Hard for me to say. I like Kuz more than others. Melos won us a few games. They're both shooting much higher than their career averages. Over the course of the whole season Carmelos will likely be closer to 40 and Kuz likely closer to 35.
I value defense more so than others and we desperately need capable wing defenders. Good defender, rebounder, offball cutter. More streaky and less of a 3pt threat.
I expect most people to vote Melo which I can also see why. Hes had some great games. Contract wise Melo is obviously better bang for your buck. But Melos shooting will eventually comes back down to Earth and he offers nothing if hes not shooting well.
we needed Kuzma to be in Melo's role which is scoring off the bench. he then proceed to decline in offense while improving in other areas which is not ideal.
what would Joe Harris/Duncan Robinson be if their' shooting declined which improved a little bit on defense and rebounding? USELESS!!!
Kuz is just so inconsistent, he goes from 8-12 25 points to 2-9 for 8 points the next game. Melo brings us consistency on offense. Defensively Kuz has the younger legs and better athleticism, but defensive IQ-wise, Melo has a little edge from all his experience.
we needed Kuzma to be in Melo's role which is scoring off the bench. he then proceed to decline in offense while improving in other areas which is not ideal.
what would Joe Harris/Duncan Robinson be if their' shooting declined which improved a little bit on defense and rebounding? USELESS!!!
You're selling Kuz short, he improved a lot on defense and rebounding.
Kuzma is younger and more diverse in his skill set.
Melo is a great guy who is on more of a shoot streak. Not sure if he can sustain his 3 point shooting percentage. Without his 3 point shooting, other than a bit of rebounding, there's not much more he offers. And again, we don't know how long the 3 point shooting streak will last.
Kuz doesn't do any one thing great, but he does a lot of little things good.
we needed Kuzma to be in Melo's role which is scoring off the bench. he then proceed to decline in offense while improving in other areas which is not ideal.
what would Joe Harris/Duncan Robinson be if their' shooting declined which improved a little bit on defense and rebounding? USELESS!!!
You're selling Kuz short, he improved a lot on defense and rebounding.
yes, and he also regressed a lot on offense and i don't think that was a good trade off
Only thing I’m giving Kuzma is an edge in age and defense… But we already seen in the playoffs what happens if you cant consistently score. Also Kuzma is getting starter minutes now? So his numbers should be a lot better.
Melo on the other hand is a pure scorer that this team was lacking last year. His defense is not great but he does play enough when dialed in. But his age does show out there at times.
I’ll take Melo right now because when the whole team is healthy I think he will have a bigger impact compare to Kuz where he disappears and get lost.
Joined: 17 Sep 2008 Posts: 21092 Location: In a white room, with black curtains near the station
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2021 1:40 pm Post subject:
Defense matters, and Kuzma plays better defense, although Melo is having some limited success against 4's and 5's. Age matters too, but again Melo showed up in shape, surprisingly to me, and he hasn't been bit by the injury bug that's hit half our roster so far.
On offense, Melo. He seems to have accepted a role on this team, and in doing so he's as effective as I've seen him in a long, long time, providing a scoring punch when we need it. Very few Lakers brought in over the years for that ever-so-elusive scoring punch have led to anything but disappointment, yet Melo has not disappointed so far, quite the opposite. Kuz was inconsistent, Melo doesn't freeze up in the spotlight.
They're both role players; I'd have to pick Melo over Kuz at this stage.
For this Lakers role, Melo, better catch and shoot player and his defense has been… passable but We’ll have a better look when they go head to head (anticipating Dwight vs Trez ejection too)
Joined: 03 Oct 2003 Posts: 8415 Location: Santa Monica
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:32 pm Post subject:
Kuz may be a slightly better all-around player, but he was a bad fit on our team. He needs to be on a team like the Wizards where he can spread his wings and play his natural offensive game.
When you play with LeBron and AD and now Westbrook, you have to be a role player or specialist. That means be a good 3-point shooter, or run the floor and get easy buckets in transition, or be a lob threat. Kuz is none of those things.
As long as Melo keeps up his hot shooting and has some of those hot games on the road, he's a better fit for our team. I just wish he would be a much better defender.
Joined: 19 Nov 2007 Posts: 4383 Location: Lake Nacimiento
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:59 pm Post subject:
No comparison in the slightest and I actually always liked Kuz and stood up for him while he was a Laker. Melo even at his age is a MUCH better player, especially for that spark off the bench role we specifically need.. The one thing Kuz had on Melo was defense and since Melo is actually trying on that end this season it kills the slight advantage he had on him for just that side of the ball.
I also feel confident he wont shrivel in the Playoffs like Kuz did every year.
Kuz is in a great place now where he has zero expectations of being anything special and getting high minutes every game regardless of how he is playing. I hope he balls out and gets the Wizards to the Playoffs but the only guy I truly miss that we lost is Caruso a bit.
Joined: 14 Apr 2001 Posts: 144483 Location: The Gold Coast
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2021 6:03 pm Post subject:
slavavov wrote:
As long as Melo keeps up his hot shooting and has some of those hot games on the road
The road has been cruel, Ireland said the other night that Melo is shooting 6% from 3 in the 3 road games. _________________ RIP mom. 11-21-1933 to 6-14-2023.
Last edited by venturalakersfan on Fri Nov 12, 2021 6:04 pm; edited 1 time in total
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum