In order for the Lakers to have success this season, two important pieces must become and remain healthy. Both Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash, both fighting Father Time and injuries, could be the purple and gold’s starting backcourt.
For some fans, that would make them cringe. However, with scrimmages going on nearly at full force at the Lakers practice facility, and according to new Laker Jeremy Lin, the duo look great.
Via Inside The Lakers:
"“They both look really good and really healthy,” Lakers guard Jeremy Lin said Thursday at the Foot Locker in Westfield Mall at Culver City, both to promote his Adidas shoes and sign autographs for fans. That’s the biggest thing for us. Health is going to be a huge factor for us this upcoming season. They were moving well and looked much better than they did last year.”“Just to see them out there and playing in pickup is just refreshing,” Lin said. “It’s been eye opening to see how Steve and Kobe are almost like robots in what they do. They know what they came here to do. They get it done, and then they leave. It’s very detail oriented and very robotic and they don’t mess around.”"
This may be a case of same old song and dance. Last season, we heard about how quickly Bryant was recovering and how good Nash and his moody back looked. Then we watched them combine to play 21 games and a whole lot of insignificant minutes.
It will certainly be the key storyline coming into this season. The Lakers are going to rely on the duo as veterans, but these two will likely also have a fair amount of time off in order to stay completely healthy. It’ll be a tricky balancing act for new coach Byron Scott.