Laker Fans Really, Really Wanted Barbosa

Lakers Report

Celtics to sign Leandro Barbosa ... and that's fine

Why a headline in this neck of the woods regarding news about the enemy?

Because Los Angeles Lakers fans have inquired throughout the offseason about the Brazilian Blur landing in L.A. A lot. After all, Leandro Barbosa is a "name," and fans are often gaga for any free agent of name value. He has experience playing alongside Steve Nash (albeit several seasons ago in a very different system.)

The Lakers bench was often painfully devoid of scoring last season, and Barbosa is -- perhaps literally -- nothing if not a scorer. And Lakers fans are nothing if not greedy, and in turn demand a roster of notables from Kobe Bryant downward. (This summer has only further warped any sense of grounded reality.) Thus, I imagine there will be members of the Laker Nation disappointed to see Barbosa heading to the opposite coast. 

In any event, I don't think the Lakers really missed the boat, but either way, this development is ultimately happy news because it means our readership and Tweeps will stop peppering us with 24/7 questions about Barbosa.

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Lakers fans were right. Barbosa would have helped. How much is the only question.

We might try to answer that question in 1,000 different ways. But it will be more fun to watch the story unfold before our eyes. In the meantime, let's take a quick look at Barbosa's performance in last year's playoffs. As one scribe observed:

What Barbosa can do, as he showed in the first round of last season's playoffs, is be a disruptive terror in spurts. Usually playing around 20 minutes per game, Barbosa played a key role in three of the Pacers' four wins over the Magic, culminating in his seven-point, six-rebound, three-assist outburst in 20:29 in the deciding fifth game.

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I point this out not to be biased in favor of the Green, but only to add some perspective, in case your daily web searches landed you onto a site that suggested Barbosa stuggled in last year's playoff against the Heat. He did. But you know what? The Celtics are between 5 and 7 guards deep, depending on how you look at the roster, and thus if one guard is hot, you ride the wave. On the other hand, if that same guard subsequently disappoints, well, you certainly don't have to keep the team attached to him via piggyback. You just send one of the other guards out there to replace him.

What Barbosa can do, as he showed in the first round of last season's playoffs, is be a disruptive terror in spurts. Usually playing around 20 minutes per game, Barbosa played a key role in three of the Pacers' four wins over the Magic, culminating in his seven-point, six-rebound, three-assist outburst in 20:29 in the deciding fifth game.

Read more at: http://www.nesn.com/2012/10/leandro-barbosa-deepens-celtics-backcourt-but-does-not-solve-backup-point-guard-issue.html

What Barbosa can do, as he showed in the first round of last season's playoffs, is be a disruptive terror in spurts. Usually playing around 20 minutes per game, Barbosa played a key role in three of the Pacers' four wins over the Magic, culminating in his seven-point, six-rebound, three-assist outburst in 20:29 in the deciding fifth game.

Read more at: http://www.nesn.com/2012/10/leandro-barbosa-deepens-celtics-backcourt-but-does-not-solve-backup-point-guard-issue.html