Los Angeles Lakers rookie guard D’Angelo Russell must go through the process of developing as an NBA player, but head coach Byron Scott has a plan to help the Ohio State product.
According to Mike Trudell of TWC Sports Net, Scott said he is accelerating this stage of Russell’s career.
Scott said they are accelerating the process and taking extra time with Russell. He believes in him, wants to push him further.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) November 11, 2015
In related news, Byron Scott apparently has no idea how to accelerate the development process for a rookie.
Tuesday night against the Miami Heat, Scott subbed out Russell with a shade under five minutes remaining in the third quarter. Then, for some bizarre reason, he didn’t check back in during the final quarter.
That wasn’t just a phrase. The reason truly was bizarre.
Serena Winters of TWC Sports Net reported Scott said “he didn’t really consider” using Russell later on because Miami had too big of a lead.
To make matters worse, Nick Young played all 12 fourth-quarter minutes on Tuesday. What purpose was there to leave him in over Russell? The correct answer is none.
Now, if Russell were a pivotal piece of late-game situations, that would be a reasonable explanation. Exactly one week earlier, however, Scott didn’t use Russell during the final frame against the Denver Nuggets in a non-blowout.
Coaching is a difficult job. It’s easy to criticize a coach from a desk chair and a laptop. But what in the world is Byron Scott thinking? No process is being usefully accelerated with Russell right now.