DeAaron Fox
- Thread starter VF21
- Start date
kingsboi
Hall of Famer
He'll have an injury by then, not to worry.
Blob
Starter
D-Fox is a budding all-star. Lonzo is a complementary player, to be kind. I said this from Day One. If you go back to before the draft you will recall D-Fox was attack oriented player. Lonzo was scared to attack the paint. He gave up his dribble too early on dribble drives. Now click on that link from VF21 and look at how that has played out....
Lonzo has a free throw rate of 12%. That means he shoots about 1 free throw for every 10 FGA. Pfft. Sad! D-Fox has a free throw rate of 53%! This means he shoots over one free throw for every 2 FGAs. That's great and reflection of his attack oriented mindset and ability to use his speed to create havoc. All of this was forecastable before the draft.
Last year D-Fox was not getting the calls because he didn't have the strength to absorb the contact . This year he is getting more of the calls (maybe not as many as he deserves) and forcing the defender into compromised position. That said, D-Fox has played B+ basketball. He has been a little loose with his handles. He is only making 65% of his FTs and only 4-17 on threes. He can make that three ball and as he showed in the preseason vs. Lakers (4-6) and last year vs Spurs.
Shooting 3s is a bit of quandary because D-Fox can almost always create an advantage by attacking. In a way he is bailing out the D by settling for the long ball. That is a balance he is in the process of striking . His shot vs pass distribution is actually quite advanced. He has an intuitive sense for getting this highest percentage shot for himself or others. It is in this context he needs to make more 3s.
As D-Fox gets increasingly comfortable with new teammates (Bjelica, MB3) and new system his assists should tick up to 10 APG. As he gets more consistent on his FTs and long ball he will be a 20 PPG. That would put him at 20 PPG 10 APG 50 5 RPG with plus defense and close to 2 steals per game. That's elite with only Westbrook doing more offensively but less defensively. There are many fans who said Fox would never be this good or it would take him 3-4 years. On his current trajectory he can reach this level this year.
Frank Mason is also a great player (leading us in preseason PER and PER after 6 games) which compensates for the egregious swing and miss on G-Leaguer Jackson (6-26 FGs 25% over the course of our three game win streak) in the same draft, thereby giving us elite skill and production at the PG position. Soon we will be Top 5 in the NBA at the PG with normal development. This will enable us to compete for a playoff position soon maybe this year.
Lonzo has a free throw rate of 12%. That means he shoots about 1 free throw for every 10 FGA. Pfft. Sad! D-Fox has a free throw rate of 53%! This means he shoots over one free throw for every 2 FGAs. That's great and reflection of his attack oriented mindset and ability to use his speed to create havoc. All of this was forecastable before the draft.
Last year D-Fox was not getting the calls because he didn't have the strength to absorb the contact . This year he is getting more of the calls (maybe not as many as he deserves) and forcing the defender into compromised position. That said, D-Fox has played B+ basketball. He has been a little loose with his handles. He is only making 65% of his FTs and only 4-17 on threes. He can make that three ball and as he showed in the preseason vs. Lakers (4-6) and last year vs Spurs.
Shooting 3s is a bit of quandary because D-Fox can almost always create an advantage by attacking. In a way he is bailing out the D by settling for the long ball. That is a balance he is in the process of striking . His shot vs pass distribution is actually quite advanced. He has an intuitive sense for getting this highest percentage shot for himself or others. It is in this context he needs to make more 3s.
As D-Fox gets increasingly comfortable with new teammates (Bjelica, MB3) and new system his assists should tick up to 10 APG. As he gets more consistent on his FTs and long ball he will be a 20 PPG. That would put him at 20 PPG 10 APG 50 5 RPG with plus defense and close to 2 steals per game. That's elite with only Westbrook doing more offensively but less defensively. There are many fans who said Fox would never be this good or it would take him 3-4 years. On his current trajectory he can reach this level this year.
