Dave Smith

‘m kind of torn on the Derek Fisher situation. On the one hand, he’s been a part of five World Championships, a class act and a very popular player. On the other, he’s getting old, has lost a step defensively, shot less than 40% and didn’t play well last season….

I don’t know how high the Heat are willing to go on a contract, but if it’s for the entire mid-level it’s time to say goodbye to D-Fish….

Evidently, Fisher was not happy with the Lakers offer of $2.5M and the Heat was willing to go higher. The latest reports say the Lakers are willing to sweeten the deal, which will hopefully get Derek back in a Laker uniform next season….

But if he leaves, the Lakers should be fine….

They’ve already done well by signing Steve Black and if Fisher leaves will need to sign another lead guard….

With Earl Watson and Luke Ridnour still out there, the team can fill Fisher and Jordan Farmar’s loss very well….

But I have another sugestion: Allen Iverson….

I know, I know, A.I. has personal issues and was let go by both the Grizzlies and 76ers last year; but he still has some basketball in him and I believe Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant are people who can maximize whatever Iverson has left….

It’s hard to imagine A.I. being a pain in the ass and demanding the ball on this team, and I believe he could play the role of role player and facilitator beautifully….

He’d know this is his last chance and would do everything possible to fit in and finally win a championship….

He has Bob McAdoo written all over him….

Is he a better player than Fisher? Of course, there’s no argument about that. A.I. is one of the greatest players in NBA history and a Hall-of-Famer. But is he as good a teammate and will he fit in?….

That’s the million dollar question….

In my opinion, it’s worth the risk. If he causes problems, you get rid of his ass and move on; because he’d be on a one-year deal at minimum salary….

But if he goes with the program the Lakers are getting a great player for free….

I’m on board….

I’ll admit I enjoy the World Cup and have been following it closely, but Sunday’s final between Spain and Holland was an example of why Americans don’t like soccer….

Up and down the field they went, with almost no shots on goal, and both teams were playing defensively and waiting to see if they could get lucky and steal the game….

In America, we like teams who attack and pressure the opposition. Sitting back and waiting for an opponent’s mistake will get Americans to change the channel every time….

In the final seconds of overtime, with The Netherlands playing a man down, Spain finally scored and won the game 1-0….

The game was a colossal bore and after almost 120 minutes there was no score. Even worse, there were only two or three legitimate scoring opportunities, which brings me to my next point….

Unless they eliminate or drastically change the offside rule, Americans will never watch soccer and we’ll continue to get scoreless borefests….

Instead of moving forward and attacking when there’s an opportunity, players instead look for the back-line defenders. Instead of streaking toward the goal and attempting to score, they’re more concerned with staying onside….

This ruins the flow, penalizes aggression and ensures 0-0 games; it also tells the world that Americans will never give a damn about this silly game….

In football, if you allow your man to get behind you, it’s a touchdown; in basketball, it’s a crowd-pleasing dunk. In soccer, you’re penalized for being faster and more athletic than your opponent….

Every time I’ve ask someone to explain the offside rule, I’d get calls from hard core fans telling me that if the rule were eliminated you’d have several players cherry picking and hanging around the goal the entire game….

My answer was two-fold: 1) You never see this in basketball, even though there’s no offside rule and 2) If teams did keep three players around the opponent’s goal, they’d be three players short on the other end, causing them to give up scores….

Instead of eliminating the rule, how about a compromise? Here’s two sugestions:

1) In hockey, they have a blue line between between the center line and the goal. Once the puck crosses the line, there is no offside and you can attack. Why not insert a blue line in soccer, where once the ball crosses the offside rule is eliminated? If the ball is advanced that far, there’s no excuse for not being back on defense.

2) Once the ball crosses midfield, waive the offside rule. Not a long kick toward the goal, but when the ball actually lands. In other words, you can still be offside if the ball is kicked across midfield, as long as it’s ball is in the air. But once the ball touches the ground, there’s no offside and it’s time to try and score.

Implement these rules and scoring would go up, scoring opportunities would increase and Americans would watch in greater numbers….

Yes, I picked the Celtics to win this series in five games, but never in my life have I been so happy to be wrong. And never have I seen a Laker team play defense they way they did in games six and seven….

