RIP Jerry Buss
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jmizzy4ou
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No doubt!!!! When my dad first introduced me to being a Laker fan as a kid, he always spoke highly of how Dr. Buss ran the team. Kareem, Magic, Kupchak, Shaq, and Kobe loved the guy, along with about everyone who played for him.
He always sat back and allowed those he paid, to do their jobs. He would spend money and make the right moves to keep LA relevant.
Looking at how his son is doing things, alienating the old members of the Laker Family, I cringe to see what the franchise might be in 10 years. Free agents have always wanted to come to LA and play on the big stage, but with the rise of the Clips, and this guy developing a reputation of being a jerk, that might change soon...... Should have turned the team over to Jenni Buss.......
KCRuf/Nek
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He molded the team to the town instead of the other way around. Dancers, celebs, live music. He made going to the game like a red carpet event. Even when they team was bad fans still loved going. Sports and life itself need more people like him.
jmizzy4ou
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Smash Williams
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Simmons mentioned that Jerry Buss put all of his energy into running the Lakers, while for other owners an NBA team is just one of several businesses. Given that time investment, you can't underappreciate the amount of restraint it took for Jerry Buss to step back and let West and Kupchak do their thing. With Jim in charge, I wonder if the Lakers now become the Dallas Cowboys of the NBA: a signature brand that fails to live up to its potential due in large part to an owner that meddles too much. I don't think Jim has been quite as bad as people make him out to be (had Stern not intervened, he would've had CP3, Dwight Howard, and Kobe on the same team), but the level of involvement he's had, including supposedly overriding Kupchak on coaching decisions (Brown over Adelman), is a disturbing trend.
stoops4pres
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Speaking of the Lakers' future direction, what do you think is going to happen to Dwight Howard, jmizzy? I guess a lot of it depends on the 2nd half of the season, but I've heard rumors that he only wants to play with the Lakers if Kobe isn't going to be there. Have you heard the same?
KCRuf/Nek
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I'm not a Laker fan but from what I see Kobe isn't going anywhere. He says he has what, a couple years left? I wonder if Kobe wants to be part of a team that looks like it's going to be leaking oil and limping along. Who will LA buils around? Gasol is 32 and seems to be breaking down a bit. Who else is there? I wouldn't look to the draft for anything. Did they trade their #1 for next year? Even if they missed the playoffs and got a high pick it's a weak draft(Sort of like for my Chiefs 
). You would think they would have to keep him. How can you not try to keep Howard? Without him who is going to want to come to LA? I'm sure despite all that has transpired this year that there are plenty of teams that would want Howard. JM .02$.
Day by day Stern not letting CP3 go to the Lakers just gets bigger and bigger. Talk about reversal of fortunes.
). You would think they would have to keep him. How can you not try to keep Howard? Without him who is going to want to come to LA? I'm sure despite all that has transpired this year that there are plenty of teams that would want Howard. JM .02$.Day by day Stern not letting CP3 go to the Lakers just gets bigger and bigger. Talk about reversal of fortunes.
jmizzy4ou
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I'm not a Laker fan but from what I see Kobe isn't going anywhere. He says he has what, a couple years left? I wonder if Kobe wants to be part of a team that looks like it's going to be leaking oil and limping along. Who will LA buils around? Gasol is 32 and seems to be breaking down a bit. Who else is there? I wouldn't look to the draft for anything. Did they trade their #1 for next year? Even if they missed the playoffs and got a high pick it's a weak draft(Sort of like for my Chiefs
Day by day Stern not letting CP3 go to the Lakers just gets bigger and bigger. Talk about reversal of fortunes.
The Lakers are currently 29mil. into the luxury tax. Dr. Buss had no problem with paying it, to keep a team of stars. His son has made noise he will be out of the luxury tax bracket in 5 yrs or less.
LA will never have trouble attracting the top free agents. They will always be one of the 3 most desired locations because of the stage they can present in Hollywood. The question will be how much lil Buss is willing to spend......
I saw this period in Kobe's future about 3 years ago. He is still a heckuva player, but not a guy who can carry a team anymore. The Laker Brass is against a wall, because the fans in LA don't want Kobe disrespected, but quietly everyone is realizing his days as the Alpha Dog are disappearing, and LA best start looking for his replacement.
I believe Kobe will be a guy who can't handle not being the main attraction. Not at this stage. He did for several yrs with Shaq, and won 3 in a row. Should have won 4 more.......
