Lakers Bench: Where Motivation Happens
By Scott Asai
Nov 18, 2014; Atlanta, GA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers center Jordan Hill (27) and forward Carlos Boozer (5) and guard Jeremy Lin (17) celebrate their win over the Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena. The Lakers won 114-109. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports
The Los Angeles Lakers aren’t making strides anytime soon.
Their roster is more comparable to a D-League than NBA team.
With Byron Scott‘s demotion of Jeremy Lin and Carlos Boozer on Sunday, both players were displeased because it came as a surprise to them. Ronnie Price and Ed Davis were inserted into the starting lineup and the Lakers got thumped by the New Orleans Pelicans.
Byron noted “defense” as the means for the change, but losing Lin and Boozer as starters means there’s even more pressure on Kobe Bryant to carry the team offensively. Lin took it in stride (since he’s such a nice guy), but Boozer took offense to it (breaking his 500 plus consecutive games streak as a starter). The ego can be a tough animal to control, but life moves on.
Maybe part of the reason Byron sent Lin and Boozer to the bench is to motivate them. There’s a certain “comfort level” when you’re in the starting lineup and unspoken expectation for guaranteed minutes. Contrary to coming off the bench where nothing is certain and everything you get is earned. According to reports Scott did not communicate his intentions to Lin or Boozer, and although it would have been better to notify them, it could be his way of sending a message.
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When Scott got hired he specifically said defense will be the Lakers identity moving forward and he would hold players accountable. Currently the Lakers sit in the basement in terms of defensive ranking, but a lot of that has to do with the personnel. Life isn’t about what happens to you, but how you handle it so on Tuesday night against the Kings, Lin and Boozer asserted themselves. Lin didn’t have a statistically sound night, but he did seem more into the game and even yelled at Kobe once for not getting back on defense. Boozer had one of his better games with 15 points and 9 rebounds and he finished the game in the 4th quarter.
Being in the starting lineup may get the headlines, but it’s who ends the game that matters. Lin has fluctuated in his career between starter and backup and that will continue until he commits to penetrating consistently on offense. Ironically, Boozer finished the game because of his defense and hustle, something that eluded him in the past years as a member of the Chicago Bulls.
The Lakers can do only so much when it comes to shuffling the lineup. Players need to perform and the Lakers need to have 5 plus players in double figures nightly to compete.
What the Lakers lack in talent, they have to overcompensate for in work ethic.
A mad player is usually a bad player, but a “wounded ego” may be just the motivation the Lakers need to get on a winning streak.