Just like so many Los Angeles Lakers fans, Gilbert Arenas is frustrated by just how terrible their three-point shooting has been for much of this 2023-24 season. So, the former NBA star hilariously took to Instagram to show he can still shoot it from beyond the arc and roasted Taurean Prince, Cam Reddish, and Jarred Vanderbilt.
"LeBron James, when is Open Tryouts? I got ya KING. Tell Prince, Cam, Van I'll rent them my arm for the season. It's a SUPER MAX ARM."
While open tryouts would be out of the question, the Lakers might consider bringing in a select group of free agents at some point to address their shooting woes. Arenas certainly won't be a part of that group, but the 41-year-old, who shot 35.1% from three during his NBA career, ended up connecting on 17-18 three-pointers in this video, which is actually quite impressive.
Arenas last played in the NBA in 2012 and the only bit of basketball he has played at a relatively high level after that was a brief stint in China and then in the Big3 League. He probably does put up shots on a fairly regular basis on his court, though, which might explain why he was so efficient.
LeBron James Is The Best Three-Point Shooter On The Lakers In 2023-24
One of the big criticisms regarding LeBron James for much of his career has been that he isn't a great outside shooter. He has certainly gotten better at it over the years and you'd be surprised to know that he is actually the best three-point shooter on the Lakers this season at 40.7%.
Despite Arenas taking shots at him, Prince is actually second at 40.1%, but he and LeBron are the only ones on the team above that 40% mark. The likes of Reddish and Vanderbilt have struggled a lot, as the former is shooting just 29.7% from three this season while the latter is at a woeful 7.1%.
While it is very impressive that LeBron is shooting so well from three, you ideally never want him to be the one with the best percentage on the team. You'd think the Lakers need to add at least one or two sharpshooters among their ranks at some point.
Currently, they are averaging 10.8 threes made per game, which ranks 28th in the league, and are shooting 35.7% from beyond the arc, which ranks 21st. In today's NBA, that is not a recipe for success. In their last game against the New Orleans Pelicans, the Lakers shot 10-32 from three and got blown out 129-109.
Lakers Assistant Coach Called Out Gilbert Arenas
While LeBron is certainly not going to respond to Arenas, someone else inside the building actually did. Lakers assistant coach Phil Handy came across this post and called out Arenas.
Handy certainly brings up some very valid points there. It is one thing to just stand in one place and knock down threes, and another to do it in a game when you have to run around on defense.
Players always struggle to shoot once their legs go and Arenas would be done after just a couple of minutes on the court. Teams would hunt him on every possession on defense, and he would start to miss just like so many on the Lakers are. Arenas had a hilarious response to Handy's comment, though.
Well, that would certainly be one way to ensure he isn't tired. Arenas would have a hard time getting on the court then, though.
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