Kyle Kuzma discusses his off-season plans amid rumors of Lakers trading him to a tanking team and consolidating its team depth next year.
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Kuzma had a disappointing year with the LA Lakers this season. The 2021 NBA Playoffs saw the defending champions have an early-round exit.
The Lakers superstar duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis had injury woes heading into the playoffs. Davis’ groin injury in Game 4 was a major reason for the Lakers’ early ouster.
Kuzma was heavily criticized for not stepping up, especially since Davis was struggling with injuries. The Lakers star averaged a disappointing 6.3 PPG, 3.8 RPG, and 1.2 APG in the 6 games he played during the 2021 playoffs.
Kuzma shot a dismal 29.2% from the field and 17.4% from the 3-point line. The Lakers star was a mediocre 66.7% from the free-throw line as well in the series against the Suns.
The Lakers star acknowledged the same saying: “Obviously I can’t speak for everyone but, you know, it was a tough series particularly for me, shooting the ball, after having probably a career year shooting the three this year for me.”
Kyle Kuzma talks about his journey with the LA Lakers so far
The Lakers star has played 4 seasons with the team, which is more than any other member on the team. Kuzma spoke about his experience with the franchise so far:
“I’ve been through a bunch of different eras here: a rebuilding stage, LeBron’s first years here and figuring out how to win championships, and then this year. So, I’ve seen a lot, been through a lot, wore a lot of different hats during my tenure here, and I’m excited to see what the future brings for us this offseason.”
In his rookie season, Kuzma averaged 16.1 PPG and 6.3 RPG as he shot an impressive 45.0 from the field. Kuzma was NBA All-Rookie First-Team in his first year with the Lakers.
The 2018-19 season saw the arrival of King James in the city of Los Angeles. LeBron played the perfect role of a mentor with the young squad at the time.
While talking about LeBron James’ impact on the Lakers, Kuzma said: ” He cares about his teammates. He’s always hitting the group chat with things and even now, even when we’re not playing, you know, he’s a real person and you can talk to him anytime about situations.”
Kuzma was seen coming off the bench post the arrival of 8x NBA All-Star Anthony Davis. Kuzma accepted this role that would see the Lakers be ultimately crowned 2020 NBA champions.
Though Kuzma had a disappointing 2021 playoffs, he performed consistently in the regular season averaging 12.9 PPG and 6.1 RPG as he shot 44.3% from the field.
The 25-year old has shown consistent growth on the defensive end of his game.
Kuzma recently spoke about improving his skill-set heading into the 2021-22 NBA season. The Lakers star is expecting to be the perfect supporting cast to the duo of LeBron and Anthony Davis.
