Frustrated Luke Walton “Raised His Voice,” Called Team “Soft”

BROOKLYN, New York - Following Wednesday night's loss to the Brooklyn Nets, which was the eighth straight loss for the Los Angeles Lakers, Head Coach Luke Walton called the team out and challenged them.

"He raised his voice," Lakers guard Nick Young said after the game. "He got his point across today."

Young expanded on what that meant: "Just mentally being soft and calling us out. We got to step up to the plate. I know I'm not soft. My team mates (are) not soft. So we got to show him and prove ourselves. He believes too much in us for us to go out like this."

Of course, Walton received a notable $15,000 fine for fighting for his players on Friday night, so watching his team fall apart against the lowly Nets understandably irked the 36-year-old. 

Asked if the response was positive and if it was what the right medicine for the sickly looking team, Young responded, "I think everything is needed right now. Whatever it takes to get us out there, talking, yelling at each other. Everything is needed right now."

Young confirmed, "Yes, he's challenging us."

Forward Larry Nance Jr., who threw down a highlight dunk that had fans and reporters still buzzing after the game, expanded on the coach's message.

"It's true," Nance agreed with his coach's words. "We've been getting mentally outworked. We've just been lack of focus. Knowing our personnel. There's been a lot of issues we've had. I think the reliance we've had is due to a weakness mentally. So, I think he's right."

However, Nance couldn't offer a cause, "If we knew why it was happening, it wouldn't be. So, I don't know what to tell you."

Nance continued, "We've got to go the drawing board, figure something out and get on top of it before it compounds even worse."

The Lakers were 10-10 and looked like a potential playoff contender prior to the losing streak. Eight games later, this team looks headed for the lottery and even possibly a team that could finish in the bottom three and keep its draft pick yet again. But Wednesday night in Brooklyn wasn't the first time the coach had been upset with his guys, of course.

"We've heard it before," Nance explained. "Luke is a player's coach, but he doesn't lack the…he can get on us."

Nance added hopefully, "That's not the first time we've heard it, so I just hope we respond to it well."

Forward Julius Randle also agreed with his fellow teammates.

Said Randle, "I think it is a challenge. We got to step up. Coach is exactly right. We got to man up. We go to get back to being us. We've got too many guys pouting or whatever it may be or complaining or whatever it is. Things aren't going our way, not making shots, whatever it is, but you just got to step up."

However, Randle didn't entirely agree with being "called out." At least, he didn't see it that way.

"I don't think it's really he called us out," the 22-year-old said about his coach's message. "He just challenged us. I don't think it was a personal shot at anybody. He just challenged us as a team to step up, man up and take ownership and guard out man. It wasn't a shot where anybody should be offended. It's just a challenge as a competitor, as a player."

Lakers point guard D'Angelo Russell, however, had a far more drastic response. He asked for his team to take the coach's message to heart and take the losing more seriously.

Said Russell, "As a team, I don't want to come together as a group and talk. I want to get a great practice in (on Thursday), just don't say nothing. I don't even want us to talk to each other. I want it to be straight business approach going into this game, because it's not what these fans are used to, it's not what we're used to, it's not what coach is used to."

Russell continued, "Our main focus is to turn it around, the organization. There's losses here and there, but eight and 10's and 12's in a row. That's not us. I don't want to talk about it anymore. I don't want guys to speak their minds. I just want to come in and just get to work."

"Nobody," Russell responded when asked if anyone on the team spoke after the coach exited the locker room after delivering the challenge. "I think that's the best thing for us. Somebody cusses everybody out, everybody puts their two cents in and it doesn't work. It don't work [sic]. We come out and we still perform the same way. It's bigger than that."

The Lakers practice in Philadelphia on Thursday and play in the Sixers on Friday night. If they lose, the team will be one game away from having twice as many losses as wins, which would be an unbelievable fall for a team that was even at .500 before the losing streak took hold.