Kendall Marshall has an unguaranteed contract going into next season. He’s on the Lakers Summer League team and is averaging 8.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in three games. He stopped by to answer a few questions.
FORUM BLUE & GOLD: You were out of the league for a bit before catching on with the Lakers. What did you learn from being out?
KENDALL MARSHALL: You can’t take this opportunity for granted. It was something that made me appreciate what I did have. And when it was taken from me… basketball, to me, is my life. So I felt like a big part of me was taken away. I’m extremely blessed to be in this situation I’m in now and I just want to take full advantage of it.
FB&G: What did Coach Madsen tell you to run out there? Or are they just letting you freestyle?
KM: We definitely have sets, plays that we call… things that we’ve been working on in practice. It’s a different offense than what I learned last year… I’m still learning.
FB&G: What do you intend to improve on for next season?‘
KM: One thing is remaining aggressive from the point guard position… not having them guard us four-on-five as well as just mastering the pace of the game and mastering getting guys open shots. And defensively, keeping point guards in front of me.
FB&G: What do you say to people who remark about your set shot?
KM: Look at guys that have been successful that have set shots. Guys like Andre Miller. It’s not all about shooting jumpshots. There’s a thousand ways to score a basketball. Guys like Mark Jackson. Guys that have been successful that didn’t jump 20 feet on jumpshots.
‘
Much thanks to Kendall Marshall for a few minutes of his time.
david h says
can’t believe we’re watching nba summer league basketball. because of the excitement of the two laker draft picks, both julius randle and jordan clarkson; really enjoyed the final outcome of last night’s win over golden state with clarkson’s tip-in of randle’s miss at the the buzzer in overtime. that holiday guy from golden state shoots and looks like a poor man’s kevin durant and that’s not a bad thing in today’s nba. I could see him making their roster.
so now it’s been reported that the lakers are looking for possibly two (more weeks) before selecting a head coach for their basketball team. it’s beyond a slap in the face and looking more like a kick in the pants. so if not byron scott, then who? this coming from a front office that tried and unfortunately failed to land a big name free agent. It’s not looking bad, it’s looking sadly pathetic. But, we always got Hope and Prayer and Patience and Luck and Tradition and, and, and…wouldn’t be surprising to me that a prospective head coach (byron scott) should say, thanks, but no thanks on principle alone.
so if not scott, then might a mark Jackson with a side of jeff van gundy (as assistant) bring some creditability to the laker sidelines? i’m trying to envision what that would look like when a mark jackson is ejected as a result of a technical foul or two and jeff van gundy has to stand in for the duration of a game or two or three during the course of the upcoming season. not to mention the experience they together can impart on a relative young laker team….hard to envision, not impossible. to me, they would have to be a twofer.
Go lakers !
J C says
Ko
Please share your views on this topic.
J C says
Personally I like Marshall’s court vision and unselfishness.
As he says, being an explosive athlete isn’t the only way to be effective.
I think his team first attitude is probably valuable in a locker room as well.
Eric says
Bill Simmons gets it about Carmelo, this has been my view on him for years.
http://grantland.com/features/carmelo-anthony-new-york-knicks-legacy/
Great article
Phong84 says
JC I like your positivity about the Lakers.
The only reason we bring Marshall back to the Lakers:
1.Cheap contract
2. We need a 3rd/4th string PG
3. We need somebody to do Kobe Bryants errands.
Marshall is like Smush Parker, he is only on the team because the Lakers are just trying to put a team together. He lacks too many important elements to be a part of winning and successful team;
1. He lacks intagibles
2. He plays defense like Amare Stoudemire
3. He is not a offensive threat, this will stress Kobe Bryant because Kobe will constantly face triple teams with Marshall on the floor. Nobody will guard Marshall, he is not an NBA quality player..he belongs in China.
4. With Kobe on the team he will not have the ball in his hands. Kendall Marshall for how overrated he is needs the ball in his hands to be effective.
Im totally down for Marshall doing Kobe’s errands and hearing Kobe in a year bash on him the same way he did Smush and Kwame.
George Best says
if hes still on the roster when the season starts, this team is worse than we thought.
Justin says
I like Marshall as a back up and someone who gives the second unit structure. But he needs a floater. That is the biggest weakness he had last year (that he can really improve. His defense I doubt can get to even a decent level). If he can score in the paint his passes would be deadly. I think we will see a lot of him running the point with Clarkson at the 2.
Jesse says
Marshall sees the floor so well and I am actually fine with his set shot but it was hard to look past his defense last year. It does look like he is really working on his defensive reactions and position though, had a couple of great defensive plays last night. I hope he can carve a place in this league despite his athletic shortcomings. Would give hope to many of us less athletically gifted haha.
Vincent Williams says
To: Mitch K. and Jim B.
From: A loyal and extremely optimistic Lakers fan/Part-time Scout…….
There is still a chance for our team to be competitive and actually make the playoffs/make some noise…..here’s the lineup and explanation how:
PG – Jeremy Lin/Kendall Marshall/DeAndre Kane
SG – Kobe Bryant/Jordan Clarkson
SF – LANCE STEPHENSON/Nick Young/Xavier Henry
PF – Jordan Hill/Julius Randle/MICHAEL BEASLEY
C – Robert Sacre/GREG MONROE/Trey Thompkins
Wildcard Signings: Evan Turner (SG/SF)/Andrew Bynum (C)
Shaun says
Vine – we dont have the money for both stephenson and monroe let alone beasley and bynum behind them
Monroe will sign 1-2 years in detroit as in an rfa – no chamce we steel him at 10 mil as he is rejecting 12mil deals from detroit
Stephenson could be good , beasley could he good, id rather oden over bynum but one of them could be worth the risk
Malik says
Kobe at SF
No on Beasley
Why would Randle be on the bench? He’s starting at PF
Hill will be the starting C
Kelly will be back and will be the backup PF
Okafor should be signed on a vet minimum contract and serve as the backup C
Can’t see Thompkins making the team but gotta see more of him.
Monroe is WAY too expensive and honestly is not worth the price.