OT: Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka
This (Magic Johnson and Pelinka) news is all over the WWW but I thought it might make a nice break from Searchbits and associated board posts. Here are two takes from SI:
https://www.si.com/nba/2019/05/20/magic-johnson-lakers-rob-pelinka-jeanie-buss-lebron-james
The Lakers front office is like a shitty TV drama. I hope LeBron had a least an iota of regret for leaving Cleveland for that shitshow.
Compared to most t.v. dramas nowadays it's a pretty good drama.
I'm sure he'd enjoy playing under Beilein more than under Vogel.
I don't think so, honestly. If he stayed in Cleveland, yes he would've been in the playoffs, very possibly in the Finals again. But it would be for the right to get swept, or best case, lose in 5 to Golden State. And that final outcome isn't changing for ANYONE in the East until maybe after this season, depending on who from Golden State leaves for another team. Milwaukee or Toronto are going to get taken to the woodshed by GS. Each of them have one superstar. Golden State's entire starting lineup is comprised of superstars. I mean hell, Golden State swept Portland while KD was sitting on the bench. They didn't even need a man who's arguably the second or third best basketball player on the planet.
Also, James is definitely going the movie / entertainment route once his career in the NBA is all said and done, and moving to LA was a big part of that. So I doubt he has any real regrets about leaving Cleveland the second time around.
I don't think so, honestly. If he stayed in Cleveland, yes he would've been in the playoffs, very possibly in the Finals again. But it would be for the right to get swept, or best case, lose in 5 to Golden State. And that final outcome isn't changing for ANYONE in the East until maybe after this season, depending on who from Golden State leaves for another team. Milwaukee or Toronto are going to get taken to the woodshed by GS. Each of them have one superstar. Golden State's entire starting lineup is comprised of superstars. I mean hell, Golden State swept Portland while KD was sitting on the bench. They didn't even need a man who's arguably the second or third best basketball player on the planet.
Also, James is definitely going the movie / entertainment route once his career in the NBA is all said and done, and moving to LA was a big part of that. So I doubt he has any real regrets about leaving Cleveland the second time around.
Hey Magic... I've got an idea... Real Front Office in Los Angeles.
Do Spartans become crybabies or is it the other way around?
Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
SPARTANS WHINE
Interesting point to ponder. Certainly many recruits have entered MSU having been snubbed by UofM. This disrespekt frequently motivates then and you hear it in soundbites.
However occasionally you see guys who UofM did recruit. They are often high caliber individuals. MSU then mentally warps/stunts them and they act like fools later in life.
I feel Magic and Draymond are more the latter.
State sucks, but I get why a lot of people hate us UM fans
It's a weird thing to see, when people get so invested in a sports rivalry that they start honestly believing that there are fundamental character flaws in other human beings, that come from *checks notes*... a kid going to one public school or the other.
The next report I read that Magic wasn't a disaster in the front office will be the first.
It does illustrate the dysfunctional nature of the Lakers organization. Magic thought he could be a part time employee with a lot of autonomy. It was obvious to the rest of the world he was a high profile figurehead. He still hasn't figured that out.
Magic has made a fortune as a highly paid high profile figurehead. The notion that he would dedicate himself to the nuts and bolts of being the leader of the Laker back office was a fantasy.
However, that should’ve been made apparent of front, and it seems as if Jeanie didn’t do that. Plus if Rob had any issue with Magic...address it to him, don’t go around sending e-mails behind his back gossiping like a 16 year old school girl
Exactly why I said they were dysfunctional.
You can't tell Magic he's just a figurehead, but you can't tell him he has a lot of authority either. My guess is that he just assumed he had authority because of his title and because he's Magic Johnson. That's something that should have been anticipated. The only good way to handle it would have been not to hire Magic in the first place. But that's LA, where celebrity and image rule.
Agreed...and he was the quasi-face of the Lakers anyway without an official title. Jeanie has a problem hiring people she’s cool with instead of getting ppl qualified for the position. Right now the front office consists of Kobe’s friend, her brothers, Linda & Kurt Rambis and Jerry West’s son. That looks more like a Laker family reunion than a professional front office!
