Page 4 February 15, 2018
Lakers Muster Magic at Trade Deadline
By Adam Serrao
Just when it looked as if the NBA would
have another somewhat quiet day at the
trade deadline, an overflow of news poured
out across the wire last Thursday. That
morning, the Los Angeles Lakers and the
Cleveland Cavaliers wasted no time in making
improvements to their respective rosters. At
approximately 9 a.m., the basketball world
was bludgeoned with a series of trades --
one of which involved L.A. A blockbuster
deal sent reverberating ripples across the
league when Isaiah Thomas was traded to
the Lakers and Jordan Clarkson along with
Larry Nance, Jr. were both whisked away
to the Cavs. With that trade alone, Magic
Johnson and Los Angeles hit a grand slam
home run and accomplished exactly what
they needed to get done in order to begin to
piece the Lakers back together once again.
Perhaps the biggest thing to understand
about the trade that the Lakers made with
the Cavaliers last week is that for L.A., it
has absolutely nothing to do with this season.
Both Thomas and Channing Frye – whom the
Lakers also received in the trade – will come
off of the books next year. Since Los Angeles
is heavily rumored to be in the LeBron James
sweepstakes, you can almost certainly bank
on the fact that Thomas won’t be back in
the purple and gold next season after quickly
failing to synchronize with James before he
was swiftly shown the door.
For Magic and the Lakers, the key heading
into next year’s offseason and free agency
period was to cling to the team’s young talent
all while avoiding financial hardship in the
pursuit of LeBron and other top-ranked free
agents like Paul George, for instance. While
Clarkson and Nance could be classified as
young talent, the core group of Brandon
Ingram, Julius Randle, Kyle Kuzma and Josh
Hart were all kept in place. Clarkson may
have provided instant offense for the team,
but his contract (two years, $26.9 million)
was one of the biggest on the roster, aside
from the atrocity that is Luol Deng’s multiyear
deal. Magic and General Manager Rob
Pelinka didn’t just move Clarkson and his
contract, but they also surprisingly received
a first round pick from Cleveland as well
-- which was huge for a Lakers team that
was devoid of a pick in this year’s first
round because of a previously made trade
for Steve Nash.
Now the Lakers won’t only be out from
under the Clarkson contract, but they will
clear as much as $70 million in cap space
once the contracts of Thomas, Frye, Brook
Lopez and Kentavious Cladwell-Pope expire
at year’s end. That’s enough money to make
Magic smile and also enough for two max
contracts. “I wouldn’t have made the move
if I wasn’t confident,” Magic explained at
Politically Speaking
One Man’s Opinion Another Man’s Opinion
VP Mike Pence an Embarrassment to Our
Nation and Hypocrite of the Worst Kind
By Cristian Vasquez
Last week the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter
Olympics Games brought together people
from around the world to celebrate the
performances of the best athletes on ice
and snow. While delegates from all of the
nations invited displayed good manners and
stood for the host nation’s anthem, Vice
President Michael Pence decided he would
remain seated. Usually, the vice president
flies under the radar and seems to avoid
public spectacles, but this incident really
shows a lack of character in a man who
claims to be a good Christian. It seems that
VP Pence not only lacks character, but is
absent of decent manners to the degree that
he decided to act like a pouting child at a
time when he should have behaved like a
grown man.
Let’s not forget how vocal this administration
has been against the Black Lives Matter
movement. Don’t ignore the fact that Pence’s
boss called NFL players kneeling during our
national anthem “sons of bitches” who should
be fired. Yet here we have a member of that
same administration, representing our great
country, doing the same thing. Does Pence
not understand the disparity between his
actions and his words? Of course he does,
but he just doesn’t care because at his core
he is just a hypocrite and an extension of
the man-child in the Oval Office.
The vice president demonstrated less
maturity than North Korean leader Kim
Jong-Un, who agreed for his few athletes
to walk under a unified delegation with
South Korean athletes. Some of the Trump
apologists in the “liberal media” have
tried to justify this clown show, but there
is no way they can. Remember that Colts
vs. 49ers game back in October? The day
that the vice president decided it would
be a great idea to go to a football game,
stand for the “Star Spangled Banner” and
then leave? If you’re a fiscal conservative,
you should remember because that was an
expensive PR stunt. Pence dragged Secret
Service and local police agencies through
the whole process of getting to the game
only to make a point. “I left today’s Colt
game because President Trump and I will
not dignify any event that disrespects our
soldiers, our flag, or our national anthem…”
was his justification. To be honest, I’m
happy he said that because it showcases
his selfish, hypocritical nature, which was
spotlighted in South Korea when he decided
to disrespect the host nation.
Vice President Pence is an embarrassment
to our country. He demands respect, but
lacks the ability to be respectful. Pence’s
kicking and screaming about NFL players
kneeling is no more than a political talking
point. It’s a trigger issue that will unify his
apologists. Pence doesn’t care about respect
and much like his overlord in the White
House, he’s just enjoying his position of
power to attack those who disagree with
him. The self-proclaimed good Christian
isn’t even a decent human being. •
Budget Deal Done, the Olympics Kick Off
in Korea and the Stock Market Tanks
By Duane Plank
So a couple of times in defense of the duly
elected President Donald J. Trump, who has
served as a human piñata for the crybabies on the
left ever since his unfathomable-to-most victory
over the soon-to-be indicted Hillary Clinton, I
have asked, “How is your 401k doing?”
