TRADITION X MEMORIAL DAY SALE

Our good friends at Tradition will be hosting a Memorial Day weekend sale starting today. Stop by both Tradition locations and receive 20% off all merchandise storewide including brand new deliveries from Nike, The Hundreds, Crooks & Castles, G Shock, and more! Stack up on some goods.

LOST EXPLAINED VIA POST-IT NOTES

LAKERS vs SUNS GM.4 (recap)

In a playoff series when a team owns home court advantage it simply means that if they win every game on their home court they will win the series.  That is exactly what the Lakers have to do now that the series is tied 2-2.  The story with the Lakers in game 4  is very similar to that of game 3: free throw discrepancy, little to no defense, and a lack of a sense of urgency.  The Suns did exactly what was expected of them, they came out in their house and took care of business.  They played the game exactly like we know they can play the game.  There should be nothing shocking about the series score right now.

There are a few things that did shock me while watching game 4 though. First was the level of Read more

SLAM ONLINE X TFL#! GIVEAWAY

One more, and he’ll have an entire hand glistening. That’s all Kobe Bryant needs—just one more ring to round out an entire hand. He’s right now in hot pursuit of that fifth piece of jewelry, as his Lakers try to eliminate the Suns in the Western Conference Finals. Perfect timing, then, for this giveaway. Our friends over at The Read more

LAKERS vs SUNS GM.3 (recap)

When playing the highest scoring team in the NBA in a playoff series and one that plays as well as the Suns do at home it is illogical to think a sweep is going to be easy.  Although with the way the Lakers started off this series it was not an impossible task.  The Phoenix Suns are not a team with a wide range of game plans, they are fast, pass great, and love to shoot the three ball.  These are a few aspects of the Suns game the Lakers were so successful at either stopping or out preforming them in over the last two games.  It was not these areas that caused the fall of the Lakers in game three though, it was all of the success in the paint.

Over all the Lakers shot better from Read more

ONLY KINGS HAVE RINGS X DIMEMAG.com GIVEAWAY

In these harsh times free stuff can mean so much. That’s why we’ve teamed up with the good folks at DimeMag.com for a friendly contest of sorts. Here’s the plan. Visit their website, predict Kobe’s stat line for this afternoons game, post it in the comments (on their site) and if your right you win an “Only Kings Have Rings” tee on us. But you have to hurry. Time is limited. Gets your predictions in before the game starts. Holla back.

LAKERS vs SUNS GM.2 (recap)

After predicting that the Phoenix Suns would be the Lakers toughest competition of the post season I now see that one of two things is possible. Either I was completely dead wrong (which would not be the first time) or the Lakers are playing at a level that no other team in the payoffs is at. We all know that the Suns are the highest scoring team in the NBA but little can be said for their defense and that is exactly what we are seeing here.

The Lakers are completely dominating with their field goal percentages. We are shooting 10% better then the Suns in front of the 3-point line and 15% better from behind the line. Everything seems to be clicking for us in regards to our… Read more

LAKERS vs SUNS GM. 1 (recap)

BigLakerMike is back to give us the low down on the Western Conference Finals. “On paper the Phoenix Suns are our toughest match up thus far in the post season. They have height, power, speed, and an amazing bench. None of these things came into play Monday night against the Los Angeles Lakers. Kobe Bryant made it his job to not let the Suns get their momentum early in the game. Keeping the Suns from playing their usual run and gun game, we slowed them down and forced them to beat our defense (which they did not do). Read more

GOD SAVE THE QUEEN X LEBRON JAMES

GOD SAVE THE QUEEN – This Sex Pistols inspired commentary by @DonLaMonte speaks volumes. Might the Kings Queens subjects be prime for a revolt against the crown? Or are people starting to understand that the throne never rightfully belonged to her majesty in the first place?

ERIC WRIGHT REPS TFL#!

If you don’t know, Eric Wright (above left) plays cornerback for the Cleveland Browns. That’s right Cleveland. He’s also a kobe Bryant fan and wears #24 himself. We caught up with Eric while he was chillin’ with the boys from Tradition and LAX2JFK in downtown L.A. When we showed up it really came as no surprise that this former USC/UNLV alum was spotted wearing our Only Kings Have Rings tee. He even let all his fans in Cleveland know where he stands via a live uStream session.

