Listen Real, I didn't want to buy into the narrative as well. I don't watch/follow college ball, but when I heard he at least was making shots at UCLA with that form, I was willing to give it a shot. Now granted its been 15 games (not even a quarter of the season yet), but looking at his shot and how defenders are playing him, I'm starting to believe that narrative. His shot is not sustainable in this NBA, until he actually gets elevation on his shot (like LT alluded to) or he has a release point at a higher zenith on his jumper. Even if he starts making his shot more consistently, I really believe that his youth and natural height can only get him so far before he becomes so wildly inconsistent in his shot that there is no point of return. Those guys you mentioned, some of them are NBA stars...but we need Zo to be more for this franchise. The Kidd comparison comes up (#2 overall pick like Zo) but lets not forget that Kidd wasn't a champion till he was 37. Kidd was a career 40% shooter and 35% from the 3. My expectations for Zo are much more than that. So I'm kind of hoping the JKidd comparison isn't his ceiling. Thank god Magic stepped in and said to aim for his number instead. But even looking at Kidd's rookie numbers, dude shot 39% from the field and 27% from 3. Meanwhile Zo (so far) is at 30% and 23% respectively. Looking at the other names you mentioned and how they looked their rookie season: Reggie: 49%/36% (avg 2 3pt attempts) Adams: 36%/0% (avg 0 3pt attempts) Wilkes: 44%/0% (3s were not recorded during his rookie season) Martin: 39%/20% (avg 0.5 3pt attempts) Marion: 47%/18% (avg 0.5 3pt attempts) None of those guys ever shot as poorly as Zo is currently and things that they were poor at, they realized to limit those attempts (ie 3 point shooting). Now I know the game has changed and that encourages more 3 pointers, but Zo is averaging 5 3pt attempts per game. Go.To.The.Hoop.Brah. We all knew there was going to be growing pains for him, but he's way too gifted and has the BBall sense to realize that when he pushes and becomes the aggressor, he can put this team up on another level. So why is he settling for so many 3pt attempts and why are his passes just for the sake of pushing the ball past half court (ie LA is 25th in field goals made directly from an assist...meanwhile that offense we're trying to mimic up north is 1st in the league and Zo's fellow transcendent PG is leading Philly to 2nd overall). Don't make the pass just to push PACE...make the pass to set up your guy for a good shot. Obviously some of it is just bad shooting around Zo, but some of it is on Zo as well to put his scorers in better position. I hope this doesn't get misconstrued as Zo hate. I believe the kid has "it"...but I don't want him to aim for a Kidd-like career...he's got to aim to be like Magic and he's also got to understand what his limitations are and develop from it. IMHO his shooting mechanics is a huge limitation to how his game can evolve. He needs to revisit that in the coming summer...but till then, look past the half court line...look past the 3pt line and push the ball to the hoop. He's one of the best defensive rebounders in the league...so gobble up that ball and keep it in your hands... don't pass the ball to a teammate just for the sake of passing midcourt...instead hold onto it and let those passes fly after you pass midcourt. But most importantly, I don't want 5 3 pt attempts per game till you do. Its tough love, but don't get it twisted...its love.
Don't bring back the PHX memories and Kwame Brown flying past Tim Thomas who hit the game tieing 3 in Game 6 when all we had to do is get the rebound to advance to play the Clips.
I provided the evidence that the players I mentioned didn't jump a hell of a lot more than Lonzo and it's not really necessary. What's necessary is for him to be balanced before and after the shot. Watch where he lands, watch where he takes off from, watch where his arms and hands finish after every shot and they're all different. If he repeats the same motion, the ball will go in. I have no doubt. None of the names I mentioned other than Reggie were legitimate jump shooters and Lonzo doesn't have to be either. If Marion could get his shot off from outside, Lonzo can. If Kevin Martin could get his shot off from outside, Lonzo can. And yes the raw numbers on attempts from three look bad, but that's simply what the game is now. If any of those players played today, they'd be taking more threes too. It's like comparing qbs from 10, 20, 30 years ago to today. Is Matthew Stafford really a better qb than Marino? Stafford has as many 4000+ yard seasons as Marino had his whole career. It's a different game. The important thing to take away from this is that Kevin Martin and Shawn Marion each had worse shot forms than Lonzo and did fine. The form itself doesn't need to be changed (as in, force him to take a more traditional shot). He may need to finish higher, that's possible. He also needs to be on balance. I've seen him take shots where he lands probably 5 feet away or is following over to the side. He just has to gain confidence in that jumper. I definitely agree he needs to take less of them though. He's trying to shoot his way out of his slump, but he hasn't earned that yet. Kuzma is a guy who can shoot his way out of a slump: mechanics stay the same every shot, eventually they'll fall. Lonzo is taking a different shot every time. I agree 100% he needs to attack the rim more. I said that a while ago too. Ingram and Kuzma are never afraid to mix it up inside and that's important to their mindset and success.
Thanks for clarifying Real. Yeah, I agree, I don't think he needs to completely rework his shot. But his base (core strength) needs to get stronger and the point of release has to be higher. Combine that with his length and perimeter players will find it much more difficult to challenge his shot. There is speculation that he's shooting so bad cause he is trying to rework his shot in-season. I hope that isn't the case. Just approach the game differently during your rookie campaign (ie go to the cup) and then figure out the mechanics in the summer. Like I said, I don't even mind some residual funkiness, but IMHO he needs to evaluate how he shoots the ball and work on it in the offseason. And to knit-pick, I want him to hold the ball (not to be confused with pounding it into the court ie JC) and pass it for a scoring opportunity. Don't just pass the ball for the sake of pushing tempo. You're our tempo...the ball should stay in your hands till you decide how the ball should swing.
I agree for the most part. Like I have said before, he made that thing in college. He made it a lot. And he’s not shooting shots with 6’10” defenders in his face. He’s getting wide open looks. You’re right about his shot not being consistent. I wonder if some of that inconsistency is he starts thinking about it every time it goes up. I think 90% of his problems are in between his ears, and that’s causing some of the inconsistency.
To continue to put things in perspective, Lonzo is: 5th in rebounds 6th in assists 16th in steals 3rd in blocks among ALL NBA guards (which for some reason includes LeBron).
Copying for the Analytics section. Also, this is why I get a little frustrated with the Lonzo hate form the ESPN mouthpieces and the fans of other teams that don’t know anything past what ESPN tells them. If Lonzo was averaging 12pts right now they would be paying attention to the rest of his game and saying he’s playing up to expectations if not better. He’s not shooting well, but his assist to turnover ratio is fantastic. He rebounds fantastically for a Guard and his shot blocking ability is out of the world for a PG.
I agree with you guys, I don't think there's a need to rework his shot completely and it might even be detrimental because he is a left eye dominant shooter. It's the reason why the ball goes all the way to the left when he shoots. He should look to adjust his point of release because with his current mechanics, it's nearly impossible for him to shoot driving/going right because he has to bring the ball back to the left to shoot. I think it would be better for him in the long run to make that adjustment and it would make him more complete offensively. If there is someone Lonzo should look at in terms of adjusting his mechanics, he should look at Durant, who is also left eye dominant. He brings the ball of the left side too, but has a higher more central release point.
