A few weeks ago during the team’s road trip, Lakers head coach Luke Walton said he was trying to find minutes for veteran forward Michael Beasley. The former No. 2 overall pick had barely played since arriving in Los Angeles over the summer, but Walton said it would be “tough” to try and get Beasley into the rotation while the Lakers were winning.
The Lakers’ recent two-game losing streak gave Walton an excuse to shake things up, as he began siphoning what had once been Lance Stephenson’s minutes to Beasley during the team’s loss to the Denver Nuggets.