After agreeing to bring back point guard Tyler Ennis and signing rookie second-rounder Thomas Bryant, the Los Angeles Lakers find themselves with 14 players on their roster, as well as Alex Caruso on a two-way contract.
The Lakers are likely done with any major signings for the remainder of the summer and are expected to fill their final roster spot with a player who impresses in training camp. Someone who was thought to be a potential option as a camp invite was P.J. Dozier, an undrafted guard from South Carolina who was on the Lakers’ Summer League team.
Injury prevented Dozier from getting to show off much in Las Vegas, but he was certainly someone who deserved a close look. However, the Lakers won’t get that chance as Dozier has signed a partially guaranteed deal with the Dallas Mavericks, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski:
Undrafted South Carolina guard PJ Dozier has agreed to a partially guaranteed deal with the Dallas Mavericks, league source tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 27, 2017
Dozier has some potential as an athletic guard who can defend multiple positions. He’s also capable of playing some point guard and has decent ball-handling and passing ability. His shooting leaves a lot to be desired, however, but he is exactly the type of player teams look to sign on two-way deals.
With Dozier and Matt Thomas signing deals elsewhere, two members of the Lakers championship Summer League squad have gotten contracts. As the Lakers look to fill out their training camp roster, players like Vander Blue and Travis Wear will likely get consideration to be brought in.
The Lakers will look closely at all options as each of the last two seasons has seen players turn camp invites into a spot on the final roster. Thomas Robinson notably enjoyed a bounce back season while Metta World Peace survived the odds two straight seasons.