The Lakers lost again. This, in and of itself, is not news. It is especially not news when they are on the road and playing a good team, as they did on Tuesday night, against the Heat in Miami. So, with the simplest of explanations, chalk this up to one team losing to a better team under circumstances in which that outcome was going to be pretty likely.
The bigger story, though, wasn’t just the team losing, but the side stories within the loss. Namely, that despite the Lakers finding themselves down big late, D’Angelo Russell could not get any 4th quarter minutes. After the game, Byron Scott had this to say about that development:
Byron Scott said he didn’t really consider bringing D’Angelo Russell back in at the end of the game, Miami had too big of a lead.
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) November 11, 2015
BS:“No, 3 mins left in the game, was an 18-point lead or something like that, no I didn’t really think abt bringin him back in at that time”
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) November 11, 2015
This is just a few days after Scott said the following about Russell and playing time (via Mike Bresnahan of the LA Times):
“He has to start getting it, just like the other young guys have to start getting it, and if they don’t, they won’t play as much,” Scott said Friday, an hour before the Lakers played the Brooklyn Nets. “Playing time in this league is a very precious thing and I don’t want our guys to take that for granted. Missing assignments on a continuous basis is not going to go unnoticed. You’ve got to start developing and doing a better job on that end of the floor.”
Or else?
“When you make a mistake over and over again, that wood has a way of talking to your butt a little bit too. You get a couple of splinters here and there,” Scott said, using an old metaphor for the team bench. “Sometimes that has a great way of communicating how important it is to play on that other end of the floor.”
Coincidence? Maybe. But even if it is, the timing of Russell sitting out another 4th quarter, especially with the score what it was, while Lou Williams (a veteran who is probably above playing in garbage time at this point) and Marcelo Huertas (who had been out of the rotation for the past few games) do get minutes.
On the season, counting the Heat game, Russell has gotten zero 4th quarter minutes in three of the Lakers’ seven games. He has played 20 4th quarter minutes the entire year. As a comparison, Nick Young has played 44 minutes in the final period while Lou Williams has played 70.
This wouldn’t be a story if the Lakers were winning games. Well, maybe that’s not fair. People would still point it out, but if the Lakers were 4-3 right now instead of 1-6, those critiques would fall on deaf ears since team performance (for some) would trump a lack of late game playing time for Russell this early in the year. Sure, the hope would be that the rookie would get some burn eventually, but easing him into that workload would be more understandable if it came while the team was winning.
That is not the case, though. So, the frustrations are mounting. And reasons like the ones offered by Scott above become less palatable. Especially on the heels of comments where he noted winning games is still the primary objective over developing the young players. And while I am of the mind that his full quote was not that inflammatory — Scott said outright that player development was still important and that practice time and game action would help facilitate it — the optics here just aren’t very good.
As for Russell, he seems to be taking things in stride:
D’Angelo Russell on playing late in games: "I’ve got to figure out what I’m doing wrong so I can correct it.”
Byron explain why?
“No."
— Baxter Holmes (@Baxter) November 11, 2015
Russell: "You’ve got to get better on each read and I guess that’s my problem. I try to force it, trying to get the ball to guys."
— Baxter Holmes (@Baxter) November 11, 2015
How's D’Angelo Russell’s confidence these days? He smiled. "Through the roof — in space somewhere."
— Baxter Holmes (@Baxter) November 11, 2015
I have not heard the audio or seen video for these quotes so I can’t make any inferences from his tone or via what his body language was like. Maybe these quotes are straight forward. Maybe they’re sarcastic. Maybe they’re steeped in frustration or hint at bitterness. I’d have to get more than just the printed words to have more context.
That said, I would hope he’s upset at not playing. He is the #2 overall pick, after all. Is it concerning he is saying he doesn’t know what he needs to do to get on the floor in the 4th quarter? Of course. Would I hope the coach is communicating these things to him? Again, of course. And maybe that is coming.
