SB Nation - Andrew Goudelock

Lakers free agency rumor: Will Bynum a target this Summer?

Drew Garrison — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 14:13:27 -0000

Are the Los Angeles Lakers interested in adding another point guard to their roster? It appears so, as the Lakers are reportedly interested in adding free agent point guard Will Bynum to the roster, according to Vincent Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.

While the Lakers do have Steve Nash and Steve Blake under contract for 2013-2014, both players struggled with injuries throughout the season. By the time the playoffs were wrapped up the Lakers were down to starting Darius Morris at point guard while also throwing Andrew Goudelock and Chris Duhon in the mix.

It's unclear what 30-year-old Bynum would demand as an unrestricted free agent. In his final year with the Detroit Pistons he averaged 9.6 points on 46 percent shooting from the field (31 percent from deep), along with 3.6 assists per game while making $3.5 million.

More on the Lakers: Dwight and D'Antoni are a match made in heaven

The Lakers would have to use their mini-mid level exception to make a contract pitch that begins close to Bynum's previous contract, but that $3.1 million exception is the biggest (and only) offering the Lakers can make to a free agent this Summer. Using their exception on a position that they already have a starter in Nash, rotation player in Blake, and still have Duhon under contract seems like an odd allocation of assets when there are other, more pressing, needs.

The logical conclusion is that Mitch Kupchak will try to pitch a veteran's minimum contract to Bynum and Bynum will likely have larger offers than what the Lakers will send his way. Kupchak better use some fancy paper and send the Lakers' finest raven when they deliver their offer.

Regardless, this is the first free agent directly linked to the Lakers, and it's worth noting that if it's accurate, L.A. has interest in adding a point guard into the mix. Is it for added depth, or are they preparing to plug in a potential hole based on their off-season moves? The rumors aside from Dwight Howard's free agency are bound to pick up as the NBA Draft draws nearer and free agency is less than three weeks away.

- Drew

- Follow this author on Twitter @DrewGarrisonSBN

A future without Dwight Howard would entail a thorough rebuilding process

Ben R — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 14:30:05 -0000

That Dwight Howard's looming free agency is the central focus of the offseason comes as little surprise given how many reports have been thrown back and forth concerning it and we probably could all benefit from tuning most of it out until Dwight actually decides on the locale he wants to spend the next four to five years in. We do, however, have to consider the possibility of a future without Dwight and Chris' piece did an excellent job in bringing to light the factors that would go into the aftermath of such an event. In short, the Lakers would essentially undergo a massive rebuilding project, jettisoning all the salary they could for as many assets as possible in order to undergo a thorough tanking job in 2014 for one of the blue chip prospects available at the top of what appears to be a stacked draft.

This process is not new or novel as Chris indicates. We have San Antonio losing David Robinson for the season and ending up with an all-time great in Tim Duncan with the subsequent draft, or more recently, Sam Presti in Seattle and subsequently Oklahoma City dealing away the pieces of a finished veteran roster in order to accrue the draft picks he needed to restart the team. There of course is the financial component the new CBA brings in the form of the repeater tax that the Lakers must almost certainly get under should Dwight leave in order to preserve future financial flexibility. There is an art to blowing up a team beyond merely getting rid of salary though: maximizing assets is important and determining where best to apply the Lakers' trade assets. In this light, let us walk through the various shades of the rebuilding process:

What are the Lakers' primary objectives in rebuilding?

As mentioned, the Lakers' foremost need is to get back under the tax to avoid paying crushing financial penalties for a team that doesn't plan to be competitive should Dwight leave. There's paying for a winner and there's being conscious of the financial situation that the Lakers are in. In any case, rebuilding is in essence taking every piece on the roster that doesn't fit into the team's long-term picture and turning them into assets that do fit that image. To be sure, the Lakers' "long-term" means something quite different than most teams given the team's ability to reload in free agency in a manner that other clubs cannot, but the initial year is mostly the same. Pretty much everything on the roster that isn't going to be part of the team's future in two years or so should be let go.

A simplified account of this is that the Lakers are dealing their age for youth, obtaining draft picks and young players that the team can use as pieces of a future rotation. Getting salary relief is the foremost concern, of course, but as soon as the Lakers can feel that they are comfortably under the tax, their principal issue is getting as much of a return on their pieces as they can. What they are dealing for are future assets, however, or at the very least, those that will take time develop because you aren't trying to improve the team in the short term. Quite to the contrary, you want the team to be as awful as possible, as the central part of rebuilding is being terrible in the short term in order to get the key contributors in the draft that are the foundation of your future prospects.

In the Lakers' case, this means being awful in pursuit of a high 2014 draft pick, taking advantage of a class that might be one of the best in recent memory. Chris laid out fairly clearly what the future endgame is after the Lakers take the proverbial leap of faith into a rebuilding: a major free agent signing, a young draftee with star potential, and all the flexibility in the world to add pieces around them. Kobe Bryant could even possibly be a part of that vision, but before we put the cart before the horse, there is quite the extended process that takes place before the Lakers can realize their hopes. First, we will jump into the straightforward stuff.

Terminating available options

The first housecleaning is the one the Lakers do themselves by declining options of every superfluous player that isn't relevant in the long term. The Lakers' current payroll has a number of these cases:

Player	'13-'14 Salary	'13-'14 Contract Status
Kobe Bryant	$30,453,805	Guaranteed
Pau Gasol	$19,285,850	Guaranteed
Steve Nash	$9,300,500	Guaranteed
Metta World Peace	$7,727,280	Early termination option
Steve Blake	$4,000,000	Guaranteed
Chris Duhon	$3,750,000	Only $1,500,000 guaranteed
Jordan Hill	$3,563,600	Guaranteed
Jodie Meeks	$1,550,000	Team option
Devin Ebanks	$1,317,986	Qualifying offer
Darius Morris	$1,202,744	Qualifying offer
Andrew Goudelock	$1,084,293	Qualifying offer
Robert Sacre	$988,872	Qualifying offer
Total:	$79,631,035	---

The easiest call of the offseason is to decline to exercise a qualifying offer to Devin Ebanks, who miserably failed to live up to expectations and will probably be scrounging for a job in Europe or the D-League next season. Past, that you start to enter more contested territory that requires a more thorough examination. Chris Duhon, for instance, will almost certainly not be on the team next year due to his non-guaranteed salary, but whether that means he is simply waived by the Lakers or used as a minor trade piece is an open question. If the Lakers offload sufficient salary to be comfortably beneath the tax, the latter could be a real possibility as the Lakers could take back a bit of salary if a pick or other asset could be the return piece. Recall also that the new CBA increases the amount of salary you can take back in deals to 150% plus $100,000 of the outgoing salaries so long as you are under the tax and not sending out more than roughly $10 million.

The issue of course is getting under the tax, which should remain somewhere around the $70 million mark that it was at last year and the team options and qualifying offers the Lakers can decline don't come close to getting them underneath it. We will return to this subject in a moment, so let us continue with the rest of the list. Coming to Jodie Meeks, his fit is already questioned on a competitive team that could use the shooting he failed to provide last year and it is an open subject as to whether he will be retained either way. Getting something for him probably isn't possible, although he easily could be included as collateral in a trade involving the Lakers' bigger salaries without much fuss. Either way, his salary is sufficiently small that it probably wouldn't hurt the Lakers with regards to their payroll to hold onto him and see if he can return to form and reclaim some value near the trade deadline. A competitive team would send him away to get a better option for the short-term, but a rebuilding one would sit on him to see if he could bear fruit down the road.

