Getty Images Lakers fans are looking for someone to blame for the mess that is the team they thought would contend for — some in Los Angeles thought would easily roll to — an NBA title.
While there are plenty of targets, Mike D’Antoni seems to be the main one — why won’t he modify his system to fit the personnel? A lot of Lakers fans want him gone.
Not happening. From Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register.
There’s plenty of heat and speculation — and plenty for Mike D’Antoni to hash out as far as better utilizing his players, including 2013 free agent Dwight Howard — but I was told Thursday the Lakers are not considering a buyout or firing of D’Antoni as head coach.
Frankly, that should have been pretty obvious — Jim Buss invested in D’Antoni over Phil Jackson, he can’t just walk away from that. Also, the Lakers GM backed D’Antoni the other day and not in the usual “vote of confidence” way.
Two thoughts here:
First, blaming D’Antoni for the Lakers mess is like blaming a lion for not choosing a vegetarian lifestyle — all he has done is be true to his nature. Lakers management knew what kind of system D’Antoni would run when they hired him and they knew exactly what the roster looked like and how it didn’t fit that system. Mike D’Antoni is going to win his way, not yours, he is an NBA ideologue who believes deeply in what he is doing. If you don’t like it, blame management for bringing him in. Frankly, now they have no choice but to modify the roster to better fit his style.
Second, there is only one thing that gets him fired — Dwight Howard saying it is him or me, one of us has to go. The star player always wins that battle. But if you watched the Dwightmare in Orlando you know that kind of strong statement and decisive decision making is not his style. In the end I think he stays a Laker, D’Antoni stays and changes are made around them to make this work better. (Not that it can get much worse.)
As I said before, the Lakers are a perfect storm of mistakes and bad luck coming together. It’s not one thing. And with that, there is not one simple solution. Certainly not more instability and another coaching change.
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Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins says flopping shouldn’t be a part of the game
May 25, 2013, 6:30 PM EDT
Reuters
There was a critical play late in the Grizzlies’ Game 2 loss to the Spurs where Tony Allen was brought down by Manu Ginobili on a fast break attempt. Ginobili grabbed Allen’s off arm and dragged him out of the air to prevent an easy layup, causing Allen to fall awkwardly as he came to…
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Golden State’s Mike Malone has been in the group with Brian Shaw and Mike Budenholzer the past few years — top assistant coaches that get interviews but have yet to land in the big chair. That could be about to change for Malone — it’s a good thing when the owner wants you. And the…
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Dwyane Wade delivers an elbow to the head of Lance Stephenson in Game 2 (VIDEO)
May 25, 2013, 3:30 PM EDT
Getty Images
Late in the fourth quarter of the Pacers’ Game 2 win over the Heat, Dwyane Wade elevates to try to get past Lance Stephenson just after he crosses half court. It appeared as though Wade was simply trying to hustle to get into defensive position, and had no intention of making any malicious contact. But…
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Preview: Did Grizzlies figure out Spurs or will Game 3 be more of the same?
May 25, 2013, 2:01 PM EDT
Reuters
There have been seven quarters — 84 minutes — of the Western Conference Finals where the Spurs have looked much the better team. But the last 17 minutes — the fourth quarter and overtime, Memphis erased a 16-point deficit, pushed the game into overtime and made this start to look like the close series we…
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Kevin Durant gets Nike to join him in donating over $1 million to help with Oklahoma tornado relief
May 25, 2013, 12:30 PM EDT
Kevin Durant has a reputation of being not only one of the best basketball players in the game, but also as one of the most genuine human beings to be associated with the league today. And he keeps doing things to solidify that image. After a devastating tornado ripped through parts of Oklahoma, Durant personally…
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George Hill says only God is scarier to face than LeBron James
May 25, 2013, 11:00 AM EDT
After the Pacers took Game 2 from the Heat by defending well enough to get LeBron James to turn the ball over on consecutive possessions with the game on the line, Gorge Hill was asked if there was any player in the world more dangerous with the ball in that situation. “Yeah, it’s only like…
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Raptors closing in on hiring Masai Ujiri away from Nuggets to head up basketball operations
May 25, 2013, 9:30 AM EDT
Getty Images
The momentum is building in the talks between current Nuggets GM Masai Ujiri and the Raptors, and the two sides are in negotiations to move forward with an agrement to bring the reigning Executive of the Year to Toronto. After a meeting that took place in Colorado on Friday, things seem to be progressing at…
