The Los Angeles Lakers have completely remade their roster this offseason, making a number of additions to build the team around superstar guard Luka Doncic. One of the biggest was pulling off a sign-and-trade for center Walker Kessler, but the team still remains pretty thin up front.
As such, the front office is still believed to be eyeing possibilities to add some depth at the center position. One interesting possibility is Chicago Bulls big man Jalen Smith, who apparently has some fans within the Lakers organization, but may not be available for trade, via Dan Woike of The Athletic:
Smith has some fans within the organization because he plays with motor and has worked himself into a pretty good outside shooter. But Smith is expensive (one-year, $9.5 million remaining on his deal) and undersized at 6 foot 8. The previous Bulls’ regime was a fan of his, which puts his actual availability into question.
Smith is an intriguing option as the former lottery pick has quietly made himself into a solid player. In two seasons with the Bulls, he has averaged 9.1 points and 6.1 rebounds. He has also improved as an outside shooter and knocked down 37.3% from deep last season on more than four attempts per game. While he isn’t necessarily the rim-running type of big the Lakers are known to desire, he does bring something to the table that their current bigs don’t. And, as was noted, he may not even be available as he has played well for the Bulls and they might not want to deal him.
The Lakers did also sign veteran Kevon Looney this offseason, but there are questions about the wear-and-tear on his body he has dealt with throughout his 11-year NBA career. Looney appeared in just 21 games for the New Orleans Pelicans last year, but appeared in at least 74 contests in each of the prior four seasons and has dealt with hip and abdominal issues in the past that have severely limited his mobility over the years.
Whether the Lakers are able to make a move prior to the start of the season remains to be seen, but adding depth up front remains a priority. And with there already being 16 players under contract, the front office will have to do something in order to clear out a spot for any potential big man.
Luka Doncic hosting entire Lakers roster for minicamp in Slovenia
Those who are currently on the Lakers roster will soon be heading overseas as Doncic is hosting the entire team for a four-day minicamp in his home country of Slovenia in order to help begin building the chemistry with this new roster.
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