Farming at the Pyramid

On Sunday afternoon I headed out to the Pyramid at Cal State, Long Beach. Although the atmosphere did not match last year’s buzz with the debut of Andrew Bynum, there was still excitement surrounding the drafting of Jordan Farmar and continued hope for the development of Bynum.

It was the fifth year I had made the trip out to Long Beach. And if you ask me why I keep making the trip, it’d be tough to give you an answer. The level of basketball is vastly inferior to the NBA and it’s getting worse every year as NBA teams abandon Long Beach.

This year the number of NBA teams was down to four: the Lakers, Grizzlies, Mavericks, and Wizards. Teams like the Clippers, Raptors, and Knicks have taken their NBA hopefuls to greener pastures in Vegas and other cities.

Most of the players will never make it to the pros and since the NBA summer league teams don’t come together until right before the league starts, the games are only slightly better than pick up games at the Y. (Although they are still more entertaining to watch than any women’s basketball game.)

I guess what keeps me coming back is the hope of seeing a diamond in the rough that will help propel the Lakers to another championship. Last year, although Bynum’s name was on the marquee, he was upstaged by Smush Parker, an obscure player that had been in and out of the NBA. While I would have never imagined he would turn out to be the Lakers starting point guard, it was clear at first glance that he had NBA talent and would help the Lakers in a triangle offense.

So the hope of finding another Smush compelled me to see what the 2006 Lakers summer league team had to offer. Unfortunately, this year there was no new Smush. However, the trip was not disappointing as I got to take a look at another player who might be able to drive the Lakers a lot closer to another championship: Jordan Farmar.

Prior to the draft Farmar’s name had been bandied about as a possible Lakers pick. To be honest, I wasn’t that impressed by Farmar’s performance for UCLA in the NCAA tournament. But the fact that he was clearly the leader on a team that got to the final game got me thinking he might not be a bad choice and I was pleased when the Lakers drafted him.

So I was anxious to see him on Sunday. Farmar was almost in a no-win situation. If he failed to excel, the Lakers pick would be another lost opportunity. If he performed well, it wouldn’t mean anything since players like Devean George, Darius Miles, and Nikoloz Tskitisvili have looked like potential hall of famers in the summer league only to turn out to be mediocre at best in the pros.

Nevertheless, I really hoped Farmar would show me something. And he did, even before the opening tip. One of the most surprising things that I learned after the Lakers drafted him was that Farmar has a 42-inch vertical jump. He never struck me as very athletic the few times I saw him play for UCLA. Well, he put to rest any doubts I might have had when he made a couple of dunks during the lay-up drill.

Once the game began, he continued to impress. Farmar had played well the day before, but I had to see him in person to really get the impression that he could play in the NBA. He clearly looked like the best player on the court and exuded a certain calm confidence.

Farmar was in control of the tempo of the game but did not try to force anything. His athleticism was also on display on a couple of rebounds and a jump ball. He guarded his man well and stayed with him over screens instead of going under them.

He didn’t have much of a second quarter, but his strong play in the third helped the Laker team build an insurmountable lead. Farmar showcased his offensive game in this quarter with a couple of floaters that reminded me of Jeff Hornacek (in a good way) and a three pointer. Granted all this was against Dallas’ B team (their A team with their first round pick, Maurice Ager, plays in Vegas), but it was still comforting to see.

As for the rest of the squad, Bynum and Devin Green impressed me a bit and Pinnock showed flashes. Although Bynum’s offensive game is not developing as fast as one would hope, he continues to be a defensive presence on the court. He was swatting away balls with ease and was a monster on the boards and ended up with 5 blocks and 15 rebounds.

One of my concerns about Bynum is that he doesn’t finish at the rim despite his seven-foot frame. Jelani McCoy, a former UCLA bruin who’s been in and out of the NBA the last few years, was guarding him throughout the game.

There were a couple of times when he was a foot away from the rim and instead of just going up to dunk it, he tried to coax the ball into the rim and either got blocked or missed wildly. However, in the third quarter he started to play with a little more poise and was a lot smoother at the rim, including an alley-oop dunk off a pass from Green. It was also nice to see Bynum make his free throws as he promised he would after he was drafted. The previous year, nerves appeared to affect his shooting stroke.

Another concern I have about Bynum is his stamina. While he played great in the third quarter, by the time he was taken out of the game with a minute left, he looked like he needed an oxygen tank. I can understand that lugging around those 275 pounds would take its toll. But the guy is not overweight and is only 18, so you would think he would have more energy. Hopefully as he continues to train and develop he’ll find a way to stay on the court a little longer.

Finally, Devin Green had a very strong third quarter after a horrible first half and Von Wafer played well in garbage time. However, it’s not clear that either deserves a spot on the Lakers’ real roster. I plan to take another trip to the Pyramid on the 19th and will report on whether either earns that spot and how Farmar and Bynum progress.