Laker Talk.

PJ, were you even watching the finals? Kobe doesn't demand a double? The Lakers lost because the Pistons let Shaq have his and double/triple teamed Kobe Bryant. If Kobe is so replaceable and not so special why did the Pistons focus their defensive gameplan on stopping Kobe's penetration? Because they knew that was the main key to the Lakers success! Without Kobe getting in the lane and getting open shots for his teammates they could afford to let Shaq have his and count on him getting tired down the stretch. Well it worked, and the Pistons are the champions instead of L.A.

As for that scenario, you'd have to give me the names of the players. And nobody gets to the finals with so-so big men. Even the Bulls had good big men who could rebound and knew their roles. That's all Kobe needs, besides some talent in the backcourt.

*sigh* Detroit's defense made them not win, not just shutting down Kobe, they didnt only shut down Kobe, they shut down whole of LA. *sigh* You act as if Kobe was the difference or could have been, no...LA was not going to win even if Kobe was on fire scoring 45 points or whatever. If you disagree...nevermind.

Say Kobe got his 45 points (that's being generous) and Shaq got his 30, how much does that equal? 75 points? Otay, add another measly 10 from the rest of the Lakers, you've got yourself 85 points, Detroit still managed to outscore them because of LA's pathetic defense. No hustle no nothing. They let it all go. Everyone was thinking about the next game before the first one actually was over.

Seriously, they didn't just shut down Kobe, they shut down whole of LA. Even if they didnt double Kobe, you think they would've won then? Please, spare me. Oh, and please don't say if they didnt double Kobe he would make it easier for his team-mates, don't make me laugh. I've had enough laughing I can handle.

Don't you see the difference? Double Shaq, they still manage to win, he manages to get the ball to the right people.

Double Kobe and yeah, that's what'll happen. Don't great players tear up the opposing teams defense? If Bryant is as great as Bryant is said to be...why didnt he tear up Detroit? If Bryant is compared to Michael Jordan so often, (sit) why can't he be like Mike? Untill Kobe can take over a game the way MJ could, I would appreciate people like Sit to stop the comparisons.

Tch, as I said, Shaq demands the double much more then Kobe does, thus making him more valuable in my eyes. When Kobe can score 30 points, grab 12-15 boards and get 3-5 assists on a consistant basis, then and then only will I say Kobe is as great as you all make him out to be. Oh wait, Kobe cant grab 15 boards, Shaq can because he's got the height, woops that would make Shaq more valuable.

Anyways folks, it'll all be settled in a matter of weeks. Till then I shall not post about Kobe and/or Shaquille O'Neal.

Not untill the season has commenced and Kobe tears it up. If he doesn't, expect to hear from me, if he does...I will eat my words and bow down to all Kobe lovers.

Here are three scenarios whereby O'Neal could be dealt. This is in no way to suggest that any such deal is even on the backest of back burners. But the salaries would match and, in some ways, the deals make a smidgen of sense.

- O'Neal to Portland for Theo Ratliff and Shareef Abdur-Rahim. This might seem a bit lopsided, but Abdur-Rahim has only one year left on his contract. Ratliff would be the new center.

- O'Neal to Dallas for Dirk Nowitzki and Antoine Walker. Where is Dallas going if it doesn't do something? The Lakers might insist on someone other than Walker (Antawn Jamison, for instance). But Walker, like Abdur-Rahim, has only a year remaining.

- O'Neal to Memphis for Pau Gasol, Mike Miller, Stromile Swift, Bo Outlaw, and Lorenzen Wright. This might make the most sense. O'Neal would be reunited with Jerry West. Sure, the Grizzlies would be surrendering a lot. But they'd also retain the likes of Bonzi Wells, Jason Williams, Shane Battier, and James Posey to play along with Shaq.

There undoubtedly are other possibilities. Orlando could offer a package, but unless Tracy McGrady is in it, why would the Lakers bite? And why would Shaq want to go to Orlando with no McGrady?

Something is going to give this summer. It will make for fascinating watching in a city known for its people-watching.

Boston.com

the only trade I really like is the Memphis one, with Portland you will have a great defensive player in the middle and a very good rebounder, Im not to fund of Abdur Rahim and is a weak Forward Imo, he will get dominated by the West forwards, but his contract ends after the upcoming season so the Lakers will have a better shot at a bigger Free Agent player in 2005.

Dallas brings in good offensive players, but bad defensive players. both Kobe and GP (assuming they will remain Lakers) are players who attack the rim and draw the attention of the defenders, leave Walker and Nowitzki in the weakside and they are in a very good position to knock down the open shots, however...both players are not very good at the defensive side, but like Abdur Rahim, Walker will be a FA aswell.

