Trade distractions.???

I wouldn't be surprised if we all get surprised by the player we pick up during Free Agency, I think Phil knows that many teams will try to pick up the player we want, so he may be using some players like Payton and Malone as a distraction. Last season Phil was very interested in Jason Terry, yet we have not heard his name pop up, it seems kind of funny. I think the Lakers are more of need at the 1, the Lakers can win without a great 4.
The Lakers have many holes to fill, Cook and Walton may not contribute much next year, we need a third option badly.

Any possible sign and trade deals we can offer Atlanta?

How much is Jason Terry worth?

We are at need at the one? How so? Nobody is gonna successfully back up Shaq LB, but a guy like Elden Campbell could certainly help.

We slept on a deal with Atlanta last season just befor th deadline, if I am not mistaken it would have sent Horry,Rush and one other player to Atlanta for Terry and Ratliff. This would have been a great trade for the Lakers, but was not taken because Kobe and Shaq wanted to try and win with the same core players. If the deal is still on the table dont be suprised if it gets done!

Why don't the Lakers pick uip Rafer Alston? He is a solid player for the minimum. He sure proved his handling and speed as Skip to my Lou.

whoa, I didn't know Raefer was Skip to My Lou... that's tight. we need athleticism though. no matter who we get.

Off Topic............

Man! Can you imagine the comments and the shock from the rest of the And1 ballers, if we did pick up Skip and won the championship with him contributing? I'm sure there'd be some serious hatin' going on.

You wise. I think Jason Terry is exactly who the Lakers are looking at. Why? Because He's younger, plays aggressive defense, and has good ball handling skills. He will also see looks that he has never seen in his career before.
Plus, Jerry West loves this guy, and Mitch and Jerry still talk quite often.

Don't be surprised to see Karl Malone in a Lakers jersey though. Phil is looking for a vet that wants to win badly. He is hoping that this desire to win might rub off on some of the players that have gotten used to thinkink they don't need to show up to win.

Also watch for a James Posey deal. he hasn't come up on anyones radar, but I personally that James has been spending some time in LA since the end of the season.