Report: Metta World Peace To Come Off Bench “Saturday And Beyond”

Mike D’Antoni has been tinkering with his rotations as of late. He’s still trying to get to know his squad, after all. One of his moves has to do with the starting small forward, Metta World Peace. Actually, forget I said “starting.” Check this report out by the Kamenetzky Brothers (formerly of the L.A. Times and ESPN L.A.).

Devin Ebanks took Metta World Peace’s spot in the starting line-up against the Bobcats last Tuesday night. But D’Antoni has decided to move Kobe Bryant to the starting small forward spot and Jodie Meeks into Kobe’s old starting two-guard spot. In D’Antoni’s system, MWP will play the back-up power forward spot, which has led to no playing time for Antawn Jamison and Jordan Hill (which has apparently resulted in trade rumors for Hill).

While the report said “Saturday and beyond”, MWP’s move to the bench may not be permanent as I expect D’Antoni to continue tinkering with the line-ups for a little while. Since D’Antoni was hired five games into the season and had no training camp to work with, he’s going to continue getting to know his personnel until then. He’ll settle into a regular rotation soon but it’s encouraging that D’Antoni is finding versatility with his roster, unlike Mike Brown, who seemed rigid with the positions of his players.

We’ll see what kind of rotation Mike D’Antoni puts out on Saturday against Golden State. If Steve Nash returns in that game, things might get a little easier for D’Antoni and the Lakers then.