The 17-time champions Los Angeles Lakers have had a pretty decent offseason so far. They re-signed the players they wanted to keep the core together. After all, this particular core helped them turn things around last season. The 17-time champions were on the verge of missing out on back-to-back postseasons. However, quality trades right before the February trade deadline saved their season. Finally, the last year’s roster managed to reach the conference finals, let alone just make the postseason.
Hence, the priority was to keep the core together. That’s what the Lakers managed to do, more or less. But the next essential thing was to find a center as a reserve for Anthony Davis. This reserve would take some pressure off Anthony Davis. Hence, the Lakers are looking for options to sign in as their 14th member in their roster. But they are losing precious time and options. Hence, the Lakers must hurry.
The 17-Time Champions Are Losing Precious Options
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Utah Jazz man Udoka Azubuike was a free agent. Lately, Udoka’s agents, Zach Kurtin, and Mark Bartelstein, informed the Woj that he is moving toward the Phoenix Suns. He might sign a two-way contract with the Suns. The Lakers had close eyes on this player. Udoka Azubuike is a pretty good bench player. Rob Pelinka, several weeks ago, mentioned that they are looking for a big man as a free-agent center in their 14th spot.
They would like to keep their 15th spot open so that they can try to facilitate other moves after the new season starts. In 2022-23, Udoka had an average of 3.5 ppg along with 3.3 rebounds per game across 36 games playing only 10 minutes each game for the Utah Jazz. He is 6’11 from Kansas City. The Lakers would love to have him because of his size, efficiency around the rim, along with athleticism. But now the Lakers must look at other options like Christian Wood and Bismack Biyombo. They were already top contenders to get into the Lakers roster and are still available.
The Lakers Need A Player Like Christian Wood To Help AD As Much As They Can
Despite his defensive limitations, Jovan Buha of The Athletic feels Christian Wood can be a good option for the Lakers. However, there are a lot of questions regarding his attitude and presence in the locker room. But Buha feels he can play the reserve’s role well in the Lakers team. They need a player who can help Anthony Davis take some load off him. Everybody knows how fragile he is. AD might be a big man and also the leader of the group, but he is one of the weakest healthwise.
He has never been able to play more than 60 games a season since the 2020-21 season. Moreover, Anthony Davis generally faces a hard time playing more than 42 minutes a game. Last year, he missed twenty games on the trot due to a stress injury he sustained last December. The front office of the Lakers definitely would not want to repeat the same mistake. Hence, for precaution, they want to sign in solid reserves. After all, a healthy AD is among the best players in the league and can lead the team to their 18th title.