Lastly, we get to the Lakers' stable of young talent, all of whom should probably see their qualifying offers exercised if the Lakers are rebuilding. Remember, the whole point of this enterprise is to be really, really bad. If that means we're starting a Darius Morris and Andrew Goudelock backcourt, so be it and you have an entire year of putting their feet to the fire to see if they can be molded into pieces for the future. This is especially the case for Morris, as he is entering year three and desperately needs to show that he belongs in a NBA rotation for the Lakers to have any interest in retaining him past 2014. In a rebuilding year, he would be given every opportunity to show that that should be the case. A similar calculus applies on a smaller level for Goudelock, who could possibly develop into a useful scoring combo guard, or Sacre, a potential backup big.

With Metta World Peace likely to opt into his final year, there isn't really much to say about the players in this area simply because they aren't very relevant to the large scale rebuilding activity unless someone like Morris starts to produce out of the blue. They are sufficiently inexpensive enough, however, that it doesn't hurt the Lakers to mine most of them for as much as they can get while the rest of the roster around them drastically changes. In any case, declining Ebanks' qualifying offer only moves the Lakers a smidgen closer to being under the tax and so would sending Meeks and Duhon away in lieu of using them as trade chips. Moving under requires tackling some of the bigger fish on the roster.

What do the Lakers do with Steve Nash?

Nash, now the oldest player in the league following Jason Kidd's retirement, is a key figure in this process, not only since his is the only contract that goes into the 2014 season. No doubt Nash treasures being close to his children, but he also came to Los Angeles to compete for a championship and needless to say, rebuilding is the complete opposite of that. He also fits the exact mold of a player a rebuilding team wants to jettison: an aging player on a deal past the immediate season who could have value to a veteran team seeking a contributor. Nash's trade heft, of course, is a pale shadow of what it was even a year ago, as an injury filled season exposed his declining jets, but still proved that he's an otherworldly shooter in every phase of the game.

Would a team like New York, one of Nash's suitors last offseason, be interested in obtaining him now that Kidd has left a hole in their backcourt? They clearly had no compunction in putting together an aging roster last offseason and Nash would fit that mold while giving them another ballhandler and shooter in the backcourt to buttress what was at times was an inconsistent offensive attack. Iman Shumpert was the prize piece New York offered to Phoenix and one could see either him or the Knicks' first rounder being an option along with appropriate salary ballast.

An option that probably came off the list, however, was Toronto now that they have obtained the services of Denver's Masai Ujiri as general manager. Although Executive of the Year is a pretty dismal method of acknowledging smart management as far as awards go, he has made quite a few savvy moves during his tenure as Denver's GM and very likely would not have gone to the absurd extent that Bryan Colangelo did last offseason in overpaying Landry Fields as a gambit to prevent New York from having the pieces to sign-and-trade for Nash. Regardless, there is almost no way for Toronto to complete a trade for Nash without saddling the Lakers with a highly undesirable contract assuming they are unwilling to let go of Kyle Lowry, a rather difficult proposition considering their differences in age.

Whatever target the Lakers settle on and Nash agrees is a suitable landing spot -- as remember, he can retire at any point and make this entire process moot -- will probably have to give the Lakers at least one significant asset for Nash, whether a decent young player or a first rounder. Salary relief isn't quite as important with the stretch provision in tow, although the Lakers would probably like to split Nash's salary into several pieces if money past next season is incoming. Altogether, the Lakers would want to come out such a transaction younger and with at least one piece they can keep as part of a future core. Even with Nash diminished as he is, that's not an especially tall order to fulfill.

How do the Lakers use the amnesty provision?

The Nash trade isn't a big part of getting under the tax; it's mostly a means of getting rid of some long-term salary and accruing assets. Nash's salary isn't big enough to be relevant in cost cutting unless the Lakers deal him for nothing and he has enough value to make such a stance impractical. What does play directly into the tax conversation is the amnesty provision, however, and we already had a long roundtable from the staff on who should be the primary amnesty target. The consensus that emerged was that Metta World Peace was the most likely target and this article doesn't disagree with that stance, especially since yours truly was part of that consensus.

But we should consider the possibility that Kobe Bryant decides that he doesn't want to be part of a rebuilding effort, even if we project it only to last for one or even two years. One can sell him on the David Robinson parallels when Robinson's injury allowed San Antonio to emerge with Tim Duncan and the central piece of a core that is competitive to this very day. Still, Kobe could believe that he can return from his Achilles injury with few ill effects and be effective immediately, increasing the demand that he be on a competitive team. That obviously doesn't jive with the Lakers' desire to bottom out and it's not unreasonable to expect Kobe being sufficiently good as to take the Lakers out of the 1-5 range in the lottery. That makes a big difference, especially when the cream of the crop is so distinguished in the 2014 class. There has to be a meeting of the minds either in the sense that Kobe agrees to take his sweet time coming back from injury Derrick Rose-style -- albeit in a much more PR-friendly fashion -- or that he and the Lakers find some way to mutually part ways for the time being.

The latter practically has to come in the form of the amnesty because trading Kobe is insanely difficult. Not only is his salary gargantuan and requires a herculean effort even to find some way to match the salaries, his no-trade clause prevents you from gutting the team he's going to in the process. The Lakers would almost certainly have to take on numerous long-term salary pieces that cripple their future flexibility because there's simply no other way to create a trade that works under the rules. Kobe would also have to do his own legwork in the amnesty process, as he has a very limited ability to chose his next team by more or less threatening to sit out the entire year if a team that isn't slated to be competitive or one that he simply doesn't want to be on bids for him.

Hopefully it doesn't come to that, however, and the easier path is Kobe staying on the team and taking it easy until the Lakers are comfortably bad enough that they have a fair shot at the top picks in the draft. In an ideal world, the Lakers bottom out utterly to maximize their chances at the number one spot and Andrew Wiggins, but it's also hard to maintain Kobe on the roster during that period and accomplish that goal in its entirety. Keeping Kobe as well as tanking is a dicey proposition and the front office and Kobe's camp need to spell out clearly their goals for next season in this regard.

All this taken aside, using the amnesty on Metta would put the Lakers under the tax line assuming they shave off a few other salaries such as Ebanks' or Meeks'.

Starting payroll	$79,631,035
Luxury tax line ('12-'13)	$70,307,000
Total payroll (decline Ebanks option)	$78,313,049
Total payroll (amnesty Metta)	$70,585,769
Total payroll (decline Meeks option)	$69,035,769

You would still want more flexibility beneath the tax, whether for re-signing Earl Clark, a smart proposition to see how his development proceeds and to take advantage of his desire to stay on the team, or otherwise. Again, rebuilding is pointless if you can't get under the tax. Buying out Duhon's contract is probably the most impactful internal move the Lakers could make to add a cushion in this regard and a veteran team might be interested in the likes of Steve Blake. Nash might also get you some minor relief next season, but the primary heft of the Lakers' offseason savings is going to come from the chief piece in the offseason rebuilding effort.

What do the Lakers do with Pau Gasol?

Aside from negotiating with Kobe, the true test of Kupchak's managerial fortitude will be what he gets in return for Pau, the principal part of the offseason should rebuilding ensue. The two things that Kupchak needs to emerge with in the aftermath of a Pau trade are salary relief, meaning no long-term salary commitments, Pau's salary broken into multiple pieces, and reduced payroll this upcoming season; and young pieces, whether in the form of draft picks, guys on their rookie deals, or similar assets. If this looks familiar to what the team usually asks for Pau, remember that the Lakers basically don't care what short-term assets they receive in return so long as it relieves their payroll.

So for instance, if Washington was willing to throw in Emeka Okafor and the number three pick for Pau to aid their playoff search -- just presented as a hypothetical: Ernie Grunfeld isn't that bad of a GM...although he did give away a 2009 number five pick that had Ricky Rubio in that draft slot for Mike Miller and Randy Foye for their supposed playoff chase that year, so who knows? -- the Lakers would jump on that in a heartbeat since they would be entirely uncaring about Okafor's fit. Victor Oladipo, Otto Porter, or Anthony Bennett would hugely jump start the Lakers' rebuilding process in addition to whatever pick they get in 2014 following an extensive tank job.

