In what seems like the never ending contract negotiation process between the Los Angeles Lakers and their star forward Lamar Odom another interesting piece was brought into light today, even though it is something most of Lakers Nation already knew: the only team that wants Odom on the Lakers is, surprise, the Lakers. While other teams such as Miami, Dallas, and even Portland are considering the possibility of adding Odom, it has always been about Odom and the Lakers.
Considering the Lakers are coming off a championship victory right this summer and have, in many people's minds, upgraded from Trevor Ariza to Ron Artest, they would be the hands on favorite to win the title again in 2010, assuming they bring back Odom. Odom has been the wild card throughout the past two seasons with the Lakers, as his performance has dictated the success of the Lakers as a unit. This means trouble for the rest of the league if the Lakers were to bring back Odom while adding Artest and maintaining the rest of their core group of players. As Marc Stein of ESPN brashly declared today;
The prospect of Lamar Odom's leaving the Los Angeles Lakers would be a free-agent triumph for 29 teams in the NBA and anyone else fretting about the league's overall competitive health.
Stein's point is dead on, if the Lakers do not manage to retain Odom their chances are repeating are sinking more than the ratings for Letterman's Late Show. While the Lakers would still be a top tier team without Odom, don't forget guys with names like Bryant, Gasol, and Artest, it seems very unlikely they would be able to overtake newly strengthened teams like Cleveland and Boston.
So while the basketball world waits and wonders what the eventual outcome will be in the continuing Hollywood drama, the members of Lakers Nation have just a little more to sweat about.
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I’m sure at some point and time, the Lakers will resign Lamar Odom. The NBA needs a story like this to keep fans on the edge of their seat. The fact is, Lamar is going to want to play for another championship and he already understands where that place is. Lets not forget the bond Lamar has with close friend Ron Artest and teammate Kobe Bryant.
Lamar is definitely a vital piece to the Lakers success and with him, the Lakers definitely look to be the favorites to win the title in 2010. So fork out the money Mr. Jerry Buss, the fans appreciate Lamar’s presence in a Lakers uniform.
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I don’t know if the Lakers are actually “trading up.” Trevor Ariza is an outstanding player who has really proved himself in this last season. Through hustle and his natural ability to play the game, I believe he was an incredible asset and contributor to this past years championship.
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Gary Reply:
July 25th, 2009 at 6:13 pm
I think Trevor brings a lot more of those intangibles than Artest does, but if you look just at the numbers, Artest is a better player. He will be missed, but he’s the one that chose to the leave the Lakers, not the other way around.
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Daniel Reply:
July 25th, 2009 at 7:23 pm
Couldn’t agree more with Gary on this one. While it is true that Ariza may represent the younger, sexier pick he is not nearly as proven as Artest. Artest is a better offensive player than Ariza but his true value will be on defense when he is able to put a body on the opponent’s best player. This improves the Lakers offensively as well because that means Kobe is spending less energy on defense and more energy doing what he does best, putting the ball in the hoop.
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O.K people let’s get this straight, not only is Odom a key reason why the L.A Nation is enjoying their 9th championship victory, but he is also a key reason why we are considered to be the clear cut favorites in the 2009-2010 NBA season. Yes you can throw out all sorts of stats out there like Lamar only averaged 12 ppg., he is inconsistent and spaces out at times but in reality Lamar is so dynamic that he does the things that don’t really show up in the stat book. He can play just about every position and most importantly lead that second unit. No question that we are going to feel the void left if he departs but if he does, life goes on. We could go crazy trying to rationalize why Trevor, a home grown town favorite chose to go to Houston and why Lamar a role player wants to go to a place where he will be forced to produce a lot more points and in a year if the team does not go far in the playoffs will be left alone to be the main guy. Instead let’s analyze what we have if Odom leaves (Fisher, Kobe, Ron, Paul, and Bynum) solid line up what’s the problem? If Lamar decides to take the longer contract instead of solidifying his legacy as not only a Laker but also an NBA player so be it. The Lakers have until February to see how the team’s chemistry is and what positions need to be amped. Let’s enjoy our team’s accomplishments and be positive because even without Odom Vegas got us as favorites and any true player knows the house always wins.
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