Luke Kennard reveals ‘aggressive’ mentality in LA debut

LOS ANGELES – Newly acquired shooting guard Luke Kennard made his debut with the Los Angeles Lakers during the team’s 105-99 win against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday. It was just two days after the trade deadline that the Lakers dealt Kennard to the Atlanta Hawks in a deal that sent Gabe Vincent and a second-round pick to the Hawks.

After the Lakers’ win against the Warriors, Luke Kennard explained the mentality he came out with in his debut with the team. He knocked down the first shot he tookthree-pointer, and he admitted that he wanted to get a shot pretty quickly upon entering the game.

“I was definitely looking for the shot, trying to get it up. I shot the ball, I looked at my first shot, it was crazy high. But it felt good when it left my hands,” Kennard said. “And again, for me, no matter where I’m at, I’m obviously here, they want me to be aggressive and shoot the ball. But whenever I check in the game, I’m looking for threes and getting them up.”

Kennard finished with 10 points in his first game with two rebounds, two assists and one steal in just over 26 minutes of action. He shot 4 of 7 from the field and 2 of 4 from the 3-point line. He was also part of the lineup that closed the game in the fourth quarter.

Overall, Lakers head coach JJ Reddick was pleased with how Kennard’s debut went.

“Just his ability to read and make plays, he’s not a guy you’re going to give the ball in ISO and then he’s going to bend the defense. But he’s a smart basketball player and he knows how to make plays and he knows how to read,” Redick said after the game. “He doesn’t always get an assist, but generally speaking, he’s going to attack close. He’s going to get a fake shot and then swing the ball and it’s going to lead to something good. So I thought, his first time with us and him getting here yesterday, he was really good.”

Before the trade, Kennard appeared in 46 games with the Hawks, averaging just over 20 minutes per game. He averaged 7.9 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists on 53.8 percent shooting from the field, leading the league with 49.7 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 91.4 percent from the free throw line.