TERRIBLE TWO

Anyone who has known me for longer than 5 minutes knows that patience is certainly not a strength of mine.  Therefore, waiting until this G-d awful road trip is over to vent was just not an option.  I'm flat out angry right now.  Rock bottom seems to reinvent itself every week with this team and I have just about had it.

So, as a result, I'm going after--with venom and vigor--2 of my least favorite people in the NBA right now.  Behind Joey Crawford, these 2 are public enemy #1 and #1A--it really doesn't matter which one is which..  My hatred for them right now could not be overestimated.  Ladies and gentlemen....my least favorite human beings in the world at this very moment....Mike D'Antoni and Dwight Howard.

Forget being 17-24 at the halfway mark.  Forget being 4 games out of the 8 spot.  Forget the revealing reality that 27 players have had season highs in scoring vs the Lakers.  Forget the fact that Jose Calderon and Kirk Hinrich had virtuoso/Hall-of-Fame worthy performances against the Lakers on back-to-back days (yup...you read that right).  Forget the fact that a $19 million/2-time champion and perennial All-Star apparently isn't good enough to crack the lineup (actually hold onto that thought).  Forget the scary truth that Steve Nash and Antawn Jamison are literally incapable of playing any defense (I'm talking my Jewish/out-of-shape/well under 6 feet friends can EASILY play the caliber of defense those 2 do).  Forget about the nightly love affair Chris Duhon has with surrendering momentum by fouling guys 20 feet from the hoop with seconds remaining in a quarter when the Lakers are over the foul limit.  Forget Metta World Peace's keen ability to take awful shots at momentum-swinging moments EVERY NIGHT.  Forget about how every Laker opponent somehow executes every out of bounds play when there is 4 or less on the shot clock.  Forget that one of the few bright spots this season has been a dude named Earl Clark.  And you can even forget about the fact that the 76ers have the same exact record as the Lakers and Bynum hasn't played a single second...even in practice!  Forget all that because my frustration right now is only being channeled in 2 directions.

In one corner you have Dwight Howard...who for all intents and purposes is just about the worst person in sports at this very moment...(by the way, writer Kevin Ding totally nailed what I'm getting at in case you want to read a professional's take).  This "NBA's best center" gets outplayed every single night yet NEVER takes responsibility.  It's either he didn't get his touches or nobody helped him on defense or the referees didn't let him do his thing.  In what world does a winning player alibi his failures night in and night out?  (By the way Dwight...you would get more touches and field goal attempts if you can make a free throw or make a move without getting stripped.  In case you didn't know, teammates are probably hesitant to throw you the ball when there is a pretty good chance no points will come out of it and there will be a run out at the other end).

In the process of redefining the term primadonna, he is bringing it to new heights of patheticism (just made up that word...that's how bad Howard has been).  He seems disinterested, uninspired and actually annoyed when his opponents play hard!  It's a sick form of entitlement this guy has. It's as if he feels everyone is around to make sure his life is good instead of going out and making it happen himself.

I feel like a broken record, but you would think a player worthy of holding multiple franchises hostage at once would be good enough to help his team win SOME games!  Instead, this bum racks up goaltending violations, 3-second calls, turnovers, offensive fouls, technicals and ejections.  Not too mention his lethargic energy sucks enthusiasm out of the team.  It's gotten to the point that every time he touches it I freak out and expect the worst. (some franchise player huh?)

And to close the Dwight rant, his last 2 games speak volumes about what kind of competitor he is.  He gets unjustifiably ejected in Toronto.  The team loses a game it really needed to have and must head to Chicago for a back-to-back.  You would think that anyone worthy of being a star--let alone on the cusp of being a superstar--would come out the next night in Chicago and put a dominant stamp on the game...or at least try to make some sort of statement.  Not this soft, egomaniac!  He put up 8 points and 9 rebounds in 30 minutes and got himself in foul trouble just in time for crunch time.  That's what Malik Rose should do....not Dwight Howard (seriously can we trade him before my head explodes).

In the other corner, a man that was hired instead of 11-time champion Phil Jackson...Head Coach Mike D'Antoni.  I must say I waited longer than most to judge this moron mainly because my contempt for Mike Brown was so strong and I was so angry with the players that I didn't have time or energy to destroy Mike D.  However, 2+ months into his reign I pretty much think he is the biggest joke of a coach in any professional sport.

Bad chemistry, the team not playing hard, the inability to seize pivotal moments in the game, not playing a lick of defense, poor late-game execution....of course those are all indicators of a poorly coached team.  However, I'm not going to waste my brain or your time on that. I'm going to focus on his frustrating, almost childish, stubbornness   Simply put, he is too inflexible with his damn "system" (as I've said before, "D'Antoni's System" is about as annoying of a term as there is right now.  It should be the name of a bad bar somewhere far from Staples Center and far from MSG).

It has gotten to the point that he refuses to play a $19 million dollar, 2-time champion that has proven he can still do it in the post when given the opportunity.  He doesn't play this tremendous asset because he NEEDS to run his system? What kind of coaching maneuver is that?  What kind of coach can't adapt to his players...especially his good ones?  Answer:  A very bad coach.  D'Antoni is pretty much admitting publicly that he is not smart enough, creative enough or resourceful enough to incorporate a unselfish, super-skilled, elite 7 footer that is being paid $19 million by the same people that pay him.  And to make matters even worse, he decided to bench Pau 24 hours after Pau had by far his best game of the season.  At least bench Pau after a sh-tty game so it is somewhat justifiable.

It's amazing how much D'Antoni's personal agenda is getting in the way of winning.  It's sickening, unacceptable and worthy of a firing.  Unfortunatley though, D'Antoni can rest comfortably knowing the Lakers are also paying Mike Brown...who also stunk.

So as I wrap up this anger-filled post, I just want to recognize that the ultimate victim (besides me) of all of this Dwight/D'Antoni nonsense and failure is going to end up being Pau Gasol.  It's so sad that a solid guy, who has done amazing work for this franchise and who wants to remain a Laker for life, will most likely be shipped out because of Dwight's underachieving season and Mike D's stubbornness.

Unfortunately, if this train wreck of a season needs a shake up, I have trouble seeing it being any other way.  Meanwhile, Pau is the one--not D'Antoni--who has made an effort to change in the midst of this terrible start.  Pau is the one--not Dwight--that has held himself accountable.  Pau is the one--not Dwight--you can see playing with effort every night.  Pau is the one--not D'Antoni--who has proven he can win championships.  Pau is the one--not Dwight--who is fully committed to the Laker organization.

Ugh....I hope our next game isn't officiated by Joey Crawford.