The Los Angeles Lakers are continually looking for ways to improve their roster and with 10-day contracts now being an option, the team has begun working out free agents. The Lakers have already given an opportunity to wing Sterling Brown, but theyalso recently took a look at a pair of big men in DeMarcus Cousins and Meyers Leonard.
Cousins is a familiar face to the franchise as he signed with the Lakers prior to the 2019-2020 season, but tore his ACL before the season began and never suited up for the purple and gold. Leonard hasn’t played since Feb. 2021 and has spent the last two seasons rehabbing shoulder and ankle injuries.
Both Cousins and Leonard worked out for the Lakers on Friday and Lakers head coach Darvin Ham said both looked great in front of the team according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
“They both looked great,” Ham said after practice Saturday. “Whether or not we’re able to do something with them is a different story. But we’re constantly trying to kick the tires on different scenarios.”
As for whether or not the Lakers could sign one of them on a 10-day contract, Ham said the team will be doing their due diligence:
“We’ll see,” Ham said. “We want to do our due diligence and make sure we know they’ve been in front of us and we’ve seen them so we can make a well-informed decision.”
The 10-day contract on Sterling Brown expires Sunday night so the Lakers could choose to look elsewhere for their next deal, and bringing in a big man makes some sense. The Lakers still lack some size as Anthony Davis continues to progress from his foot injury and neither Thomas Bryant nor Wenyen Gabriel has the size to deal with some of the league’s bigger centers.
Cousins, a five-time All-Star, played for the Denver Nuggets last season where he averaged 8.9 points and 5.5 rebounds in 31 appearances. Leonard averaged 3.3 points and 2.3 rebounds in three games with the Miami Heat in the 2020-21 season. He was also suspended indefinitely by the NBA in 2021 for his usage of an anti-semitic slur during a video game livestream.
Lakers’ Anthony Davis, Austin Reaves, Lonnie Walker IV all progressing from injury
Whether or not the Lakers choose to add one of those bigs remains to be seen, but the team could be receiving some reinforcements from within their roster as Anthony Davis, Lonnie Walker IV, and Austin Reaves are all progressing from their respective injuries.
Davis did some half-court work in the team’s practice on Saturday while Reaves did individual work. Ham also said that Walker was progressing as well and the Lakers are undoubtedly hopeful that all three will be back on the court sooner than later.
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