We are in mid-September, which means the NBA season is steadily approaching. Training camp is merely a few weeks away, which means the Lakers still have to fill that final roster spot. Who will it be?
DeAndre Jordan was definitely a surprise, but the Lakers moved Marc Gasol after it seemed the Spaniard was coming back for another season with the purple and gold. Jordan with Dwight Howard gives the Lakers a similar roster like they had in 2020 with JaVale McGee. Some might argue that Gasol gave them better options to spread the floor with his ability to shoot, but now that is off the table.
The Lakers are going to beat you by being bigger and more physical with the opposition, but it still wouldn’t hurt to get some more shooting at the end of the bench.
Since we are on the subject, let’s get to some of the questions:
Who should the Lakers sign up for their 14th spot?
— James Maglinao (@santimags3) September 12, 2021
The point guard and center position seem to be locked up at this point, so the Lakers should try to get another wing. Wesley Matthews would be the person I would pick if I was in Rob Pelinka’s shoes. He is able to defend at a decent level and can still shoot the ball. Granted, he didn’t have his best season last year, but he wanted to run it back. As mentioned before, his willingness to be a Laker is one of the best traits a player can have.
If not Matthews, then James Ennis should be the man for the job. He shot the ball incredibly well last season. While he is not known for his defense, you have to trust Frank Vogel will be able to coach him up defensively.
Q
The Lakers do not have many assets, so there is no deal to be made here for the final roster spot. The only way the Lakers will be able to add players this season will be once again via buy-outs. The roster you see know will likely be the one that finishes the season, hopefully in late June.
remember when we all thought lebron was going to play a lot of center? what if that's the plan for this season? pic.twitter.com/B3DtJtcVax
— David Chia (@chiapet74) September 13, 2021
As mentioned above, with Howard and Jordan on the roster, I doubt we see LeBron James play at center during the regular season. However, the playoffs could be a different story. I can see Vogel and staff have a lineup up their sleeves. They have the ability to go small and still have enough size to be bigger than the opposing team.
With Russell Westbrook, the Lakers will have to put shooters alongside Anthony Davis and James in order to spread the floor. So while he might not be the center officially, James will definitely be busy defending the paint in those instances.
That’ll do it for this week’s mailbag. Thank you everyone for your questions. Remember the quality of these is only as good as the questions we receive so keep them coming on Twitter or through our e-mail!
