What Brown Can't Do For You

Shannon Brown has opted out of the final year of his contract by declining his player option and electing to become a free agent, whenever that may be as the players will be officially locked out as of midnight ET tonight.

Brown joined the Lakers in the middle of the 2008-2009 season in a trade deadline deal with Charlotte, along with Adam Morrison, for Vladimir Radmanovic. He averaged about eight points a game the last two seasons.

Laker Draft Picks

As mentioned earlier, Lakers had four second-round picks in tonight's draft.

Here are the players they drafted:

• 41st: G Darius Morris, from Michigan
• 46th: G Andrew Goudelock, from College of Charleston
• 56th: F Chukwudiebere Maduabum, from Nigeria (go ahead, try to pronounce it!)
• 58th: F Ater Majok

Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak has already suggested either Maduabum or Majok could be traded later tonight, with the other going to Europe.

Lakers are also still waiting on whether Shannon Brown will exercise or decline his player option.

This could greatly affect the training camp roster and whether or not Gouldelock has a chance to make the team or not.

Meanwhile, Cleveland took Duke G Kyrie Irving with the first overall pick.

Arizona F Derrick Williams went second overall to Minnesota.

And two UCLA players were drafted, as well.

F Tyler Honeycutt was drafted in the second round by the Kings with 35th pick.

G Malcolm Lee was drafted by the Bulls with 53rd pick.

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And finally, from the "Say what?!" files...

Ron Artest has filed paperwork in L.A. to legally change his name to...

Metta World Peace.

No joke.

Read about it here.

Back in the Saddle Again

Ron-Ron setting the tone early with a P.J. Carlesimo-like hand-to-the-neck move, check.

Stellar defense shutting down prolific offense, check.

Bynum with his best game of the season, check.

"What can Brown do for you?" with the exclamation point three-pointer and dunk, check.

Rout of the Knicks, check.

Four-game winning streak, check.

Sweet 16!

It's been two weeks since the Lakers clinched their 16th NBA title against Boston in seven games. Kobe earned his second straight NBA Finals MVP. The L.A. riots were in full force that night, as if right on cue. The parade has already come and gone. Phil Jackson has already announced he'll be back for one more year. And the free agency drama is already in full swing.

The Finals were certainly very entertaining, that is, if you enjoy watching the refs control them. But still, it was very entertaining. It was a see-saw battle throughout. The Lakers won Game One at home, then got beat in Game Two. The series shifted to Boston and Derek Fisher took over in Game three. The Celtics won the next two games in Boston, playing solid defense to stifle the Lakers. But Lakers returned the favor in the final two games back in L.A. with two insane defensive efforts to keep the Celtics at bay, at win their 16th NBA title, second most in NBA history behind Boston's 17, second in a row, and third win over the Celtics in their last four meetings head-to-head.

With all that behind them, the Lakers are looking forward to next season. The off-season drama began with the annual Phil Jackson watch. After meeting with doctors, he was cleared to resume his coaching duties, and elected to return for one more final year.

As for the players, Shannon Brown opted out of his contract, and Fisher, Jordan Farmar and Adam Morrison all became free agents, as well. They've already agreed to a four-year deal with guard Steve Blake, essentially marking the end of Farmar's Laker stay, at the very least. Blake can officially sign his contract on July 8th.

The Lakers and Fisher would like to continue their relationship, but Fisher wants a multi-year deal worth about $5MM per year, while the Lakers are only willing to go as high as $2.5 or $3MM per year. Is their a compromise somewhere in the middle? Sure. I'm pretty sure both would like to find some sort of resolution to this sooner rather than later.

The Lakers had been linked to guard-forward Mike Miller the day before signing Blake, but Blake's signing all but takes the Lakers out of the running for Miller. A sign-and-trade is always possible, but highly unlikely. Earlier in the off-season, it had been reported that the Lakers were very interested in guard Raja Bell, and they could very well still be interested. Bell has stated his first choice is Miami, so this is still in a wait-and-see mode until all the other top free agents find homes.

