The two things holding back LaMelo the most (aside from injuries of course) have always been his finishing and defense. He has always been one of the worst finishers the league despite being very tall for a point guard (6’7") and his 2P% dropping more and more each season has not exactly been a good look. However, despite his terrible start to the season it seems like this year might be different.
LaMelo’s 2P% this season has been 48.8%, still bad but it’s the best he has shot since his rookie season where he shot 48.9%. Not only that but he’s shooting 75% from Inside 3 feet of the basket, he has never shot even 60% from that range for a full season.
His percentage looks even better if you only include his last 4 games where he has shot 61.2% from 2. You can even extend to the last 6 games and you’ll be left with a solid 56.1%. He’s shooting (almost) the best ever has from 2 and that’s despite starting the season super rusty because of his injuries. I mean the dude shot 25% on his 2 pointers for his first 3 games of the season. His finishing has been improving every single game. He literally shot 9-12 on 2 pointers in his last game that just so happened to be against the Knicks, the 5th best defense in the league.
Do you think LaMelo has improved as a finsiher and do you think this is something that will be sustainable, not only for this season but for years to come. He doesn’t even need to shoot 61.2%, just consistently being above 50% would be a massive improvement and help him take that next step as a player.
LaMelo is one of my favorite yet most frustrating players to watch, largely because he is capable of finishing at a high percentage but it seems habitual for him to take the most difficult approach to layups. Much less so over the last 4 games. But still, sometimes he goes for an up-and-under when it seems like he could just extend and lay it off the glass for a pretty simple, more efficient layup.
I wholeheartedly believe he’s going to take a huge jump in this area, so long as he stays healthy.