Warriors’ Andre Iguodala offered Lakers’ rookie Brandon Ingram perspective on bench role

Newsroom GuidelinesNews TipsContact UsReport an Error After all, Iguodala accepted a bench role for the sake of winning an NBA championship after already cementing his resumé as an All-Star and U.S. Olympic gold medalist. Iguodala maintained “it wasn’t that hard” to accept a bench role with the Warriors under those circumstances. Yet, he revealed to Walton the complexity of his internal feelings.“‘Luke, I dreaded that,’” Iguodala said. “‘But I’ll give the guy some words of wisdom so he’ll play hard for you.’”Iguodala also sounded open toward providing Ingram advice for another reason.“I’m a fan of the kid. It’s easy, especially when you got a guy that’s willing to take some advice. You want the best for him,” Iguodala said. “Anybody else, I’m like ‘No man.’ I’m not giving (feedback) to these young kids these days. They don’t listen.”Ingram did, though. “It’s him buying into a role,” Ingram said of Iguodala. “He embraces it and all he cares about is winning.” Ingram called the offseason call with Iguodala “really brief.” Ingram added that he did not ask Iguodala specifically about coming off the bench. Yet, their talk still centered on how to thrive on a loaded depth chart.“‘You’re good,’” Iguodala told Ingram. “‘You’re so far ahead of where you think. But keep having that mindset.’”Iguodala later praised Ingram’s humble demeanor and contended that “offensively, he’s light years ahead of me.” Iguodala then predicted the “sky is the limit” for Ingram before calling on him to become more assertive without playing selfishly. Meanwhile, Ingram has admired Iguodala’s on-ball defense and ability to create deflections, qualities that earned him the 2015 Finals MVP. “I’m still learning how I can affect the game in different ways,” Ingram said. “Offensively, I think it will become easier for me with coming into the lanes and picking my spots. But defensively, I’m doing really well.” Ingram posted a career-high 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting, three rebounds and three turnovers in his first NBA start on Wednesday against Golden State. Before that, the Lakers liked how Ingram handled his bench role without complaint. His workload also gradually increased in ball handling, posting up, defending and finishing games.That growth can be partly traced back to Ingram’s phone call with Iguodala. “The NBA is a crazy world, especially when you’re as young as some of these young guys are,” Walton said. “It’s important to have relationships with some older vets that have been around.” LOS ANGELES >> As Lakers forward Brandon Ingram ran up and down the court during Summer League play, plenty of focus centered on his physical readiness. Behind the scenes, Lakers coach Luke Walton worked on something else to ensure Ingram’s foundation became sturdy. When Walton talked with Golden State forward Andre Iguodala in Las Vegas, their conversation went beyond reminiscing about playing together at the University of Arizona, or Walton serving as an assistant at Golden State the previous two years. Mindful that he planned to bring Ingram off the bench to start his rookie season, Walton talked with Iguodala about offering perspective to the Lakers’ No. 2 pick. “Andre is a one of the smarter players I’ve been around,” Walton said before the Lakers hosted the Warriors on Friday at Staples Center. “He cares about the game of basketball and he does things the right way. I felt that Brandon could learn a lot from him.”