Lamoureux Is Good Player, but Not by His Long Shot

A.D. Lamoureux, a forward at Cypress College, knows he can shoot well from the outside. He proves it in practice and pick-up games.

The problem is once he gets into a game, he has a hard time making himself shoot from more than about 10 feet from the basket.

Lamoureux, brother of former Cypress standout Andre Lamoureux, wouldn’t be violating any orders from Coach Paul Bottiaux if he did shoot from beyond 10 feet. Bottiaux has given his blessing to Lamoureux to play bombs away in an effort to make him a more complete player and increase his chances of getting a scholarship.

The problem is that when Lamoureux stops to look at the basket from outside, he can only think of two things: He either wants to pass it inside or take off toward the basket if he sees an opening.

“I always want to give it to the guys inside,” said Lamoureux who is 6 feet 7 and most comfortable playing small forward. “I figure that I’m an inside guy and would want the ball passed to me, so that’s how I think. . . . I really have the confidence to shoot outside; I want to be an outside shooter.”

Lamoureux is quick to bring up the three three-pointers he has made this season. But almost all of his points (averaging 19 points) are coming from inside.

Lamoureux is also a talented rebounder, averaging 11 per game. He averaged 10 rebounds last season, and he’s on pace to become the college’s all-time rebound leader.

“He’s an incredible rebounder,” Bottiaux said. “He just has a sense for getting to the ball.”

Lamoureux has 468 rebounds at Cypress and needs to average eight over the rest of the season to set the school record. Mark Eaton, who played at Cypress (1978-80), UCLA and for the Utah Jazz, holds the record at 599.

Even at Los Alamitos High, where Lamoureux started as a senior, he was able to get a lot of rebounds because of his height and long reach. He has relied mainly on those assets again last season.

This season, Lamoureux has added a little technique and some strength. He also has come to agree with the coaching staff that playing some defense is important.

“I’m starting to get down and really concentrate on defense,” he said. “And it’s coming much better.”

Lamoureux learned last year that the college game was much more physical than he figured. Twice he had teeth knocked out and also took a crushing elbow to the face. No foul was called, so Lamoureux got up and ran back down the court.

“He’s a happy go-lucky guy,” Bottiaux said. “I appreciate that he isn’t retaliatory. . . . He just needs to slow down sometimes offensively because he gets out of control.”