Grading Los Angeles Lakers' Final 15-Man Roster
Training camps allow NBA teams such as the Los Angeles Lakers the opportunity to acclimate and evaluate their rosters, before the rigors of the 82-game regular season begin.
This year, it was also a time in which to integrate a new head coach in Byron Scott, and a new style of roundball. Out was Mike D'Antoni's volume-scoring offense. In was Scott's emphasis on old-school defense.
It should have been a chance for a fresh start after two seasons that presented an unending pileup of injuries, in which rotations were simply never set.
But in a case of the more things change, the more they stay the same, this preseason has once again been largely overshadowed by the revolving carousel of hurt, from minor to the kind that provides unhappy closure to a career.
That said, the start to the regular season is upon us. And it’s time to hand out some grades.
Center
1 of 5
Projected starter: Jordan Hill
Backup: Ed Davis, Robert Sacre
Jordan Hill averaged 9.5 points and 8.2 rebounds during six preseason appearances. The team kept his minutes light at 23.6 per game as he worked into condition for what will be his first role as a starter.
The 27-year-old big man may have averaged career highs off the bench last season, but his low-post style wasn’t a good fit in D’Antoni’s spread offense.
Hill got paid this summer with an $18 million two-year contract from the Lakers. But that wouldn’t have happened if the team hadn’t made a change. Per Mark Medina for the Los Angeles Daily News, Hill said: “If Mike was here, I wouldn’t be back. That’s the way it was. No disrespect to Mike, but apparently I didn’t fit his system. Why would I come back?”
Hill sat out the final two games of the preseason with a neck “stinger” but there don’t seem to be any injury alarm bells ringing.
Ed Davis also signed a two-year deal this summer, but for far less money at $2 million. He played well during the preseason as a backup center—grabbing loose balls, protecting the rim and shooting an eye-opening 73 percent from the field.
The 6’10” lefty brings tenacity and toughness to the game, and worked particularly well with Jeremy Lin, setting screens for the point guard and getting open on easy rolls to the basket.
Robert Sacre was the No. 60 overall pick by the Lakers in 2012. The 7-foot, 270-pounder is the biggest player on the roster, but doesn't have a natural nose for rebounding. Sacre also picks up a lot of fouls with his defensive methodology of standing stiff like a board with his arms straight up in the air.
That said, Sacre has a good attitude, isn't afraid to mix it up and has a decent right-handed hook shot to pair with an effective 12-to-15 foot jump shot.
The pivot position has been the most stable and consistent spot for the Lakers during the preseason. Hill, Davis and Sacre are a pretty solid three-headed unit heading into the regular season.
Grade: B
Power Forward
2 of 5
Projected starter: Carlos Boozer
Backup: Julius Randle, Ryan Kelly
Carlos Boozer hasn’t been as bad as many fans feared during the lead-up to the regular season. On the other hand, he’s no longer one of the NBA’s top frontcourt players.
Claimed off amnesty waivers from the Chicago Bulls this summer, the 32-year-old veteran has been a starter throughout his career, and will start for the Lakers as well—for now.
Boozer averaged a decent 12.6 points per game in 25 minutes over the preseason. His rebounding plunged precipitously however—just 4.4 compared to his career average of 9.8.
A pedestrian one-and-done season would appear to be on the horizon for the fading big man.
On the other hand, Julius Randle’s star is on the rise.
The No. 7 draft pick for the Lakers this year showed that he’s more than just a threat in the paint during the preseason.
Indeed, the stocky 6’9” rookie is drawing improbably comparisons to a past Lakers favorite, the silky-smooth Lamar Odom.
And, the praise isn’t as farfetched as some might think—Randle has surprising agility and nimble footwork when he brings the ball up the length of the court and finishes left-handed at the rim.
After receiving plenty of tough love criticism during training camp from his coach, Randle revealed that he’s undeterred, per Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times:
"I’m not frustrated at all. I work too hard. I know eventually I'll have success and I'll figure things out. Instead of being frustrated and down, when my name is called, [I'm] excited, ready to go, ready to bring that energy, bring good vibes.
"
Good vibes indeed, especially when he replaces Boozer in the starting lineup.
Ryan Kelly had a decent rookie season as a stretch-4 under D’Antoni. The 6’11” former NCAA champion from Duke is a shooter not a banger, however, and it’s hard to know how he’ll function in Scott’s system.
Kelly is another of the team’s walking wounded, having missed the entire preseason with hamstring issues.
Grade: B-
Small Forward
3 of 5
Projected starter: Wesley Johnson
Backup: Nick Young, Xavier Henry
Wesley Johnson, a former No. 4 draft pick, is easily the most frustrating Laker to watch on the court. He’s got a great NBA body, pure athleticism and a decent skill set. He can absolutely blow you away on a highlight dunk.
And then he disappears back into the woodwork.
The 6’7” small forward has received chance after chance in the NBA based on potential. He now gets a shot with his sixth head coach in five years.
Overall, Johnson has not looked impressive during the preseason. Perhaps, at age 27, he simply isn’t going to get any better.
