In our latest episode of the Laker Film Room podcast, Pete and I talk about the Lakers loss to the Celtics and some of the takeaways. We dove deep into Lonzo Ball’s triple-double, Kyle Kuzma’s offensive explosion, what we liked about Josh Hart’s improved performance from game one, and also touched on Ivica Zubac’s good start and what led to him not really finishing strong.
Short episode today, but I enjoyed this one. Click through to listen to the entire thing.
Fern says
That was the liquor talking last night LOL. But we all know that you cant make definite judgements on any player after his pro debut. “OMG what a bust!!!” “the lakers are in trouble!!!” and all that nonsense after one game was ridiculous, sorry. What i saw that first game was a kid under enormous pressure freaking out and trying too hard. Last night he was more composed and the results were there.He never going to be a 25ppg player, he’s a pass first pg that have elite passing skills and court vision. That’s his game.That’s what this team needs. The way he set up his teammates was just amazing and he is a tempo pusher. He will get a ton of rebounds and assists as a rookie. his shot is not there yet but that’s the case with the majority of rookies. Players will love to play with him. Again, is too early but i think the kid will be fine. And the Lakers are going to be a lot of fun to watch.
Anonymous says
I never recommend drinking and posting.
Chutch says
Semi made 3 or 4 straight wide open pick and pop threes in the 3rd. Zu did not even make an attempt to jump out on him. Unfortunately Zu looks slower, more plodding than he did last year.
Love the kid but he has the rest of the summer to decide whether he’s going to be a modern day big or a fastly approaching obsolete plodding big man.
It’s a scary thought how 3 pt. Challenged we are going to be this year. Aside from Lopez and hopefully Ingram do we have anyone truly capable of spreading the floor?
All the more reason for Lonzo (absolutely love his game!) to be a little more focused at finishing his opportunities at the rim instead of passing out to below average 3 pt. Shooters.
Clay Bertrand says
The Lakers will definitely be short on shooting as currently constructed.
Maybe KUZMA can help stretch the floor??
George Best says
Zubac is somewhere between Bryant Reeves and Andrew Bynum
Rick in Seattle says
Just trying to get a true read: It almost looks like Zubac has regressed since April. Or are the new players just that much quicker? Are we expecting too much too soon from Big Z? Don’t know about others, but I’m pretty comfortable with Lopez as the starting C.
Magic really needs to somehow find a decent veteran backup PG and probably a starting SG. Kind of expecting all three 1st round picks to see plenty of PT.
Kuzma looks like a steal. Is it possible that he could start at SF and let Ingram slide over to SG? Guess we will see in training camp!
Hopefully, we’ll hear something about KCP sometime this week.
stats says
Personally, I’m still high on Zubac. Yes, he’s plodding, but he has some great skills, both offensively and defensively. I don’t think his skills as a post-up center set really lend themselves to summer league, which rewards athleticism. He did well at the start of the game, seemed to have a decent rapport with Lonzo, and more importantly showed last year that he can play in the regular season. There is the question, though, of when and how Luke will want to use him (or not).
LT Mitchell says
Dear Lonzo Haters (and DLo Lovers),
Please, come and join the Lonzo bandwagon. There’s plenty of room. Being a Kobe hater during the Kobe era must have been a miserable experience. Don’t make the same mistake during the Lonzo era. Unless you are addicted to the taste of crow, I invite all of you to come aboard.
Sincerely,
Future Lakers parade attendee
George Best says
I’m a DAR lover and a Ball lover. What i don’t get is why we couldn’t have both. I’m guessing we’d be seeing that parade a little sooner if we still did.
Vasheed says
I consider myself more of a Lonzo skeptic than a hater. None of my concerns have yet been put to rest. He still shot poorly in this last game despite the tripple double. We haven’t seen him match up defensively against elite quick PG’s yet either. I’m really looking forward to the matchup against Fox.
Summer league is kinda like a preview. Seeing Lonzo do well might ease my concerns a bit but, I won’t get too excited or down after 1 or 2 games. We need to see Lonzo succeed in the regular season with sustained excellence.
dxmanners says
Couldn’t agree more, Lonzo needs to finish at the rim once in a while.
