It's all good, Los Angeles Lakers fans: Swaggy P is back.
The recently-disgruntled Nick Young has smoothed things over with head coach Byron Scott after the pair spent the past few weeks passive-aggressively and openly feuding.
Benched on Jan. 25 after Scott said it looked as if his swingman didn't want to be playing, Young suffered a sprained ankle before he could make amends on the court. He was available to return Sunday after a two-game absence, but Scott opted not to use him, leading Young to question his relationship with the coach.
With Young set to play Wednesday, the hatchet has apparently been buried. Scott and Young spoke Monday to assuage any tension, with Young emerging from the meeting in high spirits.
"It was about to be bigger than what it was," Young said. "I just wanted to know what was going on. But we're all right ... I'm not trying to be like how they did Pau (Gasol) or how they did Dwight Howard. I just wanted to talk and get a good understanding."
Scott was more hardened in his comments about the meeting, basically reiterating his earlier points that he wants Young to look engaged and, with respect to Sunday, wanted to see him get in a full practice. He isn't expecting the issue to linger, suggesting Young should return to his regular role now.
"From my side?" Scott said when asked if the issue will persist. "Not at all."
Young could be tasked with an even heavier offensive load than he's used to upon his return, becoming the team's top scoring option. Scary as it sounds, Young is L.A.'s best offensive weapon with Kobe Bryant on the shelf, even though he's shooting 37.3 percent from the floor.
"Just give me the ball and get out of the way," Young said in the wake of Bryant's injury, a strategy that probably works well toward the Lakers' goal of securing a top-five draft pick.
