No matter how you slice it, this offseason was not only an important one for the Los Angeles Lakers franchise, but that also held true for second year forward Brandon Ingram. Selected second overall in the 2016 NBA Draft, Ingram is expected to lead this new Lakers era alongside point guard Lonzo Ball.
During his rookie campaign, Ingram got off to a sluggish start but picked it up towards the latter parts of the season, showing flashes of why the City of Angels should be excited for Ingram to be the Lakers future go-to scorer. Now after finishing the season on a high note, Brandon Ingram carried that momentum into his offseason as the Duke product has not only revamped his shooting stroke, but the previously 6’9″ Ingram has also sprouted 2 inches and now stands at 6’11” according to Mike Trudell on ESPN LA’s Thompson and Trudell Show (H/T Clutch Points):
“I think he might be 6’11”, if not 7 feet,” said Trudell. “I think he’s at least 6’11”, looks a little bit more stout on the shoulders.”
“He completely changed his mechanics this season. Not only is his stroke completely smoothed, but the base of his legs, which was a problem when he started that year, he felt like he was trying to push his three-pointer with his hands and with his arms in his release point, because he didn’t have that leg strength that you have to develop at the NBA level to take multiple shots per game.”
Brandon Ingram was already one of the lankier wing players in the NBA during his rookie season but now if he does stand at 6’11”, that could pose a whole new problem for defenses. Along with his adjusted jumper, Ingram should now be able to get a shot off relatively anytime he wants which will only make him a more lethal scorer as his offensive arsenal continues to come along. In just his solo summer league appearance, it was apparent how much of a superior-talent Ingram was against that competition as he poured in 28 points.
With these players coming in at such young ages, a lot of their frames haven’t yet been fully developed so seeing a growth spurt during the early years of their professional career isn’t odd. Ingram just celebrated his 20th birthday last week so there’s a chance he isn’t even done growing.
Now pushing 7 feet in height, this should give Ingram more positional versatility, a trait that is highly coveted on a rebuilding team trying to find a winning blueprint. We’ve seen these type of spurts in the past with players such as Paul George and Kevin Durant, so hopefully for the Lakers, Ingram sustains similar success down the road.
