Kyle Kuzma has been a key player for the Los Angeles Lakers over these last few years, especially in 2020 as the team won its first NBA title in 10 years, While Kuzma is known as a solid scorer, there were times where he had to deal with less playing time as head coach Frank Vogel looked for the options that worked the best. Now, with LeBron James injured, Kuzma has been getting more time on the court and for the most part, he has been fitting into his role, nicely.
While speaking to reporters recently, Kuzma was asked about the Lakers rotations and how he feels about fluctuating playing time. Kuzma's answer was both mature and honest as he noted that at the end of the day, his one true goal is to win a title with his teammates.
“We’re all competitors and we all want to be out on the court for 48 minutes,” Kuzma said. “That’s just how you are if you’re a competitor. If you don’t want to then I would never want a player on my team like that. So I think it’s all about sacrifice. That’s something I really learned about last year, I think something that I struggled with last year. I was hard on myself and down a little bit, but I had great teammates that stuck with me and I figured it out, so now is not the time to be harping on yourself. We’re trying to win championships right now. That’s the window that we’re in and it’s at all costs. If you don’t play then you don’t play.”
With LeBron coming back soon, the Lakers will be well within their window of winning that title and no matter what, Kuzma will end up being a big part of that push.
