Byron Scott has voiced his opinion on a number of occasions since being fired by the Los Angeles Lakers. While his sentiments have remained cordial, he did declare that he was blindsided by the Lakers' decision to let him go, and he was led to believe he had at least one more year to coach the team.
Now, he's diving into what he thinks might've saved his job. It appears that he just doesn't quite get it yet.
“If I knew this was coming, I would have played Lou (Williams), Brandon (Bass), and guys like that a whole lot more,” Scott said, via Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. “They gave me the best chance to win.”
Scott still doesn't understand what the Lakers wanted from him. The firing came because of his inability to develop young players, the lack of camaraderie that he had with those guys, and a lack of opportunities for them on the court. Even as he tries to piece together why he was let go, he keeps missing.
Scott later said that his objectives were to “develop the young guys” and make sure that Kobe Bryant “got to the final game relatively healthy.”
He succeeded with only one of those unfortunately.
Sure, on a given night, the Lakers' veterans probably would have given them a better chance to come out on top. But winning at all costs would not have done them any good; the Lakers' first round pick is only top-three protected.
It must be frightening for Lakers fans to entertain the idea that Scott actually wanted to play younger guys, like D'Angelo Russell and Julius Randle, less in crucial, crunch time situations.
“Young guys are young guys,” Scott said. “You hope sooner or later with all those guys that the light bulb comes on and you get that ‘aha moment’ where they can say, ‘I got it and understand what you’re talking about it. We had those moments very sparingly.”
As an organization that's rebuilding, you want your head coach to instill belief in young players and give them the opportunity to learn and develop on the floor. Do you think Russell felt that Scott truly believed in him?
Byron Scott can be a great head coach in the NBA, but he just wasn't the right fit for these Lakers.
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