Carlos Boozer will be playing in his first season with the Los Angeles Lakers, and the veteran forward is looking forward to a fresh start after having a disappointing year with the Chicago Bulls.

Boozer averaged 13.7 points and 8.3 rebounds per game with the Bulls last season, but was often substituted in the fourth period allegedly because of his lack of effort on the defensive end of the floor.

The 32-year-old forward was waived by the Bulls this offseason via the amnesty clause before the Lakers won the bidding to acquire the former All-Star. Now that he is with the Lakers, Boozer said that he has now moved on from his disappointing year with the Bulls.

"Chicago's in the rear view, they're off and running, we're off and running, so that's all behind us," Boozer said via Inside SoCal. "But moving forward, I just love what I'm doing here in LA."

First-year Lakers coach Byron Scott also praised Boozer for his performance in the first week of training camp, saying that the former Duke University standout will play a vital role for the team in the upcoming season.

"Carlos has got a lot of experience and understands how to play this game," Scott said of Boozer. "He's a good communicator out there. We know he's a guy who can make mid-range shots. We know we can also throw it to him in the post a little bit too. Just trying to utilize him the best way we can to make him very effective on the court."

Boozer is optimistic that the Lakers will exceed expectations this year after coming off one of the worst finishes in franchise history last season when they ended up with a measly 27-55 record, saying that the their training camp is going well so far.

"It has been really good chemistry right away, our IQ as a team is very high, especially with us three, just the way we're able to read defenses," Boozer said. "That's the importance of the preseason to see where things will be at, too read each other to get used to what we do out there on the court so when the regular season comes, it's a seamless transition."

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