Lakers Rumors: Brandon Ingram Talks About Trade Rumors & Posterizing Former Teammate Corey Brewer
Former second overall pick Brandon Ingram is expected to be one of the NBA players that the Los Angeles Lakers will trade to the New Orleans Pelicans to acquire All-Star center Anthony Davis. The rumors heated up when Davis informed the Pelicans that he has no intention of signing the massive contract extension that they are planning to offer next summer and wanted to be traded to a team where he can consistently win and contend for the NBA championship title.
Though his future in Los Angeles is currently up in the air, Brandon Ingram’s game doesn’t seem to be affected by the trade rumors. In their recent game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night, the 21-year-old power forward posted a career-high 36 points with five rebounds and five assists, on 80 percent shooting from the field.
Brandon Ingram is aware that his name is currently surfacing in trade rumors linking the Lakers to Anthony Davis. Ingram said that he understands that the NBA is a business and will just try to control what he can control. In a post-game interview, Ingram also made it clear that his recent performance has nothing to do with the trade speculations.
“It’s just a matter of me just making shots today,” Ingram told ESPN. “I’ve worked on that part of my game repetitively over and over, and that’s why I’ve gotten so frustrated after games when I miss those shots or when I’m not getting those shots. It’s just me seeing the game better, seeing the game from video [study] and visualizing it and going into the gym and shooting the same shots.”
Brandon Ingram scores career-high 36 points but the Lakers lose as LeBron's absence stretches to 17 games. https://t.co/jBdBlXAbmt
— Dan Cancian (@dan_cancian) January 30, 2019
The Lakers desperately need that type of performance from Brandon Ingram, especially now that three of their core players, LeBron James, Kyle Kuzma, and Lonzo Ball, are still on the sideline due to injuries. The Lakers are 6-11 since James suffered a groin injury, and as of now, they are sitting in the No. 9 spot in the Western Conference with a 26-25 record.
One of the highlights of their recent game against the Sixers was when Brandon Ingram posterized Corey Brewer. After a successful two-handed dunk, Ingram screamed and stared down at Brewer. Ingram explained after the game that he just wanted to release his emotion and added that he and Brewer remain good friends.
“I don’t think it was so much me yelling — it was first me getting lost into the game and playing and not thinking about anything,” Ingram said.
Corey Brewer played for the Lakers last season and built a good relationship with Brandon Ingram on and off the court. Ingram revealed that they call each other “The Thin Twins” because they were both under 190 pounds.
