EDIT: So right as I published this it was reported by Adrian Wojnarowski that the Suns are buying out Tyson Chandler and he will get picked up by the Lakers. I love that move! Maybe they can consult these two choices if the Lakers need more help with bigs
The Current Situation
If you've watched any Laker games this year, one of the things that immediately stands out to you is the Lakeshow's lack of depth in big men. JaVale McGee is all they really have. Regardless of the structural shortcoming, he's turning out to be an incredibly clutch signing by Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka on both ends of the floor. McGee is putting up some of the best averages of his career with 15.5 PPG(career high), 7.5 RPG, 1.3 APG, 1 steal, 3.3 blocks(leads league) while shooting 63.2% from the field(leads league). The advanced stats favor him too, with the Lakers posting a defensive rating of 103.9 with him on the floor while sporting a putrid 124.5 defensive rating with him off of it. With only a price tag of the veterans minimum $2.4 million per year, McGee is looking like a steal that brings incredible value while simultaneously being as cheap as they come.
When you're the team's only reliable big man and you have creators like LeBron, Lonzo, Ingram, and Rondo trying to get you the ball near the rim you're bound to succeed. But the poor guy can't do it alone. Luke Walton has experimented with Kuzma at the 5 to start this season, but we could see early on that strategy was highly questionable. Kuzma got gobbled up by bigger 5's and skilled big men like Jusuf Nurkic and LaMarcus Aldridge. So instead they've given minutes to a 6'9 rookie out of Gonzaga named Jonathan Williams who is more akin to a 4 than a 5. Johnathan does alright for a rookie, but he still gets bullied by bigger and more skillful players. They also have Ivica Zubac, but the jury is still out on whether he's good enough to play in the NBA. Other than that, the Lakers have rolled out smallball lineups with LeBron at the five, where they clearly sacrifice defense for a high-octane offense rich in transition opportunities.
They do have one other guy with some height: their late first round draft pick from University of Michigan Moe Wagner. Moe's rim-running, floor-spreading game looks like it'll be useful for the Lakers, but banking on a rookie to solve your team's big man problem is a strategy destined for disaster. Moe didn't even play most of Summer League or any of preseason due to the injury he incurred. Now people want to plop him onto the floor nine games deep into the season for his first NBA minutes coming off an injury and expect meaningful results? If he's able to hit the ground running the great, but I'm not going to get my hopes up.
So they have one solid piece, some unreliable backups, and a bunch of other band-aid solutions. What can they Macgyver up in the position they're in today?
Can They Make a Trade?
The free agents that the Lakers signed to new contracts this off-season like Kentavius Caldwell-Pope, Michael Beasley, Lance Stephenson, and Rajon Rondo cannot be traded until December 15th. This leaves the Lakers hands tied at the moment because that means the only players they can trade are their young core. It doesn't seem likely that they want to part with their young core anytime soon. Lakers owner Jeanie Buss may possibly make it a point to let things play out for a bit after the previous regime led by her brother Jim Buss & GM Mitch Kupchak often made reactionary decisions with small sample sizes. After December 15th though, it's fair game. But for now, there's nothing they can do unless they go against past sentiments and deal pieces of their young core.
What are their options?
It'd be great if the Lakers could just have two JaVale McGee's in the lineup. I think he's just so perfect for what the Lakers are trying to run on offense and defense. Alas, there can only be one JaVale. But maybe we can find somebody off of waivers who can fill in certain skills that he brings. The Lakers are desperate for buffs in the rebounding department, and yearning for anyone who can help protect the rim in this golden age of NBA guards.
The landscape of possible solutions for the Lakers is quite barren, but there are still a few passable bigs on the market that are searching for a team. If they want to make a move and add some depth at the big right now, they'll have to roll the dice on the waiver wire, praying to hit triple 7's. But hey, they seem to have gotten lucky with McGee so who knows what could happen. After scouring lists of unrestricted NBA free agents, the two below seemed like they made the most sense for Los Angeles:
Alexis Ajinca
The French big man last played with the New Orleans Pelicans for several years as a backup to Anthony Davis. He incurred an injury to his right patellar tendon in his knee, causing him to undergo surgery on December 7, 2017, and sit out the entire 2017-18 season. He never cracked the rotation again before the Pelicans renounced him. The Clippers then claimed his rights in a trade for Wesley Matthews but they waived him in the middle of October, making him an unrestricted free agent as of October 15th.
I don't think this would be a bad addition to a Lakers roster that's so desperate for any kind of size. Ajinca stands at a whopping 7'2 and he boasts a gargantuan 7'9 wingspan with a 9'4 standing reach. That's an imposing amount of height in you're an NBA guard rushing to the rim for a bucket. Ajinca is also only 30 years old, but because he played ball in Europe he has accumulated a wealth of experience at the professional over a long time. We are almost a year removed from his surgery, so he has most likely physically recovered by now. The problems is he probably still needs to get his timing back. We are seeing Lonzo battle through this same thing on the court in terms of his defense after his own surgery. He isn't totally himself defensively yet, but he's certainly getting there.
This move would really be banking on luck. There's a chance Ajinca would suit up for them and just turn out to be hobbling and ineffective, but I think he could serve a purpose with the Lakeshow thanks to his natural tools such as his length. He can also space the floor by nailing shots from midrange. Check out this video of him lighting up the Lakers for 28 & 15 after he was given a significant amount of minutes. Out of all the Lakers options, I kind of like him the most.
Emeka Okafor
He comes in a little old and crickety at 36 years old. He most recently played with the New Orleans Pelicans before being let go. He was then picked up by the Philadelphia 76ers for training camp but was subsequently waived on October 13th. Despite his advanced age, I think he could potentially put up some solid backup 5 minutes behind JaVale McGee.
Okafor was a useful piece to the Pelicans last year after DeMarcus Cousins went down with his Achilles injury. It was a pretty remarkable story actually. When he was onboarded by the New Orleans he was playing his first minutes on an NBA court since 2013. I don't recall off the top of my head a player coming back in the fray after a five-year break in the action. During his short stint there he drummed up 19 starts on the way to the Pelicans executing a shocking sweep over the Portland Trailblazers in the playoffs.
His offense wasn't anything to brag about, but the shot-blocking was still there. He could be a useful asset in terms of hustle, rebounding, rim protection, and another solid veteran presence if the Lakers gave him a chance. This video from last year's tenure with the Pelicans should highlight some of his potential as a rim protector.
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What do you guys think? Are there any other unrestricted free agents you think the Lakers should pursue? Please state your case if you say Joakim Noah. How about any ideas for trades? I'd love to hear them!
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