The Los Angeles Lakers undeniably got a steal last year, when they landed Kyle Kuzma via draft-day trade with the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Timofey Mozgov and D’Angelo Russell. For ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, however, the Lakers did not just net a high-value player in the form of the former Utah Utes swingman, they found a player with the exact disposition as Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, per ESPN Los Angeles.
“He’s the guy with the Mamba Mentality, he’s playing 45 minutes on a sprained ankle…he’s the guy who has the sort of heir to Kobe type dedication to the sport.”
Kuzma, who signed a two-year $3.11 million deal with the Lakers last year, surprised plenty of people — including Lakers fans – with his play in his first year in the pros. The 6-foot-9 forward managed to become one of the best rookies in a stacked batch that had the likes of Donovan Mitchell, Jayson Tatum, Lauri Markkanen, and teammate Lonzo Ball by averaging 16.1 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 45.0 percent from the field.
Thanks in large part to Kuzma, the Lakers, even though they failed to reach the playoffs, improved their record to 35-47 from 26-56 in the 2016-17 campaign. He also finished the season with the third on the team in win shares with 3.8.
Hopefully for the Lakers, Kyle Kuzma will be able to build on his excellent rookie campaign next season, as the team looks to book its first ticket to the playoffs since 2013.
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