Subscribe
Follow Us
The Los Angeles Lakers have made quite apparent how impressed that they are with Lonzo Ball‘s presence on the floor as a leader and orchestrator of the offense.
This has even led to fourth-year forward Julius Randle praising his passing ability, and some took it as him throwing some subtle shade toward D'Angelo Russell, in an interview during Monday's Summer League game.
Julius Randle talking about Lonzo Ball, perhaps throwing a little shade elsewhere pic.twitter.com/8TTb70IKW6
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) July 11, 2017
It may be nothing more than Randle's initial strong impressions of Ball's unique passing skills, but it also shows that the former UCLA product is, so far, better than Russell at getting his teammates the ball in scoring opportunities.
Keep in mind, the Lakers had shelled much praise toward Russell for his passing ability upon taking him with the second overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, but that never truly translated into him utilizing that skillset to a great degree in his two seasons with the team. In fact, he struggled to get a true grasp on what he would bring to the table on a nightly basis.
The 21-year-old did show glimpses of his passing ability at various stretches throughout his brief tenure, but didn't settle into that type of playing style. Meanwhile, Ball has made it clear that he's looking to get his teammates involved from the get-go and consistently find them for scoring opportunities.
More importantly, what this shows is that Ball has already won over the confidence and belief from his new teammates, which could lead to a huge rookie season.
