Los Angeles Lakers: 3 Players who need more playing time
By Robert Marvi
1. Kyle Kuzma
He got off to a rough start this season for the Los Angeles Lakers. He suffered a stress reaction in his foot while playing for Team USA in August, and was forced to miss training camp this fall.
In 15 games in November, he occasionally showed some signs of returning to the Kuzma of the past two seasons. But overall he was a bit of a disappointment, scoring only 11.7 points a game in 22.6 minutes.
He missed some games in December due to a sprained ankle, but since he’s returned from that injury, he’s finally looked healthy and confident.
He put up 25 points on 8-of-17 shooting against the Clippers on Christmas Day, then followed that up with 24 points on 9-of-17 shooting on Dec. 28 versus the Portland Trail Blazers.
He’s playing just over half the minutes this season that he played in his first two seasons, yet most acknowledge that he needs to become the Los Angeles Lakers’ third scorer for them to win the NBA title.
For that to happen, he needs to start getting approximately 30 minutes a game.
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Almost all the minutes he’s played have been at the 4 spot, which has limited his on-the-court action. Is it possible that he will hold his own should he start playing some minutes at the 3, especially defensively?