What's a GM to do?

For argument's sake, let's assume we win the 4-peat. Let's say we sign Howard or Malone. Which PF would you dump and why?
Me, I would dump Mark Madsen. Slava is a project but since he just turned 24 this month, he is one that could blossom in 5 years to a GREAT player, or at least a GOOD one. Horry is beyond reproach IMHO and we need to help him to retire a Laker. Samaki may not be what we expected, but with Horry and Howard/Malone, Samaki is suddenly a GREAT player for his depth on our roster. The ony player that doesn't really fit is Mark Madsen. He is not old, but he is a month older than Samaki and his upside is slim to none. He already gives us all he has and Samaki (the only guy I consider to cut in Mark's stead) is better giving us about a third of what he has, forget if he gave half or even ALL. If mr. Walker developes at 30, we could have a great PF, or at least a good one. Malone or Howard can serve to help our projects improve their skills, so since Mark is not a project I say he goes. Thoughts?

dump samaki walker .... keep horry for another year if he's up for it .... as for slava you have to be concerned if he'll ever blossom into a player he can be, he obviously has the talent but the language barrier is slowing his progress, and keep madsen i just appreciate his work ethic so much

Lakers4PEAT wrote:dump samaki walker .... keep horry for another year if he's up for it .... as for slava you have to be concerned if he'll ever blossom into a player he can be, he obviously has the talent but the language barrier is slowing his progress, and keep madsen i just appreciate his work ethic so much

Yea...Madd Dogg never complains on a call, and I love that about him so much! Now adays players complain to much and get T-ed up. I feel u on the Samaki and Slava thing. I think Slava has a better shot stayin with the Lakers than Samaki does... Sad but true...

i would keep madd dogg and trade samaki and slava. remember, madsen is just as young as slava and even younger than samaki. he still has room for improvement. if we get him to work on his jumpshot, post game, and to calm down while on the floor (not to say he shouldn't be so agressive), we can turn him into a hard-nosed defensive PF. samaki just hasn't proved to be consistent, and slava can't play defense to save his life. keep horry, because he provides that veteran locker room presence that we need, especially throughout the playoffs (remember, he's won 5 NBA titles). i think madsen has a lotta potential and we need to help him develop.

I love MAddog not complaining bout the calls too, he always gets hammered and has to stay calm! GO MADDOG!

You must be crazy to get rid of Madsen!!!!!! He's the life of the team, and w/ his hustle plays, how can you miss that? Slava is OK, but I don't feel he has what it takes to run w/ the triangle. Samaki Walker has great experience w/ the team as well as Horry. I'd say dump Slava.... SORRY. He's had a long time to get used to this ballclub, and and doesn't seem to show improvement. He still looks lost out there after how many season w/ the Lakers. This offense just doesn't seem to fit w/ his style of play.

Well, please allow me to once and for all time dispell some wholely untrue myths about Stanislav Medvedenko.

#1. He can't play defense.
[Swearing is not permitted at Clublakers. You must edit this post prior to submitting.]. I have seen him defend and stop (as effectively as any other of our PFs) Chris Webber, Karl Malone, Pao Gasol, Yao Ming. He has good footwork (exceptional for a euro) and his hands are actually getting to be a positive attribute. He gets fouls, but that is mostly due to his defensive intensity and the referees lack of familiarity with his style of play.

#2. His doesn't fit in the offense.
MORE [Swearing is not permitted at Clublakers. You must edit this post prior to submitting.]! Karl Malone is a PF that thrives off of his 15 footer, JUST LIKE SLAVA. So if Slava doesn't fit, then neither does Karl Malone. (I am not saying Slava is as good as Karl, just that his style is very similar)

#3. He doesn't do the little things.
UNBELIEVABLE [Swearing is not permitted at Clublakers. You must edit this post prior to submitting.]. He tries as hard, brings as much energy (usually) and is nearly as intense as any other PF we have. He also is never on the floor. For someone who gets only 10 minutes, he averages 4 1/2 points and 2 1/2 rebounds. It think we could use that, couldn't we? Imagine if he got 35 minutes? At his current rate, he would get 15.4 ppg and 8.4 rpg, that's if he was as out of sync and rusty as he is when he gets the few and far between minutes that he gets. He is freakin' younger than Kobe for god's sake. He's foreign, but if we got an interpreter and actually gave him some consistent time on the floor, he could be quite a good power forward. HE JUST NEEDS TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY BY ACTUALLY PLAYING IN REAL GAMES. THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR REAL EXPERIENCE AND NO AMOUNT OF YELLING AND PUNISHMENT, OR EVEN MOTIVATION AND HEADGAMES IS GOING TO CHANGE THAT FACT! He is not some scrub, he could blossom into a great player, if we give him a fukin' chance!