2. Ingram, Kuzma, and Ball’s 3-point shooting
Ingram, Kuzma, and Ball have shot the 3-ball surprisingly bad over the last 15 games.
Ingram: 33% on two 3-point attempts per game
Kuzma: 31% on seven 3-point attempts per game
Ball: 30% on six 3 point attempts per game
Before the season began I thought the young core would struggle from behind the arc during the first ten to 15 games, because of the pressure that comes along with playing for the Lakers and with LeBron James.
I thought they’d settle down toward the middle of the season and at least hit 36% of their 3-point attempts. Obviously, that’s not happened. Ingram, Kuzma, and Ball have actually gotten worse from behind the arc as the seasons gone on.
Many fans and members of the media have been harping on the Lakers awful free throw shooting, and the Lakers do need to perform better at the charity stripe, but their ugly 3-point shooting is a much bigger problem. Why? When the Lakers get to the playoffs, every team they face is going to come at them with the same game plan: Double or even triple-team LeBron, crowd the paint and make the young guys beat them from behind the arc.
If Ingram, Kuzma, and Ball can’t start hitting their 3’s, the Lakers won’t make it out of the first round. We’ve already seen that the young Lakers don’t get foul calls when they drive to the basket, and while KCP and Stephenson are two of the Lakers best 3-point shooters, they’re also two of the team’s worst defenders.
The Lakers are going to have to play their young core the majority of the minutes in the playoffs. When they play they won’t be able to just drive into the packed lane over-and-over again, they’re going to have to take 3-point shots, and they’re going to have to make them.
The good news for Lakers fans is that if Ingram, Kuzma, and Ball can become league average 3-point shooters the Lakers are one of the few teams in the league that have the speed, length, talent, and defense to make it to the conference finals.
Can Ingram, Kuzma, and Ball start hitting more 3-pointers? I think so, but only time will tell.