they are allready making a serious championship run

Kobe did what he had to do to motivate his teammates/organization to catch up with his passion for championships. If Bynum keeps maturing and can be consistent, there would not be a bigger three in the game...not the Boston Pea Party, not the Phoenix Crumbs, and not even the San Antonio Purrs

Kobe Fisher
Odom Bynum Ariza

Yes.....Ariza

hasnt kobe brought out the best in ariza 2!

Who would trade for Kwame Brown? Not even the Knicks. This is a pick that Jordan will always be remembered for. What did you see MJ? This guy can't play.

The Lakers are playing well, Bynum is turning into a double-double machine. Give Kobe another reliable weapon and he could make things interesting.....

I'm not sure the lakers are already making a championship run. we'll have to wait and see if they get past the first playoff round.

If they could get a Charles Oakley-type for the post, they'd be tough to beat. The problem is, I'm not sure that there is anyone like that out there.

What they need is that 6th man to come off the bench and score 18-20 points for them while Kobe and Odom rest. They need a Manu or Ben Gordon... then we can talk playoffs.

talk playoffs ur kidding me rnt u they are 22 11 beat suns twice denver twice 2-1 vs jazz... they are beating the good teams... the only problem is they dont beat up on the bad ones like suns... how could they miss the playoffs the way they are playing... u have no bball brain.. watch a laker game before u make silly comments like that....

and why are they in such desperate need for a 6th man they have the second best bench in the nba! thats a retarded comment.. and also they dont have to be able to beat up on bad teams like the suns in the playoffs because they are all good teams... give me jazz or suns first round and i gaurantee at least a 4-2 victory.

You talk as if making the playoffs was actually an accomplishment. I meant actually getting anywhere in the playoffs. And I never said their bench was bad. I was just stating that they need that go-to type guy coming off their bench. You wouldn't take B. Gordon or Manu and stick them on your bench? You'd stick with what you have now if a deal like that was possible?

A deal like that would NEVER be possible unless we let go of KEY players. Of course we would take a BG or Manu for KWAME "Hold us Down" BROWN...but that is NOT going to happen bcause noone is STUPID enough to do that. We already have, admit it or not, one of the elite teams in the League. Only thing stopping a run to the Finals is the injury bug. Check ESPN, we are ranked THREE!!!!!! We have performed outstanding when Kobe is cold, we have competed with all the great teams with the exception of Boston, and have one of the Leagues best records...playoff contenders? You Better Believe it!!!

as a matter of fact im just pointing out that playoffs are pretty much a certainty... and i believe the lakers have the talent to go deep into the playoffs.
and do u really think the lakers wouldnt want gordon or manu... but how the hell would they get either... anyway wat im saying is a dominate 6th man is a rareity and i dont think that is the lakers biggest need considering they have the second best bench in the nba.. the lakers really need a good pf... not a superstar but someone like a gooden or someone like that...

and i do think kwame and farmer would be a great deal considering any team would benifit from kwames expiring contract and a pg with farmers potential.

They are "making a serious championship run" in the same sense as the Warriors, Hornets, Wizards, Hawks and all the other first round exits.

As for whether or not Kobe stays... We'll have to wait to see what names he drops when his second annual "My team sucks" rant hits stores this June.

kb goat couldnt have said it better myself.... except u forgot about us having the 2nd best record vs west teams in the west. also a winning road record.
but as i said we are one piece away from being contenders..... a good pf.

cleveland are going mad looking for a pf so are miami.
kwame and farmer for either udonis haslem or drew gooden. both stretch the d because they can shoot mid range and both are ok on the boards.

that would leave us with a line up of


bynum/ mihm
gooden or udonis/ turiaf
odom/ walton
bryant/ vujacic
fisher/ crittenton

rad, ariza
CONTENDERS
would free up more minutes for crittenton to develop and if u have seen him play u know wat he is capable of. odom can play sf which creates a mismatch for nearly every team. and with all the offensive weapons on the bench they will benifit from all the open looks kobe gives them.

yep jay ur a hater and have no bball iq

and oops i meant cleveland and miami are going mad looking for a pg not pf sorry.

Not a hater, just a realist. Kobe is who he is once once he realizes that he's not going to win the MVP and is not currently leading the league in scoring, this entire "pre"season goes out the window.

The Lakers have won 4 playoff games the last 3 seasons with essentially the same team they have now. Win a playoff series and you may be able to talk about being contenders.

I like your points, but I must disagree with 2 things kmahl...1) we have the best, deepest bench in the leaque, 2) We MUST keep Farmar, Phil Jackson is a Genius...he has created a Primary team, a Secondary team, and tossed in a few subs. The P team and S team are BOTH lethal. Farmar is the heart and sole of the S team (with the exception of Odom occasionaly playing on the S team also). Our only weak link is Kwame...and only bcause he is soft. If he had more heart, Im not sure that he Wouldn't be a dominate force in the league. Since he doesn't have that, he is a bust. Bottom line, Turiaf and Ariza are going to be great for us, we are getting stronger every game, and Every team in the league fears playing us in the playoffs due to the UNKNOWN CAPABILITY that Bynum will demonstrate by then

PS...Beware, Kobe already won 3 Titles when combined with a dominate center...He already knows how to win when paired with one, that is the X Factor