I thought the summer moves of the Laker front office would call a halt to Pau Gasol trade talk. Yet there is one more unsatisfied Laker fan, he wrote; “I still think the Lakers should have traded Gasol for Josh (Hawks) Smith.” The writer provides us with a basis for the trade; I won’t go into detail however he closed his comment by stating “Smith is a better rebounder.” Another fan researched the statement and uncovered the truth, every year since the 2008-09 season Gasol has out rebounded Smith. The difference totals between the two haven’t been massive but Gasol’s numbers are superior. Nobody is going to convince this Laker fan but I wish he’d check stats before making untrue statements. This is the 99^th story I written defending Gasol. Quick, name me a player whose game has no need of improvement in any area? They look at Gasol, 7-0 250 pounds he should be “more physical or he should be able to ______ or he needs to ______.” You can fill in the blanks based on the stories you’ve read and heard about Gasol. A number of Lakers have played the power forward position over the years, in my view Gasol ranks among the best.

Several weeks ago I informed you three mock draft sites I routinely check listed Kentucky’s Nerlens Noel as the number one pick in the 2013 NBA draft. Jason Greenberg a writer for Rant Sports disagrees, he claims Noel is overrated. He’s come to this conclusion based on witnessing the youngster play in one tournament, the Adidas Nations event August 2-6. Greenberg states freshmen Baylor’s Isaiah Austin and Pitts Steven Adams outplayed Noel. I don’t doubt his report what I take issue with is the statement that Noel is over rated after seeing him play but one game and an all-star game at that. He says Noel’s offensive game is raw. I wonder if Greenberg is comparing him with his predecessor Anthony Davis. It might be pointed out Davis’s offensive game is also limited and he’s in the NBA now. Davis was a 6-3 high school guard four years ago, he’s grown to 6-10 and playing center he’s probably had to adjust his offensive game to the new position. I haven’t read anything but let’s suppose that might be the case with Noel too. As for the one and done question that’s in the hands of coach Calipari. I’m sure he will provide Noel his best advice whether to remain at Kentucky or submit his name for the 2013 NBA draft.

It’s that time of year again, a story surfaces indicating a possible destination of the Sacramento Kings. Reports have surfaced the Maloofs are discussing a move to Virginia Beach (VA) although they have denied it. The team that once called Kansas City home is preparing to move once again. You might think this is joyful news for me rumors of the team moving once again? Not so, I sympathize with many who have written letters in the Sacramento Bee. Residents appear to be resigned to the fact the Kings will eventually move somewhere. The first stories had them moving to Anaheim, and then it was Seattle and the latest Virginia Beach. It seems such a short time ago the Kings were battling the Lakers for Western Conference supremacy. It sounds so shallow but I feel the pain of Sacramento fans; they see the handwriting on the wall. They need to look no further than Kansas City to realize once the Kings leave there will never be NBA basketball in Sacramento again. Kansas City has an NBA ready arena however it’s void of a team. David Stern once stated the NBA is not looking to expand so unless an existing team wants to locate there Sacramento’s days as an NBA city are drawing to a close.

Most of you like me probably forgot the Hawks didn’t originally draft Joe Johnson. It’s clearly understandable it seems he was most closely associated with the franchise until the summer trade. The Celtics actually drafted this 6-7 shooting guard in the first round of the 2001 NBA draft. His days with them only lasted to February 2002; he was traded to the Suns in a package of players. In 2005 Johnson was traded to the Hawks where he remained until the July trade. There’s never been a question on Johnson’s shooting the question has always remained did he make his team better? In any event maybe a change of scenery was due for this sharpshooter. It’s time for Johnson to really shine, new city, new team and new arena. Certainly that’s the hope of Brooklyn Nets fans.

The basketball landscape pre-season is historically full of tournaments. As late fall weather turns cold schools search for a warm weather climate to prepare for their conference seasons. The only exception to the search for warm weather is The Great Alaska Shootout. The tournament is held in Anchorage Alaska with an average high temperature of 30 degrees and low of 15 degrees. Added to the comfort factor the city averages 13 snow days during the month of November. The Battle 4 Atlantis is a new tournament first played in 2011. It’s held at the Atlantis Resorts on Paradise Island in Nassau Bahamas. Wikipedia claims it’s the richest basketball pre-season tournament paying each school $2 million each. This year the tourney is scheduled November 22-24, and the field is quite impressive. Participating schools are; Louisville, Stanford, Duke, Memphis, Minnesota, VCU, Northern Iowa and Mizzou. Tourney games will be broadcast on AXS TV and NBC Sports Network, check game times as we get closer. Recently I wrote a story discussing interest in secondary teams.