Lakers head coach Byron Scott call the team “soft” several times following a 114-89 blowout loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night at Staples Center.
Many have wondered if he meant it literally, or if he was just lashing out in frustration. A few days later, Scott stands by those comments, and he wasn’t joking around.
“I was angry,” Scott said. “It had nothing to do with motivation at all. I just wanted to tell them how I felt and how I thought that the Clippers viewed us as a basketball team. I was just being totally honest with the way that I was looking at the game and the way I thought they were playing against us. I wasn’t trying to motivate them at all. I was just telling the truth.”
Scott said that describing a team or player as “soft” is just about the most offensive remark any coach could make.
“It’s almost like walking up to another man and slapping him. It really is,” Scott said. “But like I said, I’m not pulling punches. I told them exactly how I felt at halftime. At the end of the game, I didn’t say anything. I just told them, come in and I’ll see you [Thursday] morning.
The idea that some Lakers thought Scott was simply trying to motivate them speaks volumes to to the delusion on the roster. Most of the Lakers are either soft, or not that talented. It all adds up to the same thing.