A good trade for the lakers….IF we need one.

First off, the lakers dont need to make a big time move. We made it to the NBA finals last year, after only getting Gasol in midseason, and without Andrew Bynum and a healthy Ariza. Throughout this year, the lakers will learn how to play with each other better. Add Bynum, who is a dominant defensive force, and a good finisher, and a healthy Ariza, a long, athletic defender (played amazing in streches in the finals), and you have a much better team. With Ronny likely gone, there is another incentive not to move Lamar, who can play the four alongside either Pau, or Bynum. Taking all this into consideration, one question needs to be answered: Why the hell does everyone want to blow this up, and trade lamar, before even seeing this team play together?
As far as Ron Artest goes, that is a horrible idea. Artest is talented, and an amazing defensive player. However, he is crazy. There is constant drama with him, more so, than Shaq or Kobe. This drama also gets in the way of his playing well, which it never did for our old dynamic duo. Artest has already destroyed one contender, Indiana, by running into the stands of the Palace in Detroit, and hitting a fan. Indiana’s window then closed without a championship. Not long after Ron got back after his year long suspension, he asked fo a leave of absence in mid-season to promote a rap cd. Very soon after believing he was the savior in sacramento, he is now exploding at the front office and coaching staff. Will he be comfortable being a 3rd/4th option? Staying with in the offense? Will he do something crazy to sabotage this great team, for once enjoying some actual chemistry? What will happen if he comes to the Lakers?
The end of out title hopes. He might, MIGHT, play one good season for us, in which case he is an upgrade over lamar, but not by a huge degree. That is IF he stays in the offense and knows his place. It is a contract year for Artest, making this unlikely. After next season though, which very well may end in a title, he will want a HUGE extension to satisfy his ego, which the Lakers cannot afford to give him. We are already paying Kobe, Bynum, Gasol huge amounts of money. Lamar meanwhile, loves this team, and is invested here, and REALLY wants to win. Therefore he is more likely to take a paycut. But Artest will become incensed if we dont offer him an amazing sum of money, and he will leave, maybe even to a competitor, essentially making it so we traded Lamar for Kenny Thomas’ contract. The solution? If Lamar must be traded, there is an answer.
Tayshaun Prince. The Lakers want to get a true, defensively skilled, small forward. With Tayshaun, he brings lentgh and skill which fit in the triangle, a defensive tenacity, a great attitude, and a proven winner. The Pistons need a scorer. Sheed and Billups’ ability to create is diminshing, and a long, talented scorer like lamar is exactly what they need. To make the salaries work, we would have to take on another contract, but that wouldn’t be an issue, considering we need a backup PF/C. The Pistons could sign and trade us Kwame for example, who the Lakers might go after anyway, to fill this void. This trade would make both teams better, and give the Lakers all they want on the defensive end, while not bringing in a risky player with an expiring contract like Ron Artest or Shawn Marion.
With a lineup of Fish/Kobe/Tayshaun/Pau/Bynum, and a bench mob of Farmar/Sasha/Ariza/Luke/Mihm/whoever we get to replace Ronny (probably Kwame) The Lakers will be in great shape for the next 4-5 years, with the best offense in the league, and an astonishingly good defense.