Official Whine, Moan, Complain Thread 19/20-CLOSED "WE CHAMPS!"

The emphasis wasn't what I caught, it was the quote itself. I'm not going to assume it's D'Angelo, I know most will. I will however say it's a concerning quote regardless of who he's talking about. He could be talking about Ingram for all I know and it's still a troubling thing to read.

 

^winning cures all personality issues. If the Lakers were winning right now, nobody would talk about Russell or about our daily changing starting lineup and rotations.

Russell is not a headcase per say. I think he is determined to be good at basketball. The issue is some players handle adversity well and some don't. Losing rubs people differently. I'm not saying Russell is sick of losing but being put in such a situation can be daunting and since most of the top rookies come from winning programs and have never experienced extended sucking, its tough to figure it out early.

Also most of these guys have always dominated the game in their life. All of a sudden people are blowing past you and you struggle to get any separation etc...then flying almost daily and playing almost daily...its a different world and most rookies have no clue what its like...even if they feel "prepared", believe me they aren't.

 

I think the nurturing thing has its limits. The environment these kids have been in for the last three years has been chaotic. I don't blame them for their own frustrations with the place they're in. I do however blame them for the way they approach that situation. Russell has been disappointingly immature. Randle's response is better, but still not what I would like to see. His open pouting and finger pointing on the court is almost as infuriating as Russell's cold, unconcerned laziness. Clarkson, bless him, seems to be working hard, but he might as well be on a treadmill as far as development goes. Zubac and Ingram have been here the shortest period of time and seem to have the best attitudes. There's got to be a reason for that.

The environment of our team certainly has been an issue, but with the FO settled I'm not going to take that as much of an excuse. These kids were given fair warning that they're being evaluated now to see if they're going to stick around. I understand that's a hard situation to find yourself in, but the least you can do is give your best effort. Clarkson might buy himself a ticket to stick around and Russell and Randle might find themselves out given their approach.

 

Randle competes as hard as he can? Are you f***ing kidding me?
Clarkson might try, but if he has, why has he regressed as a playmaker and a defender?

I'm very interested in what an ex-Laker who can't stick on any team in the league has to say about the mindset of our young guys. Great insight.

 

I think that's fair. Randle is still my second most frustrating kid though. All that talent between he and Russell and the two of them can't screw their heads on straight long enough to string some wins together.

 

He's up there too. I guess it flip flops every now and then, but given Randle and Russell's natural abilities and their maddening inconsistencies, they irk me to my core. In the end, Clarkson is what he is. I roll me eyes watching him try to play point guard, but at least he's trying. Since the FO put forth the reality that every one of our kids is playing to prove themselves, he's at least put forth full effort even if he's exposed his own weaknesses by doing so.