Post by Lakers GM on Feb 26, 2006 15:31:35 GMT -5
Last year, it was Bill Laimbeer's turn. This year, the franchise cornerstones returning to the Lakers are James Donaldson and Darrell Griffith. With their talent they bring renewed optimism and a burden to, along with core players PF Josh Boone and PG Ron Steele, return a once marquee franchise to the playoffs.
Luckily for LA fans, GM Aaron Haberman thinks this is his team's year to end the team's playoffs drought. They haven't made it since his first season, 2008-09, and were only close last season, when they finished one game behind Memphis. The talent, it seemed, was there. Haberman's intent was to only do deals that he thought were both immediately and long-term beneficial to the team. With the new-look roster, many feel he's done just that.
"I wasn't looking to dump anyone, but I knew there was room for improvement. We kept some of our biggest contributors in Ron and Josh, and only dealt LaMarcus and Andre for equal talents. It's sad to see them gone, but I couldn't be more ecstatic about the additions we've made. When we dealt Darrell and James, it wasn't because we didn't think they were stars. And both made us regret the moves. Now they're back, and so too is our caliber of play," Haberman said.
For all involved, it's deja vu and a weird crossing of paths. Once teammates, Donaldson and Griffith were separated from each other and dealt for each other in the same day. It was perhaps the strangest flurry of moves Haberman has done. At that point, fans were distressed. The roster featured Darrell, James and superstar PG Darius Washington. As a unit, though, they were underachieving. With the maturity of each player and a different cast of teammates, the team is off to a 3-2 start.
Haberman thinks the team is good enough to overcome their pores, but says the task of getting the team to the playoffs lies in three players. "If we're going to make it to the final 16 this year, which I really think we can, it's up to the stars. James needs to show he can perform to his potential--we've seen it early on, and he needs to keep it up. Darrell needs to show us he can be the first option offensively, the guy the offense revolves around. And he needs to take on the task of guarding opponents sometimes eight inches taller than he is. As far as Ron Steele is concerned, he's been everything we've asked for. He just needs to keep up his play," Haberman said.
Alas, though, it wouldn't be an LA roster if there weren't some oddities and flaws; indeed, this year, the flaws lie in the oddities. Nolan Smith and Darrell Griffith are both playing out of position at shooting guard and small forward. Haberman knows it's a lot to ask. "These guys could be thriving at their normal positions, but they're playing elsewhere because they know we need them there to field our best five players. Some nights it will hurt us--against most of our division rivals, we are way undersized on the wing. But it's a strength for us as well. They are quicker than their opponents most nights. If we can utilize this as a strength more often than we have it exposed as a weakness, I think fans will be happy with the results. Maybe it won't be this year. But long term, we have too much talent for this drought to continue," Haberman said.
Luckily for LA fans, GM Aaron Haberman thinks this is his team's year to end the team's playoffs drought. They haven't made it since his first season, 2008-09, and were only close last season, when they finished one game behind Memphis. The talent, it seemed, was there. Haberman's intent was to only do deals that he thought were both immediately and long-term beneficial to the team. With the new-look roster, many feel he's done just that.
"I wasn't looking to dump anyone, but I knew there was room for improvement. We kept some of our biggest contributors in Ron and Josh, and only dealt LaMarcus and Andre for equal talents. It's sad to see them gone, but I couldn't be more ecstatic about the additions we've made. When we dealt Darrell and James, it wasn't because we didn't think they were stars. And both made us regret the moves. Now they're back, and so too is our caliber of play," Haberman said.
For all involved, it's deja vu and a weird crossing of paths. Once teammates, Donaldson and Griffith were separated from each other and dealt for each other in the same day. It was perhaps the strangest flurry of moves Haberman has done. At that point, fans were distressed. The roster featured Darrell, James and superstar PG Darius Washington. As a unit, though, they were underachieving. With the maturity of each player and a different cast of teammates, the team is off to a 3-2 start.
Haberman thinks the team is good enough to overcome their pores, but says the task of getting the team to the playoffs lies in three players. "If we're going to make it to the final 16 this year, which I really think we can, it's up to the stars. James needs to show he can perform to his potential--we've seen it early on, and he needs to keep it up. Darrell needs to show us he can be the first option offensively, the guy the offense revolves around. And he needs to take on the task of guarding opponents sometimes eight inches taller than he is. As far as Ron Steele is concerned, he's been everything we've asked for. He just needs to keep up his play," Haberman said.
Alas, though, it wouldn't be an LA roster if there weren't some oddities and flaws; indeed, this year, the flaws lie in the oddities. Nolan Smith and Darrell Griffith are both playing out of position at shooting guard and small forward. Haberman knows it's a lot to ask. "These guys could be thriving at their normal positions, but they're playing elsewhere because they know we need them there to field our best five players. Some nights it will hurt us--against most of our division rivals, we are way undersized on the wing. But it's a strength for us as well. They are quicker than their opponents most nights. If we can utilize this as a strength more often than we have it exposed as a weakness, I think fans will be happy with the results. Maybe it won't be this year. But long term, we have too much talent for this drought to continue," Haberman said.
