Byron Scott admits he could have been better at communicating with Lakers' young players

Less than 24 hours after calling the play of his younger players "soft and passive," Los Angeles Lakers head coach Byron Scott admitted the way he's communicated with the team's young players has been an issue.

"With our young guys, could I have probably done a better job [communicating]? Probably so," Scott told Bill Oram of the O.C. Register before the Lakers hosted the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday night. Scott has repeatedly called out his younger players for their lack of effort, or most often for "not being ready to play," following the Lakers' many losses so far this season.

The approach hasn't worked, with the team losing 61 games to guarantee at least a tie for the worst record in franchise history, a tie they can only achieve if they win their final five games.

The futility has seemingly given Scott some perspective, and the head coach was self-critical of his coaching on Wednesday:

Byron on job he's done this seasons self-assessing: "I'm very critical of myself. I think I could have done better. I can do better."

— Shahan Ahmed (@shahanLA) April 7, 2016

Scott also blamed the times we live in for the ineffectiveness of his communication with the Lakers' young core:

In 1980s, Scott said, "it was more coach said, ‘Do this,' you'd do it." Now? "You tell them, ‘Do this,' they say, ‘Why?'"

— Bill Oram (@billoram) April 7, 2016

Whether or not he can change his communication style remains to be seen, but with Scott reportedly coaching for his job, it will likely be one of many factors the front office looks at heading into the offseason when deciding whether or not to retain him for next year.

You can follow this author on Twitter at @hmfaigen.