Nick Young’s Return Should Be a Big Positive For Los Angeles Lakers
All hail the return of swag — Nick Young is officially listed as a go for Tuesday night’s game against the Atlanta Hawks. His return lightens the load on Kobe Bryant and Jeremy Lin as primary ball handlers and might even mean less Wesley Johnson, which is definitely ideal. Let’s see how else the Los Angeles Lakers’ rotation comes together with Young’s return.
Johnson is the player most likely to fall by the wayside as Young gets more minutes. Johnson has failed to impress hardly at all this season, even when he proclaimed he’d be more aggressive a few games ago. No play summed up Johnson’s ineptitude and lack of aggression more than a play during the Lakers’ loss to the San Antonio Spurs where he had a one-on-one opportunity against Matt Bonner and pulled the ball up instead of, ya know, attacking Bonner in transition. As Young gets more minutes, he’ll probably play alongside Bryant on the wing, making Johnson expendable.
Another interesting dynamic is how the minutes are split up between Ronnie Price and Jeremy Clarkson. Byron Scott considers Price the steadier point guard presence, but Clarkson has turned into something of a fan favorite. Scott has promised changes as the Lakers have struggled so mightily, so it would make some sense to give the younger player some more time to develop. As Young tends to dominate the ball, the necessity to keep a ball-handling point guard becomes less important.
Young’s shooting is also a major addition and gives Scott a few more options offensively in the frontcourt. The Lakers have struggled with spacing as they’re one of the league’s worst three-point shooting teams. Young is easily one of the better shooters on the roster and, given that a major reason for leaning on Carlos Boozer are his offensive abilities, Scott can get away with playing Ed Davis and Jordan Hill together. The move would make sense as a backcourt of Lin, Kobe and Young would need all the help they can get at the rim.
All this said, the area Young will have the most notable impact is on team chemistry, which has suffered recently given the Lakers’ historical bad start. Young’s perpetual smile could help lighten the mood some despite those struggles. His ability to compete and positive attitude last season is why fans are so excited to have him back. Yes, Swaggy P is an all-world goofball, but this season could use a few of the laughs he’s good for. If nothing else, we might even see Kobe and Young legitimately fight over the ball. That’d be fun.
Anthony F. Irwin is an NBA, NFL, MLB and NCAA Football contributor for www.Rantsports.com. Follow him on Twitter, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google. Send him an email at .
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