Locker Room - FishbowlLA

LA Kings Anthem Features Strange View of the Weather

Richard Horgan — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 11:00:38 +0000

Have you caught “We Are Los Angeles,” the new ditty put forth this NHL playoff season by the LA Kings? It’s from The Goon Squad and features the following lyric: “In any weather, a Kings, a King forever.”

Hmmm. Not sure about you, but every time FishbowlLA has hit STAPLES Center for a game, it’s been pretty much the same weather. Maybe The Goon Squad is singing about when the team is on the road, but then, that doesn’t really jive with a song about why the team is synonymous with LA.

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A Rolling Stones Song List for Lakers Fans

Richard Horgan — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 09:30:17 +0000

There was zero satisfaction Sunday at STAPLES Center. A day after the Rolling Stones ran through their customary pre-arena-tour small club show at The Echoplex, the black-and-blue purple and gold mercifully kissed a miserable 2012-13 season goodbye.

In honor of this weekend’s intersection of “45 & Stinking” (Lakers) with “50 & Counting” (Stones), we’ve compiled a very special song list. This one’s a little different than the one Mick jumped through Saturday night, but for die-hard Lakers fans, it’s the only one that makes sense:

“Sad Sad Sad”
“The Worst”
“Stop Breaking Down”
“Shattered”
“Out of Tears”
“Rock and a Hard Place”
“Doom and Gloom”
“Dear Doctor”
“Biggest Mistake”
“It’s All Over Now”

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Sportswriters Running Out of Words to Describe Kobe Bryant’s Senior NBA Citizen Feats

Richard Horgan — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 06:40:19 +0000

Last fall, Sports Illustrated and most other experts promised us a 2012-13 Lakers rose garden. Last night, at the end of a season that has turned out instead to be all about the thorns, Kobe Bryant willed his team to victory at Portland’s Rose Garden.

Bryant is doing things at age 34 that most NBA players ten years younger can only dream of. Even Mr. Hockey Gordie Howe, who just turned 85, is probably shaking his head over last night’s 113-106 one-man show.

So how are sportswriters describing Bryant’s season-high draining of 47 points in a place where the team usually gets stomped? Take your pick: “implausible” (LA Times); “epic” (ESPN Los Angeles); “thrilling” (Yahoo)…

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Shaq, Phil, Jeanie and Fellow Lakers ‘Superman’ Hang Out at HuffPost Live

Richard Horgan — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 17:00:40 +0000

This was anything but the usual HuffPost Live Google+ hangout. Ahead of tonight’s retiring of Shaquille O’Neal‘s Lakers jersey at Staples Center, host Marc Lamont Hill welcomed Shaq, Phil Jackson, Jeanie Buss and (a little later into the conversation) Kurt Rambis. Before O’Neal, Rambis also famously earned the nickname “Superman” from Chick Hearn.

There’s no better way to get in the mood for tonight’s induction ceremony (or follow it up later) than by watching this half-hour conversation. You know it’s a good HuffPost Live segment when one of the network’s other hosts, Jacob Soboroff, chimes into the chat room with, “One of the great HPL interviews. Well done.”

A favorite part for us was when Buss reacted to Shaq’s first set of comments, explaining that she had never heard the story of what Jerry West told #34 when The Big Newcomer first joined the purple and gold. The story magically ties into what is scheduled to transpire at Staples tonight.

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Matt Kemp Travels to Sesame Street

Marcus Vanderberg — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 12:00:05 +0000

Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp is the latest local athlete to pay a visit to Sesame Street, appearing on the iconic children’s show Thursday.

And since the kid inside of you is wondering, the word of the day was attach.

As in I hope the surgeon who performed offseason shoulder surgery on Kemp made sure to attach it back to his body.

[H/T Big League Stew]

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Former Super Agent Leigh Steinberg Celebrates Three Years of Sobriety

Richard Horgan — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 18:00:41 +0000

According to an interview by AP sports writer Bernie Wilson, it was exactly three years ago on March 21, 2010 that former high-flying pro sports agent Leigh Steinberg officially stopped pounding back the vodka. What that means is that many better things lie ahead in 2013, including hopefully completing an autobiography and regaining NFL Players Association certification as a talent representative.

Steinberg is also in the process of soliciting financing for another Newport Beach sports agency. All in all, the man forever associated with Tom Cruise’s character in Jerry Maguire is authoring a gridiron-worthy comeback story:

On Saturday, friend and business partner Richard Gillam will throw a party to celebrate Steinberg’s three years of sobriety and his real birthday, which is next Wednesday.

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Bill Walton Goes Bill Walton During Broadcast

Marcus Vanderberg — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 13:00:11 +0000

What happens when you give a loose cannon like Bill Walton a live mic in Las Vegas?

A couple of cringe-worthy moments for the suits at ESPN.

Walton was calling Oregon vs. Washington at the Pac-12 tournament Thursday night and dropped a couple of broadcasting bombs that had Twitter buzzing.

First up, Walton on Ray Lewis:

Walton is making a reference to Lewis’ 2000 arrest following a Super Bowl party in Atlanta. The retired linebacker officially joined ESPN as an analyst on Wednesday. Maybe the murder joke was just hazing on Walton’s part? Welcome to ESPN, Ray.

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Kobe Bryant Vents About Ankle Injury

Marcus Vanderberg — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 14:00:56 +0000

17yrs. Countless fades. This has happened TWICE. Jalen and Now Ankle still very swollen. Treatment all day #focus twitter.com/kobebryant/sta…

— Kobe Bryant (@kobebryant) March 14, 2013

Just when you thought this season couldn’t get any worse for the Los Angeles Lakers, Kobe Bryant suffered a sprained left ankle in the final seconds of Wednesday’s 96-92 loss to the Atlanta Hawks and is out indefinitely.

