{{{ As everyone gets settled for the Lakers first press conference since winning the title. A team representative brings in their fresh Championship trophy to polish it off and leave it on the desk before introductions.}}}
http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images...jpg?1315012169
{{{ After the media files in a team representaive walks up to the mic and addresses the media members. }}}
Team Representative: Good afternoon everyone and thank you for coming. Today we will be having an annual preseason press conference in which we will bring up a numerous topics. We will first start with discussing last season, then discuss the offseason, and move forward to the outlook of the regular season. Without delaying this any farther, I am proud to present to you, Lakers G.M. Mitch Kupcheck and stars Tracy McGrady and Allen Iverson.
Mitch Kupcheck: Good Afternoon, and I wanted to reiterate that we are thankful to all the members of the media for attending. We are very happy to be here today and start the new season. This will be the last time, we as a team will be talking about our historic championship run. We feel it's time to move forward and focus on becoming the first back-to-back champions, and doing so will take all of our focus on this season. As coach told the guys, this trophy is a rental and they're a lot of other hands that are trying to take it from you. If we don't focus solely on the task at hand, we won't be sitting here next year. More importantly, the league is getting much more competitive and there are no hand outs. Your first round match-up could be as tough as the finals match-up. I'll hand it over to Allen and Tracy to talk about the run a bit and I'll take over to talk about the offseason.
Allen Iverson: What up? First off let me say how happy i am to be a champion. Something, for awhile and i know T Mac can relate to, we didn't think would ever happen. Winning this trophy, man, I just fell in love at first sight. I consider Larry family now. I can't explain. You know.. you work so hard through the season, and sacrifice so much. Play through the injuries, through you guys assassinating our characters all season long. Picking apart each of our moves. Guys like TJ Simmons saying "I don't play well with others" and others in the media questioning me sacrificing part of my game for the big picture. Well, What do you have to say now? Do I play well with others ? Did I mess with chemistry on the court? See that's the problem, you guys pick a guy who doesn't talk like you want us to, or walk like you want us to, and all of the sudden we're the problem. You see me going out there with broken fingers, an ankle swollen up like there's an apple in there, and you want to talk about my work ethic, my heart. Then you've got guys who are the focal point to their team selling out in crucial games the playoffs with a bruised hip, but you guys are willing to throw him in the Hall of Fame before he retires; but me? I'm a chemistry nightmare. Please, a chemistry nightmare to everyone not in the locker room. I'm a living testament that you guys don't know what you're doing and this trophy is tangible truth that no one can deny. Now i'm going to hand it over to T Mac.
Tracy McGrady: Wow, I think A.I. had a lot of truth in what he was speaking. He's a guy that wears his heart on his sleeve and leaves it all on the court. I can and all of the other guys on the team can personally tell you A.I. is a team player, and if he shoots a lot, it's because we need it from him. You know, to win this championship, we all had to sacrifice big parts of our game to get to where we are today, myself included. Look at our team, from last year, AI, me, and Pau were all league players and only one of us made the all league team, and that was the third team. Only one all star amongst us. To be a part of this, you can't be selfish and you have to play your game and realize when one guy is getting doubled you have to trust your other guys to make the plays. To restate something that A.I. touched on earlier though, I thought it was really sweet to win this championship. Throughout my career, having never won a playoff series and the pressure mounting, man it just made it sweeter. I was even questioning myself and the effert I put in the game on and off the court. I came back and worked harder, and know what it takes to be a champion now. It means everything to me, to us as a team. It means a lot that Mitch kept most of the parts together so we could have another run at it. I don't know how to describe it besides being happy, but not satisfied. I'll say this, winning one just makes your appetite gets so much bigger and nothing else matters.
Mitch Kupcheck: Thanks for your perspective guys. Now on to the offseason: We really approached the off-season with a couple of different routes we could have taken. We saw there was a lot of high value guys, and as you know, we won't hesitate in reshaping the franchise if we can get better. After looking at the options, we decided staying the course was a great approach considering we were the defending champions. When I worked under Jerry West, he always told me that if you're staying the same, then you're regressing even as a champion. So, when we got word that Tim Duncan was on the market, naturally we felt we had to get involved. We took the approach that we needed to get their attention early and hold on to it, so we threw our best offer on the table and really let the other team's offers do the negotiating for us. We told the Cavs G.M. for a guy like Duncan we wouldn't waste their time or haggle them, and he really respected that; and we respected that he didn't do the same.