I hope I'm wrong, but I foresee LA having to make a hard decision with Kobe. I'm not pinpointing the situation with D-12 because I don't believe most Laker fans care if he goes. He doesn't fit the LA mold of their usual superstars. Will LA keep Kobe until he decides he's done?? Will they be forced to move him to get the next young star???? Will Kobe willingly step back and let someone else lead??? Will Buss continue to spend????
One footnote, even with this newfound Kobe looking to distribute and set up his guys before scoring, it's still on his terms. Nash is basically useless right now unless he is playing shooting guard for short spurts. Kobe is controlling the ball and making all of the decisions, something Nash has excelled at for his entire career. It has worked fairly well so far, but no one is REALLY happy with it, including D'Antoni. Watch his facial expressions and body language during a game. Watch Nash'sbody language. Those guys are all being good team guys and swallowing their tongues. D'Antoni would rather pick and roll someone to death, with nash/Howard, but Kobe won't be quiet for long if that becomes the primary offense.
It's a hard spot to be in for a coach and an organization. Who wants to tell Kobe to stop it, after all he has done in LA, especially after he threatened to leave, but decided to stay for good?? It will be interesting to see how it plays out. The only guy I know who would have told Kobe to step back is Phil Jackson, and he might have been able to convince Kobe to do so. Lil Buss and D'Antoni can't.......
Smash Williams
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I don't think you can put that on Jim, though. The luxury tax structure that existed under Dr. Buss is completely different from the one Jim is facing.
This year, a team $29 million over the luxury tax threshold pays a $29 million tax, which is the same dollar-for-dollar tax rate Dr. Buss has paid. Next season, a team $29 million over the threshold pays $81 million tax. If that same team is a tax payer in the previous three seasons (2011-12 through 2013-14), as the Lakers have been/will be, they will also be subject to the repeater rate in 2014-15. Under that circumstance, a team $29 million over the tax would pay a $110 million tax, which would almost certainly be greater than the team's salary.
Tax teams no longer have the full MLE, which the Lakers have used in previous years to sign Artest and to split on Payton and Malone. They now have a smaller MLE than non-tax teams, which makes it harder to attract the same type of free agents. In addition, starting next season teams in the tax won't be able to acquire free agents via sign-and-trades, such as the Nash deal. In Dr. Buss' day, the luxury tax didn't kill a team's flexibility as much as will under this CBA. Look at this current Laker roster: how badly could use they use the full MLE to get an infusion of quality role players? The Lakers can get vets to play for a discount, but the Antawn Jamisons of the NBA aren't going to make a difference for them.
Aside from the Nets and Knicks, who are megamarket teams with multi-billionaire owners, pretty much everyone has started tightening their belts in anticipation of the new tax. I realize the Lakers have an enormous market in their own right and a sweetheart TV deal, but my understanding is that most of the Buss family's wealth is tied into the Lakers, so they can't spend quite as recklessly as Prokhorov and Dolan. To be fair though, by acquiring Nash and Howard, the Busses have committed to paying a huge tax next season (assuming Howard re-signs); however, I assume they thought they were paying top dollar for a serious championship contender. I think the Lakers will continue to spend a lot of money and pay a stiff tax if they have a really good team on the floor, but it's going to be harder to justify that expense if the current product doesn't get significantly better.
A telling indicator for the Buss family's willingness to spend with this new tax will be what they do with Artest in July. Assuming they re-sign Howard, using the amnesty clause on Artest would probably save them $20-30 million in tax payments next season, depending on where the tax threshold is and what other moves the Lakers make.
$110 million tax for being $29 million over the cap!!!! A 380% tax!!!! I have learned to defer all salary cap question to smash so I'm not going to waste time researching this.
But good grief how did the players sign off on that? No wonder they want their union leader Billy Hunter strung up by his balls. Where were their agents during negotiations?
But good grief how did the players sign off on that? No wonder they want their union leader Billy Hunter strung up by his balls. Where were their agents during negotiations?
Smash Williams
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Starting next season:
link
29 over is 7.5+8.75+12.5+16.25+(3.75*5)+(4.25*4)=80.75, which I rounded to 81
The repeater rate adds a $1 to the tax at every increment, so 81+29=110.
So yeah, the players got screwed in the most recent negotiation, due partly to the fact that this will suppress spending. That's why big agents have been vocal about getting Hunter out of office.