But, I would be lying if I said this wasn’t all a bit frustrating. There are things we will never know based on the fact that we do not have access. We do not go to practices, sit in the film sessions, attend shootarounds, or hang in the lockerroom. All we see are the games and, if we’re lucky, we get some post game quotes and video. But what we are seeing is a young player who is playing okay (and in some cases pretty well), not getting a lot of late game run, and the team still losing. And it isn’t just any young player, but a player who is, at the very least, considered one of the key building blocks for the future.
As I wrote in my game preview, at some point the Lakers will need to figure out what direction they will go in this year and how they will approach the remainder of the season. That does not need to happen right this second. But it does need to happen. And I think I speak for more people than myself when I say I hope whatever decisions are made, they involve seeing Russell being given the chance to try and fail and then try again, and not just through the first three quarters of the game.
lakerade says
Hard to watch. Have to watch. Go Lakers.
eli says
Two words for my Lakers, Mark Jackson
shoaibybaby says
I really do enjoy what I’ve seen from Russel this season, even his mistakes are good because that means we are watching him try to make a play. Its small, but him taking initiative on the first play of the game and hitting his pull-up jumper (something he hadn’t done up until today) was encouraging- he seemed to always take the first few plays easy. Would love to see him more involved in the P&R or just anything to be honest. Can’t wait until he displays that “2nd gear” whether its 3 games from now or 70. I just hope Byron gives him the chance.
Jerry says
Bigger Question,what does the front Office think about this ?
KO says
21. 24. 21. 19. 438/ 587
Lottery numbers? No
These are Bryon Scotts last 4 years wins coaching. The last is career win-loss.
As soon as he left each team got better.
When you hire a guy with a losing history you get a loser. Add in this year of apx 17 wins for the year and you get@
THE WORST 5 YEAR CONSECUTIVE NUMBERS FOR ANY COACH IN NBA HISTORY!
Has there ever ever been a worse head of basketball operations then Jim Buss? And we thought his horse training days were bad?
After 40 years of being an avid fan I am more disgusted and honestly I am lossing hope and interest.
Mean while the dysfunctional and incompetent Buss family will make another $100 million for failing and turning the franchise into a joke.
Thanks for nothing Bust Family.
Vman says
I don’t think that Byron is a good coach for Dloading!
Meow says
Woof
R&R says
Fire Scott, don’t waste time do it now
Teamn says
Its early, almost a completely new team, competing agendas — given all that, I still think Scott is not the right coach for a young, developing roster. I just hope Russell can grow from the “tough love” approach and come out better for it. If not, if Scott screws him up, that would serve as the FO’s absolute worst decision for this franchise.
Prob says
The truth is, the entire laker organization needs a chance, and we need fast! Starting at the top with Mitch, and of course Byron MUST GO RIGHT AWAY. And anyone that shares the same philosophy’s as those 2 men I’ve just mentioned, MUST GO.
Forget the whole we should’ve took Okafor over Russell argument, because clearly the lakers needed help at the guard spot, and needed a REAL point guard for once in laker-land since Magic Johnson.
Byron Scott, who’s coached arguably 3 of the BEST point guards in the last 25 years (Jason Kidd, Chris Paul, Kyrie Irving) was unable to distinguish that Emmanuel Mudiay was the best PURE point guard from this draft.
If anyone is even the slightest bit of a laker fan, PLEASE Let’s start a petition for the removal of Mitch Kupchak and Byron Scott, IMMEDIATALY!
Bryon Scott has shown poor judgement on many levels, and should not be the head coach of this team. And I’m not even sure if the NBA is for him anymore. Mitch Kupchak is legend. Simple as that. But in today’s NBA, he is lost and the lakers need a change in order to move foward right way.
bleedpurplegold says
https://www.change.org/p/mitch-kupchak-lakers-fire-byron-scott
@prob: there already is such a petition online, and only 700 have signed it until now….and i wont do it….
I think the problem is jimmy, he makes the desicions in this franchise and he is responsible for the roster we have, the coaches we hired and the moves we made….if anything, i would sign one to get rid of him….hope we can do it soon.
Dwight says
Bigger Question,what does the front Office think about this ?
