lazybatman wrote:kblo247 wrote:Kuzma was at 21ppg on the year when he got to start when the two guys he shared a position with most the time missed a game in Bron and AD. He shot over 50% in his starts and we went like 7-2. He had no camp, got hurt the first time ever, and still averaged double digits off the bench despite losing 8 minutes and 5 shots a night without ever knowing if he would close or not. I mean we literally made him a swing at all star break when we singed Kieff and he took to guarding the wings of other teams and posted positive numbers. His technique wasn't good, but hiss results were. In round one he had the second best defensive numbers on the team behind Caruso. He was a positive defender versus Houston. And yes we all remmeber him fouling MPJ but we ignore in the actual matchup Kuzma outscored MPJ and held him to the the lower percentage in their one on one encounters. And he had the best defensive numbers of everyone including AD and Bron vs Jimmy in the finals. He even shot 50% from three in the bubble and playoffs out the right corner which people ignore. And for what it is worth Kuz's d rating improved by almost 5 points last year and he had never been coached to play defense short of Pop and Team USA before Vogel last year, on top of playing small 4 most the year before he found a spot he could defend well at the wing
Would I rather see Kuz have an 18 point average with a bunch of 20 and 30 point games? Would I rather he hit 36-40% of hi threes on average? Would I rather he be in a perfect stance like Fox or Artest or Cooper? Hell yeah!!! But he is still more valuable than Rose, half the cost, better defender, better size, and you control his rights.
And I never get why people try to gloss that over with Rose. NY media was getting to him and he went missing and that was one of the reasons they got rid of him. He admitted playing in Cleveland with Wade and Bron was hard, left the team, and got psychological help because of the stress. So you go put LA media, LeBron, LAker fans, and title expectations on him and not expect him to crack up?
I think he would have been a Clipepr, Laker, Sixer, Rocket, or Celtic last year if he did not tell Detroit do not trade me or buy me out, but he was offered an out just like Markieff
Idk if you wanna trade Rose for Kuz or not after this post. I don't see either fit very well on this Lakers side, which needs shooting and elite wing defense.
I wanna trade Kuz for a valuable piece before the trade deadline so we are not stuck with his trade negotiations next summer. D-Rose is not that piece. Kuzma's effort on defense is appreciable, but you want a plumber to fix your pipes, not a electrician who tries really hard.
Kuz is not a top 5 efficient scorer on this reloaded team now(Bron, AD, Schr, Trez, KCP), so the opportunity is only gonna decrease. His offense and defense are below average for the Lakers point blank, and unless his shooting improves drastically, it's not gonna change. If Kuz goes to NY, Chicago, etc and lights it up for 20+ points, he will get a 15-20m contract somewhere pretty easy. We get a PJ Tucker / Holiday kinda vet in return. Works for both.
If we push it under the carpet now, his value plummets even further, as he turns 26 years old and all that hope and excitement about his "potential" dies a slow quiet death.
You both made great arguments. I'm afraid it's just a case of bad fit. Lakers really believed he will pan out that it probably caused them extra picks so they don't throw him to the AD deal. I really thought teaming him up with the veteran Rondo would unleash his potential but...
I think the options are not that many in terms of getting young players who can really help this team, maybe look at other youngsters who also have yet to blossomed. Guys like Kevin Knox or Malik Monk. I like Anfernee Simon from the Blazers but I don't know if the Blazers would even let him go for Kuz, unless they envision him working well with Dame and CJ.