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Lonzo shoots his way into record books for all the wrong reasons

Patrick Smith / Getty Images Sport / Getty

"Brick" Baller Brand, anyone?

We're 12 games into the Lonzo Ball era for the Los Angeles Lakers, and so far, the biggest takeaway from his game has been how inefficient he's been shooting the rock, which has overshadowed his contributions in other areas.

The 20-year-old guard had yet another brutal offensive showing Thursday in the Lakers' 111-95 road loss to the Washington Wizards. Ball went 3-of-12 from the field, 1-of-7 from 3-point range, and 3-of-7 from the charity stripe.

Only one other player in NBA history during the shot-clock era has shot more poorly than Ball through the first 12 outings of his career, and that's former San Francisco Warriors big Wayne Hightower in 1962-63.

Lonzo Ball's Shooting (First 12 Games)

Game Opponent FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A
1 Clippers 1-of-6 1-of-3 0-of-2
2 Suns 12-of-27 4-of-9 1-of-2
3 Pelicans 3-of-13 0-of-5 2-of-2
4 Wizards 2-of-11 0-of-5 2-of-3
5 Raptors 2-of-7 1-of-4 0-of-0
6 Jazz 3-of-10 3-of-6 0-of-0
7 Pistons 6-of-13 1-of-3 0-of-0
8 Trail Blazers 0-of-2 0-of-1 0-of-0
9 Nets 3-of-15 0-of-3 0-of-1
10 Grizzlies 3-of-13 1-of-8 2-of-3
11 Celtics 4-of-15 1-of-5 0-of-0
12 Wizards 3-of-12 1-of-7 3-of-7
 
Percentages 29.2 22 50

(courtesy: Basketball-Reference.com)

Related - Kidd: Comparing Lonzo to me is 'a stretch'

If the season were to end today, Ball would hold the unfortunate distinction of shooting the lowest field-goal percentage for any player ever to attempt at least 10 shots per game.

The Lakers score 99.8 points per 100 possessions when Ball sits, compared to the 97.7 points they produce when he's running the offense himself. His fringe triple-double numbers of 8.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 6.9 dimes mean little when he's struggling to this degree. All the good he does in other facets is wiped away when he tries to shoot himself out of slumps.

Ball's mechanics remain the same from his days at UCLA, where his 55-41-67 shooting splits were more than respectable. He did recently admit to ESPN's Jeff Goodman, though, that his ongoing issues are in his head, and as long as that's the case, he'll continue to lay brick after brick.

(image courtesy: Getty Images)

Ball is the second overall pick, and Magic Johnson's first as president of basketball operations. It's far too early to throw in the towel or even consider tossing the "bust" label on him, even with his current troubles.

Time should be Ball's best friend, but when you're the face of the Lakers and under the microscope like he is, patience grows thin awfully fast.

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