Nick Young is shooting so well for the Lakers that he doesn’t need extra practice

They say practice makes perfect. Usually that’s true, unless you’re Nick Young. The Los Angeles Lakers’ shooting guard is shooting 44.9 percent on three-pointers this season, the best conversion rate among high-volume three-point shooters.

If you’re shooting that well without extra practice, then you don’t need extra practice. Or at least that’s the understanding Young had come to with Luke Walton (via Mark Medina of the Orange County Register):

“I joke with him when I see him running out the door [after shootaround] and ask if he got his shots in,” Walton said, chuckling. “At first, he tried to lie. Now he just says, ‘No’ and keeps on moving.”

Young sounded equally amused with the exchanges.

“I’ll say, ‘My bad,’” Young said, smiling. “He knows when I’m trying to slack off.”

Young certainly hasn’t chosen to slack off on the court this year. His floor spacing has been an invaluable asset for the Lakers’ offense, and the team scores nearly four more points per 100 possessions when he’s on the floor versus when he’s on the bench.

But this also raises the question: If Nick Young is shooting this well without getting up extra shots at shootaround, how good could he be if he was? Could he make 50 percent of his threes? 60? Could he win MVP?

The answer to all three of those questions is no, and in all seriousness with how good Young has been for the Lakers this season he shouldn’t be changing a single thing about his preparation routine. Or in this case, his lack of one.

All stats per NBA.com. Harrison Faigen is co-host of the Locked on Lakers podcast (subscribe here), and you can follow him on Twitter at @hmfaigen.