Letters: Lakers go for blockbuster with Dwight Howard

The Dodgers announce they are trading what’s-his-name for Magic at the end of March, the Kings storm through the NHL playoffs in April and May and win the Cup in June, Steve Nash comes to the Lakers in July and now Dwight Howard in August.

Not a bad five months, L.A.!

Eric Monson

Temecula

::

Jerry West to Mitch Kupchak — the torch has been passed!

Vincent Martinez

Arcadia

::

Kobe and Pau must be laughing in London and woofing LeBron that the Heat just “borrowed” the NBA championship that the Lakers will now reclaim as their own with the most potent lineup in pro basketball.

Jim Breen

Foothill Ranch

::

Ten reasons why Dwight Howard will sign that extension with the Lakers quicker than a Showtime fastbreak:

1. Kobe.

2. Nash.

3. Pau.

4. Freeing up World Peace on defense — his forte.

5. A myriad of great cultural restaurants countywide.

6. Hollywood.

7. Laker pedigree.

8. Media hotbed; ESPN is at L.A. Live.

9. Jack sitting in his courtside seat.

10. Those pretty banners high above on the wall at Staples Center.

Bonnie Tauber

Santa Monica

::

Royal Lakers center lineage:

Mikan. Wilt. Kareem. Shaq. Howard.

Anthony Davis, we’ll see you in eight years.

Chaunte’ Williams

Hawthorne

::

I bet that the Lakers equipment manager is glad to see Andrew Bynum go. No more need to bring along diaper bags on away games.

Ray Ceniceroz

Pasadena

Let Games end

Five ways to improve the Olympics:

1. Reduce the amount of human interest stories, and show us more heats and prelims.

2. Reduce the amount of reaction shots of parents and coaches.

3. Encourage the athletes not to hug so much.

4. Think of a better question than, “How did it feel to win?”

5. Eliminate beach volleyball.

David Macaray

Rowland Heights

::

Olympic sports we could do without:

Sports tainted by doping scandals (cycling, track & field).

Sports scored subjectively by inept and/or corrupt judges (boxing, gymnastics).

Sports where the Olympics is not their most important competition (soccer, tennis).

Sports you can play in your backyard or garage (badminton, table tennis).

Sports involving weapons or animals (fencing, archery, shooting, equestrian).

Sports performed on a boat (sailing, canoe, kayak, rowing).

Sports that are a just a combination of other sports (triathlon, modern pentathlon).

Sports with athletes making eight-figure salaries (basketball).

Sports where one person can win more than 20 medals (swimming).

Sports you never watch in non-Olympic years (everything else).

Ben Browdy

Los Angeles

::

If Bill Plaschke intended to stir up sympathy for Lolo Jones, he flopped [“She just can’t win for losing,” Aug. 8].

There’s a code for athletes at the Olympics: Relish the victory when you win, congratulate the winners when you lose. Jones violated the code and showed a distinct lack of class. Not the way to get people on your side.

Bonnie Sloane

Los Angeles

::

Bill Plaschke’s hit piece about Lolo Jones was all too typical of the media, which heaped scads of attention on Jones, and then criticized her for getting too much media attention. Ghouls one and all.

Robert Ostrove

Ventura

::

I love watching Usain Bolt run, but I’m greedy. I want to see world records. Bolt’s premature celebration in the 100 in Beijing coupled with his easing up in the 200 in London — when it looked like he would run an 18.50 as he came around the turn — is not consistent with the Olympic spirit. I’ll take Michael Johnson’s 200-400 gold medal performance in Atlanta.

Ken Feldman

Tarzana

::

Of the few moments in the Olympics that show there is hope for humanity, the semifinals of the 400 meters stood out. When the young phenom, Kirani James, traded name designations with Oscar Pistorius it was as though someone reached deep down where our humanity resides and breathed life into it.

James did the transfer without fanfare and as nonchalantly as he runs. It said to the world: This is simple and this is what it’s all about.

Jeff Solomon

Encino

::

I know who I will be rooting for in the men’s marathon race Sunday: Guor Marial [Bill Plaschke, Aug. 6]. Thank you for sharing a story of the true Olympic spirit.

Paivi Hoikkala

La Crescenta

::

Because NBC reserves the right to postpone broadcast of live Olympic events, I reserve the right to DVR same and fast forward through all the commercials.

Hal Greenfader

Los Angeles

::

The NBC tape delay doesn’t bother me as much as putting the most popular events on the 10 p.m. to midnight time slot after making us endure the junk. Synchronized diving? Really?