Mitch Kupcheck:As far as after TD, we felt we HAD to retain Allen, T Mac, and Big Ben. Luckily for us, they were all reasonable and took a little less than they could have gotten on the market to keep this team in tact. As Allen and T Mac have both said, it takes a ton of sacrifice to play on a team with so much talent. A lot of induvidual titles are thrown out the window on day 1 of training camp, and that's something we had to make sure Timmy was on board with. He obviously was and took a similar deal to Tracy and Allen and wanted to be a part of something special. We really wanted to retain Jason Richardson, but in talking with his agent, he felt he could garner much more than we could offer, so we told them to go out, test the market and see what he could get. If he could get a near max deal, then there's not much we could do about it. But if he wanted to come back, we could throw a midlevel deal his way. Jason was a huge piece of our team and won't be easy to replace. So we will see over the next few days how it all plays out. Before we open things up to questions, we're going to bring the 3 time MVP of the League out, Tim Duncan everyone.
Time Duncan: Hi, thanks for having me. I just wanted to say i'm not here to bring a ton of attention to myself here. I'm very happy to be a part of this historic franchise. I really am here to be part of the team and do my job and hopefully help these guys win another championship. I know it's been tough throughout my career in Cleveland in the playoffs and the franchise was in a tough spot. We always seemed to be in that middle ground as a team and a franchise which didn't allow us to grow the way we needed to, to become contenders. I was really cautious about moving to L.A. with the glam and the lights and 24/7 media attention. So much so, i called J Will who I played with in Cleveland, who really talked me into it. He just told me, it's all about championship banners here, nothing else matters. After talking with Mitch and the other guys. they told me this franchise's goal is to always improve, which is why you see so much movement with players. I thought that was funny because so often you see a player having to demand a team improve while they're there and threaten, here it's the complete opposite. I secretly think it's because they don't want to retire any more jerseys.
{{{Crowd Laughs}}}
Time Duncan: Seriously though, the goal is to become another one of the great big men to play for this franchise and to do that, you have to win multiple championships.
Mitch Kupcheck:As you can see, no one's tiptoeing around our goals this season, and they also realize we have an incredible target on our backs. We'll get everyone's best, every night. Now I'll open it up to you guys for questions to either me or Timmy, Allen, or Tracy. Thanks.
Lakers 2005-2006 Media Day
Printable View
-
04-22-2013, 05:27 PMBallSoHardLakers 2005-2006 Media Day
-
04-22-2013, 05:41 PMBallSoHard
-
04-22-2013, 05:44 PMIamQuailman
@BucksNation: A question for the @Lakers, who's Time Duncan? #JailTweets
-
04-22-2013, 05:53 PMXist2inspire
J. Felders from SI.com here.
First off Mitch, congrats on your championship. It's great to see your moves finally pay off. But, I do have one question. I understand that you acquired a future Hall of Famer in Tim Duncan, so no disrespect to him. But basically, you traded Gasol, a younger guy with arguably more upside and wasn't too shabby currently, and a draft pick that turned out to be Lou Williams, if I'm not mistaken, for an older player who could start to decline at any moment, thus ensuring a challenging road to travel post-ITT.
I guess the point I'm trying to make is that this seems like just another "here and now," "live for the moment" move that you've caught a lot of flak for in the past, and has only resulted in one championship.......so far. What was the reasoning behind this move, and what made you you feel like tampering with a championship squad's chemistry in this way was a risk worth taking? -
04-22-2013, 06:09 PMBallSoHard
Mitch Kupcheck:Thanks Mr. Fielders for the question, I'm going to let Allen answer those questions...
Mitch Kupcheck: Just kidding. I think we see things differently to be completely frank. Tim is in the middle of his prime and he has the type of game that we believe will translate very well with age. He's not a high flyer like Vince Carter that relies on athleticism. He's nicknamed Mr. Fundamental for a reason, and a fundamentally sound guy like him is almost ageless in this league as we saw with Karl Malone. We feel that Timmy does everything Gasol could do, but BETTER. This guys isn't a 3 time MVP because he can just score the ball, rebound or play D. He does them all. In that way, Gasol was limited. He was fundamentally strong, but wasn't a good rebounder or a stout defender. I challenge anyone to find a hole in TD's game that we're not O.K. with. 3 point shooting? Isn't going to cross you over... that's about it.
