The Los Angeles Lakers are putting a lot of faith in Brandon Ingram, the former second-overall pick that they believe can someday become a star. Ingram certainly grew by leaps and bounds during the NBA season, gaining confidence each week. He has developed a reputation for having a phenomenal work ethic, which gives hope that his growth will continue to skyrocket.
In his first game at the Las Vegas Summer League, Ingram was dominant, scoring 26 points on 9 of 17 shooting. He also knocked down a three and posted three steals and two blocks. However, on the last shot of regulation, Ingram landed awkwardly on a 15-foot jumper that barely missed, and stayed down for a few moments in pain.
The Lakers made the decision not to put their prized youngster back in the game, and Ingram believes that it was only a cramp, as Lakers Nation reporter Serena Winters reported:
Brandon Ingram says it's just a cramp! Good news
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) July 8, 2017
The Lakers and their legion of fans can rest easy knowing that Ingram wasn’t seriously hurt. Losing him in a relatively meaningless Summer League game would have been a disastrous start to a promising new season, one that has many fans optimistic about the future of the team under Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka.
The question now is, will Ingram play much in Summer League moving forward? Given how critical he is to the team’s future, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him held out for a number of games, especially since he looked almost too good to be playing during their first game. Should Ingram miss any games, that could free up more minutes on the wing for players like Josh Hart and David Nwaba, while rookie Lonzo Ball would have to create a bit more on the offensive end.