More pics after the jump. Read more

LAKERS vs JAZZ GM.4 (recap)

When the local newspaper of your favorite team in a playoff series is refering to you in their headline “All Hope Is Lost” thats not a good sign.  Then again going up against the Los Angeles Lakers in a playoff series when they hold home court advantage is not a good sign either.  Both of these situations happened to be the story of the Utah Jazz. Read more

LAKERS vs JAZZ GM. 3 (recap)

Instead of writing a review of game 3 I wanted to just do a preview of the Lakers/Suns series but it was too entertaining a game to not write about so here we are.  Over the last three years it has been the same story when the Lakers meet the Jazz in the playoffs.  Lakers take the first two at home and the Jazz come right back taking their first at home.  This year however the Lakers were able to hang in there just enough to take a 3-0 grip on the series. Read more

IRON MAN 2 | A CASH MONEY REVIEW

Jon Favreau proved with the first Iron Man that he was more than capable behind the lens of a comic book adaptation. In 2008 the whole world was forced to realize that comic book movies can be taken seriously due not only to the gargantuan Dark Knight, but also Marvel Comics’ equally-worthy Iron Man. The sequel promises even more action, comedy and acting credentials beyond what action films are known for. Mickey Rourke steps in as the nefarious Whiplash, Scarlett Johansson portrays… Read more

OK SKATE GRAND OPENING

Our friends from OK Skate invite you to the GRAND OPENING of their new store in Rancho Cucamonga tomorrow at 10 am. They’ll be FREE In-N-Out for everyone between 12-2 pm. Also, the first 100 people get a $50 Voucher to be used towards a $100 purchase and everyone will get a $50 Voucher to be used towards a $150 purchase! PLUS+ everyone gets a free OK T-Shirt with each purchase!

Visit OKSkate.com for a chance to win a new pair of shoes and skateboard deck every month for a year!

OK Skate is located at 9287 Charles Smith Ave. Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730 and will be open daily from 10-6PM.

See You Tomorrow!!!

SOCO BURNS: IT MUST BE ME FREESTYLE

It Must Be Me (Freestyle) is the newest release by Soco Burns off the upcoming mix-tape release “Back 2 The Basics”. The video was produced by PaperFilms. Check it.

LAKERS vs JAZZ GM. 2 (recap)

For Laker fans watching game 2 of the Jazz/Lakers series was like watching a rerun of your favorite show.  We saw many of the same things that were in game one, but with some small alterations here and there.  This is not one of the most exciting series we have seen as Lakers fans when it comes to competitiveness, but is is nice to see the extra passes and great defense come together.

The Utah Jazz are a great team, don’t get me wrong.  The only problem is that they do not match up against us at all.  The Utah Jazz have five payers on their team that are over 6’8, one of which is a scoring threat.  The Lakers have eight players over 6’8, which all can be just as deadly as the next (minus Adam Morrison).  The key here is matching up defensively,  when the Jazz are on offense we have a much taller team forcing them to TRY and push the ball which results in rushed shots.  When they try to play slow our guys are so much taller it does not bode well for them hence the 13 blocked shots in game 2.

If we maintain this style of play we will be fine through out this series.  The only problem that stands out for the NEXT series is our turnovers.  So far we have had 34 turnovers in two games, this is not good. Each one of these games could be absolute blow outs if we decrease the amount of times we turn the ball over.  This could be our downfall for at least one game while in Utah.

Expect the Utah Jazz to not go quietly over the next two games.  They are going to drive the ball and try and get Pau Gasol in foul trouble.  With the calls that are expected to come with home court advantage they are going to be driving hard.  We need to keep our cool and not force anything or get too physical, especially with the condition of Andrew Bynum.  It may be smart to limit his minutes a bit to rest his knee.

We have very little to worry about in this series, even though we are going to now be in enemy territory.  I would love a sweep, but am hoping for at least one win so we can close this out at home.

10 more wins until another Laker Championship.

-BigLakerMike

MATHEMATICAL SUPERIORITY | LAKERS VS JAZZ

Utah Jazz fans are somewhat delusional. My former roommate and top tier, pinnacle Lakers fan, Jeff Tibbitts is something of an intellectual. As you can see below Jeff eloquently put to rest the debate of which team is better with a simple mathematical representation of the Lakers superiority over the ever failing Utah Jazz. I feel a t-shirt coming on.

Photo Credit – Jason Maughan

LAKERS vs JAZZ GM. 1 (recap)

“It would not feel like the NBA Playoffs if we did not face the Utah Jazz.  It seems inevitable this match up of teams who’s names are representations of past cities meet in the post season. The Jazz are a team that always give us the same amount of trouble each post season, they may steal a game or two but thats it!  I contribute their lack of a major push against us to the inconsistency of Carlos Boozer.  You would not know it by his stats because he has fairly good averages through out each post season, but in crunch time when his team really needs him he is no where to be found.

