The Los Angeles Lakers announced they have signed forward Louis King presumably to an Exhibit 10 contract. King went undrafted in the 2019 NBA Draft and signed a two-way contract with the Detroit Pistons. He has since spent time with the Pistons, Sacramento Kings and Philadelphia 76ers over four NBA seasons.
King has been on two-way contracts for nearly the entirety of his NBA career thus far. However, the Lakers have all three two-way slots currently occupied, belonging to Colin Castleton, D’Moi Hodge and Alex Fudge.
The Lakers are bringing in King on an Exhibit 10 deal with the expectation that he will begin the season with the South Bay Lakers, as they acquired his G League rights via a trade with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.
TRADE ?
The #SBLakers have acquired the returning player rights to forward @LouisKing from the @RGVVipers as part of a three-team trade. In return, South Bay sent its own 2024 first-round draft pick to RGV and sent the returning player rights to @3five_ to the @ChargeCLE. pic.twitter.com/o8IEXVxVI5
— South Bay Lakers (@SouthBayLakers) October 18, 2023
As part of the trade, South Bay sent its own 2024 G League first-round draft pick to the Vipers and sent the riught to Fabian White Jr. to the Cleveland Charge.
King has played in 27 NBA games over four seasons but only played one for the 76ers during the 2022-23 season. In that game, however, King exploded for 20 points on 8-for-13 from the field and 4-for-8 from three. His NBA career high is 27 points.
King played 18 games for the Vipers last season during the Showcase Cup, averaging 19.9 points and 1.6 steals per game on 45.1/31.4/77.8 shooting splits. In 2021-22 with the Stockton Kings for the Showcase Cup, King shot 41.2% from beyond the arc on 5.7 attempts per game.
King has a career 37.1 3-point percentage during regular season G League play. It’s unlikely that King will see any time with the Lakers this season, but having a young and clearly talented player in the G League system can never hurt.
Lakers waive three Exhibit 10 players
Prior to bringing in King, the Lakers felt it was time to part ways with three Exhibit 10 players in Scotty Pippen Jr., Damion Baugh and Vincent Valerio-Bodon. All three could still appear with South Bay in the G League, but they will not be with the Lakers for preseason any more.
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