Lakers Outsiders

On this episode of the Lakers Outsiders podcast, Donny (@donny_mchenry), Raj (@RajChipalu), and Walt (@HoopeFiasco) open by talking about the newly acquired Rui Hachimura after his debut against the Spurs. They discuss where the Lakers will be going next in the trade market, wondering if they will try and get even younger for this season as well as their immediate future. After that, they discuss Anthony Davis, the continued three-guard lineups, and what they expect from the team in their upcoming five-game road trip.

Welcome back to the Lakers Outsiders podcast! After a hiatus over the holidays, Donny McHenry (@donny_mchenry) is back to try and figure out what the Lakers will do in this 2023 calendar year. That includes not only what they will do in the coming weeks before the trade deadline, but also what they will do during this summer. Raj Chipalu (@RajChipalu) and Walt (@HoopeFiasco) join to help figure out where this rollercoaster of a team will take us next.

After a gut-wrenching defeat at home to the Celtics, it's now very apparent that the Lakers have an issue in games that go down to the wire. Donny (@donny_mchenry), Raj (@RajChipalu), and Walt (@HoopeFiasco) discuss what they saw on Tuesday night, the trend that has fully emerged this season, and how the Lakers can fix it (if they even can). Later they talk about the need to get Patrick Beverley out of the lineup. After that, Donny brings some of his most diabolical trade ideas to the table for Walt and Raj to judge, with one of them actually crazy enough that it might work.

Donny McHenry (@donny_mchenry) and Raj Chipalu (@RajChipalu) hop on another episode of the Lakers Outsiders podcast to talk about how they always believed in this Lakers team (don't look at the title of our most recent episode that came right after the loss to the Pacers). We talk about how Anthony Davis has -- again and again lately -- reinvigorated that belief of ours in the team. We also talk about trades, specifically, if we are having any second thoughts about parting ways with Russell Westbrook. We talk about the overabundance of guards on this team as a result, with discussions of Patrick Beverley's continued poor play to follow.

After a little Thanksgiving week break, the Lakers Outsiders podcast is BACK! We return at an inopportune time, following a heartbreaking loss to the Pacers that came via a buzzer-beating, go-ahead 3-pointer. Donny McHenry (@donny_mchenry), Raj Chipalu (@RajChipalu), and Chris Walton (@HoopeFiasco) start diving into this game by talking about how they act at home during these down-to-the-wire types of Lakers games. After that, they then (begrudgingly) start talking about their immediate reactions to seeing Andrew Nembhard's 3-pointer go through the hoop. To close, they discuss their level of hope in this team -- Westbrook trade or no Westbrook trade -- before giving their predictions on how the upcoming road trip will go for the Lakers. 

The Lakers are 2-8. You know what that means... time for reports and rumors from the media! Donny (@donny_mchenry), Raj (@RajChipalu), and Walt (@HoopeFiasco) discuss these recent rumors, including the fact that the Lakers are getting more "prudent" with their first round draft picks they can trade in light of the terrible start as well as the fact that they may have their eyes on a mystery "bigger piece" in return for Russell Westbrook and those aforementioned picks. Other than that, well, the fellas sort of lose their marbles while trying to figure out what to talk about given it feels like we're in a never-ending loop of this type of news.

After the Lakers won their first game of the season, Donny (@donny_mchenry), Walt (@HoopeFiasco), and Raj (@RajChipalu) talk about the positive aspects of the team that they want to continue seeing moving forward, as well as the things that still need to change even with the recent success on Sunday vs. the Nuggets.

Russell Westbrook took an ill-advised mid-range jump shot in the closing moments of the Los Angeles Lakers' 106-104 loss on Sunday vs. the Trail Blazers. The topic of conversation is now centered around him yet again, however, Donny (@donny_mchenry) and Walt (@HoopeFiasco) really saw no point in focusing on him for the 1000th time over the past year. Instead, they rant about the most powerful decision-makers with the franchise. Specifically, they discuss how they need to take control of their team by making the toughest decisions, decisions they'd like to have us believe they have the capabilities of making.

After a disappointing season opener against the Warriors, Donny (@donny_mchenry) and Walt (@HoopeFiasco) discuss whether they are more worried about the Lakers' offense or defense moving forward. Before that, they discuss the most recent report from ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski that states the Lakers are waiting until after Thanksgiving -- around the 20-game mark -- to see if any other trade scenarios open up to them to finally deal Russell Westbrook for something they deem suitable. The two talk about whether this is a smart strategy or not, as well as the numerous factors that go into evaluating the decision.

