No more Mr. Nice Guy: Walton rips Lakers after 8th straight loss
Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton had little patience for his players after the team's eighth consecutive defeat Wednesday, privately calling out his young squad for a lack of effort following the loss to the Brooklyn Nets.
"He raised his voice. He got his point across today," Lakers guard Nick Young told ESPN's Baxter Holmes. "Just mentally being soft and calling us out. We got to step up to the plate. I know I'm not soft. My teammates aren't soft, so we got to show him and prove ourselves."
While Walton may be known for his nice-guy attitude, high-flying power forward Larry Nance Jr. said the Lakers bench boss isn't afraid to lay down the law when necessary.
"Luke is a player's coach, but he can get onto us," Nance said.
This isn't the first time the normally cool and collected Walton has heated up this week. He picked up a $15,000 fine for verbally abusing an official versus the Sacramento Kings.
"He came in, said what he said, and it was just a challenge," said Lakers guard D'Angelo Russell. "The best thing about it is we got practice (Thursday). We get to see who really takes what he says and goes with it and who takes what he says and it goes through one ear and out the other."
Los Angeles will look to get out of its funk Friday when the Lakers face the 6-19 Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center.