Where Do the Lakers Stand?
The Los Angeles Lakers, after fight so hard to get in, got swept out of the playoffs by the San Antonio Spurs. With that first round sweep there are a lot of questions that surround the Lakers squad. Let’s look over some of these tough questions as the Lakers make and early entry into their off-season.
What will happen to Mike D’Antoni?
It is easy to lay all the blame for the Lakers woes on Mike D’Antoni. Antoni has a terrible playoff record, losing 33 playoff games and no one has been more hard on D’Antoni than myself. However, it would be wrong to lay all the blame on D’Antoni’s shoulders. He came into a Laker’s squad who was combating injuries and only more injuries seemed to pile up.  The injuries were so rough that rarely were Steve Nash, Pau Gasol, Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard on the court at the same time.
D’Antoni did need to make adjustments to his coaching style, but while contending with all these injuries it would have been difficult for him to test out different game plans. Also, this star-studded squad barely had time to learn to mesh together. They showed sparks of greatness throughout the season. Injuries simply kept them from getting the experience playing together they needed to get the job done.
With that said, one has to wonder if they will get another chance to work together.
Will Kobe Bryant Be Back?
If there is anything I have learned as a life long basketball fan, it is you never count out a player like Kobe Bryant. He will be back, and he will be just as as much of an impact as ever.
The Black Mamba is one of the greatest players to ever play the game and he will return to be the leader of the Lakers. The question we should be asking is how long will play going into the future, which is honestly anybody’s guess.
Will Pau Gasol Be A Laker Next Season?
D’Antoni never made it a secret that he was not the world’s biggest Pau Gasol fan. However, Kobe Bryant is a huge Gasol fan and one would have to imagine that he has just as much pull as D’Antoni if not more. Special props bets have the odds with Gasol staying in the purple and gold jersey. The money line for him staying in LA is at -140, while him even is at even.
 Will Dwight Howard Be A Laker Next Season?
The Lakers have to re-sign Dwight Howard. If they do not their are plenty of other teams that would love to sight Howard. Special prop odds have both the Houston Rockets (+275 money line) and the Dallas Mavericks (+300 money line). Do not think for one minuet the Mark Cuban would be willing to literally throw money at Howard to put on a Mavericks jersey. With Kobe, Nash and Gosol all aging, Howard is the future of the Lakers. They need to secure him now and keep him a Laker.
