The Portland Trail Blazers will face the Los Angeles Lakers in a best of seven series in Orlando. Which five Laker players should fans keep an eye on?
The NBA playoffs are here, and the Portland Trail Blazers will start in the start first round by playing the powerhouse Los Angeles Lakers.
The Blazers are clear underdogs in this series, but Blazer fans are pumped to see their team back in the playoffs for the seventh straight year. The Lakers are a top-heavy team with two stars and then a bevy of role players to complement them.
Who are the main guys to watch out for from a Blazers fan standpoint?
Kyle Kuzma
2019/20 season
61 games – 9 starts – 25.0 minutes per game
12.8 points – 4.5 rebounds – 1.3 assists
2P% – 43.6%, 3P% – 31.6%, FT% – 73.5%
Third-year forward Kyle Kuzma is at a pivotal point in his career. He is the only player left from the young Laker core of the pre-Anthony Davis era and one of only three contracted squad members under the age of 27. More importantly, this post-season is the time for him to show out for his rookie-scale extension.
With LeBron James entering the twilight of his career, this summer is an important pivot point for the Lakers, and Kuzma is a massive part of this. Maybe he can be part of the next great Laker team. If so, this post-season is huge for him.
Kuzma was a good player on two average teams in 2018 and then 2019. This season, coming off the bench, he has a good year. Solid but not spectacular, Kuzma hasn’t taken significant steps forward in his game in the 19/20 season.
Don’t look at his reduced minutes; he has still had the same usage from previous years. Kuzma has had a quiet year in terms of his shooting and rebounding. But, in the Bubble in Orlando, he has shown some excellent man defense while his shot has also been dropping.
He shot 46 percent from the field and 44 percent from three in the bubble.
Kuzma is a heat-up quick type of guy who can get his own shot, finish at the rim, and has a bit of a post and in-between game. He isn’t a great defender or rebounder, but he will give a team instant offense.
Kuzma might not lock your best player down, but he can drop 25 or 30 points to swing a playoff game.
He has to shine in this post-season, so he is a threat to the Blazers.