Dom says
Lonzo is 19 with a 19 yo physique. He will get stronger and his game will grow and develop. His passing and court savvy really stood out to me. His defense stunk. Much like BI last year his lack of core strength was really evident. He did show good anticipation defensively but he was over powered repeatedly. The growth BI showed is exactly what we should expect from lonzo. Kuzma impressed me. His 3 pt shooting and defense especially. Zubac really looked unsure of himself. I suspect the freelance nature of summer league doesnt suit his skill set at all. Let us not forget how effective he was towards the end of last year within the structure of Luke’s offense. We need shooters. JC is a scorer, Randle is a bull in a china shop. Teams are going to pack the paint and go under every high screen. In truth unless some shooters appear its going to be a long developmental year. Let’s temper expectations a little. We have a few pieces but we need several more. I dont see Randle as a long term solution at the 4. He isnt Draymond defensively and with lonzo he wont be doing those full court rampages from end to end. His shot must improve and he has got to develop some range. I still see JC as a scorer off the bench more than a starting 2. I like Lopez but i prefer to have my big near the basket not at the 3 pt line. Time for patience guys. If we get 30+ wins ill consider the season a success. 35 would be amazing. Unless a trade happens i cant see more than that. BUt what i see in BI and Lonzo has me excited about the future
Alexander says
“unless some shooters appear its going to be a long developmental year.”
For all the long term foundational progress we’ve made, the above is probably the truth for 2017-18 and likely beyond. Even if one of JR/LNJ shows up with a much improved 3, and we pick up a shooter, we’ll still suck, but less. I am more optimistic on Randle than you. Dreymond wasn’t Dreymond at 22 either. It’s Julius’ 3rd real year and a contract one to boot. He’s been working hard and the FO says he might have a breakout. He’ll be faster and stronger, but will he shoot better or go right? Will he be beastly on rebounds and defense, which I believe is within his capability? Honestly, I am hoping for something in between – impressive progress, even if not quite a Green-type trajectory.
The other issue hanging above the team is the need for another salary-shedding TRADE, either Deng and assets (2020 1st, JR?), or JC for pocket change, if we are to get close to two max slots, because renouncing JR and stretching JC and Deng is stupid and still wouldn’t get us there. There are also very few partners left with cap space or expiring contracts. The better Julius shows in pre-season, the more likely he’s to be packaged with Deng early.
I do see playing with LB a little differently regarding JR and Lopez. I still see JR going downhill full speed with the ball after a R with the defense on its heels, and either finish or pass back/laterally to LB who passes again quickly to someone open. Brook will play in the perimeter a lot on O, most often trailing a running play that had to reset, to draw out their 5, as guards won’t be able to stop his 3’s.
Rick in Seattle says
Alex, agree with the 2nd part. Another salary shedding trade works for me. Unfortunately, I think Deng’s value will be improved (along with his trade prospects), if he remains on the Lakers roster for the coming season, and traded NEXT summer (when he has only 2 yrs remaining on his contract.
As for right now, moving the Clarkson contract might help, but with the Lakers current guard shortage, unless a similar or better player comes back in trade, not sure how trading Clarkson helps at this time.
One trade possibility that MIGHT work would be to try to push for a S&T for KCP. (if Detroit will cooperate). With Detroit nearly capped out, there may be some incentive there to take deferred compensation–as in Clarkson + a future draft pick. Or simply trade a resigned Randle for a resigned KCP. Most would agree Julius has more value than Clarkson.
But I’m guessing that the front office is already looking at these options. Next February’s
trade deadline may be a more logical time to trade when teams have a better idea of what they have (or dont have).