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LeBron James commits two costly turnovers in final minute of Game 2 loss to Pacers
May 25, 2013, 8:00 AM EDT
LeBron James won Game 1 against the Pacers in the final moments, with two drives to the basket for scores in the final 10 seconds of overtime. To say he lost Game 2 in a similar manner would be overstating things a bit, but James did commit two turnovers on consecutive possessions with under a…
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Reuters
Coming into this series, the Miami Heat gave the proper lip service to respecting the Indiana Pacers, but did they really respect them? The Heat had gone 45-3 since Feb. 3, you had to wonder if the Pacers really had their attention They do now. The question going into this series wasn’t if the Pacers…
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Pacers get big games from Roy Hibbert and Paul George, take Game 2 from Heat to even the series
May 25, 2013, 12:45 AM EDT
Getty Images
After the way Game 1 between the Heat and the Pacers went down, Game 2 could have gone one of two ways. Either Miami could have received the wake-up call delivered by Indiana and then come out with a dominant and inspired performance, or the Pacers could continue to make life difficult for the defending…
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LeBron James-Paul George matchup reaches awesome levels in Game 2
May 25, 2013, 12:06 AM EDT
Getty Images
As the final seconds of the third quarter wound down, Paul George dribbled at the top and sized up LeBron James, arguably the NBA’s best wing defender. Without the benefit of LeBron overplaying him or the absence of a rim protector, George drove left past LeBron and ferociously dunked over Chris Andersen as a foul…
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Paul George dunks, LeBron answers with three in wild end to third quarter (VIDEO)
May 24, 2013, 11:11 PM EDT
Getty Images
This series is so much fun. Paul George just absolutely crushed the Birdman Chris Andersen with a dunk. Just crushed him. LeBron James comes back down and drains a three. Then a little hand slap at midcourt. Respect. These are two teams standing toe-to-two trading blows, and most teams wither when they do that with…
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Pacers hit with back-to-back technicals. Because Scott Foster, that’s why.
May 24, 2013, 9:45 PM EDT
Getty Images
There is no way that should have been a technical. It’s the playoffs, we want emotion, we want a little feisty play… and frankly that wasn’t that feisty. There are Tuesday night games in Minnesota in January that were more emotional than that play. But Scott Foster has the fastest trigger in the NBA for…
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Here is our regular look around the NBA — links to stories worth reading and notes to check out (stuff that did not get its own post here at PBT) — done in bullet point form. Because bloggers love bullet points like Jon Stewart loves Fox News gaffes… • Conan O’Brien gives us (fake, obviously)…
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AP
First Jim Boeheim has Carmelo Anthony’s back, now it’s time for another coach to get a former star’s back. Kentucky coach John Calipari was on the Adam “the Bull” & Dustin Fox show on 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland, and when asked about Derrick Rose and his injury — and the heat he took in…
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In Hollywood, they call that chewing up the scenery. Memphis guard Tony Allen has been fined $5,000 by the league for his overacting — technically violating the league’s anti-flopping policy — on that play. Make no mistake, Manu Ginobili fouled Allen hard on this crucial late-game play — the Grizzlies were down four with :26…
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Ian Mahinmi’s hard Game 1 foul on LeBron upgraded to a flagrant one (VIDEO)
May 24, 2013, 3:29 PM EDT
Early in the fourth quarter of the Heat’s Game 1 win over the Pacers, Ian Mahinmi grabbed LeBron James by the arm as he went up for the shot, causing James to fall a bit awkwardly as he crashed to the floor. It was ruled as a common foul at the time, but has since…
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Report: Clippers to consider Alvin Gentry for head coaching job
May 24, 2013, 2:42 PM EDT
The Clippers’ head coaching job is undoubtedly the most intriguing out of all of the ones that are currently open for next season. Assuming Chris Paul re-signs with the team in free agency, L.A. will return the core of a team that was talented enough to win 56 regular season games and two in the…
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To answer your first question, that is Todd MacCulloch getting dunked on. He played for the Nets in 2002. That was one of those years when the real NBA finals was the Lakers vs. Kings in the Western Conference Finals — whichever team got through that war was going to steamroll New Jersey. Which is…
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AP
George Hill had a rough Game 1 for the Pacers — 2-of-9 shooting for five points with three turnovers. Plus, he sprained his big toe. I’m serious, he’s getting treatment and everything. The news comes from the twitter account of Mark Montieth of Pacers.com. George Hill has sprained left big toe, from Game 1. Had…
