Jeremy Lin, point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers, is reportedly bummed after he was benched during Sunday's game against the New Orleans Pelicans following coach Bryon Scott's decision to change the starting lineup, The New York Post reported.
Lin and power forward Carlos Boozer were both taken out of the lineup by Scott and were replaced by Ed Davis and Ronnie Price, respectively. It was a lineup that Scott claims he is looking at for at least 10 or 15 games, despite the fact that the Lakers still lost against the Pelicans at 104-87.
It was a decision that Boozer did not take lightly and he walked out of the Staples Center without addressing the press. However, Lin sat tight and talked about it, calling it one of the toughest situations he has ever faced.
Lin claimed he wanted to be the starting point guard and was disappointed when he was benched. However, he said, "It's tough. But I believe God has me for a reason and I just keep working," quoted The New York Post.
He also refused to call out Scott. "(Scott) just said he wanted me to on the defensive end to try to be the help side and try to defend more. And on offense he said he wanted me to try to get other guys involved more, calling plays for like Jordan Hill," reported The New York Post.
Scott spoke about the change in the lineup, saying it had to be done and he wasn't about to stand back and watch their gameplay without making changes, according to the Los Angeles Times.
"If you look at our record, you have to make changes," he said. "To me, it was a no-brainer."
However, the Lakers' performance was weak enough that the boos ended up raining down on them during the game, especially after the Pelicans took a 20-point lead, according to ESPN.
Lakers guard Nick Young claimed they were well-deserved and said, "we were playing like cr*p out there."
Bryant also claimed he just kept on going despite their losses. "Not everything is going to be great and champagne and celebrations and winning championships," he said. "If this was the Titanic, I'd go down with that sh*t."
This is not the first time Lin was demoted as he was also benched by the Houston Rockets last season over Patrick Beverley, according to Los Angeles Times. However, the demotion is the least of his problems as Lin seems to be experiencing a sharp pain in his left leg after the game.
He was noted to stop during his post-game interview and was seen sitting down with a frown for a few minutes before standing up to finish the interview, noted Los Angeles Times, though no reports confirm whether or not the player was injured.
