September 28, 2015; El Segundo, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (left) and center Roy Hibbert pose for photographs during media day at Toyota Sports Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Commitment to Defense
Throughout media day the common motif in each interview was the players’ understanding of the importance of defense. In past media days, especially since the arrival of head coach Byron Scott, the topic often came and went, but this year the verbal commitment and acknowledgement from nearly every player interviewed was impressive.
Even volume shooters Young and Lou Williams mentioned that one of the biggest things they worked on this off-season was becoming better two way players. Whether this ends up being the case or not, fans will have to wait and see.
Coach Scott also briefly talked about how the Lakers have capable defenders at nearly every position with Clarkson, World Peace, Brandon Bass and Roy Hibbert which should lead to an improvement from last season’s defensive debacle.
| Unadjusted | Adjusted | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rk | Team | W | L | W/L% | MOV | DRtg ▾ | NRtg | MOV/A | DRtg/A | NRtg/A |
| 1 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 16 | 66 | .195 | -8.79 | 112.98 | -9.36 | -8.00 | 112.50 | -8.52 |
| 2 | Los Angeles Lakers | 21 | 61 | .256 | -6.84 | 111.44 | -7.36 | -6.17 | 110.90 | -6.65 |
| 3 | New York Knicks | 17 | 65 | .207 | -9.32 | 111.01 | -10.13 | -9.49 | 111.36 | -10.30 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 9/29/2015.
Next: Realistic, but Optimistic