Ever since he was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers with the second overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft, Brandon Ingram was touted as a future star player. He showed promising signs early in his career that he was a serviceable scorer and reliable offensive player. However, in his first season with the New Orleans Pelicans after being acquired in a trade for Anthony Davis, Ingram seems to have finally put it altogether and begun to reach his full potential being chosen to his first NBA All-Star team and winning the 2019-20 NBA Most Improved Player Award.

Ingram’s stat line is impressive considering the fact that he just turned 23 years old on September 2. Across the pandemic-split season, he averaged 23.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 4.2 assists, all career highs for Ingram. His stellar numbers put him in extremely rare company as a well-rounded offensive player. Since the 2000-01 NBA season, only three other players have posted this stat line or better for an entire season. That list includes LeBron James three times, Tracy McGrady twice and Luka Doncic this past season.

His previous season averages of 18.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists are not disappointing by any means, but his higher level of performance this past year are understandable. After playing second fiddle to LeBron James for his last year in Los Angeles, he has been the top dog in New Orleans while star rookie Zion Williamson has been primarily sidelined. He attempted 367 more shots this past season compared to last which contributed to his boosted numbers.

A big part of Ingram’s growth this past season has not just been how much he is scoring but also where he is scoring from on the court. As the NBA continues to shoot more and more three-pointers, Ingram has seemingly followed suit. In the 2018-19 season, 12.9% of Ingram’s shots were three-pointers as he shot just under the league average shooting percentage from this distance. This past year, he nearly tripled his rate at which he shoots three-pointers with 35% of his shots coming from deep. He also saw his three-point percentage rise to 39.1%, the fifth highest in the NBA by a player who made at least 150 three-pointers. He not only has begun to shoot more three-pointers but also has started to knock them down at a higher rate, a tremendous testament to his growth this past season.

Ingram has also become more aggressive on the offensive side of the game. Adopting another trend that has defined the NBA in recent years, he has begun to get to the free throw line at a much higher rate leading to more free scoring opportunities for him to help his numbers. He also improved his accuracy from the stripe raising his free throw percentage from 67.5% in 2018-19 to 85.1% in 2019-20. This seems to correlate with his improved three-point shooting skills as the chart below shows. He has consistently taken more shots each season and improved his accuracy from these two distances gradually over time.

These trends that buoyed Ingram’s breakout season should continue to see him be successful for years to come in this league. With Williamson healthy next season and another productive season from point guard Lonzo Ball, Ingram’s newfound outside shooting abilities are a nice contrast to the more physical style those two players bring. Ingram should continue to be a natural scorer that can get his team a bucket when they need it most. If his trajectory stays where it is, this should be the first of many All-Star appearances for the power forward. While the Pelicans are in need of a new coach at the moment, the job should seem appealing to moist candidates considering the massive amount of assets that the team appears to possess. It seems clear that Ingram has the potential to become a bona fide superstar in this league and perhaps a future Hall of Famer.