Antawn Jamison Discussion: Cockroach

Mark Medina of the LA Times wrote:The countdown before Lakers training camp remains a little more than a week away.

The countdown before Dwight Howard returns to the court remains another story. The Lakers have already announced the Lakers center will miss at least the Lakers' preseason opener Oct. 7 against Golden State as he rehabs from back surgery. His workouts beginning last week with the Lakers training staff included core stabilization, upper and lower body strength, light running and shooting. He's not expected to participate in training camp beginning Oct. 2. And in his introductory news conference last month, Howard acknowledged he may miss the season opener Oct. 30 against the Dallas Mavericks if it means ensuring his back becomes fully healthy.

Sports Illustrated's Sam Amick reported it's likely Jordan Hill will start at power forward, while Pau Gasol slides at center. But the Lakers' key reserve in Antawn Jamison will likely have an increased role too. For his part, the 37-year-old power forward maintains he's ready.

"That's something I knew coming in that there would be times I'm playing significant amount of minutes or times I'd have a certain role coming off the bench," said Jamison, who's played both as a starter and reserve in his 14-year career. "Fortunately for me, I've been in just about every scenario you can imagine. Whether it's starting for a couple games, keeping my role in coming off the bench ... I will come in and help out this team as much as possible. Whatever is asked of me to do, I'll do it."

The Lakers are already counting on Jamison to boost a bench that finished last season last in the NBA in total offense (20.5 points per game), 20th in shooting percentage (21.8%) and 28th in efficiency (27.2). Meanwhile, Jamison believes he's averaged a stellar 19.5 points per game because he's maximized his longevity through extensive off-season training.

Jamison said he's stayed active since the Miami Heat dispatched the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games of the 2012 NBA Finals. During that time, Jamison said he's gone through daily yoga exercises to enhance his conditioning and flexibility. He's worked with his physical therapist on strengthening his glute and quadriceps muscles as well as his hamstrings to minimize his defensive weaknesses.

"I'm an old man now," Jamison said. "The off-season for me is how I get better. It's how I stay in shape. It's how I prevent injuries. This off-season has been more mental, especially with knowing I was coming here. I'm being focused, paying attention to detail and making sure I'm doing the proper steps to ensure my body can withstand 82 games and a long playoff series."

Still, Jamison said he has a long way to go.

When he's played in informal workouts at the Lakers' practice facility in El Segundo, Jamison said he and various assistant coaches notice his shooting form has been inconsistent.

"All of my misses, I'm leaning forward and aiming it instead of just shooting the ball," Jamison said. "I had a problem with that in the past. I always move left and right. But that's one of the things I've been trying to correct this off-season by going straight up."

Nonetheless, Jamison said he'll immediately correct those issues. After all, his large responsibility leading the Lakers' bench only increased with the strong possibility Howard will sit on the sidelines in the coming weeks.

JSM wrote:

Mike Trudell ‏@LakersReporter

You can tell while watching a scrimmage why teammates like Antawn Jamison so much. Constantly positive & encouraging.

Mike Trudell ‏@LakersReporter

Jamison is also showing why he's averaged about 20 ppg for his career, hitting the last 2 game winning shots, both triples.

Battle Tested20 wrote:

Mike Trudell ‏@LakersReporter

Jamison is also showing why he's averaged about 20 ppg for his career, hitting the last 2 game winning shots, both triples.

https://twitter.com/LakersReporter

Balance&Options24 wrote:throughout his career I actively rooted for Jamison eventhough he wasn't a Laker. He caught some bad breaks on crappy teams. Out of the many reason I want us winning a title, watching a guy like antwan win his 1st championship is something I want to see. He seems like such a good dude.

JSM wrote:BUT not trying to be biased, but I think ours might be the most natural fit and make for the most cohesive unit. Everyone on our bench has as unique skill set they bring to the table and I think their talents should blend together quite well.

Also, Jamison provides another respected locker room leader and another good cop to Kobe's bad cop. We really missed that with the loss of Fish, but Nash and Jamison make up for that.

JSM wrote:Between Trudell video with Jamison and the twitter reports from the scrimmages, this signing just keeps sounding better and better. He's vital to the success of this team as the anchor of our bench -- both on and off the court. It's nice to pickup a veteran for the bench who's tank isn't on E, Jamison can still put up double digit scoring games in his sleep; in fact, if he doesn't average 12 points a contest, I'll be disappointed. With him leading the charge of our second unit, we have one of the best second units in the league, something we haven't had in a long, long time. We don't have the best or deepest -- Clipps, Knicks, Mavs, and Heat also bolstered their secondary and have some serious fire power in that department. BUT not trying to be biased, but I think ours might be the most natural fit and make for the most cohesive unit. Everyone on our bench has as unique skill set they bring to the table and I think their talents should blend together quite well.

Also, Jamison provides another respected locker room leader and another good cop to Kobe's bad cop. We really missed that with the loss of Fish, but Nash and Jamison make up for that.