Old Timer says
The big picture is the acquisition of a Center, Brook Lopez who is closer to the rim that will score more points with Lonzo’s assist with GPS. Without the DLo and Moz help, Nets would not release Lopez. Trade goes both ways. I fondly remember the time that many laker fans were angry at logo when he traded Norm to the SD Clippers and got rookie Byron Scott. Once they got to know Byron, an important SG component, then the haters got the big picture that two 1’s are redundant in ball handling while 1 + 2 contributed more synergy and chemistry. Well, Magic/Rob added 5 for one year rental and essentially Rob got three more who have now have names: Kuzma, Hart and Bryant. Because of DLo’s future contract as well as Moz, Lakers created an opportunity for a Superstar to join in 2018 may it be Bron or George. If those two don’t materialize how many teams have that cap space that Laker has, in 2018? That’s a good plan compared to wishful thinking in the past in begging to Howard to stay or Aldridge to consider Lakers as his destination.
I hope fans will not pressure Lonzo by second guessing his every moves or too much analysis without a W. He is still acclimatizing to NBA standards. Secondly, he is not too familiar with his teammates moves and some are not ready for his assists. Thirdly, Ingram and Hart will not play anymore, it’s tough to win with current lopsided SL roster against other teams with draft picks who are animated to embarrass him (like Johnson of Clippers) bec of jealousy at Lonzo’s fanatical attention. I think this will the biggest problem of the coaches in the future, too much hype, too much adulation and distraction to the budding star forgetting that he is still a 19 year old, still in his infancy stage in NBA..
Concerned says
Scott was with the Lakers for numerous title runs. Lopez will be let go, for cap space, next summer.
Rick in Seattle says
Maybe yes, maybe no. It’s probably just a bit premature to make such a prediction at this point in time, when Lopez has yet to play even one game with this team. Most fans and others feel that Lopez is a clear improvement over Mozgov and Hibbert.
Yes, there is a consensus that his expiring contract allows for additional cap space in 2018–IF NEEDED. But at this point in 2017, no one can say with any certainty, how the 2018 free agency will play out, any more than we can accurately predict the NBA draft.
We all enjoy the Paul George speculation, but knowing with certainty where he will eventually end up, remains an uncertainty. We are seeing teams like Boston, Houston, Minnesota, Sacramento–all scrambling hard to improve their rosters for the coming season, and we are only 10 days into free agency..
Having the Lopez contract (and his Bird Rights) gives the Lakers a number of options. Depending upon their 2018 free agency success (or failure), Lakers FO may want
(or need to) adjust their options.
With Lopez (and his Bird Rights), they may want to either re-sign & keep him, re-sign & trade him, or simply waive & renounce him for for nothing in return (the later being the least likely option).
Who knows what may happen. The Lakers could decide to use Lopez and go after a totally different star like Anthony Davis in NO.
bluehill says
After an extremely small sample set of 2 games, Ball’s performance seemed to me to be pretty consistent with pre-draft scouting reports, which highlighted the strength of his transition play and raised concerns about his half-court offense. If his outside shot isn’t falling, he’s going to have a tougher time manufacturing points if it’s not a transition basket. The Lakers are going to have to run a lot, which is fine because they are a young team. However, it seems there are a limited number of transition opportunities in a game, so Lonzo’s pick and roll game is going to have to improve.
Excerpt from DraftExpress ( http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Lonzo-Ball-7229/ ) –
“When discussing the Lonzo Ball experience, it would be impossible not to start with his elite transition play. Ball his virtually the entire package in this regard, from his ability to force turnovers and grab defensive boards to ignite the break, the breakneck speed he operates at with the ball in his hands, his elite creativity and passing accuracy, and even right down to his knowledge of when to push the ball himself and when to give it up to his teammates.
In the half court, Ball is a little bit more of a mixed bag, with some pronounced strengths and weaknesses to his game. His bread and butter is still his amazing court vision and creativity. His biggest limiting factor at this stage is that he just doesn’t show much ability to consistently get into the paint off the dribble, even at the college level. His first step isn’t great, as his athleticism really begins to shine when he has the chance to build up steam in transition, and he doesn’t have the strength needed to overcome that. How limited he will be as a scorer in the half court is a legitimate concern for decision makers looking to build a team around him. “
Alexander says
I’m having a bit of deja vu with the 1994 draft. A versatile athletic forward who checked all the boxes went #1 (G.Robinson), followed at #2 by a passing genius (JKidd>LB) and #3 a smooth Dukie wing (GHill>JTatum). Hoopshype correctly has the re-draft/way it should have been as JKidd #1. Because Kidd made everyone else better, duh!
