Los Angeles Lakers: 2017-18 player grades for Brandon Ingram

Weaknesses

I briefly hit on his main weakness on the offensive end. Brandon Ingram’s shooting numbers and form are the areas he will look to improve on this offseason. His free throw percentage aligns with his lone season of college ball at Duke University, and with his high frequency of getting to the charity stripe, he will need to fix that problem and not leave points on the board.

His shot selection could use some work as well. Ingram opts for plenty of long 2s from just inside the 3-point line. Taking one step back behind the 3-point line should come with time, but that shouldn’t happen until he’s more comfortable with that shot.

His decision-making offensively wasn’t too bad (2.5 turnovers per game), but there were too many times he got caught in midair in the paint with open teammates spotting up around him, instead opting for a tough shot at the rim. Once again, I expect this to improve as he gains experience being a primary ball-handler.

Ingram was pretty solid defensively, but adding strength to handle the modern bigs would go a long way in helping him and the Lakers unlock small-ball, allowing the team to place four wings or guards around him to maximize their pace of play, space offensively and versatility on the defensive end.