lol.... beat me to it. I guess this explains the limited interest in Ariza.

Artest is wierd, sometimes he cares about money, other times he doesn't. You just never know what is going to drive him.

I don't know if it is the economic downturn or the 2010 free agent market or maybe a combination of both, but there seems to be two tiers of teams developing in the NBA, teams loading up with Allstars and another level of teams filled mostly with role players.
The big market teams or those close to being serious contenders are spending big to secure major talent while the rest are shedding as much salary as they can.
Seems to me there will be 5 or 6 teams with around 65 wins next season and a whole bunch of teams that will struggle to make .500.

I'd much prefer Trevor than Artest. For following reasons:

1. youth- Trevor has the potential to develop into Ron's type player (defender with offensive game), though not as strong but much more athletic.

2. stability- mentally Trevor is focused and won't cause any trouble. signing Artest is like a Rodman (although this may be exaggerating a bit)

3. I can't see Artest fitting in the the triangle, he's an isolation-type player and we have Kobe for that. All Trevor was doing was really waiting for kickout by Kobe and Gasol.

David Lee's the mal that's created all this.

David Lee.... the mal?

on a different topic, some of the funniest thing I've ever heard yesterday. I was in convo yesterday with a bunch of past and current ball players.

two of them was having a fight over who's better: Lebron or Kobe. and the "for-Kobe" guy ended up saying "Lebron's a bust man". it was hilarious.

some of other things we also discussed people may be interested:

Patrick Mills. they think he should get a spot but may not excel. and that's because Mills' hasn't got that "shake" people talk about in the position. he's got great linear speed but as a floor manager that's what brought him down at the end for the draft.

Rubio. maybe a bust, now this came from the same guy who called Lebron a bust but he's much more serious in this case.

Actually thinking about it your right LA. Mills doesn't have the 'shake'.

Yeah I'd probably rather Ariza too. You never know what you are going to get with Ron.

I also wonder if he will actually go to sign with Lakers, realise he is taking a pay cut, then run to another team.

On Rubio, I think he is overrated also, but it was still worth one of the two picks Sota had in a weak draft. He may turn out to be decent. But if I were them, I would trade him now for something, and let someone else wear the risk.

Rubio maybe a bust - startling insider info!

(Sorry LA Boy - not having a go at you, but that is about as obvious as it gets)

Laboy, what is a Mal? and why David Lee create all this?

ESP-not David Lee from NY; there's another David Lee in the league who's an agent. (same agent as Drew as well)

The thing I have with him was, these guys all said they're willing to get a paycut to stay but Lee's the one going they need more money or no signature. Which I understand is what agents' job are.

For Trevor though, if he leaves LA he needs to go Cleveland. He won't play the same elsewhere. Not in Houston. At this point in his career he needs a guy like Kobe and Lebron out there drawing defenders, to ease the load on him offensively.

Just confirming on things you guys might've heard before, Minnesota is shopping with Rubio is what I've heard and Rubio himselves has said privately he wants LA or NY. Though claiming he's a bust but the kid can pass the ball and has got that bit of flashiness inside so his style definitely suits Hollywood. I mean all we need is a guy to feed Drew the ball for the next decade.

PS: if Cleveland wins a championship next season..."Lebron can't win a ring without Shaq"

Thanks

The Artest signing makes alot of sense for the Lakers - and is an improvement over Ariza for a few reasons:

1. Artest is capable of carrying the offense for periods of time while Kobe is resting. And if its one thing Kobe needs this season, its rest. Ariza is a complimentary player only.

2. The Lakers window of opportunity exists while Kobe is at the top of his game. So maybe 2-3 years. Artest has a 3 year deal, Odom will continue to produce for at least 3-5 years, as will Gasol. Artest will give them the chance to win it all again, and preserve Kobe at the same time. Sure Ariza had 8-10 years left as a producing player, but he will only ever be that 3rd or 4th option in offence. His defence will be missed, but Artest can defend, although he has lost alot of his quickness (but has bulked up).

