The Los Angeles Lakers top Free Agent Targets

The Los Angles Lakers have not landed a big name free agent in quite some time and they are looking to change that this off-season. The question is how realistic is it that they can land a big name free agent this summer? Well it depends on their expectations. Any Lakers fan that thinks Durant will decide to join their team this summer will be extremely disappointed because it will not happen. But there are other free agents out there that can improve their team. Most specifically the center position. Without further ado here are some of the Lakers top free agent targets.

DeMar DeRozan

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DeMar DeRozan is near the top of the free agent talent poll this summer. With that said many teams want there chance at him, but so far DeRozan has expressed that he would like to stay with the Toronto Raptors. His number two option would most likely be the Lakers. Well why the Lakers? DeRozan grew up in Compton and the Lakers are his hometown team. By going to the Lakers he would immediately become the Lakers number one option and be the star of the team. He would also have the chance to be the face of the Lakers in the post Kobe era. The down fall for DeRozan joining the Lakers is they are a very young team. On one hand they could all develop into good players, but that will take some time. This means DeRozan would not be competing for a title any time soon. But if the Lakers go all in they could trade their young talent for another superstar to join DeRozan. In the end it is unlikely DeRozan ends up in L.A., but it is not out of the question.

Hassan Whiteside

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Another target for Lakers this summer will be Hassan Whiteside. From all the speculation Whiteside is apparently pretty high on the Lakers list of free agents. It makes sense for the Lakers. They would get a defensive minded big that would also provide rebounding. This would allow the Lakers to retain the young core four they have and add another talent to the one position they need to fill. The problem is Whiteside is 27. If the Lakers retain the 1-4 positions this summer that would make Whiteside three years older than the next oldest player in their starting five. So by the time the current roster starts to enter their prime Whiteside may be reaching the end of his prime. Overall for the Lakers basketball wise Whiteside makes sense, but he could end being a headcase for a team that already has a couple of them and young guys just learning the ropes. If the Lakers go after Whiteside they really should try to find veteran players to fill out the roster. Without a veteran in the locker room things could get out of hand.

Al Horford

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This is where Al Horford comes in. Horford is a small center, but in today's NBA it probably does not matter as much. What Horford would provide is another offensive weapon. That is about all though. He isn't a great defensive player or rebounder. Where he would help the Lakers is he would be a good leader for this young group of guys. He has been in the league for nine season and has had plenty of experience. The thing is Horford is now 30 and is probably looking to contend now. The Lakers do not provide that. Out of all the players the Lakers would like to sign he probably is not high on their list and the Lakers probably are not high on his list. 

Pau Gasol

Another free agents the Lakers would probably love to sign is Pau Gasol. Gasol played very well last season and would be a great addition to any team. Where the Lakers would have an advantage is Pau played for them before and he seemed to love the city and the team. For the Lakers that would be perfect. A veteran player and a champion who knows the team and the city. He would provide guidance and leadership while still being productive on the floor. For Gasol this does not make much sense. The problem is Gasol is 35. Unless he is satisified with his career to this point, then he probably will not sign with the Lakers. Most productive 35 year old players are looking to win a championship and if Gasol goes to the Lakers his days of competing for championships would be over. 

Probably the best thing for the Lakers to do is just keeping rebuilding this team. They have a solid core of young players now. If anything they should look for a veteran presence to be on the bench and a contributing big to start at center. It should be interesting to see what moves the Lakers make this summer.

What is the Nets plan?

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The Brooklyn Nets have just traded their second best player for the 20th pick in this years draft and future second round pick. What does this all mean for the Nets? Well I am going to break it down.

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First off the Nets traded away every first round pick they have until 2019. The only year they will have a pick is 2017, but most likely it will not be their own. So by getting a pick this year the Nets can start a rebuilding process much faster. They will also be making the team much younger. The down side of having a pick in this years draft is that the draft is not very deep. This will make it extremely hard for the Nets to find the diamond in the ruff even if it is the 20th pick.

