Los Angeles Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball has had some ups and downs to start his career. However, Metta World Peace is preaching patience for the young guard.
As the second overall pick in the NBA Draft, expectations are high for Los Angeles Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball. With an outspoken father making bold claims left and right, Ball has more pressure on him than any rookie coming out of college in recent memory.
Through six games, Ball has flashed some bright spots for the Lakers. In his second game against the Phoenix Suns, he was able to have a monster game and help lead the Lakers to a win. Nearly recording a triple-double in his second career game is truly an accomplishment.
However, there have also been some bad games for Ball to start the season. Being a point guard is arguably the most difficult position to make the jump from college to the NBA. Having the responsibility of running the offense is a challenging task, even for someone with the natural court vision of Ball.
Recently, new South Bay Lakers assistant coach Metta World Peace talked to TMZ about Ball. Here is what he had to say.
"“He’s young. He’s two or three games in. It takes time,” World Peace said. “You got to give him some time. You can’t judge him off his first game either way. You’ve got to give him some time to grow, let him have some fun… He’s four games into the league. You’ve got to give him three years, then see where he’s at.”"
World Peace is 100 percent right about being patient with Ball. As a young player who has just turned 20-years-old, Ball could go through the same growing pains in the NBA that we have seen Brandon Ingram go through.
Considering that Ball is able to be the starting point guard already is certainly impressive. In the small sample size, he has shown that he is the elite passer that we thought and that he is going to be a great rebounding guard.
While his shooting percentage isn’t where he or the Lakers would want it to be, that is something that will come around. Also, he has to do a better job protecting the basketball, as he is averaging over three turnovers per game.
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As a rookie, this season is all about development for Ball. There will be great moments and there will be bad ones. The important thing for Ball is that he continues to grow as a player.