Coming into the 2014-15 NBA campaign, Jordan Hill had signed a lucrative two-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers after putting up career-high numbers across the board last season.
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With Hill’s deal including a team option for $9 million next season, the veteran forward/center has an incentive to play well once again this year. So far, Hill’s numbers have increased and he’s been arguably the team’s second-best player behind Kobe Bryant, but recently, the 27-year-old has struggled with his consistency.
Head coach Byron Scott believes Hill’s body simply isn’t recovering fast enough due to considerable boost in minutes this season at 29.2 per game. Scott said the following about Hill, via Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times:
“He’s not recovering in that 24 hours or 48 hours, whatever the case may be, as fast as we want him to or as fast as his body should,” Scott said. “It’s something that we’ve just got to try to figure out.”
Scott also mentioned that Hill’s energy and intensity hasn’t been there as of late, via Bresnahan:
“This month, watching him on film, the intensity’s not there,” Lakers Coach Byron Scott said. “I don’t know if he’s tired. But he’s 20-what years old?”
Although Hill has struggled recently, he’s still put up solid numbers this season with 12.0 points and 8.0 rebounds while shooting 46.5 percent from the floor. Adjusting to more minutes as a starter under Scott seems to have taken a toll on Hill, but it could be nothing more than a temporary slump for the Arizona product.
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