TORRANCE TRIBUNE May 26, 2016 Page 5 Should They Stay or Up and Adam Should They Trade? By Adam Serrao The Los Angeles Lakers are coming off of their worst season in franchise history. That much is already known. People in L.A., however, are tired of hearing about how bad the team is and the string of bad “After walking away from the lottery with the second pick in this year’s NBA draft, the Lakers now have options and sit in a pretty nice position.” luck that the team has run into in the last six years or so. The NBA draft lottery held last Tuesday afternoon at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York may have been just the thing that Lakers fans have been looking for. After walking away from the lottery with the second pick in this year’s NBA draft, the Lakers now have options and sit in a pretty nice position. Should Los Angeles take who ever falls to them at the No. 2 pick, though? Or should the Lakers brass trade the pick for a veteran player that can help the team win now? After finishing with the league’s second worst record last season, the Lakers maintained the second pick in this year’s NBA draft. There was much fear floating about that L.A. might fall out of the Top 3 in the lottery, in which case, their pick would have been forfeited to the Philadelphia 76ers. “After winning only 17 games, to then have lost the pick would have been brutal,” Lakers publicist John Black said immediately following the lottery. It would certainly have been brutal for the Lakers, but imagine that for Philadelphia? Two of the Top 5 picks in this year’s draft. Well, there is no need to imagine any longer. The Lakers kept their pick and now it’s all about deciding what to do with it. There has been much talk lately that the rumor floating around the NBA is that the Lakers are going to shop their pick. In doing so, they will be giving up a chance to keep a Top 2 talent, and mortgaging that chance in order to take in a veteran that they would hope could contribute immediately. One of the veterans whose name has been most bandied about is Paul George, currently of the Indiana Pacers. Another is Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls. Theoretically, the Lakers could take the No. 2 pick that they just earned in this year’s draft and either trade it to Indiana for George or to Chicago for Butler. Who knows, there may even be another team out there who would be willing to part with their superstar for the pick, too. No matter who is available in the trade market, however, (unless it’s a Top 5 player in the league, obviously) the Lakers should absolutely not trade their pick for a veteran. While George and Butler could bring immediate proven talent to the Lakers and perhaps put the team on the map again, both players have been injured in their careers and with injury comes the risk of yet another injury. In George’s case, the star small forward is coming off of a devastating and gruesome broken leg. He rebounded nicely last season to lead his Pacers team to the playoffs while averaging 23 points and six rebounds per game, but in a weak Eastern Conference, those points are almost to be expected from a player of his caliber. Likewise, Butler has had a multitude of knee issues that have caused him to miss time in the past, as the Bulls shooting guard has continued to average right around 20 points and five rebounds per game. Mortgaging the future for a player of George’s or Butler’s caliber would serve to benefit the team for only the two or three year’s (barring another injury setback) that remain in those players respective primes. To trade an 18-19 year-old future star that will come into the NBA and fit together with the timeline that the Lakers already have in place would simply be foolish. Sure, a veteran of George’s ilk would improve the team by 10 to maybe 15 wins per season. In the Eastern Conference, those numbers are drastic. In the West, however, that’s barely a blip on the radar. Paul George on the Lakers may not even get the team to the playoffs. Ben Simmons or Brandon Ingram, however, would accelerate the Lakers rebuilding process and fit in perfectly with a young team who just hired a young coach that will most certainly be competing in the Western Conference in two or three years when Steph Curry, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are all hitting the end of their primes. Those who say that the Lakers would be best served to trade their pick in order to gain a free agent like George also argue that in doing so, it would tempt a big time player like Durant to also come to L.A. Unfortunately, there is close to a zero percent chance that Durant willingly chooses to come to the Lakers, no matter who else the Lakers have on the roster. What the Thunder have right now, is the second best roster in the Western Conference. There’s no reason anyone would leave that, even if it were to join LeBron James. Lakers fans and analysts of the game need to realize that rebuilding is process and it takes patience. That is exactly what the Lakers are doing: rebuilding. The Lakers and all of their fans should realize that it takes time and while they build a roster full of young, top-tier talent, they can also use over $62 million in salary cap space to add other veteran free agents (Harrison Barnes and DeMar DeRozan, to name a few) to round out the team and quickly become a force in the Western Conference. Drafting the right way does a lot for a team’s future. The Lakers have done that thus far. Add $62 million to the mix and there’s absolutely no question that the Lakers, with money alone, will attract the right kind of free agents to play alongside a young team and this year’s number two overall pick that will undoubtedly take the Lakers to the next level, sooner, rather than later. • STARS & STRIPES A M E R I C A N M A D E C L O T H I N G S T O R E COME CHECK US OUT! GREAT CLOTHING INCLUDING DENIM, HATS, BAGS, SHOES AND MORE 1107 Van Ness Ave.Torrance, CA 90501 • 310.320-3207 LEE 101 USA, WOOLRICH, SAVE KHAKI, MINNETONKA MOCCASIN, PENNY, JAN SPORT, DULUTH, REYN SPOONER, TRETORN, BALL, BURTON, STANCE, RAINBOW SANDALS, FILSON, TEVA, NEW YORK HAT, PADDY WAX, RICHER & POORER, SCHOTT USA, STRATHTAY Open Mondays through Saturdays Noon to 6pm Moreno, Tartars Roll in Playoffs By Adam Serrao The Torrance