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washington53 wrote:You all keep saying that Kobe is nothing without Shaq, give me 2 seasons and ill tell you Shaq will start regreting leaving the lakers... you guys wont beleive me but weel see
washington53 wrote:once the Lakers get rolling
washington53 wrote:and shaq and his heat stop rolling in a couple of yeras
washington53 wrote:You all keep saying that Kobe is nothing without Shaq, give me 2 seasons and ill tell you Shaq will start regreting leaving the lakers... you guys wont beleive me but weel see
washington53 wrote:He made it better, but once the Lakers get rolling and shaq and his heat stop rolling in a couple of yeras, then heel be caring. But yeah right now he has nothing to care about except winning games.
Ross Siler, L.A. Daily News wrote:Atkins calls out 'GM' Bryant
By Ross Siler
Staff Writer
All season long, the Lakers have fought the battle of perception vs. reality when it comes to Kobe Bryant and the power he wields within the organization. Now one of Bryant's teammates officially has opened the subject for debate.
It came Sunday with a snarled answer from Chucky Atkins that silenced the locker room as soon as the words escaped his mouth. The question put to Atkins was what he would do as general manager to remake the 10th-place Lakers.
"I ain't no GM," Atkins said. "Ask Kobe. He's the GM. It's his team. Go ask him."
Atkins, who has grown increasingly frustrated in recent weeks, was asked to clarify if he was, in fact, saying that Bryant was calling the shots for the organization.
"I don't know," Atkins said. "Last I heard they told me that (general manager) Mitch Kupchak was supposed to make the decisions around here. So you all going to ask him those questions, please."
Atkins became the first Lakers player to call out Bryant this season and made his comments only a half-hour or so after interim coach Frank Hamblen had said morale on the team was "OK" despite eight consecutive losses.
"They seem to get along with one another still," said Hamblen, who accused the team Thursday of quitting in the second half of a loss to Denver. "They listen to what you have to say, try and go out and do what you want them to do."
With the Lakers all but certain to miss the playoffs for the first time in 11 years, Atkins was asked what should be done differently next season, and again his words spoke volumes.
"What would you do?" Atkins said. "You watched this (expletive) all year."
Bryant said of his relationship with Atkins: "He'll be OK. He'll just work through it. He'll be fine. That's my boy, so I look out for him, make sure he's doing OK."
From owner Jerry Buss on down, the Lakers have maintained that Bryant did not orchestrate the departures last summer of Shaquille O'Neal and Phil Jackson. Atkins' comments did not help on that front, as well as with the burden Bryant is carrying.
But Atkins, who has struggled to find his place in the triangle offense, did say he would like to return to the Lakers next season. He is due $4.5 million and will be in the final year of his contract.
"It ain't going to be like this forever," Atkins said. "I can promise you that, it ain't going to be like this forever. We just fell on hard times. We had bad injuries at bad times, the coach had problems, and things like this happen."
After spending the season sharing a backcourt with Bryant, Atkins admitted Sunday: "It's hard to play with anybody that's a star."
Atkins said anyone coming to the Lakers should know that it is Bryant's team.
"He's going to play his game - he's one of the best players in this league," Atkins said. "So you have to adapt your game around his. It's just that simple. If you're a professional basketball player, that's what the word 'pro' stands for."
Atkins said the Lakers had no excuse for not making the playoffs, let alone sliding as much as they have during the second half of the season.
"It's just frustrating," Atkins said. "I think we have a lot better talent than our record shows this season, period. A lot of people may say that maybe we're not good enough to make the playoffs but if you look at the beginning of the season, we were able to play with anybody.
"Now we're losing to teams that aren't even playing without three of their starters, and we're not even in the contest. You all can write what you want to write. But we as a team, we know that our talent is a lot better than our record indicates."
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Ross Siler, (818) 713-3610
ross.siler@dailynews.com
Isn't that the point?washington53 wrote:He made it better, but once the Lakers get rolling and shaq and his heat stop rolling in a couple of yeras, then heel be caring. But yeah right now he has nothing to care about except winning games.
