Lakers Player Updates after the Championship

Seeing how Andrew Bynum helped the Lakers clinch their second straight NBA Finals victory, it doesn’t seem like he’s been suffering a right knee injury throughout the playoffs.  But now that hard work has finally paid offer, the 7-foot center is finally having his surgery, but not until celebrating with his team for the momentous victory and going to South Africa for the World Cup. Just last Tuesday, his knee has to be drained for the third time.  He’s suffering from a partially torn ligament that will be repaired through surgery, which is scheduled on July 18, barely a month from now.  However, there’s not much to worry about since recovery is not as strenuous as with other surgeries.  According to Bynum, it’s not at all a very serious injury.  It is expected that Bynum will be back as his good ol’ self for the training camp this fall. Surviving the playoffs with injured knee Bynum has suffered from injuries in the past, but he struggled through all of them.  In fact, during the playoffs, Bynum still played for his team and decided not to undergo surgery after learning about his torn meniscus in the first-round series versus Oklahoma City.  Though he felt pain during some of the games, Bynum was able to mark an average of 8.6 points and 6.9 rebounds throughout the 23 games he had to endure.  With his tenacity, hard work, and dedication, he earned the respect of his teammates including Pau Gasol.  Gasol remarked how their 7-foot center made some sacrifices to help lead the team to championship. After the championship After the victory parade, some players visited the training complex and different plans were revealed just a few days after the championship celebration.  On Wednesday, Derek Fisher and Kobe Bryant will take their breaks for the summer.  Many are also looking forward to what coach Phil Jackson has to say about their plans for the coming season. Some of the players who were seen gathered at the training complex might be visiting the facility for the last time as part of the Lakers.  This includes Adam Morrison who might no be re-signed by the team, according to speculations, since he didn’t really play much this season.  Although he was the best-paid practice player of the Lakers in early 2009 and was also the number 3 draft pick of the team, he didn’t truly shine. Jordan Farmar, Lakers point guard, can also be one of the players to leave the team.  He admitted that it was a struggle for him and perhaps he was disappointed that his role didn’t expand much for the last four years.  He said that he doesn’t see a good place in being part of the triangle offense.   Being a former star player of UCLA, Farmar shared his disappointment in saying that he’s not used to being a backup but the one to have the ball in his hands.  There are plans for him to get more of the action in the game, but the league hasn’t seen his best so far as a Lakers point guard. Shannon Brown, on the other hand, doesn’t share the same sentiments as Farmar.  The Lakers guard hasn’t made any decision yet on whether he would opt out of the contract and get paid $2.21 million.  With the regular season average of 8.1 points, Brown has been quite a reliable backup and a good dunker for the team.  He wants to show more of his game next season and perhaps still play for LA, after saying that he sees no reason why a championship team should be broken up. Other player updates Sasha Vujajic and Kobe Bryant are still under contract for the next season, and it seems like Vujacic is not likely to go anywhere, saying that he wants to do better next year and play more as point guard.  Lakers forward Lamar Odom will undergo surgery for his sore left shoulder and would go on vacation to Mexico with this wife.