With Los Angeles Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball currently dealing with a sprained MCL in his left knee with no timetable for his return, head coach Luke Walton has decided to put the ball in Brandon Ingram's hands.

So far, Ingram has played well in a point forward-like role for the Lakers. The team has been red-hot at home winning seven straight at the Staples Center and seven of their last nine games. Following practice on Wednesday, Ball talked about Ingram's performance thus far as the team's floor general in his absence.

“That's a big point guard, especially coming down at that speed,” Ball said of Ingram. “He's pushing the pace great. He knows the shots that he's good at. He's getting to his spots and he's helping our team out. Not only improving himself but the whole team.”

Ingram is coming off another solid performance as he helped lead the Lakers to win over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night with a game-high 26 points to go along with five assists, four rebounds, and two blocks.

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Ball also talked about what he's told Ingram about playing the point guard position.

“Just have fun and push the ball,” Ball said. “The stuff he's doing he doesn't really need any help. We're winning games and he's definitely a big part of it.”

With no telling when Ball might be back on the floor for the Lakers, Ingram will likely continue to be counted on to initiate the offense moving forward. Ball has already been ruled out for Thursday's game against the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder and his status for Saturday's game against the Dallas Mavericks remains uncertain.