Lakers: Which “Rising Star” is most likely to make an all-star team first?

3. Lonzo Ball

Personally, I think that Lonzo Ball is the most well-rounded player of the three young stars. Although he has gotten a lot of negative feedback for his quirky shot and slow start in scoring, Ball has all the tools to craft a successful long-term NBA career.

And no, this MCL injury does not make him a bust or make him “injury prone”. The Lakers are playing as conservative as they possibly can with Ball; especially with Isaiah Thomas now in the fray.

Ball is an average at worst scorer at point guard in the NBA. Although his 10.2 points per game are not the most intriguing, for a rookie point guard, that is solid. Take D’Angelo Russell, who is considered a “scoring point guard,” he scored 13.2 a game his rookie year. Not that much difference there.

Ball can also rebound the basketball with great success for a point guard and is the perfect example of a distributing guard. Ball is averaging over seven rebounds and seven assists per game. As his career progresses, those numbers will only grow. In five years time, Ball may be a nightly triple-double threat.

However, Ball’s all-around stat line does not fare well with the nature of the NBA All-Star Game. People consider all-stars to be scorers. If Ball is averaging 15, 10 and eight next year, he will still get passed on by someone averaging 23, five and five. That’s just how it is.

Look at Ben Simmons. Simmons is easily the front-runner for Rookie of the Year and has been one of the NBA’s best players. Simmons 16.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game averages are all-star worthy. However, he did not get the nod. Instead, Kemba Walker, who is averaging 22.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game, did.