Byron Scott gives an edge to his ‘80s Lakers over current Warriors

REPORTING FROM OAKLAND —  The Golden State Warriors are 16-0 and coming off an NBA championship. The Lakers are not.

So Coach Byron Scott gladly ran with a question about the old days — would the “Showtime” Lakers beat the present-day Warriors?

“In a seven-game series? Absolutely!” Scott said Tuesday.

He wouldn’t, though, commit to the present-day Lakers beating Golden State, saying, “They would probably win that series right now. Let’s just say that.”

Well, yeah.

In fact, the Warriors bludgeoned the Lakers, 111-77, on Tuesday to set the record for best start to an NBA season.

Beforehand, Scott willingly looked in-depth at the fantasy of the five-time champion Lakers of the 1980s against the “Splash Brothers” and their teammates.

It wasn’t his idea. He was asked about it by a reporter. But it had nothing to do with Kobe Bryant’s declining play, DeAngelo Russell’s slow development compared to other rookies, or the Lakers’ woeful record.

It was something different, a respite for the former shooting guard who was on Lakers championship teams in 1985, 1987 and 1988.

“The one thing this [Warriors] team couldn’t do on a daily basis against us, that they’re doing against everybody else, is go small,” Scott said. “We’ve got Magic [Johnson] and James [Worthy], and Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar] as a post-up player to demand a double-team. It would be a whole lot harder.”

Couldn’t Warriors versatile big man Draymond Green stem the Lakers’ flow down low?

“Draymond is a great defender and I’ve got a lot of respect for him,” Scott said. “But guarding James Worthy or guarding Kareem? That wouldn’t happen.”

OK, then surely the Warriors could try to outscore the Lakers with their sublime three-point attack. Golden State averaged 11.8 three-pointers per playoff game last season while winning its first championship since 1975.

The Lakers averaged only 2.4 three-pointers in the playoffs while winning it all in 1987, perhaps their greatest title in the Showtime era.

“They are volume shooters from three. And we weren’t,” Scott conceded. “We were definitely inside-out. But James Worthy and Kareem were two of the best post players that’s ever played and then Magic at 6-9 was unbelievable down there as well. It would be a very interesting matchup. It would be fun.”

More Showtime

The Lakers went 65-17 in 1987, their most dominant regular season of the decade, and beat the hated Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals.

Johnson’s junior sky hook in the lane is still the burning image of that series, giving the Lakers a 3-1 series lead with a 107-106 victory.

“I think once it’s all over, you look back and realize how much fun it was, but I think when you’re entrenched in it as we were at that particular time, you just think about the next game,” Scott said.

“One thing Riles [Coach Pat Riley] wouldn’t let us do is live on what we did the last night or whatever the case may be. He kept the foot on the pedal and just kept pushing us to be better. When you’re involved in it in that sense of the word, it’s kind of hard to enjoy it at the time. But at the end of the day when you win it, obviously you enjoy it.”

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