Walton's Casting Call - Lakers rookie enters training camp trying to prove he can be a valuable role-player
12:54 AM PDT on Thursday, October 2, 2003 By BRODERICK TURNER / The Press-Enterprise
HONOLULU - Ask any Lakers coach his thoughts on rookie Luke Walton and you get the same answer.
"He just knows how to play basketball," head coach Phil Jackson said.
"He knows how to play," said assistant Kurt Rambis, who coached Walton on the Lakers' summer league team.
So the belief in the Lakers' camp is that Walton, a former University of Arizona star, will be a solid player.
He's a multi-skilled player who can pass, rebound and score. He has some deficiencies -- his defense, outside shooting and athleticism -- but the Lakers said they like what they see in Walton.
Taken in the second round of the NBA Draft in June, Walton is with the Lakers at training camp on the campus of the University of Hawaii trying to prove that he belongs on the team.
"I'm excited to be here and show my stuff," Walton said. "There is a lot of stuff to learn. That's what this week is going to be about."
Walton has basketball in his bones. His dad is Bill Walton, the former UCLA All-America who was voted one of the top 50 players in NBA history.
"That's the only thing that harms him," Jackson joked.
Bill Walton, now an NBA analyst for ESPN, has been a sounding board for Luke on the ills of professional basketball.
"He said it's a crazy life," Luke said. "You've got to be dedicated. There are a lot of temptations out there, and you got to know when to say, 'No.' It's also a great life."
Luke Walton was one of only three players in Pacific-10 Conference history to score 1,000 points, grab 500 rebounds and hand out 500 assists.
That's part of what the Lakers mean when they say Walton knows how to play.
"He's got a feel for the game," Jackson said. "We don't know how he's going to fit in with the players and how he's going to defend and if he's got enough athleticism and whatever else. (Or) if he can shoot the ball (as well as is) necessary at that position.
"Just watching him play, you see the kid can move around the court, knows where to go, knows how to pass the ball, knows just how to move to the ball and (what) places to be on a shot and for rebounding."
Rambis watched Walton display those skills during the summer league in Long Beach. Rambis said he saw a young player who looked to make his teammates better, and who didn't mind sacrificing his game for the team.
On a team with Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant, Karl Malone and Gary Payton, the Lakers need a player who isn't focused on getting offensive opportunities.
With Rick Fox still out recovering from left foot surgery, Walton may get some time at small forward behind starter Devean George. The Lakers signed small forward Bryon Russell, a San Bernardino native, to a contract Wednesday as veteran insurance at that spot.
"Because of the way Luke likes to play and his willingness to pass the basketball, it makes him a good fit in our offense," Rambis said. "Whether or not he's good enough to play at this level remains to be seen. It's just a matter of seeing what he does when everybody else gets here."
The 6-foot-8, 235-pound Walton signed a two-year, $986,977 contract.
He'll be around four future Hall of Fame players in O'Neal, Bryant, Malone and Payton.
"Being a rookie and having a chance to learn from people like that, you're just blessed to get thrown into something like that," Walton said. "I know I'm in a great situation. I plan to learn every day that I'm here, either from the coaches or the guys.
"Coming in as a rookie, you just want to be somewhere. Now you get a chance to sit back and realize that I am in Southern California with the best franchise in the NBA. And I'm going to take full advantage of it."