Los Angeles Lakers guard Nick Young did not practice Tuesday for a second consecutive day due to a sore left knee. Though his MRI results came back negative for anything serious, head coach Byron Scott is unsure whether he will be available for Wednesday’s game against the Utah Jazz. Robert Sacre, who sat out of practice on Monday with what the Lakers referred to as a sore foot, did practice on Tuesday and is expected to be available on Wednesday.
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With the unfortunate news that Ronnie Price will be out for the season due to a bone spur in his right elbow, point guards Jordan Clarkson and Ronnie Price will be expected to step up in his absence.
His toughness,” Scott said of what the team will miss without Price. “He’s just a tough sucker, he goes all out. His impact on causing turnovers and his physical presence at the point guard position.”
Scott has continually praised Price for his effort on the defensive end this season. Scott also said that rookie Jordan Clarkson probably has the most potential to follow in Price’s footsteps as a relentless defender, pointing specifically to his quickness and his athleticism, but also noted he needs to get stronger.
A big topic of conversation at practice was the post-game celebration (can be viewed here) after the Lakers overtime win over the Boston Celtics, which involved Nick Young and Jordan Hill crashing Jeremy Lin’s post-game interview, and even Carlos Boozer stopping by for a quick photobomb. Despite immediate reactions of hilarity and goofiness, after Kobe Bryant was asked about his reaction to the celebration on Jimmy Kimmel on Monday night, the tides quickly turned. Bryant elicited a combined reaction of silence and the classic Kobe ‘death stare,’ which can be viewed here. Scott said he first saw the celebration on Kimmel and was very disappointed, so much so that he addressed it with the team on Tuesday morning.
My thoughts were I was angry, Scott said about his personal reaction, siding with Bryant. “That’s not us as Lakers, that’s not how we act.” Scott continued on the team’s reaction after addressing it this morning, “They pretty much agreed that it was very distasteful and it’s just not something that we want to be known as, as a basketball organization, cause that’s not who we are here. As a coach of this team, I was very disappointed.”
Nick Young did not speak to the media about the backlash from the celebration after practice. Of Scott addressing it before practice, Sacre said his teammates knew they messed up, said it was a “mental mistake,” and that it wouldn’t happen again. The Lakers fly to Utah this afternoon and take on a 21-34 Jazz team Wednesday night.
[divide]Ronnie Price Scheduled To Have Surgery, Expected To Be Out For The Season