The Kuzma Thread

[tamaraw08]

We also have to face some facts here. Theres no doubt the clippers have Up Loaded. The last addition of Morris is a significUant Bulk Upgrade. Montrez is strong. Throw in zubac, green etc.
This means the Clips know what time it is, and they are preparing for an interior war with the top seeds. Utah, denver and especially us, seeing how we just wore out Joker last game. So we are going to ask alot of our bigs and KUZ down the stretch. Its going to be a battle in the trenches, i just.dont know who from our team, is going to show up and represent that Mamba Mentality.

I think you're overthinking it. By the time we get to the playoffs teams will tighten their rotations... not expand them. The Clips have better depth than us on paper however if they are using a 8-9 man rotation some of that depth will be immaterial.

A bigger concern is the Lakers, which are using a more compact rotation, wearing out or getting injured.

I think our apparent lack of depth begins to disappear when we get to the playoffs quite frankly.

Kuzma's effectiveness offensively will coincide with his opportunities. You can't expect him to heavily contribute on 8-10 shots a game. Defensively he's been good to very good all year in the team scheme IMHO.

I wish I can share your optimism and I hope and pray your are right because I think they are going to need a few more players to step up just like how they won it all before. I think of game 7 vs Portland how B Shaw and Horry nailed at least 4 3's to get them back, Metta game 7 vs Boston and Fox handcuffing Peja while hitting 5 huge FGs game 7 at Sacramento and of course Fisher who had a CAREER 40.4% from the 3pt area with the Lakers with his heroic shots.
Lebron came up huge vs GSW but he couldn't have done it without Kyrie who scored 100 pts in the final 3 games.
Danny Green shot great game 1 vs the Clips and they still lost badly. Chistmas day, Game 2, Kuzma stepped up and scored 25 points and they still lost.
My hope is that Vogel has a few sets saved up with multiple options that opposing teams would struggle to defend come playoff time.

[NippySudz]

We also have to face some facts here. Theres no doubt the clippers have Up Loaded. The last addition of Morris is a significUant Bulk Upgrade. Montrez is strong. Throw in zubac, green etc.
This means the Clips know what time it is, and they are preparing for an interior war with the top seeds. Utah, denver and especially us, seeing how we just wore out Joker last game. So we are going to ask alot of our bigs and KUZ down the stretch. Its going to be a battle in the trenches, i just.dont know who from our team, is going to show up and represent that Mamba Mentality.

I think you're overthinking it. By the time we get to the playoffs teams will tighten their rotations... not expand them. The Clips have better depth than us on paper however if they are using a 8-9 man rotation some of that depth will be immaterial.

A bigger concern is the Lakers, which are using a more compact rotation, wearing out or getting injured.

I think our apparent lack of depth begins to disappear when we get to the playoffs quite frankly.

Kuzma's effectiveness offensively will coincide with his opportunities. You can't expect him to heavily contribute on 8-10 shots a game. Defensively he's been good to very good all year in the team scheme IMHO.

I wish I can share your optimism and I hope and pray your are right because I think they are going to need a few more players to step up just like how they won it all before. I think of game 7 vs Portland how B Shaw and Horry nailed at least 4 3's to get them back, Metta game 7 vs Boston and Fox handcuffing Peja while hitting 5 huge FGs game 7 at Sacramento and of course Fisher who had a CAREER 40.4% from the 3pt area with the Lakers with his heroic shots.
Lebron came up huge vs GSW but he couldn't have done it without Kyrie who scored 100 pts in the final 3 games.
Danny Green shot great game 1 vs the Clips and they still lost badly. Chistmas day, Game 2, Kuzma stepped up and scored 25 points and they still lost.
My hope is that Vogel has a few sets saved up with multiple options that opposing teams would struggle to defend come playoff time.

You can't compared regular season pressure to playoff pressure and act like they're and the same.

Comparing Danny green opening night to Ron artest game 7 performance is ludicrous.

The Lakers have a good of a chance as anyone. Especially if PG doesn't show up or if injured.

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[NippySudz]

Like I said above, the junkyard dog from Detroit needs to resurface, the budding LA diva needs to go.

It's time. It's after all star break. No excuses.