Now, that's as idealized of a Pau trade as you can humanely imagine. The Lakers don't take on any future salary and get a prized asset in the meantime. General managers generally aren't dumb enough to do that nowadays with scouting and management as smart as it is though. The contention yours truly put forth in my draft primer that dealing Pau for a lottery pick is unrealistic, however, only sort of holds true in this situation. The Lakers' asking sheet for a Pau trade when speaking from the vantage point of a team trying to stay competitive is much steeper, as there have to be short and long-term pieces that are coming back in order to help the Lakers. Pau's value is no longer so high as to command pieces that meet both criteria.

It would be nice if the Lakers could convince some team in the lottery to part with their pick, however, even if the Washington scenario outlined above is a mere fantasy. To do so, the Lakers would need a team that sees itself as a viable playoff team with another piece next season and has the combination of cap space, a decent pick, and other young players that the Lakers would find attractive. An astute viewer would point to Oklahoma City, which has a late lottery pick and a good prospect in Jeremy Lamb from the James Harden trade, but there's no way the Lakers can conclude a trade with the Thunder receiving Pau without taking back Kendrick Perkins' contract, a pretty undesirable outcome.

We're not going to get into every possible scenario in the lottery, but there are also quite a few teams under the cap who don't have to send back equal value for Pau salary wise and the more distance the Lakers can get between their payroll and the tax line, the better. Even in a rebuilding year, the team will be bringing in filler for the rotation and there's the possibility of a value signing or two that the team could make that could become relevant a year or two down the road. Should they not have to pay the tax, the Lakers could also gain access to the full midlevel exception and that could increase their flexibility in bringing in those value signings, although it probably will go unused.

As a result, gauging the Lakers' rebuilding efforts mostly just requires on seeing what Kupchak can fetch for Pau since it influences so many other aspects of what the Lakers do this offseason and next season. The Lakers have always highly valued Pau and what he brings to the team, hence why he was only ever actually dealt in a deal for the greatest point guard of our generation, and cutting ties with him for the prize rebuilding requires will be bittersweet. That noted, the deal that brought him to LA paid dividends for his former team in Memphis and it serves as a reminder of the value that payroll flexibility and young pieces brings to your team.

Who are the draft prospects in 2014?

Ah, it would be nice to attach a name to all those mythical "young prospects" the Lakers would even enter into this rebuilding process for. Honestly, it is mostly irrelevant from the perspective that the draft is the easiest and best way to add young talent; the Lakers would move down this path for the sake of rebuilding even if the upcoming draft was viewed as mediocre. It just benefits the team that Andrew Wiggins, possibly one of the best prospects in recent memory and perhaps the most celebrated since LeBron James, happens to be eligible for the draft in 2014. His athleticism is otherworldly, he is incredibly skilled for a player his age, and has every conceivable tool you want in a star player. Some current executives flat out told Grantland's Zach Lowe that they would pay him the max right here and now to obtain him. He is simply that good of a prospect.

The guys below him on the totem pole aren't slouches either though. Julius Randle, the most recent shining example of Kentucky's -- or John Calipari's rather -- absurd ability to bring in deep, star-filled recruiting classes, is a super athletic four man who can post, shoot from range, handle the ball, and be a terror in transition. Arizona's Aaron Gordon is still very young at 17, but has great fundamentals, outstanding athleticism, and a great handle at the forward spot. Jabari Parker from Duke doesn't have the athleticism of many of the aforementioned names, although he is another forward great scoring ability as well as superb basketball instincts with his passing and ballhandling. Another Kentucky product in Andrew Harrison, who attends the school along with his brother Aaron, a less celebrated player, would be the best point guard prospect in 2014 if Marcus Smart had not chosen to go back to school and Smart would probably go to Orlando at number two in this draft.

All in all, the top of the 2014 draft is stacked, although Wiggins is the big prize obviously. This all indicates that there is a veritable goldmine of an opportunity for the Lakers if they are diligent in their rebuilding efforts. It also shows what is at stake in terms of not having Kobe overly derail the tanking process. There is no halfway rebuilding: that leads to mediocrity and mediocrity is the death knell for a NBA team's future. You become too good to get that elite talent at the top of the draft and too bad to ever make noise in the postseason when it matters. Ask the Philadelphia Sixers of late how that has gone for them.

Whomever the Lakers end up with in 2014, they will serve as the centerpiece of a team of young players, namely whatever pieces the Lakers got in the Pau and Nash deals as well as (hopefully) someone from their own farm such as Darius Morris. They also will have the benefit of a completely empty payroll, as the team would have no major salary commitments to anyone on the roster whatsoever and more than enough room to add up to two max salaried players.

How do the Lakers handle the free agent process in 2014 onwards?

Now, the Lakers' rebuilding process isn't immediately discredited if LeBron James doesn't leave Miami for LA in 2014. Probably the only way he actually does that in a situation in which Dwight has left the team and a thorough rebuild has been undertaken is if the Lakers actually get the number one pick and draft Wiggins after he has left a trail of destruction and carnage at Kansas. After that, the Lakers would still have gobs of cap space to add contributing pieces, most of whom they were developing after the Pau and Nash deals. This is especially why it's important to deal Pau for young talent and try for a lottery pick, as it only adds a piece that is more likely to be an important member of this core.

Still, let us say for the sake of argument that Miami finds a novel way to get under the tax to avoid the repeater penalties while staying competitive or Bron decides on a homecoming to Cleveland. All is certainly not lost, as it just means that the Lakers flex their muscle with their massive amounts of cap space and maintain their flexibility. There probably isn't another player deserving of a max salary that offseason besides Carmelo Anthony, although even he wouldn't be a bad option considering that the Lakers would still have room to add a lot of other pieces around him. Kyle Lowry, for instance, would be someone there on the cheaper side and the Lakers also could rent out their cap space in exchange for picks and other assets, something that could possibly counteract their lack of a pick in 2015.

The offseason in 2015 is probably when the rebuilding process ends, however, as Rajon Rondo, Kevin Love, LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol, and possibly Roy Hibbert or Brook Lopez hit the market. One of these guys in addition to the 2014 lottery pick, any major free agent signing in 2014, the young pieces received from Pau, whatever the team got for Nash, and any number of other contributors becomes the core of a team that hopefully has significant aspirations that year and is still developing. Even Kobe could be part of this team, although he would have to take a significant salary cut to be part of it past 2015. Regardless, the dream Chris presented of Andrew Wiggins and LeBron James on the same squad probably isn't happening, but neither is it entirely implausible either if the Lakers are very diligent in their rebuilding efforts.

One might think at the end of all this why the Lakers simply don't tell Dwight to get lost, or even better: sign-and-trade him to Houston, Golden State or wherever in exchange for a few young pieces to even further push forward the rebuilding process. The simple reason is that the above process is fraught with uncertainty at every step of the way, the advantages the Lakers have over most rebuilding teams in terms of their ability to attract free agents aside. You need all those young pieces to develop, you have to deal Pau and Nash for the right packages, you have to win out in the lottery when it ultimately is a game of chance, and your sales pitch has to be adequate to those free agents to join a rebuilding team. The task of convincing Kobe to be a part of this process in his twilight years might eclipse all of these items in difficulty, moreover.

The great thing about Dwight returning is that it removes so much of that uncertainty. At his peak, Dwight is a super elite player worthy of having his name mentioned in the company of the best players ever to set foot on a basketball court and he becomes part of the recruiting pitch towards all those free agents in 2014 and 2015. You don't have to bother with the Kobe situation since he will be coming back to a competitive team and both Nash and Pau probably stay along for the ride next year too before the latter expires and the former probably becomes a victim of the stretch provision. Adding pieces is also easier when you have an established identity around your best player and aren't trying to cobble one together as your core constantly changes over the years.

