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To Live and Die in L.A.

OK, Laker fans. It‘s time to come out of hiding and let me know what you think about the team’s off-season moves?

Will Kobe Bryant and the new lineup be enough to return to the playoffs next season? Is Kobe capable of leading the team to another title anytime soon? If so, how soon? Or have you suddenly switched your allegiance to the Miami Heat, the new home of Shaquille O’Neal?

Also, are you no longer just saying the name of Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak, choosing instead to spit it? Or how about new coach Rudy Tomjanovich and new players like Lamar Odom and Caron Butler, and after last week’s trade with Boston, Chris Mihm and Chucky Atkins?

Send your answers to these and other L.A.-related questions to me at samico22@netzero.com. I’ll print the best responses next time.

Until then, here are five thoughts about the new-look Lakers:

1. Trading Shaq was a horrible move, I don’t care how you spin it. A player like O’Neal comes along, what, every 10 years? A center like O’Neal comes along even less often.

2. At the same time, it doesn’t surprise me that it came to this. In order to win a championship, you need talented players with large egos -- and lots of them. And too many egos in the same room at the same time is a recipe for conflict. That’s true of any working environment, not just sports. But we’ve seen this before in the NBA, with Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and the old Chicago Bulls. They won six titles in the 1990s, all of which came during seasons that consisted of backstabbing of teammates and bad-mouthing of management. Eventually, the front office said ENOUGH.

3. That’s not to excuse the Lakers’ front office from this mess. Owner Jerry Buss has a reputation for meddling with his basketball men, and word is, it was Buss’ decision (and not GM Kupchak’s) to deal Shaq. Apparently, Buss was upset with O’Neal’s demands for a contract extension -- during the preseason. The owner also believed O’Neal when he repeatedly said he wouldn’t play for any coach other than Phil Jackson. With Jackson out of the picture, Buss didn’t want to take any risks that O’Neal would purposely report to camp overweight or with a chemistry-killing attitude.

4. The Lakers could have done worse than Odom, the best player received in any of the off-season moves. His attitude and work-ethic are much better than they were during his Clipper days, and he’s unquestionably one of the most versatile big men in the game, as Odom has strong ballhandling and passing skills. The knock against him is that he’s injury-prone and just one strike away from being banned for violating the league’s drug policy. On the court, Odom tends to hold on to the ball too long before making something happen. He needs to realize that most basketball players only have possession of the ball for a total of one-to-two minutes each game -- so all decisions must be made quickly.

5. Remember the start of last season, when the Lakers’ lineup featured four future Hall of Famers (Bryant, O’Neal, Karl Malone, and Gary Payton)? Bryant is the only one left, and this year’s lineup will look something like this: C Vlade Divac; PF Odom; SF Butler; SG Bryant; PG Atkins. Although the bench is deep with Devean George, Mihm, Kareem Rush and Luke Walton, I can’t see the Lakers winning much more than half their games. Fifty victories would be a surprise.

6. I realize that I said five thoughts, but you know me … I can’t help but ramble. Anyway, you should know that I was extremely impressed with Sasha Vujacic, the Lakers’ first-round draft pick. Vujacic is a 6-foot-7 point guard that looked a lot like a European Pete Maravich during summer league play. L.A. fans will love him because he’s flashy, a little cocky, and will be the best they’ve seen since Magic Johnson. I really mean that.

Declining Dream Team

It won’t be long before the United States fails to medal in Olympic basketball. Some of it has to do with the rest of the world catching up, more of it has to do with the Americans getting WORSE.

If you saw Team USA stink up against Italy -- then need a garbage basket at the final buzzer from Allen Iverson to beat Germany -- you know what I’m talking about.

But what do you expect?

In other nations, they force their players to learn the fundamentals, the value of cutting to the basket and finding the open man for an easy score. In America, we heap accolades and shoe contracts on teen-agers before they ever even learn how to shoot.

U.S. basketball fans had to be disgusted to watch Italy put on a clinic against NBA All-Stars. I know I sure was. Carmelo Anthony, Stephon Marbury, Shawn Marion and the gang looked as if they weren’t sure whether this was basketball or some form of weird Olympic racquet sport. Plus, it’s not like Italy is a force in international play.

