Bear Down Wildcats

Triple double

1-2 vs. Arizona. Third place in the Pac. And yet he's the Lakers' savior? Maybe the difference in Ball will be having a better head coach.

MrBug708 wrote:Triple double

Is there anything in sports more over-evaluated and over-hyped than summer league results?

His dad predicted rookie of the year. The next day Fultz roles his ankle.

Some voodoo magic with Lavar

I think he is going to be a bad ass pro player. Fun to watch.

MrBug708 wrote:His dad predicted rookie of the year. The next day Fultz roles his ankle.

Some voodoo magic with Lavar

Tatum currently looks like the best player in this rookie class at the moment and it's not close.

ChooChooCat wrote:

MrBug708 wrote:His dad predicted rookie of the year. The next day Fultz roles his ankle.

Some voodoo magic with Lavar

Tatum currently looks like the best player in this rookie class at the moment and it's not close.

Chicat wrote: Is there anything in sports more over-evaluated and over-hyped than summer league results?

Tatum has a whole team he'll be sharing the ball with, he might be more talented, but it's generally a stats driven award.

ChooChooCat wrote:

MrBug708 wrote:His dad predicted rookie of the year. The next day Fultz roles his ankle.

Some voodoo magic with Lavar

Tatum currently looks like the best player in this rookie class at the moment and it's not close.

Of the top 5, Tatum has the highest floor and lowest ceiling. He has a very mature game, and it's not really surprising he looks so ready.

Fultz is the only other rookie with close to his level of polish in his game. I could easily see Tatum winning ROY, but in the long term, guys like Jackson, Ball and even Fox/Smith, etc. have qualities that could push them above him.

Spaceman Spiff wrote:

ChooChooCat wrote:

MrBug708 wrote:His dad predicted rookie of the year. The next day Fultz roles his ankle.

Some voodoo magic with Lavar

Tatum currently looks like the best player in this rookie class at the moment and it's not close.

Of the top 5, Tatum has the highest floor and lowest ceiling. He has a very mature game, and it's not really surprising he looks so ready.

Fultz is the only other rookie with close to his level of polish in his game. I could easily see Tatum winning ROY, but in the long term, guys like Jackson, Ball and even Fox/Smith, etc. have qualities that could push them above him.

I agree with every one you named except Ball. He has one transcendent skill, which is passing. He legitimately holds no other quality that's above Tatum.

ChooChooCat wrote:

Spaceman Spiff wrote:

ChooChooCat wrote:

MrBug708 wrote:His dad predicted rookie of the year. The next day Fultz roles his ankle.

Some voodoo magic with Lavar

Tatum currently looks like the best player in this rookie class at the moment and it's not close.

Of the top 5, Tatum has the highest floor and lowest ceiling. He has a very mature game, and it's not really surprising he looks so ready.

Fultz is the only other rookie with close to his level of polish in his game. I could easily see Tatum winning ROY, but in the long term, guys like Jackson, Ball and even Fox/Smith, etc. have qualities that could push them above him.

I agree with every one you named except Ball. He has one transcendent skill, which is passing. He legitimately holds no other quality that's above Tatum.

I would argue being 6'6 is a quality. When viewed along with the passing ability, it's pretty rare. Maybe I'm too into the uniqueness, but those things are big for me.

If Lonzo was 6'2, I'd have him towards the bottom of the top ten. His combo of height and passing is just so rare.

The ability to make others better is also an immeasurable skill. Ball's value is how better his teammates can be with him on the court.

MrBug708 wrote:The ability to make others better is also an immeasurable skill. Ball's value is how better his teammates can be with him on the court.

Yeah, although I figured Choochoo had that filed under passing. One thing Lonzo does that I basically haven't seen at this level since Magic is throw ahead to start the break. Even other great passers like Kidd and Paul don't do this like Lonzo does.

He usually won't get an assist on it, but he kicks it ahead and creates easy one on ones in transition that allow his teammates to get easy looks and paths to the rim. It creates a lot of hockey assists, fouls and multiple dribble layups and is insanely helpful to a team.

I like Lonzo a lot. He needs to shoot better than he has in Vegas, but that will come.

Learning from his dad

MrBug708 wrote:The ability to make others better is also an immeasurable skill. Ball's value is how better his teammates can be with him on the court.

To Ball's credit and further increasing his chances at ROY, he went to the right team with the right style of play for his game. He's meh at best at the PnR, so the Lakers were a dream situation in that he'll never have to do it.

Either way realistic ROY candidates IMO are Fox, Fultz, Smith, Jackson, Tatum, and Ball. I see Ball finishing 3rd at best among that group honestly.

ChooChooCat wrote:

MrBug708 wrote:The ability to make others better is also an immeasurable skill. Ball's value is how better his teammates can be with him on the court.

To Ball's credit and further increasing his chances at ROY, he went to the right team with the right style of play for his game. He's meh at best at the PnR, so the Lakers were a dream situation in that he'll never have to do it.

