Posts Tagged ‘Adam Morrison’

Found this on Lakersground.net. Originally from SGV Tribune:

EL SEGUNDO - The Lakers’ UCLA alumni club did its best to make Adam Morrison feel welcome - so to speak.

Morrison arrived at the Lakers’ practice facility Monday, a day after being acquired from Charlotte in a trade, to find a picture taped to his locker.

There was Morrison, sobbing, moments after his Gonzaga Bulldogs had been eliminated from the 2006 NCAA Tournament by Jordan Farmar’s UCLA Bruins.

“I have a suspect,” Morrison said with a smile. “I knew I would get some flak for that, coming to L.A.”

Trevor Ariza is also a UCLA alum, but incriminating photos aside, Morrison couldn’t be happier with the trade, which sent him and guard Shannon Brown to the Lakers in exchange for Vladimir Radmanovic.

Much has changed for Morrison since that tournament game. Most visibly, his once- famous shaggy locks have been shorn to a tight cut, and his facial hair has been trimmed into a thin goatee.

In a basketball sense, Morrison has yet to resemble that dynamic college player, the one talented enough to be the third overall pick of the 2006 NBA draft. After a decent rookie year, Morrison missed all of 2007-08 after ACL surgery. This season, he averaged only 4.5 points in 44 games with the Bobcats.

While Morrison isn’t assured of much playing time with the Lakers, coach Phil Jackson said he is open to seeing what Morrison can bring once he gets acclimated with the triangle offense.

In college, Morrison was a high-scoring forward who drew favorable comparisons to Larry Bird.

“I think the confidence issue is probably more with my knee than my game,” Morrison said. “Half of the battle is just getting my knee to feel right. It feels good right now, so I’m just looking forward to contributing to this great team.”

To the extent that he plays, Brown is expected to contribute more on defense. Jackson said Brown wouldn’t have a problem playing either guard position for the Lakers.

“I’m just going to try to bring a lot of energy at both ends, some athleticism and spark,” Brown said.

I’m glad Morrison is a Laker. The guy got now love from Larry Brown. You have a great scorer, but you give him no playing time, and you expect him to perform. Then when he does get playing time, he’s thrust into the lineup and expected to be the #1 guy on offense. Any kid would have trouble dealing with this. Let’s see what he can do when he’s eased into an offense and actually given a chance. Let’s just hope he can take Luke’s spot.

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According to Yahoo Sports, Vladimir Radmanovic was sent packing. He has been traded to Charlotte for Adam Morrison and Shannon Brown. Not a huge move in the immediate future, but it gets Vlade’s terrible contract off the books. Hopefully this can be a career revival for Adam Morrison, who was drafted 3rd overall in 2006. He’s had a pretty slow start to his career, but didn’t really get a whole lot of minutes to prove himself. Hopefully, this is the chance that he needs. Morrison was a straight up scorer in college. Let’s see if he can get back to that level. If not, then it’s no loss to the Lakers,  since Morrison’s contract has a team option at the end of this year. This then opens up some money to resign Trevor Ariza and Lamar Odom if the Lakers choose to.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP)—The Charlotte Bobcats sent struggling forward Adam Morrison and reserve Shannon Brown to the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday for forward Vladimir Radmanovic.

The move is the third trade the Bobcats have made this season in a roster shakeup under first-year coach Larry Brown.

Morrison was the third overall pick of the 2006 draft and managing partner Michael Jordan’s first major move since buying into the Bobcats. But Morrison had failed to crack the starting lineup and his minutes had declined under Brown.

Morrison will give the Lakers an outside shooting threat, while the 6-foot-10 Radmanovic gives the Bobcats more depth up front.

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