Tag: Los Angeles Lakers (Page 1 of 2)

NBA Power Rankings (1/19/22)

January 22, 2022 / Loren Chen / 0 Comments

Chris Paul, who is on track to be selected to his twelfth All-Star team, leads the Phoenix Suns to the top spot in Aaron’s power rankings (Instagram/@Suns).

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We have officially crossed the halfway point of the NBA’s 1,230-game regular season, and to celebrate the occasion and welcome our show back from its hibernation, Aaron is excited to present a special solo episode of his (subjective) power rankings of the league’s 30 teams, organized into five tiers. Along the way, Aaron will also share his thoughts on a select number of teams and offer other interesting nuggets about the season so far.

“Built to Lose” Book Special With Jake Fischer

October 28, 2021 / Aaron Fischman / 0 Comments

Jake Fischer’s “Built to Lose” chronicles the league’s “Tanking Era” with a focus on the 76ers, Suns, Magic, Kings and Lakers.

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Enjoy Aaron’s one-on-one conversation with Bleacher Report writer Jake Fischer on his debut book, “Built to Lose: How the NBA’s Tanking Era Changed the League Forever.”

4:47-5:23: “There was a long Google doc of probably 600 names of people that were this player and his agent and the player’s college coach and every single guy who was ever rostered by that team, guys who were in training camp. And then as you get on the phone with other people, you start to ask also, like, ‘Hey, now that we’ve talked for 20, 30, 40 minutes, and you kind of know who I am a little bit, know the work I’m trying to do, and just the honest conversation I’m trying to have, anybody you think you could put me in touch with that would help me further understand, add another perspective?’ Sometimes I’ll even ask for specific people.”

14:38-15:47: “For me, before I got into this more newsy space at Bleacher Report, at Sports Illustrated, I was working on “Built to Lose” for a long portion of my time there. I kinda developed a niche at SI of being someone who covered left-of-center stories, like I got coffee with Mike D’Antoni ‘cuz he’s obsessed with Starbucks. And my last thing I ever wrote for SI was a profile on Red Panda, so stuff like that. Continue reading

Brad Botkin Previews West: Spurs “Not Good Enough” for Playoffs

October 16, 2018 / Aaron Fischman / 0 Comments

Gregg Popovich and the Spurs have appeared in the postseason for 21 consecutive seasons, but guest Brad Botkin doesn’t see a 22nd straight trip in their future (Mike/Wikimedia Commons).

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Brad Botkin, senior NBA writer for CBS Sports and co-author of Olympic gold medalist Dan O’ Brien’s memoir, “Clearing Hurdles,” has strong opinions about this season’s Western Conference, and he’s unafraid to share them. For example, despite the Spurs’ 21 consecutive playoff appearances, Brad is adamant San Antonio’s streak will come to a close this season.

Timing will vary due to dynamic advertising, but here are the approximate time stamps of some of our favorite clips (so many good ones to choose from):

7:06-7:28: “I’ve heard a lot of people say, ‘Well that’s how Kobe led. That’s how Jordan led. He forced the best out of his guys.’ Listen, come talk to me when Jimmy Butler is Kobe or Jordan. Jimmy Butler is not the kind of guy that singlehandedly transforms your team. He certainly makes the Timberwolves better. They’re in no way a championship contender with him, nor do I think any team is a championship contender with him as a best player.”

14:42-15:15: “All these big-picture numbers about the Rockets, they’re going to look great on paper. Look, [in] playoff games, certainly against the Warriors, if they match up, or the Jazz, if they’re in a Game 6 and there’s three minutes left in the game, I don’t care what you did all year long. Continue reading

LeBron’s Lakers With Harrison Faigen, Eric Pincus

August 29, 2018 / Aaron Fischman / 0 Comments

Guests Harrison Faigen and Eric Pincus aren’t overly concerned with the Lakers’ perimeter shooting around LeBron James, but they are excited to learn more about the youngsters and their varying level of growth this season (Keith Allison/Creative Commons).

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Following a five-year playoff drought, come July, the Los Angeles Lakers and their fan base could exhale. That’s when they landed LeBron James, the most dominant and versatile player in today’s NBA. To discuss these Lakers, Aaron and Loren are joined by Harrison Faigen of SB Nation’s Silver Screen & Roll and Eric Pincus, Lakers reporter for Bleacher Report, cohost of the Hollywood Hoops Podcast and Capologist for Basketball Insiders and NBA TV.
Continue reading

Matt Hill on His Projects, Lonzo Ball Fascination

September 14, 2017 / Aaron Fischman / 0 Comments

Lonzo Ball has reeled our guest Matt Hill back into being a full-fledged Lakers fan (TonytheTiger/Wikimedia Commons).

