OFFICIAL KYLE got traded for westbrook KUZMA THREAD
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Sina
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 6:02 am    Post subject:

Kuz has much improved finishing in cutting in. His 3s is also improved a lot
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 7:58 am    Post subject:

leking006 wrote:
guys here overrating kuzma saying he's a great defender when he's not even decent. smh


(In February) Per InStat, Kyle Kuzma has ranked in the 99th percentile (!!!) as an isolation defender since Frank Vogel joined the Lakers, and in the 90th percentiles in several other defensive metrics.

It's all been part of a quest for him to fit in where he can:
https://silverscreenandroll.com/2021/2/16/22285624/kyle-kuzma-defense-stats-video-breakdown-adapt-survive-lakers-anthony-davis-starters

If you dont believe me, then just read DBs post game recaps. I guarantee you his defense will be mentioned almost every time.

This notion that hes still a bad defender baffles me
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 8:21 am    Post subject:

Ksig wrote:
leking006 wrote:
guys here overrating kuzma saying he's a great defender when he's not even decent. smh


(In February) Per InStat, Kyle Kuzma has ranked in the 99th percentile (!!!) as an isolation defender since Frank Vogel joined the Lakers, and in the 90th percentiles in several other defensive metrics.

It's all been part of a quest for him to fit in where he can:
https://silverscreenandroll.com/2021/2/16/22285624/kyle-kuzma-defense-stats-video-breakdown-adapt-survive-lakers-anthony-davis-starters

If you dont believe me, then just read DBs post game recaps. I guarantee you his defense will be mentioned almost every time.

This notion that hes still a bad defender baffles me


What’s the right rating then if being in 99th percentile is still overrating
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 8:30 am    Post subject:

Kuz is what he is. 7/10 one night, 2/11 the next night. We just have to hope that we get the 7/10s when necessary and that the 2/11s come when we are crushing the other team.
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 12:12 pm    Post subject:

Ksig wrote:
leking006 wrote:
guys here overrating kuzma saying he's a great defender when he's not even decent. smh


(In February) Per InStat, Kyle Kuzma has ranked in the 99th percentile (!!!) as an isolation defender since Frank Vogel joined the Lakers, and in the 90th percentiles in several other defensive metrics.

It's all been part of a quest for him to fit in where he can:
https://silverscreenandroll.com/2021/2/16/22285624/kyle-kuzma-defense-stats-video-breakdown-adapt-survive-lakers-anthony-davis-starters

If you dont believe me, then just read DBs post game recaps. I guarantee you his defense will be mentioned almost every time.

This notion that hes still a bad defender baffles me


Just watch the games and key in on him. Not sure how anyone can call him a bad defender that is actually watching the games? His turn around on the defensive end has been pretty insane imo. I've seen him play legitimate great defense for an entire game against guys like Booker and then against someone like Kawhi. The offense is absolutely inconsistent even though in this game a lot of that was due to Vogel asking him to play a pg role for probably the first time in his entire NBA career in the second half. He plays so many roles for this team and considering all the injuries they have all been necessary at different times throughout the year.

He might not be elite at any one thing but he's damn good at a lot and i'll take that all day for a role player. His defense is def. closer to elite then "bad" though. Criticize him all you want but at least know what you're talking about somewhat.
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 1:59 pm    Post subject:

Kuz bounced back like the Champ he is.

Yet again embracing any role Vogel has thrown at him this season.

Hope the kid retires a Laker.

If for no greater reason than to piss off his haters within this fan base.
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 2:19 pm    Post subject:

If the trend continues, he is due for a bad game tonight while I certainly hope he doesn’t.
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Lakerwayne
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 6:08 pm    Post subject:

Ya he really just needs to string together a few good offensive games in a row
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 8:58 pm    Post subject:

19-10-7 and a game winner.
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 8:59 pm    Post subject:

Jordan-esque wrote:
19-10-7 and a game winner.



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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 9:01 pm    Post subject:

Great game from Kuz!
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PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 10:34 pm    Post subject:

Kuz is a steal from the draft, period. He is not a very consistent player and may never will be, but he is performing in a level that exceeded many early first round picks.

You just have to look at things in a different angle, and stop measuring him up to the third option of the team.
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PostPosted: Thu May 13, 2021 11:12 am    Post subject:

Kuz can do it all!

