Anthony Brown is often the forgotten man on the roster among the young players for the Los Angeles Lakers. The Stanford product had a lot of promise coming into the league last year along with D’Angelo Russell and Larry Nance Jr. but has struggled to thrive in the best part of his game, shooting the basketball.
With Luke Walton now the Lakers head coach, Brown has an opportunity to become a lethal offensive weapon off the bench. Brown can be a formidable defender and a threat from outside if he can find a way to be consistent during the minutes he’s given.
Although Brown hasn’t been all that impressive during his short time under Walton, the first-year head coach has been urging the second-year forward to keep shooting, via Mark Medina of OC Register:
“Even if you make 50 in a row or miss 50 in a row,” Walton told Brown, “keep shooting it.”
Walton clearly has confidence that Brown can eventually turn it around. If he gets the minutes, he’ll have that opportunity this season. Brown talked about his limited opportunities and knowing that he’s got to make the best of them, via Medina:
“I’d be lying if I said if I don’t think about it,” Brown said. “If you only get three or four shots, you want to make a good percentage. You know you’re not getting 15 or 20 where you’re evening it out. But at the same time, you have to let it go and let it fly.”
With Walton willing to mix things up in terms of tinkering with lineups, Brown may get a shot to show what he can do at some point during the 2016-17 campaign. Brown has the skill set that can flourish in the offense that Walton is trying to implement in Los Angeles, but he’ll have to be dependable when his number is called which is the concern moving forward.
Only time will tell if Brown can become a dual threat off the bench for the Lakers. If he can’t produce consistently when given the opportunity, the 24-year-old’s stint in Los Angeles could be shortlived.