This season has not gone the way Jeremy Lin hoped it would when he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in the off-season. With Steve Nash being ruled out for the season, the opportunity was there, but Lin struggled with inconsistency, losing his starting role to Ronnie Price after only 19 games.
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Lin, however, remained a key piece of the Lakers and he began playing some of his best basketball of the season in March. Head coach Byron Scott has been critical of Lin at times during the season, but according to Mark Medina of the LA Daily News, Scott praised Lin for his improvement in the second half of the year:
From a point guard standpoint, I’m still old school,” Scott said. “It’s a new age point guard where they score first than pass first. But the next step for Jeremy as far of running the team, which I think he did a pretty good job in the second half of the season, is just that. He’s thinking with a point guard mentality in getting guys involved first.”
Scott has come under fire at times this season for criticizing players consistently in the media. Nick Young recently spoke out saying he has felt unfairly criticized and Lin has been a constant subject of Scott’s criticisms as well.
Whether or not Lin is one of those players Scott wouldn’t feel comfortable in a ‘foxhole’ with is up for debate, but there is no denying Lin’s improvement. Scott wouldn’t talk about Lin’s future with the team as he prefers to finish out the season first, but Lin has definitely proven himself as a capable player.
[divide]Byron Scott On Jeremy Lin, Ed Davis, Jordan Clarkson