Byron Scott has admitted to mismanaging Kobe Bryant’s workload in his first season on the Los Angeles Lakers’ bench, and is already ensuring he won’t do the same in 2015-16. According to ESPN’s Baxter Holmes, Scott banished the future Hall of Famer from the purple and gold’s practice facility on Monday because he was “really angry” with himself.
“I said, just stay away from the gym today,” Scott said after the team’s practice at their facility here. “Just spend some time with your kids and family and get basketball off your mind for 24 hours if you can — which I don’t think he can — and then come in tomorrow fresh and we’ll go from there.”
After scoring 15 points on 3-of-15 shooting in the Lakers’ loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday, a frustrated Bryant told reporters that he’s currently the “200th-best player in the league” and “freaking sucks.” That simmering madness apparently boiled into a frenzy overnight, to the point that Scott realized physical and mental rest would be better for his aging superstar than trying to correct mistakes in the gym.
A day off is beneficial for all professional athletes, let alone those who recently set a NBA record for most seasons played with a single franchise. But barring the type of harsh self-reflection that would render his longstanding approach to the game a thing of the past, Bryant’s struggles seem bound to continue.
Both Scott and rookie point guard D’Angelo Russell insisted to ESPN that the five-time champion has simply missed shots he normally makes in the season’s early going. A decade or even five years ago, that would certainly be a fair assumption. But injuries combined with general wear and tear have sapped Bryant of the lift and explosion that once made his shot-making exploits unparalleled. Not only are his field goal attempts more easily contested these days, but they’re also just more difficult to make in a vacuum – and he hasn’t adjusted his game accordingly.
Is a recognition of that development the genesis of Bryant’s anger? For performances of both he and his team, the Lakers should hope so. Otherwise, Bryant will be in for a long season of dismal shooting nights inspired by his inability to accept reality.
(Via ESPN)
