Los Angeles Lakers Rumors & News

Don't let Jerry Buss fool you.He'll tell you that son Jim runs 80 percent of the Lakers basketball operation and he just throws "my two cents in," while daughter Jeanie runs the business side of things completely.

Lamar Odom is an old man, at least when it comes to this U.S. basketball team.He was reminded of that right from the first practice in New York, when he was so winded that he struggled to reach the rim shooting free throws.While praising his leadership, Coach Mike Krzyzewski and USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo acknowledge Odom isn't ready to play.

There are no rules for retired numbers. Some places, you'd better be a Hall of Famer. Other places honor the likes of Byron Beck.But this much is certain: If you want a franchise's ultimate honor, you'd better not burn your bridges.And one center with a fading game and an outsized personality torched the rest of his when this news clattered over the transaction wire last week:

Shannon Brown is returning to the Lakers, turning down more lucrative offers for a shot at a third straight championship.Brown's agent, Mark Bartelstein, told The Associated Press on Thursday that the high-flying free agent guard agreed to a two-year deal worth $4.6 million.

The Lakers' All-Star forward doesn't play for Spain for the first time in three years, but he is taking a trip to India as an NBA ambassador.For once, Pau Gasol is taking time off in the summer, stepping away from Spanish national team obligations and concentrating on, well, the general well-being of Pau Gasol.

Lakers owner will be enshrined at Springfield, Mass., as a contributor. Magic Johnson and Jerry West will go in again with their respective Olympic teams. He has presided over the Lakers since 1979, turning the franchise into one of the most successful in sports.

Before change comes inspiration. Before inspiration, someone must inspire. Here is Jeremy Lin. Even if in his own mind he's merely just another American kid playing ball, here is Jeremy Lin. He's a somewhat reluctant torch-bearer for race. He has not...

Byron Scott took himself off the market and almost off the radar. He is heading into the apocalypse now known as post-LeBron Cleveland ... and starting a new supervisory job at the Cavaliers' old manufacturing plant just as Phil Jackson is vowing...

The super stars, the NBA's big names, opted not to play the World Championships having competed in the Olympics two years earlier. Their absence opened the door for many of the NBA's second tier players -- talented players, but not considered...

A year from now, Brian Shaw probably won't get to vacation in Cabo in relative anonymity anymore. Shaw figures to be the new head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, perhaps the three-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. So well aware of that is...

The Lakers will spend more money on their 2010-11 payroll than any other team in the NBA, possibly topping $95 million as they chase a third straight championship.

Derrick Caracter, a second-round draft pick from Texas-El Paso, signed a two-season contract potentially worth about $1.

There's been a star for the past four years on the Hollywood Walk of Fame recognizing the accomplishments of Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss.

Lamar Odom and the rest of Team USA is 5-0 in the FIBA World Basketball Championships after beating Tunisia on Thursday and is within four games of adding a gold medal to his NBA championship, a thought that got him rather giddy. “The thought of being a world champion twice in one year is cool, you [...]Odom and Bryant not on equal footing is a post from: Lakers blog

Everyone makes mistakes with easy ones, but here’s what Alex Trebek calls Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s “embarrassing moment on ‘Jeopardy’ … Kareem Abdul-Jabbar flubs one on “Jeopardy” is a post from: Lakers blog Kareem Abdul-Jabbar flubs one on “Jeopardy” is a post from: Lakers blog

The welcome mat has been pulled from under the cheerleaders’ jumping feet at the FIBA World Basketball Championships, where Team USA is dominating play. At first, the Red Foxes, a cheerleading group from the Ukraine, were asked to cover up and cut down their shaking when the United States played Iran because of “cultural sensitivity” issues. Now [...]Cheerleaders asked to leave FIBA World Championships is a post from: Lakers blog

As part of our look ahead at the Lakers' projected roster next season, we continue to work our way from the bottom to the top of the rotation. Next up... Player Pau Gasol Salary $17,823,000 Garrett W. Ellwood/NBAE/Getty Images Pau Gasol has been to the Finals three straight times with the Lakers. How good does he need to be this year to reach a fourth? We've grown so used to the metronome-worthy consistency it was jarring to see him struggle, relatively speaking, but from the moment he tweaked a hammy in training camp nearly a year ago, Pau Gasol set himself up for much tougher sled...

It's time again to empty out the Land O'Lakers mailbag. Just because we're in the dry, forbidding summer months doesn't mean there are no issues to kick around. After all, training camp is just around the corner. So without further ado, let's get going. Q: Yo Kamenetzky Bros! I'm splitting season seats for Lakers/Clippers/Kings this year, and I have to go to this draft next week to select my games. Its a snake draft but I wanted to have my picks ready to go. So for time's sake, can you at least give me your guys top 10 games of the season, in order from best to worst? Also I really don't wan...

Lakers owner Jerry Buss said this afternoon that the 2010-11 team could be the best in franchise history. He told reporters, "As of now, I feel like there's a good chance this could be the best team we've ever had."...

Matt Barnes showed his feisty side during a pro-am game Wednesday night in San Francisco, reportedly slapping an opposing assistant coach in the face after a testy exchange along the sideline. Barnes was initially upset with a referee's call and...

Again, wish I had more time to give this a Mark Medina-esque spin, but I'm kind of crushed with workload this evening. Just wanted to point out that Lakers forward Lamar Odom took some time Thursday to chat with beat writer Broderick Turner about Team USA and his role as co-captain. The Big Versatile, as I like to call him (anybody dig that nickname? -- I'll never use it again in print if you do not), has been pressed into duty as the squad's starting center since most of the superstar big men are taking this summer off from the...

Team USA closed out its first-round play Thursday at the FIBA World Championships with an easy, 92-57 win over Tunisia, but Lakers forward Lamar Odom was barely visible. Odom, who started as usual at center for USA Coach Mike Krzyzewski, played 15 minutes, missed his only shot, got two boards and one blocked shot, and was scoreless. Odom was the only American player not to score. Team USA, the top-seeded team in its group, opens the knockout round Monday against fourth-seeded Angola. In five games in the tournament Odom, co-captain on the USA squad, is averaging 4.2 points, 5.6 rebounds...

Most people think that 6-foot-10 center Theo Ratliff is an upgrade off the bench from 7-foot DJ Mbenga, who really didn't get much playing time during his tenure with the Lakers. Ratliff has been primarily a defensive stopper in his 15 years in the NBA, even earning All-Star honors in 2001. He averaged more than three blocks a game six times in a seven-year run during the prime of his career. He's No. 18 all-time in blocks and tied for 11th in blocks per game. That's impressive. Many people agree with Eric Pincus over at HoopsWorld.com that Steve Blake, Matt...

Not sure if any of you saw this, but we do a weekly Sports Legends feature on latimes.com/sports and this week it was on Wilt Chamberlain. The Sports Legends feature focuses on the truth behind rumors, hearsay or facts that have maybe been misconstrued or distorted over the years. It's kind of cool to go back in time. I know a lot of the youngsters are really into the here and now. I've got a pair of sons in the early 20s who really dig basketball, like we do, and I'm always going on and on about the '70s and...

http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/videopage?videoId=5504668|http://assets.espn.go.com/media/motion/2010/0827/dm_100827_rome_kobe_thumbnail_big.jpg|Lakers G Kobe Bryant is interviewed by Rome Is Burning guest host Derek Fisher