After being selected with the 27th overall pick in last year's draft, Kyle Kuzma turned out to be one of the biggest steals for the Los Angeles Lakers. 

The 23-year-old was among the best rookies in the league and was the joint leading scorer for the Lakers. 

He averaged a hugely impressive 16.1 points per game, which was the second-highest total among rookies behind Donovan Mitchell. 

Unlike many of the top prospects in his class, Kuzma spent three years in college and it was one of the reasons why he looked so comfortable in the NBA setting. 

That experience of spending multiple years playing college ball stood him in good stead. 

But nobody expected him to have the impact he did for the purple and gold in his first season. 

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He shot 45 percent from the field and 36.6 percent from beyond the arc as he demonstrated a solid inside-out game. 

The sky is the limit for the former Utah product and he certainly has a bright future ahead of him. 

Despite spending just a couple months as his teammate last season, veteran Channing Frye believes he has what it takes to become a superstar. 

“I’m not going to lie — and I think all of them are good — I have a special place in my heart for Kuz," Frye said on the “Road Trippin’” podcast, via Silver Screen & Roll.

"I think his internal fire comes from a different place than everybody else. He was never the best. Maybe I associate with that more ... I like him because he’s aggressive.

"He has everything you would need to be a superstar, but he’s also humble. He’ll like text and he’s like, ‘Yo, honest opinion, what do you think I need to work on?

"Like, what do I need to watch film on? Or like, ‘what do you think I didn’t do’? And I’d be honest, I’d be like, ‘You’ve gotta work every day, more, if you want to be more, you’ve gotta work more.’”

The power forward has already put in work this offseason to build his strength and prepare for life playing alongside LeBron James. 

Kuzma and his fellow young teammates will feel a different type of pressure next season as the arrival of James raises expectations. 

If Kuz can continue to grow and get better, it'll certainly enhance LA's chances of ending their five-year playoff drought. 

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