Road to Revival: Taking over as the Los Angeles Lakers’ General Manager
The 0-4 Los Angeles Lakers are pretty dreadful at basketball, but remain great at making history.
The 2022-23 Lakers now hold the record for the lowest three-point percentage, 22.3%, through the first four games of a season. It’s almost like when a team refuses to sign three-point shooters, they shockingly can’t make threes!
There’s been a lot of negativity surrounding this team, and rightfully so. Should they send Russell Westbrook home? Why did general manager Rob Pelinka get an extension from owner Jeanie Buss? Is LeBron James’ championship window over? Why does Anthony Davis look like he’s 39, not 29?
The topics are endless, but so exhausting. So, let’s try to shed some positive light on this dark, depressing abomination of a Lakers team. Let’s try and fix this team.
What we know
The Lakers have $98 million dollars tied up next year — $93 to LeBron and Davis, with the remaining five split between Damian Jones and rookie Max Christie. The NBA told teams early in September that the cap would rise to $134 million for the 2023-24 season, an 8.4% bump, giving us about $36 million to play with.
Who do we re-sign?
Despite the Lakers’ incapability to perform on the court, they actually have some productive players on the roster. The losses are not due to a lack of ability — it’s the construction of the squad that is bottom-tier. The great part about resigning players in the NBA is that we can sign them to sizable contracts without dipping into the salary cap, as we have their Bird Rights. So who should we keep around for next season?
Patrick Beverley
Yes, Beverley is 3-16 from three in the first four games of the season, and sometimes it does feel like he’s “running around, doing nothing,” as Westbrook famously noted. But I like his defensive intensity, and if he figures out his long ball yips as a Laker, he can be a useful piece in a smaller role.
Austin Reaves
Reaves needs more playing time, it’s that simple — 20.8 minutes per game is not enough. Reaves is connecting on 40% of his three point looks, the only player outside of Matt Ryan (No, not the quarterback) who is shooting above 26%. He plays hard defensively, and I like how he fits with LeBron and Davis.
Even though Lonnie Walker IV looks like Rajon Rondo from afar, he certainly does not play like the future Hall-of-Famer. Unlike Rondo, Walker IV looks like he can jump to the ceiling of Crypto.com Arena. He brings intensity and youthfulness to this humdrum Lakers squad, so let’s give him another shot on a legitimate team.
Potential new signings
Kyrie Irving
This one’s a shot in the dark. As the Lakers general manager, I prefer to prioritize high-level role players to surround LeBron and Davis, the 2020 championship formula, but who can say no to a Kyrie Irving-LeBron reunion? If the Nets are bounced out of the first round again, Kyrie may want out of Brooklyn, and L.A. would definitely be his number one destination after the Lakers tried to pry him away from the Nets this summer. He would want our entire $36 million in cap space, and he can have it. We would fill out the roster with veteran’s minimum signings, which may not be ideal, but do you know what is ideal? A Kyrie-LeBron-Davis Big 3.
Jerami Grant
If we cannot get Kyrie, my next call will be to sign Grant. A “three-and-D” forward that can create his own shot? Sign me up. Grant would likely demand a contract number in the high $20s, giving us just under $10 million to throw at other free agents.
Myles Turner
The Lakers want to trade Westbrook for Turner before the trade deadline, and for good reason. Davis has never really wanted to bang down low with other centers in the league — Turner can preserve Davis’ body while stretching the floor on the offensive end as a career 34.8% shooter.
Bogan Boganovic
The Lakers reportedly had a chance to snag Bogdanovic, a premium fit next to LeBron and Davis, from the Jazz this offseason, but decided against it for some unknown reason, cough-cough Rob Pelinka. On Wednesday, Bogdanovic hit a flurry of threes as a Detroit Piston — that might have been useful for the Lakers.
Harrison Barnes
Wings are a common theme amongst these potential signings. Why? Well, because the Lakers currently have zero above replacement level wings on the roster, and they are 0-4. Coincidence? I think not. Harrison Barnes does not hit threes at the same rate as Bogdanovic, but he’s a better defender and a very smart player. Do not forget that this guy was the starting small forward of the record-breaking 73-9 Golden State Warriors.
On a positive note, this could be a fun offseason for the Lakers, with money to play with and just four rostered players. Unfortunately, this ends my short stint as the Lakers general manager. To any NBA front office members reading, I’m just a phone call away — don’t be afraid to reach out with any job offers.
Sahil Kurup is a junior writing about the Los Angeles Lakers and the endless drama that follows them. His column “Road to Revival” runs every other Friday.