Uncertainty ahead for the Lakers
Jordan Farmar (photo. NBA)
This was supposed to be Jordan Farmar’s season to shine. Having earned some decent playoff and Finals experience in ‘08, the third-year pro would conceivably establish himself as a quality NBA point guard in ‘09, maybe even steal Derek Fisher’s starting job by midseason, and set himself up for a long-term contract extension at the beginning of next season.
Didn’t work out that way. Bothered by injuries and inconsistency, Farmar’s numbers dropped across the board. In 18 minutes per (two less than last season), he averaged six points and a couple of assists, hitting 39 percent from the field and a gross 58 percent at the line.
And in the playoffs, Farmar has dropped off the map. In the Lakers’ first two games against the Jazz, Phil Jackson has only seen fit to play Farmar three minutes a night. Granted, Farmar is dealing with tendinitis his pinky toe, so maybe Phil is just limiting his minutes to spare him for the later rounds, but all season long he’s underachieved.
Whether it’s merely a matter of Farmar not being healthy, of him falling out of favor with Phil, or that he really has taken steps back in his development, Farmar’s status as the team’s point guard of the future is uncertain. And it looks like the Lakers don’t have a long-term answer at the position.
Farmar is under contract for $1.9 million next year, an easy trade if L.A. wants to make it. The 22-year-old is eligible for an extension early next season, and if he’s not extended, will be a restricted free agent in 2010. Fisher is on the books for $5 million next year, an expiring deal.
So what’s their move? The draft is a longshot; L.A. has the 29th pick in the first round, and the 42nd and 59th spots in the second. This year’s point guard class is deep, and maybe a guy like Patty Mills or Jeff Teague will fall into the Lakers’ lap, but there’s no guarantee a future starting PG will be on the board for them.
If the Lakers plan to re-sign Lamar Odom and/or Trevor Ariza (or Josh Powell), they won’t have enough money to sign a good point guard, so the best option would either be to explore a trade or just hope Farmar comes around.
It’s not something to overly worry about now — not with a championship in their sights. But it’s something the Lakers need to think about for their future.
April 22nd, 2009 at 6:15 pm
srb says:
they’ll be able to get some vet to come for cheap. easy.
April 22nd, 2009 at 6:21 pm
Big Shot BOB says:
Phil’s system has never really called for a true point anyway. The guy won with Ron Harper running the point for god’s sake. The suprise of the playoffs so far has been Shannon Brown running the point. He may not be a bad option if he works on his handle. But they still have Fisher for a long time and don’t have to rush into anything.
April 22nd, 2009 at 6:33 pm
Sanpitch says:
lakers will end up signing jason kidd for the vet minimum. hate to see the lakeshow do it but that is what will happen. you heard it here first.
April 22nd, 2009 at 6:46 pm
Kidd says:
^ You beat me to it. Kobe always wanted to play with JKidd. JKidd wants a ring. ’nuff said.
April 22nd, 2009 at 6:56 pm
haslem says:
is it a foregone conclusion Adam Morison is not an NBA player? also isn’t Shannon Brown a PG?
and call this crazy but what if the Lakers had signed Marbury? yeah he’s not young but he would have had a larger roll than on what he has on the Celtics.
April 22nd, 2009 at 7:25 pm
IGP says:
I’d like to see Adam Morrison come around. He did come off a major knee surgery, he could just need a little more time. If he works hard in the offseason he could be a player next year.
Also it would be good to get Ariza back, and even though I’m a big Lamar Odom fan, we can get a guy to play that bench role and be fine, unless he wants to take a lot less money.
April 22nd, 2009 at 7:49 pm
Havana says:
Thank god.
Next to Rodney Stuckey this guy is the most overrated player, who people have unexplicably had faith in their development. Thanks Dime for finally being the first media outlet (from my knowledge) to out this travesty. I would even go as far as saying that Jordan Farmer is one of the 5 worst regular rotation players in the league.
He constantly gets out played by Sasha Vujacic who is a much better shooter, better ball handler and play setter, and better defender all the while being a legit 3” taller than Jordan.
