Lonzo Ball got benched for the fourth quarter as the Los Angeles Lakers played the Phoenix Suns on Monday night (Nov. 13). It was a statement from Lakers coach Luke Walton and one that Ball isn’t soon to forget. The Lakers ended up beating the Suns without him, posting a 100-93 victory with Jordan Clarkson and Corey Brewer carrying the team.
A report by ESPN quoted Ball following the game.
"We got a win so I got no complaints," said Ball, who exited the game with 2:47 left in the third quarter for Clarkson. "My teammates got it done in the fourth and we had to at least get one on this road trip."
Just two days after posting a triple-double against the Milwaukee Bucks, Lonzo Ball found himself watching the action from the bench. He seemed to take the coaching decision in stride, which is certainly an important step in his growth and in the eyes of NBA fans
Rookie stats for Ball
In 14 games for the Lakers this season, Ball is averaging 9.5 points, 7.2 assists, and 6.7 rebounds a night.
They aren’t bad numbers for a rookie point guard, but they also may not be at the level that some fans of the Lakers had been hoping to see this season. It’s his shooting percentages that are ugly thus far. Ball is shooting 31.3 percent from the field, 25 percent from three-point range, and just 50 percent from the free throw line.
Ball certainly needs to improve his shooting across the board, especially if the expectation is that teams will take him seriously when he has the ball on offense. Ball has shown flashes of being able to pass well and is a very gifted rebounder as far as point guards go, but he also needs to prove that he can shoot the ball.
Ball is similar to Jason Kidd
When Jason Kidd was just getting started in the NBA, he too was not considered a great shooter.
Later in his career, though, he would develop into a great three-point shooter, making him a very dangerous weapon when he had the ball. This is something that Lonzo Ball is going to need to work on, especially if he is going to keep taking three-point shots.
More NBA News
Lonzo Ball isn’t the only player making news around the NBA right now. LeBron James touched off some controversy when he admitted to “trolling” Phil Jackson again. No. 1 overall draft pick Markelle Fultz was also in the news, as it was revealed he would be out indefinitely with a shoulder problem. That's really bad news for the Philadelphia 76ers, as the franchise had high hopes of going deep into the postseason this year.