I'm not saying this because of his workout and shooting well, but just thinking about the potential as far as - how old he is, less off the court baggage, great shooting stroke despite the poor percentages, speed, defensive agility, and handles its really tantalizing to consider him at #2 At the end of the day I trust our scouting department and what they'll see in the private workouts and I know they have already interviewed Fox but the guy has a great head on his shoulders.
Btw the clip of Lonzo Ball at home watching the lotto order... he's definitely packed on some muscle. He looks much bigger then the tourney! I am guessing 10 pounds.
Im all for trading this #2 pick for an Allstar, but that aside... if we're to believe that we keep the pick... You know who really won with us getting this #2 pick? Dlo! I feel we've been trying to fit a square peg into a round hole in running Dlo as a PG. Can he do it? Sure. Could he possibly become a really good PG? Absolutely. But he's a much better scorer and shooter than the PG position allows if he's also expected to set up his teammates. Sure, he'll continue to get a good number of assists as a SG, because he's natural enough at that skill, but if all we asked him to do was score, and catch and shoot because we have someone else making plays and drawing defenders away, Russ will be knocking down shots at a much higher rate. He's deadly at catch and shoot from the 3. No more, 10 seconds left in the 4th, and Russ dribbles the ball off his foot trying to split the defense and make a play. Let Ball or Fox (whoever we draft) initiate the offense and kick it to Russ with his feet set, to knock down the game winner!
Woj on point as usual. And yeah, great point, Barns, Russ really needs a steady guard playing next to him, not a pure catch and shoot guy like Young or another usually OC, turnover machine guy in JC.
am i the only one that wouldn't mind them taking fox at #2? i know ball has the better shot but fox is a stud. he's a good passer and his athleticism is off the charts
Part 2 of this was posted so here's part 1, some great dunks in this one What I like about Ball is how smart he is at the game already, he has a feel for it you can't teach. It's like he sees things 2 moves ahead. Where Russ is very slow/deliberate in his running of an offense, Ball doesn't waste time, he wants to get out and run, and he wants to hit the open man immediately. Obviously the FO is gonna do their homework and look at all the top guys like Woj and those guys said, but Ball feels like our pick if we do keep it, and as a UCLA fan after seeing the effect he had on the team this season, it's hard not to at least smile at that possibility. All that said, if the FO does their homework and decides to take Fox or someone else, I'll trust them.
Ball just has "IT". He's a Floor General with a unique & natural feel for the game.. I believe he can be the Leader that DLO will never be as well.. Fox is a stud, but we need more than just crazy athletic skills.. Ball is a special player.
You must be jumping from joy man. Looks like that your "Ball a Laker plan" is all but done Side note. If Lonzo or his daddy want to use "LakersBall" phrase, they better hook up all the board members with a pair of their 500$ shoes... Otherwise, SUE THEM (it's America after all, you can sue or get sued for anything)
Its early, but it just makes too much sense under Luke's offensive system for Ball to not excel in it from all his strengths here:
Since I'm not a huge Ball fan, I would prefer to trade the pick or trade down and get Fox. Lonzo is a great passer...but Kendall Marshall or Ramon Sessions were too. His D is awful, his shot is weird, he has made only 2 midrange jumpers this season ....2 in the entire season. Not exactly great for a P&R guard that can't hit a midrange shot. The Lakers might talk Philly into giving them their 1st next year and move up this year. Best case scenario to me is a trade for PG or Butler. This franchise has ignored defense for like 10 years now. At some point it has to change, right? Tired of being the team that gives up the most 140+ point games every single season.
BTW amazingly happy with the 2nd pick. With that said, 2nd picks historically have notoriously underachieved. 1st picks are so much more valuable. Those franchise players and game changers go first. We haven't had a Kevin Durant esque luck.