Aside from Fisher, the starting lineup figures to remain intact, assuming they don't trade Andrew Bynum. The bench appears to have been thinned out, and depending on how they fill out the bottom end of the roster, Sasha Vujacic and Luke Walton will probably be given more playing time next year than this. Both struggled immensely this season off the bench, Walton in large part due to an injury-plagued season, and Vujacic also battled nagging ailments, as well.

At least one of the Lakers draft picks this year is likely to make the roster. West Virginia small forward Devin Ebanks has a very good chance of not only making the team, but of becoming an key bench player for the Lakers. His biggest upside is his defense, and that's why the Lakers drafted him.

At this point regardless of how the off-season plays out for everyone, Lakers included, it would be foolish and hard-pressed to bet against the Lakers winning their third NBA title in a row next season. With so many key players on the market right now, and teams such as Miami, Chicago, New York, New Jersey and Cleveland all in play to not only bring back their key players, but also to add to them, it's still too early to tell who the Lakers primary opposition will be.

But one thing is for certain, the Lakers are the back-to-back defending NBA Champions!!

No Kobe, No Problem!

The Lakers are 4-0 with Kobe sitting out the past four games due to a bad ankle. One had to wonder if the Lakers would go into a panic mode not knowing how long Kobe would be out and make a trade before today's deadline, but it came and went and the Lakers stood pat.

The Lakers were tied to several trade rumors, including one that would have netted them Chicago's Kirk Hinrich. The sticking point to that potential deal, and frankly, any deal, was their inability to find a taker for Sasha Vujacic. The Lakers have grown more and more weary of Sasha's inconsistencies in recent weeks and started shopping him several weeks ago. But the Lakers were not looking to add any more payroll, so in order to take on the remaining two years, $17MM of Hinrich's contract, it had to be offset with a similar contract going the other way, and that contract was Vujacic. So the beat goes on. Hinrich is still in Chicago, and Vujacic in L.A.

The Lakers have beaten Portland, Utah and Golden State on the road, three teams that give the Lakers trouble in their buildings, and San Antonio at home without Kobe. Andrew Bynum missed the first three of those games, but Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol have stepped up nicely in all four games, and Bynum had a solid game on Tuesday in Golden State while playing in pain. Shannon Brown has played well in Kobe's absence, as well.

So the Lakers forward with the same team they've had all season as they host the Celtics tonight at Staples. And once again, Kobe will not play. There's no telling when he'll play, but if the rest of the team continues to step and play with the sense of urgency they've had over the past four games, they have a legit chance tonight. And it will give Kobe even more time for his ankle to heal.

Kobe Sits, but Lakers Win Anyway

The Lakers looked dreadful last night in the second half, losing big at home to Denver, 126-113, Kobe scored 33 points on a bum ankle after re-aggravating it in their win Wednesday night against Charlotte.

But after last night's game, the Laker's finally decided today that Kobe needed a rest, so he was given a night off tonight in Portland. Well, benching Kobe against a team they usually don't play well against in their building didn't seem like the right thing to do, and the odds were certainly stacked against the Lakers for a win, but lo and behold, they buckled down, and others stepped up in Kobe's absence, and the Lakers took care of business at the Rose Garden tonight, winning 99-82.

Lamar Odom, starting in Kobe's place, scored just 10 points but grabbed a whopping 22 boards. Ron Artest led the Lakers with 21 points and Shannon Brown added 19 off the bench.

I didn't get to see any of the game here, and there is no recap posted on the ol' www yet, so I am curious as to why Andrew Bynum only played 9½ minutes tonight.

Regardless, this was a much needed "team" victory. Hopefully they can use this win without Kobe as motivation because they'll need all the help they can get if Kobe doesn't play Monday when they host the Spurs.

Artest Signing Official

Here is the story on the Lakers official website with an official press release. All free agent signings in the NBA can officially take place starting today as the moratorium period has concluded.

Artest will be wearing No. 37 for the Lakers in honor of Michael Jackson's album Thriller, which spent a record 37 weeks atop the Billboard 200 Albums chart in 1984 and 1985. Jackson died unexpectedly 13 days ago at the age of 50 in Los Angeles.

Shannon Brown has also officially signed a new two-year deal with the Lakers. Here is his official announcement.

