The Los Angeles Lakers won their second consecutive game on Sunday night against the Orlando Magic behind incredible performances from Montrezl Harrell, Kyle Kuzma and Dennis Schroder. However, that wasn’t the biggest news of the day, as the Lakers added center Andre Drummond to their roster via the buyout market.
Drummond joins the Lakers in the middle of a stretch of games without LeBron James and Anthony Davis, providing an immediate infusion of talent to a team that has struggled mightily to score the ball and win games consistently. Despite players like Harrell playing great basketball nightly without James and Davis, it hasn’t been enough to secure many wins.
Because of this, Harrell is excited to get Drummond into the lineup, saying the team can’t wait for his arrival. “He’s a strong solid player on both ends on the floor, offensively and defensively.
“You can’t miss him. He’s a big dominant presence. He’s definitely going to be a good breath of fresh air to have him come into our lineup. He’s eager and ready to go and ready to get after it, so that’s a great attitude to have coming into an organization. We can’t wait for him to get here. We want to welcome him with open arms. Hopefully, just continue what we’re doing well right now.”
Harrell admitted he hasn’t spoken to Drummond but knows he’s eager to be back in action. “I’m not going to lie to you about that. I haven’t talked to him. This is more so coming from the reports and from the GM Rob [Pelinka] speaking highly of him and his conversation with him, so just looking at things like that. Basically, it’s just one of those things from a players’ perspective.”
The Lakers sixth man also hasn’t given much thought to what Drummond’s arrival means for him and his role. “No. I haven’t thought about that. That’s not something for me to think about. It’s not in my control, it’s not something that I make the decisions on.”
It’s unlikely that Drummond and Harrell will share the floor together consistently, as neither player has a significant range. Drummond and Harrell lineups would be a nightmare on the boards, but it would clog the paint considerably.
However, it’s likely that Harrell’s role will be essentially unchanged with the addition of Drummond. Players like Marc Gasol and Markieff Morris are more likely to have their roles reduced than Harrell, so he can continue to dominate off the bench the way he has recently.
Lakers pursuing three-and-D wing for final roster spot
Not only did the Lakers add Drummond to a championship-level roster, they still have one more open roster spot to work with. With Drummond on the team, the paint issues have been basically solved. Now, L.A. will reportedly turn their attention to adding a three-and-D wing.
The Lakers have been tied to players like Avery Bradley, who could be looking for a reunion after leaving the team in free agency.
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