Los Angeles brings home Lin; Pau Gasol leaves for Chicago: the end and a new rebuilding

Photo Courtesy of Nathaniel S. Butler-Getty Images

In a week where LeBron James goes home and Carmelo Anthony decides to stay in the empire state of mind, the Los Angeles Lakers have picked up Jeremy Lin from the Houston Rockets while losing out on Pau Gasol, indicating that the City of Angels is sure to head into yet another season full of slow and steady reboots.

The current Lakers squad includes the likes of Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Nick Young, Jordan Hill, Robert Sacre, Julius Randle, Jordan Clarkson, Kendall Marshall, and the newly required Jeremy Lin. Considering the roster from last week, the team has at least formed a group that can compete with an active starting line-up but this group does not make for an immediate championship contending team; in fact, the Lakers have not been in championship form since the 2010 season and by the looks of it, they may still have a long way to go.

Photo Courtesy of lakernation.com

Lin is going to be an explosive and powerful force on the offense but he does not necessarily have the assets to become the type of player that can contribute significant numbers on a consistent basis. He has actually found his place as a decent player and I am quite excited to see him play but the team needs much more and the players left in the free agent pool may not give them what they need: time and continuity.

The Lakers pride themselves as being a storied franchise that has won plenty of championships but those championships were earned by once solid teams that had taken their fair share of beatings before taking home the Larry O'Brien trophy. Those teams had players that stuck together and played together through the best and worst seasons, switching a couple of players here and there but nevertheless all opting to stay together. There was the Wilt Chamberlain-Jerry West-Gail Goodrich era, the Showtime era of Magic Johnson-Kareem Abdul-Jabbar-James Worthy-Michael Cooper, the Shaq-Kobe era, and yes, the latest to come to an end, the Kobe-Pau era.

The storied franchise that the Lakers once were consists of teams that had the time to feel invested in one another, the teams that took the time to understand the true value in fighting and competing as a unit. The current franchise is trying to reshape and dish out team after after team as though money can literally buy the trophy home.

If the Lakers want a championship they need to sign solid players that could stay more than just a year and get dumped by the end of the season only to be replaced by another player who needs or just simply wants to showcase their own talents. They need to get these guys together, to spend some time to get connected and emotionally invested in what they all want.

Gasol had made it clear that if the Lakers managed to sign a player who could possibly take over Bryant's place once the man has left the building, he would have surely signed. Without a superstar to work with and a solid team, it is no surprise that Gasol has opted to sign with the Chicago Bulls, a team that has a great coach with players that are decent but have made it to the playoff (and further into the playoffs) much more than the Lakers have as of late.

The 2008-2010 Lakers were like a family that went almost beyond basketball. They had went through their fair share of upsetting defeats only to come back stronger, if not as strong, year after year after year. Phil Jackson was a legendary coach but the players' willingness to set their differences aside made all of the difference.

For Los Angeles, there is still hope to save the season. If the team is willing to take a chance and continue to try this waiting out process, they must have a plan B which will allow them to pick up solid guards that could spread the floor and play the wings as well as big men who could either grab boards or hustle for the put backs.

I am a optimist and I would like to see the team pull through but it is definitely going to be a long mountain to climb from here on out.