The Los Angeles Lakers need serious help in the backcourt, but aging star Gilbert Arenas and the baggage he comes with are not worth the headaches.

As much as Kobe wouldn’t mind having him, the Lakers' organization is smarter than that.

Don’t get me wrong, I see the fact that the combined age of the two point guards the Lakers would use in the playoffs, Steve Blake and Derek Fisher, is 175 years old. We can all agree that they need help.

The problem is that Los Angeles would be adding to their troubles by signing the 30-year-old point guard. As we saw with his time in Orlando, there isn’t much, if any, fuel left in his tank.

The Los Angeles Times is reporting about the Lakers’ workout with the aging star:

Although General Manager Mitch Kupchak attended a workout involving Arenas on Sunday at a Bel-Air practice court, a person familiar with the organization's thinking but not authorized to discuss it publicly said the Lakers did not have serious interest in signing the three-time All-Star.

You have to give the Los Angeles Lakers credit for going to see the guard workout and assessing if he would be a good fit with their team, but you have to give them even more credit for passing on his services since he didn’t fit.

As much as Kobe came out and said that he wouldn’t mind the signing, he just wants help. Any help at this point would be better than no help. Too bad Arenas would have been no help.

While Arenas isn’t the answer, not making a move isn’t the right way to go either. The Lakers will not win with the backcourt the way it is right now, so adding a point guard that can eat minutes is a must.

With the trade deadline approaching fast, Los Angeles better be ready to pull the trigger on a move or risk being bounced in the first round of the playoffs.

 

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