I can’t understand why respected commentators (including Bill Simmons) who I respect, predicted that Farmar would make the leap, somewhat akin to what Rondo has done this year. Do these commentators even watch Laker games. Outside of a few flashy dunks (mostly in commercials), and a barely believable 43” vert that Farmar recorded at the NBA Pre Draft camp, he brings absolutely nothing to the table. He has absolutely NO left hand, and doesnt have the footwork, dexterity or handles to use his athleticism and get into the lane. AND he shoots 39%. Enough said. Give all this guys minutes to Sasha and Shannon and get him out of the league
April 22nd, 2009 at 7:59 pm
Ekkie Tepsupornchai says:
One thing for people to remember is that Farmar got eaten alive last year by Deron Williams in the 2nd round. Very bad matchup for him as Deron is far to big and strong to guard. Shannon Brown matches up much better.
The matchups may work out differently come the next round. That said, you can’t mention Farmar’s decreasing minutes without mentioning how well Shannon Brown has played as of late.
It’s been Brown’s emergence more than Farmar’s struggles that have resulted in the change in minutes distribution.
April 22nd, 2009 at 8:03 pm
KB24 says:
LO already said he’d take less money to stay with the Lakers. I mean how much money do you need? If you love basketball. Just play the dam sport. Although I understand it’s a business…but if you really LOVED the sport. Just play ball.
April 22nd, 2009 at 8:08 pm
foolio_iglesias says:
I agree with haslem.Had the lakers signed Marbury,I guarantee there would be a steady dose of what Steph does well and the lakers could always use:ball penetration leading to kickouts…..
April 22nd, 2009 at 8:25 pm
IGP says:
@KB24
I agree man. Most of these nba players are making much more money than they will ever need. Odom is coming off a what, 16 million dollar contract? Dude play for like 1 million and then fuckin tear it up.
April 22nd, 2009 at 8:58 pm
@lakersnation says:
it’s a tough call . . . . i still believe jordan can turn things around, but his window is closing quick. Let’s see how much of a hometown discount Lamar’s gonna give us!
April 22nd, 2009 at 9:17 pm
the truth says:
Screw Farmar, Shannon “Chris” Brown is the future PG of the Lakers.
April 22nd, 2009 at 9:30 pm
non mormon jazz fan says:
They’ll be able to trade farmar + cry baby sasha and some big macs to the thunder for westbrook.
Are you kidding me? They’ll be fine. They are the leagues poster boys.
April 22nd, 2009 at 9:49 pm
djKianoosh says:
how about Reynolds from Nova?
April 22nd, 2009 at 10:36 pm
BERN BROGDEN says:
Shannon’s filling the void. Farmer can’t crack the 8 man ro. That’s the way the chips fall sometimes.
April 22nd, 2009 at 10:46 pm
Tha Boddy "Agent Zero Still DMV Hero" says:
What about Chris Brown…Umm I mean Shannon???
April 22nd, 2009 at 11:34 pm
BRUCE says:
Jordan Farmar is a fraud, just like Ike Austin and Smush! Farmar ain’t the long term answer. Too slow and he’s UGLY too! There’s a slew of guards in the west — B-Davis, CP3, Deron Wiliams, T-Parker, Steve Nash, Westbrook, Billups, and whomever mans the position in G-State. That’s like murder row. 4 of them are in the playoffs each year.
Get LO, Trevor, and go from there. Powell is a serviceable bench player but not an impact player.
April 23rd, 2009 at 12:07 am
rlf says:
have you heard of shannon brown? do you know what he is doing in the playoffs? do you know that shannon has spent hours upon hours studying the triangle? do you know that shannon is getting comfortable being the facilitator? do you know that in the triangle you don’t need a true point guard? do you know that even if phil retires, whatever coach that stays most likely will run the triangle? do you know that shannon said he can play the point?
watch a laker game once in a while or do research about a team, before you ‘analyze’ anything. thank you.
April 23rd, 2009 at 12:39 am
K Dizzle says:
This article is retarded in so many ways. I’m so annoyed with this that I’m gonna rant. Miami gets Chalmers in the 2nd round, Milwaukee gets Sessions in the 2nd round, Golden State got Gil in the 2nd round, Monta and Lou Williams were 2nd rounders,Roger Mason, Boobie Gibson, Von Wafer, Kyle Weaver, Mike Taylor, Chris Duhon, Rafer ALL 2nd rounders. Jose Calderon, Will Bynum and JJ Barea weren’t even drafted and Tony Parker, Sergio Rodriguez, Udrih, Barbosa and Aaron Brooks were post 25th picks.