So the rebuilding process is difficult, but it is also necessary if Dwight leaves. As previously noted, nothing is worse than mediocrity. The Lakers aren't an exception to this: either you are in playoff contention, an up and comer with developing pieces, or in full out bottoming out mode trying for a rebuild. Staying the course without Dwight is probably the worst thing the team could possibly do. In any case, it would probably be remiss of us not to have faith in the front office given how they succeeded in their rebuilding process after 2004, although Dwight leaving will require Kupchak performing more of his magic as the Lakers jump down the rabbit hole into unfamiliar territory.

Follow this author on Twitter @brosales12.

TDS Listicle: 7 Reasons Dwight Howard Should Come To Houston

Max Croes — Fri, 24 May 2013 20:06:47 -0000

1. There's No State Income Tax:

2. In the playoffs we didn't start Earl Clark, Steve Blake, Andrew Goudelock or Darius Morris:

3. Dwight couldn't look down on his new coach:

4. We've both fired a Van Gundy:

5. We have the perfect wingman for you on-the-court:

6. We have the perfect wingman for you off-the-court:

7. We've got a guy to help you take it to the next level:

From D-League Stints To The NBA Playoffs: A Number Of Guards Showcased Their Abilities In Round One

Gino Pilato — Sun, 05 May 2013 15:00:07 -0000

Depth is crucial at this point in the season, as NBA teams battle through injuries and continue on with their postseason runs. The injury bug presented a number of players, specifically guards who spent a portion of this past season in the NBA D-League, with opportunities to showcase their talents.

Unfortunate injuries to Russell Westbrook, Jeremy Lin, Steve Blake and Steve Nash opened the door for the likes of Reggie Jackson, Patrick Beverley, and Andrew Goudelock to play significant playoff minutes. Cory Joseph and Darius Morris also played critical roles for their teams in the first round as well. Which of these guards with NBADL stints to their name made the largest impact? Check out our rankings below.

1. Reggie Jackson (Oklahoma City Thunder)

The former first round draft pick in 2011 played a significant role in helping the Thunder escape an early upset against Houston. In six games and four starts, Jackson averaged 14.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in 30.0 minutes. In the series clinching win on Friday, Jackson recorded a season-high 8 assists as he helped guide the Thunder into the second round.

Jackson spent three games in the NBADL back in December, and averaged 28.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 8.3 assists for the Tulsa 66ers. His ability to distribute the ball while limiting turnovers is a quality that Jackson showcased in the D-League, but also in the playoffs thus far. Jackson's high-energy style will be counted on in the next round, as the Thunder face Memphis and their impressive backcourt. So far, Jackson has held his own and looks to be improving with each game.

2. Patrick Beverley (Houston Rockets)

Beverley stepped in and provided the Rockets with a completely different look and added toughness during their playoff series against OKC. Beverley certainly earned every minute of his six games for the Rockets during the first round. From Russia to the D-League, Beverley capitalized on his opportunity to show fans and NBA brass that he is more than capable of producing at the NBA level.

Beverley started in five of the Rockets' six playoff games after Jeremy Lin was sidelined with an injury. The former Arkansas Razorback averaged 11.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 33.3 minutes. In both of Houston's wins against OKC, Beverley scored in double-digits and averaged 38.0 minutes.

In January, like so many players on the Rockets roster, Beverley had a three game stint with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. During those three games, the 6-1, 185 pound guard averaged 13.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 7.0 assists, and 2.0 steals in 37.3 minutes. Beverley surely increased his stock despite coming up short in the first round.

3. Andrew Goudelock (Los Angeles Lakers)

Goudelock won the NBA D-League MVP and started in an NBA Playoff game all on the same day for the Los Angeles Lakers. As unique of a situation as that was, Goudelock put together two solid starts for the Lakers after dominating the D-League all season-long. The "Mini Mamba" led all scorers in the first half of his second game in the 2013 postseason, and went on to score 20 points in 41 minutes.

Goudelock's play forced the announcers to drop tidbits about the "D-League" during his playoff run with L.A., but along with the Lakers' season, Goudelock fell short of getting his team past San Antonio despite his spirited effort.

During Goudelock's 52 games in the NBADL this past season, the instant offense-guard averaged 21.1 points, 5.2 assists, and 3.9 rebounds in 37.1 minutes. In addition to winning the D-League's Most Valuable Player award, Goudelock's highly publicized run with the Lakers this postseason plugged him in the minds of NBA executives heading into the offseason.

4. Darius Morris (Los Angeles Lakers)

Unlike the aforementioned Goudelock's situation, Morris played heavy minutes in the Lakers series with the Spurs, but was more of a familiar face to fans. Morris played in 48 games this season, and started in 17 of those contests, he averaged 4.0 points, 1.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists in 14.2 minutes.

In the first round, Morris was asked to play more due to a depleted Lakers' backcourt, and the former two-year Michigan Wolverine raised the level of his game. In four games, Morris averaged 10.5 points, 3.0 assists, and 1.3 rebounds in 26.3 minutes, nearly double the amount of playing time he was used to in the regular season.

The steady 6-4, 190 pound guard was assigned three times and played in two games for the Los Angeles D-Fenders earlier this year. Through both games with the D-Fenders, Morris averaged 15.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and 1.0 steal. Each game that Morris played in the D-Fenders won.

5. Cory Joseph (San Antonio Spurs)

The Canadian born Joseph averaged 4.5 points, 3.0 assists, and 2.8 rebounds in 14.3 minutes for the Spurs in their first round sweep of the Lakers. The Spurs organization has done a masterful job in allowing Joseph to develop his game with multiple assignments to their D-League affiliate, the Austin Toros. It has allowed head coach Gregg Popovich to have confidence in Joseph for this playoff run.

Joseph has been no stranger to the NBADL in his first two seasons, and this year spent 26 games (26 starts) with the Austin Toros. Perhaps the familiarity with the league, and it's competition has enabled Joseph to excel during his stints with the Toros. Joseph averaged 19.4 points, 5.5 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 1.9 steals in 38.5 minutes this season.

As the Spurs continue to go deeper in the playoffs, look for Joseph to contribute efficiently during his time on the court, and perhaps increase upon his totals from round one.

Poll

Which guard impressed you the most in the first round of the NBA Playoffs?

Reggie Jackson

8 votes

Patrick Beverley

6 votes

Andrew Goudelock

4 votes

Darius Morris

0 votes

Cory Joseph

6 votes

24 votes | Poll has closed

Examining the (Low) Pay of NBA D-League Players

Keith_Schlosser — Fri, 03 May 2013 16:00:09 -0000

In RidiculousUpside.com's recent interview with NBA D-League All-Star Courtney Fortson, the former number one overall rated prospect made it clear he will not be returning to the minors next season.

Of course, the former Rockets and Clippers guard hopes to re-join the NBA ranks come training camp later this fall. But should he not land some sort of guaranteed contract along the way, Fortson, like many NBADL players, realize there are much more lucrative offers to be had overseas.

Though Fortson was one of the league's better talents, player salaries simply tend to be rather low, and are often difficult to make a living off of. The big benefit of playing in the D-League clearly rests with the opportunity to potentially strut your stuff in front of NBA executives and stay close to home on a nightly basis. Doing so may better position players to eventually land big league gigs, but should they not, things may become difficult financially.

Second-year Lakers guard Andrew Goudelock is a perfect example. Though the young gun made $475,000 as a rookie last season in Los Angeles, this season proved to be a tough one. Cut by the Lakers following training camp, Goudelock laced up his sneakers and put on an NBADL jersey because he, like many who follow his game closely, thought it would only be a matter of time. If he stayed in the minors and played well enough, perhaps he'd be able to remind NBA teams what they were missing out on, and earn a call-up shortly after.

