THREAD: Prior to yesterday’s game, Lonzo Ball averaged 54.8 touches per game. Yesterday he had 106. To give you a basis of comparison, De’Aaron Fox averages 80.2 touches per game and LeBron James averages 79.9. 1/
Lonzo’s touches alongside LeBron are probably fewer than 54.8 as a practical matter, due to how many times his job is to just bring the ball up to throw the initiation pass for an offensive set, which is a scenario where a touch isn’t really an opportunity. 2/
But it also wouldn’t be honest to simply say “see, all he needs are touches!”, because the fact of the matter is that he often doesn’t do enough with the legit touches he DOES get in most games alongside LeBron. So it begs the question…3/
Does Lonzo need the ball more even when LBJ's around simply to “activate” him? I’ve often said how much I like how Zo can impact the game w/o having the ball in his hands, but I should probably think beyond that because there’s MUCH more there that we don’t always get to see. 4/
Lonzo needs to do more with the touches that he gets when LeBron gets back, but a larger/different role for him is probably worth exploring for the team’s benefit, not his. But it’s worth noting that his natural style & LeBron’s are very different, so that may be challenging. 5/5
