The Los Angeles Lakers are now 1-5 after losing to the New York Knicks on Sunday. Should the last straw finally break the camel’s back, who should succeed Byron Scott?
Six games into the season and coach Byron Scott is already on the hot seat, a la Mike Brown. Lakers fans around the globe have been quick to offer their selection for next head coach of the Lakers, but do they really have the right answer?
Despite finally switching up his rotations, now utilizing Larry Nance Jr., Tarik Black and Metta World Peace, Scott’s efforts seem to be coming too little, too late. Further, he continues to demonstrate his black-and-white coaching style, playing players completely, or not at all.
With Scott there seems to be no gray area, no compromise, something that nearly every great NBA coach possesses.
Last week, we discussed what coach Tom Thibodeau would bring to Los Angeles, today we do the same with possible candidate, Scott Brooks.
Brooks showed that he knew how to place his young stars in positions to not only grow, but thrive
To explain in a single word: development.
Aside from Thibs, one of the hottest names surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers is former Oklahoma City Thunder coach, Scott Brooks.
In short, Scott Brooks would not have D’Angelo Russell on the bench in the fourth quarter of tight games, but neither would any other semi-competent basketball coach.
Scott maintains his position that winning takes priority over the development of his young players, and his actions follow suit.
Will Bryon let @Dloading finish this game?
— Lake Show Life (@TheLakeShowLife) November 8, 2015
With that in mind, if there’s one coach in the league who knows how to develop young NBA talent, it’s Scotty Brooks.
Just look at what he did for Kevin Durant, James Harden, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka. Sure, they never won a championship, and very well may the first year after his departure under Billy Donovan, but Brooks showed that he knew how to place his young stars in positions to not only grow, but thrive.
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The argument can be made that, like Derrick Rose in Chicago, the trio of Westbrook, Durant and Harden, were destined for super stardom, but Brooks did his due diligence to give them the playing time they needed to expedite that process.
It must be stated that the Thunder had an insane amount of luck in the draft — back-to-back-to-back top four picks between 2007 and 2009 — and that their scouting personnel should get as much credit as Brooks himself for who they turned those picks into.
Though the blame always seems to fall on Brooks, and admittedly it was partially his fault, responsibility of the Thunder’s failures could also be pinned on the front office. Their decision to trade Harden away for pennies on the dollar, may ultimately be what doomed them.
“favored aging veterans who couldn’t play anymore, failed to stagger the minutes of his stars…” – Zach Lowe on Scott Brooks
That said, one thing that fans tend to overlook when endorsing Brooks is his tendency to get stuck in his ways. One of the main reasons he was let go by OKC was that he never seemed to make the adjustments necessary for championship success.
Similarly, one of the biggest qualms fans tend to have with Byron Scott is his inability to make decisions quickly. Instead, he tends to wait for the losses to pile up before doing anything.
Fans who think that he is the end all, cure all to the Lakers’ coaching conundrum may be surprised to learn that Brooks had similar problems with OKC.
Per Zach Lowe, formerly of Grantland,
"Brooks evolved after those 2012 Finals, but he was never a coach who could tilt the odds in Oklahoma City’s favor during a playoff series. The same issues always cropped up: He overplayed Perkins, underplayed lineups featuring Durant at power forward, favored aging veterans who couldn’t play anymore, failed to stagger the minutes of his stars, bizarrely had his big men hedge out 35 feet from the basket on nonthreatening pick-and-rolls, and waited a game or a quarter too long to yank lineups that just weren’t working. Brooks’s hook was faster in 2014 than it had been in 2012, but it wasn’t fast enough."
“Favored aging veterans who couldn’t play anymore, failed to stagger the minutes of his stars . . . and waited a game or a quarter too long to yank lineups that just weren’t working.” Sound familiar?
In spite of his excellent record in which he won a staggering 62 percent of his games, could Scott Brooks just be another Byron Scott-esque coach with a better players and more time to experiment? It seems like a case that could be made.
On the “KD to LA” front, a Scott Brooks signing could signal two things:
- KD not wanting to come because he has already tried and failed with Brooks at the helm
- KD liking the prospect of getting a second chance to succeed with his old coach in a better market, with more capital at his team’s disposal
All signs point to the former, but does anyone honestly think that Kevin Durant wants to play for a Byron Scott coached team?
As of now, Thibodeau represents the safest choice, but Brooks will undoubtedly draw consideration should the Lakers move on from Scott.
What do you think about Byron Scott? Were he to be fired, who would you like to see replace him?
Next: Lakers Continue Their Questionable Decision Making
Let us know in the comments below.