I like the Grizzlies one the most, you will get young, talented and athletic players to run more in the offense, Gasol is a good low post player and has the height atvantage over most forwards in the leauge, also very young and sees to improve each year, Mike Miller could provide the Lakers with some shooting touch, let Kobe and GP create of the dribble and find the open players, Miller can make the open shots. Swift is a good athletic player who is willing to show hustle in the boards when needed, the Lakers definetly need a forward like that.

Same here, I like the Memphis one most. I doubt it will happen though. West is too smart to pull a stunt like that. From what we've seen in the past few years, he's after new/undiscovered talent. He likes making guys superstars. I don't think he'll want an aging Shaq on his team, no matter how good of a relationship they have.

The Dallas one just stinks. I hate Walker.

Orlando, still everyone is after Orlando, the writer pretty much summed it up, Shaq going to Orl, LA expects McGrady, if no McGrady, why would Shaq go to Orlando?

The Atlanta one isn't too bad considering they are trying to keep Bryant. With Ratliff they have a defender inside + a rebounder. In Abdur-Rahim, although he's weak, will manage to get something like 20 orso points and a rebounds. Kobe could score his usual 30 something and LA would be winning, or so I think.

The Atlanta one

You mean Portland

Lol, sorry I was thinking Abdur Rahim, still hasn't sunk in he's in Portland.

On the Dallas possibilities:

Mavs interested, but what would it take to land Shaq?

Mark Cuban has never been shy about throwing his money into a high-stakes race for talent, and it's no different now, as the gate opens in the Shaquille O'Neal derby.

Cuban and the Mavericks, along with every other owner and team in the NBA, have an interest in making a run at O'Neal. The $27 million question is what package of players can Dallas throw at the Los Angeles Lakers to beat out so many other suitors who figure to offer attractive players in hopes of getting the most dominant center in the game.

The Mavericks probably are going to have to be willing to part with Dirk Nowitzki. Such is the price for O'Neal, who earns $26.696 million this year.

But the good news is that the Mavericks are one of the few teams in the league who can offer two All-Stars and still have a better team for next season with O'Neal.

Teams wanting to trade for O'Neal will have to put together a package of players that ends up within 15 percent of O'Neal's annual salary, which goes up to over $30 million July 1.

SCENARIO 1: Antawn Jamison, Antoine Walker and Josh Howard for O'Neal
This would be the most palatable option for the Mavericks because it would allow them to keep the Big Three and add O'Neal. The three Mavericks' salaries add up to $25.6 million, which is within the required 15 percent of O'Neal's salary.

SCENARIO 2: Dirk Nowitzki, Walker and Howard for O'Neal
The numbers add up the same as the Walker/Jamison/ Howard scenario. Clearly, the Mavericks would rather not give up Nowitzki. Pairing him with O'Neal would be a dream setup. But the Lakers may demand Dirk.


SCENARIO 3: Nowitzki, Steve Nash, Walker and Howard for O'Neal and Gary Payton
Payton's salary takes the Lakers' outlay to $32 million. Nowitzki, Walker and Howard add up to $25.6 million, which means Nash would have to be re-signed at a salary starting at under $10 million for the first season.


SCENARIO 4: Nowitzki, Walker and Tariq Abdul-Wahad for O'Neal
The Mavericks would relieve themselves of Abdul-Wahad's salary for the next three seasons. Doubtful that the Lakers would bite on something like this.


SCENARIO 5: Michael Finley, Nowitzki and Eduardo Najera or Shawn Bradley for O'Neal
Highly unlikely the Lakers would want to take on Finley's remaining contract, which is $66 million for the next four seasons.

Source.

LA would be nuts to trade Shaq to Dallas. Any Western team for that matter.

Posting up: Dallas, NY may be in best position to land Shaq

Mavericks fans have spent years fantasizing what life would be like with a center that could stand up to Shaquille O'Neal.

It's too early to say where O'Neal will go or if he'll remain in Los Angeles once the testosterone settles. But his demands for a trade have sent teams around the league scrambling to achieve the unthinkable.

Precious few franchises have the players or owner it takes to get a deal of this magnitude done. Dallas happens to be one of them.

All eyes will be on Mark Cuban – which is how he likes it – in the coming days.

"There isn't anyone in the league that is as good at doing big deals as Mark," said Donnie Nelson, the Mavericks president of basketball operations.

No one doubts that Cuban will move heaven and earth in an attempt to bring O'Neal to Dallas. But will he move heaven and Dirk?

The Mavericks will enter this process hoping to keep Dirk Nowitzki. LA's resolve to receive a young star in return and the packages offered by other teams will determine if that's feasible.

And what do other teams have to offer?

It's only natural that the Lakers would want to send O'Neal as far away as possible. He still owns a home in Orlando and likes the area. The Magic has a premium chip to play in Tracy McGrady.

