Los Angeles Lakers forward Brandon Ingram has no doubt that new teammate Lonzo Ball will ''bounce back'' after a catastrophic debut.
Ball, 19, was playing his first game as a Laker on Friday night against the Los Angeles Clippers in the NBA Las Vegas Summer League. The guard posted five points on horrendous 2-of-15 shooting from the field in a 96-93 loss suffered to the city rivals.
The Los Angeles-based franchise selected Ball at number two in last month's NBA draft, held in Brooklyn. The 19-year-old was seen as one of the most talented players in the 2017 class and overall one of the most intriguing prospects at the point guard spot in recent years.
Ball made it all look a bit better by dishing out five assists as well as grabbing four rebounds while also collecting three steals in 32 minutes of action.
''It's going to be better,'' Ingram said post-game. ''He's going to be a lot better. We know what he can do, we know how he can affect the game.''
The support
Brandon Ingram says Lonzo Ball is not alone as the whole Los Angeles Lakers team has his back.
Ball won't have to wait for too long to get a chance to make amends for his disappointing summer league opener as the Lakers are set to face the Boston Celtics this Saturday. Putting up a good display the day after a catastrophic night would be an ideal case scenario for the UCLA product.
Rising star Ingram has tipped the second overall pick of the 2017 NBA draft to leave his mark against the arch rivals Celtics.
''Just put the work in,'' Ingram said. ''We are all here for him, we are all behind him. He is going to be better next game.''
Ingram has been there
Brandon Ingram can relate to Lonzo Ball as the former Duke star was in a similar spot when he first came to the league.
The Los Angeles Lakers chose Ingram as the second overall pick in the NBA draft a year ago.
The heavily talented player had to deal with the expectation of being the number two pick all while playing under the bright lights of Hollywood at the same time.
The expectation and pressure clearly took a toll on Ingram at the beginning of the season before he ''freed himself up.'' The 19-year-old was performing much better after the All-Star break, reminding us more and more of the confident player he was in college.
Ingram's first-year experience of how to handle this certain situation could help Ball as he is preparing to enter his rookie season.
''Just tell him to keep going. That's a process. Just do what you can do, control what you can control. We are going to be behind you the whole time.''