He's now the team's new Shams/Woj.

https://twitter.com/kylekuzma/status/1392916979518902274

Quote:
kuz
@kylekuzma
Los Angeles Lakers forward Jared Dudley (
@JaredDudley619
) may make his return to play this weekend as the team travels to Indy/Nola for their final push of the season league sources tell me.
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PostPosted: Thu May 13, 2021 11:55 am    Post subject:

Super glad he dyed his hair back to normal. Not feelin that slim shady b!tch look.

Not super relevant to his play.

He's a baller and would be performing on par with BI/JR if he was given to oppt to start on a lesser team where empty stats didn't matter.
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PostPosted: Thu May 13, 2021 12:04 pm    Post subject:

32 wrote:
Jordan-esque wrote:
19-10-7 and a game winner.




We'll need that Kuz to show up in the playin and playoffs.
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PostPosted: Thu May 13, 2021 12:38 pm    Post subject:

All these years later, Kuz is still a steal in that 2017 draft. Heck I'm sure there are at most 6 other players selected ahead of him who have panned out as good as he is. Now, if he could only focus on hoops and nuke the blond hairdo, he can be better
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PostPosted: Thu May 13, 2021 1:36 pm    Post subject:

hype wrote:
Ksig wrote:
leking006 wrote:
guys here overrating kuzma saying he's a great defender when he's not even decent. smh


(In February) Per InStat, Kyle Kuzma has ranked in the 99th percentile (!!!) as an isolation defender since Frank Vogel joined the Lakers, and in the 90th percentiles in several other defensive metrics.

It's all been part of a quest for him to fit in where he can:
https://silverscreenandroll.com/2021/2/16/22285624/kyle-kuzma-defense-stats-video-breakdown-adapt-survive-lakers-anthony-davis-starters

If you dont believe me, then just read DBs post game recaps. I guarantee you his defense will be mentioned almost every time.

This notion that hes still a bad defender baffles me


Just watch the games and key in on him. Not sure how anyone can call him a bad defender that is actually watching the games? His turn around on the defensive end has been pretty insane imo. I've seen him play legitimate great defense for an entire game against guys like Booker and then against someone like Kawhi. The offense is absolutely inconsistent even though in this game a lot of that was due to Vogel asking him to play a pg role for probably the first time in his entire NBA career in the second half. He plays so many roles for this team and considering all the injuries they have all been necessary at different times throughout the year.

He might not be elite at any one thing but he's damn good at a lot and i'll take that all day for a role player. His defense is def. closer to elite then "bad" though. Criticize him all you want but at least know what you're talking about somewhat.


Key for Kuz was changing his happy feet issue. He had the lateral quickness to stay with guys but not the footwork. He was doing that stutter step stuff that would get him in trouble. Now, he's actively changing his feet depending on what the ballhandler is trying to do. Watch what happens when they attack his top foot and how he reacts. Some really good highlights this season of how well Kuz is moving those feet and hips on iso possessions. I want to say he changed that late last year, but hard to remember. He's now also more aggressive hunting opportunities to shotblock. He had that in him as a rookie, but didn't consistently make it a mindset like he has from the start of this season. Additionally, I think he's also gotten a little stronger this season. Westbrook would size him up in the playoffs and attack with power. The last game, he tried that on Kuz and Kuz held his ground a lot better (I think even blocked a couple shots). Dudz also taught Kuz how/when to use verticality, another tweak to Kuz's D. Throw in just the natural progression of getting reps in on team D stuff and recognizing what needs to be done and he's improved a ton.

He'll get beat, but who doesn't? This has been a lot of work and progression. Scouts have noted how much better he is. And you can see they don't game plan to hunt him on D anymore. That was a thing three years ago, where they'd try to get switches and then go after him possession after possession. That's long gone.

I do still want another lengthy wing defender on this team, but Kuzma's progression and technical improvements/growth on that end of the floor have been fun to watch.
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PostPosted: Thu May 13, 2021 2:38 pm    Post subject:

DancingBarry wrote:
hype wrote:
Ksig wrote:
leking006 wrote:
guys here overrating kuzma saying he's a great defender when he's not even decent. smh


(In February) Per InStat, Kyle Kuzma has ranked in the 99th percentile (!!!) as an isolation defender since Frank Vogel joined the Lakers, and in the 90th percentiles in several other defensive metrics.

