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The Los Angeles Lakers were hoping to make another statement like they did the other night against the high-powered Golden State Warriors. Unfortunately, the Houston Rockets proved to be way too much for this young Lakers team to handle.
Although it was not the end result Los Angeles wanted, head coach Luke Walton was still pleased with rookie forward Kyle Kuzma's performance, according to Ryan Ward of ClutchPoints.
“I actually thought he played a really solid game tonight. I challenged him before the game tonight to, on the defensive end, try to get his edge back.”
Walton added that Kuzma has not been bringing the same energy he had during the summer and throughout training camp.
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“I felt like earlier in the season and even in the summertime when our guys were playing pick-up and drills and whatever else we were doing, on the defensive end he had that same edge that he has on the offensive end,” Walton said. “I challenged him to try to kind of get that mindset back. He’s one of our tougher players and we need him to have that edge on both sides of the court.”
The 27th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft finished with 22 points on an efficient 8-of 16 shooting while tallying a block and a steal in the contest as well. The Lakers rookie kept up the hounding defense whenever he was forced to switch on superstar guard James Harden and although his plus/minus was not all that great, Luke Walton did not feel it was indicative of how well he played.
Walton's critique of Kyle Kuzma's energy may seem like he is nitpicking a bit. However, one of the main features perennial franchise players tend to have is the ability to bring their A-game on a nightly basis. Although he has been nothing short of spectacular this season, Kuzma is still learning to be that spark on both ends of the floor. Needless to say, it is something the Lakers are in dire need of amidst their five-game losing streak.
