Brandon Roy seems to have everything that Coach Jackson wants for his Triangle offence. Roy is a 6'6" guard out of Washington and is the prototype big guard that Coach is always looking for. Though considered a shooting guard, many feel he can play the 1, 2, or 3 spots. Brandon can shoot, dribble, pass, and play tough defense. He seems to have few flaws.

The problem is that most mock drafts have him at or around the #5 pick. The rumor that the Lakers may trade for the Chicago #2 pick so that they can draft Brandon Roy, seems to have some legs even though there isn't a specific source within the Lakers that is attributed to it. No Laker official is likely to come out and make such a pronouncement, so these rumors usually start with writers who have un-named inside sources.

But interest is far from a done deal. The rumor says that Lamar Odon could be traded for the #2 and the #16 pick from Chicago. Moving Lamar's contract creates even more cap space for next summer. Between Odom's 11 Mil and Brian Grant's 15 Mil, that's 26 Mil of greenbacks to flash around a year from now. Even KG's contract is doable with room to spare.

But if that is a good rumor it can't be a complete one. I could see Chicago maybe trading one pick for Lamar if they really wanted him but not both picks. This deal makes more sense if the rumor of Chris Mihm going to Chicago is also a part of this package.

Some specualtion out there says that since Coach Jackson is officially on for only two more years, he doesn't want to take any more projects. He already has one project in Bynum, and other rumors speculate that Coach would be willing to give up on him already if he could bring in players who could help the Lakers win now.

I somehow think that the Lakers are not going to get offstride just because of the length of Jackson's contract. It seems that everything points to the Lakers reaching their roster goals by the beginning of the 07/08 season. That would be Jackson's last season, but there is nothing that says he wouldn't be willing to stay if he truely had a team that was ready to again compete for a championship.

Unless some miracle trade comes along now that brings in a KG or another franchise player, the Lakers probably will look to make progress this year, without the expectation of a championship.

If the Lakers do trade Lamar to move up to take a high lottery pick like Brandon Roy, we are offically in a rebuilding mode. The next 3 weeks will tell us alot about what the Lakers want to do. The Draft will be over, the negotiating period for Free Agents begins July 1, and contracts can be signed beginning July 7. Not every Laker move will be completed by then, and we do still have the summer league ahead of us. But the likelyhood of a blockbust signing or trade is less likely as we head towards the opening of the season. So look for more action early in the process rather than later.

JamFan