Lakers Media Day: Welcome to the Byron Scott Era

At Lakers Media Day Byron Scott was ecstatic, grinning like it was Christmas morning and he just got that shiny new car he always wanted. “The last week I’ve been waking up and thinking about training camp and getting ready. I’m real excited. For the last week I haven’t been getting a lot of sleep.” For a local kid who used to sneak into the Forum as a teenager to see the Lakers play this is a dream come true. “I’m living the life. It doesn’t get any better to be able to come back here and coach with this organization. It’s an amazing story.” Byron’s long career as a player first and then a coach is one of the reasons he believes this is a perfect time to coach the Lakers. “I have coaching experience and success. This is the right time to come here and coach with this organization.”

Sep 29, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers head coach Byron Scott during media day at the team practice facility in El Segundo. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

He admitted the players should be scared of his grueling training camp. But the fans? That’s a different story. Everywhere Byron goes in the city he receives unconditional love, applause and encouragement. He has yet to hear one negative world only because they have not lost any games (yet). “The fans have been unbelievable to me. They have been fantastic.” His number one priority is getting every player not named Kobe Bryant to commit themselves to championship level effort every night. “We didn’t always get to the championship”, he said, speaking of his playing days, “but not because of our work ethic and our commitment. On day one there has to be a championship dedication.” His training camp goals are to establish defense which he is going to stress tonight at the team dinner.

As far as Kobe Bryant’s minutes he has a plan in mind that he wants to speak to Kobe about that will keep Kobe fresh by the end of the season. There will have to be compromises on back to back nights. “I know Kobe wants to play 48 minutes.” But he expects Kobe to play in all 82 games.

But Byron is not worried about offense in training camp just player combinations. Once the season starts he’ll know after game 15 what type of a team he has and what they have to work on. “I’ll be able to tell our strengths and weaknesses.”

A player who is expected to finally break out of his four year slump is Wesley Johnson. He worked with Kobe all summer which he admitted was difficult because Kobe is so demanding but he improved his footwork in order to be more efficient. “It helped me a lot. It was tough working with him because he ramped it up. I think the Lakers want me to assert myself more on offense. I get different energy on the defensive end. I think I can be a lock down guy. I think I’m confident on defense.”

The person everyone wanted to see, Kobe Bryant, had a tranquil, peaceful demeanor on the surface as he talked about getting ready for training camp. He put in a lot of work over the summer and visualized the moment so many times it is anti-climactic in a way. He’s worked it out all in his head. “I’m calm and ready to go out there and see how my training has paid off.” He feels great. When he’s on the court the last thing he thinks about are his past injuries or what he can or cannot do. He is comfortable where he is with his career at his age. He spoke frequently about not resisting nature and a big part of that is accepting where you are. Live in the present. “I let if flow naturally.” But he admitted his mindset is “a mixture of nervousness and a little rage, trying to see if I can prove to myself that I can be myself.”

Sep 29, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (24) during media day at the team practice facility in El Segundo. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

He’s not concerned with his offense. “I can always dictate what I’m going to do.” But reminding everyone he’s Kobe he said, “for me it’s win or its failure.” Which is similar to Pat Riley’s: there is winning or there is misery. Getting in a shot at D’antoni he said of last year’s Lakers coach, “D’antoni and I didn’t have the same philosophy on winning.”

Of his new teammates Kobe admitted, “the guys are so young. The roles are different from a leadership perspective. You have to spend a lot of time getting to know the guys you’re playing with and helping them find the inner beast and how to prepare. Mentally you have to prepare more.” He got a little irritated every time someone asked about his minutes. He doesn’t see it as a problem, just a transition. “The misinterpretation is that I’m hellbent on playing. No. I’m hellbent on winning.”

He is used to playing a style in which he leaves nothing in the tank, everything out on the floor. He realizes that will only wear him down and more importantly make him susceptible for injury. So he has to pace his energy level. “You can’t play like you have everything in the tank even if you feel like you can. I’ve just got to be a little more patient and make sure when you step off the court you still have something there.” He repeated. “You can’t resist nature. You have to be smart and patient and look at it like a challenge.”

When asked about Derek Jeter he said he was moved, not by Jeter’s game winning hit in his last at bat at Yankee Stadium, but when Jeter walked off the field that last time. When he really said goodbye. “That’s what I’ll remember.”

The Lakers other future Hall of Famer, Steve Nash, was probably the happiest player at media day. He couldn’t stop grinning. At 40 years old the desire to keep playing is a privilege for Nash. He admitted a lot of the Lakers roster are players half his age. He took it as a great compliment to his talent and perseverance that he can be on the same court with young guys. “I had a great California summer. I haven’t had any setbacks”, he said to everyone’s relief.

But it still is unclear how much his body can withstand once full contact is in play. “I’m optimistic”, Nash said. “The upside is completely dependent upon the intangibles. I just try to enjoy the day. It’s different than when you’re in your prime. If I’m healthy I will contribute a lot.” Unlike many great players Nash looks forward to the young players and offering his basketball wisdom. “I enjoy sharing and helping people succeed. I held on to things so tight in the past, being so competitive and working out so much. I’m still working hard but not holding on so tight, just being a part of a team and not carrying the load. I can help and advise and watch these guys achieve. I can give to the team what I can and not have any preconceived notions of what it looks like.”