After holding Boston to a shocking 67 points in Game Six, the Lakers matched that intensity by holding the Celtics to 79 points in Game seven….

Wow, holding a team with four great players to an average of 73 points, in two games they desperately needed to win, shows how much heart and will the Lakers possess….

Question: Would the Celtics have won Game Seven and the championship if Kendrick Perkins played? Without question, yes. Not only is Perkins their defensive rock and toughest player, he’s also the guy who sets all the picks which free up their scorers. He’s the most underrated player in the NBA and the Celtics desperately missed him….

Question #2: Had Andrew Bynum been 100% healthy, would the Lakers have won this series in five games? Without question, yes. A healthy Bynum gives the Lakers unequaled length and athleticism in the front court. In my opinion, they are unbeatable when he’s healthy….

My point is the Celtics have nothing to whine about, because the injuries to Bynum and Perkins cencelled each other out and the better team won….

I believe this also proves the Lakers would have won the 2008 Finals had Andrew been out there. It wouldn’t have been easy with Luke Walton guarding Paul Pierce, but Bynum would have made all the difference….

Speaking of Pierce and all the damage he did in 2008, how about the job Ron Artest did in the post season? Sure, he didn’t shoot well, but defnesively he was unbelievable. Yes, Pierce had his moments, because he’s a great player and a Hall-of-Famer. But Ron Ron made him work for everything and was the difference this season….

And Artest also saved his best for last, not only holding Pierce to 5-15 shooting, but also contributing 20 points; including a back breaking three-point basket in the final minute which gave the Lakers a six-point lead….

So now it’s 16 championships, including 11 in Los Angeles; which puts them only one behind the hated Celtics total of 17….

Damn, had Bynum been out there in 2008, the Lakers would have passed those miserable SOB’s with this win….

As for the MVP, I personally would have given it to Pau Gasol, because Kobe did not shoot well in the biggest game of the season. Bryant was a miserable 6-24 from the floor, including an embarrassing 0-6 from behind the arc. Yes, he grabbed 15 rebounds, but was awful offensively when his team needed him most….

Gasol, on the other hand, came through with 19 points, 18 rebounds, four assists and two blocks. He was huge on both ends and if Dave Smith had an MVP vote, he would have won….

After the game, Mark Jackson said Kobe had surpassed Magic Johnson as the greatest Laker if all time, but I beg to differ. Yes, Kobe has five titles, but so do Magic and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar….

To surpass them, Kobe needs to surpass them in championships. Kind of like a fighter who challenges for a World Championship. You can’t win the title with a draw, you have to win the fight….

So my order remains the same for all-time greatest Laker:

1) Magic Johnson
2) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
3) Kobe Bryant

But if Bryant wins one more title, he moves to #1 and is the gretaest Laker of all time….

But he still won’t be the greatest player of all time until he wins his seventh title, surpassing Michael Jordan….

In my opinion, MJ is the better player on both ends of the floor. And I don’t remember him ever shooting 6-24 in a close out game….

As for Phil Jackson, it will be a travesty if he doesn;t come back for his fourth three-peat and unbelievable 12th NBA title….

He is the greatest coach in NBA history and Dr. Jerry Buss needs to reward him with a renewal of his contract….

Don’t be fooled by Phil talking about “retirement.” He desperately wants to return and the only reason he wouldn’t is if Dr. Buss insults him by offering a 60% pay cut….

Rumors say Buss is going to offer the Zenmaster a $5M contract, which would be a $7M pay cut from what he made this season….

That’s insulting for a coach with 11 championshiop, including five in Los Angeles. And you don’t insult the greatest coach in the game’s history….

There’s also the issue of Phil and Jeanie Buss feuding with Dr. Buss and his son Jim, who has been given control of the franchise….

Phil and Jeanie believe that Jackson deserves to the franchises’ decision maker, and rightfully so. But Dr. Buss believes his son Jim is ready to run the franchise and this will be the reason Phil “retires.”….

Jim Buss is a Sunset Strip party boy who has spent his adult life chasing women, training horses to finish out of the money and living off his dad’s money. Meanwhile Phil has won 11 championships and Jeanie is respected as one of the hardest working, well-liked front office people in the NBA….