Tons of " no training camp, he reinjured his ankle, new system, playing along side LeBron/ad" excuses

Too many "give him time" excuses

Well, now it's time.

Show up. Consistently. Lock in.

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[TylersLakers]

In my opinion, we have to fully invest in Kuzma after the break. He needs to play 30 MPG, because him playing at a high level is going to take us to a new level.

Two of AD/LeBron/Kuzma need to be on the court at all times.

Hopefully the opportunity wakes him up and he can get going. When you know you have that opportunity and you're not worried about minutes and when they're coming, it'll allow him to lock in more.

But a lot of this is on him too. Now's the time.

[NippySudz]

In my opinion, we have to fully invest in Kuzma after the break. He needs to play 30 MPG, because him playing at a high level is going to take us to a new level.

Two of AD/LeBron/Kuzma need to be on the court at all times.

Hopefully the opportunity wakes him up and he can get going. When you know you have that opportunity and you're not worried about minutes and when they're coming, it'll allow him to lock in more.

But a lot of this is on him too. Now's the time.

We'll probably see ad and LeBron resting more and he'll get his opportunities. Lakers have a comfortable lead in the west and should hold on to it late. Health is the most important thing..


I don't think they'll mind sacrificing a game or two to ensure they're players are healthy.

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[Landsberger]

In my opinion, we have to fully invest in Kuzma after the break. He needs to play 30 MPG, because him playing at a high level is going to take us to a new level.

Two of AD/LeBron/Kuzma need to be on the court at all times.

Hopefully the opportunity wakes him up and he can get going. When you know you have that opportunity and you're not worried about minutes and when they're coming, it'll allow him to lock in more.

But a lot of this is on him too. Now's the time.

I just don't see this happening. If it were going to why wait until now. My guess is that Kuzma still gets 12 shots or less and many of those he has to get like he has been by getting offensive rebounds and chucking at the end of quarters.

There is no reason to change anything.... our record and how we've played on the road in the West is great by any Laker historic marker.

[stan francisco]

Okay, Kyle.

It’s go-time.

[bb22]

Agree that Kuzma should get more minutes and shots for the remainder of the season. However, that’s not how the Lakers are going to play come playoff time. He’s getting 12-15 shots max. The only way Kuz becomes a significant value for this team is if he starts hustling for every ball and forcing his way to the paint and into those floaters that he shoots very well. If his dribbling skills were a little better, he would be able to get those shots up easily. If he’s guarded by someone shorter, being patient on offense and working on a turnaround baby-hook would be effective.
As for the defense... he will always be a liability.

[tamaraw08]

Agree that Kuzma should get more minutes and shots for the remainder of the season. However, that’s not how the Lakers are going to play come playoff time. He’s getting 12-15 shots max. The only way Kuz becomes a significant value for this team is if he starts hustling for every ball and forcing his way to the paint and into those floaters that he shoots very well. If his dribbling skills were a little better, he would be able to get those shots up easily. If he’s guarded by someone shorter, being patient on offense and working on a turnaround baby-hook would be effective.
As for the defense... he will always be a liability.

For me it's not just more mins and shots but the quality of shots that he should be getting. Somebody mentioned that he shoots above 50% from the corner 3's and yet he's barely getting more shots from there. He used to get those high % runners before but most of the time get gets the ball from spots where a defender can easily rotate, forcing him to pass the ball.
Kuzma is trying harder on defense IMO, but he doesn't have a better defensive instinct like Caruso who gets deflections here and there, or AD's lateral quickness to reach in and block shots from the weakside.

[tamaraw08]

I think you're overthinking it. By the time we get to the playoffs teams will tighten their rotations... not expand them. The Clips have better depth than us on paper however if they are using a 8-9 man rotation some of that depth will be immaterial.

A bigger concern is the Lakers, which are using a more compact rotation, wearing out or getting injured.

I think our apparent lack of depth begins to disappear when we get to the playoffs quite frankly.

Kuzma's effectiveness offensively will coincide with his opportunities. You can't expect him to heavily contribute on 8-10 shots a game. Defensively he's been good to very good all year in the team scheme IMHO.

