The Los Angeles Lakers roster currently sits at full capacity, with their salary cap right under the dreaded second apron. The team has spent the offseason looking for different ways to improve the roster but so far, haven’t done anything of significance.
For the Lakers to do anything, they would need to clear roster spots. General manager Rob Pelinka may still look to upgrade the team before training camp starts and there are a few quality free agents left on the market.
Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report listed landing spots for the best remaining free agents around the NBA. The Lakers were named as a good place for veteran sharpshooting forward Doug McDermott.
“McDermott, 32, doesn’t do much else at this stage of his career, yet he remains an elite floor-spacer who would fit in well next to James and Anthony Davis. He nailed 47.8 percent of his pull-up threes and 40.3 percent of his catch-and-shoot attempts last season between the San Antonio Spurs and Indiana Pacers.
The Pacers scored 7.1 more points per 100 possessions with McDermott on the floor (94th percentile, via Cleaning the Glass), and his defensive concerns would help be negated by playing alongside Davis.”
The Pacers were one of the better offensive teams around the NBA last season, with McDermott helping to space the floor for them. His shooting ability could vastly help the Lakers’ offensive attack, especially with the emphasis on shooting more 3-point shot attempts this season.
The former Creighton product split time between the San Antonio Spurs and Pacers a year ago. He averaged 5.5 points, 0.9 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game between the two teams
McDermott shot 41.0 percent from beyond the 3-point line, showing that he can still knock down shots at a high rate. If the Lakers were to sign him, McDermott would receive looks from 3-point land coming from passes of LeBron James.
James has long been known to be one of the better passers in basketball history so McDermott could find himself having a great season. The defensive liabilities are concerning, especially for a team that struggled on that end of the floor a year ago. But if McDermott could even slightly hold his own, he could remain on the court.
McDermott seems like he could be a nice flier for the Lakers to take a chance on. While his defense is a struggle, he would add size to the roster, with him being 6-foot-6.
Adding a player like McDermott would help the Lakers be more competitive next season but until some roster moves are made, everything is just hypothetical.
