Last night Kyle was 4 of 6 at the end of the first half, and had played quite well. At the end of the 3rd quarter he was 5 of 12. All players have poor stretches. But as
ceperez commented, Kyle bounced back
very well in crunch time. Some posters have claimed that Kyle's mid-range game is suspect or that he lacks confidence in it. It is not his mid-range game but his 3-point shot that is the issue. Kobe backed off of him when Kyle was outside his comfort zone, but still could have recovered to defend against his comfortable, mid-range shot. Kyle needs to become a bigger threat from 3, but his mid-range shot is fine. Working with Chip, he will hopefully improve both.
What I have noticed the last couple of games is Kyle's showing signs of some real toughness. Against the Clips he aggressively dove to the floor for a loose ball and pulled down a couple of tough rebounds. He boxed out bigger foes quite well on a couple of boards. Then last night, the drive he made for the finger roll showed determination, aggressiveness and the mental toughness in crunch time to put his abysmal third quarter behind him. At 22 he is developing about as well as anybody could expect
especially for a late first round pick. I don't really understand his detractors. He will be a valued contributor next season. I wish he could reach that level for the playoffs this season, but that is something I cannot see.