Andrew Goudelock was balling on borrowed time as a rookie in Los Angeles. Lucky for him he arrived when Phil Jackson departed. Mike Brown actually gave Goudelock some time to shine on the court whereas PJ and his disdain of NBA newbies would have had G-Lock sitting behind the bench in street clothes.
With Ramon Sessions running the Lake Show and the playoffs just around the corner, it appears as if Goudelock’s rookie season is coming to its conclusion. For now he’ll remain on the active roster but that too could change.
Coach Brown is tightening up his rotation for the postseason. That means men like Goudelock with minimal NBA experience are going to be doing more watching than playing in the coming weeks.
While he won’t get any rookie of the year votes, G-Lock’s first season has shown real potential. He arrived with the reputation as a shooter but has also shown the ability to get into the paint finishing with his patented one-hand runner. During a streak in which Goudelock was dropping double figures off the bench on the regular, Kobe Bryant dubbed his fellow backcourt mate as “Mini Mamba”.
Goudelock might not ever grow up to be a full fledged Mamba but he’s certainly shown he can play at this level. But his continued growth will have to wait. Unless there is an injury of some sort the first chapter in Goudelock’s book looks about done.