Lakers Rumors: Dwight Howard, Joakim Noah, Mo Speights Workouts Planned

The Los Angeles Lakers are reportedly planning individual workouts with veteran big men Dwight Howard, Joakim Noah and Mo Speights in the wake of DeMarcus Cousins' knee injury, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Cousins is out indefinitely after tearing his ACL during an offseason workout in Las Vegas on Aug. 12. JaVale McGee is the only established and healthy center currently on L.A.'s roster.

Howard is coming off a season in which he appeared in only nine games for the Washington Wizards before undergoing spinal surgery in November "to relieve pain in his glutes." In his last healthy season, the eight-time All-Star averaged 16.6 points, 12.5 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game in 81 appearances for the Charlotte Hornets in 2017-18.

Following a July trade to the Memphis Grizzlies, the 33-year-old Howard is now with his fifth organization since 2016. Wojnarowski reported in the immediate aftermath of the trade that the Grizzlies would waive or trade the three-time Defensive Player of the Year.

Memphis has yet to cut ties with Howard as of yet, though. Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported Sunday that the Lakers were expected to request permission to speak to Howard. Wojnarowski noted the Grizzlies are willing to let him explore his market:

Of note, Howard previously played for the Lakers in 2012-13, which was the last time the franchise made the playoffs.

Noah, meanwhile, is coming off a bit of a bounceback season. As his NBA career appeared to be in jeopardy as he was exiled from the New York Knicks, he signed with Memphis last December. He wound up making 42 appearances for the Grizzlies in 2018-19, averaging 7.1 points and 5.7 rebounds in 16.5 minutes per game.

The 6'11" center is a two-time All-Star and played a big role in helping the Chicago Bulls rival LeBron James in the Eastern Conference during the earlier part of this decade.

Speights last played in the NBA in 2017-18 with the Orlando Magic, spending last season with the Guangzhou Long-Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association. He is best known for his time with the Golden State Warriors, where he averaged 8.0 points and 3.8 rebounds per game from 2013 to 2016.

He was a member of the Warriors 2015 championship team as well as the record-setting squad that won 73 games in 2015-16.

Speights has shot 37 percent from three-point range over his last two seasons in the NBA.