NBA Draft 2017: 5 best lead guards available
By Luke Norris
3. Lonzo Ball, PG, UCLA
- Height: 6’6″
- Weight: 190 lbs.
- 2016-17 stats: 14.6 PPG, 7.6 APG, 6.0 RPG, 55.1 FG%, 41.2 3P%, 67.3 FT%
Perhaps the most controversial player of this NBA Draft (through no fault of his own), Lonzo Ball is a very good basketball player and will likely be given the task of running one of the biggest franchises in sports immediately. No pressure there, right?
Ball is a very unique prospect and has tremendous upside. He sees the entire court extremely well and has no problem giving up the basketball. He’s simply electric in the open court and plain and simple just loves to pass the ball, much like his hero and likely future boss, Magic Johnson. He likes to throw the deep pass after getting in the paint and mixing it up to snag a rebound, but can also use his ball-handling ability to get down the floor quickly to get the offense moving. His pass leads to another pass leads to another pass leads to an open shot for a teammate. Put it this way. If basketball assists were like hockey assists, Lonzo Ball would average about 25 per game.
The dangerous part about Lonzo Ball is that he can actually shoot. He’s got no problem walking the ball up and pulling up from 27-feet (who’s that guy his dad compared him to?) but he’s also a solid shooter off the catch. His free-throw shooting could use some work, especially if he’s going to attempt to drive the lane in the NBA, and he will need to improve his ability to create his own shot.
On the defensive end, Ball’s mix of size, strength and speed allow him to match up with either guard position and some small forwards. He does have a tendency to go for the steal too often, which then creates defensive problems for his teammates. But if his biggest weakness of defense is trying too hard, that’s really not a problem at all, is it? Lonzo Ball is going to be a very good player in the NBA. He’s a pass-first guard and won’t be able to close games on his own at the start of his career, but if he’s put into a situation with a big scorer (like Paul George), Ball is going to thrive.