Lakers Rumors: Cam Reddish, Christian Wood Top Candidates to Be Waived to Sign Center
It is contingency time for the Los Angeles Lakers after their trade for big man Mark Williams was rescinded because of a failed physical, and one option could be waiving a player on the current roster to create room to bring in an additional center.
ESPN's Dave McMenamin reported Monday that Christian Wood and Cam Reddish are "the top candidates" to be waived to create such a roster vacancy. He explained the team "still has enough room under the second apron to sign a buyout player, someone making less than $12.8 million with his previous team" ahead of the stretch run.
"We will find another center path," a team source told McMenamin. "The path is always there. We just got to put in the work to find it."
Frankly, this was one of the risks of pursuing Williams.
While the 23-year-old is a talented double-double threat every time he steps on the floor, he played 43 games as a rookie in 2022-23 and 19 games in his second season in 2023-24 before appearing in 23 games to this point this season.
Injuries have largely prevented him from fully living up to his potential and now they prevented him from joining the Lakers.
That was quite the blow for Los Angeles, which needed more frontcourt depth after giving up Anthony Davis in the trade for Luka Dončić. While Jaxson Hayes has been solid for the Purple and Gold, there aren't a ton of formidable options elsewhere.
A lack of frontcourt depth could be particularly problematic in the Western Conference playoffs with possible matchups against Chet Holmgren, Nikola Jokić, Alperen Şengün, Domantas Sabonis, Rudy Gobert and even Davis himself looming.
On paper, Wood is someone who could provide that missing frontcourt depth, but he has not played a game this season while recovering from the left knee surgery.
As for Reddish, he was part of the initial trade that landed Williams from the Charlotte Hornets. That he was already traded once suggests the front office views him as dispensable for the right pieces, so it's not surprising to see his name listed as someone who could be waived.
Los Angeles is in fifth place in the Western Conference standings after winning nine of 10 and appears to be a legitimate contender at this point, only adding to the urgency to fill the frontcourt holes before the playoffs.
