Nets' Andre Drummond Says You Have to Be 'Built Differently' to Play for Lakers

Brooklyn Nets center Andre Drummond, who briefly played for the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2020-21 season, said on Jefe Island that people need to be "built differently to play for that organization."

Tyler Greenawalt of Yahoo Sports relayed the quotes from Drummond, who also noted that he enjoyed his time in Los Angeles:

“Yeah the Lakers is exactly what you think it is, man. You gotta be built differently to play for that organization. You gotta be mentally strong not even just on the court, but off the court too because there's so much expectations to being a Laker and putting that purple and gold on. Because if you don't meet that expectation they will let you know you're not worthy enough to put on that jersey. So you got to play to the best of your ability and play hard each and every night regardless of win, lose or draw. You gotta just play hard. That's what they respect.

"I had a lot of fun out there. I came off a weird situation in Cleveland where they sat me out for four months. I kind of came back, just trying to figure out how to fit in with a team that I haven't played before. It was kind of a weird situation getting back into the groove of basketball. I wish I had a chance to really connect with those guys and really do something. But everything happens for a reason. The Lakers situation was fun, though, I enjoyed being there."

Drummond signed with the Lakers as a free agent on March 28, 2021. At the time, the Lakers had lost four of their last five games and were playing without superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis because of injuries.

Los Angeles was sitting in a respectable fourth place in the Western Conference as it looked to mount a title defense, but prospects looked bleak for the Lakers without their top two stars. In other words, Drummond was joining the Lakers as they were scuffling through a rough patch.

He was brought in as a reinforcement for a short-handed frontcourt and ultimately averaged 11.9 points and 10.2 rebounds per game in 21 starts.

The Lakers' season ended in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs after the team fell to the Phoenix Suns in six games.

After the season, Drummond signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia 76ers, who traded him to the Brooklyn Nets in February as part of the James Harden-Ben Simmons deal. Drummond is set to become a free agent.

The 28-year-old has averaged 13.8 points and 13.3 rebounds in 10 NBA seasons. He's a four-time rebounding champion and two-time All-Star.