Nick Young Benched, Xavier Henry to Start
November 1, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Xavier Henry (7) goes in for a basket against the San Antonio Spurs during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
According to reports, Xavier Henry is going to replace Nick Young in the starting lineup tonight against the Atlanta Hawks.
D'Antoni on replacing Young with X. Henry: "He's played as well if not better than anybody. There's no reason not to go ahead and do this."
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) November 3, 2013
In the first three games of the season, Nick Young has struggled. Swagy P is averaging 8.3 points, 1.3 rebounds, 0.3 assists, 0.7 steals, and 0.7 blocks. Young is shooting 27.3 percent from the floor, and 33.3 percent from three. Coming in, Young was expected to be a scoring threat, but he hasn’t been that.
Xavier Henry, on the other hand, has been arguably the Lakers best player so far. Henry has averaged 13 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 0.3 steals. He is shooting 40 percent from the field, and 42.9 percent from beyond the arc.
Henry has been huge for the Lakers coming off of the bench, and the Lakers have front-court issues right now, so it is a little surprising to see this be the one change. Young has definitely struggled this far, and a change was needed, however.