Frank Mason is also a great player (leading us in preseason PER and PER after 6 games) which compensates for the egregious swing and miss on G-Leaguer Jackson (6-26 FGs 25% over the course of our three game win streak) in the same draft, thereby giving us elite skill and production at the PG position. Soon we will be Top 5 in the NBA at the PG with normal development. This will enable us to compete for a playoff position soon maybe this year.
DesertFox
Starter
I thought Fox need to get to the line at an elite rate to be a plus starter, and after his rookie year I was honestly worried.
Now he has more than recovered, and is back on that all star trajectory. Now the question is will his shooting improve enough for him to sneak onto an all nba team.
Now he has more than recovered, and is back on that all star trajectory. Now the question is will his shooting improve enough for him to sneak onto an all nba team.
ockingsfan
Starter
Fox killed Lonzo in the NCAA, he will continue to do so in the NBA.
To be fair to Lonzo though, playing with LeBron only hurts other players games. LeBron can carry the teams he's on in the East, but in the West, his dominance will not win many games. LeBron makes other players sacrifice their game for his. Lonzo's game will seriously be muted with LeBron. Lonzo need the ball in his hands to be effective and that won't happen with LeBron on his team.
To be fair to Lonzo though, playing with LeBron only hurts other players games. LeBron can carry the teams he's on in the East, but in the West, his dominance will not win many games. LeBron makes other players sacrifice their game for his. Lonzo's game will seriously be muted with LeBron. Lonzo need the ball in his hands to be effective and that won't happen with LeBron on his team.
Padrino
All-Star
Indeed. When he signed with the Lakers, I assumed it was for reasons unrelated to basketball, but I also thought it was a bad move that would tarnish his legacy on the court. Unless Ingram and Ball become all-stars overnight, there’s a very real possibility that the Lakers miss the playoffs this year. And given that other stars no longer flock to LeBron-led teams, it may be that LeBron never achieves much success on the court in LA, which will be more than enough room for critics to claim that the winning he achieved elsewhere in his career was due to playing in the weaker conference.
bajaden
Hall of Famer
Yeah, I tend to agree with you. Lebron has the ball in his hands a lot, and that means less touches for Ball, and Lonzo without the ball becomes just another player on the floor. But, the Lakers may be looking at this as a learning experience for Ball which will pay off down the road. Or not!
bajaden
Hall of Famer
I think that will always be an argument used to some extent to tarnish Lebron's career. People always point to how many times Lebron got his team into the championships versus Michael Jordan. But when Jordan was winning, and he went to the well six times and won six times, the East was the powerhouse conference. Jordan won in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, and 1998. And many believe that if he hadn't been touched with temporary insanity, he might have won 8 in a row.
Regardless of how you feel about the Jordan versus Lebron match up, Lebron will certainly go down as one of the best to ever play the game. Not his fault that he played in a weak division. Well, now that I think about it, it was his choice a couple of times.
63royals
Bench
FWIW, there were some stories about Jordan and high stakes gambling just before he announced his "retirement" to play baseball. I always thought the baseball thing was a coverup for a gambling suspension. No proof, but it fits what happened.
oh man ... it's like 1993 and I just discovered usenet.
I wonder how Jordan as "a good guy", which is certifiably not the case, would hold up had he came up in the social media (or even www/digital cable) era.
I personally don't expect the Lakers to be this bad for very much longer, but I do hope it lasts long enough for Fox to eat Ball alive in a few weeks.
A lot of us have watched Lonzo and I watched more Lakers games last year to see what the hype was. Lonzo is a pass first type of guard and knowing he is not going to drive will make him less useful. I saw him pass the ball alot. Rondo is that kinda of player but better in so many ways.
If Fox continues the path he is on he will be a very good all around player.
After watching both Jordan and LeBron its a toss up as with size and era differences. but I would take Jordan’s game as I feel he made the players around him better compared to LeBron needs better players around him to win.
If Fox continues the path he is on he will be a very good all around player.