I wish I can share your optimism and I hope and pray your are right because I think they are going to need a few more players to step up just like how they won it all before. I think of game 7 vs Portland how B Shaw and Horry nailed at least 4 3's to get them back, Metta game 7 vs Boston and Fox handcuffing Peja while hitting 5 huge FGs game 7 at Sacramento and of course Fisher who had a CAREER 40.4% from the 3pt area with the Lakers with his heroic shots.
Lebron came up huge vs GSW but he couldn't have done it without Kyrie who scored 100 pts in the final 3 games.
Danny Green shot great game 1 vs the Clips and they still lost badly. Chistmas day, Game 2, Kuzma stepped up and scored 25 points and they still lost.
My hope is that Vogel has a few sets saved up with multiple options that opposing teams would struggle to defend come playoff time.

You can't compared regular season pressure to playoff pressure and act like they're and the same.

Comparing Danny green opening night to Ron artest game 7 performance is ludicrous.

The Lakers have a good of a chance as anyone. Especially if PG doesn't show up or if injured.

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Yes, you just made my point. Green rose up and shot the lights out in game 1 of the regular season (btw, I couldn't recall another game he was that hot) and it's nothing compared to game 7 in the playoffs. When was the last time a current Laker not named Lebron and AD stepped up big time in pressure packed situations? My point is depth is very important and it will take 4-6 other players to bring it every game, not necessarily just points but also great defense and minimal mistakes. I like their chances against Utah and Denver but I can see the Clips trying to smother Bradley, Caruso, KCP, etc while sending fresh bodies to play real physical ball vs Lebron and AD. For me Howard can negate that physicality esp inside but he REALLY needs to cut down on those stupid obvious shoves that result to needless fouls.

[NippySudz]

I wish I can share your optimism and I hope and pray your are right because I think they are going to need a few more players to step up just like how they won it all before. I think of game 7 vs Portland how B Shaw and Horry nailed at least 4 3's to get them back, Metta game 7 vs Boston and Fox handcuffing Peja while hitting 5 huge FGs game 7 at Sacramento and of course Fisher who had a CAREER 40.4% from the 3pt area with the Lakers with his heroic shots.
Lebron came up huge vs GSW but he couldn't have done it without Kyrie who scored 100 pts in the final 3 games.
Danny Green shot great game 1 vs the Clips and they still lost badly. Chistmas day, Game 2, Kuzma stepped up and scored 25 points and they still lost.
My hope is that Vogel has a few sets saved up with multiple options that opposing teams would struggle to defend come playoff time.

You can't compared regular season pressure to playoff pressure and act like they're and the same.

Comparing Danny green opening night to Ron artest game 7 performance is ludicrous.

The Lakers have a good of a chance as anyone. Especially if PG doesn't show up or if injured.

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Yes, you just made my point. Green rose up and shot the lights out in game 1 of the regular season (btw, I couldn't recall another game he was that hot) and it's nothing compared to game 7 in the playoffs. When was the last time a current Laker not named Lebron and AD stepped up big time in pressure packed situations? My point is depth is very important and it will take 4-6 other players to bring it every game, not necessarily just points but also great defense and minimal mistakes. I like their chances against Utah and Denver but I can see the Clips trying to smother Bradley, Caruso, KCP, etc while sending fresh bodies to play real physical ball vs Lebron and AD. For me Howard can negate that physicality esp inside but he REALLY needs to cut down on those stupid obvious shoves that result to needless fouls.

I don't think you can extrapolate much if anything from a regular season game to a play off game. The Celtics beat both LA teams, so did Philly.

Are they going to the NBA finals and if so, would they be the favorite?

No of course not.

I believe being in the "trenches" will better a teams play. Going through those battles will build chemistry and continuity. That goes for any top team.


Caruso has stepped up, kcp, Dwight in some games.


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[stan francisco]

We also have to face some facts here. Theres no doubt the clippers have Up Loaded. The last addition of Morris is a significUant Bulk Upgrade. Montrez is strong. Throw in zubac, green etc.
This means the Clips know what time it is, and they are preparing for an interior war with the top seeds. Utah, denver and especially us, seeing how we just wore out Joker last game. So we are going to ask alot of our bigs and KUZ down the stretch. Its going to be a battle in the trenches, i just.dont know who from our team, is going to show up and represent that Mamba Mentality.

