Los Angeles Lakers: Mid-season grades for each player
Kentavious Caldwell Pope
Kentavious Caldwell Pope has been one of the most disappointing players on the team this season. When he was signed, many expected him to provide a good veteran presence on this young Lakers team; bringing them a great defender who can also shoot from deep. While he has been good on defense, his offense has been shaky at best.
Throughout the entire season , CP has displayed very poor shot IQ, which is a nice way of saying he pulls shots like he thinks his name is Stephen Curry.
It may be time to give up on the idea that Pope will ever be anything more than a slightly above average player, as he has not improved much at all in the last 4 seasons. Based on his current salary, it is extremely unlikely that we will see him back in Los Angeles next season.
Grade: C+
Brook Lopez
This season has not been kind to Brook Lopez, as we have been witness to a clear regression in his play. In his tenth season in the league, Lopez is currently averaging his lowest points per game ever, at 12.4, lowest rebounds per game, 4.1, and worst field goal percentage, 44%.
While dramatic, this regression is not that surprising. Lopez will be turning 30 this year and his age has been showing ever since last season.
On a positive note, Lopez has still been good on defense this year. This becomes most apparent when he does not play and the team’s interior defense is absolutely terrible. That’s pretty much the only positive in Brook Lopez’s performance this year; much like Kentavious Caldwell Pope, he likely won’t be on this team come next season.
Grade: C
Lonzo Ball
And now we have finally arrived to the most polarizing player in the league, Lonzo Ball. If you were to look only at his first 25 games, he would deserve an F, as he looked like one of the worst players in the league. But since then, he has looked fantastic as he clearly has grown accustomed to the speed of the NBA and is now finally comfortable.
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The difference in his play all comes down to his shot finally starting to fall. In his first 25 games, Lonzo was shooting 22% from three. Compare that to the 41% he has averaged in the games since, and it is clear why his offense has improved.
On top of shooting better in the second quarter of the season, his play has also become far more aggressive. Too often in the beginning of the season would Ball play as if he was scared to attempt a shot — his confidence was clearly shot.
That is no longer a problem for the rookie point guard as he now takes zero hesitation before shooting, and pushes the ball up court with authority.
Ball has also been surprisingly effective on defense all season, almost entirely because of effort.
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In the end, Ball had a stretch where he was truly horrific, but was resilient and has since elevated his play to where we all expected him to be. Because of this duality in his season, Ball receives an average grade.
Grade: C