With Kobe Bryant still nursing offseason surgery on his torn Achilles tendon, the Los Angeles Lakers are one of the more unpredictable teams this season in the Western Conference.
If Bryant were healthy enough to start on opening night, the Lakers would be an interesting team. You can never count them out as long as the Vino is around. But with no timetable for when he may return to game action – and just as importantly, not knowing whether he can come back as half the player that he was last season – things appear to look rather bleak.
The good news is that Steve Nash and Pau Gasol – the two catalysts that will have to hold the fort until Bryant returns – are healthy and will look to play a major role after taking a step back last season. Nash, in particular, will look to handle much of the offense that he so brilliantly orchestrated while in Phoenix, but he’s 39 and there is no telling whether his body can handle the rigors of being one of the main options in an NBA offense at this point in his career. Gasol will look to re-establish himself as the go-to man down low, but it will be interesting to see if he’s ultimately the right player for Mike D’Antoni’s system.
Other than those two and maybe Chris Kaman, what they currently have on the roster are a whole bunch of role players who are mostly interested in playing offense but not so much on the defensive end. Some may try (Steve Blake, for example) but simply aren’t capable of holding it down against superior competition. How this group meshes in the regular season remains to be seen, but after seeing them in action on Tuesday, the now-retired Tracy McGrady doesn’t seem to have much faith:
Sitting here watching the Lakers, and I feel sorry for my boy Jellybean when he comes back!
— Tracy McGrady (@Real_T_Mac) October 23, 2013
In not so many words and not so subtly, McGrady pretty much managed to insult the entire Lakers roster. Although the Lakers beat the Utah Jazz 108-94, he clearly saw some things that left plenty to be desired. There are definitely question marks heading into the regular season, and it remains to be seen just how sorry the former All-Star will feel for Bryant when he returns.
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James Park is the chief blogger of Sheridan Hoops. Find him on twitter @SheridanBlog.
I want…some booty.
Ths clan lft a good situation n Toronto, w/ V. Carter, bcause he wntd “his own team.” Once he goi, wht’d he evr do? He dsn’t qualify to judge anything.
Ha and I’m sure your spelling never made your teachers to happy. T-Mac did a LOT in the NBA
You’re going to make fun of someone’s spelling, but you don’t know the difference between to and too. In your sentence, it should be too, not to.
Tracy is the sorry one here dude never even won a playoff series in his career not counting last year when he rode bench
Please stop with all this kobe propaganda. He doesn’t need a story written about him every day.
We get it you want us to like him.
But we don’t.
Then don’t click on the story.
Thank you! I don’t like Kobe! But seems all his fans want everyone to like him. I’m a huge LBJ6 Melo Amare J.R. Smith fan. Those guys are my favorite. And if people don’t like them oh well. But Kobe fans think everyone needs to like him or they don’t know anything about basketball lol
Everyone is entitled to like who ever they like. But most of you when asked ” why u don’t like Kobe?” They simply say I don’t know I just don’t like em…. All an all the man has payed his dues on the court so no everbody don’t have to like em but they must respect the game… My favorite line is if you don’t like Kobe you don’t like basketball simple as that. You don’t have to be a Kobe fan but if u appreciate the game of basketball you appreciate Kobe… # Mamba Fan. Out lol
Man please laker fans & KB24 fans just want one thing and that’s rings everything else is secondary PS YOU AINT GOT TO LIKE HIM BUT YOU MOST DEFINETLY HAVE TO RESPECT HIM .
You must like him cause u hating for no reason
Hhear we go with the hating
yall. Hate him but yet yall. Keep reading about him clowns stop hating on kobe the guy is a beast hate all u want he has no weakness n he is 35
Who cares what tracy says bum
Tracy was in the talks with kobe and avg more points at one time or another. He is two or three yrs younger should still be playing.
Then why take time to read and comment?
The lakers are trash , Kobe out there by himself, nick young the only hope out there with Kobe, this shit over blown
Ur team trash an over blown get ur rings right
McGrady… Wasn’t he a ball player for a minute? And he won all those championships. .. oh wait… No, he was the one who was all O and no D. Feel sorry for yourself, McGrady…
Shut ur ass up duck.. Tmac was of the best in the league for a very long time. Your he didn’t win shit cause he never had a healthy team.. When did Kobe ever did it by himself? Your sorry ass lakers are going to be worse then last year
They made the playoffs last year, oh and Tmac is known for never winning anything…maybe a scoring title…maybe. Tmac is a joke
^Now that’s just ridiculous. You’ll type all of that hatred online then probably try to disguise yourself as normal in public. Internet makes it too easy for the no-life mentally ill and obsessed personalities in this world, scary.
Kobe and the lakers will be alright.but will free agents come if dantoni is still the coach next season.he sure didn’t get along with carmelo did he?
Look we all know that little Buss will never be the doctor in LA. Dad owns that. And I think his little girl is a much better fit to run LA. But Kobe will give all he has as will Nash as will Pau and the rest of the team and all loyal Laker Fans. Who can blame Kobe? 5 rings is not to bad. I’m happy to watch him and he earned the right to go out however he wants and if he decided to take every shot in a game I wouldn’t blame him. The Lakers may need help and are setting themselves up great after this season to rebuild or make one final push with Vino. Trollers can just stop! It don’t make sense anymore. Kobe is top 5 ever to have played and it’s been great to watch. Now let’s wait and see as I can guarantee one thing. They will be motivated they will win more than half their games. And if Kobe gets in playoffs with Nash and Pau. Especially Nash you best watch out as these stars have something to prove. LA everyday all day! A LAKER FAN 4 LIFE!
Absolutely on point
The Lakers will be fine this year The Black Mamba going to strike and all y’all laker haters are going to be mad.
U full of shit bitch u have no idea what u talking about
How is a bitch gonna say that? This page is for men hoe go bake a cake
FINALLY CHRIS SHERIDAN & my boy Eric Pincus has been the same way lately! WHO IS GONNA PLAY DEFENSE FOR THE LAKERS??? They Dont have a defensive player on their team lol WTF is Dr Buss Kids doing??? They R Giving the keys 2 Cold Hearted Coach DTony 2 do what he wants..Hummm ask the knicks how that worked out LOL..This is Hilarious Because Im a Rockets Fan (Love my boy DMorey=Genuis & Hakeem)…Zach Lowe & Bill Simmons are RT Nick Young & Kobe will get into a fight on who should be taking the most shots for a non playoff team & I will tune to watch this Disaster & Unfortually Kobe/Laker Fans cant blame D12 or Shaq anymore..They will have to blame the real problem which is 12th in the West & #25th player In Kobe Bryant aka Want to be Jordan RT
Just because my handle is “@SheridanBlog”, that doesn’t make me Chris Sheridan 🙂
Dang had you stuck with “Hello my name is Pc3” you might have had an argument. But your a Rocket fan aka I can’t even get past my own State of Texas. Quit ranting hate who do you blame for your pathetic lack of basic fundamentals? Black Mamba all day any day wannabe be Jordan son that ain’t no insult…
It’s simple Kobe 5 rings n T-Mac 0
Whoops my bad James Park good articule RT
Well one thang we kno since ur a rocket fan hahahaha u wont see another ring in ur life but we kno tha lakers will always bounce back hater
Never been a fan of T Mac anyway shut-up
Stupid your a Rockets fan irrevlent since the mid to late 90’s lol and now you are the proud owner of the undisputed biggest hoe cake in all of sports lol and for the record Houston would give the right foot of everybody in Texas to be on the same level as THE MOST SUCESSFUL FRANCHISE IN SPORTS AKA L.A Lakers