Entering the NBA as the 2nd overall pick in the 2016 draft, great expectations were levied on Duke University's Brandon Ingram. Ingram, a lanky and wiry 6'7 forward, was often compared to Kevin Durant, both in playing style and body - a smooth player with a silky jumper and a penchant for making buckets look easy.
Coming into his rookie season, Ingram was part of the Los Angeles Laker youth movement in the post-Kobe Bryant era. Ingram, D'Angelo Russell, Julius Randle, and Jordan Clarkson represented the next era of Laker ball - a team that would take time to grow and mature, but once they did, would become a contender.
As it turns out, that core never got their chance. Russell was traded to the Brooklyn Nets just prior to the 2017 draft, Clarkson was dealt in February of 2018, and Randle was renounced by the Lakers in July of 2018. Ingram, meanwhile, was kept by the Lakers. He would turn out to be one of the young pieces that would get caught up in the Laker shift when they signed LeBron James in 2018, the inevitability of his eventual departure becoming clear, as the team searched for another superstar to pair with James, the trading of a young asset like Ingram a necessity more than a choice. Sure enough, Ingram was part of a big trade, for Anthony Davis, on July 6, 2019, which yielded the Pelicans a trio of talented young players - Ingram, Lonzo Ball, and Josh Hart, along with draft picks.
In his first three NBA seasons, Ingram had shown improvement each year, with points - 9.4 to 16.1 to 18.3 - minutes, and shot attempts seeing a steady increase. As the big coup in the Davis deal, he was viewed as a guy that would finally blossom and come into his own. His shot attempts last year per game were 14, and we knew we would get an increase in that. We anticipated an increase, more production, and an improvement.
But who knew that we would see this? This, as in a giant leap, the type that guys make where you say "ok, they've arrived. They're here to stay". Ingram isn't just a better player that he was last season.
He is a star in the making.
Through 11 games, the 22-year-old is averaging 25.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 4.1 assists on 52% from the field, 45% from three, and 75% from the line, the latter of which is an 8% increase from last season. In addition to those numbers, he is also 1 of 7 players currently averaging at least 25 points, 7 rebounds, and 3.5 assists (Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Pascal Siakam, Kawhi Leonard, and Karl-Anthony Towns are the others). Last night in Phoenix, Ingram showed a national TV audience just how dangerous he has become.
Scoring 28 points, grabbing 5 rebounds, and dishing out 5 assists, Ingram was the best player on the court. Scoring just 8 in the first half, he erupted for 20 in the final 24 minutes of play, hitting from both the mid-range and three point land. He had 15 in the 4th quarter alone, scoring 9 in the closing minutes, including 7 consecutive. He is the Pelicans go-to guy down the stretch, and provided no shortage of clutch plays.
With the Pelicans up 117-113 with under 3 minutes to go, Ingram blocked a Tyler Johnson layup attempt, and then 30 seconds later hit a turn around fade away over Johnson. On the next possession, he caught the ball just inside the three point arc on an entry pass from Jrue Holiday, spun, and drove to the basket, and finished off the glass over two Sun defenders while being fouled in the process. He would knock down the free throw, and then put the finishing touches on his performance with a two-handed slam off of a Holiday inbound pass from under the hoop in the waning seconds of the contest.
Following the fade away bucket over Johnson, TNT announcer Reggie Miller stated that the "killer instinct is growing within Brandon Ingram". As previously mentioned, he is their go-to scorer when they need a basket, and he delivers. The astronomical leap he has made from year three, to this season, year four, has him in line for an all-star bid if he keeps this up. His other notable performances this season include, in just the third game this season, 35 points, 15 rebounds, and 5 assists against the Houston Rockets, and 40 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists on November 4 against the Nets. Out of a 2016 draft class that included Ben Simmons, Pascal Siakam, Jaylen Brown as the probable best players out of that class at the moment, you could argue that Ingram leads the list as the best.
And he's only getting better.
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