D'Angelo Russell is once again in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. He was recently benched and such drew yet another round of criticism on how head coach Byron Scott is handling the development of the second round pick in the last National Basketball Association (NBA) Draft.
Scott's reason was that Russell is "trying to take over a game" and such was the reason for his benching.
There are those who are not afraid to criticize Scott on how he is handling Russell, believing that Scott is holding back the rookie too much. Don MacLean, a Los Angeles Clippers analyst, mentioned he was hoping to see Scott give Russell more freedom to show his true capability.
In a way, MacLean has a point. With the Lakers continuously losing anyway, what has Scott got to lose? He claims he doesn't want Russell to ridicule himself, but isn't that a better learning point that could strike some sense into someone who needs to eventually make his own decisions on the court?
Scott went as far as to stress that such is the reason why MacLean is not a coach. He still stands on his philosophy of doing the right thing despite what many feel is not.
The Lakers coach goes on to justify that everything is a process. He bares that he is still trying to get Russell adjusted to both ends of the floor, although he failed to include the self-confidence that may be dwindling inside of Russell.
Thus far, Scott has managed to pull out the frustrations from Russell and even sophomore forward Julius Randle. The kids obviously don't have any choice since Scott reportedly still has the confidence of Lakers management.
If true, then the Lakers are unlikely to gain any ground soon. This season is a done one for the purple and gold, the third year in a row.
Scott is unlikely to be fired by season's end. The story is different, though, if he is unable to produce yet positive results in the first eight to 10 games of the 2016–17 NBA season. Should the Lakers continue to sputter, expect a coaching change from there.
