...I don't know as I never really watch these discussion shows with all these commentators. Maybe Smith just says it to make the show, segment or whatever interesting? Be outrageous to be relevant? Is he really that shortsighted? I get my news and bits on who said what here. Agree that his Anthony take is really off the mark.
This! I will even go as far to say that wings are a dime a dozen and to get a defensive set-up point like a Zo/Rondo/Kidd are rare and since they're rare, you have to draft those type of players (along with legit bigs) over wings and scoring guards. The only disappointing aspect of Zo's rookie campaign is that he couldn't stay healthy and he was terrible from the charity stripe. I rather he work on getting his body stronger so that he can attack the rim and earn and1s, rather than work on proactively getting a perimeter game. He should got timely shots off of Bron's gravitational pull, but his focus should be to remain a defensive presence on the court... And to remain on the court in general. Speaking of which, you can only imagine his development had he remained healthy over the summer break...but still, I'm confident he's going to look great in his sophomore campaign.
I don’t watch it anymore either actually, except when there is a big Laker story like LeBron. I just happen to turn it on today and they were discussing Melo at that exact moment so I watched for like 5 minutes and could take no more. He definitely puts on the act to get viewers, but it doesn’t make it “interesting”. When he used to do that Screamin’ A persona it was occasional and he’d smile so you knew he was messing around for the most part. Now he does it constantly and it’s taken him over like he’s a WWE character. I stopped watching regularly months and months ago for mainly this reason.
An "act"...best summation for most of these media heads. I'm sorry that it is five minutes of life you can't get back. Yes, it doesn't make it interesting but to them it is about ratings. Basketball will always be my main sport but the NFL has better stories IMO. NFL TV's "NFL Access" isn't as insufferable.
This guy... IT picked up some of that troll sauce from his short time with the kiddies haha. As long as the kid makes timely jumpers, I ain't worried about his form. But on FTs, he better come correct even if his form ain't.
The genius of "I know basketball" LaVar letting that motion become the way Lonzo shot and continued to shoot as he grew up .... is mind bottling.
Worst case scenario, and he never develops an off the dribble shot, he can still develop a floater, use his size and athleticism to become a good finisher, and regain his confidence to become a good 3pt spot up shooter. These coupled with his elite passing and feel for the game on both sides of the ball still leave him superstar potential.
I don’t think you can be a superstar without being a great offensive and defensive player. Let’s assume that Lonzo becomes a truly high level defensive player. That leaves him a few options to become great offensively: The Kobe route where he is great at everything, this most probably is not gonna happen because he doesn’t have that kind of game. The Westbrook/Lebron route where he attacks the rim relentlessly, unfortunately he doesn’t have Westbrook or Lebron’s athleticism to do that against every defender night in night out and when he gets to the line he shoots awfully. If he learns how to turn the corner and attack the rim against every defender, the FT would have to improve drastically to really be successful here. The Harden/Curry route where his shot opens everything else up for him, as Gil said his mechanics leave him open to defenders when going right and really cut down on him being able to create high quality shots for himself this way. If he becomes an above average finisher, gets a floater for the mid game, knocks down open shots and settles in with good averages at around 12-15pt a game, with his defence and playmaking - that’s star material for me as long as he impacts the game towards winning.
myself and other kids i can remember growing up had some funky shots due to strength issues really...but like someone said above its on the parent or coach to correct this incorrect shooting early so when the child is strong enough to shoot properly they will lavar def dropped the ball on this one
My right shoulder feels agitated watching him shoot because of the unanatural misaligned motion. I wonder if he even tried to shoot with a normal motion would he get bursitis or something.
1. Develop a floater. 2. I suspect Lonzo is right eye dominant which is why you get the sweeping motion that covers the left side of his face. He wants to see the hoop with that right eye. I think Gilbert touches on the reasons why certain handed guys tend to shoot certain ways, but for Lonzo he's more comfortable that way. I'm not mad at that. 3. Shots off the dribble in the mid-range are not something Lonzo is going to use often, so it's not that concerning to me. It hurts in pick and roll situations, but he's not really an ideal pick and roll guard anyway. 4. None of this matters on catch and shoot which is what Lonzo is best at. 5. The real problems with the shot are: a) consistency and b) that it originates from the hip. Lonzo needs to compact the shot so it has less moving parts. If he's right eye dominant and needs to shoot the ball like Harden (turned away from the basket), that's fine. The problem is if he does that and then also comes from the hip. Then of course it comes down to repeated motions. Kuzma's jumper looks the same just about every time. Lonzo's changes from game to game and sometimes from shot to shot. He has to gain consistency in his foot placement, his release point, his follow through, all that stuff. This will come from reps and body strengthening, two things he's doing now. Still, this is all a red herring. Lonzo's jumper is an issue, but everything else he brings to the game makes him not just a viable starter, but a special prospect. He's an elite guard defender, elite guard rebounder, and one of the best passers in the game. But his jumper is ugly so let's trade him.
You're right, superstar isn't a good adjective for lonzo. I think "special type of player" is more fitting. He may never be an all star in today's NBA of scoring pgs but he could be special in other ways.
Maybe you need to define superstar. Bill Russell and Pete Maravich are two old examples of star players that were great on one side of the court only. Kevin Durant and James Harden are two current examples. Lonzo has already proven he impacts the game on both sides, just not as a scorer on the offensive side.
The problem with Lonzo making the West All Stars is that Steph, CP3 and Lillard are always going to get voted ahead of him unless we win a championship and he significantly contributes.
