LeBron James Speaks on How Crucial Kyle Kuzma Is to Lakers’ Chances of Winning Championship

The Los Angeles Lakers picked up their third win of the NBA’s restart in dramatic fashion.

Kyle Kuzma drilled a 3-pointer with less than a second left to lift the Lakers over the Denver Nuggets 124-121.

After Kuzma hit the game-winner, superstar LeBron James had some hefty praise for the 25-year-old forward.

The Lakers expected Kuzma to take the next step as the third banana to James and Anthony Davis when they acquired the latter in a trade with the New Orleans Pelicans.

Kuzma had struggled this season, mostly in a bench role, averaging just 12.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game heading into Monday’s contest. All those numbers are career-lows for Kuzma.

However, James was blunt when talking about Kuzma’s importance to the team.

Besides hitting the game-winning shot, Kuzma was fantastic on Monday, shooting 11-for-16 from the field and scoring 25 points.

He finished the game with the second-highest plus/minus (plus-16) of any Lakers player.

James is right. If the Lakers want to win, Kuzma has to play well. Monday night’s performance is just a small sample of what the third-year forward can do to help bring a championship back to Los Angeles.