Kyle Kuzma will be making his 2019-20 NBA season debut for the Los Angeles Lakers when they take on the Dallas Mavericks.
Kuzma missed the first four games of the season due to a stress reaction in his left foot that sidelined him throughout all of 2019 NBA training camp.
Kuzma’s return has been highly anticipated as the Lakers have shown a clear need for a third player who can create their own shot off the dribble. Right now, this Lakers team is flooded with players who are masterminds off the ball but struggle to create for themselves. Kuzma fills that immediate need and should bring another layer to this offense.
After returning to full practice earlier this week, Kuzma said he felt good on Wednesday and even better when he woke up on Thursday and is just hoping that keeps up, according to Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN:
“Yesterday was kind of the most running I’ve done, so to wake up and not really have too much discomfort was a good sign,” Kuzma said. “Getting out here and doing the same thing [on Thursday], and so hopefully it’s the same for tomorrow’s game.”
While it would be nice for Kuzma to make a full return, head coach Frank Vogel and the training staff will be limiting him to just 15-20 minutes, according to Mike Trudell of Lakers:
Frank Vogel confirmed that @kylekuzma is ready to roll, and is on a 15-20 minute limit tonight.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) November 1, 2019
However, if Kuzma can bring that sweet jump shot to the Lakers that he debuted with Team USA this summer, this Lakers offense will start to look a whole lot more layered.
At this time, it is unclear what Kuzma’s role will be once he is completely healthy. With Anthony Davis wanting to play more power forward, Kuzma could be the team’s sixth man, but still play significant minutes and finish games.
No matter what, it will be interesting to see how Vogel handles getting this new addition to the lineup.