But this is what happens when a player like Sebastian Telfair, who probably couldn’t start for most Division I college teams, is drafted with the No. 13 overall pick and receives a huge shoe contract before ever stepping on an NBA court. What incentive does he have to get better? And believe me, there’s plenty about Telfair’s game that needs improving.

This isn’t an indictment of Telfair as much as our basketball system. I’ll get into it more in a few weeks -- including another in-depth bashing of the shoe companies -- but right now I want to answer an e-mail from Ricky Heidelman (San Francisco), who asked, “What would the final score be if the current Team USA played the original Dream Team of 1992?”

Dear Ricky, my honest opinion: Original Dream Team 117, current Team USA 73.

Preps-to-Pros Talk

-- Sharman Willis (Philadelphia) wrote, “I love Ryan (Jones) and the guys at Slam Magazine too (especially Lang Whitaker), but come on! ‘Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady and Kevin Garnett’? Of the three, Kobe is the only one who’s won anything. And he did it with the help of the most dominant player in the league, not to mention the coach who is tied for owning the most championship rings in Phil Jackson. Don't get me wrong, I love McGrady and Garnett as players, but not one of them (including Kobe) did anything to make their team or the league better in their first two years. You can stop talking about the drafting of preps if you like, because it is a tired issue that is not likely to change anytime soon. But the truth is, the league is weakening because of it.”

-- Bill Fairbanks wrote, “Kobe will never be on a Finals team again. How many shots does McGrady need to make his average? Garnett is indeed a PLAYER, but how many prep stars have failed to make the team? KG is one of a hundred or even thousand.”

-- Iain Soder (Halifax, Canada) wrote, “I'm just plain angry that Dwight Howard went No. 1. There's a player like him in every draft. I don't think there should be an age limit, I'm just sick and tired of GMs drafting one-in-a-million-chance players over proven collegians.”

-- Jason Ward (Deltona, Fla.) wrote, “Shooting in the NBA has gotten horrible over the last seven-to-10 years -- which is about the time that a lot of high schoolers started getting drafted every summer.”

Carlos Boozer Talk

-- Jim French (Dayton, Nev.) wrote, “You and I both know that (Cavaliers GM) Jim Paxson and owner Gordon Gund tried to ‘lowball’ Boozer, but as young as he is, Boozer turned the tables on them. I was a union negotiator for many years and believe me, the Cavs situation is an old story about upper management and their ‘horse manure’ policies. Good for Carlos!”

-- J.R. Stewart (Salt Lake City) wrote, “The Cavs deserve a little ‘credit’ for their greed, too. They wanted to avoid the collective bargaining agreement and tie up Boozer long term for 60 to 40 percent of his value. I don't think they are as dumb and innocent as pictured. Fortunately for the Cavs, Boozer maintains his stance that no agreement was made. Otherwise, the Cavs would be facing two suspensions and three lost first-round picks, a la the Minnesota Timberwolves and the infamous ‘cocktail napkin contract’ with Joe Smith.”

-- Al Rachele (Roosevelt, Utah) wrote, “Wasn’t the Cavs’ offer to Boozer an illegal deal? They ought to be fined.”

(Dear, Al. In a letter to fans posted on the team’s Web site, Gund said there was no agreement, other than the Cavs and the Boozer camp established that they would ‘trust’ each other. That’s not against legal rules -- although even I can admit that the Cavs were pushing the boundaries.)

-- Dean Nardi (Knoxville, Tenn.) wrote, “I'd wait a while before I get too excited about Drew Gooden filling Boozer's shoes. From what I've seen of Gooden, the ball stops when it gets in his hands. Sometimes he'll do something good with it -- but too many other times you're looking at a play that'll make you shake your head.”

Nuts in New Jersey?

Christophe Zosso (Geneva, Switzerland) wrote, “Are the New Jersey Nets completely nuts or are they building for the future? I used to love this team, but it let Kenyon Martin and Kerry Kittles go, and for what? A few draft picks? Please give your thoughts about the Nets.”

Dear Christophe, the Nets apparently didn’t believe they could ever return to the Finals or win a championship with their old lineup, so they blew up the roster. Mostly, they wanted to upgrade Kittles’ shooting guard spot, something they might try to do via the draft. The important thing is that Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson are still in New Jersey. The Nets can still build something special around those two -- but sometimes, you have to take a step back to get better. As it is, I see the Nets finishing second, at worst, in the new Atlantic Division.

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