For whatever reason, though Goudelock tore up the league all season long, that oh so coveted call didn't come his way for quite a while. It wasn't until Kobe Bryant went down with a severe injury last month that Los Angeles called upon Goudelock once again to fill in during the playoffs. His further contract details at this point are still unclear, but expect the Lakers to yet again hold the cards with regard to training camp and keeping Goudelock in town.

Not much is guaranteed for these young guns, which is why it made sense (regardless of how unfortunate it still may be) that Goudelock said in a recent report that he was forced to borrow money from his girlfriend, a college student, during the regular season. The guard was reportedly earning

just $1,200 every two weeks in the minors.

According to ESPN's Marc Stein, there are three basic levels of D-League player salaries: $25,000, $19,000, and $13,000. Taking the league by storm as he ran away with its M.V.P., award, it's sensible to assume Goudelock was earning the top amount. Still, such isn't much to write home about.

In addition to the modest salary, there are other varied perks. The D-League teams do in fact pay for player housing, provide certain benefits, and grant each of their players a $40 per-diem for food, etc.

Living life going from paycheck to paycheck is not the type of lifestyle not many would think of when considering the life of professional athletes. Nevertheless, it's all part of the D-League grind. The league's players are gunning for other opportunities, but if one in the NBA does't come along accordingly, it's easy to understand why the much more lucrative opportunities overseas become that much more temping and/or desirable.

The Downbeat 1032 -- The "KOC isn't gone yet" Edition

AllThatAmar — Thu, 02 May 2013 14:05:42 -0000

Right off the bat I will say that I have no idea what's happening with the Kevin O'Connor thing. As the story progressed Andy made a number of smart, and rational updates to his piece here. What we do know is that, eventually, KOC is going to keep giving more and more responsibility to his underlings and hopefully, ride off into the sunset. It is in my personal opinion that keeping him as an active part of the Jazz decision making process "just because" will continue to feed his ego in a malignant way and prevent us from really moving forward. Of course, the Utah Jazz are up to their old tricks of making it impossible to divulge any information from them:

via Moni: jazzfanatical.files.wordpress.com

Yep. Thanks Randy. Keep it up. Read his interview at Moni's site here. It's . . . pretty much as we can expect it to be. Anyway, the thing that cheeses me off (is that a thing?) is the fact that we're apparently trying to build towards a championship-caliber team. This is a big fat lie because every other time these front office replicants are asked what our whole deal is, it's been to be "playoff competitive". That doesn't mean competitive IN the playoffs, let alone being championship caliber. It means competitive for a playoff spot. That part isn't independent research by me either, they've flat out said it. It's a fancy word for "our goal every season is to challenge for the 8th, or 7th spot". If anything, that's the most indicative justification for cleaning house a little bit.

Don't embrace mediocrity. As Clark's on going review of what our team has done in the last few years shows (Part 1, Part 2), it can be argued that we kind of did that. Let's not embrace mediocrity guys. Even if that means hurting people's feelings in the front office OR in the locker room.

The Draft is a big thing. There's a bunch of stuff that needs to happen between now and the draft (June 27th) though before we know who we're going to pick.

The NBA Draft Combine (May 15th - May 19th) -- This takes place at Attack Athletics, in Chicago. (This part may be in code: Which apparently is pretty far from my parents downtown Condo after all!) It's where a select group of players show up to be measured (height, wingspan, standing reach, vertical jump, lane agility speed, 3/4 court speed, etc), go through shooting drills, and get to stack up against one another in terms of three distinct classes: point guards, wings, and bigmen. It's a really exciting time for me at least because I keep a big spreadsheet on this stuff. You can help yourself a lot here if you are a bubble guy by going balls out and doing well. For example, Andrew Goudelock made quite a name for himself by shooting better than Jimmer Fredette at the combine two years ago. He used that momentum to get his butt drafted by the Lakers. Similarly you can really up your draft stock if you are super athletic. Both Kris Humphries and Kirk Snyder killed it on their metrics and bumped up a few spots on draft night -- and we were hurting for athletes -- and we reached for them. A lot of players who go to this will also be out of draft range, but their agents are telling them to go so they can be on the radar of NBA teams and maybe be invited to summer league. Even more depressing that that is that the top picks will who do show up to this event will do the bare minimum number of drills (if any), and only get their height and weight recorded. They do have the most to lose, I guess, if it's found out that they are less athletic than Kyrylo Fesenko by the numbers. So, meh.
The NBA Draft Lottery (May 21st) -- This is where we get to see which team snuck into the top 3, while we get our #14 pick.
Pre-Draft Workouts (May-June 26th) -- Last season the first pre-draft workout scheduled was May 8th. And they go on until the last possible moment before the NBA Draft. These individual job interviews are really important, so important that teams sometimes allow scouts from other franchises to watch them. These workouts are also the last time the Jazz used Karl Malone for anything as he evaluated some of the bigmen we brought in one day: Shelden Williams, Hilton Armstrong, Patrick O'Bryant, and Mouhammad Saer Sene. But that's neither here nor there. It was back in 2006 though, so, it's definitely not here. That's for sure. These workouts have players fly in and compete against a group of assistant coaches, NBA vets, NBA washups, and other draftees. The Jazz like to bring in a number of guys at the same position each time, and players of a complimentary position on the same day. They'll bring in distributors and bigmen. Or wingplayers and guys who can run the break. The biggest part of this for me is the individual interview. The Jazz have previously drafted guys who flew in for the interview, but did not have enough time to actually work out for them. If you can ace the combine and the interview I think the Jazz will definitely have you on their radar.

Two of these three things are important and something we have to worry about. The Jazz don't tip their hand much in who they bring in for workouts -- in fact I think I did a blog post that we draft a guy we work out something like 5.6% of the time. Some of it is smoke screen, some of it is the need to evaluate everyone, and some of it is just how the ball bounces.

Because the NBA Draft gurus keep changing their rankings every day I've now gone from scouting the Top 60 players to now scouting the Top 150 players who are on draft boards. This includes people who declare for the draft early, automatic entrants who are seniors, foreign players who declare for the draft early, *and* also automatic foreign entrants. I have all of their stats for 2012-2013 in a big spread sheet but now that it's 150 players I don't know how to do the post on this anymore. Should I break it down by draft spot (Lotto, First round, Second Round, etc), or position (PG, SG, etc), or category (Early entrant, Seniors, foreign)?

TELL ME WHAT TO DO!

So what's the deal with Enes Kanter 's twitter account? When is he allowed to tweet again? After the NBA Finals? After he passes a comprehension test on what happens during the NBA playoffs? As a blogger, but also as a fan, his tweets last year were amazing. He's probably in Turkey right now chilling and getting fat again right now though, so that explains the message data rate being something to self-impose a hiatus on.

Wow, I love our Jazz community. Everyone is stepping up -- bloggers, podcasters, people who do photoshops, and of course, the people who make the videos we love to put in our blog posts. Check out these two by TheUtahJazz1Fan:

Top 10 Crazy Shots:

--> Gordon Hayward, Alec Burks, Enes Kanter, Jamaal Tinsley, Mo Williams, DeMarre Carroll

Top 10 Alley-Oops:

--> Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, Enes Kanter, Alec Burks, and this Jeremy Evans cat.

Oh, btw Jazz marketing department -- these are the players and plays that put butts in the seats. May want to bring that up in a staff meeting or something with the other LHM Sports and Entertainment heads.

I think the psychology of the unknown is something pretty cool. In some cases we vehemently fear the unknown, but in cases of personal biases we tend to sugar coat the unknown when it favors us. I know that for me I feel like a team primarily led by Derrick Favors, Gordon Hayward, Enes Kanter, and Alec Burks would at least compete on the defensive end better than our team did last year. It could be an exciting team, but we may lose a lot of games. I don't know, it's really the unknown.

But that's not the only unknown in Jazzland.