In an offseason where Rubio, Jennings, Collison, Holiday, Evans, Maynor, Wise, Flynn, Harden, Teague, Lawson, Curry, Ellington, Mills, Danny Green, Meeks, Christmas, Douglas, Terrance Williams, McClinton, Vasquez, Pargo, Jerrells, Thornton, Price, Mcneal-James-Matthews, Reynolds and Ty Rice might ALL be in the draft(I listed 30 to say “bs” on that there won’t be some backcourt talent fallin to 29th to my Lakers and made sure I didn’t even list any frontcourters) as well as the many free agents as well as returning NBA’ers like Jannero Pargo AND dudes like Will Conroy and DeMarcus Nelson tearin up the D-league.
Seriously, with the way Shannon Brown been ballin in Farmar’s FORMER role, cuz let’s admit it, dude has made Farmar expendable, this article is garbage.
Rewrite the article, post a pic of Ginobili, Garnett, Powe, Stoudamire, Redd or Vince and then rewrite the article cuz if this is uncertainty, then trust me, laker fans lovin it.
I’m out
April 23rd, 2009 at 1:09 am
the cynic says:
Farmer has always stunk. Only the blind laker fans(and i don’t mean all laker fans) thought he was any good.
April 23rd, 2009 at 1:18 am
sam says:
Havana if you lived in LA you would know how much people in the city dislike him. He’s selfish, makes bad decisions, is cocky, and takes bad shots. If someone scores on him on one end he always tries to take it back to them. Not to mention he gambles on defense too.
April 23rd, 2009 at 2:13 am
KWAME says:
shannnon brown is the point of the future…good shooter…tenacious defender…the works
April 23rd, 2009 at 2:34 am
Bing says:
Getting rid of Space Cadet was top of my list for the Lakeshow this season.
Next is that marshmellow The Machine.
Third is Luke Walton. He is zero offensive threat, always passes (I admit he does have good vision). Can’t believe more defenders don’t make him look stoopid.
Farmar doesn’t crack the top 3.
Is it worse to be shown up by Shan-Bro or forgotten about alltogether?
April 23rd, 2009 at 4:21 am
Jimm says:
I’m going to laugh at this thread a year and then two years from now, because whether or not Jordan Farmar ultimately fits with the Lakers, and I think he can, the dude is a complete point guard and will end up being a quality starter in this league. Sure, he struggled this season after LO left the 2nd unit and more was put on his shoulders, but he can fix his shot, he’s got just about everything else, just needs to keep working out and getting stronger so he can defend better.
April 23rd, 2009 at 4:24 am
Jimm says:
That said, Shannon Brown looks excellent, and is showing why it was a serious debate going into the draft whether to take him or Jordan. We obviously took Farmar, but most of the criticisms of Brown as a point weren’t really relevant to a lead guard in the Tri, and we know Phil loves guys with size at that position, so we kinda got the best of both worlds right now, in that we ended up with both guys, each with complimentary strengths (like for instance Brown’s size and defense against Deron, who kills Farmar).
April 23rd, 2009 at 4:26 am
Jimm says:
By the way, I mean laughing at the comments in this thread, not the main post, which seems reasonable to me, aside from neglecting to mention Shannon Brown, and the better matchup he is for us against Deron in this series.
April 23rd, 2009 at 8:06 am
Kudabeen says:
Hold up:
“tendinitis his pinky toe”
This can’t be what is holding him back…I guess.
I don’t know about shannon being a good shooter, but he is very aggressive and accountable…as confidence grows his J will improve.
For me Shannon has always been better than Farmar, but it’s about opportunity and patience.
April 23rd, 2009 at 8:13 am
rick773 says:
@K dizzle a majority of those player aren’t PG’s. With that said the Triangle was never reliant on a playmaker at pg so as long as they got Kobe and they resign ariza and Odom it’s not going to matter they’ll be the class of the west for at least two more years barring some sort of huge trade.
April 23rd, 2009 at 8:40 am
dk says:
what kind of fuckin idiot really thought fish would lose his job?
