Lonzo Ball Discussion: Bulls

Okay rewatched the game:

Criticisms: he started off very lackadaisical defensively. He wasn't hustling at all and was very reminiscent of our last couple years at guard defensively: make the first read and then stop moving. He played this way most of the half and it was very frustrating to watch. Couple that with Zu's glacier slow reflexes and Philly got out to a big lead, it was almost the same script we'd been seeing for 2-4 years. Even in the second half as Lonzo got going, he was careless with the ball in a way we hadn't seen yet. I didn't love his effort after mistakes too. There were times when he wouldn't hustle back after a turnover. There were times he gambled in transition instead of hustling back which is usually a hallmark of conditioning issues. Lastly, part of his shooting struggle isn't his form it's his reads. When guys go under, he needs to read that faster and step right into his jumper. I don't think it's as slow as people claim, I think that's a lazy argument. I think the problem is he's not reading the defense fast enough and he needs to step into the three instead of pulling up from 28-30 feet. That should come with time, but it's an issue right now.

Praise: The passing. My goodness the passing. He finished with 11 assists, but he really should have had 13-15 or so with some excellent passes. As he gets more and more experience he'll figure out more and more where to pick his spots, but his ability to pass the ball is just unbelievable. I loved his attack mentality yesterday getting to the rim. He was blocked once or twice, but his ability to get there and turn the corner was fantastic. Brandon Austin is a big guard with great length and while he may not be an NBA player, he's got the kind of unique body that should bother Lonzo, but Lonzo took it right to him. At 6'6" Lonzo is an underrated rebounder as well. He's a legitimate triple double threat every night. Now, I criticized Lonzo for his defensive effort, but when the game was on the line Lonzo came up with big plays on that end. He finished with a handful of steals and a couple blocks. I've been saying it since UCLA: he's got tremendous defensive instincts especially off the ball. He is great at digging on drives and people really underestimate his length.

Something to keep in mind about the Sixers: they are an older team for the Summer League. Larry Drew is 27 freaking years old. Korkmaz is only 19, but he's been playing professionally since 2013 in Europe so he's got tremendous experience for his age. Their age and experience level really helped them with a solid gameplan whereas most of these games are generally a glorified YMCA pick-up game. They didn't allow the Lakers to get out on the break, they took smart fouls, they executed their gameplan better... And Lonzo basically beat them single-handedly.

This is Summer League and everything needs to be taken with a grain of salt but I'll take a couple things from this: 1) this is what sophomores in the NBA are supposed to look like. Lonzo looked better than this league has to offer last night and played exceptionally against a guy nearly a decade his senior who has some NBA experience. This doesn't mean he'll put up 25/10/10 games in the NBA with regularity, but it does show that he's an NBA player and these guys aren't which is important for your #2 pick. And 2) The kid put a team on his back in a way we weren't sure he could. The biggest question on this kid was whether or not he could do exactly what he did last night and he passed the first test with flying colors. Obviously this is sub-NBA competition, but the fact that he has the mentality to go out and do it if he has to is just as important as anything he's shown. He is a winner.

Everyone fawned over Jayson Tatum, but Lonzo just out-shined him by a good margin. Everyone was excited about Fultz, he didn't have anything like this game. Ball is a special player and among his peers he's got a shot to be the best of the bunch. That's about all you can ask for at this stage: a chance at greatness.

 

I think it's a concern, but Lopez should help. It just means Lonzo needs a clearer lane than what we saw last year. We need Ingram, Randle, and Lopez to be able to hit jumpers.

 

You know what I've noticed though is ESPN has actually been very pro-Lonzo. Their commentator team, especially PJ has praised him and constantly talked patience with him, said it's only summer league and give him time and on SportsCenter they have been showing much more positive highlights than negative. I think he's been great for their ratings, summer league and otherwise, and they're actually on his side right now. It's been very weird to see after 2 years of them hating on Russell, and a year of acting like Ingram doesn't exist.

 

For what it's worth (in @Doc Brown fashion):

Player A: 32 minutes, 17.7 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 0.3 steals, 0.7 blocks, 42.2 FG%
Player B: 34.5 minutes, 18.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1 steal, 1.3 blocks, 40.6 FG%
Player C: 33 minutes, 28 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 6 steals, 0 blocks 36 FG%
Player D: 34.7 minutes, 17.3 points, 7.7 rebounds, 9.0 assists, 2.7 steals, 1.3 blocks 38 FG%
Player E: 31.3 minutes, 17.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1.3 blocks 43.8 FG%

1. Who is the best player of these four?
2. Fultz isn't one of them (didn't play enough in Vegas, only 15 minutes before his injury).

edit- I'm adding a 5th player.

 

And about 16 years of vehement Kobe hate?

I think the national media and East coast just was extremely into Lonzo's struggle because it was headlines. I've also noticed they're generally on his side. I think for now they're going to generally let Lonzo create his own narrative. If he's a good kid, they'll be good to him. As soon as he does something wrong, they'll crush him though.