When Travis Wear saw his second 10-day contract with the Los Angeles Lakers expire Thursday, rumors surfaced that the team was working to sign him for the rest of the NBA season.
The Lakers made that official Friday, announcing they signed Wear for the remaining 11 games of the 2017-18 campaign. Wear spent most of the season with the Lakers’ G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, before getting a call-up to the parent team last month.
The Southern California native has made the most of his opportunity with the team he grew up rooting for, averaging 4.8 points and 2.2 rebounds in 12.8 minutes per game. Wear also shot a team-high 40 percent from 3-point range.
That long-range prowess is likely what earned Wear the chance to stay with Los Angeles for the rest of the season, as the spacing his shot provided seemed to have a positive effect on the Lakers’ offense.
The team is currently scoring 107.4 points per 100 possessions with Wear on the floor, the second-highest offensive rating on the team. However, Wear’s time with the team has coincided with an offensive uptick in general, and the Lakers are still scoring 106.8 points per 100 possession when he sits.
Still, it’s worth noting that the Lakers are 5.1 points per 100 possessions better with Wear on the floor in net rating than they are when he sits, Meaning, the G League veteran is at least doing a few things to help the team during his time in the NBA.
How long Wear will last on the roster beyond this season will depend on how the summer shakes out in free agency for L.A., but he’s earned the right to stick around for the rest of the season.