High Tartars softball team has been struggling to hold on to first place in the Pioneer League division this year almost all season long. With North High and even West High breathing down their necks, there was one thing that proved to keep the Tartars on top. That one thing was great pitching, headed by starter and ace, Marissa Moreno. It wasn’t long after the regular season ended that the Lady Tartars received their top seed in this year’s Division 4 playoffs and with that top seed, Moreno was eager to get started. In the first round of the playoffs last Thursday afternoon at Torrance High against Maranatha, Moreno and the Tartars showed why they are the team to beat in this year’s Southern Section playoff bracket. It wasn’t just the fact that Torrance tore through the first round of the playoffs against Maranatha with an easy, 10-0 victory. It was the way that not only the offense clicked, but also that Moreno pitched, that makes this team extremely scary to anyone who takes the field with them in this year’s postseason. Kayla Yoshioka was a perfect 3-for-3 from the plate to spark the offense while Erin Alvarado also went 2-for-2. The real story of the game wasn’t on offense, though. It was in the arm of Moreno. Not only did Moreno keep Maranatha scoreless, but she only allowed her opponents one hit in the shutout. Moreno also tossed 11 strikeouts on the afternoon, bringing her to just 10 away from 500 on her career. By claiming the victory for her team, Moreno notched her 20th win of the season, tying Torrance softballs single-season record for wins. Torrance’s next opponent better watch out; Moreno is coming in with a purpose and with a few records to break on her agenda. Speaking of their next opponent, the second-seeded Tartars (22-9), who lost a coin flip to North High for the top seed in this year’s playoffs, will face off against Temescal Canyon in the second round. Temescal Canyon finished the year with a 21-6 (13-2 in league) record in the Sunbelt League standings and beat Sultana by a final score of 8-7 in their first round matchup. The Tartars, behind Moreno, will take to the field this week to try to extend their playoff run. Make sure you get out there to root your team on to victory the very next chance that you have. North High The North High Saxons received the luck of the draw when the coin bounced their way last week. Since the Saxons and the Tartars both tied atop the Pioneer League standings as co-champions, it came down to a coin flip as to who would finish as the proclaimed first place team and No. 1 seed. North, with luck on their side, picked the right side of the coin and welcomed a Monrovia Wildcats team to their home field last Thursday afternoon. The Lady Saxons love playing at home as their eight wins and zero losses at North High this season would suggest. The playoff game against the Wildcats was no different. Starting pitcher, Alyssa Loza, continued to do what she has been doing all season long for the Saxons by striking people out and keeping her opponents score low. While Monrovia was able to tack on two runs to the scoreboard, North countered with five in the victory as Loza allowed only three hits while striking out eight. On the offensive side of things, Veronica Garcia was the hero of the game. Garcia had a home run, a double, and scored two runs while going 2-for-3 from the plate. Her teammate, Desiree Moreno, also came up clutch with a two-run home run, providing all of the offense that the Saxons needed to walk away with the first round playoff victory. The Saxons (25-6-1) will now move on to compete against the Heritage Christian Warriors (18-5-1) in the second round of the playoffs. The Warriors enjoyed a 6-3 first round victory over El Monte in the first round, but should be ready to go up against a much more prepared and skilled team with Loza at the helm of the North High Lady Saxons. West High The West High Warriors have been on a winning spree of late, defeating the Quartz Hill Rebels by a final score of 16-1 in a Wild Card game to advance into this year’s CIF Southern Section Division 4 playoffs. No one gave the Warriors much of a chance after that, entering the playoffs as a third place team, having to hit the road to take on the Ocean League’s first place team, the El Segundo Eagles. The Warriors took their bats, rolled their sleeves up and came through and shocked the world. In 11 innings of play, West High finally pulled out a 7-5 victory over the Eagles in the first round of their playoff run last Thursday afternoon. “I don’t really have any words. I’m so happy I just want to cry,” West High starting pitcher Mailee Newman related. Newman pitched through a marathon of a game, going through 123 pitches on the day while striking out five batters in a complete game for the pitcher. With one out and the bases loaded in extra innings, Newman powered her way through the heart of El Segundo’s lineup to get the inning-ending and gameending double play to help her team advance in the playoffs. El Segundo jumped out to a 3-1 lead after the first inning of play, but a big four run second inning behind Mara Moore and Natalie Davila’s two RBIs each got the Warriors back in the game and gave them a two-run lead. Moore went 1-for-6 from the plate on the day, scoring one run while knocking in three. Davila also went 1-for-6 with two RBIs. It was senior Jamie Lee, however, that got her team through crunch time, doubling in the eleventh inning to put her team ahead for good. Brianna Magee also hit an inside the park home run for West. The Warriors (19-11) will now advance to the second round of the playoffs to take on the La Quinta Blackhawks (21-7). La Quinta enjoyed an 11-0 victory over Arroyo in the first round. Get out there to root on this year’s Cinderella team as the West High Warriors look to continue its hot streak and their run in this year’s playoffs. • Burkley & Brandlin LLP A T T O R N E Y S A T L AW Living Trusts/Wills, Probate, Employment Law, Personal Injury Trust and Estates Litigation, Business Litigation, Civil Litigation 310-540-6000 *AV Rated (Highest) Martindale - Hubbell / **Certified Specialist Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law, State Bar of California, Board of Legal Specialization
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