It seems that all of Laker-land is playing a waiting game these days. Some are waiting for the team to learn the offense, others are waiting for the bench to begin making three-pointers, and some are waiting to see if the team will make a major trade or acquisition before the deadline passes next month.
Apparently, head coach Mike Brown is waiting too. According to J. Michael Falgoust of USA Today, Brown is waiting to see what general manager Mitch Kupchak is going to do with the current roster. The two biggest names being linked to the Lakers currently are J.R. Smith and Gilbert Arenas.
Now, a report surfaced on Tuesday stating the Lakers’ interest in Arenas was nothing more than tepid, but the struggles L.A. has had at the point guard position may force Kupchak’s hand in the end.
In regards to Smith, the free agent shooting guard that has been playing in China since the lockout, he reportedly had a conversation with Brown that he recently spoke about on Twitter. Smith tweeted that it was a “great talk” between him and Brown. Later on, Brown confirmed the conversation.
Still, Brown doesn’t want to focus on players that aren’t currently on the Lakers roster.
“I don’t want to lose focus on what my job is, and that’s to coach guys that are on this team,” Brown said. “If I start worrying what about this guy, what about that guy, I’m cheating the guys already on this team and taking my energy away from something that desperately needs my attention by giving it to issues I don’t have any control over.”*
So while Brown and the rest of the team sits and waits, we will be forced to do the same.