Swapping Forwards

If you’re a Lakers fan and haven’t heard that we signed Artest and lost Ariza, wake up! I’m in the minority on the signing that believes Ariza > Artest. I was surprised to hear how many fans on talk radio exclaiming their love and approval for Artest, that Artest is an upgrade to Ariza, that Artest is tougher, and that Artest just sealed the deal on the Lakers repeating. I don’t agree with any of that and here’s why (in reverse order):

Championship – Remember when Gary Payton and Karl Malone joined Shaq, Kobe and Co? I, along with the rest of the city, was ready to watch another victory parade come June. You know what happened next.

Tuff – Toughness does not equal  “hoodilizing” LA. I wouldn’t characterize this years Laker’s team as “tough” in the same way the Pistons’ bad boys were tough, but the Lakers were tough enough to win a championship. Ariza made the clutch  steals and shots that counted all without close lining anyone. How much tougher does he need to be?

Upgrade – On paper, Artest > Ariza, so if you are a stats wonk, this signing makes sense. However, going back to the Malone-Payton era, those two guys were upgrades on paper to Horace Grant and Derek Fisher but the end result was not what everyone had hoped for. Players need get along and play as a team and Ariza did exactly what he was supposed to do. I don’t mean to say that Artest won’t and can’t do the same, but why go tinkering with something that isn’t broken.

What I really liked about Ariza was that he was low key and very workman like on the court, ala Worthy, Cooper, and Thompson. Artest on the other hand has already pimped himself on ESPN even before he’s officially part of the Lake-Show. How Spiedi-esqe.

My gut feeling is that Ariza is a better choice not only in the short run, when Kobe can still dominate at least for the next 3-4 years, but also in the long run when Bynum blossoms into Shaq 2.0 (snicker). I’m not hating on Artest. In someways, such as how Artest won’t be playing for another competitor, signing Artest is a plus for the Lakers.

Ahh well. The dust hasn’t settled yet from this summer’s free agency circus, but the coming season looks to be really good. We’ll see how the TruWarier plays out.