Mitch Kupcheck:We liked out spot in the draft, but we felt TD would more than make up for a rookie's production. He's the real deal in all phases. Now with all that being said, Pau is a fantastic player and is going to do a ton of great things in this league. Tobe completely honest, there's maybe only 5 guys in the league we would have considered trading Pau for and it just so happened that TD was one of those. -
04-22-2013, 06:12 PMConroy
SportsGuy Bill Simmons here didn't Tim Duncan miss the first round of the playoffs last year and aren't we all putting him in the hall of fame before he retires? Is your brand new teammate who you are referring to if your statement about playing through injuries there?
-
04-22-2013, 06:15 PMItsPaulyP
Jon Snow, Westeros Sports Network,
Mitch with the looming luxury tax penalties is there any concern whatsoever about your payroll? If things dont go your way early on will you be looking to trade away one or two of the auxillary pieces such as Othella?
And can we get your thoughts on record about the Houston Rockets and their GM? -
04-22-2013, 06:21 PMBeeBall Reasons
After turning the 8th pick and the 10th pick into Tim Duncan. Do you think you will make further heists this season, or are you content with your current core?
-
04-22-2013, 07:32 PMBallSoHardAllen Iverson: Yo, What's your name again?Quote:
Originally Posted by HornetsFaninKY
Tracy McGrady: It's Bill...
Allen Iverson:Aight Bob. Stop trying to create beef here. A'int no one got a problem with TD. Everyone know's he didn't have a hip injury. He had a sore back from carrying his team all season. Now Zo? I don't know about him. I seem to recall him getting a "bruise". -
04-22-2013, 07:44 PMBallSoHardMitch Kupcheck: Thanks Jon, I appreciate the question, and it's a very viable one. Luxury tax is going to be spoken about more and more in the upcoming years. It's a huge burden to bare on the owner and as a team. Fortunately, our owner has given us the green light, as long as we're contenders to pay the tax. Now, clearly we can't afford to be irresponsible with contracts when we offer them, and if you look through our team, I think they're very good contracts per production. I don't foresee us selling off that parts because like we've said before, a lot of people have made a lot of sacrifices to come here, and we feel like it'd be a slap in the face unless they wanted to be out or we had no chance at the playoffs.Quote:
Originally Posted by ItsPaulyP
Mitch Kupcheck: Regarding the Rocket's GM, you've got to respect what he's done. He's put together a great mix of young guys and vets and gave everyone all they can handle last year until playoff time. They've got a ton of time to get it together. But I assume you weren't talking about his ability as a G.M. and his comments to the media... Well, he certainly has a .. bravado about him, but his team is going to have to prove it on the court. All the talking in the world won't win games for you. Regarding his statements about winning the West, he's certainly a contender. He only lost it last year by a game. -
04-22-2013, 08:00 PMBallSoHardQuote:
Originally Posted by BeeBall Reasons
Mitch Kupcheck: I didn't catch your name or the paper you're writing for, but i'm assuming you're looking for a reaction? There's certainly been a lot that's been said about the Duncan trade by a lot of amateurs and bitter ex-girlfriends out there, but the fact remains that we had the best deal on the table and the Cavs were ready to move on. Some people think they "could have" made a better offer, but wanted to play games and that's clearly a direction the Cavs didn't want to go. If they couldn't read into that, then I don't know what to say. In fact I hear the second best deal out there had them taking on something like 200m in contracts; so it really was no contest. Like I said, we let others low ball offers negotiate for us. What really matters is it has happened and he is here now. Now as far as the future on running our team and more "heist" as you put it? I can't predict the future. Some people consider what the Sonics got for Tsk was a "heist". What I can say is how we won't run out team.