We also have a big unknown in Dennis Lindsey. He's never been "the man" for a front office before, it's not like we hired a guy who has experience at that level. But he's young, he's new, and he has hired Alec Lam, so I expect him to be at least competent. Our bias is to expect him to be amazing though, just like some of us are biased towards expecting the C4 to be pretty darn good.

The Utah Jazz are being sneaky about the Kevin O'Connor news, and we may never know what will happen with that. But WHEN DL ascends to the top spot in the front office, how do you think he'll do in his first 24 months on the job?

Poll

I think that in Dennis Lindsey's first 24 months on the job he'll:

1 / 10 - Bomb

2 votes

2 / 10 - Can't get much worse

4 votes

3 / 10 - Leave a lot of room for improvement

0 votes

4 / 10 - Be slightly below average

6 votes

5 / 10 - Have some hits and some misses

30 votes

6 / 10 - Be slightly above average

54 votes

7 / 10 - Be one of the best GMs in the NBA

37 votes

8 / 10 - Really improve our team quickly

39 votes

9 / 10 - Bring some of that Spurs off-season magic to the Jazz

20 votes

10 / 10 - Lindsey will just be amazing in his first 24 months on the job

21 votes

213 votes | Poll has closed

The 2012-13 NBA D-League Title: Royce White's Missed Opportunity?

Keith_Schlosser — Wed, 01 May 2013 14:00:05 -0000

This week, the previously not-so-known Patrick Beverley has been front and center on a national stage. So far starting three games for the Rockets in their first-round playoff matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the guard has been doing what he can to help keep his underdog team alive.

The young guard's postseason has been highlighted by two 16 point performances and a near triple-double as he averages 12.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 4 assists.

Most casual NBA fans may not have heard of Beverley before the postseason, but the path he used to get there is one that is being more and more frequently traveled by fellow aspiring NBA players.

The Arkansas product was signed by the Rockets just a week into the year 2013, and found himself subsequently assigned to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston's affiliate. Beverley began his NBADL stint during the league's Showcase in Reno, and appeared in two games after that.

After watching him put up similar numbers to what would become his current postseason averages, the Rockets were convinced Beverley had done enough to begin proving his worth. He was called back up to Houston and would go on to play 41 contests for the NBA squad. Of course, this was all before he recently emerged as a playoff starter.

Such an opportunity came about, undoubtedly, because of the type of promise and potential Beverley had initially shown in the D-League. Many players before him (and what's sure to be plenty more afterwards) have achieved similar success after first flashing their prowess in the minors.

But Beverley's fellow rookie and Rockets' teammate Royce White failed to capitalize on a similar opportunity of his own this season.

For all everyone knows, White may soon represent a pioneer of sorts when it comes to standing up for your rights as an individual. He continues to fight and urge the NBA for more thorough accommodations as it relates to those with anxiety disorders. He's fighting for a higher understanding.

But as he continues to stand up for what believes is right, White also keeps himself off the hardwood.

After initially refusing to report to RGV following two Rockets' formal assignments for him to do so, White finally reported to Houston's minor league affiliate in mid-February after reaching what he believed to be a reasonable temporary solution with regard to certain disorder accommodations. He came to town following months of trying to get him on the court.

And because of the long layover, White didn't exactly look like the player Houston had hoped they were acquiring upon drafting him. He looked rusty for an up and coming talent, and his skill-set, at the core, appeared very raw. He was rough around the edges, and didn't resemble much of the versatile big man known for doing all of the little things and helping maintain fluidity for his squad on both ends of the floor.

As expected, it took the forward some time to begin coming into his own. Despite a bevy of doubts, however, he started to do just that. White played in 16 games for the Vipers and his progress (in terms of the numbers he put up) was quite uneven. That said, over his final five games in RGV, he averaged an impressive 15.6 points (on 48% from the field), 5.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.4 steals in only 24.4 minutes per contest.

More important than the numbers, White looked good. He was steadily producing at a reasonable pace. What's more, he did in the flow of the team's system, even becoming a key contributor in the first five games of what would go on to become an overall sixteen-game winning streak. He began to look like that point-forward many knew him to be in college.

White's success may have continued, but he took matters into his own hands once again by opting not to join the Vipers for the postseason.

Rockets/Vipers' brass admittedly acquired D.J. Kennedy midseason in preparation that NBADL M.V.P. Andrew Goudelock would get called up to the NBA sometime soon. The St. John's alum went on to lead RGV to a minor league title in Goudelock's absence. Clearly, the Vipers couldn't prepare as though and/or depend on White to do the same thing.

Earlier this week, members of RGV were honored on the Toyota Center hardwood during halftime of a Rockets' playoff game to recognize their championship victory. The players have been commended, and there's no doubt the organization has continued to form a strong bond with each and every one of them.

Playing for the Rockets' D-League squad has clearly done wonders for many. Beverley and Greg Smith are contributors on Houston's playoff team, and the others who led RGV to a title can likely expect further looks from the big league team during Summer League.

After turning his back on the opportunity to emerge as a key NBADL playoff contributor, can White still expect the same consideration this summer? All off the court issues aside (and obviously with White, those very issues do make all the difference), one has to believe the Rockets may soon run out of patience.

There were plenty of young guns who went to work and aimed to prove themselves with the Vipers this season. It'll be interesting to see if they're given more of a commitment (with regard to each one's development) from Houston than White is.

Morning Rehash: Swept Away

Juan Cantu — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:17:44 -0000

Opening Rehash

Up 3-0 going into Sunday night, the San Antonio Spurs wanted to close out the series for the sake of resting up their still dinged-up squad. While they surely weren't looking past the Lakers, no team in NBA playoff history has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit. The Lakers were missing both their first and second-string backcourt for half of the series but, even if with a healthy squad, the Lakers were never going to win this series. The gold squad lacked a bench and had their stars running on fumes at the end of season. Kobe Bryant was magnificent for most of this season, eventually self-propelling the Lakers into the postseason.

But the main reason the Lakers were never going to win was because of the smiling man below...

In the playoffs, Tim Duncan in his career is first overall in blocks, fifth in rebounding, sixth in field goals (eight in attempts), seventh in points, and currently tied for seventh in games played with both Karl Malone and Danny Ainge. Duncan is eighth in minutes played and will most likely reach sixth by the post-season's end.

Timmy is top ten in those playoff categories and, if he continues to contribute one or two more seasons at this level, he'll finish near the top all across the record book. I know we at PtR laud Tim Duncan endlessly but this year has just made his legacy grow even more. Tim's played amazingly for so long but to be at the top of the league AGAIN at age 37? Just... wow.

On Sunday, the Lakers were out yet another starter as Metta World Peace needed to have fluid removed from his knee. World Peace had his meniscus removed not too long ago and was basically playing on one and a half legs. Even though I dislike him as a player, I have to admit my respect for him went way up after playing just because he knew the Lakers really needed him. The Lakers needed to rely on Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol throughout this series if they were going to pull out a win but the Spurs overwhelmed the two big men by packing the paint. San Antonio essentially dared the Lakers' guards to beat them in each game.

The Los Angeles backcourt stepped up at some points in game 3, as first time playoff starters Andrew Goudelock and Darius Morris combined for 44 points (most of them coming in the meaningless second half). Pau Gasol had a triple double (11 Pts, 13 Reb, 10 Ast) and Dwight Howard contributed 25 points and 11 rebounds. Outside of those four players, the remainder of the Lakers team combined for 9 points and you just don't have a shot against the Spurs with production like that.

In what possibly might have been his last game as a Laker, Dwight Howard failed to step to prevent the sweep. In typical fashion, he was ejected from the game after arguing with officials on a no-call tangle with Aron Baynes. This was Dwight's second technical foul, with first occurring after an elbow to the back of Cory Joseph's skull. The sad thing about that first technical? Dwight Howard got the foul call, making his his extra-curricular activities absolutely pointless.

Post Game Pop Quote

"There's no bad victory."

