Whenever a new face enters the place, the expectations have to be set. Luke Kennard was the first (and so far only) name to arrive via trade with the Los Angeles Lakers this season, and that fact is immediately working against him. The bar is being set quite high for the team's newest member.
Kennard was acquired from the Atlanta Hawks with just hours left ticking until the NBA trade deadline. The boost to the perimeter shooting brought by the new Lakers wing is crystal clear. However, there are lofty comparisons being tossed in his direction that just won't be met.
On ESPN's NBA Today Trade Deadline Special, Ramona Shelburne commented on how the Lakers just acquired the modern-day version of their head coach — JJ Redick. That is exactly the kind of thing that will get him in trouble immediately among Lakers fans.
Luke Kennard set up to fail under the shadow of J.J. Redick
Kennard is a good player. There may even be shades of his game that resemble Redick. However, the very best versions of who the current Lakers coach was as a player far exceed anything the newest Lakers sharpshooter could aspire to.
Setting the bar for Kennard as being Redick for the Lakers is a dangerous game to play. It is certainly not one that favors a positive outcome for anyone.
Redick's best years (from 2012-2020) saw him average 16.0 points per game, shooting 45.5 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from beyond the arc. No matter where he was, the former NBA pro was incredibly productive as a floor spacer and volume shooter.
Redick could be caught running around endlessly on the perimeter and positioning himself to be the perfect outlet for any shooting opportunity. The former Duke product gave his defenders nightmares as one of the best movement shooters of his generation.
The current Lakers coach was also a better athlete than most would give him credit for, plus a hard worker on the defensive end. All of this is to say, comparing Kennard to Redick is asking him to reach heights that he is not truly capable of.
The newest Lakers sniper will be a plus, especially by comparison to what the team has had to work with until now. However, being as good as Redick is firmly out of his reach.
In all fairness, JJ is one of those guys that gets tossed around as a comp for a lot of these shooters in today's game. Sure as sound, though, few truly match his heights.