5 championships......that dude is the Lakers. You all are hearing from the loud minority. LA is NOT for any reason, ever, turning on Kobe. Most Faker fans will just chalk it up to DH not being mentally tough (which is true)
A player that is inconsistent doesn't deserve 15 mil per for any reason. The Bills i'm sure are loving that Mario Williams deal.
Berger v.3 Latest with Dwight? Met briefly with Mitch Kupchak, then of course moved on to Houston. They brought out all the stops. They did the whole thing and tried to sell him on winning a championship. Today, Golden State & Atlanta. Tomorrow, Dallas, with LA having the last word. I caution everyone to stay away from "There is a favorite" or "Someone is out of it". You don't know until he decides. We have to let this play out and see what he decides. How strong was the Rockets pitch? I think they're in a good position. Again, I caution anyone to name a favorite. The Rockets have pursued him for a couple of years. They are now set up, perfectly in my view, to make a strong case to him. Harden and Howard would fit together nicely. They have assets to be developed with that group or be parlayed into something else. Dwight did ask about acquiring a third star. The Rockets have the ability to do that. They have Asik and Lin and have been talking to teams. It's a matter of what Dwight prioritizes - winning, winning in the long run, being king of LA - what will strike him? Who would Houston target as a third star? Hard to say at this point. I don't know how many options they would have this summer. Once Paul comes off the board, you're not talking anyone at that third star level. You're looking at Iguodala or Smith. I don't know if that's enough. If Dwight wants someone right from the get go, I don't know if that's 100% feasible. What is driving his decision making? What has to be important is positioning himself to win a title. Really to win multiple titles. It will be interesting to see where he feels that can be done. He said multiple times it was a nightmare last season. Hard to see how the Lakers are going to be better. To make the pitch "We'll win with Nash at 40, Kobe coming off injury and Gasol", that's a tough sell. LA though, has more than the here and now. If the Rockets can give you Hakeem and Yao, you can line 'em up and talk about legacy and a tradition of winning. It will tug at Dwight's heart string. Does he go for the short term fix? 2 horse race? I don't think you can rule out Cuban and the Mavs, despite only having one other guy in Dirk, who is in the last year of his deal and is 35 years old. Cuban is an expert salesman. He's the only owner in the NBA that has shown a willingness to do anything of the sort Prokhorov is doing. He knows how to close deals. I would not count out Dallas. Those are your top three. Atlanta is a long shot and Golden State is a long shot. It would have to be a sign and trade. It appears the Lakers are all in - sign Dwight or if he leaves, he leaves and they start over next year.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NBA sources confirm the Rockets expected to meet today with free agent forward Josh Smith and his agent Brian Dyke.</p>— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarkBermanFox26/statuses/351777192910389249">July 1, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Hawks co-owner Bruce Levenson part of contingent that will speak to Dwight Howard. <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23ATLHawks&src=hash">#ATLHawks</a></p>— Chris Vivlamore (@ajchawks) <a href="https://twitter.com/ajchawks/statuses/351777890477678593">July 1, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Hawks co-owner Bruce Levenson part of contingent that will speak to Dwight Howard. <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23ATLHawks&src=hash">#ATLHawks</a></p>— Chris Vivlamore (@ajchawks) <a href="https://twitter.com/ajchawks/statuses/351777890477678593">July 1, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
I don't think you should start trashing the spouse hard to the kids until he/she has actually decided to leave.
If the Lakers lose Dwight and have to rebuild dropping Kobe and his 25 million dollar salary with the amnesty clause is not far fetched.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Cool as it'd be to envision Kupchak like a phantom swooping in for 1st face-to-face with Dwight, it was prearranged for Lakers to start it.</p>— KEVIN DING (@KevinDing) <a href="https://twitter.com/KevinDing/statuses/351779527900401665">July 1, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Could be Dwight's affection for Mitch, could be Dwight remaining that open-minded to Lakers return. Lakers up again Tuesday afternoon.</p>— KEVIN DING (@KevinDing) <a href="https://twitter.com/KevinDing/statuses/351779966066769920">July 1, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
I'd expect them to amnesty Pau Gasol before Bryant. Laker fans are already taking a hit with this whole Dwight thing, I dont think they could take it if they lost Bryant due to anything but retirement.
If they Dwight does leave la, the Lakers will probably end of with Andrew Wiggins with the way the NBA operates.
Yep. They'll amnesty Pau. Convince Kobe to not come back until it's too late and magically win the lottery.