Bonus Post Game Timmy Quotes

"You know what, it's hard to answer that question because I'm playing here and now to get to the next round. I'm not worried about the history of whatever or the series of whatever...However you want to put it in the book or place it in whatever chapter, we won this series and we're moving on and we're happy about that."

-Duncan on how it feels like a chapter in the fabled Spurs-Lakers playoff match ups without Kobe.

The Essential Hash

Check out J. Gomez's recap if you haven't already.

The Spurs put the game away in the second quarter, only allowing 14 points by Los Angeles - the lowest in the entire series. After being up only 6 after the first quarter, the lead ballooned to 18, essentially putting the game out of reach. The second half was closer (51-48 in favor of the Spurs) but only because the Lakers were desperate and the Spurs had the bottom portion of their bench near the end . The Spurs were great defensively and shut down Howard in his 6 minutes during the 2nd quarter (1 point and 3 rebounds in that stretch). Tony Parker and Gary Neal combined for 16 points in the second quarter, outscoring the entire Lakers squad. The rest of the Spurs merely had to play good defense and provide one or two shots in order for the Spurs to take a commanding lead into halftime.

The second quarter shot chart in Game 4:

You can see the differences that a player that can drive into the hoop makes for a team. The Spurs had a good portion of their shots in the paint or on the baseline, as Tim and Kawhi shot long jumpers after kick-outs from a drive. There are a couple of makes from the elbows and two from downtown. The Lakers, on the other hand, have some shots down in the paint (Gasol and Dwight) but a bulk of their work is either from beyond the arc (7 shots here, equal to amount in paint) or elsewhere. When the Lakers couldn't get it to their post men, they settled for bad three point attempts (missed 6 of 7) or mid-range looks.

Kawhi Leonard led the team in minutes, at 32. No other Spur even cracked 30 - Tim (29), Tony (24), and Manu (20) all saw optimal minutes in this closeout game. The minute situation worked out well for the Spurs, especially for Tony Parker. Parker was tackled early in the game by Howard as both went supposedly went for a loose ball. Howard pancaked Parker out-of-bounds and it looked like there may have been some malice behind that shot.

Game Boss

TONY PARKER
PTS	FGM	FGA	AST	REB	STL	TO	MIN
23	9	16	4	3	2	0	26:15

26 minutes and 23 points by Tony Parker. Parker was aggressive last night and battled inside among the bigs for points. I liked what I saw and it seems like he'll be back at full strength for the next round.

Game Runt

DWIGHT HOWARD
PTS	FGM	FGA	REB	BLK	FT	TO	MIN
7	2	2	8	0	3-9	5	20:34

You can't be ejected for silly reasons if you want a chance to extend the series. Or to be taken seriously.

AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill

via i.cdn.turner.com

By the Numbers

16.25 - Average number of turnovers for the Lakers in this series. They averaged 14.6 in the regular season.
9.75 - Average amount of turnovers for the Spurs in this series. They averaged 14.1 per game this season.
24 - Points off turnovers for the Spurs, who were able to take advantage of the 22 turnovers by Los Angeles. The Lakers could only convert 8 Spurs mistakes into 4 points.
87% - Free throw percentage for the Spurs in Game 4, compared to 42% for the Lakers. San Antonio more than doubled the Lakers percentages and made four times as many freebies as Los Angeles.
13 - Steals by the Spurs, 11 more than the Lakers.
-1 - Rebounding differential for the Spurs, who were out rebounded 41-40.
12, 11, 31 and 21 - Point differentials in Game 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively. The Spurs won by an average of nearly 19 points per game.

Bird is the Word

Breaking down Dwight's ejection: First technical happened because of Cory Joseph playing hard, second because of Aron Baynes playing hard.
— KEVIN DING (@KevinDing) April 29, 2013

Maybe Kobe didn't want to hang out with Dwight in the locker room.
— J.A. Adande (@jadande) April 29, 2013

If the Spurs don't make it past the first round now, T-Mac really is cursed.
— Jeff McDonald (@JMcDonald_SAEN) April 29, 2013

Lakers last shot of this season will be a Robert Sacre airball. Fitting.
— Aaron (@DukeOfBexar) April 29, 2013

The Lakers have been swept. Kobe leaving the court on crutches probably deserves some musical accompaniment, yes? sbn.to/13F0OuC
— SB Nation (@sbnation) April 29, 2013

Leftover Hash

The word 'respect' was repeated a lot when the Spurs were asked about the Lakers. They kept saying that they acknowledged that the Lakers were missing a good amount of players but they still respected them.
The Lakers didn't score over 92 points this entire series, while the Spurs broke 91 each time and surpassed the century mark in 3 of the 4 games. Great offense and defense by the Spurs, snuffing out any hope that the Lakers might have had in this series.
Manu had a great dunk on Dwight Howard at the end of the 1st quarter, continuing his strong play at the end of quarters.
In the first quarter, Kawhi got the rebound off of a Lakers miss and broke to the other side, weaving his way through white jerseys. Leonard didn't make the shot but he was fouled and hit both of his free throws. We've seen flashes of coast-to-coast Kawhi, which is a skill that only elite players seem to have.
Did you guys know that the top 4 guards are out and injured? The announcers certainly don't want you to forget. (Rose, Rondo, Kobe, and Westbrook)
Tony certainly took a beating in this game - the whole series truthfully.
T-Mac got his first minutes tonight. It was great seeing him out on the court but he definitely appears to be out of shape. McGrady drove to the hoop well enough but couldn't get much done once he was in the paint. T-Mac did have a nice assist to Baynes for the dunk.
The Lakers were swept for the first time in the first round since 1967.
Danny Green bounced back with 11 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists in Game 3. Danny started off hot in Game 4, scoring the first two buckets for the Spurs. Other than a breakaway dunk off a beautiful pass from Manu, Danny didn't do much else. Green added 5 rebounds and 2 assists but missed 7 of his 11 shots, good for only 9 points in 24 minutes. Danny needs to start hitting his threes and then everything will be okay. Green's lucky the Warriors and Nuggets are bad at defending the 3-point line.
Kawhi Leonard played the most minutes out of the Spurs in Game 4 and certainly padded his box score. Kawhi had 13 points, made 50% of his shots, grabbed 7 boards, and had 3 steals in only 32 minutes. Leonard's not quite completely out of his shooting slump from downtown yet but signs are looking good.

Jeff Gross/Getty Images

via i.cdn.turner.com

Going into the Next Game, the Spurs Need to...

...get some well-earned rest. The Golden State Warriors or the Denver Nuggets await them in the next round - both of which will provide trouble in the fast break and will test the Spurs' endurance. If Tiago and Boris Diaw should be able to provide some meaningful minutes if both come back healthy. Thankfully, neither of those team's bigs offer much trouble against Duncan, so the Spurs should be fine with their current lineup. Tony will recover from his beating in Game 4 and Manu will continue to let his hamstring get back to 100%.

2013 Lakers Summer guide

Drew Garrison — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 14:30:23 -0000

The season has ended for the Los Angeles Lakers after the San Antonio Spurs swept L.A. in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. For the Lakers, it means the organization can finally focus on moving forward instead of trying to salvage a broken present.

The 2013 off-season could be very interesting for the Lakers as they prepare for a new season that, hopefully, puts the nightmarish 2012-2013 season in the distance.

Dwight Howard's future

The biggest question for the Lakers' long-term future is Howard's decision when he becomes an unrestricted free agent. The Lakers made the big splash everybody had been expecting when they finally traded for Howard, but his first season with L.A. was less than ideal. Will Howard re-sign with the Lakers after a tumultuous season, or will the final moments of Howard's career with the Lakers be his ejection in Game 4?

Howard was brought into the franchise to be the bridge between the end of Kobe Bryant's era to the future, but it was always a gamble for L.A. If things didn't go well in season one all bets would be off with Howard.

