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Los Angeles Lakers: 2 players that already deserve more minutes

By Jason Reed

LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 27: Talen Horton-Tucker #5 of the Los Angeles Lakers and Jordan McLaughlin #6 of the Minnesota Timberwolves at Staples Center on December 27, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. 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 aImages License Agreement. Lakers won 127-91.(Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 27: Talen Horton-Tucker #5 of the Los Angeles Lakers and Jordan McLaughlin #6 of the Minnesota Timberwolves at Staples Center on December 27, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. 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 aImages License Agreement. Lakers won 127-91.(Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) /
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Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports – Los Angeles Lakers
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports – Los Angeles Lakers /

2. Markieff Morris

  • Currently playing 14 minutes per game

I said this in the most promising players through three games article and I will say it here again: if you follow my work here at Lake Show Life or listen to the Lake Show Life Podcast then you know how high I am on Markieff Morris.

He is such an excellent fit on this roster and is the perfect stretch four with versatility to bring off the bench. That is why he excelled in the NBA Playoffs last year and has continued his success into this season.

Morris ranks fifth in win-shares per 48 minutes, right behind Talen Horton-Tucker, and has been shooting the ball extremely well with a 45.5% three-point clip. He will not sustain that high of a number, but in this offense with LeBron James, I legitimately think Morris can be a 40% three-point shooter.

Perhaps I am biased because of how much I like him as a player but he did shoot 38.6% last season.

Morris should get more minutes on the nights that Kyle Kuzma obviously does not have it. There are nights when Kuzma proves all of his believers correct and plays fantastic. Look at the game against Minnesota on Sunday in which Kuzma was torching the T-Wolves in the first half.

However, he also has many games where he proves his doubters correct and misses his shots while playing poor defense. He is wildly inconsistent, but you can usually tell very early on what kind of night it is going to be for Kuzma.

Kuzma is currently playing 25.3 minutes per game and I get that he needs to work through some of those struggles but I would like to see Vogel pull the plug on him a bit earlier on those bad nights as the season goes along.

Next. Lessons in Lakers' loss to Portland. dark

It does not have to be significant, but something as small as taking five minutes away and giving them to Morris can make a big difference and send the proper message.

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