Either way realistic ROY candidates IMO are Fox, Fultz, Smith, Jackson, Tatum, and Ball. I see Ball finishing 3rd at best among that group honestly.

I'd have Tatum as the favorite at this point. Fultz is probably second, but on such a young team, I'd expect him to have more consistency issues.

Lonzo is pretty much defined by how he expands his own offensive game. His facilitation isn't a question, but he has to be able to put up 12-14 with decent efficiency on his own.

Fox, Smith and Jackson are the boom or bust guys. A consistent J is an issue for all three. They're all great athletes, though, and if they can put it together...

84Cat wrote:Learning from his dad

I saw the "news" trying to make that a "story" yesterday too

No Fox vs Ball rematch tonight because Ball has an injured groin...

Same injury from the Kentucky tournament game

Fox won't be anywhere near the toughest matchup he will face this year. I doubt that has anything to do with it. He better heal soon though if this is from March. The NBA is rough on bodies.

Laker fans are excited about Lonzo. He looked good, willing to share the rock. Needs to work on his shots especially mid range -inside. Limited game skills so far.

HiCat wrote:Laker fans are excited about Lonzo. He looked good, willing to share the rock. Needs to work on his shots especially mid range -inside. Limited game skills so far.

It blew me away when I saw that he's taken 8 jump shots that weren't threes last year.

Well, he doesn't need to worry about the worst mark from 3 this summer league

Ticket prices in Vegas seemed high for Summer League. I guess fans are hoping Lonzo brings back Showtime.

Benched last night, a health precaution after he tweaked an ankle last game. Makes sense, but I was looking forward to a replay confrontation vs Fox. Would have been really interesting after the two UCLA/KY games last year. Fox owned him the second game 39/10.

I cringe every time Ball goes through his perimeter mechanics. Would anyone suggest the Lakers fool with his stroke? Space, anyone? I know it's a dumb question since it's heavily ingrained over probably 10 years, but-------the NBA three is further out and the D is far better.

Too early to mess with his stroke. He has the range on it, but the mechanics behind it shouldnt be tweaked until at least after his rookie season.

EOCT wrote:Benched last night, a health precaution after he tweaked an ankle last game. Makes sense, but I was looking forward to a replay confrontation vs Fox. Would have been really interesting after the two UCLA/KY games last year. Fox owned him the second game 39/10.

I cringe every time Ball goes through his perimeter mechanics. Would anyone suggest the Lakers fool with his stroke? Space, anyone? I know it's a dumb question since it's heavily ingrained over probably 10 years, but-------the NBA three is further out and the D is far better.

He was regularly shooting, and making, shows from 26 feet at UCLA.

MrBug708 wrote:

EOCT wrote:Benched last night, a health precaution after he tweaked an ankle last game. Makes sense, but I was looking forward to a replay confrontation vs Fox. Would have been really interesting after the two UCLA/KY games last year. Fox owned him the second game 39/10.

I cringe every time Ball goes through his perimeter mechanics. Would anyone suggest the Lakers fool with his stroke? Space, anyone? I know it's a dumb question since it's heavily ingrained over probably 10 years, but-------the NBA three is further out and the D is far better.

He was regularly shooting, and making, shows from 26 feet at UCLA.

Yeah, but that was before De'Aaron took his spirit.

Good thing for the Lakers that they held out Ball otherwise Fox might not have been -30 in the game lol

TucsonClip wrote:Too early to mess with his stroke. He has the range on it, but the mechanics behind it shouldnt be tweaked until at least after his rookie season.

Clip, I hear you.

I look at it a a question of when to fool with it, that is if anyone feels the stroke will eventually have to be changed since it is so screwed up and since the League game is so much stronger on D and the 3point distance is longer.

If the Laker Trust were to feel "eventually", then why not right away? After this season the word is the Lakers will go after Paul George, Westbrook, even Lebron----some combo of two of them because they'll have the cap space. If the Lakers are successful at that, why fool with Ball's stroke at a point when they then have prospects for a big championship run? Why not do it now and take the lumps in the current season with low expectations anyway.

Just a thought.

EOCT wrote:

TucsonClip wrote:Too early to mess with his stroke. He has the range on it, but the mechanics behind it shouldnt be tweaked until at least after his rookie season.

Clip, I hear you.

I look at it a a question of when to fool with it, that is if anyone feels the stroke will eventually have to be changed since it is so screwed up and since the League game is so much stronger on D and the 3point distance is longer.

If the Laker Trust were to feel "eventually", then why not right away? After this season the word is the Lakers will go after Paul George, Westbrook, even Lebron----some combo of two of them because they'll have the cap space. If the Lakers are successful at that, why fool with Ball's stroke at a point when they then have prospects for a big championship run? Why not do it now and take the lumps in the current season with low expectations anyway.

Just a thought.

See, I don't see it as a necessity to change. Reggie Miller was one of the greatest shooters in NBA history and his form was terrible. I remember stories about Reggie drawing foul calls from the noise his left hand made slapping his right hand after he released the shot.

