Tag: troy brown jr.

Lakers 2022-23 season player grades: Troy Brown Jr.

A final look at Troy Brown Jr.’s performance this season with the Lakers.

The Los Angeles Lakers didn’t exactly make a big splash last offseason, leaving fans to hope one of their seemingly underwhelming free-agent acquisitions would overperform.

Forward Troy Brown Jr., who had played four nondescript seasons to that point, was one of those free-agent acquisitions, and not many expected him to shine brightly.

But he carved out a definite spot in head coach Darvin Ham’s rotation and kept it for much of the season. As the season wore on, he stepped up his play, especially in one area where the team badly needed help.

Troy Brown Jr. talks about what he wants to improve on this summer

Lakers forward Troy Brown Jr. says he wants to improve a facet of his game that may surprise many people.

When the Los Angeles Lakers signed forward Troy Brown Jr. to a veteran’s minimum contract last summer, many fans could barely stifle a yawn.

He had shown a bit of promise as far as becoming a 3-and-D defender in his first four seasons in the NBA, but he hadn’t amounted to much, if anything.

Brown appeared on the same trajectory during the first half of this season, but starting in February, he got red-hot from 3-point range, shooting 42.9% from downtown in his last 29 regular-season games.

He dropped out of the rotation during the playoffs and shot just 2-of-15 from beyond the arc there, but he seems to be focused on expanding his game this offseason. In fact, he says he wants to get better at making plays for his teammates.

Via Lakers Nation:

“It was a really long year,” Brown admitted. “We basically had two different teams, so just me trying to figure out my role in different spots. Early on in the year, I was playing more of the four. Kind of more in that dunker area, so definitely added some of that to my game. But just being able to stretch the floor and be a defender.

“I think one thing I want to work on this summer is just being more aggressive offensively and being a playmaker. Even if it’s not me shooting the ball every time I’m touching it, just getting downhill and being able to make plays for my teammates. I definitely felt like it was a good year though and I felt like nobody thought we’d be in the Western Conference finals so it’s definitely something just to look back on.”

Brown has never been looked at as a playmaker. In his five NBA seasons, he averaged at least 2.0 assists a game just once — the 2019-20 campaign when he was at 2.6 dimes a contest.

He will be a free agent this summer, and the Lakers could decide to move on from him. On the other hand, he could be back if the Lakers strike out on their higher priorities on the wing spot and he agrees to another minimum contract.

Magic Johnson on what the Lakers need to do to beat the Grizzlies

Magic Johnson gave his keys to his Lakers defeating the Grizzlies in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.

The Los Angeles Lakers’ matchup with the Memphis Grizzlies will be one of the more intriguing series the NBA will have to offer as the playoffs begin this weekend.

Memphis is considered a slight favorite, but many believe the Lakers have at least a real shot of knocking off Ja Morant and crew and advancing to the Western Conference semifinals for only the second time in the last 11 seasons.

Against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Tuesday’s play-in tournament game, the Lakers received very little production from players not named LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Dennis Schroder.

In the eyes of team legend Magic Johnson, such players have to step up and play up to their potential, and he said he would also like guard Lonnie Walker IV to get some playing time.

On Tuesday, D’Angelo Russell shot 1-of-9 (although he did have eight assists against one turnover), Austin Reaves went 4-of-13 and Troy Brown Jr missed all but one of his five shot attempts.

Rui Hachimura was just 3-of-8, but he hit a couple of key shots to help the Lakers’ cause, and although Malik Beasley was efficient, he got up just three shots in 14 minutes.

Walker has fallen out of head coach Darvin Ham’s rotation since the trade deadline, but he has gained spot duty on occasion, and he is still a threat to hit from the outside.

Game 1 against the Grizzlies is set to tip off at noon Pacific time on Sunday.

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Troy Brown Jr. has been on fire lately

Lakers forward Troy Brown Jr. has gone from a placeholder to a part of the team’s burgeoning success lately.

When the Los Angeles Lakers signed free agent forward Troy Brown Jr. last summer to a veteran’s minimum contract, many fans could barely stifle a yawn.

He wasn’t exactly a terrible player, but in his four NBA seasons prior to coming to L.A., he had a career average of 6.4 points a game on 42.9% overall shooting and 33.7% from 3-point range.

Brown looked to be yet another mediocre, zero-impact free agent signing by the Lakers over the last two years, especially when he displayed plenty of inconsistent shooting and overall play over the first months of this season.

But lately, he has been shooting the lights out.

In his last 12 games, he has made an amazing 46% of his attempts from beyond the arc and 48.8% of his overall shot attempts. These days, fans are expecting him to connect on his 3-point attempts more likely than not, which is a major improvement over earlier this season.

In the Lakers’ impressive 113-105 win over the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors on Sunday, Brown went 4-of-7 from downtown, finishing with 14 points and eight rebounds while playing 41 minutes.

This type of play could help the Lakers reach the playoffs this spring if he keeps it up.

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Lonnie Walker IV, Troy Brown Jr. are out versus Trail Blazers

The Lakers will be shorthanded versus the Trail Blazers on Wednesday.

Wednesday night’s matchup between the Los Angeles Lakers and Portland Trail Blazers will see both teams short-handed.

Portland will be without its franchise player, Damian Lillard, who has been nursing a calf injury over the last several games.

Unfortunately for the Lakers, they will also be without two key players.

Guard Lonnie Walker IV and forward Troy Brown Jr. will not play versus Portland. Walker is dealing with left foot soreness while Brown has a foot ailment of his own.

Both have become fixtures in the Lakers’ starting lineup, and Walker has been playing really well. He has become their third-leading scorer and a reliable one at that.

