Hopefully him and George will get a little internal competition going to see which one will use the most of their potential.

 

I think the lakers are going to wither away into a team of mediocraty for the next few years. They had a great team, and now it's broken apart

 

Who will have a better career? Kobe or Magic?

 

Magic.

The era was much different back then. Magic helped to make pro basketball what it is today. Before him hardly anybody watched. He changed not only the game itself, but how people view it.

 

^ i agree. but players like jordan and kobe had brought nba basketball to a whole new level.

 

Jordan brought it into another level. Kobe's trying to bring it back to that level.

edit: Shaq said it himself, "He can be the greatest....greater than Jordan...only if he knew how to make everyone better." All eyes will be on Kobe.

 

true, but the comment seems like a cheap shot by shaq. shaq and phil jackson has more or less kept kobe from being his best all these years. it's really hard for kobe to really shine when the lakers' offense strategy was always drawn around shaq.

 

With the Lakers trying to be "athletic", adding Vlade seems to be counterproductive...

I'm definately going to try to get Laker/Heat tix this year!! Shaq is going to singlehandedly kill the Lakers! When he's really mad watch out!

 

I bet the Detroit fans would argue that statement. Ben Wallace is a good center, and very athletic!!