Sorted by date Results 326 - 350 of 473
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor Kobe Bryant has an answer for those who think he should request a trade from the Lakers. “I’ve heard the chatter that I should ask out and go to a contender for the last years of my career. But that’s not what I do. I’m extremely loyal to the Lakers.” The chatter began when the Lakers lost their first four games this season, the first time they’ve done that since the franchise moved to Los Angeles from Minneapolis more than 50 years ago....
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor He’s 19 years old, one of the most talented players the Lakers have and on the NBA season’s opening night Julius Randle broke his right leg. The Lakers figured to have a difficult season. Now it looks more difficult. Randle drove to the basket in the fourth quarter of a 108-90 loss to the Houston Rockets, his leg buckled and he grabbed it. Team doctors on the scene at Staples Center said Randle suffered a broken tibia and a six-month recovery would likely be req...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor Steve Nash is one of the best point guards ever to play in the NBA. He's been MVP twice and ranks third all-time in assists. Unfortunately for the Lakers, Nash did his remarkable work before he signed here at the age of 38. In two Laker seasons he played in only 65 games, 50 the first year and 15 last season as he was unable to ward off a back injury. Last week the Lakers and Nash jointly announced he won't play this season. He didn't announce his retirement, pre...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor Many NBA coaches experiment with new players and new on-court ideas during exhibition games. The theory is that in the eight practice games permitted to each team it's a good time to see what improvements might be made over last season. But not every coach feels that way. The purpose of this column is to point out the differences without deciding which plan is better. How each team performs over the upcoming 82-game schedule and the playoffs will provide the...
Xavier Henry, a key reserve on the Lakers last season, will be out while a current knee injury is receiving attention. Henry has gone to New York to receive a second opinion following knee surgery. He will then go to Germany for treatment and is unlikely to be ready when the regular season begins Oct. 28....
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor On the day Byron Scott became the new coach of the Lakers this summer three surprise guests attended the press conference. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson and Jamaal Wilkes were there to support their former teammate. "I was very surprised and deeply touched," Scott told me last Thursday night prior to the Lakers' exhibition game against the Golden State Warriors. "I didn't know they were coming to the press conference. It meant so much to me." Granted a solo...
Nick Young suffered a torn ligament in his right thumb at the Lakers’ practice last Thursday. He underwent successful surgery but will be out for about eight weeks....
The Lakers will tip-off the 2014-15 regular season with a home game at STAPLES Center on October 28 against the Houston Rockets, it was announced today. Highlights of the Lakers’ home schedule include a Halloween game against the Los Angeles Clippers on October 31; the NBA Champion San Antonio Spurs on November 14; LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on January 15; the Boston Celtics on February 22; and the New York Knicks on March 12. The Lakers are scheduled to appear on national television a total of 28 times during the 2014-15 season,...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor Now that the Clippers have a new owner, a proven outstanding coach and two of the NBA's best players they seem equipped for an outstanding season. Where does that leave the Lakers, who were targeting Kevin Love until he decided to sign a five-year contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers? The Lakers made a run at Carmelo Anthony this summer but were saving salary cap money for next summer's free a agent class, led by Love, the former UCLA star. They were counting...
By Steven Lieberman Observer Reporter Steve Ballmer, Clippers new owner, approached the stage at Staples Center today like a boxer making his way to the ring as all of his adoring fans lavished him with praise and high-fives. It's his first-ever Fan Fest, but you wouldn't have known it – he handled it like a champ. The only thing missing was the "Rocky" theme. After subtracting his bank account by $2 billion in order to buy the team from Donald and Shelly Sterling, the former Microsoft CEO a...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor Byron Scott said Tuesday the Lakers' organization is all about winning championships. The former backcourt partner of Magic Johnson has become the Lakers' head coach But don't expect a championship in the upcoming season. There are too many better teams in the NBA right now. What fans should expect is a far better Laker team than last season and, at best, a chance of making the playoffs. There was very little defense last season when Mike D'Antoni was the coach....
By Steven Lieberman Observer Reporter Every July, there is summer excitement brewing at the Toyota Sports Center, the Lakers headquarters and practice facility in El Segundo. No, it wasn't the news that Jeremy Lin was just traded to the Lakers from the Rockets. There were over 450 capable young women trying out to become a dancer for next season's Laker Girls dance team. And one capable male was even in the mix this time. It was an open audition, a cattle call. The only requirements - be 18...