—
Even bigger: Since Jeanie’s in charge, when does she do something about this?
Dwight says
I think the problem is jimmy, he makes the desicions in this franchise and he is responsible for the roster we have, the coaches we hired and the moves we made….
____
Bingo!
Anonymous says
Byron will not last through xmas. He simply does not care anymore.
Vasheed says
I’m pretty close to giving up on Scott. The team looks directionless.
I would like play their best defenders for some significant minutes. I think it would balance the team out more. These would be the guys I would look to get out together:
Lance Jr.
A. Brown
Hibbert
Russell
Clarkson
Robert says
Well it appears that many are joining the group of us who have all along identified the FO as the root cause of our issues. Others are still focused on Scott. Still others pretty much want a house cleaning. Question for everyone: What should the FO do? Yea – I know – I want them all to resign – but seriously – what should they do? Ride this out with Scott? Fire him, and suffer the complete ridicule? Then what? Interim coach? Then have to perform another coaching hire in the off season? 5 coaches in 6 years? Should we go ahead and get the permanent coach now? If so who? How do we handle the Kobe situation if we fire Scott? This is not painting yourself into a corner, this is walling yourself in, to the point where there is just no good way out. But seriously – there is a contingent here who hates when I and others bash the FO, but ironically most of those same posters – bash Byron. So I would like to hear the plan. Or is there one? Perhaps the plan is to ride it out with Byron and bash him for 75 more games? I would actually do that, because the alternative seems even worse.
24hrx. says
I think Byron wants Russell to ask him what he needs to do to get in those minutes; If Byron hasn’t told him, and Russell says he hasn’t, Russell needs to ask. I read/took the quotes as, Russell is missing reads on the Defensive end, and that is why BS doesn’t want him thinking he’s entitled to those minutes, when apparently he is making the same mistake(s) over and over again. If Russell isn’t getting those minutes by Jan, then there’s a problem, but for now the “tough love” is justified. Remember, Kobe wasn’t playing those minutes his rookie year either. And before you say, “but that was team was winning,” it was more about breaking Kobe down and then building him back up. Or break a stallion before you can ride it. This is what Byron Scott looks like when he is teaching, let him teach, and other than the Win @ Brooklyn, he’s doing perfect. (And yeah, fire Jim Buss. Watching the Knicks game was bizzaro world Lakers East Coast, with Fish, Rambis, Phil, etc…)
J C says
Robert
I get that there may be backlash and even embarrassment over another quick hook, firing Byron early or mid-season. It cannot be avoided.
It’s not like we need to see more of Byron, as if he has a master plan or vision that just needs time to blossom, an excuse that was sometimes used for Dantoni. Byron’s just an awful coach.
The backlash will subside once the team starts to win a few games, and even more so once they start to play a better brand of basketball. A better coach (or even no coach!) will help everyone forget Byron quickly.
I came up with the spin the Lakers will probably use. It will be “Byron’s idea,” citing stress or his willingness to do what’s good for the franchise.
He’ll definitely be kept on as a scout or in some Rudy T role as a reward for his Laker faithfulness.
They just cannot keep going on like this. As KO says it’s dragging the franchise down so low that people are losing hope and interest. That’s a death knell for any coach, but especially one that’s in bed with Time Warner and whose revenue is tied to victories.
To skip the interim period I suggest hiring Thibs or Kevin Ollie.
It may hurt his buddy Byron to see him go, but Kobe will be on board for a greater good that helps the franchise.
Don says
My question is what game is BS watching. I would make the case that Randle has been playing worse than Russell on both ends of the floor. Atrocious defense, poor offensive rebounding, turnovers, forced bad shots on offense. He’s getting abused by the opposing PFs yet we hear nothing coming out of BS about his play. IMO Russell clearly need to work on his shooting but defensively has not been playing that poorly. He made several nice passes to Clarkson who simply stopped running and guys are missing open looks. With that being said we should have take the other PG or Okafer.
