ESPN First Take: Can Kobe And Nash Co-Exist?

I see Skip's lips moving but alI I hear is "blah blah blah look at me try to stay relevant by creating drama"

gcclaker wrote:I miss the days when sports reporters were ACTUALLY sports reporters. Reported the game, talked ABOUT the game and not resort to speculation or sensationalist garbage.

Ahh the good ole days.

puffyusaf#2 wrote:

gcclaker wrote:I miss the days when sports reporters were ACTUALLY sports reporters. Reported the game, talked ABOUT the game and not resort to speculation or sensationalist garbage.

Ahh the good ole days.

^^ Sad but true. You have horrid "reporters" in the LA Times sports section like TJ Simers and a guy like Plaschke who can write but knows nothing about basketball and still covers the Lakers. Back in the Showtime era we had award winning sports writers like Jim Murray. Then on radio we had to suffer through this whole point/counterpoint, bad guy/good guy routine led by Steve Hartman just trying to stir things up, and you've got loudmouths like Petros . . . Ugh. Now it's these buffoons. Even on Lakers coverage now we're stuck with Billy Mac doing play by play when we used to have Chicky Baby.

Devo was right. De-evolution is in full effect in our culture.

Steven A is generally the loud voice of reason. I truly believe Kobe is fine with guys that take shots and make plays. What he hates is guys that are afraid to take shots and make plays. Steve Nash is a guy he immensely respects and has no issue with Nash running things. Kobe deferred in the Olympics as well.

I would also add everyone wants to mention the Heat saying it took them time to jell. This is more like the Celtics when the big 3 got together. Why? Because the pieces fit naturally without anyone changing their basketball personality. Kobe now has a PG that can run the offense and is as good a shooter in the league. Gasol played with Bynum so working with Howard will be a breeze. Howard may need to adjust some but that should be minor because Gasol will make it work. If MWP plays like he did in the second half of the season...look out.

Keys to the season...health and minutes for the older guys. They probably go hand and hand. If the Lakers are healthy come playoffs I don't think anyone can beat them. When I saw OKC/Miami what I saw was the two teams with the most talent not the best basketball teams. People need to remember that the Lakers should have beat OKC 2 other times but ran out of gas (can you say worst bench in the league). You take the same basic team from last year, add Nash, Jamison, Meeks and swap Howard for Bynum. OKC is in trouble...as long as the team is healthy. OKC's offense is all perimeter. Miami's offense is all slash. No post game.

^Fair points. Kobe's not going to have any problem adjusting his game because he is deferring to one of the greatest point guards of all time. It won't be a problem. Quite frankly, they're not only going to co-exist they are going to flourish with one another.

The end goal is a championship and sacrificing is apart of that process to meet that goal to give Kobe is 6th and Nash is 1st. It's going to be fun seeing it all unfold...

lakerswiz wrote:I am 100% serious when I say this, but these guys are ruining sports and they're ruining NBA basketball for me. I pay them no attention. I don't watch their show. Yet everyday we seemingly have a new thread about something they said that day.

Stop it. These two guys do not matter. At all. Their opinions are not worth anymore than the opinions of the members of this forum. They are not special. College degrees don't give them basketball knowledge. Which they sure as hell don't willingly display. These guys are trash and the fact that people still tune in to watch them baffles my mind.

Preach!!

cthroatgtr wrote:Steven A is generally the loud voice of reason. I truly believe Kobe is fine with guys that take shots and make plays. What he hates is guys that are afraid to take shots and make plays. Steve Nash is a guy he immensely respects and has no issue with Nash running things. Kobe deferred in the Olympics as well.

I would also add everyone wants to mention the Heat saying it took them time to jell. This is more like the Celtics when the big 3 got together. Why? Because the pieces fit naturally without anyone changing their basketball personality. Kobe now has a PG that can run the offense and is as good a shooter in the league. Gasol played with Bynum so working with Howard will be a breeze. Howard may need to adjust some but that should be minor because Gasol will make it work. If MWP plays like he did in the second half of the season...look out.

Keys to the season...health and minutes for the older guys. They probably go hand and hand. If the Lakers are healthy come playoffs I don't think anyone can beat them. When I saw OKC/Miami what I saw was the two teams with the most talent not the best basketball teams. People need to remember that the Lakers should have beat OKC 2 other times but ran out of gas (can you say worst bench in the league). You take the same basic team from last year, add Nash, Jamison, Meeks and swap Howard for Bynum. OKC is in trouble...as long as the team is healthy. OKC's offense is all perimeter. Miami's offense is all slash. No post game.

It wasn't just more talent.. OKC is the best team in the league off screens.. They run that offense to perfection, & we were terrible at defending that. I think BBIQ alone makes Nash a better defender against those screens, & Dwight is obviously a huge upgrade from Bynum in that department. Pau will still struggle on screens, Kobe & Ron are both coming into this season lighter & presumably quicker.. Meeks is a capable defender off the bench & will help us limit Kobe in stretches, enabling him to play defense like he's capable of if we need him to shut down Harden or Westbrook. I also think the Nash to Dwight & Pau pick & rolls will kill them inside & we'll do a much better job of getting their bigs in foul trouble. overall I think we are much improved in our capability to deal with OKC.

Think about this, Nash and Kobe pick and roll, what are you gonna do? Do you send Kobe's guy over to stop Nash from turning the corner or do you chase Nash around the screen and offer him an offer 18 footer or opening into the lane? Pick your poison...remember we won a Finals game with that 1/2 pick and roll with Kobe and FISHER mind you. Nash and Kobe will beat that play to death. Their skills fit perfectly.