On the bright side, Patrick Beverley will return after serving a three-game suspension for shoving the Phoenix Suns’ Deandre Ayton, and he will be in the starting lineup.

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Anthony Davis, Troy Brown Jr. probable against Trail Blazers

The Lakers may be just starting to get a little bit healthier in advance of Sunday’s tilt versus the Trail Blazers.

The Los Angeles Lakers have already been stricken by the injury bug early in the new NBA season.

Guard Dennis Schroder and center Thomas Bryant will be out for at least the next few weeks with thumb injuries. Forward Troy Brown Jr. missed the entire exhibition season and the first two games of the regular season with a back injury.

In addition, Anthony Davis took a hard fall on Thursday versus the Los Angeles Clippers. He left the game and returned shortly afterward, but he appeared to be in some pain for the remainder of the contest.

The good news is Davis and Brown are listed as probable for Sunday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers.

Brown said his chances of playing will be based on how he feels in the hours leading up to the game.

With an 0-2 record, the Lakers badly need a win on Sunday, and with their lack of wing depth, Brown being able to play would certainly help.

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Injury updates on Lonnie Walker IV, Troy Brown Jr.

Lonnie Walker IV and Troy Brown Jr. missed some or all of the Lakers’ preseason games this month. Will they be ready for opening night?

One of the reasons the Los Angeles Lakers fell flat on their faces and missed the play-in tournament last season was their lack of wing depth.

In an attempt to rectify this problem, they signed Lonnie Walker IV and Troy Brown Jr. during the summer.

Walker is a 6-foot-4 guard who has ample athleticism and explosiveness. He hasn’t been a consistently efficient shooter or scorer in four NBA seasons, but he has shown signs he could become one in the right situation.

Brown, meanwhile, stands 6-foot-6 and seems to have the potential to become a 3-and-D small forward.

Walker missed the Lakers’ last preseason game on Friday due to an ankle injury he suffered on Wednesday versus the Minnesota Timberwolves. Brown did not play in the exhibition season because of a back injury.

While Brown is described by team officials as being a few weeks away, Walker reportedly looked great in practice over the weekend.

Los Angeles is banged up elsewhere on its roster. Russell Westbrook is nursing a hamstring ailment. Dennis Schroder has a finger injury, and Anthony Davis missed three of its six preseason contests with lower back tightness.

Not having both Brown and Walker to start the regular season would seriously deplete the team’s newfound depth at the guard and wing positions.

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Troy Brown Jr. won’t play in Lakers’ last two preseason games

Lakers fans will have to wait a little while to see Troy Brown Jr. suit up for their team.

Opening night of the 2022-23 regular season for the Los Angeles Lakers is a week away, and they are focused on being ready for the grind of the schedule right away.

Key members of the team, including LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Patrick Beverley, Russell Westbrook and Dennis Schroder, have missed preseason games for various reasons.

James, Beverley and Westbrook were held out of the last two contests for rest. Davis was out for two games with lower back tightness. Schroder had been stuck overseas until a few days ago.

According to head coach Darvin Ham, all regular rotation players will play what would be considered normal regular season minutes in L.A.’s last two exhibition contests this week.

But there’s one exception: Troy Brown Jr., who has been slow to recover from a back injury. In fact, he is not expected to play in the first game of the regular season versus the Golden State Warriors.

Brown was one of the team’s free agent signings in July. As a young 6-foot-6 forward, he was brought in with the hope that he would become a reliable 3-and-D role player.

It looks like the Lakers will not have a clue if he will live up to that hope until perhaps the second game of the regular season, which will take place on Thursday, Oct. 20 versus the Los Angeles Clippers.

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Troy Brown Jr.’s memory of playing against LeBron James for first time

New Laker Troy Brown Jr. was amazed at LeBron James’ physique the first time he played against the four-time champ in the NBA.

One of the Los Angeles Lakers’ biggest needs this offseason has been 3-and-D wings, thus one of their free agent signings earlier this summer was Troy Brown Jr.

In four NBA seasons, Brown has shown promise as a role player who has improved his 3-point shooting percentage and possesses the potential to help the team corral superstar wings defensively.

At 6-foot-6 and 215 pounds, he is a decent physical specimen, as he has a 6-foot-11 wingspan, but as a rookie, he once played against someone who greatly dwarfed him and made him realize he wasn’t that special physically.

That someone was LeBron James.

Brown recently recalled the first time he played against him in the NBA.

“My favorite player growing up was LeBron. The first thing I remember about playing against LeBron was just like standing next to him and seeing how physically bigger he was than me. Size-wise, he’s like 6’8” — and I thought I was tall, I thought I was strong. And it was one of those things like nah, this dude has been doing this his whole life. He’s really built like that for sure.”

Going into his 20th season, James still appears to be one of the better athletes and more physically gifted players in the NBA. It wouldn’t surprise anyone if he came close to his production from last year when he averaged 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game.

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A look at Troy Brown Jr.’s potential with the Lakers

New Lakers swingman Troy Brown Jr. has the ability to help the team off the bench if he continues to work on and improve his game.

The Los Angeles Lakers made some solid signings in free agency this summer, most notably centers Damian Jones and Thomas Bryant.

However, a couple of their other signings have been head-scratchers to a certain extent, and one of them is Troy Brown Jr.

Brown, a 6-foot-6, 215-pound swingman, was the 15th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft. At first glance, his numbers with the Washington Wizards and Chicago Bulls haven’t been the least bit impressive.

However, he showed some improvement this past season, and if he continues on that trajectory, he can become a useful player for the Purple and Gold.