Since Lonzo Ball went down with a sprained ankle, the Los Angeles Lakers have essentially forgotten how to play defense. Now, a ton else (the trade deadline, the head coach being undercut by management and leadership on the roster alike, injuries, etc.) is going into that result, but swapping out arguably the team’s best defensive presence for Rajon Rondo has gone exactly how everyone outside of Magic Johnson’s office would have predicted.
In an article by Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report, one NBA executive was willing to admit he didn’t see this kind of impact coming before Ball made his way to the league:
“He’s an impact player on that side of the ball,” a Western Conference executive said.