Kwame in the Clear?
Yesterday, the Los Angeles district attorney’s office announced that there would be no sexual assault charges brought against Kwame Brown. While I’m happy for Brown and hope the allegations were indeed unfounded, I don’t know if this announcement was necessarily the best news for the Lakers.
I know I’m a horrible person for thinking this, but after the Lakers were eliminated from the playoffs, it occurred to me that it might not be so bad if Brown was charged and either plead guilty or was convicted. Then the Lakers could void his contract and sign a high-priced free agent next summer.
While it’s true that Brown played well in the final month of the season, averaging 12.8 points and 8.6 rebounds in April, I can’t forget how disappointing he was leading up to March 14, when he assumed the injured Chris Mihm’s place in the starting line-up. He also continues to be maddeningly consistent in his inconsistency, getting just 2 rebounds in one game and 11 in the next as he did against the Suns.
This disappointment was compounded towards the end of the season, despite the good play, when I learned that Brown had been given a full three-year deal, rather than two years with a team option as reported the previous summer.
To be honest, I was never in favor of the Brown trade. At one point in the 2004-05 season I had considered the possibility of trading Caron Butler for Brown. But by the end of the season, as Butler finished the season strong (with Lamar Odom out of the lineup) and Brown ended up suspended by his team during the middle of a playoff run, I no longer had any interest in Brown. I also became convinced that Odom could play the power forward position in the triangle offense.
What made the trade bearable was that with a two-year deal, the Lakers might still be able to preserve cap space for the 2007 free agency period. The Lakers would be over the salary cap until then because of the enormous Brian Grant contract the team received when it traded away Shaquille O’Neal.
While it was true that Yao Ming and Amare Stoudamire had already signed contract extensions and would no longer be free agents in 2007, there were other good players available, like Rashard Lewis, who might help Kobe and Lamar win a title for Los Angeles.
However, those dreams died when I learned that the Lakers would not be able to dump Brown after the 2006-07 season and he would probably be a Laker until 2008. In addition, this summer the Lakers signed Vladimir Radmanovic to a five-year deal so it seems the plan to clear cap space has been abandoned.
Since Radmanovic’s contract is reasonable, part of me thought it could still be traded away if Brown was found guilty and cut. Now that the district attorney’s office has announced its decision, the team is stuck with Brown.
I guess there’s still a chance for the Lakers to get Lewis, the team might still be able to trade Kwame for an expiring contract. One can only hope. Either that or hope Brown proves me wrong and demonstrates he deserves the $8M or so he’ll be making next year.
I know I’m a horrible person for thinking this, but after the Lakers were eliminated from the playoffs, it occurred to me that it might not be so bad if Brown was charged and either plead guilty or was convicted. Then the Lakers could void his contract and sign a high-priced free agent next summer.
While it’s true that Brown played well in the final month of the season, averaging 12.8 points and 8.6 rebounds in April, I can’t forget how disappointing he was leading up to March 14, when he assumed the injured Chris Mihm’s place in the starting line-up. He also continues to be maddeningly consistent in his inconsistency, getting just 2 rebounds in one game and 11 in the next as he did against the Suns.
This disappointment was compounded towards the end of the season, despite the good play, when I learned that Brown had been given a full three-year deal, rather than two years with a team option as reported the previous summer.
To be honest, I was never in favor of the Brown trade. At one point in the 2004-05 season I had considered the possibility of trading Caron Butler for Brown. But by the end of the season, as Butler finished the season strong (with Lamar Odom out of the lineup) and Brown ended up suspended by his team during the middle of a playoff run, I no longer had any interest in Brown. I also became convinced that Odom could play the power forward position in the triangle offense.
What made the trade bearable was that with a two-year deal, the Lakers might still be able to preserve cap space for the 2007 free agency period. The Lakers would be over the salary cap until then because of the enormous Brian Grant contract the team received when it traded away Shaquille O’Neal.
While it was true that Yao Ming and Amare Stoudamire had already signed contract extensions and would no longer be free agents in 2007, there were other good players available, like Rashard Lewis, who might help Kobe and Lamar win a title for Los Angeles.
However, those dreams died when I learned that the Lakers would not be able to dump Brown after the 2006-07 season and he would probably be a Laker until 2008. In addition, this summer the Lakers signed Vladimir Radmanovic to a five-year deal so it seems the plan to clear cap space has been abandoned.
Since Radmanovic’s contract is reasonable, part of me thought it could still be traded away if Brown was found guilty and cut. Now that the district attorney’s office has announced its decision, the team is stuck with Brown.
I guess there’s still a chance for the Lakers to get Lewis, the team might still be able to trade Kwame for an expiring contract. One can only hope. Either that or hope Brown proves me wrong and demonstrates he deserves the $8M or so he’ll be making next year.
posted by The Pocho at 12:57 PM
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