The Peterson Principle 3/11/2013

You don’t like Dwight Howard? The Lakers could still have this guy

For all of you Laker fans fans that are disappointed in Dwight Howard, just think, Andrew Bynum could still be at center. Or actually he wouldn’t be at center since he hasn’t played a game all year.

I think the reason everybody gets so frustrated with Howard, and yes I was one of them, is that when you see him grab 21 rebounds like he did Sunday against Chicago, you wonder why he can’t do that night in and night out.

The Lakers didn’t trade Howard at the deadline and in the off season they will make every attempt to re-sign him. Why? Because despite his demeanor and inconsistencies, he is still the best center in the league. And it’s not even close. Consider the plight of Bynum. He’s supposed to be the second best.

With the win Sunday over the Bulls the Lakers have climbed back into the playoff picture at number eight. We all thought they would get there eventually, we just didn’t think it would require this much work.

Love or hate Kobe Bryant, and after all these years most fans love him, you have to admire what he’s doing this year at 34 and 17 NBA seasons under his belt. If he would have hit just one of those three point shots last Friday night in the win over Toronto, it would have been incredible. But to do it three times? Especially when the defense knows he is going to get the ball? It’s almost unheard of .

He became only the second player in NBA history to score 40 points and dish out at least ten assists in consecutive games, (the other was Jerry West) and he is third in the NBA in scoring at 27.8 points per game.

Bryant calls it “Vino”. Whatever it is, the Lakers are going to need a lot more of it if they are going to go anywhere in the playoffs. For now the good news is that if the playoffs started today the Lakers would be in. The bad news is their first round opponent would be Oklahoma City.

Do you sometimes wonder what the Clippers have to do to get some attention in LA? Whether they’re good or bad, the fans for the most part seem indifferent. They have Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and Jamaal Crawford but it seems all everybody talks about is Bryant, Howard and Steve Nash…oh and Metta World Peace.

Even if the Clippers won the NBA title, most people would still be wondering what Kobe had for lunch that day. By the way for those that care, the Clips are still playing, but they have slipped to fourth in the Western Conference. The best case scenario would be for the Clippers and the Lakers to meet in the first round for city bragging rights. But with the Lakers needing to climb to number five in the West for that to happen, that is unlikely.

 

Caught some of the Georgetown-Syracuse game on Saturday. It was strange to think that was the last time the two teams would be playing each other as members of the Big East Conference. It’s been one of the greatest rivalries in college basketball over the last several decades. It brings back memories of players like Pearl Washington, Chris Mullin, Patrick Ewing and Alonzo Mourning. Change is inevitable it seems, but in this case it isn’t always necessary.

 

Will the Ben Howland bashers finally be put to bed now that UCLA has won the conference title?  Probably not but with the success he’s had over last ten years they should quiet down a little. At least until the Bruins get knocked out in the first round.

 

Is USC really going to bring Tim Floyd back? Although he was never technically found guilty of any wrong doing before resigning in 2009, it never smelled right. I could never figure out why he would risk his job and the wrath of the NCAA over a one and done player like O.J. Mayo. Given AD Pat Haden’s vow to be squeaky clean, it was surprising to hear that he even met with Floyd.

That’s my principle.

Tim can be reached at tim@midvalleysports.com.

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