Perfect summary in Mr. Miggles 2nd para. imho.
I want to get my aids right up in there.
The Libs are going to neg away and feel really good about themselves
Brah. . .
There are other forums for you to rage against the machine in. Just go there.
Like, why is it so important that you have to bring it up here? You know this isn't the right place.
So, just to be clear: you and Mr. Rogers like to make fun of those with HIV-AIDS.
Hopefully you enjoy Bolivia and all it has to offer.
2x post. Sorry.
Libertarians don’t care either way. Plus no politics.
Librarians would just like everyone to be quiet.
Basic decency has nothing to do with being liberal or conservative. You just don't joke about somebody's horrible disease.
Two corrections. One: a person can have HIV and not have AIDS nor ever get the diseases under the AIDS umbrella.
Two and more important: One can get cured of HIV. One can never get cured of the horrible disease of being an MSU Spartan.
I am fine cutting some slack if someone wants to make a joke about a sensitive subject, but the key is to make an actual joke. I have read the JBE post several times and I am still trying to figure out what the hell they were trying to say.
“I am still trying to figure out what the hell they were trying to say.”
It’s pretty simple: HIV-AIDS is funny, and so are those with the disease.
In another time, they’d be making fun of the handicapped.
It’s a scene from East Bound & Down.
Michigan people always try to show themselves as sensitive to the plight of the world - oh no, aids is bad - but you are some of the most petty people around. If you had someone with aids in your family you’d disown them on a moral superiority stance. Straight up. What a bunch of biznatches.
Michigan State is an embarrassment
Magic is a cry baby. Look at his history, and it shows that he starts projects and doesn't last very long. Other than the coffee, he hasn't found anything (bball comeback, coaching, front office) that keeps his attention very long. He is as big of an attention-seeker as LaVar Ball.
The guy is worth close to a billion, so saying he starts projects and doesn’t last long is a bit disingenuous. Right now he’s just transitioned into the business world, and thought he could switch back and realized he couldn’t.
As a die-hard Laker fan that is very tapped in with the general consensus of the fan base/media, we aren't upset to see Magic go. While he's certainly one of the greatest players to ever live and a Laker legend to the fullest extent, some questioned whether he was qualified for an FO position and his corresponding commitment to said position.
Objectively though, I have to say, the evidence points to him doing a good job........as bizarre as that may sound:
Outgoing:
Timofy Mozgov Trade (3 years/50 mill left at the time)
D'Angelo Russell Trade
Jordan Clarkson Trade
Larry Nance Trade
Stretch Deng
Incoming:
Brook Lopez
First Round Pick
Lonzo Ball
Kyle Kuzma
Josh Hart
Isaiah Thomas
Channing Frye
Lebron James
Cap Space to Sign Max FA to pair with Lebron James
If 2 years ago someone told me that we'd trade Mozgov and Russell for what in essence became Kyle Kuzma, Lebron James and 35 million in cap space, I'd be downright ecstatic.
The same front office also let Brook Lopez and Randle walk for nothing and signed Rajon Stephenson. It's hard to parse out how much of that was Magic and how much of that was Pelinka and/or the younger Busses (can we PLEASE give them and Ryan West more say-so than Kurt fkn Rambis? The one thing we have done well is find serviceable rotation players in the later rounds) I agree that the front office isn't quite as dysfunctional as media would make it seem but that's a really low bar to clear and - as a fellow Laker fan - I'm incredibly leery about Jason Kidd as an assistant Littlefinger.
Good to speak with a fellow Laker fan! Totally agree about Lopez and Randle, particularly when the asking price was relatively low. That real question is whether they were willing to sign 1 year deals? If not, I understand, and agree, with the move to let them go elsewhere.
Joey Buss has been phenomenal in terms of picking up key rotational guys in the later part of the draft. Personally think Kuzma has all star potential if he can make a leap defensively and get his 3 point shooting on par with his rookie season. Such a versatile offensive player.