Looking to Next Season, Tomorrow's Draft, Phil & Kobe

Now that people have had a chance to let the title run sink in, and enjoy the parade and the hoopla that came with it all, it's time to look ahead to next season. The Lakers, like most NBA teams, have some things to take care of that need to be addressed.

The first order of business is tomorrow's draft. The Lakers have the 29th pick of the draft/first round, but it is becoming more and more apparent that they don't want to add any more guaranteed contracts to the payroll, so chances are pretty good at this point that pick will be dealt. They also have two second round picks (Nos. 42 and 59). Part of the reasoning behind all this is they want to re-sign two of their own unrestricted free agents, Trevor Ariza and Lamar Odom, both small forwards who were two key components of their title run.

I was sure, that because of the uncertainty of whether or not they could re-sign both Ariza and Odom, the Lakers would use that first round pick and draft some insurance at the forward position, such as 6'9' Georgetown power forward DaJuan Summers, or possibly even go for point guard depth and draft UCLA's Darren Collison, even though Collison's size doesn't really fit into Phil Jackson's likeness for bigger guards. Either way, late word suggests the Lakers really aren't expected to make a splash at the draft tomorrow night in New York.

The only certainty of tomorrow's draft, by the way, is that L.A.'s other team will be drafting Oklahoma forward Blake Griffin with the first overall pick. After that, the rest of the draft is a crapshoot.

Back to the Lakers. The Lakers have made it clear that they will do everything in their power to re-sign both Ariza and Odom. And both players have said they not only want be back with the team, but that team also expressed the same willingness to want them both back. Whether or not they can actually do it remains to be seen. Both players, especially Ariza, will command a hefty pay raise in free agency this summer, so the Lakers will have their work cut out for them to try and get them both re-signed.

The Lakers very own human highlight reel, Shannon Brown, is also a free agent, and it is believed the Lakers want him back, as well.

The situation with Phil Jackson is more simple. He's either coming back, or he's not, but health issues have put any decision on hold until early July. There was speculation as early as yesterday that the Lakers might allow him to coach only home games, and let assistant coach Kurt Rambis coach road games. But GM Mitch Kupchak shot that idea down today saying if he comes back, he'll coach all the games. There will be no in-between. My guess is as good as anyone's but my gut tells me he will be back next season.

Finally, there's Kobe Bryant. This much we know: he will be back next year, and the year after. He does have an opt-out clause in his contract, and there was speculation he could do that to renegotiate his contract to save the team some money to allow them to re-sign Ariza, Odom and Brown. But even if that scenario played out, Kobe wouldn't get that much less than he's already making, and the Lakers wouldn't save that much on Kobe to free up addition money to re-sign Ariza, Odom and Brown. That said, its very likely Bryant will not use the opt out, and play out the final two years of his contract.

Obviously, the Lakers do have a lot issues to settle before training camp next season, but I'm pretty convinced that everything will work to the Lakers favor, and all of this talk will have been for naught.

Now That's What I'm Talking About

Well, that was a better performance by the Lakers last night. A well-balanced scoring attack propelled the Lakers to the brink of another trip to the NBA Finals with a 103-94 win at Staples. The Lakers slashed and dashed their way through the Nuggets defense all night, in particular from the middle of the third quarter to the end of the game. Kobe penetrated, drew double- and triple-teams while breaking down the Nuggets defense, and dished the ball out to the open man all night, racking up eight assists in the process, to go along with his 22 points on just 13 shots.

The result was a big night for Lamar Odom, who poured in 19 points with 14 boards, and Pau Gasol, who added 14 and 10, as the big men dominated the inside game.

The game was tied at the end of the first three quarters, but the Lakers used a 21-3 run that began mid-way through the third. They started the fourth with an 11-0 run to bust the game open. The balanced attack also featured 12 points each from Trevor Ariza and Derek Fisher. And Shannon Brown, who had just six points, hit a big shot late in the game to beat the 24 second clock that would turn out to be a huge basket.

Carmelo Anthony led all scorers with 31 points, but unlike Game Four, when Denver had seven players in double figures, he had very little support from his teammates. hauncey Billips was limited to just seven shots all night for 12 points, the second highest scorer for the Nuggets. Only two others scored in double figures for Denver, who now trail the Lakers 3-2 in the series with Game Six back in Denver tomorrow night.

