Catching Up With Mitch Kupchak

Lakers General Manager, Mitch Kupchak, talks about who he thinks is the most improved after last season, Javaris Crittenton's development, the depth chart of the team, the possibility of eligible players getting sent to the D-League, and more in part one and part two of his interview.

Excerpts:

"Where is Javaris' development compared to a typical rookie? Too early to tell. We thought he had a good summer league and he has played well out here in pick-up games, but that is totally different than what he's going to be exposed to starting next season in Hawaii. We are pleased to have him, we didn't think we would be able to get him at 19, we thought he'd be gone in the top 15. He shows flashes of being a true point guard, which is a player that makes the other players around him better. He looks to make a pass first, although he can score, but that is not what he looks to do first."

"With regards to Larry Turner, Elton Brown, and Coby Karl, what are we looking to get out of them? Right now we have 14 guys on our team based on their contractual status that will probably make the team. You’re allowed to have 15, so there is a spot open. We may or may not carry the 15th spot. It depends on what happens in training camp. I think the players you mentioned, Karl, Turner, Brown, and perhaps another player we’re going to add in the next day or two, will be trying to impress us to make that 15th slot their slot. So one of those guys could make it, one of those guys could make it for a month or two, or one of those guys can make it and spend time between going up and down between the D-League the whole season. We just don’t know right now, but we do have space for one more player if we want to carry that player."

October 18, 2007 Lakers vs. Seattle Recap

The Los Angeles Lakers played much better in their first preseason game back in California, and beat the Seattle Supersonics 126-106. Kwame Brown played his first game of the preseason after sitting out the first two while recovering from his injury. The Lakers had balance in scoring, with 8 players in double figures.

The five players that I was really impressed with this game were Jordan Farmar, Brian Cook, Ronny Turiaf, Chris Mihm, and Andrew Bynum. Farmar had 10 points and 7 assists. He made both of his three pointers, definitely showing off the work that he's done on his outside shooting. Cook got a hot streak going early in the game, scoring 19 points to get him out of his shooting slump. Turiaf also got going early, scoring 11 of the team's first 14 points and ending up with 13 points total. Mihm had a nice game after not playing in the first half, scoring 11 points on 5/5 shooting in 12 minutes. Bynum had a double double with 19 points and 10 rebounds, looking really good and aggressive in the game.

Catching Up With Jordan Farmar

Last season's first round draft pick, Jordan Farmar, talks about his goals for the season, what he's worked on in the summer, and his role. Check out the full interview here.

Excerpts:

"What are your goals for this season? Just to come in and contribute, to help the organization any way I can, doing whatever the coaching staff and the front office want me to do. Just play my role."

"What have you specifically worked on over the summer? A lot of catch and shoot and defensive stuff. In this offense, the triangle, you get a lot of opportunities to just catch and shoot, but you don't get a lot of time to play with the ball and do stuff off the dribble. So I've really been working on my shot, making it more consistent and more efficient. We'll see how it works out."

Catching Up With Luke Walton

5th year forward of the Los Angeles Lakers, Luke Walton, talks about his summer, his new contract that he signed, last season's ankle injury, how far he thinks the team can go this season, and more. You can check out here, and here for another interview.

Excerpts:

"Talk about your brief period as a free agent. It was nerve wracking. Even though it was short, it was the whole time period leading up to that. L.A. is where I wanted to stay, I made that clear to my agent, but we had backup plans with other teams. Meetings setup and stuff like that. My agent and Mitch called me that first day and we agreed on that offer that I felt was something I was satisfied with and something the Lakers were happy with then we might as well sign it and get it done as opposed to going and looking somewhere else.

I was actually in Las Vegas when I got the call at a good friend of mine’s bachelor party. We were all packing up, getting ready to get on a plane to fly back home when I talked to Mitch and my agent. We ended up cancelling our flights and staying for an extra night. It ended up being a pretty fun evening."

"If you guys stay healthy this year, how far can this team go? I think we can go all the way. I don't see why there's a reason we can't win a championship with the team we have now. He got [Derek Fisher] back, who is a very experienced point guard who has won before. We got young guys who have a lot more experience. We have the coaching staff that knows what to do. We have Kobe who is the best player in the league."

Catching Up With Javaris Crittenton

The 19th pick in the first round in the 2007 NBA Draft of the Los Angeles Lakers, Javaris Crittenton, talks about the similarities of his home of Atlanta, Georgia and Los Angeles, the coaches, the transition to the NBA, what he's been working on, and other things in an interview here, and another one here.

Excerpts:

"What kind of things have you been doing off the court? Man, I’ve just been in the gym you know. I went to some of my teammates' houses, Andrew Bynum & Jordan Farmar, hanging out with those guys. I’ve been hanging out with Brian Cook, we did a commercial for Amare Stoudemire’s video game together. Hanging out with Kwame (Brown).

I’m just trying to get adjusted to my teammates and the city. I also had a little 'Welcome to LA' party, but that’s about it besides being in the gym and getting ready for training camp and the season. It’s a big season for me, it’s the NBA, there’s no room to take breaks like that."

"Are you looking forward to playing against him and practice and learning from him (Kobe)? Yeah, I'm a competitor. I compete with anybody. I'm looking forward to that. He's a great player - the best in the league in my opinion. I'm looking forward to competing against him and also playing with him."