Although the team choosing D’Antoni over Phil Jackson is still fresh in everyone’s mind and arguably the wrong decision at the time, the Lakers will head into an uncertain future with D’Antoni at the helm.
Along with D’Antoni having a lot to prove in his second season with the team, Kobe Bryant’s return from surgery on his Achilles remains a hot topic. Kobe has made a remarkable recovery from the severe injury suffered back in April, but the five-time NBA champion still doesn’t know whether or not he’ll suit up on opening night against the Los Angeles Clippers in late October.
With Kobe’s timetable uncertain and so much changing with the departure of Dwight Howard, D’Antoni will be facing the toughest challenge of career. All the odds are against the Lakers heading into the 2013-14 NBA season and many believe the team may be headed into a downward spiral for quite some time due to the new CBA restrictions, but D’Antoni remains optimistic and believes things will be much different next season.
D’Antoni will make an effort to tune out all the chatter and criticism directed toward him next season and believes the team’s chemistry will be much improved in the meantime.
Although ESPN predicts the Lakers will finish 12th in the Western Conference next season as this team struggles to compete in a highly competitive conference, anything can happen from here on out while no longer dealing with high expectations.
Lakers Nation News
Pau Gasol And Steve Nash Could See A Reduction In Minutes This Year
Lakers News: Mike D’Antoni Expects Improved Chemistry Next Season
Lakers News: Mike D’Antoni Tunes Out The Chatter
Lakers Nation Videos Of The Week: Cooper Dunks, Kobe’s Nike Commercial
Phil Jackson Says ‘I Have No Intentions Of Returning To Coach’
Lakers News: Bill Bertka Shares His Proudest Moment With The Team
Free Agent Gary Forbes Worked Out For Lakers Earlier This Week
POLL: Nick Young Is Expected To Have A Better Season Than Jordan Farmar
Photo: The Lakers And Heat Have Had Eerily Similar Decades
Lakers News: Lou Amundson Has ‘Good’ Meeting With Lakers
Los Angeles D-Fenders To Hire New General Manager Nick Mazzella
Lakers Nation Roundtable: Who Will Have A Standout Season?
Lakers News: Kobe Would Have Picked North Carolina Over Duke
Lakers News: Kobe Says Chris Paul Should Be A Laker
Lakers News
Lakers’ Mike D’Antoni Tunes Out The Static [LA Times]
World Poker Tour To hold Tournament In Honor Of Jerry Buss [LA Times]
Lakers’ Kobe Bryant Doesn’t Know If He’ll Play Opening Night [LA Times]
Lakers Limited By Luxury Taxes [LA Times]
Robert Horry Recalls Confrontation With Kobe Bryant [LA Times]
Kobe Bryant Sees A Return To Pau Gasol As A Return To Winning [LA Times]
Jeanie Buss Wanted Dwight Howard To Stay [OC Register]
Lakers, Clippers Open 2013-14 In Same Spot [OC Register]
Report: Pau Gasol Ready To Assume Leadership Role [OC Register]
Jim Buss, Dwight Howard And Moving On [Silver Screen & Roll]
Lakers Met With Amundson [Silver Screen & Roll]
Kobe Non-Committal About Season Opener [Silver Screen & Roll]
Jim Buss Says Dwight Was Never A Laker [Silver Screen & Roll]
Is The 12th Seed Prediction Too Low For Lakers? [Forum Blue & Gold]
Pau Gasol, Chris Kaman, & The Battle For The Low Block [Forum Blue & Gold]
NBA News
Hansen’s Inexcusable, Self-Destructive Mistake [SB Nation]
Is Minnesota’s Core Good Enough? [SB Nation]
Rockets To Try Howard At PF, Asik AT C [SB Nation]
VIDEO: Shumpert’s Crossover [SB Nation]
Stricter Luxury Tax Penalties In New CBA Could Actually Help Big Market Teams [Pro Basketball Talk]
Former Celtic James Posey Reportedly A Candidate To Join Brad Stevens’ Coaching Staff [Pro Basketball Talk]
Mavericks Fan Asks Players To Take An Oath During Introductory Press Conference (VIDEO) [Pro Basketball Talk]
Paul Pierce Says There’s No Question That Rajon Rondo Can Be ‘The Man’ In Boston [Pro Basketball Talk]