Before Friday night’s game against the San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers head coach Byron Scott announced that he was making a change to the team’s starting lineup. The major move was inserting rookie Jordan Clarkson into the starting point guard spot.
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Clarkson’s promotion meant that Scott had to choose between Ronnie Price and Jeremy Lin as the backup, and Scott went with Price as Lin did not see the floor. Before Sunday’s game against the Houston Rockets, Lin admitted frustration with not playing via Lakers Nation reporter Serena Winters:
Jeremy Lin asked if not playing was disheartening: "I don't think anybody would feel great after a DNP in the NBA, no matter who you are."
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) January 26, 2015
Lin has seen his minutes fluctuate wildly in his first season with the Lakers. Steve Nash being ruled out for the season put Lin into the starting role, but he was eventually replaced by Price. He had, however, remained a crucial part of the Lakers’ bench until Friday night.
Byron Scott has been critical at times of Lin this year, saying that he doesn’t believe Lin has played well this season, and consistently complimenting Price’s toughness which some took as a dig towards Lin’s perceived lack of toughness.
Clarkson is set to start again against the Rockets, but who comes off the bench to give him a rest remains to be seen. Scott said that he would continue to tinker with the rotation throughout the year, so Lin’s spot on the bench may be short-lived.
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