Lakers: How LA Feels About Malik Beasley's 0-For-6 Three-Point Shooting Debut
New Lakers guard Malik Beasley arrived to town in the infamous Russell Westbrook three-team trade and fans were excited to see what he could bring to the table, particularly his three-point shooting.
Beasley is currently eighth in the NBA in three-pointers made and is shooting 35 percent from deep. The former Timberwolves guard was just behind All-Stars Jayson Tatum and Donovan Mitchell in this area, but started off his Laker debut with 0 makes from beyond the arc.
Fans quickly got flashbacks of formerly great three-point shooters joining LA and forgetting how to shoot the ball.
However, star big man Anthony Davis spoke highly of his new teammate and said the team encouraged him to continue to shoot with confidence despite his cold start.
"Malik went 0-6 from three and I'm okay with that. Obviously it's his first game, but we don't want him to hesitate," said Davis. "Let it fly, he shoots the ball too well to hesitate. We'll keep his confidence up, he'll be fine."
First game nerves could have definitely played a factor in Beasley not shooting as well as his stats have shown. Chemistry has not been established yet and the team did not get to practice prior to Saturday night's win against the Golden State Warriors. Rui Hachimura revealed the team was just "out there hooping."
It is great to see Davis and the rest of the squad uplifting Beasley in hopes that he shoots better soon. However, those shooting splits cannot remain if LA still wants a playoff berth as they have been the fifth worst shooting team from three this year.
Davis also added later in the interview that Beasley's size will be key to the Lakers' defense and playmaking moving forward due to him being around 6-foot-4.
