July 6th, 2019. This date is bittersweet for fans of the Los Angeles Lakers. This date marks the end of the Anthony Davis saga, with AD landing on the purple and gold. It also marked the date on which the Lakers said goodbye to a significant portion of the much-loved Lakers “young core”. We bid farewell to Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, the 4th overall pick, some significant draft capital, and of course, Lonzo Ball.
During the hard times over the past ten years, Lakers Nation took pride in the development of the draft picks. Not just the high draft picks, Lakers Nation took pride in finding diamonds in the rough. Larry Nance Jr, Thomas Bryant, Kyle Kuzma, Jordan Clarkson, and Josh Hart are some of the players the Lakers found in the late-1st, early-2nd that have gone on to some fantastic careers; with Jordan Clarkson having won 6th man of the year this season.
While fans of the purple and gold are thrilled with the outcome of Anthony Davis on the Lakers and the record-tying 17th NBA Championship, there is some lamenting about not having the young guys on the roster and bearing the fruits of the labor.
One player who could be hugely helpful for the Los Angeles Lakers this upcoming season is former 2nd overall pick, point guard Lonzo Ball.
So how can the Los Angeles Lakers swing a deal that would get Lonzo Ball back with the purple and gold?
Los Angeles Lakers trade scenario for Lonzo Ball:
A clear-cut sign and trade that would give new homes to both point guards.
Dennis Schröder gets a new home and a brand new contract that allows him to secure the money that he wishes.
Schröder, with full respect, did not truly buy into the Lakers’ way of doing things. There is still time for him to buy in if he were to be kept and extended by the purple and gold but he has a poor attitude and during the playoffs when the Los Angeles Lakers needed Schröder to step up, he was nowhere to be seen and quite frankly damaged his bargaining power going into any contract talks.
Schröder didn’t particularly fit with the Laker’s way of playing but looking at his strengths, mainly his speed and his ability to get to the basket, this seems to be something that would greatly benefit the New Orleans Pelicans.
The Pelicans were in the top 10 in terms of drives to the basket last season, adding Schröder to the mix in New Orleans would allow for them to continue this and potentially even improve further.
With Schröder’s blinding speed, Zion and co. could get some additional easy baskets in transition. While Lonzo is good in transition, he doesn’t have the blazing speed that puts teams on the back foot. Schröder does. Zion and Dennis Schröder could form a dynamic one-two punch in transition that would make the Pelicans even more dangerous.
While Dennis Schröder isn’t the same all-around defender that Lonzo is, he improved hugely over the course of the season with the Lakers and at times looked like an elite on-ball defender for the purple and gold.
Schröder unlike Lonzo would also be comfortable coming off the bench, which he did to great effect with OKC in the 2019-20 NBA season, he finished runner up for 6th man of the year.
So what would Lonzo Bring to the Los Angeles Lakers this time around?
Lonzo Ball has improved his 3-point shooting
There was a significant amount of expectation surrounding Lonzo Ball upon being drafted to the Los Angeles Lakers 2nd overall in the 2017 NBA Draft.
Magic Johnson upon drafting Lonzo outlined expectations that he expected to see Lonzo’s name in the rafters in Staples Center by the end of his career. A huge ask for a very young player right off the bat.
While Lonzo never had the chance to work towards these goals set by Johnson the first time around, maybe this time he would have the opportunity to reach the lofty goals.
One area in which Lonzo has improved hugely has been his 3-point shot.
For fans of the purple and gold, they will remember how clunky and partially broken Lonzo’s shot actually was. A sidewinder missile that started at the side of his head and straightened up partially upon release.
This reflected in his 3-point percentage with the Lakers, Lonzo in his rookie season shot a terrible 30.5% from the 3-point line. Things got better in his 2nd year, but not that much better, improving to 32.9%.
In the summer before being traded to the Pelicans, Lonzo made it a point of emphasis to fix his broken shot in order to maximize his effectiveness on the floor. This paid dividend’s for the Chino Hills product as his 3-point percentage shot up to a healthy and respectable 37.5%.