I think you're overthinking it. By the time we get to the playoffs teams will tighten their rotations... not expand them. The Clips have better depth than us on paper however if they are using a 8-9 man rotation some of that depth will be immaterial.

A bigger concern is the Lakers, which are using a more compact rotation, wearing out or getting injured.

I think our apparent lack of depth begins to disappear when we get to the playoffs quite frankly.

Kuzma's effectiveness offensively will coincide with his opportunities. You can't expect him to heavily contribute on 8-10 shots a game. Defensively he's been good to very good all year in the team scheme IMHO.

This. It’s almost appeared to me like he’s been frozen out of the offense, not invited. Maybe he’s been behaving like a brat and Vogel and LBJ don’t want to include him?

Who really knows? I’m wondering about his mental balance. Seems tinsel eyed. Last year he was all about balling.

He did improve his defense significantly. I just didn’t ever think it would come at the expense of his more natural talent; his fluid offense..

A play or two drawn up for him wouldn’t hurt.

[NippySudz]

We also have to face some facts here. Theres no doubt the clippers have Up Loaded. The last addition of Morris is a significUant Bulk Upgrade. Montrez is strong. Throw in zubac, green etc.
This means the Clips know what time it is, and they are preparing for an interior war with the top seeds. Utah, denver and especially us, seeing how we just wore out Joker last game. So we are going to ask alot of our bigs and KUZ down the stretch. Its going to be a battle in the trenches, i just.dont know who from our team, is going to show up and represent that Mamba Mentality.

I think you're overthinking it. By the time we get to the playoffs teams will tighten their rotations... not expand them. The Clips have better depth than us on paper however if they are using a 8-9 man rotation some of that depth will be immaterial.

A bigger concern is the Lakers, which are using a more compact rotation, wearing out or getting injured.

I think our apparent lack of depth begins to disappear when we get to the playoffs quite frankly.

Kuzma's effectiveness offensively will coincide with his opportunities. You can't expect him to heavily contribute on 8-10 shots a game. Defensively he's been good to very good all year in the team scheme IMHO.

This. It’s almost appeared to me like he’s been frozen out of the offense, not invited. Maybe he’s been behaving like a brat and Vogel and LBJ don’t want to include him?

Who really knows? I’m wondering about his mental balance. Seems tinsel eyed. Last year he was all about balling.

He did improve his defense significantly. I just didn’t ever think it would come at the expense of his more natural talent; his fluid offense..

A play or two drawn up for him wouldn’t hurt.

Where are people getting this from? That he's gone Hollywood? This is the same Kyle kuzma. The guy who use to dress up always been into fashion and social media. The same dude trading Barbs with his teaammate and friend Lonzo before LeBron got to LA. The same one the front office and to tell cut it out because they're trying to sign LeBron.

If his per 36 are the same, it would suggest to me he hasn't really improved dramatically and it's a coaching fit.

There's a fine balance. They do need to include him in more but I don't think they should go out of their way to accommodate him. He's not a star. But it's not really about scoring with kuz. I don't think any fan expects him to avg 20. Any reasonable fan anyway. It's about finding ways to stay on the floor even when you're not only scoring. Him getting those double double games show he's capable of finding ways to contribute to win. Now do it on a more consistent level.



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[stan francisco]

I think you're overthinking it. By the time we get to the playoffs teams will tighten their rotations... not expand them. The Clips have better depth than us on paper however if they are using a 8-9 man rotation some of that depth will be immaterial.

A bigger concern is the Lakers, which are using a more compact rotation, wearing out or getting injured.

I think our apparent lack of depth begins to disappear when we get to the playoffs quite frankly.

Kuzma's effectiveness offensively will coincide with his opportunities. You can't expect him to heavily contribute on 8-10 shots a game. Defensively he's been good to very good all year in the team scheme IMHO.

This. It’s almost appeared to me like he’s been frozen out of the offense, not invited. Maybe he’s been behaving like a brat and Vogel and LBJ don’t want to include him?

Who really knows? I’m wondering about his mental balance. Seems tinsel eyed. Last year he was all about balling.

