NBA: Los Angeles Lakers Small Forward, Power Forward Season Preview

By Neil Mehta

After An Injury-Prone Season, Lakers’ Forward Pau Gasol Hopes To Rebound With A New Cast.

Does Pau Gasol Still Have The Ability To Play Like An All-Star?

SMALL FORWARD:

Starter: Nick Young- As a young, high-energy player Nick Young is a great fit for the Lakers. He should be a double digit scorer and will be solid on defense. He is expect to play big minutes, because of the lack of depth at the Small Forward position.

Backup: Wesley Johnson- Another young piece is always a positive for the Lakers. Johnson should bring much needed scoring from the bench. He should fill in nicely and would possibly fill the void as the 6th man.

Other Options: Ryan Kelly- At 6’11, the Lakers have listed Ryan Kelly as a Small Forward. As a college Power Forward  it will be interesting to see how this transformation. I don’t think this experiment will work out, and he will probably be a backup to Pau Gasol for most of the season.

Conclusion: There is one word to describe the Lakers’ Small Forward position, questionable. We’ll have to wait and see if Nick Young can go back to 2010-2011 and post career highs in scoring. And then there’s Wesley Johnson, a younger player who could break out at any time. But we can all agree that the most questionable is Ryan Kelly, a 6’11 Forward trying to play with athletic Small Forwards; we’ll just have to see how that works out.

POWER FORWARD:

Starter: Pau Gasol- At 33, Pau Gasol is on a steady decline. He should however be able to sucessfuly rebound from an injury-plagued season. I expect to be effective on both sides of the ball, I predict his season averages to be 17 Points and 9 Rebounds.

Backup: Ryan Kelly or Lamar Odom?- Even though Ryan Kelly is listed as a Small Forward, with his size he should play most of his minutes as a Power Forward. As a rookie, we can’t  predict how is season will go, all we can say is that he went to Duke and had a 2nd round grade. We then come to Lamar Odom, a free agent whom the Lakers have shown great interest in. If signed, he should be a solid backup and may even provide a spark to the team he won 2 championships with.

Conclusion: The Power Forward position for the Lakers is solid. While there is a future Hall of Famer starting, the backup is a 2nd round rookie.

By Neil Mehta

TheSportMatrix.com

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NBA: Los Angeles Lakers Point Guard, Shooting Guards Season Preview

By Neil Mehta

After A Torrid Campaign Last Season, The Lakers Look To Replenish Success. Maybe At The Core Of This, Their Guards. Here Is A Preview For The Lakers’ Point Guards And Shooting Guards.

Will the Black Mamba bounce back from injury? (via NBA)

POINT GUARDS

Starter: Steve Nash- As he turns 40, Steve Nash is still an above average Point Guard. Running a offense through Nash is always a positive and his veteran leadership is a plus.

Backup: Jodan Farmar- He’s back! The former Laker is back in L.A.! Farmer should be a solid backup. He is known to be an explosive scorer and a great defender. 

3rd Unit: Steve Blake- After coming off a injury-plagued season Steve Blake should rebound and have a solid season with a limited role. He however will see big minutes at times when the durability of a forty year old starter is in question. 

Steve Nash Running The Court In This First-Year As A Laker.

The Lakers’ Point Guard position is above average. Steve Nash, Jordan Farmar and Steve Blake are all productive and efficient players. The Lakers should see the Point Guard position as a strength, not a weakness.

SHOOTING GUARDS

Starter: Kobe Bryant- The Black Mamba is coming off an ACL injury, but he should be back to 100% by the start of the season. Even at 34, he’s still a candidate for the Scoring Title and a MVP caliber player.

Backup: Jodie Meeks- Jodie Meeks is coming off an career high season where he averaged 7 points a game. He’s still a young player and should improve as time goes on. He should have a solid season as Kobe’s backup.

Other Options: Nick Young- Nick Young is the young, high-energy player that the Lakers need. When healthy he should be able to score in double digits. Even though he’s naturally a Shooting Guard, I believe he will start at the Small Forward position due to lack of depth.

Other Options: Wesley Johnson- Another young player for the Lakers is always a plus. He has room for improvement and learning under Kobe Bryant should help him. Even though he’s a Swing Man, he’ll probably play more minutes as the backup Small Forward.
The Shooting Guard position for the Lakers is a strength, entirely because they have one of the greatest Shooting Guards of all time on their roster. Young pieces like Jodie Meeks, Nick Young and Wesley Johnson are also a plus.

The Lakers made the addition of the solid young sharpshooter Nick Young in the offseason, but will he be enough for Kobe to get the Lakers back to the top? We’ll have to wait and see.

By Neil Mehta

TheSportMatrix.com

 – Sports for the Fans, by the Fans.

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Clippers G Chris Paul Elected as President of NBA Players Association

By Âdil K

LAS VEGAS – It was announced in the early hours of today that LA Clippers All-Star PG Chris Paul has been voted as the NBPA President. The 6x All-Star, who was vice-president of the Union for NBA Players, replaces the former President, Thunder Guard Derek Fisher.
 

Chris Paul, a true leader on, and off the court. (via zimbio)





 

According to USA Today Sports:

 

Los Angeles Clippers point guard Chris Paul was elected NBPA president on Wednesday at the union’s summer meeting in Las Vegas, a person familiar with the vote told USA TODAY Sports…

Paul, who was previously an NBPA vice president, now is charged with putting the players’ union in the right direction after approximately 18 months of instability and turmoil.

CP3 was announced as the New NBPA President on Wednesday at the union’s summer meeting in Las Vegas, and fellow players have took to Twitter to congratulate the 28 year-old superstar.

 

Congrats @CP3 on being elected president of @TheNBPA
— Andre Iguodala (@andre) August 22, 2013

Congrats to @cp3! You’ll do the President role proud dude! Carry this org forward.
— DerekFisher (@derekfisher) August 22, 2013

Chris Paul will however have a tough job on his hands, as the Union for NBA Players and will need to keep everyone content after a turbulent past 18 months of unrest.

Paul replaces Derek Fisher, whose tenure as NBPA couldn’t have ended any worse, his time as leader was shrouded in controversy that resulted in the firing of the Union’s Longtime Executive Director Billy Hunter aswell as numerous public squabbles and fights, aswell as a lawsuit being held on Fisher and the NBPA Union in the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

But if there is anyone who can help lead the Union, it’s Chris Paul.

 

By Âdil K

TheSportMatrix.com

 – Sports for the Fans, by the Fans.

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Nuggets Point-Guard Ty Lawson Arrested

By Âdil K

Details are still not clear, but according to The Denver Post, Denver Nuggets guard Ty Lawson has been arrested and charged with physical harrasment and criminal mischief.

“Lawson appeared in Arapahoe County court Monday to be arraigned on the charges, according to court documents. Lawson is free on a $1,000 bond, according to court records.”

According to ABCNews7:

“Denver Nuggets’ guard Tywon “Ty” Lawson was arrested in an alleged domestic violence incident in Arapahoe County on Saturday, according to court records.

The 25-year-old Lawson was arrested by sheriff’s deputies on investigation of harassment that includes either striking, shoving or kicking as well as property damage, court records state. Both charges are misdemeanors. The incident requires a mandatory restraining order.”

Ty Lawson selected 18th in the 2009 NBA Draft, appeared in 73 games for the Nuggets last season, averaging 16.7 PPG, 6.9 APG & 2.7 RPG. He helped lead them to a franchise-record setting 57 – 25 (.695%) win record.

More to follow..



 By Âdil K

TheSportMatrix.com

 – Sports for the Fans, by the Fans.

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