It's all been part of a quest for him to fit in where he can:
https://silverscreenandroll.com/2021/2/16/22285624/kyle-kuzma-defense-stats-video-breakdown-adapt-survive-lakers-anthony-davis-starters

If you dont believe me, then just read DBs post game recaps. I guarantee you his defense will be mentioned almost every time.

This notion that hes still a bad defender baffles me


Just watch the games and key in on him. Not sure how anyone can call him a bad defender that is actually watching the games? His turn around on the defensive end has been pretty insane imo. I've seen him play legitimate great defense for an entire game against guys like Booker and then against someone like Kawhi. The offense is absolutely inconsistent even though in this game a lot of that was due to Vogel asking him to play a pg role for probably the first time in his entire NBA career in the second half. He plays so many roles for this team and considering all the injuries they have all been necessary at different times throughout the year.

He might not be elite at any one thing but he's damn good at a lot and i'll take that all day for a role player. His defense is def. closer to elite then "bad" though. Criticize him all you want but at least know what you're talking about somewhat.


Key for Kuz was changing his happy feet issue. He had the lateral quickness to stay with guys but not the footwork. He was doing that stutter step stuff that would get him in trouble. Now, he's actively changing his feet depending on what the ballhandler is trying to do. Watch what happens when they attack his top foot and how he reacts. Some really good highlights this season of how well Kuz is moving those feet and hips on iso possessions. I want to say he changed that late last year, but hard to remember. He's now also more aggressive hunting opportunities to shotblock. He had that in him as a rookie, but didn't consistently make it a mindset like he has from the start of this season. Additionally, I think he's also gotten a little stronger this season. Westbrook would size him up in the playoffs and attack with power. The last game, he tried that on Kuz and Kuz held his ground a lot better (I think even blocked a couple shots). Dudz also taught Kuz how/when to use verticality, another tweak to Kuz's D. Throw in just the natural progression of getting reps in on team D stuff and recognizing what needs to be done and he's improved a ton.

He'll get beat, but who doesn't? This has been a lot of work and progression. Scouts have noted how much better he is. And you can see they don't game plan to hunt him on D anymore. That was a thing three years ago, where they'd try to get switches and then go after him possession after possession. That's long gone.

I do still want another lengthy wing defender on this team, but Kuzma's progression and technical improvements/growth on that end of the floor have been fun to watch.


He's going to be so critical in checking one of Kawhi/PG. If he can do a decent job (like not letting Kawhi shoot 15 for 20 or something wild like that), it's a wrap. Our smaller wing defenders simply don't have the reach to affect Kawhi/PG's shot. I still recall last season when Derozan was shooting right over the top over KCP etc. It was painful to watch...KCP did all he could but he's simply too small.
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PostPosted: Thu May 13, 2021 2:51 pm    Post subject:

^Kuz biting on pump fakes drove me nuts. Feel like he's gotten better at that as well. Which is good. Cause if he does guard Kawhi or PG13. He'll need to stay disciplined in that regard.
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PostPosted: Thu May 13, 2021 3:36 pm    Post subject:

kikanga wrote:
^Kuz biting on pump fakes drove me nuts. Feel like he's gotten better at that as well. Which is good. Cause if he does guard Kawhi or PG13. He'll need to stay disciplined in that regard.


Yeah, his happy feet combined with his defensive posture really used to hamper his defense. He's cleaned both up significantly.
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PostPosted: Thu May 13, 2021 5:24 pm    Post subject:

DancingBarry wrote:
hype wrote:
Ksig wrote:
leking006 wrote:
guys here overrating kuzma saying he's a great defender when he's not even decent. smh


(In February) Per InStat, Kyle Kuzma has ranked in the 99th percentile (!!!) as an isolation defender since Frank Vogel joined the Lakers, and in the 90th percentiles in several other defensive metrics.

It's all been part of a quest for him to fit in where he can:
https://silverscreenandroll.com/2021/2/16/22285624/kyle-kuzma-defense-stats-video-breakdown-adapt-survive-lakers-anthony-davis-starters

If you dont believe me, then just read DBs post game recaps. I guarantee you his defense will be mentioned almost every time.