He did improve his defense significantly. I just didn’t ever think it would come at the expense of his more natural talent; his fluid offense..

A play or two drawn up for him wouldn’t hurt.

Where are people getting this from? That he's gone Hollywood? This is the same Kyle kuzma. The guy who use to dress up always been into fashion and social media. The same dude trading Barbs with his teaammate and friend Lonzo before LeBron got to LA. The same one the front office and to tell cut it out because they're trying to sign LeBron.

If his per 36 are the same, it would suggest to me he hasn't really improved dramatically and it's a coaching fit.

There's a fine balance. They do need to include him in more but I don't think they should go out of their way to accommodate him. He's not a star. But it's not really about scoring with kuz. I don't think any fan expects him to avg 20. Any reasonable fan anyway. It's about finding ways to stay on the floor even when you're not only scoring. Him getting those double double games show he's capable of finding ways to contribute to win. Now do it on a more consistent level.



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People? I get it from watching old interviews of him from Detroit then and LA now. Not the same mindset nor basketball focus. I get it from my personal observations of moving to and living in LA. Have you had that experience? LA does that same thing to many newbs during their first five years there. Especially when there’s stardom luring. Other distractions come into play. Career focus slips. I can see that look in his eye, I’ve seen it in friends and peers in the biz over the years.

Performing like last year is status quo. I had expected him to improve more based on team USA play etc. I blame Kuz, Frank and LBJ. He’s our third best player but only if included. He needs to make sure they want to include him.

[NippySudz]

This. It’s almost appeared to me like he’s been frozen out of the offense, not invited. Maybe he’s been behaving like a brat and Vogel and LBJ don’t want to include him?

Who really knows? I’m wondering about his mental balance. Seems tinsel eyed. Last year he was all about balling.

He did improve his defense significantly. I just didn’t ever think it would come at the expense of his more natural talent; his fluid offense..

A play or two drawn up for him wouldn’t hurt.

Where are people getting this from? That he's gone Hollywood? This is the same Kyle kuzma. The guy who use to dress up always been into fashion and social media. The same dude trading Barbs with his teaammate and friend Lonzo before LeBron got to LA. The same one the front office and to tell cut it out because they're trying to sign LeBron.

If his per 36 are the same, it would suggest to me he hasn't really improved dramatically and it's a coaching fit.

There's a fine balance. They do need to include him in more but I don't think they should go out of their way to accommodate him. He's not a star. But it's not really about scoring with kuz. I don't think any fan expects him to avg 20. Any reasonable fan anyway. It's about finding ways to stay on the floor even when you're not only scoring. Him getting those double double games show he's capable of finding ways to contribute to win. Now do it on a more consistent level.



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People? I get it from watching old interviews of him from Detroit then and LA now. Not the same mindset nor basketball focus. I get it from my personal observations of moving to and living in LA. Have you had that experience? LA does that same thing to many newbs during their first five years there. Especially when there’s stardom luring. Other distractions come into play. Career focus slips. I can see that look in his eye, I’ve seen it in friends and peers in the biz over the years.

Performing like last year is status quo. I had expected him to improve more based on team USA play etc. I blame Kuz, Frank and LBJ. He’s our third best player but only if included. He needs to make sure they want to include him.

He's no different from last year as far as personality goes. Maybe the hair is a little funky but he's always been a "look-at-me" attention seeking person. It's probably why a lot of people think he's younger than he actually is

And I agree Vogel needs to get him involved a little more but when are you gonna put the onus mainly on kuz? There are a ton of energy guys in the league that don't get plays ran for them and find ways to impact the game. Find ways to win.

Caruso is one example on the Lakers. He's not the most talented but his tenacity keeps him into games.

There were games where kuz got double doubles. He played his butt off on Kobe memorial night against portland. That's the type of effort he needs to bring every night and maybe since the stakes are high in the playoffs, there's a chance he will focus and bring that energy.

He needs to find ways to stay on the floor even when not scoring. Whether it's passing, defense, rebounding etc

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[BEazy]

Kuzma is not a one on one player. He doesn’t have the ball handling skills to go one on one. So he results to catch and shoot, and he’s not even great at that. So I’m sure Vogel/Bron/AD have had discussions on how to involve him some more but his skill set and his little side distractions are derailing his full involvement with the team.

