Could Lakers feature Brandon Ingram at the four spot?

Lakers' Brandon Ingram watches a free throw during a preseason game against the Kings at Honda Center on Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2016. (Photo by Kyusung Gong, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Lakers’ Brandon Ingram watches a free throw during a preseason game against the Kings at Honda Center on Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2016. (Photo by Kyusung Gong, Orange County Register/SCNG)

LAS VEGAS — The hyped rookie will not start right away so he can transition more smoothly in handling a longer NBA schedule. His rail-thin frame does not concern too much, though the Lakers are intrigued how much physical pounding it can absorb. His outside shot has not fully emerged amid adjustments to the NBA 3-point line.

But at a time when NBA coaches can experiment with lineups like mad scientists, Brandon Ingram played at the power forward spot in the second half of the Lakers’ 116-104 preseason loss to the Sacramento Kings on Friday at T-Mobile Arena. He finished with seven points on 3-of-7 shooting and two rebounds in 28 minutes, leaving Lakers coach Luke Walton equally impressed with his play and realistic about his development.

“He’s still adjusting to the NBA game,” Walton said. “He made some nice passes from there. I loved how aggressive he was tonight. He knocked down some shots for us and got to the rim one time. But there’s different rules in the NBA.”

Walton noted how Ingram failed to close out well enough on Sacramento power forward Anthony Tolliver, who made all seven of his 3-point attempts. As Ingram played all 12 minutes in the fourth quarter at the power forward spot, the Lakers allowed a two-point deficit to widen to 12. But could these preseason growing pains amount to Ingram seeing some time at the power forward spot in the regular season?

“It depends who we’re going against,” Walton said. “If other teams are going small, absolutely. I wouldn’t want to put him at 4 against a traditional lineup quite yet. But against small teams, absolutely.”

In other words, Ingram will not go up against bulky power forwards just yet. The Lakers also have a loaded frontcourt, including Julius Randle, Larry Nance Jr. Tarik Black and Thomas Robinson. Against Sacramento, Ingram mostly guarded Rudy Gay who had switched between the small forward and power forward spots.

“It was kind of like at Duke,” said Ingram, where he starred last season as the ACC’s winning the ACC’s Freshman of the Year award. “Just going back seeing I had a little bit of an advantage, I didn’t take full advantage of it. I think it’s a position I’m comfortable at. I could’ve made some adjustments while I was in the game, I think in just taking advantage of the floor position.”

Regardless of how much Ingram actually plays at power forward, that thought process could largely factor into how successful his rookie season becomes.

“Knowing [NBA] personnel is a big adjustment for me than just knowing college basketball players,” Ingram said. “Coming in the NBA, there’s lots of different things that you do. Everybody has different things you do well. You try to know personnel well and attack your weaknesses. That’s something we have to do. That’s something I have to do even more just knowing what this guy does well and try to make him uncomfortable.”

Then, the physical component could enter the equation.

The Lakers have strongly downplayed concerns on how much Ingram will fare with his listed 6-foot-9, 190-pound frame. He reported he has gained about five pounds in muscle since summer league, a gradual approach to avoid his body leading to possible injuries. Walton also saw similarities between Ingram and Trevor Ariza, the Lakers forward who became an effective defender in the 2009 NBA Finals because of his versatility and aggressiveness. Walton has also outlined to Ingram and his teammates to find different ways to punish more physical defenders, such as making sharp passes and cuts that lead to open shots.

“Once you do it one or two times,” Walton said, “the defense will naturally back off of you a little more.”

But when the Lakers play small ball? That could be a different story.

“If there’s any one-on-one breakdowns, you’re in trouble,” Walton said. “There’s normally nothing but shooters on the floor and one big rolling. Your defense has to be locked in. The advantage is you can get those stops. You can fly on the other end with shooters all over the place. But defensively you got to be locked in to whats happening, talking and communicating.”

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Follow L.A. Daily News Lakers beat writer Mark Medina on Twitter and on Facebook. E-mail him at mark.medina@langnews.com