Luke Kennard Is Putting His High School QB Skills to Use in the Lakers Playoffs

Luke Kennard was a pretty good quarterback back in high school. Now, with the Lakers up 2-0 on the Rockets in the playoffs, those same skills are showing up on the biggest stage.

The comments came via ESPN's Dave McMenamin, who shared the clip on X after Kennard spoke to the Lakers' own reporter. Kennard drew the comparison himself, pointing to vision, quick reads, and decision-making as the thread connecting both roles.

"I mean, obviously, like communication, the word organized kind of just comes to mind. Trying to get guys in the right spot, and then just making reads out of certain situations. Obviously, basketball, or both, you gotta be quick with your reads. Basketball is, there's many, I don't know, yeah. I mean, I think you can compare a little bit. There's a lot of options, quick reads."

“You can compare it a little bit. There’s a lot of options. Quick reads. … Vision.” - Luke Kennard talks to @LakersReporter about the similarities to playing high school QB to his his current Lakers role. pic.twitter.com/Pu2xYv56Z8
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) April 23, 2026

He continued: "So yeah, just me, the vision, trying to make the right passes and right plays. So it's just, again, trying to control what I can control out there. And that's just being poised and trying to make the right plays each time."

The poise he's talking about didn't come from nowhere.

Luke Kennard's High School Football Stats Show He Was the Real Deal at QB

Back in 2013 at Franklin High School in Ohio, Kennard threw for 2,331 yards and 26 touchdowns, adding four more scores on the ground.

The same instincts he used to read a defense are the ones he's using to read NBA defenses now.

When asked if he had chatted with LeBron James about being his receiver, Kennard laughed it off.

"No, not yet, but we would have been a lethal trio for sure on the football field," Kennard said.

How Luke Kennard Fits Into the Lakers' 2-0 Playoff Series Lead Over the Rockets

The Lakers are up 2-0 on the Houston Rockets in their first-round playoff series, without Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. Kennard has filled that void in a big way. He scored a career playoff-high 27 points in Game 1, shooting 9-for-13 from the field and a perfect 5-for-5 from three. In Game 2, he followed it up with 23 points, six rebounds, three steals and two assists.

For a player who averaged 9 points off the bench during the regular season, the timing of this run has been remarkable.

It all connects back to what he was describing. Reading defenses, staying poised, finding the right play. Whether it's a football field in Ohio or a playoff game at Crypto.com Arena, the thinking behind it is the same.

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