Season Highlight

 

Greenmig has a different philosophy then most of the league (with notable exception of proid) - he's all about the veterans. He regularly sells his youngsters for veterans (which are obviously cheaper). That approach usually results in solid seasons and last year was no exception. Lakers were a playoff team from the beginning of the season. They finished 4th in the surprisingly strong West, winning 56 games, which makes this the best season under Greenmig (with the lockout season close by). The success spilled over into the playoffs where they easily disposed of the Mavs in round one and upset the top western team Spurs in round two after losing three straight games.

 

Season Lowlight

 

Western conference finals were rather one-sided. Kings were the best team in the West on paper and Lakers spent all their luck in semifinals, the broom was out and Lakers finally went fishing.

 

Best Trade

 

This monstrosity: The Brooklyn Nets send Darrell Arthur to the Boston Celtics. The Brooklyn Nets send Tyson Chandler and Gerald Green to the LA Lakers. The Brooklyn Nets send Steve Nash to the Utah Jazz. The Boston Celtics send Ramon Sessions to the Brooklyn Nets. The Boston Celtics send Marco Belinelli to the LA Lakers. The Boston Celtics send Jose Calderon, Steve Novak and Chandler Parsons to the Orlando Magic. The LA Lakers send Paul Pierce and Dionte Christmas to the Brooklyn Nets. The LA Lakers send Patrick Mills to the Boston Celtics. The Orlando Magic send Mike Miller and Thaddeus Young to the Boston Celtics. The Utah Jazz send Chuck Hayes to the Brooklyn Nets. The Orlando Magic send a 1st-Rounder (Orl) to the Boston Celtics. The Brooklyn Nets trade -5 GM points.The LA Lakers receive 5 GM points.

 

Lakers got Tyson Chandler, Gerald Green and Marco Bellinelli for Pierce, Mills and Christmas. Pierce wouldn't re-sign, Mills was injured a lot and they got three solid rotation players for that. We had to wait for them to finally unleash GMoney, but it was worth it.

 

Worst Trade

 

Draft day trade: The LA Lakers send Nik Stauskas to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Oklahoma City Thunder send Noah Vonleh to the LA Lakers.

 

Lakers didn't really make a very bad trade last year, but this one is very much up in the air. Players were taken side by side in NBA. Maybe Greeny is a really good evaluator of talent and saw in Vonleh what others couldn't. Stauskas looks like at least a solid NLL player that could turn into a deadly three point specialist. Vonleh right now is just a hustle player. Neither did really impress in summer league, though Nick was better. Maybe it will pay off in the long run. If Lakers stumble this season the pick could make a lot of difference (looks unprotected).

 

Other Notable Trades

 

The Golden State Warriors send Andre Iguodala to the LA Lakers. The LA Lakers send JJ Redick, Wilson Chandler and Lavoy Allen to the Golden State. The Golden State Warriors receive 30 GM points. The LA Lakers trade -30 GM points. And Kyle Anderson for Nick Stauskas swap.

 

At the time it looked like Lakers got Iguodala and Wiggins for a bunch of solid role players. In the end it didn't look that good and might even be a mostly OK deal for both teams. Dala is the best player but he costs a lot and his impact probably isn't better then combined chandler's and Reddick.

Lot's of other trades but mostly at the end of the bench.

 

Best FA Signing

 

Lakers were a big player in free agency where they signed Lavoy Allen, Matt Barnes, Jameer Nelson, Randy Foye, Garreth Temple, Jeff Ayres, Dante Carrick, Dionte Christmas and Jason Richardson. Most of them were end of bench guys, some never played for the Lakers as they were sent off in preseason trades, most notably Foye and Allen that were more or less turned into Iguodala and a pick. Matt Barnes was the most important player. He started most games, filled theree positions, did everything his GM asked him to and generally didn't hurt the team (3931% shooting left some space for improvement). Barnes is coming back next year and will be a value player with his minimum contract if he avoids the trade machine.

 

Worst FA Signing 

 

Greeny took a calculated risk with Jason Richardson and signed him to a one year deal. If J-Rich would come back and play he'd be a nice boost at the end of the season. In the end he didn't play but didn't cost the team much. will he play next year? Greeny will have to make a tough decision about whether to keep him or let him go. His cap situation suggest he should let him go.

 

Star

 

Andre Iguodala was probably the most important player for this team. He was stolen from Warriors and immediately made an impact on both ends of the floor. He might have been overshadowed by Green at the end of the year but his year long excellence got him the team MVP award.

 

Surprise

 

Gerald Green is a great player for this game, quick, solid shooter, great athlete. Miggy kept him on the bench for a long tome, but when he finally unleashed him the league trembled in fear. Green the starter was 25 ppg player with great efficiency. He looks even better for next season (26-52-43 in the preseason).

 

Goat

 

Tyler Zeller looked solid in his rookie season but got lost in rotation and regressed. Lakers got players at his position that played better and he fell out of GM's favor. Look for him to get another chance when inevitable injuries happen.

 

Draft Report Card

 

Lakers got Noah Vonleh from the draft (draft day trade sent Vonleh one way, Stauskas and next year's 1st rounder the other way). Vonleh was taken 7th in NLL draft and 9th in NBA draft. Vonleh is an OK pick, has high ceiling (exaggerating to Bosh with defense and rebounding levels) but also some bust potential, mostly coming from his lack of motor and care for the game. The problem here was the price. Was he really worth a player taken higher (Stauskas) and a first rounder? NLL draft experts definitely loved the draft for Lakers. Vonleh probably won't start immediately, though it's hard to say with all the deals that Lakers' GM will make in November.

 

Looking to the Future

 

Lakers as currently constructed lack what it takes to be a true contender, despite their recent runs to the western conference finals. There's no true star, just a bunch of guys that play really well. The front court of the future is in place with Plumdog and Vonleh on the squad, the wings are set for a year or maybe even longer - Iguodala, green and Young are an ok rotation, made looking ridiculously well in 2k. The biggest hole is at the PG spot were there's only Super Mario. Greeny tried to fill that role in the post season and will look to trade for a starting PG in the preseason again. There are a lot of solid options either in free agency or on the trade market.

 

Upcoming Free Agents

 

Nick Young - N1ck is an important player for the Lakers and will be resigned. There's a possibility he'll get traded as his salary gets higher.

 

Jason Richardson - if he shows he's ready to play next season then he could stay and Young get Young's job. Most likely he's as good as gone.

 

Mareese Speights - you could find him on the injury list a lot, still he's a serviceable cheap player and could linger around as deep bench fodder.

 

DJ Augustin - lakers need a PG badly. DJ might not be the one though.

 

Garrett Temple - does he still have an NBA job?