Second, let's look at what this move does for the Nets Salary cap space for this upcoming season. The Nets had about 36 million dollars in cap space going into the summer, but by trading Young that figure jumps to around 48.5 million dollars. This would allow the Nets to sign multiple big name free agents, if they would even consider Brooklyn as a landing spot. If not the Nets do not have to use up the cap space this summer. They could very well stay on the rebuilding route they are on rather than opt for a quick rebuild. All that leads into the next point I am about to make.

If the Nets do not find a solid free agent to sign this summer, they will trade Brook Lopez. Lopez is in his prime now and still has two years left on his contract. This means that a team trading for him will get Lopez at his best while he is locked into what can be considered a cheap contract of $20 million a year. I say that because $20 million a year will no longer be considered a max contract so teams picking him up will get him at a great value. Now that the Nets have pulled the trigger on Young it might be time to trade Lopez too while they can still get a lot in return. The Nets could easily get back a solid starting player as well as first round draft pick or a developing player with high potential.

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That all leads up to tonight's draft. Is Sean Marks looking to pull off a huge draft night trade that can land the Nets a lottery pick, or is he just making subtle moves to help jump start this rebuild. All in all this trade is not horrible, but the Nets could have gotten much more for Young. In the end it opened up a lot of cap space and got the Nets a first round pick this year. Hopefully this is the start of good things to come.

NBA Summer Madness Has Begun

This time of year there is are so many things happening around the NBA. The NBA draft begins tonight and then in just a couple of weeks free agency begins. To top it all off teams are making trades to improve their roster or start a rebuild. This year it didn't take long for the trades to take place with two pretty big trades happening yesterday.

The first trade I'll talk about is the three team trade between the Pacers, Jazz, and Hawks. The Hawks seem to be starting what could be a rebuilding process. They traded Jeff Teague to Indiana and in return they got the 12th pick in this years draft courtesy of the Jazz. As for the Jazz they received George Hill in return. This add's more back court depth to their team as well as a veteran presence.

AP Photo/David Zalubowski

The biggest winner in the trade has to be the Indiana Pacers. They gave up a good point guard in Hill, but they get a much more scoring oriented guard in Teague. This should take some of the pressure off Paul George to score the basketball. All the Pacers need to do now is find a stretch four that can spread the floor and open up driving lanes for Ellis, Teague, and George.

The losers in this trade are the Hawks. They ultimately made this deal because Teague wanted out and they want more cap room to resign Al Horford and Kent Bazemore. In the end they will now free up more playing time for Dennis Schroder who has been playing backup to Teague for years now. It should be interesting to see how all three teams fair next season with their new acquisitions.

The next big trade that happened yesterday was the Chicago Bulls traded Derrick Rose to the New York Knicks. The Knicks traded Robin Lopez, Jose Calderon, and Jerian Grant to Chicago for Derrick Rose, Justin Holiday, and a 2017 second round pick. It's not surprising the Rose was traded to the Knicks. Most people knew the Bulls were looking to trade Rose and the Knicks are looking to quickly improve their team after back to back disappointing seasons. What is shocking is how little the Knicks had to give up to land Rose. In all fairness Rose is in the last year of his contract so the Bulls would have had trouble negotiating a better deal.

With the NBA draft taking place tonight keep an eye out for draft night trades as well. There are still murmurs of teams trading high picks for talent and some offers may still be on the table. That will all unfold later tonight.

It's Finally Over

The Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors finally settled the NBA finals last night. The game lived up to all the hype surrounding it and basketball fans witnessed probably one of the best finals games in history. So many story lines were being talked about going into last night. Will Cleveland win its first championship since 1964? Will the Warriors cap off the best regular season in history with a championship? Would LeBron fulfill the promise he gave Cleveland fans two years ago? And would LeBron and Curry show up?