In this episode of the podcast, Donny McHenry (@donny_mchenry), Chris Walton (@HoopeFiasco), and Raj Chipalu (@RajChipalu) discuss the news of Lakers head coach Darvin Ham indicating that the idea of Anthony Davis starting at center is under heavy consideration. They then talk about who will fill the final roster spots on the team after Matt Ryan had a breakout night on Sunday against the Warriors. After that, they finish by discussing the announcement of Rob Pelinka's contract extension that happened over the week.

Donny (@donny_mchenry), Walt (@HoopeFiasco), and Raj (@RajChipalu) get together to discuss the Lakers' first preseason game against the Kings on Monday. The Lakers lost by 30, however, nearly all of that damage was done in the second half when LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook sat. The three podcasters discuss what they liked from the three basketball players while also talking about the good things Kendrick Nunn and Wenyen Gabriel did as well.

Media day is on Monday, September 26th with the Lakers' training camp set to start the day after. To preview the upcoming season getting its unofficial start, Donny (@donny_mchenry) is joined by Hoops Tonight host Jason Timpf (@_JasonLT) to preview what will need to be looked at as training camp develops. We discuss a few things that will need to get figured out before and after the team's first preseason game on October 3rd, including what Darvin Ham will need to do with all the roster's guards, if Russell Westbrook should come off the bench, and more.

In this podcast, Donny McHenry (@donny_mchenry) is joined by "Pounding the Rock" writer and "Alamo City Limits" podcaster Noah Magaro-George (@N_Magaro). Noah has covered the San Antonio Spurs the past few seasons, so he came on to help us get to know new Lakers signee Lonnie Walker IV a little better. We discuss Lonnie's frustration with playing time in the final game of his Spurs tenure, his 3-and-D potential (or lack there of), his off-the-court work including his own charitable foundation, and more.

Donny, Raj, and Walt got together on a Twitter Spaces on August 30th to discuss the current topics in Laker land including: the trade for Patrick Beverley, the recent report about Bev and Russell Westbrook... talking, the possible three-team trade involving the Jazz and Knicks and the straight up trade with the Pacers, as well as which of those two options we would prefer. We close with our ceilings for the Lakers after completing each of those trade scenarios and try not to cry when thinking about the ceiling of a 2022-23 team that features Russ. Donny: @donny_mchenry | Raj: @RajChipalu | Walt: @HoopeFiasco

On this pod, Donny McHenry (@donny_mchenry) is joined by "Bleav in Wizards" podcast host and "Bullets Forever" blogger Matt Modderno (@MattModderno) to discuss Thomas Bryant. What did Bryant do well for the Wizards early on? What derailed his time there other than the ACL tear he suffered in January 2021? Does Matt think he would be a good fit in the starting lineup alongside Anthony Davis? The two try to answer all of those questions before ending with Russell Westbrook and Kyle Kuzma. Could Westbrook be back in Washington sooner rather than later? How has D.C. taken to "Kuzmania"?

On this episode of the Lakers Outsiders podcast, Donny McHenry (@donny_mchenry) is joined by NBC Sports Chicago's Rob Schaefer (@rob_schaef) to discuss new Lakers signee, Troy Brown Jr. Rob talks to Donny about what made him so optimistic about Brown once he was traded to the Bulls during the 2020-21 season, how he sees Brown fitting on the Lakers, as well as what kept Brown from having a bigger role on the Bulls during their past season. The two close by talking about Alex Caruso as well as Lonzo Ball's knee issues heading into next season.

Donny and Walt reconvene after an eventful first weekend of the NBA's offseason to recap all news surrounding the Lakers including the possible Russell Westbrook, Kyrie Irving trade with the Brooklyn Nets, their analysis on the Lakers' free agency signings so far, their initial thoughts on the rookies' play in the first two games of Summer League action, as well as the Jeanie Buss Tweet that went viral. You can follow Donny and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry and @HoopeFiasco

We at Lakers Outsiders decided to do another podcast draft! In honor of the 2022 NBA Draft falling on Thursday of this week, we decided to draft the best Lakers draft picks of all time. Walt, Donny, Alex, and Honi get together to make three selections each to form the best team of all-time Lakers draft picks they can create. There are some obvious picks in here, some fan favorites, as well as some shocking choices. NOTE: We talk about this in the podcast, but don't expect Kobe Bryant to be selected. We decided to make it a little more interesting by going with the technicality that he was, in fact, drafted by the Charlotte Hornets before being traded to the Lakers. You can follow Donny, Honi, Alex, and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry, @HoniAhm, @alextorres_11, and @HoopeFiasco

