“It’s tough when you got labels on you,” Young said. “That’s what coach wants me to do. Told me before practice, ‘Even though we’re losing, don’t forget why we got you out there. Bring energy. We’re trying to label you a defender now.’ ”
Young embraced the memo wholeheartedly.
“That ain’t no foul,” Young said as the play concluded in points for his team.
“I don’t want to jinx myself,” Young said. “I just get extra shots up every day after practice. Playing with confidence. I think that’s the best thing for me.”
Against Dallas on Thursday, Young made his first six shots, five of them three-pointers. But after making his first four three-pointer in the first quarter, his opportunities dwindled. Young didn’t shoot in the second quarter, and shot only twice each in the third and fourth quarters. The Lakers lost, 101-89.
“I think we got away from him a little bit in terms of moving the ball, everybody making the next pass, getting the open shot,” Clarkson said.
All Young can do is keep shooting when his opportunities come.
But as he does that, Walton is making sure Young isn’t forgetting the other half — the half the Lakers have struggled with as a whole, and that Young has in the past. He’s at the point where the stops feel just as good as the baskets.
“Oh yeah, for sure,” Young said. “I like to talk trash, too.”
The Lakers were 2-14 in December, the worst December record in the NBA. They beat only the Clippers and the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Brooklyn Nets ranked 29th in victories in December with three, one against the Lakers. The 76ers, Phoenix Suns , Portland Trail Blazers and Miami Heat each won only four games in December, and one of the Heat’s victories came against the Lakers.
The Lakers ranked 27th in field-goal percentage, committed the second-most turnovers and had the second-worst defensive rating in the league during the last month of the year.
Zubac averaged 16.6 points, 9.5 rebounds and 29.6 minutes per game with the D-Fenders.
