How about Lamar Odom as one of the NBA’s top sixth man of the year candidates for the 2008-2009 season?
It’s not as farfetched as it seems. One of the ideas being pitched around, as the Lakers prepare for training camp, is to have Odom come off the bench, playing starter-type minutes in the mode of San Antonio’s Manu Ginobili.
It would take a period of adjustment, since Odom has been a starter fromthe first day of his NBA career, starting with the Clippers, then with the Miami Heat and now with the Lakers.
However, the move could be very beneficial for Odom, who could assess just what would be needed from him once he entered the game.
Because Odom prides himself on being an unselfish, all-around player, coming off the bench could turn out to be the ideal role for him.
Wow! There really are Clippers fans out there?
Who will take is place as a starter?
What if the lineup were like this: Bynum, Gasol, Kobe, Sasha and Fisher? Odom comes off the bench nicely.
Why is a Register Intern responding to the blog post? Is this becoming a message board for yourselves now? Kevin Ding needs to get back into the office earlier this season. This Lakers blog has taken a huge credibility hit this summer. With the false rumors being paraded around here as coming from the mouth of the Lakers Front office, to the intern spamming message boards with links to this site…..it’s time to stop. You are ruining what Kevin Ding built here.
Ahem, Keith Sharon, otherwise known as me, is not an intern. Keith Sharon happens to be the editor in charge of the Lakers coverage. I just write like an intern.
I echo Sam’s thoughts. Kevin Ding was actually one of the best beat reporters in the entire NBA last season. He was short on quantity but long on quality, something missing from today’s journalism. Suffice it to say, during Ding’s break thing how been underwhelming around here.
I mean, all we have to look forward to is how Jeffs Aho is going to spin an otherwise unrelated post into his standard Kobe broken-record man-crush, and that ain’t saying much.
kudos to the proliferation of this idea.
I’ve been pushing this idea among friends for a while.
The key to this working lies in Ariza’s performance. If Ariza can come in next season hitting the outside shot and keeping defenses from collapsing on Bynum and Gasol, then he needs to play with the starting lineup. Ariza’s perimeter defense should help keep opposing SFs from penetrating with ease.
The benefit is two fold. Now, consider the bench. LO will be able to be the first player off the bench, spelling either Gasol or Bynum (Gasol moving to C). Then Sasha, Farmar and possibly Luke or Radmonovich join him for a run and gun lineup. LO would have room to operate and shooters would surround him.
Sounds like a winner.
Hold on there….
Let’s not forget what was one of the most intriguing scenarios we had last season before we learned Bynum was going to miss the entire season: one of the tallest starting frontcourts in NBA History.
Gasol - Bynum - Odom
Before we worry about 6th man status…give this frontcourt a try. The bench is still solid –> Sasha, Ariza, Powell, Farmar, Mihm, Radman. In fact, this could be one of the best benches (on paper) that I’ve seen.
Can’t wait for this season!
Regardless of whether LO starts or not, the Lakers will be an entirely different team from last year with Pau and Drew starting. I love the idea of starting Ariza at sf, because he is a more traditional small forward who can defend. I also like the idea of bringing Fish off the bench and starting Farmar. LO be the sixth man and sub in for any of the 3 bigs without losing anything and, depending on match-ups, gaining in certain areas. Look how effective the Celtics were bringing veterans in off the bench. With LO, Fish, Sasha and either Luke or Radmanovic being in the 9 man rotation, we should beat teams with our depth on a regular basis. I like the idea.