April 23rd, 2009 at 8:41 am
jjankechu says:
hey, maybe they’ll trade shannon brown, $24, and a bag of chips to the grizzlies for mayo and crittenton. crazier things have happened…
April 23rd, 2009 at 9:31 am
karizmatic says:
Yeah Shannon Bronw is in position right now to be the next Derek Fisher. Farmar may not even be in the league in 3 years. Or the Lakers may choose to keep him as a backup for Brown. It’s definitely not a big deal.
April 23rd, 2009 at 10:49 am
Heckler...formerly 'yallallreadyknow' says:
lakers should trade jordan farmar straight up for raymond felton
April 23rd, 2009 at 10:56 am
doc says:
Who thought that scrub should be the starter.He the same thing as Smush Parker.
April 23rd, 2009 at 12:37 pm
Dave says:
I was at the Lakers Jazz game 2 and I have to say that while Laker fans showed up better, louder than I had thought they would, it was relatively quiet. I (wearing my Paul Milsap jersey) on the other hand had entire sections chanting at me to sit down, go home, utah sucks, whatever else clever they came up with, but let’s just put this to rest, the Staples Center is weak compared to playing the Jazz in Utah. The Jazz will win two in Utah and go back tied 2-2.
April 23rd, 2009 at 12:42 pm
Big Island says:
@KB24 etc… about the money.
If you played in a 3 on 3 tournament and you could go play for free or have a company pay you $100, give you some shoes, shorts, whatever, you wouldn’t take that? Of course it’s about money!!! No way Odom stays for more than 10% less.
April 23rd, 2009 at 1:05 pm
Elev8UrMind says:
Watch game two and Kobe’s reactions to S. Brown dropping buckets. This kid is being highly endorsed by Kobe..nuff said
April 23rd, 2009 at 1:59 pm
hucklebuck says:
to big shot BOB,
don’t front on Ron Harper. he was a pretty good defender and hit the shots he needed to.
April 23rd, 2009 at 2:13 pm
Big Shot BOB says:
Oh I love Ron Harper and every player on that Jordan lead Bulls team. My point was they didn’t need a traditional point guard which Ron wasn’t.
April 23rd, 2009 at 4:56 pm
rock from hyde park says:
by the look of things, Farmar gets 3 extra HBO’s and a checkoslovakian porno channel on a clear day
real talk though, jordan will continue to be a solid back-up point . . . shannon brown has stepped his game up (double-decker boat, mediterrain up) and is stepping into a ron harper-ish (on the bulls) role for the Lake-show (remember Phil is big-guard happy)
April 24th, 2009 at 1:02 am
Havana says:
Jimm
Can you please list the qualities that make Farmar a quality player or starter in this league. I for one can name you negative 3 nba traits that Farmar posseses. They are;
a) The guy has no handle! An astute NBA follower such as yourself would agree that good PGs penetrate the ball as deeply into the Defence before they either set someone up for a quickfire shot, beat their man of the dribble and take it to the cup or retreat and run the offence. Being a point guard in the NBA is all about getting from point A to point B at will. The great point guards consistently get inside the key, free throw line extended (even an average PG on a championship team such as Avery Johnson was great at this). As a bare minimum an NBA PG should set the offence up from the top of the 3 pt line (think Anthony Johnson etc). Why is it then that whenever I see Jordan Farmar he is dicking around trying to run the Lakers offence from a good 2 feet outside the 3 point line!!!!!
b) While Farmar is trying to desperately set up the Laker offence he is obviously doing everything in his power to ensure that he doesn’t have to swap the ball over to his left hand (alarm bells should be ringing at the mere hint of this, he is a PG after all, but Jordan makes it blatantly obvious). Besides looking weak and being limiting, it inhibits his peripheral vision and often means that the Lakers run their offence predominantly from one wing of the court while Jordan is playing. He is the most ‘one handed’ player this side of Lamar Odom (who is 6’10’’) in this league. The guy has no left hand!!
c) He can’t shoot. 39% from the field!! Granted Sasha shot a similar percentage but at least he makes 36% of his threes to Jordan’s 33% (and I wouldn’t be surprised if most of Jordan’s shots were open threes as a result of his man leaving him, whereas Sasha’s man is instructed to stick on him.
i find it hard to believe that a guy who is getting outplayed by Sasha Vujacic (of all people)and Shannon Brown (who as much I like was a journeyman thus far in this league) will be a starter and a “complete” player in any sense of the word.
This guy’s ceiling is the next Kenyon Dooling or at best Anthony Johnson