We all know LFR already, but he's positively sold on Lonzo in a major, major way. I'll be back to post about Lonzo later.
I'm halfway through listening to this and LFR does bring up a good point to watch in how Lonzo reacts or plays against switching defenses and soft hedges because so far he really hasn't gone up against this in the Summer League. I can see how switching defense will be tougher but with time he'll figure out how to exploit it. Especially if its Lopez coming over to set the pick and then they switch so Lopez has the smaller player on him.
I love LFR podcasts, if you really want to get schooled on breakdowns of players they do such an awesome job.
I think this is a brilliant marketing campaign for one of the major brands to pick him up now. I mean just look at the ridiculous amount of attention the kid is getting for just shoes. Lonzo is bringing it on the court and all these shoe companies are probably taking a look. Right now I think one of them will pick him up. If Lonzo is smart he'll go with Nike, but I bet he ends up with Adidas or Under Armour who will offer him more opportunity for co-branding after his first contract is up.
First off, I loved that we got to keep our pick this year. Odds were not in our favor at all. Thank goodness, so we had some luck or "Magic" on our side not only keeping a top 3 but moving up to the number 2. Secondly, mistake my @$$. Lonzo was exactly the player we have been looking for to run Luke's offense. He is a one of a kind PG with great height at 6 foot 6, decent athleticism, super high b-ball IQ, very good rebounding and otherworldly passing ability. He's the guy who can initiate all of the offensive action, dictate tempo and push the break magnificently. These sound like a lot of superlatives but when you watch him on the court it's addictive - you can't wait to see what he does next. He's the real thing. He reminds me a lot of Kidd and a lot of Nash in that regard. He's a phenomenal floor general. Will he be as good as those guys? No one knows. But I'm looking forward to finding out. I think all of the top five picks are going to be really good and maybe great NBA prospects. I would have been pleased to have any of them, but I think Ball was the perfect candidate for us. We need more than scoring. We needed an elite playmaker who is fun to watch to bring back a high octane offensive game to the Lakers. We got just that guy. Now on the more critical side, I think he's forcing up too many 3's. Not sure if that is because he wants to prove something? He is being told to be aggressive and score more but I think his best bet in that regard is taking it to the hole as he's been doing more lately with good success. I think the threes will come in time but I'd like for him to be more selective about them like he was at UCLA.
I think a few things will work in his favor for his shooting once the season gets going. Conditioning is the first big one. He's playing back to back games after not playing for 3-4 months of basketball. He definitely looks fatigued out there and he's playing high minutes, so I can see his shot being affected by that. Getting used to the NBA level three. I think most rookies have an adjustment period coming out of college. Really don't know why college doesn't just move it back. Floor spacing and aggressiveness. We saw in his 36 point game that once he was getting to the rim at will, players were sagging off him and he was getting better looks. So he needs to keep trying to penetrate to keep defenses honest, and also open the floor for other players.
He wore his Nike Kobe's on the day Nike execs were at Summer League for a presentation / conference and several were at the game. GENIUS!!! To keep them honest, he wore Adidas the next night. Tonight I'm betting on Curry's Under Armour. Papa Ball is a mad scientist. Some people refuse to see what he's doing, but BBB is a basketball fans household name. Not one dime has been spent on advertising. I hope he gets the branding / distribution deal he wants. And like you, I hope it's with Nike. Seeing Lonzo in Kobe's gets me hyped.
That's wonderful. Looks like she doesn't have any or much motor ability in her right arm... I'm asking my wife what that means and how bad this stroke must have been, but what a wonderful sight to see her walking around and able to go see her son's basketball game. edit- spoke to the wife. She says just based on Tina's condition, it was an extremely serious stroke. She agreed with me that the arm looks almost completely lost right now and that her leg even looks affected. It's possible she makes a full recovery, but it all takes a ton of time and patience.
I'm genuinely thinking this might have been their long-term plan all along: the shoes they sold become collector's items, they show the execs what Lonzo can do. Then he wears the different brands and shows them literally on social media how much attention they're going to get with him in their brand... Just. Do. It. from LeBron. "Create the style" or whatever it was from Harden... I'm thinking Steph's brand is up next and I bet if he does it, Steph probably has something to say too. The amount of attention he's getting is just unbelievable.
It is. I said yesterday after the game that no PG or guard in the NBA plays the game like he does. It is completely reminiscent of how Magic played the game. Whether he ever approaches the levels of winning Magic achieved or not. Have also said I truly believe Magic and Rob believe the things they said about him his Lakers press conference. Not hype.
Those are telling stats, true this is summer league but given what we've seen so far how can we not get excited!!
Strokes can be very severe to a point where the affected person is completely bed ridden, its a good sign to see his mom at least walking with some support. Hope for strong recovery for her.
Impressive, but I would love to see the usage rate of all 5 of those guys with those stat lines. I know Lonzo's usage rate at UCLA was shockingly low and I don't remember how often those other 4 guys handled the ball in their summer leagues games but it feels to me like Lonzo is handling the ball a ton while on the court. Maybe not dribbling a lot, but its in his hands often so his stats would look a little bit better.
And the number that stands out the most? The assists. Off the charts. And the rebounding is amazing of course, too, which he really has a knack for as well as an advantage being 6 foot 6. I don't think he needs to score as much as people are saying. We have guys who will put it in the basket. As long as he keeps the D honest his greatest value will be running the show. He is a true PG in that regard.
