Los Angeles Lakers: Three things to watch for against San Antonio Spurs

2. Lonzo Ball playing 35+ minutes and how he responds

Lonzo Ball is one of the valuable pieces of the young core that is the centerpiece of the franchise moving forward. Whether Ball is a lifetime Laker or the team deals him at some point for a superstar, he presents extreme value to the franchise.

Ball has been met with a ton of criticism in his short NBA career despite playing fairly well for a young player. Most of that is because of his dad, however, Ball has warranted some of the criticism himself.

One of the biggest critiques about Ball is his bad motor and tendency to gas out late in games. This, mixed with his injury history already, has many questioning whether or not he can be a reliable point guard.

Ball has been coming off the bench this season as he gets into form from an offseason injury and has averaged 23 minutes in the first two games. With Rajon Rondo suspended for three games, and not a ton of point guard depth, chances are that we will see Ball play around 35 minutes against the Spurs.

Ball is not completely unfamiliar with this kind of workload. Last season he had 30 games in which he played 35 or more minutes, dictating the fast-paced offense in which he was the motor.

This year is different with LeBron James being the one to push the pace. However, we are not even sure if Ball is completely healthy or if he is ready to be on the court this long. It will be great to give us an extended look at how he plays with LeBron and how the offense can really run with both of them on the court.

I see two things happening with there being no in between. Ball is either going to light it up as an off-ball scorer, scoring 20 points, snagging 8-10 rebounds and picking up five or so assists.

Or, the increased workload will get to him, he will have to pick his spots when to use his energy and will struggle; scoring less than ten points with less than five rebounds and assists.

Let’s hope for the former.