Here is my take- l think Ariza was a Savy Swingman and a Crafty Defender. But at the same token, Artest is downright Ferocious on the defensive end, and could also drop 20+ points any given night, and enstill fear in the eyes of the opponent.


BQ1: Do you still consider the Laker is Toughness to be Inadequate despite the acquirement of Artest?

BQ2: Will Kobe be willing to Relinquish some of his ''stardom'' here in LA with Artest being here? Ron is perceived as a ''glory hog'' (with all due respect), so naturally the LA Media will be throbbing over him.

BQ3: Do you see a Huge Discrepancy between Artest is and Ariza is Defensive ability? If so, please explicate.


STAR if you like

BQ1: No, its their ability to close out games that is in question.

BQ2: Ron is not gonna be like that, and Kobe would anyways, he already has this season.

BQ3: Artest is more of a tough in your face defender, but can get steals as well. l think he is a better defender.

odom is definitely more vital to the lakers due to his versatility to score inside & out, & handle the ball like a point guard.ariza was great but odom is very important to the lakers success.

BQ1:i dont think the lakers r a soft team.bynum is very tough.kobe is very tough..and artest is obviously tough.derek fisher is tough..and pau gasol has started to play a little more physical.they arent as soft as many ppl say they are.

BQ2:i think artest knows that kobe is the main event in this city.and kobe is obviously able to relinquish his stardom considering that he has odom & gasol on his team already

BQ3:the difference is that ariza is alot faster, & can get after a poor pass better than artest can now.but artest is a tougher on the ball defender

BQ1: No! The acquisition of Artest brings toughness to the team defensively & offensively. As u said, Artest could drop 20+ points & a ferocious defender for Melo, Lebron, Pierce & other players in SG or SF position instead of Kobe doing that.

BQ2: The stardom of Kobe relinquished already when he became a team player. All he needs to do is to be the leader of the team & Ron must pay respect. l think that is how they will collaborate.

BQ3: Ther is a huge discrepancy in their physical aspect. Ron can guard tougher & bigger players like Melo, LBJ, Pierce. But Ariza is almost eaten alive by Ron during the 2nd rd in the playoffs.

What up Reed Space,

i think ur analysis is right-on. Overall l think that Ariza had some very defining moments during the playoffs- but there were nights where he could not shut down certain players (ie: Carmelo) & u wonder how he would have faired in the finals had it been against LeBron or Paul Pierce.

BQ 1: l am not sure quite yet. l thought it was inadequate last year & we managed to pull it out & so adding Artest definitely helps in that area.

BQ 2: l do not think this necessarily needs to happen. Ron Ron gave up a lot to come to L.A. & l think he knows it is Kobe is team. If Artest wanted to be the man he would have stayed in Houston, got paid more, not have to share the spotlight & got to play for Adelman. That is an awful lot to give up without knowing the price u will pay- & l think Artest is a smart guy. l think being in L.A. will just do that esp. if the Lakers keep winning titles.

BQ 3: l see the discrepancy in playoff series- where Artest is one on one defense will make a difference (IE: in best of seven versus a Carmelo, LeBron, Pierce, etc.)

Nickster