AP
Acquiring center Shaquille O'Neal would give Dallas the defensive presence and low-post scoring it has lacked. But this deal doesn't work on either end. McGrady isn't a good fit with Kobe Bryant, and Orlando doesn't have any players, other than the fragile Grant Hill, to throw into the deal to make it work financially. Involving a third team doesn't really help because the Magic has so little to give.

Indiana has a lot to give. If Jermaine O'Neal is the centerpiece, the Pacers would still have to include two other quality players in the deal to get the salaries to match. If the Pacers kept O'Neal and included Ron Artest, it would take four players.

A deep team suddenly becomes a thin one with an average backcourt. That's not a blueprint for success. You can argue McGrady actually makes more sense for the Pacers.

New York is creative and has enough big contracts to make a serious run. The Knicks will find a way to draw a third party into the deal if the Lakers don't like what they have to offer. New Jersey is a possibility, but it would cost forward Kenyon Martin.

LA's preference would be to send O'Neal to the Eastern Conference. But remember, owner Jerry Buss was once willing to trade James Worthy to Dallas. He'll take the best deal on the table.

Phoenix has always been aggressive. But if the Suns trade forwards Amare Stoudemire and Shawn Marion – and another $13 million in salaries to make the deal work – are they better off? Not really. Plus, they're a lot older.

Memphis has a lot of bodies to throw LA's way and would have to since no player on its roster makes more than $7.7 million. The three highest-paid players on the Grizzlies roster still fall short of matching O'Neal's salary closely enough to make a deal work. O'Neal and Memphis general manager Jerry West are close, but will this franchise pay the sort of money O'Neal wants in an extension? It's unlikely.

Which brings us back to Dallas. You know Cuban will pay. Dallas can move three of its top five players to acquire O'Neal and still be a better team than it was in 2003-04. Few teams, if any, can make that claim. Dallas and New York should be considered the early favorites in the O'Neal sweepstakes.

The Mavericks proved they aren't built to win in the playoffs. But the team is constructed to pull the trigger on a big trade.

They don't come any bigger than Shaquille O'Neal.

No, they certainly don't come bigger than Shaquille O'Neal. I'm scared for LA, Shaq on Dallas = me =

Shaq on knicks=me=

Shaq on knicks=me=

that would either send penny to LA or reunite penny with shaq.

how successfull would a laker team built around bryant be?

more successful then a team built around shaq?

i'm interested to hear logical explanations as to why which side does better

Around Kobe. Logical exlanation? Build a team with Shaq and role players (but no second superstar) who do you give the ball to in the final possessions? Shaq? No way! They foul him and he has to shot FTs

Remember what happens to the Lakers in the final minutes? It' always Kobe leading the show, Shaq is often far fro the action.

tim duncan sucks at free throws and they still win with there role players who look good due to Tim Duncan which Shaq will do to whatever role players he has.

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Last edited by hmm on Fri Jun 05, 2009 5:43 am, edited 1 time in total.

Any Dallas deal involving Dirk would never happen. Cuban would want to keep him!

Memphis might be able to entice LA though with a package of young players.

All you Laker fan's who are hating on Shaq.................. and siding with Kobe........... have been spoiled all these years having the most dominate player in the game roaming around the paint.

You will see how teams attack the Lakers on defense and offense when he is gone............... YOU WON"T LIKE IT!

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Last edited by hmm on Sat Jun 06, 2009 6:45 am, edited 1 time in total.

Dallas...they could be in the trade talks if they want to.
Michael Finley, Jamison, and Walker are all decent players with All-Star experience maybe 2 of them could be traded for Shaq

All you Laker fan's who are hating on Shaq.................. and siding with Kobe........... have been spoiled all these years having the most dominate player in the game roaming around the paint.

You will see how teams attack the Lakers on defense and offense when he is gone............... YOU WON"T LIKE IT!

:applaud: That's why I say, it's going to be one helluva season. I'm all hyped up to see what Kobe is all about.

Lead on Kobe.

Dallas...they could be in the trade talks if they want to.
Michael Finley, Jamison, and Walker are all decent players with All-Star experience maybe 2 of them could be traded for Shaq

lakers will definitely want dirk to be in the package. no dirk no trade!!!

As I've said, Lakers' management have dung for brains, or so it seems at the moment.

I'm guessing if Kobe agreed to whatever Dallas is proposing, even if it doesn't include Dirk, and Kobe approves the trade, Buss will try and do everything for the trade to go through.

Shaquille O'Neal is believed to want a two-year contract extension at $30 million a year.
NBCSports.com news services
Updated: 1:00 a.m. ET June 23, 2004More than 20 of the league's 30 teams have called the Los Angeles Lakers, inquiring about superstar Shaquille O'Neal, according to an Eastern Conference executive, The New York Times reported Tuesday night.

