Some NBA rookies are blessed to step into a situation that has a ready-made opportunity for playing time from the jump. The Los Angeles Lakers are not going to be one of those places. Despite that, Cameron Carr should still get ample opportunity to prove he is capable of earning a rotation spot.
Carr told reporters at Lakers Media Day that his focus is to be a sponge. In his words, the rookie wing said he wanted to soak in new stuff everyday, learn, listen, and grow. There are few better sources for him to turn to for that than NBA veteran Matisse Thybulle.
There was a mention from Carr at his presser about how he has several guys ahead of him whose brain he can pick to learn how to guard at an NBA-level. Thybulle surely fits that description. The first-year wing was eventually asked about Matisse, specifically, and he clearly saw the opportunity to learn from his new teammate, especially on defense.
"I've known him for some time. ... He's strong for a skinny guard. Man, I get to just ask him questions where I can be more effective or more efficient."
Matisse Thybulle can help Cameron Carr have the defensive success needed to play
Carr has talked all summer about how defense is going to get him on the floor. Naturally, playing both ends of the court is a must. However, there is a ton of confidence in the type of offensive player the rookie wing can be with his shooting ability and slashing upside.
That is why defense comes into focus for Carr. Of the Lakers' perimeter defenders, who better to learn from than Thybulle?
Matisse has spent seven years in the NBA, acquiring a ton of knowledge along the way. The Lakers vet has also firmly established himself as an elite playmaker on the back end and a more than capable defender. Those two All-Defensive Second Team selections speak for themselves.
Carr understood the limitations that come with being a skinnier guard. That was part of what he was hoping to pick the brain of Thybulle for. The rook wanted was looking forward to identifying the best strategies to not get knocked off his spots, maintaining physicality, and being disruptive.
Thybulle should have plenty of advice to offer on how to get Carr to where he needs to be. By all accounts, the former Baylor wing has been excited to learn since his arrival in Los Angeles, too. JJ Redick and Rob Pelinka both spoke highly of the person he is at their own press conference.
If Carr can bring what everyone thinks he can on offense and couple it with the teachings that Thybulle has to offer on defense, playing time should be in his immediate future.
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