The
opening night debuts of the superstar-laden LA Lakers today and nine years ago
by rick olivares pic by wally skalij
When the new NBA schedule had the
Dallas Mavericks traveling to Los Angeles to take on the Lakers in the season
opener, I thought back to a previous game. One that took place just a little
over nine years ago (October 29, 2003).
October
28, 2003 Staples Center
The Mavericks also traveled to LA that
day for opening night where 18,997 people
were on hand. Yes, there was a cold shoulder that opening night but for the
2012-13 season, that belonged to Kevin Garnett who refused to acknowledge Ray
Allen in the Miami Heat-Boston Celtics match that took place in the opposite
coast. But back to La La Land.
The cold shoulder was between Kobe
Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal who took shots and jabs at each other for two days
leading up to the opener. And the funny thing is they sat next to each other on
the Lakers’ bench.
But the new look Lakers – they had
Gary Payton, Karl Malone, Bryon Russell, and Horace Grant – crushed the
Mavericks, 109-93, without Bryant who
was injured. Six Lakers ended up with double figures – Devean George, Malone,
Payton, Derek Fisher, O’Neal, and Russell.
The new look Mavericks that day – they
signed Antawn Jamison and Antawn Walker – lacked any chemistry and were a mess.
Who else was on that Dallas team? Steve Nash.
October
31, 2012 Staples Center
Flash forward to today’s NBA.
The Lakers with new signings Steve
Nash, Dwight Howard, and Antawn Jamison looked like a mess on opening night with
18,997 fans in attendance. They’ve
got a Big Four of their own with Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Nash, and Howard. But
they were felled by the new look Mavs (Elton Brand, Jae Crowder, Chris Kaman
although he didn’t suit up because of an injury) who were without Dirk Nowitzki, 99-91.
Steve Nash finished with seven points
and four assists. Howard tallied 19 points and 10 rebounds while Jamison had
five points and five rebounds. Only three Lakers were in double figures.
Outside Howard, Pau Gasol led the way with 23 points while Kobe Bryant had 22.
In the 2012 debut of the Mavs, they
had six players in double digits for the win – Brendan Wright, Shawn Marion,
Darren Collison, OJ Mayo, Rodrigue Beaubois, and Vince Carter.
The superstar-laden 2003-04 Lakers
made it to the NBA Finals where they lost to the Detroit Pistons, 4-1. The
journey for this new Lakers team has just begun. Only by the end of the season
can we finally say if they charted their own path or if they will mirror that
old team that was blown up immediately after the loss.
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