Kuz is somewhat popular and relevant that's why. But I agree, Hart should start. Sent from my E6533 using Tapatalk
Kyle needs to hit the boards and play the right way more often to solidify his role as a starter. Appears that he presses too much when his offense is not flowing and fails to move the ball forward in transition or leaks out too soon after an opposing teams shot. He is a starting power forward on this team and needs to embrace that role. He is a talented scorer not a dead eye shooter so he can get his offense going in a numerous amount of ways. I'd love to see his offensive rebound total increase substantially and think that would do wonders for his and the teams' overall game.
Great post, Silk. I just think naturally Kuz is such a tweener with more of a SF mentality than a PF. He just doesn't have the size and strength to bang with the big guys. He's great when he has mismatches coming off the bench but as a starter? I just don't see it. I was fine with him being in there instead of BI when he was suspended, but the two in there together? It doesn't work well and we've seen a pretty good sample size now for whatever reason. I do agree though as long as we are winning, Luke probably does nothing about it.
Good points Lakerjones. Its a business lesson for Kyle. You don't alway get promoted to the position you want, often the position the organization needs, but its still a promotion. Kyle is only 23 years old and will continue to develop physically in order to handle the position, but he has to start developing a toughness to his game in the meantime. If he was in the WWE he'd be my candidate to turn from the golden boy into the role of the heel. It would benefit both him and the team.
less reliable everywhere, better off the bounce and cutting off ball. otherwise, yes, i think so. not bad for a #27 pick.
Still .... if he keeps seeking the mentality and the physical basketball graduate program from Kobe and brown nosing LeBron for tips .... .... he may go much further.
Kuzma was a steal as 27th pick, so the praise was justified early on, but I feel he's been overrated for a while now. He's a poor defender, poor rebounder, poor ISO-player, below-average passer, and average ball-handler He's basically a scorer that can't create shots for himself. His value as a player slows down as the game slows down. I never understood why people thought he was better than Randle, but at best Kuzma is a great 6th man scorer off the bench. Not starter material imho.
eh, not sure the same description can't be used for randle. they're both sixth men. kuz is more of a deep threat, despite his percentages right now, so i'd prefer him if i had to choose between the two. but i didn't, so...that's on management. anyhoo...he got overrated because he had a long stretch of hot shooting. but let's not let the pendulum swing too far back. this is a useful nba player; he's just not a star. like everyone else the lakers have drafted of late. and that's not a bad thing. people saying he's "just" rashard lewis or somesuch...rashard lewis was a good nba player for a decade. there are worse fates. i'd like him to care more on d and on the boards. and i think he will; it's just going to take some time for him to learn he's not an allstar.
Well I don't want to sidetrack this thread because Randle talk belongs in NBA discussion, but Julius is a far developed player and he's a starter on 80% of NBA teams. Everything I listed as "poor" for Kuzma, Julius is good or great at. Not that it matters anymore, but those were my thoughts when we were comparing them before he left. I still believe Lonzo and Ingram are future stars. They have multiple strengths that make them special. Both have elite height/length for their position at 6'6 and 6'9/7'3 wingspan. Both are instinctual as defenders. Both can create shots for others and aren't one-dimensional like Kuzma, who can have zero impact if he doesn't score. And remember, those two players are still 21. Kuzma is 2 years older. Like others I think Hart is a better player and should start over him.
All of this. Getting a Rashard Lewis at that spot in the draft is great. Second season. Second on the team in scoring. He’s got things he needs to work on but I’m scratching my head a bit at the backlash against him while we got constant calls for patience with our higher draft picks.
Seems like that was aimed at me about the Rashard Lewis comment, but just to clarify, it wasn't meant as a damning negative, just an observation.
if Kuzma can be Rashard Lewis in his prime...we're going to be really fricking good. People forget that Rashard Lewis was a 2-time All Star, and had years where he averaged 22-7-2-1-1 on 46%/40%/84% splits. If Kuzma ever gets those numbers or has this type of impact...I'd be ecstatic.
