The Los Angeles Lakers are extremely loaded on the wing going into this season. Brandon Ingram, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Josh Hart and Lance Stephenson will all be battling for minutes and LeBron James will spend at least some time on the wing as well depending on the lineup.
One player who shouldn’t be forgotten about however, is rookie Svi Mykhailiuk. The second-round pick turned a lot of heads with his performance during Summer League, particularly in Las Vegas.
He was known as a shooter during his college years at Kansas, but proved that he can do much more with some solid ballhandling, playmaking,and athleticism.
The road for minutes nonetheless figures to be a tough one for the rookie, and he understands that. In an interview with Juan Jimenez of AS.com, Mykhailiuk said that his goal is just to help the team however he can and be a good teammate:
“It is my first year. What I hope is to help the team as much as I can, whether or not I play. But above all, to be a good teammate,”
Mykhailiuk also added that he has no expectations as far as playing time goes:
“I do not know how much I’m going to play, I have no expectations. I have to go there, work and see what happens.”
It is entirely possible that Mykhailiuk spends a lot of time down in the G League in order to continue developing and gaining experience. The Lakers have done this recently with the likes of Jordan Clarkson and Ivica Zubac, who both looked much better once getting the shot on the main roster.
Of course if shooting is a concern for head coach Luke Walton, Mykhailiuk could find himself on the floor for a few minutes as he certainly proved he can do that in Summer League. In seven games in Las Vegas, Mykhailiuk averaged 16.6 points on 48.3 percent shooting from the field and 40.8 percent from three-point range.
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