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Clipper Accused of Murder After Sick Dunk

Marcus Vanderberg — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 14:00:18 +0000

If you haven’t seen it by now, Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan had the dunk of the year Sunday night vs. Brandon Knight and the Detroit Pistons.

The dunk was so vicious that not only did Twitter explode, but so did Jordan’s Wikipedia page. According to the Wiki, Jordan was charged for murder after his actions at Staples Center:

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Hugh Hefner Remembers Fellow Man of Leisure Jerry Buss

Matthew Fleischer — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 16:27:04 +0000

Playboy publisher Hugh Hefner was on ESPN 710 this morning with Max and Marcellus to give his remembrance of Lakers owner and fellow man of leisure Jerry Buss. Asked if Buss was a playboy, Hef replied “Well I really can’t speak from personal experience.”

Zing!

He continued: “He, as I have tried to do over the years, defied the limitations in terms of age and it was more than simply – he was young for his years and he had as many female friends as males, but he had a great many male friends, too. What he brought to the game as I say was unique and he will be truly missed.”

More transcripts here if you don’t feel like listening.

[Photo of Buss at October 30, 2006 Hollywood Walk of Fame induction ceremony: s_bukley/Shutterstock.com]

H/T Deadspin

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Will Ferrell Crashes Lakers Game As An Usher Named ‘Ted Vagina’

Matthew Fleischer — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 09:25:17 +0000

When it comes to public hijinks, Will Ferrell is second to none… Well, second to Bill Murray actually. Still, pretty damn funny.

Ferrell was at last night’s Lakers game against the Suns dressed as an usher named Ted Vagina. Lest you think Ferrell was just having fun, he was apparently there to promote his new movie. Shaq will apparently be featured in this film, because Ferrell angrily escorted him out of his courtside seats at one point during the game. If Shaq is going to show up at a Lakers game of his own volition, no way it’s going to be against a team as terrible as the Suns.

H/T Deadspin

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Bill Walton Really Doesn’t Like Ben Howland

Marcus Vanderberg — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 13:00:23 +0000

Former UCLA legend Bill Walton is an acquired taste when it comes to his broadcasting career.

Some find his broadcast style to be grandiose while others (like myself) think he’s a breath of fresh air who isn’t afraid to speak his mind.

For example, Walton didn’t hold back during Thursday’s ESPN broadcast of UCLA vs. Washington. Attendance at Pauley Pavilion was sparse to say the very least and Walton pointed the finger directly at Bruins head coach Ben Howland.

Via The Big Lead:

Pasch: “OK, well, that’s obvious. How do you play better basketball?”

Walton: “Better style.”

Pasch: “Alright, so, is that the coach? Is that the players?”

Walton: “It’s the coach.

Pasch: “So you’re not a Ben Howland fan?”

Walton: “No.”

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Elgin Baylor Memorabilia Auction Comes to the Rescue of Lackluster Lakers Season

Richard Horgan — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 09:30:41 +0000

There is hope after all. As the injury-prone 2012-13 Los Angeles Lakers limp towards the end of a miserable season, Julien’s Auctions has announced an unimpeachable purple and gold playoff season date – May 31, 2013.

That’s when various items from the life and playing days of Laker great Elgin Baylor will go on auction. Articles include:

Baylor’s 1959 NBA All-Star Game MVP Trophy; Baylor’s 1971-1972 Los Angeles Lakers NBA Championship Ring; LA Lakers game-worn warm-ups; Lakers rookie-year shorts; and a pair of Baylor’s Adidas game-worn shoes bronzed and presented to him at a talk show appearance.

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Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Weighs in on Girls

Matthew Fleischer — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 17:14:24 +0000

Laker great and sometimes columnist Kareem Abdul-Jabbar hadn’t written a piece for Huffington Post in over three years. After blogging fairly regularly during the 2008 election, Kareem sat 2012 out. Today, however, he broke out of his slumber to randomly weigh in on the racial politics of HBO’s Girls–now well into its second season.

Last season the show was criticized for being too white. Watching a full season could leave a viewer snow blind. This season that white ghetto was breached by a black character who is introduced as some jungle fever lover, with just enough screen time to have sex and mutter a couple of lines about wanting more of a relationship. A black dildo would have sufficed and cost less.

Ha! Glad you woke up Kareem.

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Dodgers, Time Warner Announce Network

Marcus Vanderberg — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 13:00:27 +0000

Get ready for a whole lot of Los Angeles Dodgers starting in 2014.

The Dodgers formally announced their new regional sports network in partnership with Time Warner Cable called SportsNet LA. Pending MLB approval, the deal is for 25 years and will be worth between $7-8 billion for the Dodgers, according to the LA Times. It ends a long back-and-forth affair between the Dodgers, Time Warner and Fox Sports on the future home of the baseball team after their contract ended later this year.

“We concluded last year that the best way to give our fans what they want — more content and more Dodger baseball — was to launch our own network,” Dodgers chairman Mark Walter said in a statement. “The creation of AMP will provide substantial financial resources over the coming years for the Dodgers to build on their storied legacy and bring a World Championship home to Los Angeles. Just as we are actively transforming the team and the stadium, we want the Dodgers to be exhibited on the very best sports network in the country — one that will provide an unrivaled fan experience.”

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