Corey says
Yes the front office is still struggling to establish a vision and direction after the vacuum that was created by the loss of Dr. Buss. Also working against the team is the downturn that occurs once a championship roster decays. This is something that every team goes through after a roster crests and the players start to decline. Lakers took a shot at bypassing this back in 2012 with Dwight and Nash but for the first time in 30 years a lakers coup didnt work out. After getting pau, shaq, lucking into magic and worthy 3 drafts apart, gettin both wilt and kareem the lakers were due for a bad break.
I say this not to absolve the front office. Not trading pau at the deadline in 14 was a mistake. And Byron was an uninspired hire.Tactically and philosophically hes out of touch. But this roster is also terrible and young. So its gonna look bad and its gonna look bad often. Not much Byron can do from a wins and loses perspective but he can develop these young guys. In fact, preaching patience and pushing the fan and media focus away from wins and loses to the team’s growth. That right there would change the narrative and provide him cover for most of the season.
24hrx. says
Continuing: Not to mention, former Lakers assistants Jim Cleamons and Rasheed Hazzard. Unquestionably several big contributors to the Lakers’ Championship legacy, all Not working for the Lakers; I wonder why that is…? Answer: Jim Buss’ Ego.
KO says
Back in old Laker days Dr. Buss had to win to make payroll. At one point he was forced to sell Kings because of financial reasons. No money! He made sure people around him knew more then him.
Not today. Buss kids know far less then me about the game. Never played it, coached or allowed real basketball people to take over. Mitch is just guy collecting a check. Has almost quit 3 times per sources.
Point is Buss family makes $100 milliion in spite of themselves. Unlike their dad who had to build winner, they could and often do not show up and get paid huge salaries win, lose or embarrisment.
Truth be told:
There is no future in Mudville the mighty Buss family have STRUCK OUT!
BG says
We need a youthful new coach that can bring in a new culture and energy. Working in Boston. I don’t know who that coach is but I hope the FO is getting a list together because the writing is on the wall for Byron!
Craig W. says
Those of us who are not ready to burn the entire organization at the stake have sort of left the commenting on this blog to the extremists. Sound familiar anyone?
I will continue to read the posts, but the comments are adding less and less to my knowledge of basketball in general and the Lakers in particular. This doesn’t mean I don’t have frustrations, but I don’t think the organization is clueless.
Franchise98bn says
Jim Buss is the problem! Until we get rid of him nothing will change. We’ve changed coaches, we still lose. Firing Byron won’t change anything until the Jim is fired. If Jeanie can’t do it, she’s a bigger idiot than Jim.
KevTheBold says
Agree that the front office has problems, though imo it’s more about misplaced loyalty than fumbling stupidly.
Which means it’s correctable via hard reality checks.
Continued losses will eventually not only tarnish the brand, but the bank
account.
The latter I understand will take a while longer, yet, if anyone there has a semblance of foresight, they will realize that the time to straighten the wheel is NOW.
Quick note on the Mudiay comment:
His year of experience running a team of NBA players overseas, combined with where he landed, will probably give him the ROY.
The Lakers knew he was more NBA ready, but believed as with Okafor, that their potential upside is limited; at least in comparison to D’Angelo.
Some of us, are more than willing to delay gratification for a more explosive climax.
Count me among them.
Calvin says
Just have to ride it out and be patient. Do you think Jim and Jeanie are really going to resign? They own the business and are making millions. They know that they just have to ride out Kobe’s farewell season because Kobe = ratings = profits. They also know that Kobe is a shell of his former self and they won’t win games with Kobe as the headliner. The only problem I see is that Byron isn’t using this season as training for Randle and Russell. These 2 should be playing 30+ minutes and finishing games.
Matt C says
I don’t get the whole replace the whole front thing, or at least not the fire Mitch part of it. That dude brought in Pau for almost nothing and got us two championships. After that he traded Bynum (who would never play again) for Howard and basically got CP3 in purple and gold. Mitch is the Kobe of GM’s. There isn’t a front-office in the NBA that doesn’t make mistakes and Mitch has the right level of boldness and intelligence to come out with winning moves far more often than others. Who are you going to hire that has a proven ability to put together a winner? I’ll take a Nash-level misstep from Mitch because Mitch isn’t done winning rings.