As long as Phil Jackson returns as coach, this signing makes the Lakers the clear favourites to repeat.

the thing is, is offense a problem with the Lakers? though Artest is a better player on both end of the floor but I like Ariza because he is developing and works extremely hard.

the Lakers only need a complimentary player right now, not another guy looking for shots and that's where I'm having problems with signing Artest.

you'll also have Drew next season looking for more touches. when post-Kobe finally comes Ariza may very likely become one of the primary options for Lakers. this makes Ariza a perfect fit for Lakers long and short term.

this move is for the money and preparing to defend Lebron in the next few years; Artest's strength will be very valuable come this time.

ESP, I was thinking the same thing too in regards to two levels of teams. There are currently a lot of very good players who are not far off of the end of their careers and saw the benefit of what Boston did and are trying the same thing. The last time I saw the same thing was when Houston picked up Clyde Drexler and won the championship but were unlucky the following year when they picked up Barkley.

...and Ariza goes to Houston lol

This is GREAT for LA

How many guys can play the role Ariza plays in this league?

MANY MANY - don't get me wrong he's one of the best at it, but hes replaceable, and Artest is more than an upgrade.

How are wings going to survive playing Ron Ron and Kobe :S

Ariza was very good in patches, but hes no Ron Artest, not even close really.

That's true jules, but is he a fit for the Lakers? Being an upgrade in terms of talent, and being the best fit for a team are two very different things.

I suppose Phil can get Artest to play his way if anyone can, but if Artest even tries to be a scorer LA will lose games because of it.

Did anyone else cringe at the number of times Artest basically dribbled out the clock before jacking a three last season?

Yeh I know hes shocking offensively...kills the ball, forces shocking shots, but his role will be different in this team on that end. I think Phil Jackson can get him to play the way he should.

Like I said, there are dozens of Ariza's out there, there are maybe a couple of Artests out there. Besides, in terms of fitting, I think they bring very similiar things, ron ron just does it better.

Pretty much they lost one of their best defenders...and got better defensively...can't argue with that

I think Artest is now wise enough to play the game for the sake of a ring...

jules- I understand NBA in general are athletic, but Ariza is one of the most athletic creatures out there. So I wouldn't say there's dozens of him out there. At his height (and his wingspan), he is top 5 in the NBA as far as his athleticism is concerned. Plus his much improved offensive game will only get better.

So it is dubious to say there's dozens of Ariza's out there. Once he become a more "physical" defender the guy will be better than Artest and Bowen.

Offensively, I think he'll be as good as Artest in the next 3 years.

As I said above signing Ariza would be for both short and long term. Lakers don't need another guy like Artest offensively. However, defensively it will be a boost, remember how Kobe had to go down there battle with Melo? But even then I still like the fact Trevor will be a much better player than he is now in 3 years time with Kobe finishing his contract and supposedly on a fast decline.

Ariza is not top 5 athletes in the NBA - no way.

It terms of agility, vertical, quickness - there are plenty and plenty of guys superior than him.

I reeally like Ariza as a player, but I think people are a bit carried away with him because he broke out in the finals. There are a lot of them around. I said that same thing about James Posey when he was getting nothing but praise for his role on the Celtics, and then he signed elsewhere will all this hype of making New Orleans a contender, and that never happened. Has anyone mentioned his name all year? When people make a name for themselves as a role player in a championship team, it rarely works out in another team. Artest is proven, consistent, and if you lose Ariza, I don't think theres many in the league that can come into that slot and play it better.

Can't see him 'shining' in the Rockets or anything, or making any kind of splash. On a great great team, you will notice everything he does well more (like LA)

for his heigh he is a top 5 athlete in NBA. his vertical may not be up there but his speed and quickness is some of best I've seen in the NBA.

the only reason to his well-known defense was because of his wingspan and his quickness; this goes all the way back to his Knicks times.

with Bowen and Artest you see them defend physically but Trevor actually stays infront of his man with quicker footwork and better speed. so that enough says about his athleticism.

also further from David Lee's a mal comment, Lee asked for $50m, 5 years from Lakers.