The kid is legit! From what I saw these past 2 preseason games, he fits Luke's system much better. Aside from a big that can shoot he knows how to move without the ball and get to the right space for a shot or drive to the rim. Very nice find by Magic and Rob.
Kuz is so damn efficient with the ball. Makes quick decisions with no wasted dribbles. Wouldn't mind starting Kuz over Ingram.
high hoop iq, fearless, aggressive. all good things. helps him overcome some physical/athletic shortcomings (which is why he was available late 1st). lakers scouting department seems to have an eye for the intangibles.
I'd like to see him next to Brook out there in the starting lineup in the next game. His shooting and energy can help us get off to a fast start. The question obviously is if he can defend starting PFs effectively (I don't think so), but I'd like to see if his shooting and aggressive, efficient offense is enough of a boost to get us to a better start. With Ingram and Julius tending to hold on to the ball too long, we need fast movers. I would think Lopez would also be someone who holds the ball for a while. We're going to need quick decision makers. Randle may be best suited for a fast-paced and energetic bench where he can have a little more ball control.
Yeah, I don't think Kuz can handle the Millsap's or Faried's on defense. He's also shown good chemistry with Randle, so I think he's best utilized as the starting SF, which happens to diverge from our focus of developing Ingram. Benching Ingram is an impossible proposition, so the situation calls for him to be our backup 3.
I do think he should be getting minutes at back up 3 for sure. I also liked him alongside Randle but what about this lineup for crunch time: Ball, Ingram, Kuzma, Randle and Lopez? Let's go big instead of small.
You lost me at Randle. If Randle is the answer I don't wanna know the question. I'll take Nance and his energy. He knows not to shoot too much.
Not enough outside shooting. Lonzo hasn't proven he knows when to read for his open shot. Randle and Ingram haven't proven to me they can knock down open threes. Lopez and Kuzma end up being our best shooters out there. I do like the switchability of that team though and they would have big upside if Randle and Ingram can knock down open threes.
Nance gets such a bad rap... First of all, for what we pay him, I'm good with him being a great locker room presence and something the guys can strive for in terms of physical development. Dude got jacked. Things he does don't show up on stat sheets. He will set mean picks, he will hustle to the ground to retain possessions, he will be involved in alot of hockey assists and he'll get his hands on balls to disrupt alot of the opposing offense. He is equipped with 6 fouls and for the most part, will use them meaningfully. I understand the impatience, but the guy knows his lane and stays in it. Not everybody is offensively gifted, so I rather he focuses on the stuff he's good at. I don't want him jacking up 3s just for the sake of it. He's a backup 4/5 and just bring the energy like MadDog, Turiaf and Sacre before him. He can develop those offensive skills over time, but become that enforcer type along with Bogut so that Zu can learn from it. If we're paying him top dollar, then I understand the frustrations, but he's not going to be paid like Randle is, so offensively we need to expect having a longer leash on the guy. That being said, I am disappointed in the perimeter defense that was shown with Denver's frontline who can really hit those perimeter Js. Maybe that injury effected him a bit, but Jokic was making everybody look silly out there. Again, that's not entirely on him, since rotational D is a team wide problem. Getting back to Kuz...he's built as a 3. So putting him in as a starter means BI is to the bench and I don't think we need to move in that direction as of now. I like the energy and scoring punch he brings off the bench, so if anything he should play to be our 6th man and hopefully that lights a fire under Clarkson (need that trade value to increase). With Kuz coming off the bench, he opposes the non-starting frontline players where he can truly exploit their weaknesses. Kuz is playing with alot of confidence right now, so lets keep feeding it by having him exploit weaker players from the opposing benches. Also with the way he's playing, he has earned time to play in the 4th during crunch time (more important than starting, IMHO). Lets leave the starter talk for another day.
Any crunch time lineup imo has to include KCP. His man defense is insane at times, and he will dive for balls and make a game saving play. When he’s out our defense goes from bad to awful.
If randle is getting all this hate will still being semi productive, nance should to regardless of his role. He has developed very little from yr to yr on top of being injury prone