BS and Jimmy on the other hand need to be gone yesterday. Jim seems overwhelmed by the pressure and Scott is a very bad coach. The question is do we keep Scott because he is our #1 chance to keep our pick this year?
Steve V says
With Kobe out it would’ve been nice for last night’s game to be the D’Angelo and Jordan show. Also would’ve been nice to see Brown or maybe Nance start instead of MWP so we could see what they could do.
matt says
They got a big decision to make regarding clarkson, they need to figure it out soon before trade deadline, does he fit well with Russell this needs to be evaluated
rr says
Russell: I am not 100% convinced that Byron not playing Russell in the 4th quarter in the early games of his career is such a huge deal, but if the FO thinks it is then:
a) They should have not signed Lou Williams to a 3/21 deal.
b) Mitch should not have said the team could fight for the 8th seed.
c) They can order Byron to play Russell 30+ mpg and to play him in the 4th and fire Byron if he refuses.
I think Russell should be going 30-34 minutes every game too, but I think making that the focal point of every conversation about the team is just another way of repeating the tiresome Byron-is-an-idiot narrative. We get it. People think Byron is in over his head, out of date, pompous, they never wanted him hired, and they want him gone. Some people are tired of the FO-bashing, which I get. But the Byron-bashing is just as repetitive now.
Team: Like many of us said in preseason, there is not much talent here that is going to lead to short-term gains. And the young guys they do have are probably not Towns/Wiggins type-talents. Add that to the roster redundancies, the coach, and the fact that Kobe is pretty much Muhammad Ali in 1979, and this looked like a 25-28 win team, which is what pretty much everybody who is not a Lakers fan thought it would be.
What the FO should do: that depends on one thing—do Buss and Kupchak believe that Byron’s presence is hurting the development of the young players? If they do, they should get rid of him immediately, and turn the team over to Pressey or Madsen on an interim basis with orders to play the young guys more while the FO shops Williams, Young, BB and Hibbert. If they don’t, then they should announce that Byron is the coach for the rest of the season.
T. Rogers says
D’Angelo Russell seems to be a pretty media savy guy. When asked about his lack of 4th quarter playing time he is careful not to say anything outright aggressive against Bryon. He is careful to remain humble. But he makes sure to note that he doesn’t know what he needs to do to get playing time.
That is the worst thing a young player can say toward his coach. On its face its a strong statement. When taken in full context its a direct shot at Bryon’s coaching. Someone above said Bryon may want Russell to ask him what he needs to do. I’d counter that its in Byron’s job description to explain in full detail to Russell his duties on the court. And when he sits him explain in detail why.
When Russell sat during a close game in favor of Williams Bryon’s line was that he wanted to win. Now when Russell sits in a blowout the reasoning is there was no need to bring him back in a game already lost. Which one is it? Why even draft the kid that high only to subject him to some macho “prove to me your ready” head games? Teams that lose 60 games don’t have that luxury.
Mid-Wilshire says
Matt,
Sorry. But I disagree. Whether Russsell and Clarkson are a good “fit” may or may not be known for another year or more. Steph Curry and Klay Thompson didn’t exactly “fit” at the very beginning. Neither did Durrant and Westbrook. In fact, Durant and Westbrook were 3-29 at the beginning of the season in their first year together. These things take time.
Fans are notorious for having the attention spans of 4-year olds. We’ll all have to be patient, especially with the young players. The tendency to bash D’Angelo Russell after only 7 games in the NBA borders on the absurd. He’s 19 years old. Let’s give him time to grow and mature. Even his physique is not yet there. (Neither was mine at the age of 19 and I was on the tennis team in college.) This will not take place over night.
With regard to Scott. Yes. He missed a golden opportunity to play Russell last night in the final 6-8 minutes of the 4th quarter. He could also have played Clarkson, Randle, and Nance or Anthony Brown during those minutes. I would not have complained if he had done that.
