Kobe Bryant has gone jaw-face over the last three games. He is clearly in F-U mode as he tries to prove to the fans, his peers, and himself that he still has "it". After the first of his 40 point games he said "Not bad for the seventh best player in the league". The moral of the story: Kobe is the hardest working player in the NBA and when he is criticized, he works even harder.
Kobe's recent seven game stretch is more than just a way to help prove his own worth, but is also his attempt to make his team better. He is sending a message to Dwight Howard saying "Look at what I can do without you, imagine what I could do with you?". As Kobe leads the Lakers ahead of the other teams in the running for Dwight, he wants to narrow Dwight's vision to LA, and only LA. If Dwight insists on moving to LA, the Magic will be in a similar situation to Denver last year. They will have to take what LA offers, or risk losing everything. This would give LA all of the leverage and could include a simple trade of Dwight and one unwanted Magic contract for Bynum.
The only wild-card in this scenario is Otis Smith. He has proven that he will do something, for the sake of simply doing it. He has acted emotionally and has ignored common sense. If Otis develops a "down with the ship" attitude, all of this could go up in smoke. While this could easily fall apart, I don't think it will.
What is the one thing that Shaq and Dwight have in common, besides the nickname? Ego, they care about being stars as much as they do about basketball. Andrew Bynum has proven over the last three games that he doesn't have ego. Shaq would have complained during a similar stretch, Andrew has had decent stats (13 pts, 9.3 rebs, 53.3 % shooting, over the last three games) and has kept his mouth shut about having diminished touches.
If Orlando is trying to avoid the mistakes of their past in Shaq and Howard, they need someone without the baggage of stardom. Bynum is that player. He might actually be willing to stay in Orlando and let the team build around him. He has the post skills that Patrick Ewing, Orlando's assistant coach, could work with to make him an elite big in the league-something that Dwight doesn't have. Dwight relies entirely on his athleticism. What happens when he loses it? Bynum could have a much longer career. Bynum's injury riddled past, while still a risk, would make him a cheaper player than Dwight and would help the Magic in the long run avoid the steep luxury tax penalties that are coming into effect. Bynum has been auditioning for the Magic for the last three games.
If Bynum wants to stay in LA, he needs to start complaining. If Dwight wants the star treatment, LA is the place to be.
Only problem is do Bynums' knees hold up?
ReplyDeleteWhen Shaq left there was no salary cap and no max salaries. As it stands today, the Lakers can't acquire Dwight without the Magic's help agreeing to send him there, so it's really not comparable at all.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, Bynum only has a year left on his contract and plays just 50 games a year on average. So, the Magic really are looking at the idea of potentially losing Dwight for nothing or losing him for a 50 game rental of Bynum. And while Bynum is great, the difference between those two situations is not so dramatically different to assure that you have no chance to keep Dwight.