He needs to make them. He showed at UCLA that he can consistently stick the J for a full year. That's all he needs to do.

The biggest way his shot would worry me is that it makes him basically incapable of taking a J off the dribble headed right. He brings the ball up the left side of his body, and if he tries to shoot going right, he'll get stripped constantly.

I think Lonzo can shoot the 3 ball well enough. He needs to develop his ability to hit the floater/midrange IMO. That is something he has never shown the ability to do, and good NBA PG's have to be able to score from 10-17 feet. Paul's floater, Magic's junior skyhook, etc.

I think you need to see if he can hit the spot up jumper first before you even toy with something like changing his shot so he can shoot off the dribble.

Plenty of time to toy with the jumper, but lets get a baseline in the NBA first.

Lonzo's not really helping the perception about him and De'Aaron by returning immediately.

http://www.phobia-fear-release.com/phob ... ments.html" target="_blank

Laker fans loving it..So does Lebron?

Lonzo Ball Notches Impressive Double-Double in Win vs. 76ers

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2721 ... n-vs-76ers" target="_blank

That was an impressive stat line yesterday. In Nike shoes

Any word on whether UCLA will be hanging a banner to memorialize Lonzo's stat line yesterday? Seems fitting.

Was that joke a cry for help?

MrBug708 wrote:Was that joke a cry for help?

No, not really. Just noticing how the best thing going for UCLA hoops these days is a player who won't be on their roster this season.

Beachcat97 wrote:

MrBug708 wrote:Was that joke a cry for help?

No, not really. Just noticing how the best thing going for UCLA hoops these days is a player who won't be on their roster this season.

Beach are you a UCLA alum.

Beachcat97 wrote:

MrBug708 wrote:Was that joke a cry for help?

No, not really. Just noticing how the best thing going for UCLA hoops these days is a player who won't be on their roster this season.

If that's true, does that mean the best thing going for Arizona fans is a Ucla player in the NBA?

Your trolling of these boards is looking more transparent these days. Did that bet welching affect you that badly

ChooChooCat wrote: Tatum currently looks like the best player in this rookie class at the moment and it's not close.

I want to preface my opinion by saying you are a very level headed and knoweldagble poster on this board, I agree with you the vast majority of times than not.

however, I could not disagree with this opinion any more than saying I totally disagree.

further, Lonzo Ball is my pick of any entry player to add to any team, and that hasn't changed in two years, and it ain't close.

i hope we can still be friends.

This thread is turning into Bug and Beachcat baiting each other for reactions.

Would Lavar Ball approve? Lavar isn't one who would just go trolling for a response. The Big Baller Brand is about more than that. Like shoes in $1,000 LED cases that don't ship until late November.

HiCat wrote:

Beachcat97 wrote:

MrBug708 wrote:Was that joke a cry for help?

No, not really. Just noticing how the best thing going for UCLA hoops these days is a player who won't be on their roster this season.

Beach are you a UCLA alum.

No. Neither is the only UCLA fan in this thread.

Lonzo's a heck of a player. He'll keep Bruin fans entertained this year while the current Bruins struggle to stay relevant.

Spaceman Spiff wrote:This thread is turning into Bug and Beachcat baiting each other for reactions.

Would Lavar Ball approve? Lavar isn't one who would just go trolling for a response. The Big Baller Brand is about more than that. Like shoes in $1,000 LED cases that don't ship until late November.

I'm not really baiting, I'm more openly mocking his attempts to troll me. I forget he exists until he posts something in my direction. Then hilarity ensures as he struggles to come up with something witty.

Beachcat97 wrote:

HiCat wrote:

Beachcat97 wrote:

MrBug708 wrote:Was that joke a cry for help?

No, not really. Just noticing how the best thing going for UCLA hoops these days is a player who won't be on their roster this season.

Beach are you a UCLA alum.

No. Neither is the only UCLA fan in this thread.

Lonzo's a heck of a player. He'll keep Bruin fans entertained this year while the current Bruins struggle to stay relevant.

I was a big fan during the Wooden era. (yeah, boomer older than dirt ) Great man, loved his commitment to excellence. Probably the greatest college coach in my day. (my view only)

MrBug708 wrote:

Spaceman Spiff wrote:This thread is turning into Bug and Beachcat baiting each other for reactions.

Would Lavar Ball approve? Lavar isn't one who would just go trolling for a response. The Big Baller Brand is about more than that. Like shoes in $1,000 LED cases that don't ship until late November.

I'm not really baiting, I'm more openly mocking his attempts to troll me. I forget he exists until he posts something in my direction. Then hilarity ensures as he struggles to come up with something witty.

Come now, Bugsy. When it comes to wit, you doth bestride the narrow message board like Colossus, and we petty men walk under your huge legs and peep about.

Hooray for hyped-up one and done Bruins who finish 3rd in league!

See what I mean Space?

He's in Adidas tonight

Double triple double.

I'm really happy he's a Laker.