Thing's did not go well.

Making matters worse is the Lakers current roster structure. There is little to no flexibility left for them to add players, and Bryant will be rehabilitating his Achilles through the Summer (which we'll get to in a bit). Is there enough left in L.A. after an injury that exposed the fragility of their health for Howard to stick around?

Coaching Carousel

Mike D'Antoni was signed by the Lakers just a few weeks into the regular season after Mike Brown was fired, robbing D'Antoni of an off-season to discuss the roster with Mitch Kupchak, and the schematics with the players. With his first season in L.A. under his belt, he will now have the full Summer treatment to help adjust the team.

Will he be the coach going forward, though? D'Antoni struggled with the roster through much of the season, particularly his handling of Pau Gasol, and the Lakers may not be able to make any changes that outright improve the team. Does the Lakers front office believe in D'Antoni enough to give him another full seaso?

Jim Buss and Mitch Kupchak will have to consider all options again as another Brown situation would be an embarassment and would potentially set the team back another year. Then, there's the wild card of Howard. What if Howard wants to return but under the agreement the Lakers would be going another direction with their coaching?

No matter how much public support the Lakers have shown D'Antoni, they will certainly have to consider what's in their best interest next season and beyond.

Bryant's recovery

Bryant's torn Achilles is going to take the one thing the Lakers don't have much left of: time. Bryant is out of his cast and into a walking boot, but he will have to take to his recovery as carefully as possible. Causing further damage to the Achilles tendon and calf muscle due to overexertion is a definite concern for a player who maniacally plays through injuries.

His recovery will have more to do with his body adjusting than his will pushing him to a faster recovery. Bryant vowed to be ready to play by the season opener, and the Lakers have put a six-to-nine month time frame on his return, but the issue cannot be forced this time.

Expect plenty of updates on Bryant's recovery process through the Summer, which is a huge factor in the Lakers' Summer. Bryant's $30 million clog up the Lakers' salary cap situation if he isn't playing, and we've certainly not heard the last of the "amnesty" whisperings if the recovery is prolonged.

The expiring Gasol

Gasol has reached the final year of his contract while still wearing a purple and gold uniform. Was Game 4 Gasol's swan song? He stood as the only "Laker" left with Bryant on the bench and Howard in the locker room and received a standing ovation when he took his seat for the final time in the 2012-2013 season.

Could that be his last?

Gasol's trade value will definitely see an increase as he is a $19 million expiring contract, but that's also a big expiring contract for the Lakers who are looking forward to having cap space again once the 2014 off-season kicks in. It's unlikely the Lakers will be willing to taint the cap space they've created, but it's also unlikely they won't take calls on Gasol.

Making things trickier is if they Lakers do trade Gasol, what will they look for? Pieces to fit a head coach that they may, or may not, stick with? If Howard walks in the Summer, Gasol would be able to slide in as the Lakers' starting center. Many of the decisions the Lakers must make are linked to one another, making this a tricky slope to scale.

What does Steve Nash have left?

Nash played in only one of the Lakers' playoff games after being sidelined due to hamstring, hip, back, and nerve issues. This after he played only 50 games through the regular season and putting together his lowest minute count since the 1999-2000 season. Nash was brought in as a veteran point guard who could give the Lakers a threat at the position, but it backfired and the Lakers are now on the hook with Nash for another two seasons.

It was not a pretty season for Nash, who was nowhere near the ball-handler many envisioned when he became a Laker in the Summer. Teams were able to trap and pressure him when he had the ball, and he wasn't able to Houdini out of those situations like he once could.

Was that the last of Nash after years of defying his body, or will he come back strong after a Summer of recovery? The Lakers are in a tight position without other options at the position, and fewer options in finding a starting quality point guard.

Filling out the roster

Here's a list of players expiring this Summer for the Lakers (aside from Howard):

And Metta World Peace has a $7.7 million player option which is a large lump of money for a player to leave behind at this point in his career. There will assuredly be different faces on the bench next season, but it will be interesting to see which players the front office wants to keep (if any). Meeks at $1.5 million is a bargain, but money aside, does he help the team? Clark had a strong mid-season, but disappeared through the final month more often than not, and was a non-factor in the playoffs. The Lakers could likely bring him back at a bargain, but what terms would the Lakers seek out, and is he a legitimate rotation player or just a mirage?

Jamison was arguably the most productive bench player, but will he come back at a discount for a second-straight year? For Ebanks, it seems to be a foregone conclusion that his time in L.A. has come to an end, as even while the Lakers were ravaged by injuries he hung out in his warm-ups on the bench.

The Lakers don't have much to offer free agents this Summer and will again rely on exception and minimum contracts to fill out the roster. How many of these players come back, and which free agents will the Lakers target once free agency officially hits?

***

There are plenty of questions for the Lakers going forward, but they can finally put one of the most exhausting seasons in L.A. behind them. With any luck, the front office will make all of the right decisions, the players get healthy, and the 2013-2014 looks like a Van Gogh painting in comparison to the 2012-2013 season. Or at least better than the soggy Cheerios in my bowl after I finish writing this.

Expect more on this from us here at Silver Screen and Roll through the Summer.

- Drew

- Follow this author on Twitter @DrewGarrisonSBN

Poll

What's the most important factor in the Lakers' Summer to you?

Dwight Howard's free agency

359 votes

Coaching going forward

125 votes

Kobe Bryant's recovery

223 votes

Potentially trading Pau Gasol

34 votes

Steve Nash's status

14 votes

Filling out the roster during free agency

84 votes

Other (explain in comments)

4 votes

843 votes | Poll has closed

NBA Playoffs 2013, Spurs vs. Lakers Game 4: Spurs leading at halftime, 52-34

Drew Garrison — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 00:13:36 -0000

The San Antonio Spurs are leading the Los Angeles Lakers 52-34 through the first half of Game 4. San Antonio is one half away from sweeping the Lakers in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.

The Lakers have been ravaged by injuries through the season, and into the playoffs. Los Angeles' starting lineup featured Darius Morris, Andrew Goudelock, and Earl Clark with Pau Gasol and Dwight Howard. The Spurs are without Tiago Splitter.

The Lakers made only one three-point field goal, have turned the ball over 15 times and are down 18 points to San Antonio. To put it into perspective, the Lakers have as many turnovers as they do field goals.

Can the Lakers overcome losing their entire perimeter rotation?

Without Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Steve Blake, Metta World Peace, and Jodie Meeks, the Lakers are down to the bottom of their depth chart. Morris and Goudelock, the Lakers' starting backcourt, combined for only six points. Clark, starting in place of World Peace, scored only four points with three rebounds. With the Lakers down big at halftime, the Lakers do not look like a team that can overcome losing thee out of their five starters, along with two key bench players.

The Spurs probably have enough to win this series, but what about beyond?

The Spurs are one winning-half of basketball away from ending their first round in the playoffs in four games. Health will remain the top priority for San Antonio. Manu Ginobili's hamstring and Tony Parker's legs are both primary concerns, but Ginobili looked like he was doing just fine when he drove to the rim for this dunk. Howard crashed into Parker in the first quarter, but he remained in the game and has put in a game-high 15 points. Looking ahead, sweeping the Lakers and maximizing their time to recuperate is the best case scenario for the Spurs, and they are en route to do so.

Can Pau Gasol get going?

The Lakers were not able to establish Gasol through the first half as the Spurs fronted Gasol and the Lakers struggled with basic entry passes. While Gasol scored ten points, his impact has not been felt. After notching a triple-double in Game 3, Gasol has only four rebounds and one assist through the first two quarters of Game 4.

More from SB Nation:

• Russell Westbrook's injury turns playoffs upside down

• Boston's beaten down and beat up

• With Kahn out, Wolves can move forward

• LeBron's mad he didn't win DPOY

• Derrick Rose drama reaches breaking point