Despite the Los Angeles Lakers being off to a better start than many would have guessed, point guard Lonzo Ball has had some struggles shooting the basketball.
After 11 games, the Los Angeles Lakers currently have a 5-6 record. After an offseason of changes, the Lakers are off to a pretty good start in the Western Conference. They have been able to beat some good teams early on in the season, and there have been glimpses of what the Lakers can truly be.
Despite a decent start for the team, their star rookie, Lonzo Ball, has had some shooting woes. Coming into the season, there were certainly some concerns about Ball’s shooting ability. Despite playing great in the Las Vegas Summer League, Ball didn’t shoot the ball particularly well.
So far in the regular season, Ball’s still struggling to shoot. Overall, Ball is shooting a pretty poor 29.5 percent from the field this season. Considering he was a pretty good shooter in college, this is clearly frustrating for him. After the loss to the Boston Celtics, Ball talked about his shooting woes to Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.
"“It’s in my head, to be honest. I know I can shoot the ball,” Ball said."
As a rookie with a ton of pressure on him, Ball might be starting to feel some it. While his form is unorthodox, it worked for him in college. Shooting has a lot to do with confidence, and that appears to be something that Ball might be lacking in with his early struggles.
Even though his 3-point shooting percentage isn’t good at 23.1 percent, Ball is also struggling around the basket, as he is shooting 22.2 percent on shots from 3-10 feet. Through 11 games, Ball’s highest percentage from the field is coming on shot 10-16 feet away from the basket. From this distance, Ball is shooting 57.1 percent. Unfortunately, that distance of shots only accounts for five percent of his total shots this season.
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As a young player in a big market, Ball is going to have to deal with a lot of pressure. Even though rookies struggle all the time in the NBA, the pressure put on Ball certainly can have an effect on him. Hopefully, Ball regains confidence in his shot and can perform like he did at UCLA.