They all heard the voice of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope during the rehearsal Monday in Memphis, his words of encouragement, willingness to offer instruction and leadership qualities that the Lakers coaching staff show.
They knew Caldwell-Pope was a little reluctant during their first season together, to play his part and listen to the coaches during the 2019-20 championship.
When the coaches heard Caldwell-Pope explain a few things to Talen Horton-Tucker, Frank Vogel said he and his staff discussed it.
‘He is in the second year of our system [and is] more comfortable and more comfortable in his role, ”Vogel said during a video conference. ‘And when you become more comfortable in a system, in a role, you are more confident to act in leadership situations and help someone like Languages with the coverage or things like that.
‘KCP defended the biggest assignment during a championship. You know what I mean? So he has a pretty strong pedigree there and it’s a good sign to see how he shares his knowledge and helps some of the young guys. ”
Caldwell-Pope missed the game Sunday in Memphis with a sprained left ankle that, according to the shooting guard, is “still not 100%,” but he remained engaged. He pushed Horton-Tucker aside during the win Sunday to offer the second-year guard some tips.
“Mostly Languages because he’s the youngest to get minutes there, so just try to put him in the right position, especially in defense,” Caldwell-Pope said on Monday. “We already know what he can do offensively. Just try to keep him on the defensive side, tell him how to do the play. If he did something wrong, let him know what he did wrong. And then just break it down to him so he will understand, and then there will be no more mistakes when he goes out there. ‘
Caldwell-Pope is known to be an iron man, playing through injuries and pain. But the Lakers call him doubtful for Tuesday night’s game in Memphis.
He sounded optimistic when he spoke to the media.
“Just feel good,” Caldwell-Pope said. ‘I practiced today and got some movement. Still not 100%, but hopefully I will be able to go tomorrow. It depends on how I feel. ”
Caldwell-Pope wants to be in court at all costs. He said it was not so much his injury that frustrated him, but that he could only help from the bench.
“The only frustration was that I wanted to be there with my brothers, but unfortunately I had to sit outside,” he said. ‘But, you know, it was just good to sit down and watch the game and actually see what’s going on out there. My experience was good off the bench. I had to help the young guys, even some of the new guys. Just talking to them, talking to everyone, just felt good to be able to see it from the banking perspective. ”
And so on
The Lakers name LeBron James as doubtful due to a sprained left ankle and Alex Caruso as outside due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
FOLLOWING
BY MEMPHIS
When: 17:00 PST, Tuesday
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Update: The Lakers and Grizzlies will run it back after LA won 108-94 in Memphis on Sunday night. A win will give the Lakers a whip of this two-game trip with four games.