Steve Blake Discussion: Out Indefinitely (p. 102)

And though Nash will likely be sitting when Blake is on the court, some combination of Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Antawn Jamison or Dwight Howard will still be on floor with him.

Blake can knock down an open three-pointer and he's a decent passer, so his job will be to avoid turnovers, get the ball to Bryant, Gasol, Jamison or Howard and be ready to knock down an open shot.

If he can successfully do all the above while Nash catches a breather, Blake will have served his purpose.

Steve Blake looked good for the Lakers late last season and in the playoffs, earning many of the crunch time minutes over Ramon Sessions, and earning the trust of his coaches and teammates in the process. Several assistant coaches mentioned how consistent Blake has been in workouts this summer, and noted that he played for Eddie Jordan his first two seasons in the league for Washington. That he and Jamison are familiar with Jordan’s system is a nice benefit for the Lakers.

vladefan12 wrote:Blake will take Nash's starting role by the end of the year. His upside is limitless, and he is so much more athletic than Nash. Not to mention, he is a lock down defender. Nash will have the starting job for the first 20 games, that's it.

Janis Carr of the Orange County Register wrote:Steve Blake was wearing shoes at Lakers Media Day on Monday, which is a good sign.

Eight days ago, Blake suffered a puncture wound to his left foot when he stepped on a spike strip at a beach parking lot in Manhattan Beach, but should be back fully in another two weeks.

“I saw the doctor today and everything is looking great, it’s on pace,” Blake said. “I think it will heal pretty quickly.”

Blake, who was cleared to do spot shooting Monday, said he was headed to his truck in the parking lot to retrieve his cell phone when he briefly became distracted when someone called his name.

“I looked up and as I looked up, that’s when I stepped on the spike,” he said. “It’s an unfortunate situation, bad timing, but I think things always work out for the best.”

While Blake’s foot heals he will miss the early opportunity to work along side MVP point guard Steve Nash in the Lakers’ newly installed Princeton offense. Blake said the eight-time All-Star should have no difficulty picking up the new scheme.

“He’s such a good player, so talented that I think any offense there is, he will do great in,” said Blake, who will back up Nash. “It’s a little bit of a learning curve for everybody. He’s been in Phoenix for quite a long time, so I think it will be an adjustment. But, great players like himself pick things up pretty quickly.”

Blake said he doesn’t think the Lakers will be under any additional pressure this season with Dwight Howard and Nash on the roster. Many are picking the star-studded Lakers to win 70 games and take home the NBA championship.

“The pressure the past two years has been the same. It’s all about winning and winning big,” Blake said. “It’s no different than any other season except for a couple different faces — and we’re very glad to have those faces, that’s for sure.”

Meeks has a reputation as a pure shooter, but the Lakers may ask for him to do more than just hit the open looks that will naturally come his way.

“I’m going to be asked to guard the point guards a lot,” Meeks said. “I’m still young and I’m still quick and youthful. If they need me to do that a lot, I’ll do that

davriver290 wrote:Lol Steve really gets a lot of crap on this forum. Despite frustrating moments from Blake, he has done exceptionally well. He plays decent defense. He can stroke it. He is overpayed. But he comes and does what he was brought to do. He also looked worse before because of our god awful bench. Even Matt Barnes (who is not bad) looked awful.

davriver290 wrote:I think exceptional is a good word for him. He hasn't been awful but by no means amazing. He's average, and I think that's what we should expect from him. In his Blazers day he was what he is today. Spot up shooter, dribble up the court and make nice crisp passes.

KB24 wrote:How long before we can take a deep breath after getting rid of Luke's successor.

therealdeal wrote:

davriver290 wrote:I think exceptional is a good word for him. He hasn't been awful but by no means amazing. He's average, and I think that's what we should expect from him. In his Blazers day he was what he is today. Spot up shooter, dribble up the court and make nice crisp passes.

The word exceptional means unusually great or outstanding.

davriver290 wrote:Forgive my vocabulary guys lol. That's what I mean, he's been alright. What else do you expect from Steve Blake?

Lakerjones wrote:

davriver290 wrote:Forgive my vocabulary guys lol. That's what I mean, he's been alright. What else do you expect from Steve Blake?

^^ Cool. Yeah, he's been decent, but to me he's been too inconsistent. I want him to step it up a little and really hold it down with the second unit. On the plus side at least he'll have a talented backup shooting guard to work with this year in Meeks. He should also be able to set things up for Jamison. This is the season he really needs to show what he's capable of. If so the past is water under the bridge. But if not, he should be gone next year.

Doc Brown wrote:

davriver290 wrote:Forgive my vocabulary guys lol. That's what I mean, he's been alright. What else do you expect from Steve Blake?

I expect him to to step up and over a spike strip, but I was sadly disappointed.