:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/65080930/Image_from_iOS.0.jpg)
Editor’s Note: For the second year in a row, the Silver Screen and Roll staff is counting down the most interesting Lakers heading into next season. We will be going through all 20 training camp spots before the season begins, and today we continue with the first player (or should we say roster spot) in a three-way tie for 11th place on the list.
I was assigned this article about two weeks ago. When I was first assigned this I thought, well my four free agent targets will probably be players that are either three-and-D type players, or guards. Then the devastating news broke that DeMarcus Cousins had injured his knee, and not only was my heart broken, but the focus of my list had to change a little.
Before Cousins’ injury, my mindset was that this 15th roster spot wasn’t a huge need. The player the Lakers sign using this 15th spot wasn’t going to make or break this team. Now, this signing is something that the Lakers need to select very carefully, even if it might not actually be their last signing (more on that in a minute).
The Lakers currently have 20 players on their roster. Two of those players are two-way players (Zach Norvell Jr. and Kostas Antetokounmpo) who don’t count for the full roster, and it’s likely that all of their four nonguaranteed players (Aric Holman, Jordan Caroline, Devontae Cacok, Demetrius Jackson) will end up in the G League with the South Bay Lakers. That would already leave the Lakers with one final open roster spot, and the team can now also use the disabled players exception on Cousins, which would let them sign a player to a one-year contract.
Here are some guys they should look at for those slots.
Now I know, everyone is going to hate my choice of Dwight Howard at #4 on this list. So do I, but the Lakers desperately need a big man and he’s the second-best center currently available in my opinion. Dwight hasn’t been able to find a home in the NBA, not because of his skill set, but because of his massive ego. This could be me being a fool, but there’s a small sliver of a chance that Dwight might have a different mindset now that he knows that there’s actually no NBA team going after him.
I think the Lakers are doing the right thing in at least bringing Dwight in for a workout. Now, even if the Lakers do sign him, he still may get hit with some boos at Staples Center, but the only thing that will make that change is his play on the court.
Like I said earlier, the Lakers lost DeMarcus Cousins, who I believed was going to be somewhere from third to fifth most impactful player on the team, so this upcoming signing is going to have to be one that impacts the team a lot. To see who I put for the rest of the list, well, you’re gonna have to watch the video.
But just to save a little time: Sorry, Royce White, Carmelo Anthony isn’t on the list.
The countdown so far...
11. (tie) The 15th roster spot
For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts.