Los Angeles Lakers: Kyle Kuzma challenged to improve defensively

While rookie Kyle Kuzma is playing great for the Los Angeles Lakers, head coach Luke Walton challenged him to improve on the defensive end.

The past few seasons, playing defense has been a real issue for the Los Angeles Lakers. As one of the worst teams in pretty much all defensive categories the last few seasons, that was a priority for them to improve this offseason.

With the addition of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the Lakers got one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA. While one player can’t fix all of the problems that the Lakers have had, he has certainly helped.

While the Lakers have improved a ton so far defensively this season, they still have some issues. One player that has struggled a bit defensively is Kyle Kuzma. Kuzma has had a great rookie season, but his defense could use some improving.

Recently, Luke Walton spoke with Harrison Faigen of LakersNation.com about Kuzma’s defense. Here’s what he had to say.

"“I feel like earlier in the season, even in the summertime when our guys were playing pickup and going through drills, on the defensive end he had that same edge that he has on the offensive end. I challenged him to get that mindset back.”"

Even though Kuzma has struggled a bit defensively this season, that is completely understandable for a rookie. Playing defense in the NBA right away is something that very few rookies are able to accomplish, and so far Kuzma has had his fair share of tough nights on the defensive end.

While Kuzma might not be playing the best defense, he is doing extremely well on the offensive end of the court. Kuzma is able to give the Lakers some serious scoring punch whenever he is in the game, as he can pretty much score from anywhere on the court as a power forward.

Due to Kuzma’s speed and quickness, he has become a matchup problem for most power forwards on the offensive end. Those same skills on defense should translate into him being able to become a good defender as he continues to grow as a player. With switching and positionless basketball becoming more of the norm, especially late in the game, having a forward like Kuzma that could switch onto guards from time-to-time could be very valuable.

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Even though it might not happen this season, Kuzma has the athletic ability to become a good defender in the NBA. With some time and practice, Kuzma truly can become a complete player.