Whether he should be fired for that or not is another matter. But I’m sure Mitch was watching.
Clay Bertrand says
Steve V, my sentiment EXACTLY!! I was sooooo looking forward to that KOBE-FREE game!! COULD it be that Byron will be able to serve 2 Masters after all???? COULD he rest Kobe on Back to Backs and in turn give DAR and the other young guys the important minutes they need like the 4th Quarter closing Minutes?!?!?!?!?!?
Uhhh No…..No…..No, not at all. Byron is an idiot. Way to play your VETs in garbage time down double digits on a 1-6 team!!!!!! Byron is a real Norman Dale out there ain’t he?????
SMH
Anonymous says
I had the pleasure (?) of watching both NY games in person. Watching Kobe was tough. On D he either did not care and was saving his legs, or his body just can’t defend athletic wings anymore (he really should have had a red cape for the matador act he pulled).
On O he looked frustrated – both at his inability to hit shots he would’ve nailed in years gone by and at the generally awful state of the team’s offensive strategy. There were some nice PNRs (Russell made a couple of nice jumpers out of them) and some nice interior passing (a beauty from Kobe and a nice one from Hibbert) but for the most part, the half court sets just got bogged down. When Young and Williams were on the floor it was mostly one pass and a bad shot (sometimes even the one pass was absent).
D was worse. As many have pointed out, Hibbert often has to take on rogue penetrators because the wing defenders were blown by. This left him out of position for the rebound and no one seemed to know when or how to cover that (to his credit Randle had a couple of really strong defensive grabs, but he was out of position a lot). More worryingly, they looked devoid of athleticism and completely lacking in communication. Players often looked at each other in surprise when an opposing player had a clean look at the basket or an open lane off of a screen.
I think the deficiencies at both ends can be attributed to a variety of factors but largely to the roster, coaching and growing pains (most of these guys have never played together before). On D our guys are either young and still learning or vets who have never really cared about D (MWP and Roy being the big exceptions). On O, it’s the same problem – young kids learning surrounded by capable but not star talent. Add a fading legend who still has things to prove and its a combustible mix. That’s where the coaching needs to come in and maybe it is something that will come with time. But it could be a long time and, in the mean time, we’ll have to endure another 20 win season.
As for Russell – I’m preaching patience. The kid has great vision and reads the floor well (including on D where he had some nice intercepts because he saw the pass coming). Problem is, he needs to rein it in a little – just because you see the perfect seam doesn’t mean your teammate can get to the spot. His jump shot will come with time and he already has some nice moves (the ankle breaker against the Nets was a thing of beauty). It’s the other end where the problems lie – he looks slow and confused. You can fix the latter but not the former.
matt says
On mudiay, if he went to china last year for money, it probly dropped him down about 4 draft spots, which costs him at least
1.5 million per year over next 4 years
Devean George Forever says
I would feel better about Russell if I saw him beat someone off the dribble more. My interest in drafting Russell was thinking that finally the Lakers got someone who could penetrate and dish or finish like we see seemingly every other team do to them. But the driving + finishing or driving + dishing is a rare sighting.
I hope a lot of this is because of their offensive scheme but I see Clarkson able to penetrate so it can be done. Just frustrating not seeing Russell blow by the Jose Calderons of the league.
It seems to me that says
the plan is to be patient–with the coach, with the front office, with the rookies and sophomores, and with Kobe–but Lakers fans for the most part are pretty terrible at being patient. Rebuilds are painful and take time. I won’t reach the level of histrionics on display here and elsewhere for another couple of years, if it even comes to that, which it probably won’t. Everything that ails us now will get sorted out in time, and given that we won the title just over five years ago and that the most recent champion had to wait forty years between titles, I think we can spare a few more years of patience while the Lakers continue to rebuild. Other teams need to win too, after all.
