After being taken with the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s NBA Draft, Los Angeles Lakers forward Brandon Ingram has already enjoyed the NBA experience without even making his professional debut. Ingram put on a solid performance at the Las Vegas Summer League and now finds himself going up against the best the league has to offer as a member of the USA Select Team.
While Ingram has received praise from the likes of Gregg Popovich and Kevin Durant, questions have been raised surrounding his shooting ability, most notably from the free-throw line. Despite making just 68 percent of his free-throws at Duke, Ingram dismissed any woes from the charity stripe with a bold statement, according to Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports:
“Legend had it that in four years, Ingram never missed a free-throw. So? “Most definitely, that’s true,” Ingram said.”
Although it’s obvious Ingram may have exaggerated a bit, it’s more of a testament to how good of a free-throw shooter he was in his prep days. Which indeed he was, finishing his high school career shooting 345-of-450 (77%) from the line, according to MaxPreps.com.
Despite his recent struggles from the charity stripe, Ingram’s talent is undeniable to those who have played with him thus far. Earlier this week, the No. 2 overall pick even received comparisons to another from superstar and fellow No. 2 pick Kevin Durant himself.
As Ingram continues to work on his game with the best players in the world, it’s safe to assume his free-throw shooting will translate with it.