Donny McHenry is joined by draft prospect evaluator Mike Garcia to talk about Rob Pelinka recently saying the Lakers may buy a second-round pick, what prospects Mike would like for the team to look at as well as what attributes they bring, as well as an interesting strategy Mike wouldn't mind seeing the Lakers take as it pertains to the draft and their taxpayer mid-level exception. You can follow Mike Garcia on Twitter at @CanyonDriver and Donny at @donny_mchenry. For more draft analysis from Mike, check out his substack here: https://lakersdraft.substack.com/

We're going to do a few podcast drafts over the coming weeks while we wait for free agency to start cooking, starting off with today's draft related to the 2021-22 season. We're hoping this serves as a way to look back on the terrible season and laugh at it a little as we try to finally put it in the rearview mirror. During this draft, Donny McHenry, Alex Torres, and Chris Walton will make selections in the following categories: "Best Win", "Worst Loss", "Funniest/Saddest Moment", and "Best/Worst Russ Quote" to create a little memory capsule of the year that was. Be on the lookout for future drafts from us in the near future! You can follow Donny, Alex, and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry, @alextorres_11, and @HoopeFiasco

Donny and Walt get together for another 'Winning Time' episode recap, this time covering the penultimate episode of season 1. In the middle of their recap, they think about how hard the Lakers, Jerry Buss, the coaching staff, and the front office of 1980 had it while still overcoming it all to win a championship when it was all said and done. They compare that to the hard circumstances of the 2020 championship, but also how easy things were set up for the current front office after that and how they bungled everything. They wrap with checking in on the 2022 NBA Playoffs, including their current picks on who will win it all.

Donny and Walt discuss Jerry West going full cartoon Jerry West while threatening to take his complaints against HBO on his depiction in "Winning Time" all the way to the Supreme Court. It's Suing Time! They then dive into Episode 8, talking about how Magic Johnson, Jeanie Buss, AND Julius Erving all have to be pissed about this episode... all for varying levels of seriousness. You can follow Donny and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry and @HoopeFiasco

Donny and Walt recap episode 7 of HBO's "Winning Time", but first, they dive into what Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Jerry West think of the show as their thoughts were in the news this week. And this may come to a surprise to a lot of you... but the two HATE the show. Later they also call their shots with who would play Phil Jackson in a theorized "Winning Time" type show covering the Shaq and Kobe years, talk about why Magic Johnson will again be pissed if he hears about what happens in this episode, as well as their best impressions of Magic doing a no-look pass. You can follow Donny and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry and @HoopeFiasco  

In this episode, Donny and Walt get back on the mic for the first time since the official end of the Lakers' 2021-22 season. With plenty of time throughout the rest of the spring and summer to talk about what went wrong and what may change for the team moving forward, instead of doing that the two decide to look back on the good and bad of Frank Vogel's three seasons with the franchise. After that, they get into episode 6 of "Winning Time". You can follow Donny and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry and @HoopeFiasco

Donny and Walt hop on to discuss Episode 5 of "Winning Time" which focused on Lew Alcindor's transformation into Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson's initial relationship with the former, as well as the inception of the Laker Girls. They also talk about the shocking ending of the episode which involved Jack McKinney.   Before that and, well, after that since they just couldn't help themselves but bury this 2021-22 team, they discussed the Lakers who are nearing the end of their terrible, terrible campaign.   You can follow Donny and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry and @HoopeFiasco

Donny and Walt hop on to discuss "Who the F*** is Jack McKinney?", the fourth episode of 'Winning Time' that aired on Sunday, March 27th.   Before that, they ask themselves whether or not they're willing to watch a possible embarrassment to one of the Lakers' greatest enemies, or if they'd rather just have them miss out on the play-in tournament entirely. They then get into their recap of 'Winning Time' before ending with a discussion of the team's remaining 8 games of the regular season.   You can follow Donny and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry and @HoopeFiasco

Donny and Walt get together to recap episode three of 'Winning Time' which ends in a shocking twist that had us all hitting up Google to find out "Did this actually happen?!"   They lead off with that, then circle back to talk about our favorite moments in what was arguably the most raucous episode yet.   You can follow Donny and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry and @HoopeFiasco

