SL - Lakers vs Celtics Game Thread

[what would jack bauer do?]

Kuzma doesn't move like a big. He's so fluid.

Yeah, it's crazy that he's 6-9, 220. (Side note: Makes you really appreciate how amazing Kevin Durant is at nearly 7 feet.) And he's long, too. I can easily see him defending shooting guards in certain situations, like Klay Thompson. Very intriguing.

On top of the mobility to defend multiple positions, he seems stronger on the glass and on box outs than what his weight projects. Taj Gibson was 6'9" and 214lbs at the NBA combine and he's been so tough on the glass from day one of his career. I was at Thomas and Mack last night and I get the vibe this guy is going to be that same sort of anomaly. Dude just wreaks of toughness, I don't know if they showed it on TV but his calf actually cramped up in the second half and he was on his back having his foot pushed down on the sideline to stop it. But then he came back and closed the game playing hard.

Another thing I like about him is his body looks like he can withstand the rigors of a 82 game season. NBA players will typically lose around 5-10lbs as the season goes on just from deterioration and the nature of the workload of the game. Kuzma looks like he might actually get better as the season goes on with that weight loss.

[ItsThatEasy]

if lonzo can perfect a floater, he'd be really deadly. even more so than a mid range.

He's very aware that he needs to add a floater so that's already half the battle.

[Slava]

Since I couldn't find +/- stats elsewhere, this is eye opening and likely to be a theme this season:

The Lakers outscored the Celtics by seven in Ball's 34 minutes, losing the game because they were minus-12 in the six minutes he spent on the bench.

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/19928546/scouting-lonzo-ball-jayson-tatum-lakers-vs-celtics-nba-summer-league

[madmaxmedia]

Only one game yada yada yada, but this is what I saw at UCLA and what I saw with Ball in game 2- he genuinely makes things run smarter and smoother regardless of his stats and the mistakes. He is happy to go for hockey assists, which happen as long as his teammates have some offensive awareness. What you are really looks for with him is for (significant) improvement in overall offensive flow and efficiency when he is on the floor.

What he probably will lack at the NBA level is the ability to take over games, but that was never his primary skill at UCLA either, nor was it the reason he was drafted at #2 (even though that's what teams are generally trying for at the top of the draft.) I think his 3 pointer will settle down, and I think he will to get enough catch-and-shoots to make an impact. He just needs to relieve himself of the pressure of trying to justify his draft position (like shooting too many 3's in game 1), which is a 'selfish' mentality that goes exactly against what he is good at.

There is a legitimate question of where you pick a guy like Ball vs. a more typical top prospect like Fultz. If they were both scorers it would be easier to compare, but it's really apples and oranges and so you have to suss out over time which fruit genuinely helps YOUR team out the most. I'm personally not concerned with his draft position since that is now water under the bridge, I just know I really like watching him play and really looking forward to what kind of impact he can make on the real Laker squad. I'm not nervous anymore about how his skillset/weaknesses will translate, he still needs to work on many things (handles and defense for sure!) but overall he'll be the same kind of player he was at UCLA.

I think him and Ingram can learn the NBA game together and grow into great teammates that instinctively know what the other guy is thinking, and I also think that he will immediately help make the most of what Lopez can do on the floor- he did a great job of setting up Leaf and Welsh at UCLA. Lopez is a vet who knows what he can do in an NBA game, and I'm sure it will take Ball no time to learn Lopez's game as well. And if they land 1 or 2 big FA's next offseason, I can guarantee Lonzo will be helping maximize their production as well. If Magic's long-term scenario of landing at least 1 high-level player next season happens, I think Ball is a great pick.

Lonzo is extremely efficient with the ball. Basically every pass he makes sets someone up. Have your hands ready, folks! This is boding well. We have our floor general.

Kuzma means business. So does Hart. Thomas Bryant's first game was great. We drafted well.

The a perfect catch and shoot SG next to Ball would be DLo. Oh well. Spilt milk.

Lonzo just creates with ease. It's a whole different feel to watching his games huh fellas? I think those black shoes were a good switch.

Seeing Ball yesterday gave me a huge sigh of relief over losing D'angelo. Ball looks like a true floor general out there. Opponents fans are going to focus on the stats, but we know the totality of the impact that Ball brings to the table.

You gotta like his attitude and how vocal he is on the floor. And wow, once we get Ball some real weapons to work with other than Ingram in the regular season, it's going to be showtime 2.0