After leading all Lakers in scoring last season, Nick “Swaggy P” Young was signed to a four-year deal in the offseason. His new coach, Scott, was full of praise during an interview with Mike Trudell of Lakers.com, giving his observations of Young’s sixth man role under former coach Mike D’Antoni:
"I liked how he played and how he was giving full effort on the defensive end, and I really love his energy. He cared about winning. He changed his whole persona, what people thought of him. I’d never seen him play defense before. I also saw him being unselfish at times where he made passes. I do love Swaggy coming off the bench.
"
And then Swaggy went and tore the radial collateral ligament of his right thumb while trying to steal the ball from Kobe Bryant during the first week of training camp. Surgery followed, with an eight-week timetable for his return.
Does this stuff never end?
Apparently it doesn’t. High-flying Xavier Henry was also re-signed this summer, with hopes that he’d be another weapon in the Lakers’ arsenal of small forwards and shooting guards.
Except that Henry, who has had multiple right knee injuries and surgeries over a four-year career, wound up missing all of training camp before flying to New York for a second opinion on the knee that was operated on again last April. Next on his list was Regenokine treatment in Germany.
Henry has now returned and was able to do some shooting on Sunday. But as Scott said, per Lakers.com, the swingman is still "three weeks behind."
The small forward position is a mess heading into the regular season, and it’s difficult to give it anything other than an “incomplete” grade. But if you really want one...
Grade: C-
Shooting Guard
4 of 5
Project starter: Kobe Bryant
Backup: Jordan Clarkson, Wayne Ellington
If there seems to be one stroke of good fortune when it comes to health, it’s that Kobe Bryant has looked fit, and increasingly sharp through the preseason.
The Lakers never had much of a shot at the playoffs last season without their cornerstone—he missed all but six games due to a fractured knee.
The aging champion will be hanging his hat on a new grind-out style of team physicality this season, saying after a recent game: “We’re going to be smashmouth basketball.”
Bryant averaged 19 points for the preseason on whole, second only to Klay Thompson for the Golden State Warriors. On the other hand, the Mamba averaged 26.6 points for his last three games.
It’s not a question of whether he’s still an elite player, but only a matter of staying healthy.
Jordan Clarkson was envisioned as a point guard for the Lakers when they drafted him at No. 46 in June. However, he has more often been used in the shooting guard slot. Whether that changes because of injuries to other backcourt players remains to be seen.
Clarkson was the Lakers’ leading scorer during Las Vegas Summer League and also played well during the preseason, although missing four games due to a calf strain.
Possessing speed, agility, ball-handling skills and a jumper that has improved since college, the rookie looks to be one of the true steals of this year’s draft and will get plenty of minutes to prove it.
Wayne Ellington, who has an unguaranteed contract, was on the bubble heading into the Lakers’ final preseason game. In fact, a solid argument could have been made for keeping small forward Roscoe Smith instead. But Ellington knocked heads with the Sacramento Kings' Ben McLemore and went out with a concussion.
The NBA now has a strict protocol with concussions—Ellington will have to be monitored by a neurologist. The team can’t cut him during that period without owing him a full season’s salary.
With no other choice, the Lakers waived Smith, along with Jabari Brown.
Grade: B+
Point Guard
5 of 5
Projected starter: Jeremy Lin
Backup: Ronnie Price
Finished: Steve Nash
When it comes to injuries affecting the Lakers’ season, perhaps none was as frustrating, and yet anticipated, as Steve Nash’s.
One of the greatest point guards of all time simply couldn’t overcome chronic back and nerve root issues. The team announced on Oct. 23 that Nash’s season was over, before it even really began.
According to Bill Oram of the Orange County Register, the team will apply for an injury exception, which, if allowed, would be worth up to $4.85 million.
It could now be all on Jeremy Lin.
The former Linsanity sensation arrived in Los Angeles via a trade from the Houston Rockets this season. It was anticipated that he’d back up Nash. Now, he has an open field ahead of him.
Or does he? Per Arash Markazi of ESPN Los Angeles, Scott hasn’t yet made up his mind on who will start during the regular season—Lin or Ronnie Price: “Whoever I start is going to play the bulk of the minutes. He's going to play 30 minutes or more. It's really who I feel comfortable with, and to be honest with you, right now I feel comfortable with both of those guys.”
That, however, was before Price banged knees with Darren Collison during the Lakers’ final preseason game against the Sacramento Kings.
As a result, Scott now says Lin will start for the season's opener against the Rockets Tuesday night, per the team's twitter feed.
In five preseason appearances, Lin averaged 12.4 points and 6.2 assists. He looked even stronger than that in the final two games, especially when connecting with Davis on perfectly executed pick-and-rolls.
Price was signed to an unguaranteed contract right before training camp. The 31-year-old basketball journeyman was seen as adding potential depth, but wound up starting during the preseason as Nash and Lin missed games.
Price is a tough-minded guard with shifty moves, and well-liked by Scott. Despite his bone bruise, the team is listing him as "probable" for Tuesday.
For now, the point guard story for the Lakers is raising more questions than answers.
Grade: C
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