LakerNation here we are in the 3rd week of free agency and so much has happened and changed with our championship team! We all watched “David Lee” Trevor Ariza’s agent attempt to bluff the organization and he was quickly replaced! Jeff Schwartz has also taken an approach with the organization that was not in his client’s best interest, and has Lamar back-peddling a little to repair any bridges that may have been burned when he nor his agent responded to the 4yrs 9mil offer the Lakers placed on the table for the soon to be 30yr old forward. According to thelakersnation.com Dr. Buss is still upset with the way the whole thing was handled, so now we all must wait to see what happens!
Yet to me it seems that this thing has gotten personal. If you have followed the Lakers for any amount of time during free agency period, you would know that when things can not be settled with Mitch, it brings Dr. Buss into the picture, and that does not always go well for the player. 2007 Kobe Bryant was tired of being as he described “the scape” goat for the franchise letting go of Shaquille Oneal, and the fact that he did not have the players he needed to be competitive in league! So after Dr. Buss tried talking to him, Kobe still insisted, and Dr. Buss quickly began entertaining the offers for Bryant. It was never that Dr. Buss did not want Kobe, but he would not be bullied or chumped by a player, I mean he does own the team. Andrew Bynum’s agent the aforementioned David Lee also went into “bully” status with Bynum, only the fact that it’s hard to find centers with Andrew’s skill and potential anywhere, is the only reason a deal got done, yet as we could see with the dealing of Trevor’s negotiations that Dr. Buss was not going to allow him to get away with it a second time, so out goes Trevor, and in comes Artest(which is a complete upgrade in my opinion) though I definitely loved Trevor as a Laker. Mildly put, Dr. Buss gave Lamar a great opportunity here in LA, when even some of us fans wanted to see him shipped out of here, as he failed to become Pippen to Kobe’s Jordan, but he sure as heck turned out to be a great Toni Kukoc, even better I would say. So hopefully Lamar “made nice” with Dr. Buss and on Monday morning he will officially put back on the purple and gold!
Cause I would really hate to see him on the other end of this mamba strike! I can understand he wants to secure his family legacy financially, but as a player I’m sure he also wants to be a winner! He is in the right place at the right time to see that happened. He endured the frustration of not making the playoffs, and then being ousted in the first round two years in a row, to the acquisition of Pau Gasol, which truly allowed him to do what he does best on the court, and that’s be versatile. In Miami, the pressure will be on him again to be a second scorer behind Wade, because Oneal is has not played an entire season in years now. The difference for Lamar in this scenario is it’s Wade, and legitimately that’s it, so he would be called on for big numbers night in and night out, no days off. At least in LA he has Kobe and Pau to take the slack if Bynum is unavailable for whatever reason.
Lamar please take a moment and think about cementing your legacy beyond the money: How about with more championship rings? You have already surpassed the Miami Heat franchise in final appearances…lol, and you are tied with Wade for rings, with the most potential to get another one. There is nothing stopping Miami from going ahead and acquiring Carlos Boozer, so tell me why it hasn’t happened yet? Are they waiting for you? And if so, why? Being that even without you, having Boozer on that team will be an upgrade. We know he will be getting his guaranteed $12mil, with you being offered the mid level, so how can you be so sure that they will add him after you sign? Maybe it’s nothing…I’m just offering what if’s here…lol. Lamar take the “risk” that’s a sure thing…with the Lakers you are guaranteed to be battling it out in the playoffs for a long time, WCF and Finals..you know the system(finally), and most importantly you are loyal to those who have been good to you. You said yourself you did not want to burn bridges with the Lakers because they have been too good to you. So what is there to think about…sign and the team will go into making sure you don’t regret it! Lamar Odom a Los Angeles Lakers 4 Life? I hope so.
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