The Los Angeles Lakers continue to lock up important contributors from their recent run to the title. First, they extended LeBron James’ current contract, and then signed Anthony Davis to a new deal in free agency. Now, they are taking care of Kyle Kuzma.
The team officially announced that Kuzma agreed to a contract extension with the Lakers on Sunday. The extension is for a period of three years and worth $40 million, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. The deal included a player option for the 2023-24 season, so Kuzma will be under team control until the 2022-23 campaign.
25-year-old Kuzma is entering his fourth season in the NBA. He holds career averages of 16 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game. After starting all except two games during the 2018-19 season, Kuzma was relegated to a reserve role last season post the addition of Anthony Davis, and though it was an adjustment, he made the most of the opportunity. Moving forward, Kuzma does not seem sure what to expect when it comes to his role in the team, though the contract extension definitely shows that the Lakers franchise is committed to him.
When asked what he expects his role to be with the Lakers this season, Kuzma said, “I have no idea.” Via the Los Angeles Times, he said, “, We’ll see… I just think in my career my role has changed kind of every year. So, for me, I’ve had to adapt my game and figure out ways to affect the game in different ways, much more than other guys on that trajectory.”
According to Lakers coach Frank Vogel, Kuzma is expected to put up points for the franchise, regardless of whether he is starting to coming off of the bench.
