The Los Angeles Lakers understand that the rebuilding process is not an overnight success. It will take months of hard work and determination for the young core to comprehend the success head coach Luke Walton has in store.
Walton and the Lakers have demonstrated some sneak peaks into the possible future of the franchise, especially with their 117-97 victory over the Golden State Warriors. The team has also handed the Atlanta Hawks one of their two losses this season, along with an opening night victory over the vastly improved Houston Rockets.
While Walton and the franchise wouldn’t admit to any success just yet, the team understands the long-term plan in store and that they must continue to evolve their games in order to succeed.
The 26th head coach in franchise history has said that this year was about establishing a foundation and culture and when asked about it, Walton stated that the team is continuing to grow into it, via Chris Mannix of The Vertical:
“That’s an ongoing process,” Walton said. “We’re on the right path. Our guys enjoy coming into work. All those things come into play and are beneficial, especially when you are trying to develop good habits. We have got guys who are excited about coming in the gym.”
Walton gave credit to the players and their willingness to learn. The team has come into practice each day ready to learn something new, in order to improve the offense and their overall games.
After their upsetting loss to the Mavericks, the entire team showed up to practice with a renewed sense of focus. When teams go through a difficult loss, it makes the roster want to work on their cohesion, so that they can show better results in late game scenarios.
The Lakers continue to focus on what is in front of them, rather than taking any approach towards anything far in the future. The team gears up for a Thursday night showdown against the Sacramento Kings on NBA On TNT.