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Lakers: The effort to understand the toxicity surrounding Kyle Kuzma

LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 09: Kyle Kuzma #0 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts during the second quarter against the Miami Heat in Game Five of the 2020 NBA Finals at AdventHealth Arena at the ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on October 9, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 09: Kyle Kuzma #0 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts during the second quarter against the Miami Heat in Game Five of the 2020 NBA Finals at AdventHealth Arena at the ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on October 9, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
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Kyle Kuzma
(Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers Kyle Kuzma

Kyle Kuzma is perhaps the most polarizing player on the Los Angeles Lakers.

Kyle Kuzma is going to be a part of the Los Angeles Lakers’ future for the time being. Kuzma inked a three-year extension on Sunday. But will this extra security calm the toxicity and divisiveness of Lakers Nation? Lake Show Life tries to understand the strange world of Kyle Kuzma, his worth, his role-playing with LeBron James and his love/hate relationship with Lakers fans!

It’s over. Kyle Kuzma will be a part of the Los Angeles Lakers for the immediate future. The most overwritten and analyzed subject not named LeBron James or Anthony Davis will be tabled for the most of us.

The other crowd consisting of Kuzma haters and Lakers conspiracy theorists? Well they will have a “Will be back in 15 minutes” sign in the window and will explain how the extension will open up more options for the trading deadline on March 25, 2021.

Rob Pelinka and the Lakers continued their movements in complete silence, locking up forward Kyle Kuzma to a multiyear extension on Sunday. This was yet another surprise after reports from Kyle Goon of the O.C. Register saying the talks were tabled.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the deal covers $40 million over three years with a player option before the 2023-24 season. It was news that LeBron James took to Twitter to show his happiness.

Kyle Kuzma’s deal is a rarity when it comes to the Los Angeles Lakers.

  • This is the first time in 12 years, the Los Angeles Lakers have signed a player to a rookie contract extension. 
  • Before Kyle Kuzma, the last Lakers draft pick to receive a rookie contract extension from the team was Andrew Bynum.
  • Kuz collected a rare non-max rookie extension that included a player option.

Anthony Davis talked about the positives of getting the deal done before the season started via ESPN.

"“I mean, it’s good for him,” teammate Anthony Davis said Sunday. “You don’t have that contract anxiety for the whole year. Now that it’s out of the way, you can go out there and play, which he was doing anyway. He was having a great preseason. He’s been playing great for us in the bubble and all of last year. He’s locked in. He made a great jump on both ends of the floor. “So, it’s good for him. We’re excited to have him here. I know he’s excited to be here. And he’s a champion. You deserve it. I’m glad that the Lakers were able to work something out with him to be able to allow him to just go out there and play and not worry about contracts for the rest of the season.”"

No truer words were spoken based on Kuzma’s performance on Friday night.

He was so bad covering Devin Booker, that he was benched in the second half being replaced by Wesley Matthews. Lake Show Life staff writer Kevin Germany to his credit (A ton!) actually defended his performance over the weekend. A must-read.

This closes yet another chapter in Rob Pelinka’s unofficial book, “How To Build a Decade Long Dynasty On a Budget.” While the Utah Jazz dropped a $205 million extension on Rudy Gobert, the Lakers strengthened an already loaded roster at a mere fraction of the cost. What else did they do?

  • The deal allows time for the Lakers to continue to monitor Kuzma’s progress to hopefully his prime at 28. Brandon Ingram left and became NBA’s Most Improved Player in New Orleans while Lonzo Ball is believed to be on the cusp of being a good player. This had to be in the back of the front office’s minds.
  • The benefit to Kuzma is the security of believing he’s a part of the franchise’s future post-LeBron years.
  • For the Lakers, if he outperforms his extension, which starts with the 2021-22 season, it will be a huge bargain. If he doesn’t, well the trade rumors can start again because it’s a salary cap friendly deal to move.

Kyle Kuzma’s career in a Lakers uniform was illustrated in technicolor this preseason. Even though he averaged 22 points a game, it was two games sandwiched between two awful ones. The inconsistent production leads to these opinions like this one from The Athletic’s John Hollinger before the deal was signed.

"With the hard cap constraining their ability to take on money and limited assets to put in trades, the Lakers don’t have a lot of outs if they’re perusing in-season roster upgrades. The biggest one, by far, is Kuzma. After a promising rookie year, the forward’s play has leveled off, to say the least, and at the moment he might be one of the league’s most overrated players."

Why is Kyle Kuzma so polarizing? Why do so many Lakers fans want this guy gone? Is all of the chaos surrounding him fair? Lake Show Life monitored the constant questions (To the point of complaints!) on why this player is in the news about being traded…every other day.

Over the next several pages, Lake Show Life will take fans behind the media wall the best way we can to try to explain how this works and if Kyle Kuzma is worth the trouble!

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