Archive for the 'Luke Walton' Category

Lakers Preparing for LeBron, Cavs

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on January 18, 2009
in Injury News, Luke Walton, Practice News, Preview and Sasha Vujacic
. Closed

Best in the East?
Perfect 80 degree weather and the NFC Championship game (see: Kobe’s insistence that his Eagles t-shirt hang from his locker) didn’t keep the Lakers out of the gym on Sunday afternoon, not with LeBron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers coming into town on Monday.

Cleveland is perhaps the last, if not the best, contender for the championship trophy that the L.A. has yet to play. After all, the purple and gold have already seen Boston, Orlando, San Antonio, New Orleans, Utah and Houston (and even Denver and Phoenix).

Why are the 31-7 Cavs so dangerous? The very obvious answer is LeBron’s 27.8 points, 7.1 rebounds, 6.7 assists, 2.0 steals, 1.3 blocks and All-First Team defense.

“(James has) made some improvements, in terms of protecting the lane, getting out in passing lanes, but he’s his usual stellar self,” said Kobe Bryant after practice. “I’m a big fan of his … I think he’s terrific.”

Kobe conceded that LeBron’s Olympic experience probably helped spur his defense on this season, and also said that he will “definitely” guard James at times during Monday’s game.

But it’s anything but a one-man team in Cleveland … LeBron’s been boosted by the presence of Mo Williams - a free agent acquisition from Milwaukee - who has taken some of the ball-handling pressure off James, and is a terrific perimeter shooter.

“He’s a big help, a legitimate scoring threat,” said Kobe of Williams. “He’s a person you have to identify, and we played him last year when he was in Milwaukee and he gave us fits.”

Throw in some other smooth shooters like Delonte West, Wally Szczerbiak, Booby Gibson and Sasha Pavlovic, plus three bigs who play good defense - Ben Wallace, Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Anderson Varejao - and your squad’s looking strong to quite strong.

On Monday, however, the Cavs will be without two starters: Ilgauskas, who’s been on the shelf with a bad ankle, and West, who broke his wrist against Chicago last week.

Walton Goes Through Full Practice, But Won’t Start
Luke Walton completed his first full practice since missing the last eight games due to his foot injury.

“You can run all day but until you’ve actually played defense, switched, gone over screens and rebounded, it’s not the same,” said Walton. “It felt great, it didn’t hurt at all.”

Though Walton was very effective against Cleveland last season, Phil Jackson will continue to start Vladimir Radmanovic.

“Last year, I thought Luke did a really good job on (James) when he played him,” said Jackson. “(But) he’s still feeling his way a little bit.”

Sasha Finds Shooting Touch
Phil Jackson liked what he saw from Sasha Vujacic at Sunday’s practice: “He was shooting the ball (well) and looks like he’s back in rhythm,” explained the coach.

“I’m glad he said that,” said Vujacic. “It’s definitely good to be back … I’m feeling good. (The Lakers training staff) has been huge in getting me ready to play, and I’m 100 percent right now.”

With Vujacic and Walton both feeling much better, L.A. finally has 13 players healthy, and is waiting only on Farmar to boast its full complement of players.

Vujacic In, Walton Out

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on January 16, 2009
in Injury News, Luke Walton, Pre-Game and Sasha Vujacic
. Closed

After this morning’s shootaround, it appeared that both Sasha Vujacic and Luke Walton would play this evening.

As it turns out, Vujacic is on the active roster, while Walton will spend another game in street clothes.

In his regular pregame media session, Phil Jackson explained that although Walton could play if he had to, the Lakers would like to go through a full practice as he’s been out for the past two weeks.

In the locker room, Walton said that he’s finally pain free (clearly good news), and is targeting Monday’s game against Cleveland for his return.

Jackson added that he’s not sure how many Vujacic will play against Orlando, but intimated that it’s more likely for him to stay on the court for stretches of time (rather than going in and out) in order to keep his back loose.