By Sandra Coopersmith "Getting to know you, getting to know all about you . . ." As my fellow volunteers and I waited in Room B47 of the Culver City Senior Center on May 22 for a group of 18 students from Inglewood's Oak Street Elementary School to complete a tour being given by Jill Thomsen, the center's Volunteer Specialist, that song from "The King and I" kept running through my head. Why? Because we would soon be partnering up with our new young friends, thanks to the collaborative efforts...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor The Lakers have indicated they plan a long search for a coach to replace Mike D’Antoni, who resigned last week following two unsuccessful seasons. The Lakers are in the difficult position of being without a coach or many players. Only three players, Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Robert Sacre have a Laker contract for next season and Nick Young has a player option. It is believed the Lakers may interview as many as 20 coaching candidates. Two college coaches, John C...
The Lakers have indicated they plan a long search for a coach to replace Mike D’Antoni, who resigned last week following two unsuccessful seasons. The Lakers are in the difficult position of being without a coach or many players. Only three players, Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Robert Sacre have a Laker contract for next season and Nick Young has a player option. It is believed the Lakers may interview as many as 20 coaching candidates. Two college coaches, John Calipari of Kentucky and former L...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor The Lakers said they had no position for Phil Jackson, so he joined the New York Knicks and made his first move this week, firing Coach Mike Woodson. The Knicks didn’t make the playoffs and needed a change in direction. As the new man in charge Jackson acted quickly. Had he been given the same position with the Lakers Mike D’Antoni would most likely have been fired by now. Instead, the Knicks are moving toward hiring someone with a background in the Triangle Off...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor A year ago, when the Lakers completed one of the most disappointing seasons in franchise history, I wrote Anatomy of a Disaster and had no intention of following with another similar article. But throughout this season, the worst since the Lakers moved here in 1960 from Minneapolis, readers have frequently requested Part 2 of this story. So here it is. It was bad enough last season when Kobe Bryant averaged 45 minutes a game down the stretch trying to get the Lak...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor Here's that time of the year again when talented teams with excellent coaches are in danger of finishing as failures. It gets crazier every year because only eight Western Conference teams qualify for the playoffs and several more barely miss. There's even talk that Golden State's Mark Jackson could lose his job if the Warriors lose their first round playoff series against the Clippers. What a shame that would be as the Warriors have won 19 more games than they'v...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor Just a few more weeks and the Lakers' season will be over. No playoffs this time. Of all the negatives that have occurred the one that bothers me the most is the way Pau Gasol hasn't been appreciated. This is one of the top 100 big men ever to play in the NBA, a professional who has had championship seasons here but now is struggling against age and injuries, plus a coach who doesn't want the center to have the ball in the post. Instead of Gasol being celebrated...
After Phil Jackson was introduced Tuesday as president of New York Knicks basketball operations no player immediately changed teams. But the initial impact is that it was a grand day for the Knicks and a dreadful one for the Lakers. Both teams began the day in horrible shape, both out of playoff contention, both needing a change in leadership. Both with a dominating owner. But James Dolan of the knicks said he is gladly yielding authority to Jackson in building a more cohesive Knicks roster....
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor As of this writing, Phil Jackson and the New York Knicks are making progress on details of a contract that will bring him to the team with total control in running the basketball operation. This is what the man who won 11 NBA championship rings as a coach and two as a player has sought in recent years from the Lakers. Apparently, however, Laker owner Jim Buss isn't interested. Avery Johnson, who played in the league for 16 years and then coached Dallas and New...
Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, who is recovering from a fractured lateral tibial plateau of his left knee, was examined Wednesday by team physician Dr. Steve Lombardo, who determined that Bryant's injury has still not healed. With this diagnosis, Bryant will not return to play this season, it was announced by the team. "With Kobe's injury still not healed, the amount of time he'd need to rehab and be ready to play, and the amount of time remaining in the season, we've simply run out of time for him...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor Based on my actions of the last 30 years or so, I made a startling decision last Friday. Without question, if the Lakers were playing that night I’d go there. It’s been my work. I need to know what’s going on with the team. But reality set in. The story wasn’t at the Lakers’ game. They’re out of playoff contention and they were playing the Sacramento Kings, a similarly awful team. No, I needed to spend the day at the Clippers’ training facility, where there w...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor It happens every year late in the National Basketball Association season. Teams believing they have a chance to win the championship add potentially important players. Teams out of contention release players to lighten their payroll. What's different here is the reversal of roles by the Lakers and Clippers. Hopelessly out of contention, the Lakers have traded away Steve Blake. Usually they're adding a key part. With a championship on their mind, the Clippers...
By Bosmat Eynav Sports Columnist Once the flame begins to catch, Steve Blake will blow it higher. Every player on the team is subjected to two opposing forces: Negative Force: drives the player to detach from the team Positive Force: bonds and connects the player to the team In my opinion Steve Blake is the player who contributes most significantly to the group's bonding force on the court. Sadly, it seems like the Lakers have given up the strongest positive force on the team, the BG bond that...