Ball’s passing is as natural to him as breathing, and will only get better. Soon enough he’ll be the most desirable PG to play with in the league. That draw may be bigger than the Lakers lore in bringing stars here. Forget about the trees, the forest view is quite good: with Lonzo Ball, we got Showtime II for the next decade. The question is not if Ball will be a baller in the league, but how long will it take him. Ever so lucky for us, the same is true for Brandon Ingram. At 19.7, he’s looking half-way to Yannis already. He’s already our best scorer and player, as the insiders keep raving. He sure passed the eye test against the Clips. Imagine two more years of experience and strengthening at his rate of improvement? Wow.
Bottom line: we got two future young All-Stars. And another 6-7 quality starters and backups, on rookie contracts.If we indeed add PG and another star in 2018, we’ll have 4 quality all stars and a good/young/deep/ defensively minded bench. It is not so outlandish to think we really can be contenders in two years.
With that said, this will probably be a tough to watch year. We’ll be better than last year, yet painful to watch, with our lack of shooting and defense.
KevTheBold says
Agree Dom. I too felt in the beginning that Lonzo should have been the number 1 pick.
Fultz is good, yet the most powerful tool for any team, is a pg that makes everyone else better.
Free agents also know realize this fact. Ball is a once in a generation find.
Not to mention that Fultz’s scoring penchant has a dark side, in a higher potential for injury.
As far as I can see, we lucked out big time !
And not only in Lonzo, but it may turn out that Kuzma is the the most overlooked find in a draft in the past decade.
Kuzma alone plus dumping that Mozzy contract, might turn out to be more than enough, in payment for Russell.
Brook, is just icing on the cake.
It hasn’t felt this good to be a Laker fan, for very long time !
Pbz06 says
It’s interesting to see the psycho over analysis on a 19 year old PG having a bad game in summer league and using it as a definitive stamp on how his career will play out. His shot will fall, calm down. Meanwhile, everyone is acting like Thomas Bryant is the next big thing.
How many dunks or layups did guys like Nwaba, Hart, and Kuzma get directly from Lonzo pushing it ahead or via hockey assist? One of his corner 3s got erased by stepping out pf bounds so he was close to finishing 6-14. He also passed up a couple open layups to dish out instead of being aggressive. He’s learning and is the ultimate team player.
He was +7 differential (only Laker with positive was him and Kuzma). Lakers got outscored by 13 when he was out of the game (fwiw, Tatum finished with a -1 rating). He also showed lots of potential in half court and didmt seem to struggle getting penetration.
Even in the first game, going 2-15, he nearly finished with a positive differential. The hype is real. What he does on the court is next level stuff. I’m excited to see what he does with NBA athletes running with him. Using big athletic lineups with Ingram, Kuzma, Nance, Randle, Clarkson has potential. I also like what I see from Hart and Nwaba. Smart high IQ players.
Right now Lonzo still seems like a kid finishing puberty, lol (compare him to Tatum and it’s obvious what NBA ready means). But we didn’t draft Lonzo for 2017. We are seeing why we drafted him, so let’s not put too much statistical results in his first couple games. He’s not going to be an inefficient 3pt shooter. We knew he needed time to adjust.
Also, Fultz just had a clunker too but nobody is talking about it due to him injuring his ankle. Jackson looked horrible in the first half before recovering. Tatum is just more NBA ready like we knew, but as we marvel at his arsenal, he’s been a minus player so far and going Iso almost every time. We don’t want a Rudy Gay, we want prime Jason Kidd 😀
Rick in Seattle says
“I don’t generally talk to vermin, but I’ll talk to you just this once. The line’s been drawn. What (Pelinka & I) have done (with Mozgov) has balanced the books. But if any one of you (NBA teams) try to steal my players, I’m not going to the Sheriff, the Governor, or the President of the United States. I’m coming for you!”
Famous non-quote from Magic Johnson…. Can you guess what movie this quote originated from?