Hello basketball fans! Merry Christmas to everyone here. It's Christmas day but I'm still gonna put some time in Scorum. I am here again @dwin0603 to give you another NBA talk and today we'll be discussing about the Los Angeles Lakers young star Brandon Ingram and how he fits with LeBron James and the whole Lakers squad. Let's do this!
The Los Angeles Lakers are currently standing at the 4th seed in the Western Conference with a record of 19 wins and 14 defeats tied with the Los Angeles Clippers and the Portland Trail Blazers. The Lakers will match up against the Golden State Warriors later as part of the NBA Christmas games. I just mention that to excite you guys. Now, let's talk about Brandon Ingram.
Brandon Ingram is great player at his young age. When he was about to be drafted, he was being compared to Kevin Durant because of his length, shooting and speed despite being 6-foot-9. But in my personal view, I don't really see him to reach the potential to be a Kevin Durant level of talent. Yes he's just 21 years old and a lot of things can happen in time but I don't really believe that he will reach that level. LeBron James can elevate the game of every player he plays with. We all know that and it's already proven but some times some players just not fit well with LeBron James. I don't know what's wrong with Ingram but I think Kyle Kuzma is a better fit. And if you will ask me to choose between Ingram and Kuzma, I'll pick Kuzma with no doubt. I would rather trade Ingram than Kuzma.
When we take a look at the stat lines, records shows that Ingram is more effective if he is not playing together with LeBron on the court. His stats drops when he and LeBron is on the court playing together. Ingram is averaging 29.5 points per 36 minutes when James is not on the court with him, and when James is on the court, his average drops to 15.5 per 36 minutes. His field goal percentage goes the same way as it drops from 56 percent to 44 percent.
The thing here is, Ingram wants the ball in his hands. He wants isolation moves and he can't be effective as a catch and shoot player. When LeBron is on the floor, I some times saw Ingram just standing there and not making a move unlike Kuzma who can catch and shoot or cut to receive a pass. Ingram some times just watch what will LeBron do and he just touches the ball at a limited time. That's already given because James is a ball dominant player. He makes plays. He should totally have the ball in his hands.
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith thinks the same way. In one of his segments, he stated that the Lakers should trade Brandon Ingram. He said the Lakers should make a package of him including Lonzo or Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to trade for a superstar. He said he doesn't care as long as it is not Kuzma and Josh Hart. In the past, I also doesn't believe in Lonzo's game but now I am starting to love his game especially his defense. And as of now, I wanted to give him a chance to develop his game now that LeBron James is beside him to mentor him. I don't buy on the idea of trading him right away unless Anthony Davis is the one that would be traded for him and Ingram. Ingram is a good player. He will be a star in the future but he's not well-fitted with LeBron. I believe that the Lakers should trade him for another superstar.
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