The Lakers were out-rebounded again, but this time by one board, but they did a much better job on the offensive glass, finishing with 14 offensive rebounds to Denver's 10. The game was more balanced from an officiating standpoint, as the Lakers shot just five more free throws than Denver. And despite that, Nuggets coach George Karl, much like Phil Jackson did after Game Four, criticsized the officiating after the game, although using much lighter words. Jackson was fined $25,000 for his comments. The league didn't fine Karl.

A little something to ponder heading into tomorrow's showdown...

Has Anyone Noticed...

That Chris Mihm was traded yesterday? Well, if you're wondering, today is the trade deadline in the NBA, and that move obviously stirred some questions around Laker camp as to whether that was a precursor to another move today by GM Kobe (just kidding, Mitch!). I guess the main concern is the Lakers sudden lack of big men (Bynum's out until at least April, and Gasol is really now the only center on the team). Is Amare on his way in? Is Shaq coming back for one last hoorah? I highly doubt it. But Josh Powell sure seemed to like the move as his minutes suddenly skyrocketed to the point he played enough last night to score 12 points... by half-time!

Speaking of last night (and the night before), it looked like the Warriors were going to run the Lakers off the court much in the same way the Lakers did to Atlanta the night before at Staples. Instead, the Lakers held their own, and then Trevor Ariza - yes, Trevor, and not Kobe - took over the game. Ariza hit two huge three-pointers that would prove to be too much for Golden State to overcome. And what's with Lamar Odom suddenly becoming this force to be reckoned with? Oh, maybe it's just the fact he's playing for a contract next year! But who cares! He's actually playing his best basketball as a Laker right now, and the Lakers will gladly take it in the absence of Bynum.

By the way, anyone see new Laker Shannon Brown's block late in the game against Atlanta the night before last? Talk about being light on your feet. I don't ever remember seeing a block like that... ever! Enjoy!

Streak Busters!

This is becoming very routine for this Laker team. On Christmas Day, the Lakers ended the Celtics' 19 game winning streak. Last Thursday, they ended Boston's 12-game win streak. Yesterday, the Lakers upended Cleveland 101-91 to snap the Cavs' home winning streak at 23, including handing them their first home loss of the season. But the story of the game was Lamar Odom stepping up and perhaps playing his best game in his Laker career, pouring in 28 points and grabbing 17 boards. An ailing Kobe Bryant added 19 points despite looking like hell and as if he were going to puke all afternoon. Kobe, suffering from flu-like symptoms all day, actually received an IV before the game and during halftime, and walked off the court with about 12 seconds left in the game to get a head start with treatment in the locker room. Pau Gasol added 18 points and 12 rebounds.

This might have been the Lakers best effort of the season despite being down by 10 points at halftime. The Lakers dominated the second half with tenacious defense and outscoring the Cavs by 20. Cleveland, who had 61 points at the half, had just 30 second half points. Lebron James finished with 16 very quiet points on just 5 of 20 shooting.

Next up for the Lakers, a home game tomorrow night against Oklahoma City, and then a quick stop in Utah for a date with the Jazz Wednesday night before the AS break his weekend.

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New Lakers Adam 'Mustache' Morrison and Shannon Brown practiced with the team today for the first time since being traded to the Lakers Saturday afternoon. Both are expected to be in uniform tomorrow night.

Radmanovic Traded

Purple & Gold have shipped out struggling forward Vladimir Radmanovic to the Charlotte Bobcats in exchange for forward Adam Morrison and reserve point guard Shannon Brown. Morrison's mustache is expected to provide some perimeter shooting depth for the Lakers and should slide into the starting lineup at the 3. More on this later.

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Also, rumors have surfaced that former Laker center Shaquille O'Neal, who is being shopped by Phoenix along with power forward Amare Stoudemire, has hinted that he'd like one last hoorah with the Lakeshow. With Andrew Bynum likely out for at least two months, maybe three with a torn MCL, this one does carry some weight. Stay tuned to this one, too...