The Los Angeles Lakers haven’t been very good lately; they’ve gone a combined 43-121 in power forward Larry Nance Jr.’s two seasons with the franchise. Their poor records have led to back-to-back second overall picks; Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball. Nance Jr. is sick of losing and wants no part of a tanking team, tells the Los Angeles Times’ Tania Ganguli:
I can’t wait,” Nance said. “Hearing all that tanking talk [last year] is like nails on the chalkboard to a competitor. I don’t even want to play if tanking is on the table. … This season is about improvement and wins. And getting to be the best team and having the best chemistry that we can possibly have and getting everybody to play the best that they can play. That’s what I’ve been waiting for. … I, for one, am ecstatic. I’m eager. I wish the first game was tomorrow.”
Nance Jr., whom the Lakers selected with the 27th pick of the 2015 draft, averaged 7.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 22.9 minutes per game last season while shooting 52.6 percent from the field.
