Kevin Durant Comments on Brandon Ingram's Progression, Skill Set
Golden State Warriors superstar Kevin Durant hasn't seen a young player who more closely resembles him from a pure basketball standpoint than Los Angeles Lakers rookie Brandon Ingram.
"First person I can say, that I can look at him [and] feel like I'm looking in the mirror," Durant said Tuesday when describing Ingram's skills, per Lakers Nation's Serena Winters.
Durant provided another fascinating opinion about how far along he believes Ingram already is in his development:
The two squared off on Tuesday in a Team USA basketball training camp practice that was open to the media.
Like Ingram, Durant was a No. 2 overall draft pick, but the similarities don't stop there. Both are slim but lengthy—Ingram is 6'9", 190 pounds, while Durant is 6'9", 240 pounds—and are capable of scoring at the rate of 2-guards. Each can also beat opponents by slashing to the rim, pulling up from mid-range or connecting from the three-point line.
Here's how Ingram's one season at Duke compared to Durant's one-and-done effort at Texas:
| Durant | Texas | 2006-07 | 25.8 | .473 | .404 | 11.1 | 1.3 | 1.9 | 1.9 |
| Ingram | Duke | 2015-16 | 17.3 | .442 | .410 | 6.8 | 2.0 | 1.1 | 1.4 |
For further context on their respective collegiate statistics, Durant was more of a one-man show and functioned as a stretch 4 for the Longhorns, whereas Ingram created more on the perimeter and played off of Blue Devils guard Grayson Allen.
Much like with Durant at the start of his career, it'll likely take some time for Ingram to find his rhythm while he plays for a young Lakers team that won't be ready to challenge for the playoffs in the Western Conference. That could lead to lackluster shooting percentages at first, as was the case with Durant when he shot 43 percent from the floor and 28.8 percent from deep as a first-year pro.
Durant turned out quite fine, emerging as a four-time NBA scoring champion for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Bleacher Report's Ric Bucher spoke on draft night about how Ingram had been described to him as a "poor man's" version of Durant:
Whatever the intent behind Durant's assessment of Ingram, the perennial All-Star's forecast bodes well for the 18-year-old prodigy's NBA outlook.
Per DraftExpress, Ingram has a 7'3" wingspan, which should help him guard almost any position on the floor and earn him a lot of playing time in 2016-17.
If he's indeed further along than Durant and can play big minutes this coming season, it's going to be exciting to see where Ingram winds up two or three years down the road.
