Los Angeles Lakers: Brandon Ingram Completing NBA Internship
By Jason Oliver
The Los Angeles Lakers have one of the best young talents in the NBA in Brandon Ingram, but they aren’t in a hurry to elevate him into a regular starting role.
Good things come to those who wait and the Los Angeles Lakers are doing exactly that with Brandon Ingram. Seventeen games into completing his internship, primarily as part of the Lakers’ second unit, Ingram is looking to take the next step towards future stardom.
With the option of throwing Ingram in the deep end from day one, coach Luke Walton instead gave the starting role to veteran Luol Deng. Despite Deng being disappointing so far, Ingram is only now getting what is likely to be a brief taste of the starting lineup due to D’Angelo Russell’s knee injury.
Becoming the regular starter is something Walton and Ingram are working towards but it seems neither are in a hurry. Ingram is the first to point out he’s far from a finished product as he told The O.C Register:
"“I’m not where I want to be right now. On the defensive end, I’ve gotten a lot better. But on the offensive end, I don’t think I’m where I want to be right now,”"
Ingram has all the tools to be a dominant NBA player but at only 19 years old, he’s got a long way to go. Against the Golden State Warriors, Ingram has shot a combined 9-for-30 across his two starts. It’s become all the more evident that Walton’s stance was justified and Ingram’s best option is still with the second unit as he gets acclimated to all that is the NBA.
With Walton developing his skills off the bench, Ingram can benefit from a relatively stress-free introduction to life in the league.
Defensively Ingram is a monster. With his excellent instinct, quick feet and 7’3″ wingspan, that was a given before the draft. The key for Walton when putting together this internship was Ingram’s involvement on offense.
As a pick-and-roll heavy second-unit revolving around Lou Williams, Jordan Clarkson, Tarik Black and Larry Nance Jr. Ingram has been able to get his feet wet while carrying a very little load.
Being an afterthought in the Lakers’ second unit has allowed Ingram to fill various areas in the offense, most often as a weak side shooter. His 38 percent from the field isn’t flattering, but it does rank fourth amongst all other rookie guards and small forwards.
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By predominantly being camped on the wing, 60 percent of Ingram’s field goal attempts this season have been jump shots. Only 25 times has he driven to the basket for a layup or dunk. Not being asked to create and carry the burden of being a regular scorer has allowed Ingram to watch games unfold with the best view in the building.
Young players are regularly rushed into prominent positions in teams despite their inexperience and inability to keep up with the pace of an NBA game – Ingram isn’t about to be one of them.
With the Lakers well into rebuild mode, Ingram has been blessed with a path to NBA stardom that won’t be as rushed as many others. While it seems like an inevitability that he will one day be the Lakers’ undisputed starting small forward, it won’t be fast tracked.
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Opposing coaches and players can only hope this kid regularly likened to Kevin Durant doesn’t leave them in the dust once he really gets going. He’ll be well prepared.