Toronto Raptors: Pros and cons of signing Lonzo Ball in free agency
By Mike Luciano
For all the talk about offensive improvement, 2020-21 did little to assert that he can be a top-flight offensive option, as 41% is not what you want to see your lead guard on an expensive contract shooting like. Ball might be a solid player in a vacuum, but he might cause some headaches for Nick Nurse.
Fred VanVleet has had a usage rate of 24.7% or higher in each of the last two seasons, proving that he is dominating the ball when he’s on the floor. Even though Ball might not be chucking up shots like he’s James Harden, he will have the ball in his hands quite a bit, and that could cause some friction.
Lonzo Ball still isn’t an amazing offensive player.
The best ability in the NBA is availability, and Ball hasn’t shown enough to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt he can stay healthy. He missed 17 games last season, has never played more than 63 games in any one season, and has played in 55 or fewer games in all but one of his four seasons. Is that durability worth a four-year investment?
The Raptors will have enough cap space to make some addition, but bringing back Gary Trent Jr. as part of the core long-term and signing Ball to a hefty contract not only would eliminate the possibility of adding some depth, but it would likely stick Trent on the bench.