I will not be asking that question this time
around. At least not right now. Also, would like to
thank the numbers of Plank supporters who have
taken the time to contact me in the last week,
espousing their support for this column which
is, at the end of day, an opinion piece, right?
I am clueless on how the stock and bond
market works. Clueless on a lot of financial
things. Do put the Fox Business Channel (FBC)
on when I rouse myself in the morning during
the week, usually around 4:30 a.m., in preparation
to heading to the gym for a 5 a.m. workout
prior to heading to my day job.
Love that Maria Bartiromo on Fox Business
Channel. She is a darn hard-working lady, and
very astute about the financial side of things, I
believe. She not only hosts a three-hour gab-fest
on FBC that hits the air at 3 a.m., PST, M-F, but
also hosts Wall Street Week that invades your
TV screen on Friday nights (never seen it), and
hosts Sunday Morning Futures – which, now
that I have figured out how to use my DVR,
is a must-watch for me sometime on Sunday.
Bartiromo was, maybe somewhat derisively,
dubbed the “Money-Honey” years ago, and
instead of whining about the possibly offensive
moniker, was smart enough to apply for
a trademark on the label a decade or so ago.
She knows her stuff and brings on fair-andbalanced
guests to talk about the financial
ups-and-downs of the day.
On Sunday she interviewed the great
California congressman, Devin Nunes, who
is spearheading the charge to gather all the
facts regarding the all-too-obvious collusion
between the Dems, Hill Clinton and the dreaded
Ruskies. She also interviewed a retired military
bigwig, who was very pleased with the
extra shekels in the just-passed budget for the
military -- which will provide the brave men
and women protecting our country with “more
people, more planes and more ships.”
As of this penning, the market had tanked.
The experts spoke of a “correction,” and said
to hang-tight -- 1,000 down here, 1,000 down
there. I had entrusted my nest-egg nickels
with a Wells Fargo advisor, right about the
time Wells was scamming most of us trying
to hit their accounts quota. I was browbeaten
into signing up for another checking account,
which I didn’t need then and don’t need now.
Congress finally got together last week
and passed a budget. Of course, that didn’t
happen without the petulant grandstanding of
our very own Congress lady Nancy “Fancy
Pants” Pelosi, who wasted more than eight
hours of Congress’s time with a filibuster-ish
eight-plus-hour rant last week. I will give the
old lady kudos for her stamina! Eight hours
preening to the cameras, fidgeting on four-inch
heels with no…bathroom breaks.
Bravo to you, Ms. Pelosi! See, I can give
kudos to the other team. •
the team’s press conference following the
trade. “We have got to take the next step.
I like our core. I want to have us be in the
playoffs, and the only path to that is to add
to the roster that we already have.”
Acquiring either James and/or George
isn’t necessarily a lock. The Lakers have
shown the tendency to strike out in free
agency in recent years and could indeed
do so again. LeBron James isn’t necessarily
what’s important about having all of that
cap space, either. As Pelinka puts it, the
flexibility that $70 million brings the team
is what really matters the most. “There’s so
many different ways you can use that [cap
space],” Pelinka explained. “And then, of
course, the obvious way is we now have
in July of 2018 and July of 2019, we now
have real 100 percent space to do two max
players if that’s what we decide to do, or
one in 2018 and then following it up with
another one in 2019. So the flexibility is
really amazing.”
While Isaiah Thomas may be a big name
in the league today, he was perhaps the least
important piece that the Lakers acquired in
their trade with the Cavaliers. What’s more
important for Thomas, at least, is that he
now has less than 30 games to prove that
he is still a difference-maker in this league
before free agency rolls around for him
once again next year. That may be easier
said than done after his debilitating hip
injury and swift departure from Cleveland.
Unfortunately for Thomas, the Lakers already
have a point guard in Lonzo Ball and don’t
necessarily need a ball-dominant style of
player to go alongside him who will also
undoubtedly require a huge payday on the
free agent market. Thomas may bring a bit
of excitement to the Staples Center floor
down the stretch run of this season, but all
that he really represents to the Lakers and
their front office is opportunity in the future.
“Let’s face it: in this league, you can’t have
an elite team if you don’t have elite players,”
Pelinka went on to accurately explain. “So
that has to be the strategy if you want to
be elite.” As Pelinka knows, the NBA is
a superstar-driven league -- and although
last week’s trade didn’t necessarily bring
the Lakers any real, tangible superstars, it
brought the team the flexibility to go out and
get those players. While the Lakers’ young
core continues to excel, they and their fans
everywhere can rest easily knowing that
help will be on the way sooner, rather than
later. Once again under Earvin Johnson, the
Lakers pulled off their own little piece of
magic at the trade deadline and are now
well on their way towards rebuilding a
team that has been stuck in the mud for
years now. – Aserrao6@yahoo.com | @
UpandAdam6 •