Ivica Zubac
Zubac had a shockingly good summer league just over a year ago. For those who can remember, he looked quick, showed a well-developed post game and demonstrated decent range indicating the Lakers might have found an incredible steal early in the second round.
Through last season Big Z had the chance to play some meaningful minutes and seemed to indicate the sort of potential that had me and other Lakers fans excited to see him in this year’s Summer League.
That’s where the optimism died. Watching him this year in Summer League was like seeing the player I assumed we would see last year right after being drafted. He seemed confused and overmatched almost any time he was on the floor.
While still showing the smooth shooting stroke which helped him shoot 59 percent in the 11 games he started last year it seemed as if everything else had regressed. So much so that the Lakers recently took action to add Andrew Bogut to the roster when, prior to Summer League, Zubac was the presumed backup center.
Zubac is a restricted free agent after this season so this is truly a make or break year for him. To earn a contract from the Lakers or to have a chance at signing with any team he will have to show he can keep up with the modern style of play in the NBA as well as provide adequate defense on the other end.
The good news for Zubac is the signing of Bogut. While this will take most of the minutes away from him this year, the opportunity to be mentored by Bogut, who played the defensive anchor in the Golden State Warriors first championship, is probably Zubac’s best chance at learning to be an effective center in today’s NBA.
If we see the player who looked like a steal just a year ago, Lakers fans everywhere will be thrilled. If we see the lost player from the recent Summer League, it is likely no one will miss Big Z when he isn’t offered a contract next summer.