Lonzo Ball After Hitting Clutch 3-Pointers: 'People Are Still Going to Hate'

Lonzo Ball hit six three-pointers in the Los Angeles Lakers' 116-112 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday, including three in the final three minutes. Still, he doesn't expect the narrative around his rookie season to change despite the strong showing.

"People are still going to hate, I think," he said, per Joey Ramirez of NBA.com. "So it really doesn't matter to me. I just go out and play."

Ball, 20, finished with 18 points, 11 assists, seven rebounds, two blocks and one steal. All of his scoring came from beyond the arc, a positive sign for the rookie given his shooting struggles this season. He's shooting just 36.9 percent from the floor and 33.6 percent from three, though as Ramirez noted, he's shot 44.4 percent from beyond the arc over his past 15 contests.

"He went from hitting the side of the backboard to he can't miss now," teammate Julius Randle noted. "He's just confident out there making plays. Making huge, huge shots down the stretch for us."

Ball's rookie season hasn't been without its tumult. From his struggles to find his shot and injury issues that have cost him 22 games to the usual controversies that stem from his outspoken father, LaVar Ball, the Lakers point guard has remained a fixture in headlines.

Head coach Luke Walton was happy to see Ball's shot falling for those reasons, per Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times:

"I'm happy for him because I felt like he was being judged so hard to start the season. There's no other rookie in the league that was getting dissected like he was. And he was playing great. He was doing all the things we love about him; he was passing, he was playing defense, he was rebounding. He just was missing his shots. …

"I'm happy for him that he doesn't have to do that anymore, but more importantly it's nice to see that he's starting to figure out how to shoot it from that distance in this league, how to get that shot off, because it helps so much when he's hitting them."

The Lakers have been red-hot since the All-Star break, which has coincided with Ball's return to action after missing the team's previous 15 games with a knee injury. The Lakers are 5-0 since his return (Ball played in four of those games), with the rookie averaging 12.0 points, 7.2 assists, 6.7 rebounds and 2.5 steals in 27.5 minutes per game in that span.

One positive about Ball's game is that he can make a difference even when he isn't scoring thanks to his passing, rebounding and ability to push the pace in transition. His true upside is unlocked when his outside shot is falling, forcing defenses to account for another threat. 

To this point, opposing defenses have been able to sink off Ball given his struggles from deep. On Saturday night, however, he made the Spurs pay for taking that approach.

"When I'm open, I'm gonna shoot," he said after the game, per Ganguli. "People still guarding me going under, so I'm gonna keep shooting."