Byron Scott came in as the new Los Angeles Lakers head coach saying he was going to focus on defense. So far throughout training camp, that has been exactly what the Lakers have been doing.
With the preseason opener tomorrow night against the Denver Nuggets, Scott laid out exactly what he will be looking for when the Lakers take the floor via Lakers.com:
I wanna see the intensity on the defensive end, that’s the number one thing. And with that, the number two thing is I wanna see how we rebound on the defensive end as well. Because those two things have to go hand-in-hand and those are the two things that have been the biggest emphasis since training camp has started.
Defense and rebounding were not strengths of the Lakers last season. The team ranked 29th in the league in points allowed and 26th in opposing field goal percentage. Rebounding wasn’t any better.
The Lakers were 25th in the league in grabbing rebounds, and dead last in rebounds allowed.
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If the Lakers plan on turning things around this season, those are two things that must be improved upon, and Scott has made it a point to focus on those things. The offense may struggle some, especially with Nick Young hurt.
Scott knows exactly what he wants to see tomorrow and it will be interesting to see if the Lakers will be able to execute. Defense and rebounding are all about effort so if the Lakers struggle with those things, Scott will not be happy.
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