Timofey Mozgov Has ‘Special Play’ That Will Let Him Shoot Threes For Lakers

Trevor Lane
3 Min Read

The Lakers made Timofey Mozgov one of their prime targets during free agency this past summer, reaching a deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers big man just minutes after the opening bell. The Russian-born center formerly played for Lakers assistant coach Brian Shaw when they were in Denver, and the hope was that Mozgov would be able to protect the rim for the Lakers on the defensive end while setting massive screens for D’Angelo Russell and Jordan Clarkson on offense.

However, it appears that his role may be evolving a bit. According to Mark Medina of the L.A. Daily News, Mozgov will have an opportunity to prove that he can also shoot threes:

While this will certainly raise some eyebrows, Mozgov shooting threes isn’t completely unheard of. In the 2013-14 NBA season, Mozgov attempted 24 threes while playing for Shaw in Denver. Unfortunately, he only made four of them, and from there has only taken six or seven threes per season since. Mozgov is shooting a horrific 18 percent from three for his career, but he has shot so few of them that the sample size is extremely small and most of his attempts likely came in situations where the shot clock was winding down, and he had to shoot under duress.

Additionally, we saw Mozgov knocking down threes while playing for Russia this summer in the EuroBasket qualifiers, and in the video at the top of the page, Lakers Nation caught Mozgov and Lakers teammate Yi Jianlian working on threes during practice.

Still, Mozgov hasn’t exactly been considered a marksman over the course of his career, so it would be a surprise if he started taking large numbers of threes. The Lakers may indeed have a special play to free up Mozgov from deep, but don’t expect to see him transition into a stretch five anytime soon.

Trevor Lane is a longtime NBA and Los Angeles Lakers fan who had the good fortune to grow up during the glory days of the Showtime Lakers, when Magic Johnson, Kareem-Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, and the rest ruled the Great Western Forum. He has written about basketball, soccer, fantasy sports, MMA, and even pro wrestling over the course of his career, but the spectacle that is the Lakers is his true passion. He made the leap into podcasting for Lakers Nation and provides voice-over analysis for our YouTube channel. With a who's who of stars gracing the Lakers lineup over the years, including Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Shaquille O'Neal, Pau Gasol, and many others, the Lakers always provide plenty to talk about. When he isn't writing or recording, Trevor can be found spending time with his wife and daughter or on the sidelines for one of the youth teams he coaches. Outside of the Lakers, Trevor is a supporter of the LA Galaxy, US Soccer, Dallas Cowboys, and Los Angeles Dodgers. Contact: trevor@mediumlargela.com
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