There has been plenty of debate regarding the point guard situation for the Los Angeles Lakers. The team will be relying on Steve Nash and Jeremy Lin for the 2014 season, something that will either work out well or go horribly wrong. There is doubt regarding the talent and reliability of both players as the Lakers must first determine who starts and who sits.
The Lakers traded for Lin when no one else would. Set to be a free agent in the summer of 2015, Lin fit the need of Los Angeles. He is a talent player with an expiring contract. Given their lack of financial flexibility this season, the Lakers were planning on filling the roster up with players just like Lin. However, now the team must determine if he is a starting option come the start of the season.
There have been mixed reports as to whether Lin is a starter or sixth man, having spent time at both spots in his short career. According to the Los Angeles Daily News, Lin will be a bench player. New head coach Byron Scott has reportedly revealed that the Lakers 2014 starting lineup will consist of Nash and not Lin, along with Kobe Bryant, Carlos Boozer and Jordan Hill. Wesley Johnson will likely start at small forward as Nick Young leads the effort off the bench.
No matter what, people will hate this lineup and it starts with the point guard position. Nash has the biggest question mark above his head entering the new season. No one knows for sure if he is healthy or not. Naming him a starter means Scott expects the veteran to be healthy for what will likely be his final season of his career. Even if he is fully healthy, is Nash a better player than Lin? He will be able to offer aid to Bryant, but having Lin's youth could be better.
Young signed a nice contract extension in the offseason as many expected him to be one of the faces of the Lakers' franchise this season. His scoring will certainly help the Lakers out, but many assumed he was a starter and not bench player. There is also the question of where rookie Julius Randle fits in. Scott favors Boozer over the rookie for at least the short-term. No one is doubting Randle's ability to be a star, but Boozer is working on an expiring deal so there is no harm in letting the rookie develop.
Is this a contending lineup? Probably not. Will this change in training camp? There is a good chance of that happening.
