The Cat: i'll concede the point on kobe, although i do still wonder if HE didn't say "i want to go to la, make it work." but, who knows? i'll concede the fact that la did it's job well (which is believable w/jerry west). the point DOES apply for shaq, though. as for the rebuilding of the lakers, yea, they were reloading for a championship run. but even when you are at the top, you always look to improve your team (at least you should!). look at houston when they acquired clyde, chicago when they acquired dele and rodman, detroit when they acquired dantley (or was it aguirre), boston when they acquired walton, etc. they all took chances (chemistry wise) to continue to improve their team while it was in a championship run. the salary cap argument, IMO, is overrated, because if you want to get it done, you'll find a way. i've seen la, chicago, houston, new york, etc. for too, too long add players when they were at or near the cap to believe that the cap outright PREVENTS teams from improving. it's an obstacle, yes, but a hurdlable one.
now THIS is funny!!! you call derrick anderson a major free agent, yet not eddie robinson. eddie robinson has already had multiple suitors (houston, charlotte - of course -, chicago, san antonio, etc.). derrick anderson had.... Derek Anderson and Eddie Robinson really aren't comparable, imho. Can you really explain to me the difference between Eddie Robinson and a Gerald Wallace? The only thing I see in Eddie Robinson is an athletic freak that can't shoot (he struggles to even hit from 15 feet consistently), doesn't play good defense, and lacks a lot of the fundamentals. Anderson has the complete game on both ends of the court-- he can take people off the dribble, has an excellent touch, plays great one on one defense, etc. Robinson is an athletic freak... and from what I've seen that's about it. And trades such as the one for Clyde aren't relevant in comparing what the Lakers did and the Spurs didn't in the case of Kobe Bryant. Clyde was an established NBA All-Star who you knew would make positive contributions, and because of his ties to the city and Hakeem you had a good feeling he would fit in well. Teams had no idea what Kobe would do coming out of high school, they had no idea of how he would fit with team chemistry, and they had no reason to blow up a contending team to wait on a young high schooler who may or may not develop. And perhaps you're right that the Spurs might should've gone after someone like Clyde Drexler in a trade, the way Houston did. But that has no relevance to the team and city's ability to attract free agents. When you discuss things like that, you're talking more about the skills of the people in the front office more than you are the ability to attract major free agents. ------------------ Draftsource.net-- the premier source for draft info. Profiles, rankings, mock drafts, and more! The Mo Taylor Fan Site
SA Rocket -- nope, don't live in SA...just a Rocket fan who doesn't hate the Spurs (unless they're playing the Rockets, that is)!
