Kobe Bryant’s urgent advice for Lonzo Ball
Kobe Bryant will long be remembered as one of the NBA’s best players and also one of the league’s biggest competitors.
The former Lakers star is famous for his Mamba mentality that constantly kept him in the conversation of the best players each and every season.
Bryant debuted in the NBA in 1996, almost a year before Lonzo Ball was born, and walked away in April 2016.
In an interview with Spectrum SportsNet, the five-time NBA champ delivered sound advice on how Ball can elevate his game — and must, soon.
“He needs to get better now. Kyle Kuzma, better now. Julius Randle, better now. Players, you want that now,” Bryant said. “We never thought, ‘OK, we’re going to win four years from now. We really thought this is our year. We’re going to get this done. We’re going to push, push, push, push, push to get better now.’
“And in the process of having that impatience, you develop. If you’re just patiently going about it, you’ll never get there. For players, it’s kind of patient impatience.”
Ball has struggled with consistency throughout his rookie campaign, but has shown flashes of the hype that follows him around like a shadow, thanks to his talkative father, LaVar.
Ball has been averaging 8.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game through his first 25 games.