Media Day

Media Day for the Los Angeles Lakers generally would mean, Kobe Time! However, with Odom’s shenanigans and the addition of Ron Artest, Kobe was the third wheel.

I was a little nervous with Artest loving the media attention on top of the Odom-Kardashian wedding, but then I saw this Kobe quote:

"We understand that we worked really hard to get to this point," Bryant said of beginning the title defense. "It took us a long time to get here, so it's not something we want to give up because of our own inability to move forward or to not take the season seriously or as focused as we did the year before. If somebody's going to take it from us, we want them to take it from us with us being 100 percent focused and locked in…There's not going to be any distractions. There weren't any distractions last year, the year before. Everything will be smooth.”

Kobe is the leader of this team and I know he will keep this squad in line for a repeat! Another plus, the NBA banned twitter during games which will at least eliminated one distraction.

Odom and Kardashian Tie the Knot

Lamar Odom and Khloe Kardashian were married, 9/27, in a private Beverly Hills location. Luke Walton, Sasha Vujacic, and Phil Jackson attended the ceremony.

This wedding is clearly a dumb move by Lamar. Why do I care? 1) I don’t want to see Khloe affect Odom’s on the court play. 2) Khloe is the ugliest of the three sisters! What are you thinking Lamar?

Anyway – Congratulations buddy!

Congrats Pau!

Pau Gasol hasn’t been sitting on his butt this offseason. Instead, he went out and got himself the Eurobasket Gold. He also nabbed the Eurobasket tournament MVP averaging 18.7 points, 8.3 boards, 2.2 blocks and 1.2 assists.

What a great year for the Lakers C/PF - I look forward to having that same production during the NBA’s 09-10 season.

The Eastern Conference Breakdown

Much like last year, the top 3 teams in the Eastern Conference will be fiercely competitive in 2009-10. The Boston Celtics, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Orlando Magic have all made significant improvements.

Boston added Rasheed Wallace to the already stellar cast of veterans. Rajon Rondo gained some confidence and clout from his playoff performance last season. If the Celt’s stay healthy, I wouldn’t mind seeing the Lakers get their revenge at the NBA Finals. Boston re-signed all of their significant role players as well.

Cleveland has added Shaquille O’Neal – Which is just about the only thing worth mentioning. Oh, assistant coach John Kuester left the team to become the head coach of the Detroit Pistons. Which means the reigning coach of the year, Mike Brown of Cleveland, will be forced to show his true colors – OVERATTED!

Orlando added Vince Carter and lost Hedu Turkoglu. Carter is an exciting player, but is on the downhill slide of his career. Look for Carter to either make or break the Magic’s chemistry. Hedu’s 3-point brilliance in the playoffs last year gave them the edge they needed to make it to the Finals. If I was Van Gundy, I would be a little worried about the loss of Turkoglu.

Playoff predictions in order:

1. Boston Celtics
2. Cleveland Cavaliers
3. Orlando Magic
4. Philadelphia 76ers
5. Atlanta Hawks
6. Miami Heat
7. Toronto Raptors
8. Chicago Bulls

Most Improved Team: The Raptors. With the addition of Hedu Turkoglu and a healthy Chris Bosh, they should be a force in the East. I wonder if ranking them 7th is a little low…Time will tell.

Sleeper: Washington Wizards – I expect Gilbert Arenas to sack up! Come on Agent Zero - You’ve got your money, now play some basketball!

Western Conference Breakdown

There is really only one team in the West that can challenge the World Champions, The San Antonio Spurs. All other competitors in the West are not even worth uttering in the same breath with the Lake Show.

If the Spurs can maintain a healthy Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker, they will be solid. The addition of Richard Jefferson will reap dividends. They have many of the same bench players returning as well. I expect them to challenge the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. By “Challenge,” I mean the Lakers will win in 6 games.

Here’s a peak at how the West will shake out for the playoffs:
1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. San Antonio Spurs
3. Denver Nuggets
4. Utah Jazz
5. Dallas Mavericks
6. Portland Trailblazers
7. New Orleans Hornets
8. Phoenix Suns

Lo Siento: Houston Rockets lost Yao Ming and Ron Artest…I’m not counting them out though, Houston could sneak in if the Suns continue their downward spiral.

Sleeper: The Los Angeles Clippers…With Blake Griffin and a healthy Baron Davis, this squad could be the NBA’s most improved team.

A Summer to Remember

Good things come in 3’s…so the saying goes. 1) World Champions, 2) Ron Artest, 3) Lamar Odom.

As a result of the Boston’s slaughtering of the Lakers in 2008, I was plagued with Shaq’s rap ringing in my ears, “last week Kobe couldn’t do wit out me!...Hey Kobe, tell me how my ass taste!” This June, Kobe cleared his name! The much anticipated and long awaited championship by the Lakers this June was a great start to a great off season.

About a 3 weeks later while on vacation in Mexico, my trip was enhanced with the great news that Ron Artest would sport the purple and gold. Instantly I smiled, then thought about the loss of a great team player, Trevor Ariza, which was quickly followed by hope that the Lakers would reel in Lamar Odom.

Happily the Lakers pulled the trigger and sealed our fate - A few more years of Championship glory! This has indeed been a summer to remember which will surely segue into a dynasty to remember. I'm looking forward to a great 50th season for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Two Weeks Out

Here is a snapshot of what you can expect in the next two weeks:

• Lakers Summerfantastic!
• Western Conference Competition
• Eastern Conference Competition
• My Expectations for 2009-10
• Summer League News?

I'm Back!!!!!

After my two year hibernation, I am back on the horse! With that, there will be a few minor changes. My Southern California Sports blog is no more. The topic of discussion will now surround Southern California’s only premier professional sports team – The Los Angeles Lakers!

I welcome all posts and comments. My contact information is provided in my profile if you ever want to get in touch.