While injuries that prevented Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma and Brandon Ingram from playing put a damper on the close to the regular season, Andre Ingram represented a bright spot for the Los Angeles Lakers.
After 10 years toiling in the D-League/G League, Ingram finally received his call. The 32-year-old was rewarded for his strong play with the South Bay Lakers, and Ingram’s story garnered national headlines.
There were only two games remaining in the season when Ingram was called up, but he certainly made the most of it. Ingram electrified the Staples Center crowd in his NBA debut and was appreciative of the experience.
During Lakers exit interviews, Ingram said he wasn’t yet certain what the future held. There’s now some clarity, but it might not be what the potent shooter may have hoped for.
According to Bill Oram of The Athletic, the Lakers did not extend a qualifying offer to Ingram and he’s now an unrestricted free agent:
As expected, Andre Ingram did not receive a qualifying offer from the Lakers and is officially an unrestricted free agent. He remains a guy worth rooting for. My story on the career D-Leaguer from last month. https://t.co/vrjeRdQiOf
— Bill Oram (@billoram) July 1, 2018
Ingram’s 19 points were good for the highest-scoring first career game for a Lakers player since Nick Van Exel had 23 points in 1993. Ingram also set a new record for shooting by knocking down four 3-pointers, the most by a Lakers rookie in his debut.
Ingram followed it up with just five points against the Clippers in the finale of the regular season, but he added six assists.
After the season, Ingram said he intended to continue pursuing a career and spot on an NBA roster, no matter the odds he faced.
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