By most accounts, both are quite stubborn and stuck in their ways, which makes them difficult personalities to manage in some respects. We will look at how both could get in the way of Los Angeles’ resurgence.
Mike D’Antoni
The Los Angeles Lakers fired Mike Brown after a handful of games early in the 2012-13 season and hired Mike D’Antoni as his successor.
The new Lakers coach struggled throughout the campaign to integrate both Pau Gasol and Dwight Howard into his offense and only truly solved the issue once Kobe Bryant was lost for the season.
D’Antoni even relegated Gasol to the second unit and stated after a loss that he had removed the Spaniard from the lineup late in a game because he was trying to win the game.
Gasol was the chess piece that transformed an average Lakers team into a championship contender in 2007-08 and beyond, yet the headman treated him like a regular rotation player.
In addition, Howard was often unhappy in the offense because he felt as though his touches were lacking. At the conclusion of a January contest, Howard begged the media members present in the locker room to glance at the box score.
Howard was intimating he needed more shots (he only took five shots in that game) but one of the league’s most respected offensive gurus could not help him on that front.
D’Antoni believes in pushing the pace, spacing the floor and firing away from three-point range. His preferred methods to accomplish this are transition offense and pick-and-rolls.
This is perfect for the likes of Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash given their ball-handling ability as well as their passing skills.
However, players like Carmelo Anthony are not built ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