The Lakers came out of the gate at full steam yesterday and seemed to be in the driver seat through-out the game.  Even when giving up the lead in fourth quarter it never appeared they had their backs against the wall.  There are, however, definitely a few things the Lakers can refine and fine tune, those being our free throws and three pointers.  In both of those categories the Jazz shot 10% better then us. We shot 10% better from the field giving us the over all advantage.

Utah is a place were it seems both amateur and pro players alike are bread to live and die by the three pointer.  For this point it is understandable they shoot better from behind the arch.  Free throws however are a different story, with the amount of times we go to the line we should be shooting a higher percentage. Another stat that we can do better on is our turn overs giving up 14 to Utah’s 11.  All of these stats we can live with, obviously by gaining a win in game one, but if we want to close this team out fast we should focus on these areas.

Over all this was a fairly well balanced game for us.  Everyone was very active on the boards and pitched in on the defensive side of the ball.  We kept ourselves in the game and when the time came we put the ball in the hands of the best closer in the NBA.  With our reputation of playing well in Utah and the last time we met in the regular season we spanked the Jazz without most of our starters, we should not have any major problems with this series (as long as we play Laker basketball).

11 more wins to another Laker Championship.”

-BigLakerMike

JAZZ IS PLAYED OUT | SportsEnemy

The SportsEnemy crew just shot over their newest t-shirt in celebration of the Los Angeles Lakers advancing to the second round of the NBA Playoffs.  This anti-Utah Jazz shirt is dope, the Round 1 TKO shirts were a hit, and even The Jazz Has No Rhythm shirt is pretty cool.  Let’s see what else they got in store as Kobe and The Lakers continue to advance their way towards the NBA Finals.

Originally posted on WeAllScheme.com

LAKERS vs THUNDER GM. 6 (recap)

On the heels of today’s second round, game 1 match-up between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Utah Jazz BigLakerMike takes a look back on the Lakers game 6 win against the Thunder in OKC to close out round 1. “With the first round of the playoffs now done and gone I think it is very important to take a look back at what we have seen.  We saw a team in the Oklahoma City Thunder that we have not seen in a long time.

We have not seen an 8th seed with a record as good as theirs since 1983!!! They pushed us as well as any 8th seeded team could have.  Kevin Durant preformed on and off the court as a true professional.  Starting with the comments of the Zen Master saying that Kevin Durant goes to the line more than any other star in the NBA.  Kevin easily could have lashed out with comments on the amount of time Kobe goes to the line or the star treatment Kobe receives. He did not.  He led all players on both teams in  dropping 150 points showing that HIS actions speak louder than words.

Russell Westbrook used this series (as if he needed it) to truly make a name for him self.  He was outstanding  scoring 123 points throughout the series, only being outscored by Durant and Bryant.  He also led both teams throughout the entire series with 36 assists and only missed 6 free throws as well.  He was always a threat and in the end deemed the attention of being guarded by Kobe.

There is not another team in the Western Conference that could have better prepared us for the road ahead.  A young team that had something to prove (and did prove it) with  a fan base that could shake any team in the NBA with their cheering and support.  Two super stars that undoubtably opened the eyes of certain free agents (mainly Bosh) showing that with the right piece they could honestly make a run for a ring.

Congratulations to the Thunder for all they achieved and accomplished.  Thank you for helpings us, by showing us there is no easy series no matter how young the team.  The best of luck to you next year.

Until we meet again…

12 more wins until a Lakers championship…

TFL#! GOES TO STAPLES CENTER

On such an occasion as the Lakers return from a humiliating defeat in game 4 against the OKC Thunder it only seemed natural that we, as fans, stepped up our level of support as the Lakers headed into a pivotal game 5 in Los Angeles to regain the series lead.  So we gathered together the TFL#! crew, draped on some Only Kings Have Rings tees and went to cheer on our defending champs.

While spending the afternoon at Staples Center we gave away some shirts, did an interview/photo shoot with the OC Register, met some fans, somehow ended up on the club level and watched as the Lakers destroyed the Thunder.

Below are some shots of what the day looked like. Enjoy.

Enroute to Staples Center there was still time to stop and smell the street art.

Troy, Garrett and Josh

Troy, Matt and Josh

Tory approaches

Garrett and Josh hang outside Staples

Garrett gets some face time with Chick Hearn

Chick would definitely recognize, “Only Kings Have Rings”

Josh, Garrett and Troy pose with the winners from our twitter tee giveaway

BTW – did we mention that Lakers demolished and demoralized the Thunder this night? But, you already knew that, didn’t you? And how did I know you knew that? Because Im Batman!