Lakers Rumors: How the Lakers would Perform with Lonzo Ball (According to NBA 2K17)

Lonzo Ball has been at the forefront of recent Lakers rumors. The UCLA star declared for the 2017 NBA Draft, and the Lakers seem to be his perfect fit.

The Lakers have been pretty abysmal since 2013, the Lakers have not made the postseason since the 2012-2013 season and have not won a playoff game since the year prior. Since Kobe Bryant’s last ring, the Lakers have had a total of one win past the opening playoff series, something that hasn’t happened since 2007. Because of this struggle, Lakers rumors are perhaps the most noteworthy thing the team has to offer.

We have heard all of the Lakers rumors. Paul George might be a Laker, Blake Griffin could swap Los Angeles Teams, heck even Gordon Hayward has been thrown into the mix. Yet, despite all of this, the superstar from Chino Hills Lonzo Ball has seemingly remained the focal point of the Lakers rumors.

Lonzo Ball is a great player, don’t get me wrong, but the exposure that he endures is insane and never before has a player seemed so destined to be a member of a certain team. It doesn’t matter if the Lakers have the first, second, third, or even thirtieth pick, the common conception is that Lonzo will be a Los Angeles Laker next season.

We have seen guys that are destined to be picked number one, and guys destined to be picked sixtieth, but that all had to do with the stock of said player. Regardless of if the 76ers or Phoneix Suns had the number one overall pick last year, Ben Simmons would have gone first. This is different for Lonzo, as his draft seemingly only is dependent on the Lakers interest in him.

Lakers’ fans around the world are already eager to see Ball donning the purple and gold, yet nobody has really discussed what expectations we should have of Ball. Ball is seemingly the savior of the Los Angeles Lakers, yet that might not be the case.

To test the Lonzo Ball experiment in Los Angeles, here at LA Sports Hub we turned to the popular NBA 2K franchise. We entered into MyLeague mode and selected Lonzo Ball second overall in the 2017 NBA Draft. Markelle Fultz was selected first overall by the Magic, in case you were wondering.

So, heading into the 2017-2018 season the Lakers had a pretty decent, young lineup. Lonzo instantly slated in at starting point guard, shifting D’Angelo Russell to shooting guard. Shifting Russell over to the two actually increased his rating from 82 to 83, with Ball being an 84 straight out of college.

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As for the rest of the team, it remained static. Brandon Ingram remained the starting small forward with Julius Randle and Ivica Zubac in the front court. That makes Julius Randle the oldest starting Laker at only 22 years old to start the season.

As for the statistics, Ball actually thrived in his first season with this young Lakers core. Ball led the team in scoring with 18.5 points per game along with 6.5 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game. He led the team in assists and only trailed Zubac, Randle, and Larry Nance Jr in rebounding.

These stats led Lonzo Ball to be included in the All-NBA Rookie First Team, despite not winning the Rookie of the Year award.

Lonzo Ball definitely improved the Lakers but did not accelerate them into the postseason, like many Lakers fans assume will happen. The team finished with their best record since 2012 at a 39-43 mark, missing the playoffs by one game.

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Well, according to NBA 2K17, Lonzo Ball actually may be the best option for the Lakers out of the suggested Lakers rumors. While he may not turn the team around instantly, his first impact is evident and he may just be the future of the Los Angeles Lakers.

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