Dear Andrew,
I am very disappointed in the way
you are playing this first-round series. When the Buss family decided to make
you their first-round lottery pick in 2005, you should have taken it as the
ultimate compliment, as the piece that was going to lead the Lakers into the
next generation. You need to find a way to get back to being an All-Star
caliber player and pick up the slack offensively, and especially defensively.
- Jerry West
Andrew,
I don’t know what the hell you’re
doing out there on the court. The way you are playing in this series is a
complete disgrace. I’ll tell you one thing, if you came up against Bob McAdoo,
Kurt Rambis, or myself, we would mop up the floor with you and kick your ass.
Get it together!
– Jamaal Wilkes
Andrew,
I was so pleased to see you play at
such a high level this past season. You certainly deserved starting the
All-Star game as the center of the Western conference. It made me think back to
our time in the summers, before the games, and in the weight room where you and
I worked together on your post play and the way you would handle double teams.
You seemed to apply it all this year. However, if you truly want to be great,
if you want to be considered elite amongst your peers, you need to bring it.
You need to bring 100% of yourself every night, and especially in the
postseason. That is where greatness lives. Please Andrew, do yourself a favor
and find a way to get back to All-Star form.
- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Dear Mr. Bynum,
Why do you continue to play so
inconsistently, talk to the media, act like a crying teenager and not back it
up 100% of the time? You're a disgrace to the organization right now. You're a
disgrace to your team. You’re a disgrace
to yourself. If you're going to talk to the media, you better back it up every
single night with a vengeance. You have to understand that this is the Los
Angeles Lakers, and for you to be the center of the Los Angeles Lakers, you
need to realize that this is truly something special, not just in basketball,
but the world of sports. Andrew, I’m rooting for you, but if they ship your ass
out I won't complain.
- Michael Cooper
Andrew,
I'm not exactly sure what's going
on inside your mind right now. I don't know if I can try to figure it out. When
I rejoined the Lakers as head coach in 2005, I saw you as the future,
specifically on the defensive end of the floor. I felt with your length, your
size and your athleticism, you could truly control the paint and dominate
defensively. Remember the book I gave you, “The Art of War” by Sun Tzu,
“Opportunities multiply as they are seized.” Andrew, pick up the pace
defensively and you can always control your opportunity. You can always control
your destiny.
- Phil Jackson
Big man,
This is the MDE, Most Dominant
Ever, Shaquille O'Neal. Let me tell you something about playing center for the
Los Angeles Lakers. You are grouped into two categories: the legends, as in
George Mikan, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, myself. The other
category, the also-rans: Kwame Brown, Eldon Campbell and others. You're in one
group or the other. You have the talent to be a legend. You have the talent to
have your jersey hang up in the rafters with mine and the others. Do not
squander the opportunity big man. You're walking on thin ice right now. Give
Kobe the help he needs and lead your team to a couple more championships.
-
Shaquille O'Neal
To the current center of the Los Angeles Lakers, Andrew
Bynum,
I'm sure when you were drafted as a
17-year-old kid out of high school, you didn't quite understand the situation you were about to get into. So let
me fill you in on where you are and where you've come from since your debut as
the youngest player in NBA history. You were drafted by perhaps the greatest
professional organization in American team sports, the Los Angeles Lakers. As
the center, you are automatically grouped into a long line of legends: George
Mikan, Wilt, Kareem, and Shaq. You were
supposed to be next in line. Playing center for the Los Angeles Lakers is like
playing centerfield for the New York Yankees or playing linebacker for the
Pittsburgh Steelers. You are expected to be great. You are expected to win and
you are expected to conduct yourself with dignity and respect and be the class
of your sport. You see, you are in a perfect situation. You got teamed up with
one of the greatest players in NBA history in Kobe Bryant. You and Kobe were
supposed to lead the Lakers into the next era of dominance, the next dynasty. And
yes, you played fairly well and you've won a couple of championships. But
anybody who's worth their soul knows that winning one or two just isn't enough.
It wasn't enough for me and it shouldn’t be enough for you. Are you paying
attention to how Kobe Bryant is playing in this series? He is laying it all on
the line. It doesn’t matter that he was sick all night. It doesn’t matter that
he is hurting or that you are playing way above sea level. He never offers up
an excuse because him being on the floor means he is healthy enough to play. That’s
what it takes to be a winner. When are you going to step up to the plate,
Andrew? When are you going to realize that playing for the Los Angeles Lakers
is different than playing for any other organization in sports? You like Los
Angeles? Great, it has its perks. But
with those perks come great sacrifices to survive in this town. You want the
glory? Let's see the guts. Bring it on Saturday, Andrew, or forever be
remembered as just another guy who could have been great but didn’t do enough
to earn that label.
- Earvin Johnson
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