I don't necessarily like Jason Kidd as a coach, but do like him in FA meetings. Quite frankly, superstar acquisitions are all that matters at the NBA level.........you simply can't win championships without them these days.
Fair point about Randle and Lopez, but it's hard to look at Lopez being a key rotation guy for the Bucks and frown that we only acquired McGee and then only added Chandler as a stopgap because we belatedly realized that even in today's NBA you might want to have more than one center.
There's more room for optimism than the current media reports might indicate, and if you've been a Laker fan for more than five minutes you know that drama just comes with the territory. This particular iteration seems especially bad though. I generally look to Darius Soriano, Laker blogger and podcaster, as a barometer for how to feel since he very level-headed, looks at both sides of the issue, and is generally the complete 180 of a hot-take artist. So when he writes that the Lakers stay messing up, that's.... yeah.
There's enough to work with - roster talent and cap space are the two most important weapons and we have both. The question is whether various egos in the front office will stop tripping over their own dicks. Because while jettisoning Magic undoubtedly got rid of the biggest problem, he wasn't the only problem child - and you can point to the abortive Ty Lue negotations as proof of that. I'm agnostic as to whether Lue or Vogel was the better choice, but the process we took was just characteristically awful.
And yet, all that can be 80% solved with either Kawhi or AD
I think their biggest problem is that AD is the only Max player who seems open to the idea of playing with LeBron, and he's not in a position to make that happen
I wish I had a Magic Johnson
I'll admidt it. As a die-hard Cavs fan I am absolutely LOVING this shit-storm and hope LeBron forces the Lakers to trade the #4 pick and one of their young assets for an aging, ex-superstar player.
LeBron brought us our first championship and for that I will be eternally grateful. But while he was here he demanded the Cavs sacrifice the future for the present, (refused to ever sign a long-term deal in Cleveland), and left us not once, but twice.
FWIW it also gave me great joy when my ex-wife (who left me for another dude and got married right away) ended up getting divorced from him less than a year later.
Always interested to see the NBA perspective from my fellow Michigan alums/fans. We as Laker fans, are ALWAYS in win now mode. Building for the future/long term is irrelevant because the odds of us singing marquee FAs are exponentially higher that most other franchises.
Much like you, I hope we trade the #4 pick in a package for a superstar, although not one that is over the hill. That #4 pick makes a potential package for Anthony Davis much more intriguing now that the value for Tatum has declined.
The bigger hope in LA is an outright singing of Kawhi Leonard, who appears to be beating down the door for best player in the world, and at worst a top 3 player.
My uncle is also a die-hard Lakers fan, and he actually has the opposite outlook, he wants them to get a big-time FA but he wants them to keep the young guys and grab someone with the 4th pick. His thought is that he’s watch the young kids grow and fears that if they are traded they will take off and once Lebron leaves then the franchise will be left in shambles. Much like how Miami and Cleveland looked after his departure, because they were in win now mode.
I agree to a certain extent, but the question is how much belief do you have that the #4 pick will be a superstar? In this draft, I don't have much belief at all beyond Zion.
True, but for that exact same reasoning why do you think it would fetch a lot. Gail Benson has come out and said she’s not trading him to LA. As a person who is not a Laker fan I see both sides...I would Keep the pick, build from within and see where the chips fall in 2 seasons. I have a funny feeling Bron will be back in Cavs colors sooner rather than later.
Benson did not say that, in fact, she expressly refuted that rumor in public within the last week. 2 seasons is a lifetime in Los Angeles. Your theory, while probably ideal for most franchises, is paramount to saying "let's waste 3 years of Lebron James".............doesn't jive in LA.
The ring is the thing. If you have an opportunity to push in all your chips for the shot to contend NOW, I'm ok with it as long as you're smart about it. It's why I wasn't mad that the Nash-D12 moves backfired horribly. I certainly wouldn't recommend those movies in hindsight but at the time it made sense.
Having said that, I wouldn't want to light the entire Laker roster on fire for a max player like we tried to do last February with AD because you still need other guys beyond a superstar trio.