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The creative Matt Hill, Super Hoopers cofounder and cohost, graces us with his presence, as we discuss a wide selection of topics, ranging from his viral animated comedy web series “Spurs Special Forces” to Lonzo Ball, bandwagon fans and so much more. A trio of excerpts can be found below:

6:50-7:06: Matt discusses longtime friend Randall Park [actor-comedian]’s unique contributions to “Spurs Special Forces.”

“He’s just an old friend. So I was doing the Spurs [Special Forces video], and I thought it’d be funny to have him even though he knows nothing about basketball. He has no idea who Manu Ginobili is. Basically his impression of Manu Ginobili is almost like half-Scarface. It’s like a high-pitched Scarface.” Continue reading

Sean Derenthal: Lonzo Ball Could Be Draft’s “Best Player or Basically Unplayable”

June 16, 2017 / Aaron Fischman / 0 Comments

Smoke screens aside, guest Javier Pesquera retains “99.9 percent” confidence that the Lakers will select Lonzo Ball with the No. 2 overall pick (TonyTheTiger/Creative Commons).

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With the draft fast approaching – it’s scheduled for Thursday, June 22, – we’re joined by a pair of men who closely and passionately follow the NBA draft and its potential prospects year-round. Ode to Oden’s Sean Derenthal and Javier Pesquera of What’s on Draft lend their time and expertise to the show, discussing a wide range of issues, including but not limited to Markelle Fultz’s top billing, the Lonzo Ball phenomenon, the strengths and weaknesses of Josh Jackson’s and Dennis Smith Jr.’s games and the nature of this year’s international class. You won’t want to miss this one, especially if, like your hosts, you’ve been fixated on the NBA all season.

Sean Derenthal: 9:28-9:43:

“Lonzo Ball is super-, super-interesting. If you told me like five years from now that he was the best player out of this draft, I wouldn’t be surprised. If you told me that he was basically unplayable, I also wouldn’t be too surprised honestly.”

SD: 16:48-18:16:

“The problem with Josh Jackson, while he does bring all of that [defensive versatility], the reason that you wouldn’t take him is, well, one, there’s some off-court issues…Offensively, his shot is the big issue. So in the Finals, I think we saw that one-way players, it’s difficult to play these guys, Continue reading

Clippers Sail into Third, Hawks Rise Eight Spots (Power Rankings: April 12, 2017 Edition)

April 12, 2017 / Loren Chen / 0 Comments

Seemingly recovered from injury, Chris Paul is playing at a high level as he chases his first championship ring (Verse Photography/Creative Commons).

We’ve reached the final day in a historic NBA season packed with nearly unprecedented statistical seasons by some players, monstrous single-game outbursts by others and a rollercoaster ride of ups and downs for almost all of the teams in the league. On Wednesday’s final 14-game slate, six playoff seeds are still yet to be determined: 1, 2, 7 and 8 in the East and 4 and 5 in the West. Thirteen teams have already been eliminated from further contention, and the rest hope that their fortunes will be on the rise. This will be the final edition of our power rankings this season, but as a reminder, you can chart how every team has fared in our rankings over the course of the season with the interactive graph atop the Power Rankings landing page.

Biggest Jumps: Atlanta Hawks (+8), Minnesota Timberwolves (+6), Los Angeles Lakers (+6)

Biggest Falls: Philadelphia 76ers (-7), Denver Nuggets (-6), Dallas Mavericks (-5) Continue reading

Darius Soriano: “Onus Is on Lakers’ Player Development Folks” to Maximize Potential

March 3, 2017 / Loren Chen / 0 Comments

Darius Soriano has high hopes for Lakers rookie Brandon Ingram (pictured), who figures to see his role increase as Luke Walton focuses on his team’s young core (Zach Frailey/Flickr).

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The Los Angeles Lakers have a new president of basketball operations and general manager, as first-year head coach Luke Walton leads a youthful squad headlined by lottery picks from the past three drafts, Brandon Ingram, D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle. At this critical juncture for the team, Forum Blue & Gold Editor-in-Chief Darius Soriano stops by to break down the biggest storylines for LA’s present and future.