O'Neal requested the Lakers trade him Friday after the club decided not to bring back coach Phil Jackson. O'Neal is believed to be willing to approve a trade to about eight franchises, The Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday night. And while he cannot block a trade to an undesirable franchise, he could refuse a contract extension.

Although Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak recently suggested that he wants to keep O'Neal, The New York Times reported, the club is entertaining several possible trades, most notably with the Dallas Mavericks, New Jersey Nets and Los Angeles Clippers.

Kupchak talked with the Mavericks and the Clippers on Tuesday, according to The Los Angeles Times.

There a couple of reasons why the Mavericks make sense as a suitor of O'Neal. Shaq will make $27.7 million next season and Dallas has the high-salaried stars necessary to make such a deal. Furthermore, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is a big spender.

According to the Eastern Conference executive, Dallas is offering Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash for O'Neal, The New York Times reported.

The Nets would be willing to part with Kenyon Martin and Kerry Kittles, The New York Times reported.

The Nets originally thought they wouldn't pursue O'Neal because they didn't think they had a chance to land him, The New York Times reported. But the club's new ownership group is willing to spend big for O'Neal, who would turn the team into a major box-office draw and enable it to recoup some of the losses that have piled up in recent years.

The Nets are not willing to include Jason Kidd or Richard Jefferson in a trade, one club official told The New York Times, but a package featuring Martin, Kittles and Nenad Krstic, their 7-foot forward from Croatia, is not likely to bring O'Neal to the Meadowlands, The New York Times reported.

However, The New York Times reported there are a couple of factors potentially working in the Nets' favor. O'Neal was born and raised in Newark, N.J., and the Nets might be willing to give O'Neal the contract extension he wants (two years, $60 million) because his presence would be a boon when the team moves to Brooklyn, according to a member of ownership.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the Clippers tried to entice the Lakers with a package of three players, including Elton Brand, and their first-round draft pick, according to sources, but talks ended quickly. O'Neal is eager to leave the Lakers, but he won't play for the Clippers or any of the NBA's second tier.

"We want to be in an environment where we can win," Mike Parris, O'Neal's business manager, told The Los Angeles Times. "We want a team that is committed to winning."

Barring a drastic change of heart by O'Neal, Lakers owner Jerry Buss has seen the last of negotiations to extend O'Neal's contract by two or three years, The Los Angeles Times reported. While a trade would bring salaries amounting to about the $27.7 million O'Neal is due next season, it also would save Buss from paying O'Neal more than $30 million a year as O'Neal plays into his mid-30s. So, privately, the Lakers are less than distraught over O'Neal's desire to leave.

The Lakers believe that few teams will trade for O'Neal without an extension already in place, which could complicate the process.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5264686/
As talented as Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki are, both of them are not great defensive players and it would be extremely hard to beat teams like San Antonio and Minnesota this way, I rather do the trade with New Jersey but Martin and Kittles is not enough for Shaq Imo, I would concider it if they would add Jefferson to it and the Lakers might give George to them.

Richard Jefferson and Kenyon Martin for Shaq..add some salary fodder.

Jefferson would be to Kobe what Pippen was to MJ..think about it.

Richard Jefferson and Kenyon Martin for Shaq..add some salary fodder.

Jefferson would be to Kobe what Pippen was to MJ..think about it.

I think that's the best trade that has been rumored so far.
Jefferson is improving each year and his mentality would match with kobe's, imo.
Martin is a good pf and with payton staying that's a good lineup...

Btw, during the season i heard phil jackson wanted to coach the nets. Is that true? And has their coach resigned yet? That would be another reason to make the trade as O'neal would be with Jax...

The Los Angeles Lakers have taken the position that they will not trade Shaquille O'Neal to the rival Dallas Mavericks unless they receive Dirk Nowitzki as part of the exchange, team sources told ESPN.com on Tuesday.

.........

Mavericks sources, meanwhile, maintain that Nowitzki is likely off-limits, though Mavericks owner Mark Cuban isn't ruling out trading Nowitzki as an option. Even if the Mavericks could convince the Lakers to accept a package that leads with point guard Steve Nash, instead of Nowitzki, Nash would have to agree to join L.A. in a sign-and-trade because he's a free agent as of July 1.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/s ... id=1826629

I seriously don't think Dallas will give up Dirk for anyone in this league.. and I don't it'd be wise for the Lakers to send Shaq to another Western Conference team, especially a powerhouse like Dallas. Only time will tell, I guess...

I think it would be smart to make the trade if it includes a non star pointguard who can put op some solid numbers, Derek Fisher is most likely leaving for a starting job and Payton will probably return. Or they should really try to get Brent Barry if he wants to come from the bench or Troy Hudson, even Tyronn Lue.

Btw, during the season i heard phil jackson wanted to coach the nets. Is that true? And has their coach resigned yet? That would be another reason to make the trade as O'neal would be with Jax...

The Nets appear to be content with Lawrence Frank for now.