Donny and Walt get back together to recap the second episode of 'Winning Time'. Interestingly enough, the episode was directed by one Jonah Hill and featured a closer look into the mind of Jerry West, a deeper dive into Magic Johnson's relationship with his future wife Cookie, as well as the beginnings of Jerry Buss' rivalry with Celtics owner and coach, Red Auerbach.   Before they started their recap, Donny wanted to get some words off his chest about recent comments from Anthony Davis and Devin Booker before and after the Lakers' blowout loss against the Suns. Walt obliged him, so they kick off the show with that before diving into the new episode.   You can follow Donny and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry and @HoopeFiasco

Donny and Walt get together for the first time in a while to discuss the Lakers, except this time they're doing that through the HBO show 'Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty'. They discuss the wild first episode of the series titled "The Swan", recapping our introductions to these real life characters in Dr. Jerry Buss, Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Jerry West, and others.   The two go over their initial reactions to the episode before diving into some segments including the episode's MVP, their "Did this actually happen?" moments, as well as "Who's pissed about tonight's episode?".

Gary, Honi, Walt and Donny share their trade ideas and discuss the types of deals the Lakers should be looking to make in order to improve the roster heading into the late stages of the NBA season. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian discuss the return of Anthony Davis in the Lakers' 106-96 road win over the Brooklyn Nets. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian are joined by author Mike Sielski to discuss his new book, The Rise: Kobe Bryant and the Pursuit of Immortality. The book is fantastic and is available now at www.theriseofkobebook.com. 

Gary Kester shares his thoughts on what we've seen from the Lakers through the first half of the season. 

Donny and Walt discuss the wild week in Lakerland. They then go from there to talk about how confident they are in the Lakers winning a championship this year on a scale of 1-10. Take a guess on what end of the spectrum they fell on. They also go on to discuss the team's treatment of Frank Vogel, and discuss when (not if) they expect the team will fire him.   You can follow Donny and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry and @HoopeFiasco

After Donny and Walt praised Russell Westbrook in their first podcast episode...well...let's just say there's not so much of that in this one after the Lakers' 125-116 loss to the Kings. They also discuss the team's poor defense in that game before looking ahead to Saturday's game against the Denver Nuggets.   You can follow Donny and Walt on Twitter via @donny_mchenry and @HoopeFiasco

Donny and Walt do their first podcast together and cover Malik Monk's great season thus far, missing Rajon Rondo's antics, continued Russell Westbrook trade rumors, as well as whether or not they'd trade Talen Horton-Tucker and/or Kendrick Nunn for the Pistons' Jerami Grant.   And yes, in a fitting situation for their first podcast, Donny accidentally recorded his audio via his laptop and not his microphone.   You can follow Donny at @donny_mchenry and Walt at @HoopeFiasco on Twitter

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian answer fan questions about the Lakers' roster and the upcoming season. Do they need another power forward and/or center? Point guard?

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian recap and grade the Lakers' free agency period and discuss the new players on the roster. 

Gary Kester and Jacob Rude react to the blockbuster deal that brings Russell Westbrook to the Lakers and look ahead to what could be in store in free agency. 

Gary Kester is joined by Jacob Rude to discuss a bitter end to the Lakers' 2020-21 campaign and look ahead to what the Lakers need to add to the roster this offseason. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian breakdown the Game 4 loss for the Lakers and how Anthony Davis' injury could impact their chances to advance to the second round of the NBA playoffs. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian discuss an impressive showing in Game 3 for the Lakers and what it means for the rest of the series. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian discuss a bounce-back performance from Anthony Davis, along with two of the "other guys" that helped lead the Lakers to a big Game 2 win on the road in Phoenix to tie up the series. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian react to the Lakers' Game 1 loss in Phoenix. The guys discuss what went wrong and what needs to change for the Lakers to win Game 2. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian preview the Lakers' first round matchup against the upstart Phoenix Suns, breaking down potential areas for success, key role players and series predictions. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian react to a thrilling 103-100 win for the Lakers in their play-in tournament matchup with the Warriors that punched their ticket to the NBA playoffs. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian preview the play-in matchup between the Lakers and the Golden State Warriors. How can the Lakers slow down Steph Curry? Which role player will be the biggest x-factor? The guys break it all down and offer their score predictions. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian discuss their takeaways from the Lakers' current three-game win streak and look ahead at potential playoff matchups for the purple and gold. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian recap the Lakers' 110-101 win over the Toronto (Tampa Bay?) Raptors and discuss what Ben McLemore can help bring to the table. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian return to discuss the Lakers' recent struggles and concerns about dropping in the Western Conference standings. 

Gary Kester and Honi Ahmadian discuss the Lakers' seven-game win streak, the win over Memphis, and LeBron James' historic play.