The Reinforcements
Although being active on the phones, the Lakers stood pat at the trade deadline forcing them to now rely on their recruiting powers to bolster their squad.
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As the buzzer rang throughout the league signaling the trade deadline had officially concluded, the Lakers as currently constructed, remained intact. No deals, no cuts and no waiver claims.
In a vacuum, the Lakers technically did not need to make a move. Especially in the vein of making one just to make one.
Sure, the team would have benefited if they were able to swing a deal for an impact player like Spencer Dinwiddie, Bogdan Bogdanovic or Marcus Morris — but in reality — given a bare assets cupboard, unattractive trade offers and putting team chemistry at potential risk, a deal was probably always going to be unlikely.
At 39-12, the team is still tops in a compulsive Western Conference and continue to be betting favorites alongside their Los Angeles brethren to make it to the finals. But for as good as they have been this year, and to be clear they have been really good, there is rightfully still a strong belief that manicuring around the edges needs to be done.
Enter the buyout market.
First and foremost, it is important to assess where improvements are actually needed. In terms of scoring, the Lakers have lacked a consistent counter jab outside of LeBron James and Anthony Davis all year as their supplementary pieces’ performances have routinely fluctuated.
Yet despite this, the team is still sporting the fourth best offensive rating in the league (113.7 points scored per 100 possessions) according to Cleaning the Glass.
Arguably the most urgent skillset the team needs to scour the free agency pool for however is an additional ball-handler. Precisely one who can effectively serve as a release valve for James.
This is no secret if you have scrolled through the Lakers’ twitter-sphere during a game night as one could only imagine the voodoo-doll-like tingling sensations Rajon Rondo experiences every time a fan hits send.
Although the team’s offense has steadily been one of the best in the league, it has crumbled during minutes when James attempts to catch his breath. With James on the floor, the Lakers have an offensive rating of 114.7 and an effective field-goal percentage of 56.4% When he sits, that number drops to 111 and 51.3% respectively.
The likes of the aforementioned Rondo, Alex Caruso and company simply have lacked the playmaking chops in combination with the lack of a threat of their own scoring prowess to bandage what has been increasingly growing wound.
Outside reinforcements looked to be coming via horseback in the form of Daren Collison, but that plan fell through Sunday evening when the veteran point guard decided the “timing isn’t right” for a return to NBA.
So where does that leave the Lakers in terms of options?
As of this post, the current available names in the league’s free agent pool do not offer up much optimism. However, there could be some useful finds.
There are players with intriguing skillsets that could be useful like that of Trey Burke, who although on the smaller side has shown to be able to put up buckets when given the chance.
In his limited opportunity with Philadelphia this year, Burke converted his 3-point chances at a 42.1% clip and was in the 100th percentile in spot-up possessions (tiny sample size, however) according to Synergy.
Another name that was thrown into consideration on Sunday was Tyler Johnson. Phoenix waived the guard presumedly to expose their younger talent to more playing time. He was averaging the fewest minutes of his career this season.
In terms of data support, Johnson’s advanced metrics more than indicate a nose-dive in terms of impact since he joined the Suns. But, for teams like the Lakers who may have potential interest, they very well will be banking on his playing environment being the root of the issue after his solid start to his career in Miami.
The most promising and enticing name that many teams will be keeping an eye on however is current Piston point guard, Reggie Jackson.
Marc Stein reported that Jackson is in the process of assessing whether to pursue a buyout or complete his contract obligations with Detroit. The Clippers, Stein reported, being the “likely suitors.”
While Jackson is not a player without his flaws, and may be eyeing the other Los Angeles team if reaching the market, he most likely could be the most impactful guard available.
Although averaging the fewest minutes of his career since the 2012-13 season, Jackson is shooting a career high 41% from beyond the arc this season and according to fivethirthyeight’s RAPTOR metric, also has the 17th best overall RAPTOR score among point guards who have played in at least 300 minutes this season.
For comparison, Rondo currently is 83rd.
Even if Jackson does not physically perform to the levels he has in recent seasons, one would imagine he would still be a clear upgrade compared to the team’s current non-LeBron facilitators. If nothing else, serving as a better pick and roll floor orchestrator of the offense and adding a much needed spacing gravity from the perimeter.
Beside adding an additional creator, it would behoove the team to also pick up some needed size on the wing. For all intents and purposes the Lakers are a big team. However, their distribution of inordinate size comes primarily in the front court as the rest of the roster is noticeably on the frail side.
In NBA terms. Please do not let them see this. They would crush me.
This has been made most apparent when they have squared off against other title contenders like the Clippers and the Bucks, whose wings resemble Scott Steiner compared to those of the Lakers.
Excluding their centers and two-way contracts (Davis as well because I feel he will play much more of the five come the playoffs), the Lakers currently have only three players on their roster who are at least 6’7” (James, Kyle Kuzma and Jared Dudley). The Clippers and Bucks each have five.
A few potential names such as Marvin Williams and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist have already or are close to have signed with new teams, proving these physical archetypes will be at a premium amongst teams looking to add final polishes to their roster.
One potentially enticing name to keep an eye on is former Clipper, Maurice Harkless. A part of the trade that delivered Morris to the Clippers, and not the Lakers, Harkless may not be long for New York if able to negotiate a buy-out with the Knicks.
The 6’9” wing is a physical and more importantly, versatile defender who would easily check off multiple boxes for the club. But his status as of now, remains to be seen.
Regardless of their record or league ranks, the Lakers are not indestructible. In fact, their weaknesses have proven to be bright red flags that opposing raging bulls otherwise known as contenders, have had dead set in their sights.
While no player picked up within the buy-out market is likely to sway a title one way or the other, it could however help fortify what is an already tremendous foundation in place. And that in itself, is worth aggressively pursuing.
*Update: Adrian Wojnarowski and Brian Windhorst have reported the Lakers are expected to have an exploratory conversation with Dion Waiters.