Walton, Vujacic Probable for Orlando

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on January 16, 2009
in Derek Fisher, Injury News, Luke Walton and Sasha Vujacic
. Closed

The Lakers finally received some good news on the injury front after Friday’s shootaround.

Both Luke Walton and Sasha Vujacic are listed as “probable” after Vujacic missed L.A.’s two-game Texas trip with back spasms and Walton the last seven games with his injured foot.

Walton and Vujacic participated in shootaround Friday and appeared to be moving well, though there’s always the chance that either injury could flare up prior to the 7:30 p.m. tip.

In other news, Derek Fisher’s groin strain does not appear to be an issue, and he is expected to start. That leaves Jordan Farmar as the only player on the roster that will definitely not play.

Walton Talks about Foot

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on January 5, 2009
in Injury News, Luke Walton, Practice News and Video
. Closed

Earlier today, Dr. Ken Jung confirmed that Luke Walton is suffering from sesamoiditis in his right foot, which has found Walton in a protective boot that he’ll sport throughout the week.

Set to begin non-weight bearing rehabilitation exercises in a pool today, Walton is expected to be out a minimum of two weeks.

After Monday’s practice, Walton addressed local media pertaining to his disappointment about the injury, which had been bugging him increasingly until he spoke to Lakers trainer Gary Vitti.

Walton Out with Foot Injury

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on January 4, 2009
in Injury News, Luke Walton and Pre-Game
. Closed

Prior to Sunday’s game against Portland, Lakers spokesman John Black said that Luke Walton will miss the game with sesamoiditis in his right foot. Walton has an aggravation to the two small sesamoid bones, located in the joint where the big toe connects to the foot.

He will see Dr. Ken Jung, a foot specialist, on Monday morning, and more details will be available subsequently. Walton is listed as day-to-day.

In other injury news, Sasha Vujacic has tonsillitis, but will play.

Walton Putting in Work

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on December 3, 2008
in Features and Luke Walton
. Closed

I’ve been trying to track Luke Walton down for almost two weeks now. I just need 10-minutes or so, a little window of time to find out where his head’s at.

It should be easy for me, right? After all, we work for the same team. I see him almost every day, either after practice, after shootaround, or before or after Lakers games … But I literally haven’t been able to talk to him for more than a few seconds since early in November.

Why? Because Luke Walton is working his butt off.

By the way, when you see the purple print, that means it’s an active link. I think most people get it, but this means you, Dad.

Thursday Practice Report

Published
by
Mike Trudell
on November 13, 2008
in Jordan Farmar, Luke Walton, Phil Jackson, Practice News and Sun Yue
. Closed

Here’s a summary of Phil Jackson’s post-practice chat with the press, which we captured on video for your viewing pleasure:

  • When prompted about Wednesday’s victory over the Hornets, Jackson explained that the box score looked fine the next day, but that he was concerned that his team got itself in jeopardy by not executing offensively and by letting down defensively.
  • As a visiting scout told me last night, one thing the Hornets started doing was running David West along the baseline, which was pretty effective.
  • When asked about having 7-of-8 games at home, Jackson gave the old “one game at a time” answer. He doesn’t worry at all about his team’s motivation to play against some of the poorer teams record wise, like New Jersey, Chicago and Sacramento, in the least.
  • Most of the starters except for Vladimir Radmanovic and Lamar Odom sat out of a late scrimmage in practice to rest.
  • Jackson expects the Pistons to have some good and bad times after acquiring Iverson, but explained that Iverson’s activity level is going to increase what Detroit’s able to do.

