Originally Posted by
Pelicanidae
Pros: Tall, lengthy, relatively athletic, has improved as a catch and shoot 3 point guy. Don't care about his UCLA assists record, frankly. Plays good defense when he bothers to do it. Absurdly good ''linkage'' passer; that is, finding the extra pass and setting up shots, particularly in transition or full court.
Cons: Mediocre handle, relentlessly bad shot selection, shoddy decision making, can't finish at the rim at all, doesn't drive and therefore doesn't pressure defenses, dreadful FT shooter, can't run a PnR really at all.
If you take him off ball and use him almost like a 3&D wing in the half court, then you maximise his improved shooting and his defense+size combination against other guards, while minimising the damage his awful half-court initiation can cause. SVG seems to have noticed that, and seems to be interested in at least trying him in more of that auxiliary role, where he's a PG in the full court/transition but hands it over in HC. That's the best use of Lonzo, at least right now.
Of course, if you improve Lonzo's play and impact by moving him to 3&D wing the majority of the time, then his impact will go up but his secondary role will also make you inclined to pay him less: true, primary initiators are more valuable and therefore more expensive than decent roleplayers. That introduces an issue with his upcoming second contract.