For nearly a decade, NBA teams talked themselves into Luke Kennard simply being a shooter. When the Los Angeles Lakers were left searching for answers after the injuries to Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, JJ Redick quietly knew they had someone who could give them more than floor spacing.
Redick, a former Duke alumni much like Kennard, spent a great deal of time watching the Lakers sharpshooter at his alma mater. That allowed the second-year coach to be bold and daring in unlocking what each of Kennard's previous teams failed to do with him.
After the Lakers' competitive 101-94 win over the Houston Rockets in Game 2, in which the former lottery pick starred yet again, LeBron James confidently backed up his head coach in his vision for the expanded role of Kennard. There was no doubt for LeBron that his teammate had layers to his game.
"[Kennard is] super composed. I know he led the league in [3-pont] shooting percentage ... but he does so much more. ... I think that's what keeps defenses off balance. Sometimes you fall into the fact that he shoots 50 from 3, and you think that's sometimes all he can do."
Luke Kennard's expanded skill set is shining bright for everyone to see
Through two games of the series against the Rockets, shooting is still the loudest part of Kennard's game. Thus far, the Lakers scorer is averaging a whopping 72.7 percent from beyond the arc, connecting on 4.0 of his 5.5 attempts per game.
That only accounts for just under half of his scoring production thus far. Kennard is averaging 25.0 points per game after the conclusion of Game 2.
His scoring output has included midrange pull-ups, finishing with finesse around the basket, you name it. Kennard has been excellent from all over the floor.
The playmaking numbers have not caught up just yet. Kennard is only averaging 2.5 assists per game in the playoffs thus far. However, with the extra ball-handling duties tasked to him, the former Duke star is bound to unleash his passing chops again at some point too.
The end of the regular season revealed Kennard could be an impactful player in that department. It really does feel like a matter of time before he shows off that part of his game again.
Redick must be grinning ear to ear somewhere whenever he thinks about the results of what trusting Kennard to do more have been like. There were so many immediate questions about where the Lakers were going to find on-ball creation from after the injuries to Doncic and Reaves. JJ clearly had it figured out from the jump.
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