Mike Reuben

Anaheim Hills

Vin’s on his game

Vin Scully was right on Monday night when he said it would have saved a lot of time and energy if they had instant replay to check on a play that took a long time to argue about and was still inconclusive.

Sol Bialeck

Van Nuys

::

Kudos to T.J. Simers for his column on Vin Scully’s masterful call of Sandy Koufax’s perfect game. Recalling listening to that ballgame takes us back to a simpler time when we relied on Vinny’s voice for our vision of the game. He never let us down.

Bud Chapman

Northridge

::

Remember when Andre Ethier could hit home runs? Remember when James Loney could hit with runners on base? Remember when Juan Uribe was a major league hitter? No matter who they put in this Dodgers lineup, they always forget how to hit.

Jerry Moore

Cerritos

::

Now that Andre Ethier has been locked in long-term for $85 million, perhaps it’s time to pose this quiz to Dodgers fans.

The last time he hit a home run was:

A) Two months ago.

B) One month ago.

C) When Washington crossed the Delaware.

Herb Schoenberg

Tarzana

Kick it off

Many thanks to Chris Dufresne for all the NCAA dirt, er, news.

In an effort to help with the cleanup, here’s some pigskin propaganda for the start of the season:

1. The Program exists primarily to enrich the athletic director, the head coach and selected assistants.

2. The Program exists secondarily to win games and participate in bowl games. If the Program is deficient in this area, fire the head coach. He may be unemployed, but the severance package should suffice until a broadcasting or new coaching job appears.

3. The Program is above criticism or sanction.

4. If the Program is criticized or sanctioned, those who criticize or sanction are to be held in contempt.

Time to blow the whistle.

Bob Brown

Thousand Oaks

::

Maybe Chris Dufresne should take a sabbatical from college football because it is obviously affecting his judgment. Possibly the annual confusion surrounding the BCS championship or the difficult-to-follow conference realignments are the reasons. To say the NCAA is not to blame for the “unrestricted free agency” it created as part of the Penn State decision is just wrong. Remember Chris, the NCAA is the one that made the rules up as it went along. With its decision, the hypocritical, oppressive NCAA amplified the ugliest part of amateur college sports: recruiting.

Whether USC or Lane Kiffin should have been able to benefit from the Penn State fallout can be debated, but at least Kiffin had the clarity and the guts to call it what it is.

John Shatkus

Santa Clarita

What’s Bruin?

Habemus quarterbackum! Could it be that the white smoke billowing from UCLA’s temporary encampment in San Bernardino was not smog but the ceremonial heralding of Brett Hundley as the Bruins’ new quarterback? Had Rick Neuheisel made this decision a year ago he might still be coaching and Jim Mora Jr. might still be in the media, rather than the reverse.

Wes Wellman

Santa Monica

::

Desperate people take desperate measures. For Jim Mora to use the murder of two innocent college students as a recruiting tool shows how desperate both he and UCLA have become.

Sophie Perry

Los Angeles

A shame

The Camp Kilpatrick sports program has been a salvation for many teens in trouble over the past 15 years or more. It is disheartening to learn that the probation department is eliminating a proven winner in steering kids in trouble toward productive lives [Aug 8].

The chief probation officer could easily “save” the program by relocating it to another of the various camps in the system, but it seems the will is not there. Or is there another agenda?

It is a sad day for kids in Los Angeles County.

Raul Solis

Upland

Sleepy time

OK, I found the cure for insomnia. WhenC.J. Wilsonis doing his laborious thing on the mound, viewers and infielders have no shot at staying awake. Zzzzzz ...

Jack Von Bulow

Temple City

::

I wonder if the Rangers are still paying C.J. Wilson ... to suck up Angels’ salary space and sabotage their pennant hopes?

Rick Van Kirk

Irvine

::

Mike Trout had no plans for his 21st birthday, other than Knott’s Berry Farm or Disneyland. There goes that Mickey Mantle comparison.

David McKenna

Newport Beach

::

The Los Angeles Times welcomes expressions of all views. Letters should be brief and become the property of The Times. They may be edited and republished in any format. Each must include a valid mailing address and telephone number. Pseudonyms will not be used.

Mail: Sports Viewpoint

Los Angeles Times

202 W. 1st St.

Los Angeles, CA 90012

Fax: (213) 237-4322

Email:

sports@latimes.com