On Saturday night, several veteran team members of the Los Angeles Lakers reportedly had a heated exchange with head coach Luke Walton following the team's 115-101 defeat at the hands of the defending champs, the Golden State Warriors.
A new report has surfaced that, apparently, this was not the first time forward Michael Beasley — one of the three players reportedly involved in a shouting match with Walton, along with JaVale McGee and Lance Stephenson — clashed heads with his head coach. According to Lakers insider Bill Oram, Beasley and Walton also had a similarly intense exchange when the team faced the Thunder a couple of weeks back:
Not the first time things have gotten heated between Walton and Beasley. They had a flare-up on the bench in Oklahoma City earlier this month. https://t.co/xWxlSvES3q
— Bill Oram (@billoram) February 3, 2019
The fact that this is the second time Beasley has clashed with Walton in the span of a month simply means that the latter likely no longer has the confidence of the former. Sure, the Lakers PR team can spin this as a display of the team's competitiveness and desire to win, but there is still a fine line between questioning your coach and an outright lack of respect for authority, right?
The problem is that the frustration appears to have boiled over to other players on the squad. With two other veterans also clashing with the coach, it seems that this is more than just a personal feud between Beasley and Walton. Maybe the rumors are true and Walton has really lost his locker room.
These are definitely tumultuous times for the organization, and there are now a good number of people who believe that a coaching change might just be on the horizon for the Lakers.
Follow Us
Subscribe