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Well after 48 minutes of lead changes and spectacular plays the Cleveland Cavaliers finally brought the championship back to Cleveland. So much happened in the final two minutes, but two plays stand out that made a huge difference for Cleveland. The first play is a break away layup that Andre Iguodala seemed to have. Iguodala got out on the break made a move to avoid J.R. Smith, but when he went back up LeBron swooped in just in time for a chase down block keeping the game tied at 89 with 1:51 left in the game. The next great play of this game and basically the seal on the game was Kyrie Irving's three point shot over Steph Curry with 53 seconds left. Kyrie went right at Curry with no hesitation and then did a step back pull up for three right in the eye of Curry. It was an unbelievable shot that gave Cleveland the win.

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Kyrie Irving had a good game scroing 26 points and grabbing 6 rebounds for the game. He also hit the biggest shot. LeBron James had a spectacular game. With 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists; James became only the third player in NBA history to have a triple double in a finals game 7. James also became the only player in NBA history to lead both teams in points, rebounds, assists, and blocks for a series. These stats were enough to earn him the Finals MVP giving him his third Finals MVP.

From the Warriors side of things the splash brothers did not play well. Klay Thompson had 14 points and Curry had 17 points. The only player to show up was Dryamond Green. He played very well last night scoring 32 points, grabbing 15 rebounds, and racking up 9 assists. The only thing is the Warriors did not go back to the hot hand of Green in the fourth quarter and it really cost the Warriors.

Overall this game was such a treat to basketball fans because it is not very often that we see a Game 7 in the NBA finals. Let alone the Cavs were the only the third team to push a 3-1 deficit to seven games. And they became the first team ever to overcome a 3-1 deficit in the NBA finals. We all witnessed history last night and hopefully next season can provide us with the same level of excitement.

Did you say 82?

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With the Cavaliers facing elimination all hopes of a championship were riding on the star players of the squad. And last night two of the three delivered. LeBron James was finally aggressive and looking for his own shot rather than passing. He also shot the ball from the perimeter with the cushion that the Warriors were giving him on defense. Kyrie has played well in the last two games for Cleveland and he played probably one of the best games of his career last night. Kyrie scored 41 points on 17-24 shooting. That is 70% from the field! He also had 6 assists. He was not the only one in the game with 40 points. LeBron James also had 41 points on 16-30 shooting. He also had 7 assists and a monstrous 16 rebounds! He played a lot like he did during last years finals and that is what he has needs to continue to do. Irving and James were the first teammates in Finals history to score 40+ points in the same game.

Many people are going to speculate about whether or not these two would have combined for 82 points had Draymond Green played last night. I think the Warriors defense would have been better at the hoop, but it would not have stopped LeBron and Kyrie from making all the threes that they did. Cleveland should feel very good about returning home after how they played last night. They know they are capable of beating this Warriors team and the role players for Cleveland should be much more energized and ready to go feeding off the home crowd. The two problems for the Cavs are will LeBron shoot this well from beyond 5 feet again? And two, can Kevin Love impact the game in any way? Kevin Love was a no show last night scoring 2 points and grabbing 3 rebounds. Granted he only took 5 shots, but he is not doing what the Cavs brought him there to do. As of right now Love would probably be better served playing with the second unit and Jefferson should start. This would give the Cavs a much better offensive punch off the bench and allow them to match the Warriors small ball line up for next game.

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Speaking of which. Last night Bogut went down late in the game with a knee injury. If he is out for next game Green might get the start at center. Bogut does not play too much, but he a good cutter and passer. This allows the guards to free themselves on the perimeter or keep the opposing teams center from cheating over to help. What Bogut contributes most to the Warriors is his defense. He is a big body that can alter shots. Him paired with Green makes it hard for any team to finish around the hoop. If Bogut is out he will be missed, but it will not be devastating blow.

I, like many others, hope we get a 7 game series. I also hope that the Cavs play this well again because it is exciting watching LeBron James and Kyrie Irving playing at their best. For now Game 6 awaits. Will the Warriors win back to back championships or will the Cavaliers be just the third team in Finals history to push a 3-1 series deficit to 7 games? That will be decided Thurday night at 9.

