Kyle Kuzma and trade rumors have gone hand in hand ever since the transfer season opened on December 15. As surprising as it is, the Los Angeles Lakers have decided to keep the young forward on the team. They are willing to see how Kuzma develops.

Lakers GM Rob Pelinka was in the news as he was open to listening to pitches for Kuzma.

The New York Knicks really tried to get him in a deal for Marcus Morris, but the Lakers held off on such advances, leading Morris to get dealt across the hall to the LA Clippers. They are officially standing pat.

Kyle Kuzma: NBA Run

Kuzma has played 187 games over his nearly two-and-a-half seasons with the Lakers and spent most of the first two as a fan-favourite following his meteoric rise from 27th-overall pick to making the 2018 NBA All-Rookie First Team, with his skill as a scorer and work ethic endearing him to those inside and outside the organization.

This season has seen that change a bit, as on a win-now team Kuzma hasn’t quite fully found his stride while not serving as a frequently featured option, something that’s impossible due to the presence of LeBron James and Anthony Davis. He is currently averaging 13.1 points on 43.7% shooting while knocking down 33.7% of his threes.

That noted Kuzma has recently started trying to find strategies to contribute in other ways, attacking the glass for rebounds like a madman over the last few games. It’s a small sign of progress, but a notable one nonetheless.

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 Kuzma Gets Teammates’ Support

LeBron James said there was no tension among the players during that time.  Anthony Davis added that there’s been little chatter among the players about all of the moves.

“I don’t think we checked it,” Davis said. “I mean, obviously everyone has the ESPN app and the NBA app, so it comes to your phone. So we don’t go out — well, I don’t go out checking for it. We don’t [say], ‘Did you guys see this trade, this is happening.’ We haven’t done that.”

About Kuzma Davis said,” Whatever he’s been doing the past couple of games, we’re going to need that for the rest of the year”

It seems Kuzma upped his game as trade rumors kept surrounded him, just to show the world how it’s all done.