LOS ANGELES – Throughout the first two games of the 2019-20 season for the Los Angeles Lakers, one player above all was getting targeted for criticism, and justly so. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope struggled and struggled mightly as he couldn't hit a shot while also feeling the wrath of superstar Kawhi Leonard in the season opener.
After scoring one point combined in the first two games, going a dreadful 0-for-9 from the floor, Caldwell-Pope started to turn things around on Sunday night against the visiting Charlotte Hornets. He opened up about his struggles on the floor after the game and how they were starting to weigh on him.
“It was,” Caldwell-Pope admits. “I had sat down to just rethink things, man. Stop overthinking it. Playing timid, so tonight I just wanted to free my mind. Just play basketball.”
The 26-year-old guard had become the brunt of jokes and nothing more than a punchline on Twitter after his poor performances to start the season, but the second home game of the season was a little different.
Caldwell-Pope played 19 minutes against the Hornets and shot 50 percent from the floor scoring 10 points to go along with two assists, a steal, and a rebound.
He was revealed, to put it mildly.
“I was waiting on that question,” Caldwell-Pope says while laughing. “It felt good. I talked with a couple of my teammates and family members. They all told me the same thing, ‘Have fun and play basketball.'”
Now that he was able to finally see the ball go through the net consistently while on the floor for the Lakers, Caldwell-Pope is hoping to keep it up moving forward while using a specific mindset.
“Don't overthink everything,” Caldwell-Pope said of his mindset. “Just play basketball. This is what I do for a living. I love the game. Just go out there and have fun.”
With the Lakers still awaiting the return of Kyle Kuzma, who will be an offensive spark for the Lakers along with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Caldwell-Pope will continue to be under the microscope, especially if his struggles persist. This performance against the Hornets was obviously a step in the right direction, but he'll need to bring some consistency if he wants to remain on the floor on a nightly basis for Los Angeles.
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