When the Los Angeles Lakers selected forward Kyle Kuzma with the 27th overall pick out of Utah in this past draft, they hoped they were getting a stretch forward that has some defensive versatility, a type of player that the team greatly lacked last season.
What they didn’t know what they were getting was a potential future All-Star and someone that can contribute right away, but that is exactly the path Kuzma looks to be headed on.
It all started in the Las Vegas Summer League when Kuzma developed tremendous chemistry with fellow rookie Lonzo Ball, leading the Lakers to their first-ever Summer League Championship and earning Championship Game MVP honors.
Going into training camp the biggest question surrounding Kuzma was if he would be able to repeat his Summer League performance, and he has done exactly that so far in his three preseason games.
As can be seen in the highlight video posted by the NBA’s Youtube channel, Kuzma has demonstrated an ability to score in a variety of ways and at a high-efficiency rate so far this preseason.
He is currently leading the Lakers in scoring this preseason, averaging 21 points per game while shooting 65.8 percent from the field and 35.7 percent from three-point range.
Lakers head coach Luke Walton recently called Kuzma one of the most confident rookies he has ever seen and said that he is impressed with his competitive spirit.
Going into preseason Kuzma was battling to be in the rotation to start the season, but if Kuzma’s strong play continues then he could work his way into a starting role, which nobody could have predicted when the Lakers drafted him.