Mitch Kupcheck: We can't run our team by signing irresponsible contracts then hoping other teams can bail us out of those terrible contracts. We can't afford to try and "luck" our way into a good roster and hope we win the lottery. We can't run around and be hypocrites concerning other team's actions and do the same things ourselves. Most of all, we can't field a team that has the worst record in the league then point fingers at others for being inept owners. We're not a Mickey Mouse franchise like that, and a lot of teams will be taking shots at us. But I tell the guys be prepared for it, because there will be a lot of guys out there trying to legitimize themselves by taking shots at us. There are going to be guys in the NBA who haven't won a division title, muchless a championship, that will want to drag you down, but we can't let them. We have to hold ourselves at a higher standard and give them a proper example to follow. We will never say we don't have enough time to field a competitive roster, nor will we ever say we don't have time to put in a proper gameplan.
Mitch Kupcheck: Next Question? -
04-22-2013, 08:10 PMBeeBall Reasons
Wasn't trying to do anything just asking a question making a compliment really but you just do you
-
04-22-2013, 08:12 PMInner_GI
This is just getting petty, beeball. Yes, it was a bad trade, but I'm over it. Especially since my roster is full of scrubs.
-
04-22-2013, 08:51 PMBeeBall Reasons
That wasn't the point I was asking him if he plans on adding to the roster. I just said what he gave up to get Duncan I didn't go into either trade. I think if the question came the exact same from anyone else there would be no vicious attacks. I'm sorry if it came across whatever way but I didn't intend it that way at all.
-
04-22-2013, 10:55 PMTrayWithAnA
Joe Detroit, from DetroitBasketball4Life.com, what sort of production are you expecting from the bench? Do you anticipate less minutes for them or more based on the game plan you have in mind?
-
04-22-2013, 10:59 PMPelicans78
Richard Justice from the Houston Chronicle. A lot of backing forth between the Lakers and Rockets this offseason. How nasty are things between the two teams and do you think this intensity will drag throughout the entire regular reason? Do you feel the Rockets are a legitimate threat to the Western crown or is this just another team trying to use the Lakers to get attention?
-
04-22-2013, 11:21 PMTrayWithAnALakers 2005-2006 Media Day(forgets rockets were in the room. still staring uncomfortably at the ground after the heated exchange between the lakers and sonics)Quote:
Originally Posted by Pelicans78
-
04-24-2013, 09:23 PMBallSoHardQuote:
Originally Posted by TrayWithAnA
Mitch Kupcheck:Good question Joe. There's a lot of teams that don't value a good bench, but don't count us amongst them. We feel like you need a very strong first 8 to compete for a championship. There's a lot of teams that try and get depth 1-12, but we feel like you really need the best 8 out there because come playoff time that's really the only guys seeing the court. Obviously with a team that's contending, you can't just throw random minutes out there even to sometimes developing players at times unfortunately. we forsee a lineup like last year where we have 2 guys off the bench getting 18-22 MPG each and another guy or two getting 5-10 MPG. -
04-24-2013, 09:28 PMBallSoHardMitch Kupcheck:Hi Richard. Fun question. I wouldn't say things are nasty between us. Competitive? Yes. Nasty nah. Like we said earlier, we really respect the job they've done to build their team into what looks like a perennial contender. I think the Rockets are going to have a tough time getting out of their division ahead though. Their recent gamble thinned out their front court in getting rid of Etan, and their division is getting stronger by the year. In fact, in 2 seasons, it could be the toughest division in the NBA. I think the Nuggets will have to be dealt with this year. They could have a similar rise that the Rockets did last year. But to answer your question, the Rockets are serious contenders while they have all those players on that team.Quote:
Originally Posted by Pelicans78
-
04-24-2013, 09:29 PMPelicans78
You have 3 guys accustomed to scoring 25 points per game. How will they react to not getting as many touches as they're accustomed to? If you guys get off to a slow start, how can you avoid tensions among your big 3? Also, how will you maximize the Big 3?
-
04-24-2013, 09:35 PMBallSoHardMitch Kupcheck: These guys know the only thing that matters here is another ring. Not scoring titles. You saw the same thing from Iverson and T Mac last year. Whoever has the better match-up will be the top scoring option and it's that simple. We have to play with trust to be able to win the championship again. Will some of the media lessen their "value" because their numbers are down? Sure. We saw that happen to A.I. last season, missing his first All star game. We're going to use many different paces to see what works for us and hopefully find the best one come playoff time.Quote:
Originally Posted by Pelicans78