Also, as anyone with their feet on the ground can plainly see, the petition linked above is meaningless except as an outlet for the fans’ frustrations. I hope no one actually thinks the front office is going to fire the coach because 700 people signed a petition. I mean, even if it were to reach 10,000 signatures, that would still represent a tiny minority of Lakers fans, and even that assumes that all of the signatories would, in fact, be Lakers fans. Moreover, if the front office were to actually fire Byron because of that petition, it would become the single greatest piece of evidence of their incompetence, which is precisely why that petition will have approximately zero effect. Anyone who believes otherwise seriously needs to regain a grasp on reality.
If they fire Byron, it will have nothing to do with how loudly a minority of more or less ignorant fans shouted for it. And, for the record, I do not currently think Byron will be fired during this season, but I freely acknowledge that I am not privy to all of the information–and neither is any other Lakers fan. We are all operating from a position of ignorance, and thus our opinions on these internal matters mean virtually nothing to the front office, and appropriately so. Much as some hate to admit it, the front office has far more information at their disposal upon which they can base their decisions, so it’s frankly quite laughable that a handful of armchair GMs think they somehow know better than Mitch, than Byron, than Jim and Jeanie. We fans only get to see the games and maybe some snippets of some practices and only get to hear brief answers to questions from the media. In truth, and as Darius mentioned, we have very little sense of what actually goes on behind the scenes.
Byron Scott could actually be a good developmental coach when the cameras are off and the mics aren’t in his face, and there is some evidence to this effect, even if people currently choose to diminish it in service of their mission to oust him. Mitch and Jim could actually be doing a good job of rebuilding, even though the roster as currently constructed is inarguably deficient, because we already know, as Darius pointed out months ago, that this season’s roster is just a work in progress, that one off-season could not possibly cure all that ailed this team over the previous two years, and that there are surely more moves to come in due time.
We just have to be patient as it all unfolds–as the roster comes together and takes shape over the next couple of seasons, as the young players develop under Scott over the course of this season and maybe (probably?) next, as Kobe transitions out of the NBA, sad as it will be to see him go, and as decisions are eventually made on whether to retain the services of Byron and Mitch and on whether Jim will step down from his position, decisions that no one should expect to come soon, though one of them certainly could.
It’d be nice if people could just try–and I absolutely know that some here do–to enjoy the ride, bumpy and uncomfortable as it may be at times, until we get there. Because we will get there eventually. And by there, I mean back to watching the team jumping around spraying champagne in a locker room after a finals-clinching win. We can’t control when that will happen, but we can control how much agony we put ourselves through in the meantime. I vote for focusing on the positives, without ignoring the negatives and definitely without dwelling on the negatives, and I know I’m not alone in that view because I already see people doing just that in this space.
It’d also be great if we could inject some levity into the discussion, and I don’t mean the sort that takes shots at your favorite whipping boy (Byron, Jim, Kobe, etc.). When did being a Lakers fan become such serious business? It’s not like the 17th title is on the line any time soon, so people need to lighten up a whole lot. There’s no need to get angry at the results–we knew they’d be bad. Fans need to shrug all this off with a laugh instead of getting up in arms over every little thing or seeking out every possible avenue to advance their agenda of getting so-and-so fired. I actually saw a Lakers fan comment the other day on another blog that he might actually try to murder Byron. I mean, while I doubt that fan’s seriousness, here is a clear sign that some fans are riding this wave of negativity into a very dark place, so let’s try to change the tone.
Embrace our team’s ineptitude, use humor, not anger, to cope, and remember that brighter days are ahead: we can already safely surmise that we probably have at least one star in our crop of youngsters, maybe even two, and if the third develops the way we hope, it could be three. These dark clouds over us now are already starting to move east, and though it may take another year or two to clean up after this storm, we can already see the rays of sun peeking through the clouds out west. Our day will come again.
Calvin says
It seems to me that – that was a great post.
matt says
This brings to mind that the collective bargaining that just took place was geared at dethroning the lakers
matt says
That being said i hope the cavs never when because their owner was the main lakers opponent in that cba agreement
matt says
I hope the cavs never win
J C says
It seems to me that
I’d like to support your call for levity
And introduce something I like to call
“Implied Levity”
Any sentence that includes Byron’s name and the word coach or coaching
Qualifies as Implied Levity