Luke Walton hails Ball impact
March 3, 2018
Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton has hailed the performance of Lonzo Ball during Thursday’s 131-113 victory over the Miami Heat.
Ball was making just his third appearance for the Lakers since returning from a knee injury, but he underlined his quality by contributing 8 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds and a career-high 6 steals in just 34 minutes on the court.
Indeed, the Lakers were ruthless throughout the contest at the American Airlines Arena, as six players reached double digits in terms of points, but it was Ball who received extra praise from coach Walton after the contest.
“He was great,” Walton was quoted as saying by ESPN.
“To me he was probably the best player on the court tonight, and I think he only shot five times, which is why we’ve been so high on him from day one.
“He’s one of the very unique players, it doesn’t matter if he’s taking shots, scoring 20 a game or not, he can impact the game from all over. He was doing that for us tonight. All-around probably, in my opinion, the best player on the floor tonight.”
The Lakers have now won all three of their matches since Ball’s return from injury and their recent run has also reignited their hopes of reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2013.
Walton’s team are currently 11th in the Western Conference standings and they are priced at 251.00 to claim the title outright at the end of the season.
