Lakers Summer League: Breaking Down Brandon Ingram’s Performance

July 5, 2016; El Segundo, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers draft picks Brandon Ingram and Ivica Zubac pose with vice president of basketball operation Jim Buss following their introductory press conference at Toyota Sports Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
July 5, 2016; El Segundo, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers draft picks Brandon Ingram and Ivica Zubac pose with vice president of basketball operation Jim Buss following their introductory press conference at Toyota Sports Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
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Mar 19, 2016; Providence, RI, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Brandon Ingram (14) shoots over Yale Bulldogs forward Brandon Sherrod (35) during the second half of a second round game of the 2016 NCAA Tournament at Dunkin Donuts Center. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 19, 2016; Providence, RI, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Brandon Ingram (14) shoots over Yale Bulldogs forward Brandon Sherrod (35) during the second half of a second round game of the 2016 NCAA Tournament at Dunkin Donuts Center. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

Strengths: Offensive Versatility

Ingram is an extremely versatile offensive threat who can beat the defense both off the dribble and spot-up.

A 6-9 small forward, the Duke product has certain gifts that one simply cannot teach. As a result, defenders will often be forced to account for the combination of his size and perimeter shooting ability. An example of this can be seen in the clip below, in which Ingram’s man is simply too slow to prevent the tall forward from shooting off of a pop from the pick-and-roll.

Being a small forward enables Ingram to be a matchup problem against opposing small forwards as well as guards. Therefore, when switched on to smaller players, Ingram can use his height to his benefit by shooting over them and essentially rendering his own shot uncontested:

Though his shot wasn’t falling consistently at Summer League, something that looked to be largely due to the grind of playing three games in four nights as well as five games in eight nights (something that will be corrected with NBA conditioning), Ingram showed that he’s going to be able to break down defenses in a variety of ways as he continues progressing in his development.

Next: Weaknesses: Frail Frame

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