    In Other News

  • I spent a few minutes talked to Sun Yue about Yao Ming, with whom he spent a little time when the Rockets were in town. Sun said that while Yao is certainly the great guy that we often hear about from anyone who knows him, his celebrity is so insane in China and other places around the world that Yao can seldom go places with the rest of the team. Sun also admitted that he’s occasionally been called “Yao!” by random people in America.
  • Luke Walton, after going through a tough practice, was still running sprints and going through shooting drills with Jordan Farmar 45 minutes after practice ended. I was going to catch up with Luke, but decided to wait until later since he didn’t seem interested in stopping any time soon. It’s of course good to see the guys who aren’t getting many minutes at a certain stage of the season to be working extra hard in practice … and after practice.
  • Stay tuned for a full interview with Pistons.com as I tried to learn what I could about the Detroit team heading into STAPLES on Friday night, Allen Iverson and all.
     
    icon for podpress  Phil Jackson Practice Audio [3:32m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

    • Walton Feeling “Great”

    Published
    by
    Mike Trudell
    on October 15, 2008
    in Luke Walton, Practice News and Training Camp
    . 0 Comments

    After participating fully in Wednesday’s open practice at STAPLES Center, Luke Walton told me he’s feeling “great,” and is hoping to participate in L.A.’s two games this weekend.

    Just as he’s gaining strength in his ankle, Walton said he’s starting to feel comfortable and confident as he searches for his rhythm on the floor. Here’s the video:


    1-on-1 with Luke Walton

    Luke Playing Well, Sasha Still Out

    Published
    by
    Ty Nowell
    on October 13, 2008
    in Injury News, Luke Walton, Sasha Vujacic and Training Camp
    . 0 Comments

    Sasha Vujacic spent another day away from live action as he nurses the sore ankle that he suffered early in training camp. Vujacic put up some shots today but wasn’t able to get in any of the scrimmages with his teammates.

    Luke Walton on the other hand is progressing nicely. “Luke’s playing. He’s playing pretty well,” said Head Coach Phil Jackson. Walton could be available for this weekend’s shootout at STAPLES Center.

    Wednesday Practice Summary

    Published
    by
    Mike Trudell
    on October 8, 2008
    in Andrew Bynum, Injury News, Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom, Luke Walton, Practice News, Sasha Vujacic and Training Camp
    . 0 Comments

    Which Laker do you think hit the game-winning shot in the final contest of five-on-five drills during Wednesday’s practice at L.A.’s facility?

    Yup, it was Kobe.

    For the first time this preseason, we watched the final 20 or so minutes of practice before hearing from a few of the guys and head coach Phil Jackson afterwards.

    Quick teaser - Check back tomorrow to hear what Lamar Odom thinks about the WWE, 50 Cent mixed tapes and v-neck shirts. But until then, here’s a quick A through E summary from today:

    A) Sasha Vujacic and Luke Walton both competed in practice, and both looked improved on their respectively hurt ankles. Vujacic in particular was moving quite well laterally and up-and-down, and told assembled media after practice that he would be with the team in Fresno on Thursday.

    B) At the end of practice, the Lakers split up into three teams (purple, white and green) and played games to 15 by ones and twos (winner stayed). The purple team featured Bryant, Odom, Pau Gasol, Jordan Farmar and Vladimir Radmonivic, with Andrew Bynum rotating between the purples and the whites. That white team also included Vujacic, Trevor Ariza, Josh Powell and Brandon Heath, while the greens featured Walton, Coby Karl, D.J. Mbenga, Sun Yue and C.J. Giles. Needless to say, the purples won the two games we watched. Bryant’s game winner over the greens came from about 20 feet out with Sun defending.

    C) Pau Gasol grabbed a mop to wipe some perspiration off the floor. That was fun.

    D) If you had no idea who anyone was while watching a Lakers practice (like if you were from Wasilla), it would still take about 10 seconds to figure out who runs the show. It’s Kobe. Mentally, physically, vocally – Bryant sets the tone. And guess who won the wind sprints at the end of practice?

    E) Videos of Jackson, Bynum and Vujacic after practice are available on lakers.com. The Lakers are in Fresno tomorrow to face the Clippers, and we’ll be there live with a running game diary. Later.