LOS ANGELES – When Earl Watson came out of college in 2001, he felt ready for the NBA.
For one, he had spent four years at UCLA, giving him time to grow and mature as a point guard, but just as important were the offseason workouts. Watson found himself in pickup games, facing off against Magic Johnson and Norm Nixon, Chauncey Billups and Rod Strickland.
“And then I had to guard Baron Davis every day in practice so for me, it was I had no choice,” the Suns coach said before Monday’s contest against the Clippers. “I was going to get better or lose every game in practice or pickup.