Jul 29, 2014; El Segundo, CA, USA; Byron Scott (center) poses with former Los Angeles Lakers players Jamaal Wilkes and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson and general manager Mitch Kupchak at a press conference to announce Scott
Adam: Lakers fans have undoubtedly been spoiled by success, but just how grim is it to watch this team? Do you get even the slightest sense of a philosophy being in place to help them to develop?
Jacob: Well early on in the season, the philosophy of the front office seemed to place importance on winning games, quite foolishly. There was a sense that, because we still had Kobe Bryant, we couldn’t possibly tank, or at least, not try our hardest to win games.
Given our situation, winning games was the absolute worst thing that we could do. If we don’t stay in the top five come draft time and subsequently lose our draft pick, this is the worst season in Lakers’ history, hands down.
Once Bryant went down with injury, it was like we didn’t have to fool ourselves anymore. Jordan Clarkson moved from struggling to get playing time on the court to starting (and impressing).
The Lakers still say they aren’t tanking, but they’ve put a larger focus on developing the few youngsters we have. While it’s been a struggle, being able to see the progress makes losing games worth it.
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