This notion that hes still a bad defender baffles me


Just watch the games and key in on him. Not sure how anyone can call him a bad defender that is actually watching the games? His turn around on the defensive end has been pretty insane imo. I've seen him play legitimate great defense for an entire game against guys like Booker and then against someone like Kawhi. The offense is absolutely inconsistent even though in this game a lot of that was due to Vogel asking him to play a pg role for probably the first time in his entire NBA career in the second half. He plays so many roles for this team and considering all the injuries they have all been necessary at different times throughout the year.

He might not be elite at any one thing but he's damn good at a lot and i'll take that all day for a role player. His defense is def. closer to elite then "bad" though. Criticize him all you want but at least know what you're talking about somewhat.


Key for Kuz was changing his happy feet issue. He had the lateral quickness to stay with guys but not the footwork. He was doing that stutter step stuff that would get him in trouble. Now, he's actively changing his feet depending on what the ballhandler is trying to do. Watch what happens when they attack his top foot and how he reacts. Some really good highlights this season of how well Kuz is moving those feet and hips on iso possessions. I want to say he changed that late last year, but hard to remember. He's now also more aggressive hunting opportunities to shotblock. He had that in him as a rookie, but didn't consistently make it a mindset like he has from the start of this season. Additionally, I think he's also gotten a little stronger this season. Westbrook would size him up in the playoffs and attack with power. The last game, he tried that on Kuz and Kuz held his ground a lot better (I think even blocked a couple shots). Dudz also taught Kuz how/when to use verticality, another tweak to Kuz's D. Throw in just the natural progression of getting reps in on team D stuff and recognizing what needs to be done and he's improved a ton.

He'll get beat, but who doesn't? This has been a lot of work and progression. Scouts have noted how much better he is. And you can see they don't game plan to hunt him on D anymore. That was a thing three years ago, where they'd try to get switches and then go after him possession after possession. That's long gone.

I do still want another lengthy wing defender on this team, but Kuzma's progression and technical improvements/growth on that end of the floor have been fun to watch.


Yeah, you're right. I remember watching several videos last season dissecting just what you're talking about. The feet movement and hip fluidity is night and day from several seasons ago. I also recall someone in the Lakers organization coming out and talking about how much tape Kuz was watching as well which also shows. I am pretty sure they were even singling him out in games at times before the Covid shutdown which is why it was so surprising seeing the vast improvements late last year onto this year. Before, Kawhi would eat him alive with a little foot work or a pump fake and the last few times Kuz has manned him up in games and didn't fall for any of that the majority of the time. I also remember i'd count on him fouling at least 1 three point shooter a game while also having at least one offensive charge and both of those are long gone from at least being done on an extreme consistent basis.

I had no idea about the Dudley help but i'm not surprised. He is def. kind of our Haslem where his playing days are nearly over (even though he still has a couple solid small stints in him I bet) but his off the court contributions are priceless and half the things he's done us fans will probably never even know about.

Kuz can and will absolutely still get beat but like you said when going up against elite players as long as he is making them work for every basket i'm happy. Not much more you can ask for, especially in todays NBA. I honestly can not remember him guarding PG13 vividly but I want to say Kuz had a much tougher time with him then Kawhi?

Yeah, I think McKinnie could end up possibly being that extra guy at times against the Clippers for at least this season especially if we get into any kind of foul trouble not to mention Lebron might not be able to do the elite 2 way game consistently this entire Playoffs either. I'd love to see someone else added as well, next year it will be even more vital with Lebron only getting older.
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PostPosted: Sun May 16, 2021 8:11 pm    Post subject:

I know tonight’s game was meaningless, but when Kuz plays relaxed I feel he plays better. For every other player I’d be on that plane talking about next gear. For kuz I think he just needs to stay calm.
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PostPosted: Wed May 19, 2021 8:12 pm    Post subject:

Great, smart fight. This Kuzma is so much more valuable to winning basketball.
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PostPosted: Wed May 19, 2021 8:47 pm    Post subject:

Solid game by Kuz. 23 min, 6 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals +8.
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PostPosted: Wed May 19, 2021 8:54 pm    Post subject:

BS foul called on him contesting Wiggins at the end there. Good game Kuz!!!
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