Los Angeles Lakers Lakers Have Small Forward Issues Jason Fleming Basketball News Services Little by little the Lakers are slow taking care of their depth issues. The Vlade Divac signing became official yesterday and they are still trying to work out a new contract with Slava Medvedenko. If they can get him signed that would help out Brian Grant at the power forward spot, but they still need another center and possibly another point guard, depending on how one interprets Sasha Vujacic's erratic summer play. One thing is for sure, the Lakers have too many small forwards. Between Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, and Devean George someone has to go. Each of those three believes he should be a starter in the NBA and each of them has a right to believe that. Butler started as a rookie a couple seasons ago, Odom has started his entire NBA career, and George has blossomed the past couple seasons playing between Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal. But who starts now? Let's break the cases for each of these three down individually. Lamar Odom: There shouldn't be much debate that Odom is the most talented of the bunch. His passing ability is better than most point guards, he rebounds, he pushes the ball on the break, and he has a decent jump shot. His defense has improved - though it is far from great - but he is very confident in his abilities. Some may think Odom can play the power forward spot because that's where he played in Miami, but don't fool yourself. Odom is no more a power forward in the Western Conference than Brian Grant is a center. Caron Butler: Butler is an explosive scorer and a decent defender. He can create his own shot off the dribble and he's a tough player with a chip on his shoulder ever since he was drafted because of all the teams that passed on him. If not for Yao Ming and Amare Stoudemire Butler would have been on overwhelming favorite for Rookie of the Year in 2002. Unfortunately for him, he didn't start in Miami because he was behind a group that included Eddie Jones and Odom. Sure, if the Lakers want to make Odom a power forward he could start, but that experiment won't last long. He could do a great job bringing 15 points a game off the bench. Devean George: George is athletic and has improved tremendously from his rookie campaign. He is probably the best defender of the three, but then again much of that might end up being attributed to having Shaq back to save him when he takes risks. George has developed a solid jump shot but is not a reliable scorer. He is the incumbent starter, but unfortunately for him that probably will make no difference at all. What they need to do is turn around and trade either Butler or George - Butler is cheap and George only has on year left on his contract - for a big man that can help them at the 4 or 5. It doesn't need to be a star player, just a reliable one that won't make mistakes and can play some defense. All three of these guys can help the team, but they can't if they are all expecting to play 30+ minutes. Sure, maybe if Odom becomes a power forward they can all get their playing time, but if the Lakers go that route they will regret it. But, the rumor mill has quieted for the Lakers as of now. Their focus has shifted to Medvedenko - whom they definitely need - and there haven't been any other players linked to them. If that's true, they need to get that deal done quickly so they can take a look at what they still need and act accordingly. How about MoT + TE for Butler or George MoT can score inside TE gives them some money to spend in an over crowded SF OR they can just sign E Griffin
I don't think we need a small forward. George is horrible. Odom is untouchable. Butler was injured last year and still not recovered. I think between T-Mac, JJ, Boki, Piatkowski we have enough guys to cover the small forward spot.
The Lakers won't do us any favors. The Bulls would be a good target. Maybe they could land Antonio Davis or Jamaal Crawford? Both those guys would be useful to the Lakers. They could get something from Seattle maybe? Jerome James for George and Butler? What I do know is that the Lakers won't dea with us - we're the competitor. I can't wait to kick some Lakers ass next year. Heck, I can't wait for next year because no one is CLEARLY a better team than us - not a single team in the entire league can boast the "we're clearly better" tag.
George is the one they want to go. Rox wouldn't want him because he's overpaid and can't shoot. Don't know who else wants that, either. They need to ship something else of limited value with him, like Walton or Rush or Vujacic, to get a taker. Maybe they should ship their pick. People will pony up seeing that they stand as good a chance to make the lottery as the playoffs.
Hoopsworld = message board. Nothing more. It is not a news source. Furthermore, how can a fan saying "What they need to do is turn around and trade either Butler or George" translate to "LA's Butler or George on the move" ?