This past season Lonzo proved that it wasn’t a one-season fluke as he had a slight increase from 37.5% to 37.8% from the 3-point line.
Lonzo’s new shot is more fluid, less mechanical, and consistent.
Consistent is a word head coach Frank Vogel and general manager Rob Pelinka would love to hear.
Consistent shooting from the 3-point line is something that escaped the Lakers last season. The purple and gold-finished 21st in the league 3-point shooting 35.5% from 3.
The addition of Lonzo Ball and his now consistent 3-point shot would allow for the Lakers to climb up the 3-point shooting league board and get to a place that would make them significantly more feared from the 3-point land.
This in turn gives the Lakers better floor spacing, more room for the big men to work down low, and more space for LeBron James and Anthony Davis to work in and be more effective.
Lonzo Ball gives the Los Angeles Lakers a secondary playmaker
Coming into the NBA, it is fair to say that Lonzo Ball was a relatively raw prospect.
His jump shot was clunky, his body wasn’t fully NBA ready, his offensive game wasn’t the most polished in the class and he had questions surrounding his ability to defend.
The one area of his game that scouts and front office personnel all agreed was elite was his ability as a playmaker.
Capable on a regular basis of making a jaw-dropping pass that would leave the defense wondering what had just happened.
Lonzo would frequently throw full-court passes like Aaron Rodgers right into the hands of his target which led to endless easy buckets for his teammates at Chino Hills and UCLA.
He continued this when drafted to the Lakers. This was incredibly apparent during the Summer League when Ball would frequently find Kyle Kuzma in transition for easy buckets.
LeBron James became the recipient of some of these highlight reel passes and benefited greatly.
After being traded to New Orleans, Zion Williamson became the beneficiary of the full court passes that led to Zion getting so many easy dunks and alley-oops.
If Lonzo were to come back to Los Angeles, he would be able to hit the ground running.
While LeBron James is considered to be the Lakers primary ball-handler, having a passing talent like Lonzo Ball on the floor allows for LeBron to not have to facilitate as much, meaning that he isn’t expending as much energy getting everyone else involved, which in turn allows for LeBron to take extended rests as he won’t be worry about whether the team is able to move the ball fluidly and get buckets when he isn’t on the floor which has proven to be the case since Lonzo left.
This means that LeBron is fully healthy and relatively rested come playoff time.
So while Lonzo will be considered the secondary playmaker for the purple and gold, his responsibilities to quarterback the Lakers offense will be of the utmost importance.
Lonzo Ball is a borderline elite defender
There were significant concerns regarding Lonzo Ball’s defense coming out of UCLA.
Scout’s complained that Lonzo seemed disinterested on that end of the floor and that he would struggle hugely in the NBA due to his lack of polish on the defensive end.
They looked at the running and gunning Chino Hills team in which he played alongside his brothers LaMelo and Li’Angelo and seemed to jump to conclusions that the Ball brothers only play on one side of the ball.
From his rookie year, Lonzo proved everyone wrong.
Right off the bat, Lonzo was an excellent defender. With his excellent lateral quickness, to go along with his elite length and size for a point guard, he was able to be effective from day one.
He has continued to improve each and every season. His ability to anticipate steals and jump the passing lane is borderline elite.
While he isn’t a Chris Paul-level pickpocket, he does average a very healthy 1.5SPG over the course of his career. Lonzo is still only 23 years old so he has plenty of time to improve even further.
His ability to defend multiple positions at a high level makes him a valuable piece to any team.
Head Coach Frank Vogel has gotten the best defensively out of many a player. It would be very interesting to see if Vogel could get even more out of Lonzo defensively.
Under Vogel, it is possible that Lonzo could make the jump from borderline elite defender to potential All-Defensive team caliber.
If the Lakers can land Lonzo Ball and keep Alex Caruso, they would have two borderline elite guard defenders who can guard multiple positions.
Defense wins championships and Lonzo Ball and his well-rounded skill set allow the Lakers a real chance to improve significantly.
He also gives them a young building block to put beside Anthony Davis long-term.