As training camp begins to approach, being less than a month away, the Los Angeles Lakers will undoubtedly be looking through free agency to fill out the last couple of spots on their roster.
Teams are permitted to bring 20 players to free agency and after coming to terms with Zach Auguste, Travis Wear, and Julian Jacobs, the Lakers currently stand at 18. Now comes news that the Lakers may be interested in veteran power forward Carl Landry.
Landry was recently released by the Philadelphia 76ers and according to Darren Wolfson of KSTP, the Lakers are one of the teams interested in him:
Agree that he'll help someone. Hear Rockets, Spurs, Lakers, Pacers among those interested. No #Twolves, as of now. https://t.co/1n8KzfvwOo
— Darren Wolfson (@DWolfsonKSTP) September 3, 2016
Landry’s talent is not in question as he has long been a reliable scorer in the NBA. He has averaged more than 10 points per game throughout his nine-year NBA career, topping out at 18 points per game with the Sacramento Kings in 2010. Last season he averaged 9.8 points and 4.1 rebounds for the 76ers.
The Lakers interest in Landry however, would seem a bit odd considering their big man situation. The Lakers are extremely crowded in the front court with Julius Randle, Timofey Mozgov, and Larry Nance Jr. already looking like locks to be in the rotation. Additionally, the Lakers also have Tarik Black, Ivica Zubac, and Yi Jianlian competing for minutes as well, and Luol Deng could also play some power forward.
Nonetheless, the Lakers seem intent on adding one more front court player as both Auguste and Wear are also big men. If the Lakers were to bring in Landry he could certainly fill the role that Brandon Bass played last season.
The Lakers currently have 15 players on guaranteed contracts right now, but there is still a question as to whether Nick Young will remain on the roster. Should the Lakers release him, as is expected, that would free up one spot, a spot that could potentially go to Landry.