I fully expect Kuzma to be traded this offseason since his contract shoots up to close to 4 million.

[NippySudz]

Read on Twitter

Basically what I said before. Find other ways to impact the game to stay in the game.

[stan francisco]

You’re preaching to the choir. Last year, he cut more off the ball. Vogel’s system has very few sharp diagonal cuts off the ball in it, which is one of the things I expected him to excel in this year.

He’s sort of the third option behind Bron and AD right now, but no where near being the clear third option. The triangle would fit Kuz. Luke ran a few great sets for Kuz. Watch film, Frank!

In Kuzma’s defense, he went from scoring 20PPG behind Bron last year, where he and Ingram shared the second option scoring role. This year, as a forgotten afterthought behind TWO superstars, he still puts up almost the same scoring production. It could be argued that’s more impressive than last year’s scoring.

Meanwhile, on my side of the ball, his defense has improved significantly. I had doubts about his mindset there but no more. Impressive growth in short time.

I guess the Kuzma I see could be another year out, but we’ll see. The ASB is over, time to go all out, Kuz!

I still expect him to be our third star. Maybe my timing is off but now is when he should explode.

My guess is still that nobody will want him traded after the season is over. Especially not for a $4M player in return.

[NippySudz]

You’re preaching to the choir. Last year, he cut more off the ball. Vogel’s system has very few sharp diagonal cuts off the ball in it, which is one of the things I expected him to excel in this year.

He’s sort of the third option behind Bron and AD right now, but no where near being the clear third option. The triangle would fit Kuz. Luke ran a few great sets for Kuz. Watch film, Frank!

In Kuzma’s defense, he went from scoring 20PPG behind Bron last year, where he and Ingram shared the second option scoring role. This year, as a forgotten afterthought behind TWO superstars, he still puts up almost the same scoring production. It could be argued that’s more impressive than last year’s scoring.

Meanwhile, on my side of the ball, his defense has improved significantly. I had doubts about his mindset there but no more. Impressive growth in short time.

I guess the Kuzma I see could be another year out, but we’ll see. The ASB is over, time to go all out, Kuz!

I still expect him to be our third star. Maybe my timing is off but now is when he should explode.

My guess is still that nobody will want him traded after the season is over. Especially not for a $4M player in return.

Think you're putting too much blame on Vogel. Again you don't want to put blame much of it on kuzma. You want to deflect it other places including on LeBron James. Which doesn't make sense because LeBron is probably the only guy to consistently pass to him.

We've heard from two teammates(Jared Dudley and cousins) and a former NBA player in Matt Barnes and from kuzma himself which you pointed out by the way, that he's concerned with his mins, touches, and establishing himself long term.

All the vets are the team are telling him to find ways to contribute. That has nothing to do with vogels system. That has to deal with effort and energy to contribute. That's the same thing Kobe asked Dwight to do the first go around when Dwight wanted to post up. If the vets are telling him to keep cutting , it's because they see it's there..

This is a blessing in disguise. It's giving him a Chance to work on other areas of his game where he's weak at. He's had a few 5+ asts games which wasn't a thing in the past. In the past, his career high was 2asts. That lets.me k ow he's improving his vision and understanding how to read the defense and offense..a very good sign.

He's not just gonna turn it on and avg like 20 especially with less touches. Kuz has talent but he's not skilled. It would be asking a lot of him. It would be kinda unfair to him.

All Laker fans can ask him to do is compete and bring the energy every night. Find ways to contribute.

Tony Ferguson likes to say, "consistency x effort = confidence "

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[NippySudz]

The great thing about the roster is it seems they understand kuzma is still young and not putting the pressure on him like the fans are. They're also trying to teach him to win in other ways than just scoring.

All these lessons are important to his development. The playoffs will be a good learning experience for him imo. So good on the roster and coaching staff for that.

I still think he has to be better though but I didn't overrate him like others did but if kuz could give the energy, I think Laker fans would accept he's not the elite scorer (yet?) But he at least tries brings it every night and be satisfied with that.


If kuz can give the Lakers 15/8 consistently, give a consistent effort on D, who would be mad at that?

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