Now what?

Aloha,

While I think everyone would like to see trades that could reshape our roster into a contender, as time goes by I have become less optimistic that that will happen. Russ is hard because there are only a couple of teams with contracts that they may want to move and he isn’t a player that most teams actually want. At this point trading Russ really doesn’t guarantee that we will become contenders. So the question becomes is it better to ride his contract out and see if we can build next year. As for THT, recent moves by other teams that the Lakers have approached proves that he’s not in high demand either. One of the mistakes that Robb has made that’s over looked is giving THT that player option in year 3 was huge. He has shown promise but teams are reluctant to trade for him because if he does break out he can walk. All of this said, I still see ways that we can be at least as good as if we made some trades. I’m not saying it will bring another banner this year, but then realistic trades won’t bring rings either.

1. Health, Health, Health. If LeBron and AD are not healthy, nothing else matters.

2. AD has to be bubble AD most of the season. He has to be the guy that totally dominated Embid when we played. I would love to see him regain his 3 point shot but even without it he’s still a force on both sides of the ball. I think Ham is the perfect coach for him.

3. Russ doesn’t need to be a star, but if he can just be a plus role player, that would be huge.

3. Can LeBron give us a little more defense on the wing? I hope so because we will need that.

4. Can Nunn stay healthy? If he can, he is the perfect point guard for LeBron. He plays hard on defense which I’m sure coach Ham will love. He is also a 3 level scorer and he can play off the ball, which is a must with LeBron. All the talk was about LeBron and AD’s injuries but Nunn missing the season really hurt as well. He was considered one of the biggest steals in free agency and he was the talk of training camp before the injury. Having him available will be like having an extra mid level free agent added.

The kids are key and they all need a serious growth spurt.

1. THT appears to be staying unless something unexpected happens And that might not be terrible. The expectations for him I believe were inflated. He was the 46th pick in the 2nd round. He’s already out preformed what a team usually gets there. He’s only 21 and he does some nice things. He has a good handle, can play make, score at the rim in a variety of ways and is pretty good on the ball defensively.
He needs to bring his 3 point shooting at least close to 35% this year. He needs to really improve his defensive rotations and he needs to use better judgment when attacking the paint. If he can do that he will be a plus for the team.

2. Austin was a delightful surprise last year. You really couldn’t ask for a better in his first year. He needs to work on his strength and lateral quickness. He was beat a lot last year by quick guards. He has a nice stroke and I see no reason why he can’t be a 35 to 38% shooter from 3. Add this to what he already brings and he could become a key role player on a good team.

3. Stanley and Gabriel were both nice surprises. Stanley flashed the ability that made him a lottery pick, while Gabriel demonstrated why he was a 5 star recruit out of high school. I think they both will improve even more defensively with a full training camp. Stanley may have been our best defender after AD and proved he could guard 1 through 5. I was really impressed when he was matched up with guys like Harden. Gabriel not only defended but was a great rebounder as well. They both need to improve their 3 point shooting, up to the league average. And Stanley needs to slow it down some when he’s leading the break. He got in trouble some last year.

I don’t see Max or our two way guys contributing much this year but then I didn’t see Austin doing much either. Unfortunately Austin got his opportunity because everything went wrong with most of our free agents last year. If Christie gets a lot of minutes I hope it’s because he deserved them, not because the team is a disaster again.

Free agency. One great thing about this year is the lack of cap space around the league. We will be able to find some quality with both our mini MLE and vet minimum contracts. With so many open roster spots and available minutes there will be guys that will see the Lakers as an opportunity to re-establish their value. Anything can happen but here are a few names that maybe available to us.

Mini MLE

1. Malik is still at the top of the list for me. He is the best scorer that we can land. While he’s not great defensively he tries and at 24 will improve. Defense is usually the last thing to come to young players. He price range seems to be 6 to 10 mil. I have read some that say he will get 10 mil while some say he will resign with the Lakers. Considering we will have cap space next year will he bet on himself again? He does like playing for the Lakers. I’m hoping he does.

2. Gary Harris is another 6 to 10 mil guy. Because of his injury history he could end up closer to 6mil although he was healthy last year. While not the scorer that Malik is, he is a pretty good defender that has a 3 point shot.

3. Otto Porter Jr is a guy that I debated putting on the list. Not because of his skill set, we all saw how valuable he was for the Warriors. But that’s why I wasn’t sure. If he falls to the 6 mil mark I’m pretty sure the Warriors retain him with their MLE. With Iggy retiring and Green getting older he’s pretty valuable. But he was so good for the Warriors he may get a full MLE somewhere.

4. If you are a gambler Jalen Smith is your guy. 6’ 11’ PF/C he is only 22 and showed some of his lottery pick potential with the Pacers. He has a lot of offensive tools with a 3 point shot but he’s a project on defense. That’s where coach Ham comes in. Because of a contract flub by the Suns, the Pacers can only offer him 4.5 mil unless the use their MLE on him. We will see what they do. If the Pacers do trade Turner they very well may keep him.

5. Bruce Brown is a 6’ 4” shooting guard that actually played some PF for the Nets, great defender with a 3. Again I really don’t think he will be available because the Nets have bird rights.

Here are a few names that could fall the vet minimum status.

1 TJ Warren. He’s a 15 mil guy if healthy. But after playing only 4 games in two years he’s a huge risk who according to several insiders could end up a minimum player. I wouldn’t sign him with the MLE because of his broken foot issues but I would probably roll the dice on a minimum contract because if he stays healthy and regains his form it would be a huge signing. I also think the Lakers will be his first choice if he does fall because there is a chance to start here.

2. Taurean Prince is a 28 6’ 7” combo forward that can defend and shoots .376 from 3. He definitely wouldn’t be here in other years but several insiders say he could fall this far.

3. Delon Wright is a 6’ 5” defense first PG that can also play off the he ball and hit the 3. He would be a great get.

4. Danuel House. Another long wing that is a very good defender. Good 3 point shooter. The only reason he could fall this far is he has had attitude issues. But after having to prove himself with 10 day contracts and a very nice run at the end of the year with the Jazz perhaps it humbled him. For the vet minimum he’s worth the gamble.

5. Two centers I like at the minimum are Boogie and Damien Jones. We never should have let Jones go. Either could possibly sign for more but I would love to land one of them.

Old guys. While I don’t want many but I wouldn’t mind adding are Wes Matthews, DJ Augustine or of course Melo. Just not all 3.

If everything breaks right we could be a pretty good team. Hopefully after 2 years of just about everything going wrong, will we finally have a year where everything goes right? I hope soZ