The Lakers are encouraging Ben McLemore to ‘keep shooting’

For the vast majority of the season, the Los Angeles Lakers have struggled in a particular area on offense. While their defense has remained strong despite the absences of their two stars, the Lakers have failed to get consistent production from behind the arc.

In fact, as of when this was written, the Lakers are currently in the bottom third of the league in this department. Ranking at No. 21 in basketball to be precise, they are shooting the rock at a 35.7 percent clip from outside. Especially by contemporary standards, that number is not going to turn too many heads.

However, mediocre perimeter shooting has been the reality this season for the purple and gold. For starters, it is hard to argue Wesley Matthews has been much of an improvement over Danny Green. Frankly, Green’s tenure with the Philadelphia 76ers has fared much better than was the case last season for Los Angeles.

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Players like Kyle Kuzma have been characteristically streaky when it comes to shooting the rock from distance as well. Granted, Kuzma is doing better in this regard than he was last season (35.1 percent compared to 31.6 percent), fans would like to see more from the fourth-year player.

Additionally, the Lakers’ starting backcourt has not always been effective from the promised land. While he is much better at slashing to the rim, Dennis Schröder is shooting just 33.8 percent from 3-point territory. Conversely, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is netting a respectable 42.0 percent of his attempts from said distance. However, KCP has had a lot of cold spells this season from downtown.

That being said, the Lakers have been in dire need of someone who is capable of cashing in treys. Based on what he put on display the other day, the newly acquired Ben McLemore could very well be that missing piece L.A. has desperately needed.

It is worth noting that McLemore’s first game with the Lakers did go as well as expected. Last Thursday he made just one of his four attempts from the field and missed all three of his attempts from downtown. On the other hand, McLemore totally flipped the script against the stacked Brooklyn Nets over the weekend.

Ben McLemore’s big shooting night for the Los Angeles Lakers:

McLemore proved to be an effective weapon off the bench for the Lakers, dropping 17 points in about 22 minutes of action. The guard was 6-of-12 from the field on the night and converted 5-of-10 attempts from behind the arc.

Albeit all the damage was done in the second half, it is easily one of the best shooting displays any Laker has shown this year. McLemore was not afraid to let it loose the other night and the results speak for themselves.

Certainly, McLemore’s tenure with the Lakers thus far is indicative of a rather small sample size. Irrespective of that, though, Lakers’ fans have to be encouraged that they saw such a dazzling shooting clinic against an elite opponent.

Without a doubt, the Lakers were surely every bit as encouraged by McLemore’s impressive performance. Per Christian Rivas of Silver Screen & Roll, McLemore’s new teammates want him to “keep shooting.”

"“I obviously didn’t shoot it well in the first half but all I kept hearing was ‘keep shooting, keep shooting,’ and obviously that’s what I’ve got to continue to do, and I did,” McLemore said on Saturday. “I hit a few in a row, got us going and obviously got the big win tonight.“Once I see one go in, it’s a wrap from there,” McLemore said. “Then I start making a few more and then I start rolling. It don’t take much for me to get hot, especially when I see one go in that was sweet. Then I’ve got guys that are backing me up, continuing to build my confidence within myself to go out there and continue to shoot.”"

The extreme amount of confidence his teammates already have in him is great to see. While McLemore has not even been a Laker for a full week, the team knows what he brings to the table. Thus, they want him to take full advantage when the opportunity presents itself and he did just that against the Nets.

The fact that McLemore appears to be even more confident in himself is crucial. Belief is oneself is imperative in any facet of life, so it is a welcome sign that McLemore recognizes his shooting potential.

The Lakers are certainly hoping they can see more of what they saw the other night from the 6-foot-3 guard. While his efficiency has taken a hit in the 2020-21 campaign, the former Kansas Jayhawk shot the ball 40 percent or better from long range the previous two campaigns.

One area McLemore is deficient in on the offensive end, though, is his playmaking. He has never been known to share the sugar all too often, which is validated by the fact that he is averaging just one dime a game for his basketball career.

Although that is true, McLemore will earn minutes if he can continue to light it up from outside. It is the primary reason the Lakers signed him in the first place.

Thankfully for him, McLemore should get even better looks from deep once LeBron James returns from injury. James is an excellent facilitator and because the defense tends to collapse on him, it often leaves a shooter wide opener in the corner. Corner shooting is McLemore’s bread and butter, so the Lakers’ decision to pick him up via the buyout market could pay huge dividends moving forward.

As Rivas contended, McLemore is not going to likely have the same kind of shooting performances he had against Brooklyn every night. Nonetheless, if he can contribute at least a couple of long balls per game, it will be difficult to leave him out of the rotation.

Time will tell what the newbie is capable of defensively. Be that as it may, the Lakers should be pleased to have more firepower on an already talented roster, especially since their stars remain sidelined.

In the grand scheme of things, McLemore gives the Lakers a huge injection of fuel off the pine. It is wonderful to see that his teammates want him to “keep shooting,” and one can surmise the 28-year-old will not be shy in doing so moving forward.