After watching both Jordan and LeBron its a toss up as with size and era differences. but I would take Jordan’s game as I feel he made the players around him better compared to LeBron needs better players around him to win.
rosa u podne
Bench
Jordan made the team better, players not so much. He helped them playing great defense, however the offense was designate for him to get shots, with a lot of isolations.
Kingz19
Hall of Famer
Questionable. Lower back strain. According to Jason Jones
Chupacabra
Starter
It never ceases to amaze me how much Ball is discussed versus how good he is at basketball. Ball is pure garbage and is still brought up in conversations as though he and Lebron are the big duo on the 7akers. Go ahead 7A, keep thinking you can build around him, I want you to.
LA King Fan II
Bench
Grr. I could see it coming after the 33rd time Fox grabbed at his back and grimaced late in the game.
Kingsfan23
All-Star
Can he stay healthy for most the season given his current frame (he’s questionable tonight with back)?
None about talent
None about talent
Hoovtrain
All-Star
Ugh. That’s going to require rest
LA King Fan II
Bench
He's available!
MizzouKing
Starter
From ESPN: Coming off his worst two-game stretch of the young season, Los Angeles Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball said he's "not doing [his] job" and needs to get more "engaged."
Boy oh boy, did WE get the better deal!
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...akers-says-needs-get-engaged-recent-struggles
Boy oh boy, did WE get the better deal!
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...akers-says-needs-get-engaged-recent-struggles
kb02
All-Star
I love Lonzo's game. A bit surprising that he's struggling to make an imprint, because he generally doesn't need a ton of high usage to be effective. Would take him in a heartbeat if the Lakers are trading him.
As for the Lakers, they'll figure it out. They brought in a bunch of strong willed vets and mixing them with a bunch of kids, who ran the locker room the year prior.
That said, glad we have Fox. What he's doing is not surprising to anyone beyond the folks, who were looking to find any evidence against the FO. The one over looked thing by the team's current play is the development of Fox, WCS, and Buddy. The FO has absolutely delivered on one of their ultimatums--become a draft and develop team. A few years ago, there were folks saying how do we become like the Spurs or Jazz? We should draft character guys. We should draft older players, because they require less development. Look at the development of our players today relative to where they were a few years ago. Things are looking great.
Chupacabra
Starter
No. Ball sucks and his game is ugly to watch. He is quickly becoming one of the biggest busts in recent memory. He was drafted #2 and cant put the ball in the basket. His shot is so poor that he is very limited in the situations that he is able to actually get the shot off, and the defense doesnt even have to respect it when he does get an attempt off. I wouldnt want that garbage putting on a kings jersey in those little short shorts, ugly shoes, and awkward coordination. I hope he fails miserably and so far he is. It just shows how incompetant 7A is that they would allow media hype to dictate who they draft. Serves them right because ball is trash.
Kingster
Hall of Famer
Getting King James was bound to adversely affect Lonzo Ball. It was predictable that he would be a key casualty from the acquisition of LBJ because his strong suit is being the main ball handler on the team, and we all know that ain't happening now. I still think Ball is going to be traded, and I bet he does quite well on his new team sans LBJ.
By the way, I'm absolutely loving this "transition" period for the Lakers. Now these young guys are put in the position of being courtiers for King James instead of having the hope and promise of being the future stars of the Lakers. No matter how you cut it, that's a big hammer to the egos of the Lakers' youngins. By the time they get it all sorted out I'm hoping the Lakers are out of the playoff picture. It will diminish their leverage for trading their young guys (like Ball) and won't help in attracting the great FAs that they believe they are entitled to.
By the way, I'm absolutely loving this "transition" period for the Lakers. Now these young guys are put in the position of being courtiers for King James instead of having the hope and promise of being the future stars of the Lakers. No matter how you cut it, that's a big hammer to the egos of the Lakers' youngins. By the time they get it all sorted out I'm hoping the Lakers are out of the playoff picture. It will diminish their leverage for trading their young guys (like Ball) and won't help in attracting the great FAs that they believe they are entitled to.
63royals
Bench
Who's the lucky girl?