Then he added, “it’s important to go out on my own terms and enjoy the ride. I know when I’m healthy I can still do it.”

Jul 24, 2014; El Segundo, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers

speaks to the media during a press conference at Toyota Sports Center. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Jeremy Lin was equally bubbly about being a Laker, especially working with Nash. “I want to soak up as much information as I can.” Lin also spoke about his three goals this summer. He wanted to be more consistent from the three point line. He wanted to work on his defense so he could guard anyone on the perimeter. And he wanted to work on his left hand. During the year he hopes to make better decisions and to be a player that is tough to guard. Besides training this summer Lin spoke about his videos. “It’s a certain aspect of my personality. I like to have fun and show that side to the fans.”

But Lin is constantly reminded of Linsanity wherever he goes. “If when my career is over people are still talking about Linsanity then probably I didn’t do a good job with my career.” He sees no problem playing with Kobe in the backcourt, of being able to rise up to Kobe’s manic level of work ethic and commitment.

The rookie with great promise, Julius Randle, talked about what he has been working on since August 15^th, when he arrived in Los Angeles. “Making good use of my dribbles. In the NBA the lane is open but the defensive schemes force you to make good use of your dribbles.” Randle is mature enough to understand how important it is for a young player to have a team of three veterans like Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Carlos Boozer to mentor him. But his number one goal since arriving in Los Angeles was to work on his body “The biggest learning curve from high school to college was the long season grind. It’s the same all over again. That’s the thing I thought of: you have to take care of your body.”

Not lacking confidence Randle believes he can be a starter but doesn’t want it the easy way. “I want to earn it”, he said. “I don’t want things given to me. I don’t know anything else but to outwork everyone. I plan on being here for the long haul”.

The other rookie, Jordan Clarkson, had a long summer of basketball. First, he was in the NBA Summer League. Then he played in the World Cup for the Philippines. Then he was at the Lakers training facility in El Segundo. His takeaway of the NBA game is its speed. As a combo guard he has to know when to speed up and when to slow down. “My strength is my size and my athletic ability. I can stay with small guys, I can do a little bit of everything. I’m a playmaker and I score the ball and put an effort on the defensive end.” His explosiveness to the rim remind many of Russell Westbrook who Clarkson admitted he has patterned his game after, especially how Westbrook gets to the basket.

Early this week Clarkson was introduced to Kobe the hard way, in a game. He had to guard Kobe. According to Clarkson, “Kobe put a bucket in my face. That dude is real. He’s insane.”

Robert Sacre admitted it was a long summer because of the disastrous season which gave him time to think about a lot of things. It didn’t seem to concern him about the undersized front line. He feels their competitiveness and their energy will help them overcome their lack of height.

Ryan Kelly married in the offseason and he joked that his wife hasn’t left him yet. (His wife is former NFL coach Bill Cowher’s daughter). Regarding basketball Kelly has spent a lot of time in the gym working on his body and it showed. He is grateful for the new contract and the stability it brings as opposed to last year when the possibility of getting cut was an every day reality. Kelly also worked on his shooting and developing a more extensive shot selection this summer. He wants to be a better three point shooter so defenders will run at him and he can dribble past them to the rim. His interview was interrupted by Nick Young who bragged about being a star. And how much he loves Los Angeles.

Sep 29, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Nick Young (0) during media day at the team practice facility in El Segundo. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

When he was serious Nick talked about working out with Kobe and how that helped him. He wants to be an all around better player. He thinks playing with Kobe more consistently will take the scoring pressure off Kobe. And also, “He’s never played with someone who wants to shoot as much as he does.” Nick wasn’t the first person who mentioned that the Lakers missed Kobe’s presence in the locker room and in practices. They missed his leadership. A healthy Steve Nash in scrimmages is making the game so easy for Nick he can’t wait for training camp and the regular season to start.

Carlos Boozer said all the right things. He said he was honored to be with the Lakers. He said he looked forward to mentoring Julius Randle. He said he was excited about playing with Kobe and Nash. But something about it felt artificial if not rehearsed. He’s 32 and knows the Lakers aren’t going to win a title. So in the back of his mind does he see this as a wasted year? He did mention he had a lot of leadership left. “I have a lot of game in the tank and hopefully wins.” Boozer’s strength and physicality was noticed by several of the Lakers players who are looking forward to Boozer being in the front court even if a lot of Laker fans are not. What Boozer is most excited about is Christmas Day and going back to Chicago and exacting revenge.

“I feel like I’m wanted”, Jordan Hill said. “I just want to go out there and have fun and showcase what I can do.” Jordan stayed in the gym all summer working on a 15-17 foot range shot so he could spread the floor. “I just want to put a little extra stuff in the repertoire. Last year, it was a frustrating time for me.” He was careful not to mention D’antoni’s odd habit of yanking him in and out of lineups but everyone knew what he meant. “I want to help the team. I feel real good. I focused on getting my body ready. I’m ready to get it started. I eliminated alcohol. I have to focus on my body and keeping it healthy.”