New Orleans Pelicans: Can Lonzo Ball become an all-star soon?
New Orleans Pelicans: The reasons behind Lonzo Ball’s improvement
Ball is shooting a career-best from the field, from three, and from the free throw line. He worked hard to reconstruct his unorthodox shot with New Orleans Pelicans assistant coach Fred Vinson and, now, the proof is in the pudding.
It is also important to acknowledge Stan Van Gundy’s role in Ball’s improvement, though. Ball struggled to find his footing during the first few weeks under his new head coach, but Van Gundy has really helped usher Ball into a role that highlights his strengths and hides his weaknesses.
Under Van Gundy, Ball has essentially transformed into a sort of 3-and-D point guard. His sheer vision and basketball IQ still help him gather up assists, but he isn’t the team’s main ballhandler. Oftentimes, the offense goes through Williamson and Ingram, while Ball is there to connect everything together.
The New Orleans point guard is shooting 38 percent from three on eight attempts per game. Over 65 percent of Ball’s shots come from beyond the arc, where he is most comfortable. He still struggles to attack the rim or consistently get going in the mid-range, but that’s not a problem when he is getting to take the shots he wants.
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Ball is making it rain from three in every context that the Pels need. He is shooting 41 percent on catch-and-shoot threes, while making the most pull-up threes of anyone on the New Orleans roster. This latter area can still use some improvement, however.
On defense, Ball has been good all season relative to his teammates. However, that’s not saying much at times. He needs to become good relative to every player in the NBA. The good news is that he has the potential to do so.
This has been apparent intermittently over the course of his NBA career, but I am encouraged by his recent performances. Ball has done very solid jobs on Paul George, Michael Porter Jr., and Anthony Edwards in the Pelicans’ last three games. At 6-foot-6 with solid length and great defensive instincts, Ball has the makings of a fearsome defender.