Sure, she’s great looking and posed for Playboy, but has also cut her teeth in this business and become a great front office executive….

To bypass both Phil and Jeanie for Jim Buss is unacceptable….

As far as off-season moves, the team needs to bring in a solid point guard. Derek Fisher was magnificent in Game Three, but it was his only good game of the series. And the Lakers were better in Game six and seven when he wasn’t playing….

Next season, it’s time for 1) Jordan Farmar to take over the starting role or 2) A new point guard to start….

Put me in the camp of option #2….

If the Lakers can bring in an effictice defender who can also contribute offensively, they might win 75 games….

Finally, how do you think Trevor Ariza feels tonight. His agent turned down a five-year, $30M offer from the Lakers, because he was sure he could get his client at least $8M per year….

Mitch Kupchack threw him out of the office and signed Ron Artest around five minutes later….

Then, Ariza signed a contract with the Rockets, for the excat same money the Lakers were offering….

Trevor should have fired his agent and signed the Lakers deal; but instead now lives in the hellhole of Houston and plays for a lottery team….

Good choice….

I guess this is the way it’s supposed to be: The Lakers and Celtics playing a Game 7 for the World Championship. And after the Lakers 89-67 beatdown of Boston last night, it’s looking good for back-to-back titles….

But before we get too confident, let’s go back to 1969; when a heavily favored Lakers team managed to lose Game 7 at the Forum to an old, tired, outgunned Celtics team nobody thought could win….

Before the game, Lakers owner Jack Kent Cooke filled the rafters with balloons in anticipation of a blowout win and his team’s first championship in Los Angeles. As soon as the game ended, the balloons were to be released while a band played “Happy Days Are Here Again.”….

The problem was nobody informed the Celtics they were supposed to lose….

As Boston walked onto the floor for pre-game warm-ups, Bill Russell noticed the balloons and said to one of his teammates, “I’ll show them what they can do with those balloons.”….

What followed was one of the strangest nights in Los Angeles Lakers history….

The Celtics led by 17 early in the 4th quarter, but Jerry West led a furious comeback that got the Lakers back into the game. With 5:45 left, Wilt Chamberlain hurt his knee and had to come out. A few minutes later, with the lead cut to one, Wilt told coach Bill Van Brada Kolff he was ready to go back in, but the coach told him to sit down “because we’re doing fine without you.”….

With a minute left, West knocked the ball free and it bounced into the hands of Don Nelson; who hurriedly took a shot from the free throw line. The ball hit the heel, bounced high into the air and miraculously came down through the basket….

Game, set and match to Boston….

In Game 4 of that series, with the Lakers up by one, they had the ball with 15 seconds left and about to go up 3-1. But the inbound pass was stolen and the Celtics set up a final shot. The ball went to Sam Jones, who tripped and fell as he threw up a wild shot. Wilt missed blocking it by an inch and the ball clanged off the side of the rim….

Unfortunately, the ball caromed onto the backboard, back onto the rim and rolled through as time expired….

Yes, it just wasn’t meant to be that season….

That series was before my time, but every long-time Laker fan I’ve spoken with tells me that loss was the most heart-breaking in franchise history. Even worse than the Game 7 loss to Boston in 1984….

West never forgave Cooke for the balloon fiasco and to this day believes it inspired the Celtics and cost the Lakers the game. He was also furious with Van Breda Kolff when he learned Wilt wanted to come back into the game….

So excuse me if I’m not already celebrating another championship, because there have been too many heart breaking losses and too many freak endings against the Celtics….

The Lakers are 0-4 against Boston in Game 7′s and are going to need to play their best game of the season to win….

The Celtics certainly will not lay an egg again on Thursday and it’s going to take a monumental effort to beat them….

The Kendrick Perkins injury, however, swings the advantage further to the Lakers; because While Kendrick isn’t a scorer, he’s one of the most underrated players in the NBA….

He’s the rock of their interior defense and a huge reason the Celtics beat the Lakers in 2008. He’s also been instrumental in Boston winning three games in this series….

He’s rough, tough, mean and holds his position better than any center in the NBA….

So if he can’t play on Thursday, it’s huge for the Lakers….

Let’s just hope Dr. Buss doesn’t fill the rafters with balloons….