Cavaliers on the Brink

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Last night the Cleveland Cavaliers came out swinging by leading for a majority of the first half. Their defense was on point and they stuck to their game plan. But it was a tale of two halves. Even though the Cavaliers played very well in the first half something happened at half time that would cost them the game. After being on point with their defense and executing the Cavaliers started to have communication break downs. Examples are players were switching when they weren't supposed to; staying with their man when they were supposed to switch; not keep an eye on their man when one of them went back door. It was just awful to watch after they succeeded in the first half.

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From the Warriors perspective they did exactly what they needed to do on defense. They forced LeBron to make quick decisions on whether to pass or shoot. And LeBron being who he is he looked to pass just about every time. When he went up to pass all the Warriors players tried to cover the passing lanes to make LeBron make a tough pass or have him force a tough shot out of the double team. Honestly even though the first half did not go well for the Warriors they should not change a thing. Ultimately the Cavaliers collapsed and the Warriors got lose for open jump shots. If the Cavaliers figure out how to attack and defend the Warriors, that's when Kerr might have to make some changes.

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Here's what the Cavaliers must do in order to stay alive. LeBron needs to assert himself and be selfish. Too many times he passed the ball or was looking to pass rather than shoot. A few times he was open and waited to long to make a decision and the defense was able to get to him. Also he needs to take more mid range jump shots. The Warriors are baiting him to take threes or even those mid range shots, but that's because they don't believe he will make them. Right now the Warriors are just waiting for him to get so far into the paint that they can double and even triple team him, making it impossible for him to breath. If he is going to drive that deep into the lane he needs to just go up, because he will not be able to stop and make a pass or take a shot. Also he needs to stop running the play where he stands at the top of the key looking to pass. It is fine to do it once in a blue moon, but he does it multiple times a game and more often than not it is a turnover. He needs to put the ball on the floor to draw other defenders to him and make sure that the Warriors watch the ball for help defense. This will make it much easier for his teammates to get open. Basically LeBron has to do what he did in last years finals. He may have more help this year, but he is what makes this team go and function. If LeBron asserts himself he get more looks at the hoop and score more. It may even force the Warriors to alter their defensive strategy. Either way it will help the Cavs break down the Warriors defense.

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 Game 5 is Monday night at 9. Hopefully I will be writing about Game 6 on Tuesday because no basketball fan wants to see such a short Finals series.

The Cavs are in Trouble

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After last nights blowout win for the Warriors they have to feel good about going to Cleveland later this week. The Cavs seem to be very overwhelmed by this Warriors team and rightfully so. They just made a 3-1 comeback in the Western Conference Finals to a very good Oklahoma City Thunder team. The Cavaliers could play much better though. Kyrie Irving did not contribute much in Game 2 scoring only 10 points in 33 minutes. He also only shot 35% from the field. The team's leader LeBron James was not much better. He had 19 points on 7-17 shooting. He helped his team in other ways by grabbing 8 rebounds and dishing out 9 assists. However those stats would be overshadowed by his 7 turnovers on the night. To sum everything up the Warriors just look like the more complete team thus justifying the 110-77 win.

For the Cavaliers they should not get too down yet. They are heading home for two games and LeBron James and Kyrie Irving will both step up their games at home. The only concern this team should have is the possibility of Kevin Love being out. As of right now there is no update on Love, but he had to take himself out of the game early in the third quarter after he was hit in the back of the head by Harrison Barnes late in the second quarter. It is said that he had no concussion like symptoms when he came out and he showed none at halftime. In the third it was then obvious something was wrong. If Love is out for a Game 3 it won't only hurt the Cavaliers chances at winning Game 3, but it may even hurt their chances at winning the title. Let's see if the Cavs can turn the corner in Game 3 or if the Warriors will continue their dominance.

On this Date June 4, 1995

With another gap day between the Game 1 and Game 2 of the 2016 NBA Finals lets take a look back at what happened on this day 21 years ago. The NBA was in a weird place. Michael Jordan had just returned to the NBA after two years off, but his team would not be able to get past Shaquille O'Neal and the Orlando Magic. It would set up an Eastern Conference Finals show down between the Orlando Magic and the Indiana Pacers. In the first six games of the series the home team would walk away with the win, but Reggie Miller and company were looking to finally break through and reach the NBA Finals.