2:44-3:43: Sadly, the biggest Lakers-related news this season happened off the court with last week’s management shakeup:

“The writing was sort of on the wall once Magic [Johnson] was hired as an adviser to Jeanie Buss…The timing of it, though, was awkward and just the way it was handled, I thought, was rough for everyone involved…I’m sort of intrigued by the [Rob] Pelinka aspect, and I think the Magic Johnson thing – I don’t want to say ‘cautiously optimistic.’ I’m more along the lines of ‘I’m just sort of hanging back and waiting to see how things go.’ Magic’s very well respected in the business world, and obviously he was an amazing player. We’ll see how all of that translates that to a final decision-maker on the basketball side [for the Lakers].”

Dan Devine: Pelicans’ “Bully Ball” Could Take Toll on Warriors in Postseason (Trade Deadline Special)

February 23, 2017 / Loren Chen / 0 Comments

Alongside new addition DeMarcus Cousins, Anthony Davis and the Pelicans hope to rise up the Western Conference standings and cause problems for the Warriors in the playoffs (Keith Allison/Creative Commons).

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Less than 24 hours before the NBA’s annual trade deadline, Yahoo! Sports NBA editor Dan Devine (Ball Don’t Lie) fits us into his busy schedule. Dan breaks down the league’s biggest trades to date (chief among them, this past weekend’s DeMarcus Cousins deal), hints at what may be on the horizon and touches upon the Clippers’ postseason prospects and two dark-horse contenders in the Rockets and Wizards. He even provides a glimpse into New Orleans cuisine. What a guy! What a show!

7:57-9:15: Dan explores how the DeMarcus Cousins acquisition will likely affect the Pelicans’ position in the race for the Western Conference’s No. 8 seed:

“Adding Boogie to the lineup, giving them that core three with Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday, gives them, from a talent perspective, maybe the best core that you can offer in that group. It’s also worth remembering that New Orleans is three games back of Denver in the loss column right now, and they’ve got to leapfrog both Portland and Sacramento…They’ve got some work to do…and they’re going to have to integrate a gigantic piece with 25 games left in the season. Continue reading

Wizards Cast Spell, Climb 10 Spots (Power Rankings: Dec. 23, 2016 Edition)

December 23, 2016 / Joshua Fischman / 0 Comments

23-year-old shooting guard Bradley Beal has nearly equaled his age in points per game, as the Wizards continue their stellar play (Keith Allison/Creative Commons).

While nine teams held the same ranking from our previous edition, six squads rose or dropped at least six spots. Leading the way among most improved from last edition, the Washington Wizards jumped from 22nd to 12th. Thanks to lethal 3-point shooting, the Rockets continued their ascent to fourth even as starting center Clint Capela will be sidelined for the next month at the very least. The Nuggets also impressed the panel, playing extremely well in their first stretch as a completely healthy unit. The returns of Danilo Gallinari and Gary Harris have Denver fans feeling as high as their city’s altitude. The Lakers, however, continue their slide and can no longer use injury as the lone excuse for dropping 11 of their last 12 games. Since our second edition, which was published four weeks ago, the Lakers have dropped from 13th to 27th or seven spots every two weeks.

Biggest Jumps: Washington Wizards (+10), Denver Nuggets (+7), Dallas Mavericks (+6)

Biggest Falls: Los Angeles Lakers (-7), Portland Trail Blazers (-7), Detroit Pistons (-7) Continue reading

Tag: Los Angeles Lakers (Page 1 of 2)

NBA Power Rankings (1/19/22)

“Built to Lose” Book Special With Jake Fischer

Brad Botkin Previews West: Spurs “Not Good Enough” for Playoffs

LeBron’s Lakers With Harrison Faigen, Eric Pincus

Matt Hill on His Projects, Lonzo Ball Fascination

Sean Derenthal: Lonzo Ball Could Be Draft’s “Best Player or Basically Unplayable”

Clippers Sail into Third, Hawks Rise Eight Spots (Power Rankings: April 12, 2017 Edition)

Darius Soriano: “Onus Is on Lakers’ Player Development Folks” to Maximize Potential

Dan Devine: Pelicans’ “Bully Ball” Could Take Toll on Warriors in Postseason (Trade Deadline Special)

Wizards Cast Spell, Climb 10 Spots (Power Rankings: Dec. 23, 2016 Edition)

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