Newly-drafted Los Angeles Laker forward Brandon Ingram has drawn mighty praise and attention just months after being taken No. 2 overall in the NBA Draft.
Most notably, during his time with the USA Select Team, Ingram was the focus of comments made by Kevin Durant, who said Ingram was the first person to make him feel like “I’m looking in the mirror.”
Ingram talked about those comments and more on Friday morning on the Jim Rome Show.
On Durant’s comments:
“It means a lot. Just knowing that I’ve been growing up looking at him and he’s been my idol for a very long time. Just to hear that, just him to make the comment will go down in my book, and I respect him a lot,” Ingram said. “I’ve been respecting him as a player for a very long time, but he helps me, motivation to keep working and just come in here everyday and just to try to simulate his game and try to add pieces of his game to mine, and of course, I have my own game, so that will help out a lot.”
On recent comments from D’Angelo Russell, who encouraged Ingram to “embrace the pressure” of being a No. 2 pick:
“My reaction is listen. He’s been here before, he’s been through the same thing I’ve been through. He was the number 2 pick last year,” Ingram said. “Just knowing there’s a lot of pressure, of course with Kobe Bryant leaving, of course and me saying that I’m filling his position, so we know there’s a lot of pressure and added pressure from fans and other things, but just playing my game, I think attack the game in a different way, and act like I can stay out there, be out there with those guys and just compete every single night.”
And on the Lakers’ “Breakfast Club,” a group of players who have regularly met on mornings at the Lakers’ facility:
“It’s intense. Just to come in here pretty much all our young guys have been into the weight room every single morning. You can see the dedication right there.”
The main takeaway from this article is that the Lakers’ first pre-season game is less than a month away and I’m still not sure I can wait that long.
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