Training camp for the 2023-24 NBA season is slowly but surely approaching, and while there is plenty of time before it begins, it’s time for players to start ramping up their training and preparation.
That’s especially true for the Los Angeles Lakers, who are hoping to win their 18th world championship next summer. They magically remade what was a broken roster in January and February, and now they’re aiming for the sky rather than just trying to tread water.
The Lakers made Jalen Hood-Schifino the No. 17 pick in the draft just over a month ago. While some fans still wish the team had taken someone else instead, the Indiana University guard has the potential to become a good player at the next level.
Here are three goals for him this summer.
Work on 3-point shooting
Hood-Schifino has a very solid midrange game, especially off the dribble, and that skill set will help him succeed in the NBA.
But for him to get to a higher level of success, he will need to also become a good outside shooter.
In his lone season at Indiana, he shot 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. He showed a bit of overall improvement during NBA Summer League, but he was inconsistent with his shooting in general, and he endured some ugly offensive outings.
Hood-Schifino improving his outside shot will likely open up his midrange game, as opponents wouldn’t be able to cheat off him.
Learn at the feet of his new teammates
Hood-Schifino is in an enviable position, as he is now on the same team as LeBron James.
James has a reputation as a basketball savant, and he will have the ability to teach the incoming rookie the nuances and minutiae of the pro game, not to mention how to take care of one’s body.
The 20-year-old should take full advantage of the four-time MVP’s knowledge and tutelage and use it to make himself the best he can be.
Be patient
The Lakers have a four-guard rotation set, and that means, barring injury, Hood-Schifino will likely get little playing time for the time being.
Assuming that scenario becomes reality, perhaps some time down in the G League will do him some good, just as it did for Max Christie.
There are plenty of stars currently in the NBA that took a while to emerge and didn’t even play much as rookies. That’s something Hood-Schifino can look at if he ever gets frustrated at the pace of his progression and integration into L.A.’s rotation.
