Nick Young and former Los Angeles Lakers head coach Byron Scott didn’t exactly see eye-to-eye during their two years together. Young wasn’t the only one who didn’t have a great relationship with Scott as D’Angelo Russell found it difficult to play for him as well.
One of the reasons Young and Russell may have found it tough to find their rhythm in Scott’s system is the former head coach’s reluctance to evolve along with the modern day NBA. After Lakers practice on Tuesday, Young was asked about how Scott’s offense differs from Walton’s and gave an honest answer, via Mark Medina of the L.A. Daily News:
Nick Young saying how Walton's offense is different than Byron's: "1st year he didn't want us to shoot 3's."
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) October 18, 2016
With the Lakers now having moved on from Scott after two disappointing seasons, the team has taken the next step in adjusting to today’s game which thrives on three-point shooting by bringing in a progressive coach in Luke Walton. Young, as well as many others on the team, have started to turn things around under Walton with a more free-flowing offense.
Before training camp began for the Lakers a few weeks ago, Young’s future was up in the air with many believing he’d be traded or released at some point before the start of the regular season. The narrative has completely changed for Young since then with Walton challenging the veteran to step up his game defensively in order to be free to play his style offensively.
Walton has been impressed with Young’s play defensively during the preseason. Young has made an effort to secure his roster spot on the squad by becoming a defensive force while also producing on the offensive end. So after it seeming inevitable that Young would be sent packing, the veteran has seemingly resurrected his career in Los Angeles and may become a valuable weapon for Walton off the bench this season.