In a decisive game 7 the Pacers struggled heavily on offense. The team shot only 37% from the field and 21% from three. Reggie Miller only had 12 points on the night after putting up 36 points in Game 6. His three point shot also wasn't there, making only two threes in Game 7 after having six in Game 6. Ultimately this lead to a blow out win for the Orlando Magic 105-81. An outstanding bounce back after losing Game 6 by 27 points. The last two games of this series proved how much the home team feeds off the energy of the crowd. In the end the Orlando Magic would advance to their first NBA Finals in franchise history.

Here are some highlights from Game 7 and lets hope that Game 2 of this years NBA Finals is not a blowout like this.

Did We Already See the Best?

With Game 1 coming and going it did not live up to the hype. Last night the Warriors took Game 1 of the NBA Finals 104-89. Many people were excited to see a rematch of last years finals and rightfully so. But Game 1 of this series did not have the same excitement surrounding it as the Western Conference Finals. Is it possible that we already so the most exciting and competitive series of the playoffs so far? Well it is too early to jump to conclusions, but if the rest of the series goes like Game 1 this series will not live up to its expectations.

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As for Game 1, it was messy. The Cavaliers seemed to have trouble finding offense. Cleveland shot 38% from the field. Cleveland's big three shot 23 for 60 from the field. LeBron filled the stat sheet as usual flirting with a triple double. He had 23 points, 12 rebounds and 9 assists. But it could not make up for the Cavs poor play. The Cavaliers also struggled on defense. They really need to communicate better on defense. Too many times the Cavaliers tried to switch on screens and someone would not switch leading to open layups.

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As for the Warriors, Steph Curry and Klay Thompson didn't play well either. Steph Curry was 4 for 15 from the field and had 5 turnovers. Klay Thompson shot 4 for 12 from the field and only made 1 three which came in the final minutes of the game. The Warriors saving grace was the play of there bench. In particular Shaun Livingston. Livingston had a big night going 8 of 10 from the field and scoring 20 points in only 26 minutes.

Most likely the Cavs will not play this bad again, but the same can be said for the Splash Brothers. Hopefully Game 2 is much more appealing than Game 1. The Cavs need to figure out how they are going to attack the Warriors collapsed defense and they need to make smarter decisions. They need move the ball more rather than it sticking in one players hands and they need to shoot better. They can not struggle from the field like this because that is what allows the Warriors to collapse their defense and focus on players attacking the paint. Game 2 is Sunday night at eight o'clock on ABC.

NBA Finals Are Upon Us

After an exciting end to the Western Conference Finals the NBA Finals match up is finally confirmed. The Warriors will take on the Cleveland Cavaliers for Game 1 in Oakland tonight and this series should not disappoint. After the Cavs were without Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving last year the Cavs managed to push the Warriors to six games behind one of the best finals performances ever by LeBron James. With Cavaliers back at full strength this year and the Warriors being healthy there are no more excuses. This is the rematch everyone wanted and we are lucky that we got it.

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For the Cavaliers they had just about a week off after beating the Toronto Raptors in six. They should be well rested considering they had about a week worth of rest between each series so far in the playoffs. For the Warriors they should still have some momentum due to the fact they played Monday and have won three in a row against a very good Thunder team.

AP Photo/Eric Risberg

I think the Cavaliers will come in a surprise everyone and steal Game 1 in Oakland. As for the series the Warriors are given a 75% chance of winning the series. It is understanding why considering what they just did to the Thunder. But I would like to remind people that the Thunder had their problems down the stretch of the final three games. I do not expect the Cavaliers to make these same mistakes. With all that said it is really up in the air what will happen. It is hard to bet against the Warriors after they just proved me wrong in the Western Conference Finals. If Kevin Love and J.R. Smith do not have a good series, the Warriors will win in seven. Either way this series will go seven games as long as the Cavaliers win one of the first two games in Oracle Arena. This should be an awesome NBA Finals to watch. You can catch the game at nine o'clock on ABC.